FOX "Interview With Senator John Barrasso" - Transcript
Interview
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MS. KELLY: Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming has voted no on every stimulus proposal so far, but he says he would vote for this bill on one condition.
Senator, good morning to you.
SEN. BARRASSO: Great to be with you, Megyn.
MS. KELLY: And what is that condition?
SEN. BARRASSO: Well, that it actually stimulates the economy and really addresses what we need to be addressed, to me, this is a big spending bill. It's now morphed to over $900 billion. They say they're going to create jobs, but to create three million jobs or save three million jobs, it's $300,000 a job. The price tag is much too high and I'm not convinced it's going to stimulate the economy.
MS. KELLY: You know what, you aren't and neither are the American people. Fifty percent according to this latest poll say the plan that finally emerges from Congress may end up doing more harm than good. Half of the American people don't believe in the plan.
How do you stop it? It seems like a freight train going through Washington right now. Everybody seems to say it's a foregone conclusion we're going to pass some huge spending plan. How do you stop it?
SEN. BARRASSO: Well, what I'm trying to do, Megyn, is talk to the American people and educate them. The American people are smart. They look at this and say, this is a big spending bill. How is this really going to help the economy? The poll numbers that you just talked about just reflect people learning more about this proposal. It's pent up demand by projects that really are not going to stimulate the economy. They look at some of these projects and the concern of the American people and from the calls I'm getting from all around Wyoming is their fear is that it spends too much, not that it cuts taxes too much. By three to one, people are saying that across the country and the calls I'm getting, I was in Wyoming this past week, you know, almost overwhelmingly people are opposed to this plan.
MS. KELLY: You know a group of Senate Republicans, John McCain, John Thune and others, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, have come up with an alternate plan that presents $445 billion in the so-called stimulus and they say that would cut all workers' payroll taxes. It would slash corporate taxes and it would slash tax rates for lower income tax brackets. It's basically tax reduction plan.
Do you support that plan?
SEN. BARRASSO: I talked to Senator Thune this morning and what you just talked about is a plan that's half the price tag of what we're looking at now.
MS. KELLY: Exactly.
SEN. BARRASSO: And it really deals with things that are going to stimulate the economy because it's the small businesses of America that stimulate and drive -- that's the engine that drives this economy. It's allowing people to keep more of their hard earned money. That's the way to stimulate this economy, not on just big projects that are pent up demands.
You look at this list of projects and people -- all of your viewers know that these are not ways to stimulate the economy. A lot of these are wasteful efforts, to send money to the Philippines for World War II Filipino veterans, you say, how is that going to stimulate the American economy? It is not.
MS. KELLY: It's a good question, but you know, you look at the stimulus plan, it looks an awful lot like the appropriations bill that you lawmakers fight over each year where the Democrats want a long list of things and the Republicans want a list of things and so on, but you don't call it a stimulus bill, you call it an appropriations bill.
The problem, senator is, you guys, you're in the minority and you don't have the votes. The Democrats seem to want to push this through except for a few. So can you get those few to come on to your side and put the brakes on this thing? Are we going to wind up this week or next with a $900 billion stimulus plan on our hands?
SEN. BARRASSO: Well, if I have anything to do about it, Megyn, we are not going to end up with a $900 billion stimulus plan for this country. I'm going to make sure taxpayers get value for their money, absolutely, I want to vote for something, but I want to vote for something that gives taxpayers value and that really stimulates the economy and all of those other projects like you talked about, they may have merit, let's debate them separately, not as part of an emergency stimulus package to help getting our economy going.
People know what's happening with the economy. They know we ought to fix housing first. That's where the problems began.
MS. KELLY: That's the thing, senator.
SEN. BARRASSO: That's how to start addressing it.
MS. KELLY: It's not saying no to those other projects, it's saying let's debate those in the normal course of legislative business.
SEN. BARRASSO: Normal course.
MS. KELLY: Let's not just cram it down the taxpayers' throats now in the name of stimulus, but the Democrats really believe that this is going to create jobs. President Obama believes that it's going to create jobs. How do you respond to that?
SEN. BARRASSO: Well, I don't believe it's going to create jobs. I think that the way you create jobs in this country is not the government; it's small businesses. They have been the people that have created jobs throughout our entire history of this great country and that's the way to do it. You give them the opportunities and the incentives through tax credits and tax breaks, depreciation, so you try to stimulate the economy that way, but you also have to fix housing, which got us into this situation in the first place. You encourage first time buyers with a $15,000 tax credit. You encourage people and help them stay in their homes by allowing them to refinance at a lower rate if they qualify for mortgages.
So there are things we can do with a much, much lower price tag that really aim at stimulating the economy, not this bloated package that I talk about shovel-ready projects, a lot of these things, to me, are ready for the axe. They ought to just be taken out of the bill completely.
MS. KELLY: Senator John Barrasso, Republican of Wyoming. Thank you so much, sir.
SEN. BARRASSO: Thanks, Megyn.
MS. KELLY: All the best.
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