MSNBC "Interview With Senator John Barrasso" - Transcript

Interview

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MS. WITT: Like the rest of the process that will likely be done without too much support from the GOP, Wyoming Republican Senator John Barrasso voted against the bill's first version and the senator joins us now live from Capitol Hill.

Good afternoon to you, sir.

SEN. BARRASSON: Great to be with you, Alex.

MS. WITT: I'm glad you're here with this question first. Why did you vote no the first go-around?

SEN. BARRASSO: I want something that I could actually vote for, which is something that I believe is going to stimulate the economy, but not with such a large price tag. You know, for every dollar in this bill that doesn't work to directly stimulate the economy, that's another dollar, Alex, that our kids are going to be in debt and our grandkids to the people of China.

So I was looking for a much smaller version of the bill that would really stimulate the economy without all of these new agenda items.

MS. WITT: We did drop this thing though down from the low $900 billion, closing in on $1 trillion, now, $789 billion. Are there specifics of a bill that you would vote for? Is it just the reduction in monies or are there things that you want to see in there that will say; okay, now you get my vote?

SEN. BARRASSO: Well, you know, I think this should have been split into two things just like Alice Rivlin, Bill Clinton's former adviser said, which was do things that are actually going to stimulate the economy now and then these other things, make sure we get them right, you know, we don't have to rush into all of these decisions about education, energy, healthcare. There's a lot in this bill that's not aimed specifically at stimulating the economy.

If you asked people of America is this bill spending too much or too little? By 2 to 1, they say this bill is too expensive and that's money we're borrowing from neighbors around the world.

MS. WITT: Can you tell us how things are going to play out later today and when a vote is expected on this bill? And what the tenor is going to be like in the Senate chamber as you discuss it all?

SEN. BARRASSO: I don't expect much change, Alex, from the votes that you've seen over the past couple of days in the Senate. I think the numbers are likely to be very much the same; we're going to be debating it on the Senate floor. I'll be on the Senate floor later this afternoon talking about my concerns about this bill, and ultimately, the American people are going to be a judge of this. They're going to decide whether their lives are made better as a result of this and that they feel that the government is working for them, or on the other hand, if they feel that they're working for the government and their lives are burdened by the bill in terms of inflation or increased taxes or the impact that it's going to have on their lives.

So the American people are ultimately going to be the judge, but I expect that the Senate either later today or tomorrow is going to vote on this along the same lines that the votes have gone previously.

MS. WITT: And Senator Barrasso, you know that this president has hoped for bipartisan support with this economic stimulus package. Is he going to get it?

SEN. BARRASSO: Well, the president came and visited with us at lunch. I listened carefully. I was hoping there really would be a bipartisan effort, but you know, Alex, bipartisanship means getting everybody involved before the bill is written, not writing something and saying at the end, gee, how can we get a couple of votes from the other side?

So I want to work with the president. I want this to succeed because if this program succeeds, then the American people feel that success, but I was hoping for something that was smaller, that was really targeted to fixing this economy and I think this bill is too big and it is not as efficient or as effective as it could be and spends money and puts us further into debt.

MS. WITT: All right. Wyoming Republican Senator John Barrasso, I'm sure you'll make your opinions heard later on in the Senate floor today, but thank you for doing so here on MSNBC. Appreciate that.

SEN. BARRASSO: Thank you, Alex.

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