MSNBC "The Ed Show" - Transcript: Government Shutdown and ACA

Interview

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REP JOHN GARAMENDI, (D) CALIFORNIA: Thank you Ed.

SCHULTZ: Your thoughts on the president handle this afternoon. We`re in the 11th hour. We`re going into the final weekend before the republicans are going to force this shutdown. I want your reaction tonight.

GARAMENDI: Well, I think the president`s right on. He couldn`t be more correct about what is going on here. Look Ed, 11 months ago, there was an election all across this nation. And the issues are precisely the ones that the republicans are pushing forward today. They`re pushing forward the question of repealing the Affordable Healthcare Act. No, the American people said, clearly no, we`re not going to repeal it. We want it. We reelected the President of the United States, who ran on that issue. We turned away. They follow (ph) that ran to repeal it. His name was Romney.

And, similarly across this nation if it had not been for the gerrymandering by Republican Governors we would have a democratic house, in fact more people voted for democrats for congress than they did than (ph) the republicans. It was the gerrymandering (ph). Let`s be very, very cleat about this. And, Ed, please next time you go off on this make sure you talk about the republicans in congress, not the congress. The democrats in congress stands firmly on funding this government.

SCHULTZ: Oh, I totally agree Congressman. Look, this is a republican obstruction, the American people know this, they have gone rogue on the American people it`s a zip. Elections don`t matter when they get in their caucus, they`re only there to obstruct and their number reason is that they want to see this president fail on all levels. And I find it very ironic that as we have the hourglass turned headed to a government shutdown, low and behold we have Barack Obama not in invading Iran. He`s actually talking to among to on the telephone and I`m sure the conservatives hate that too.

President Obama said today that if the tables were turned. If the tables were turned, and I want your reaction of this, if the table were turned, if there was a republican in the White House things would be different. Here it is.

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OBAMA: Imagine if you had a Republican President and a Democratic Speaker, and the democratic speaker said, "Well, we`re not going to pass the debt-ceiling unless we raise corporate taxes by 40 percent, or unless we pass background checks on guns or whatever other list of agenda items democrats were interested in. Does anybody actually think that we would be hearing from republicans that that was acceptable behavior? That`s not how our constitutional system is designed. We are not going to do it.

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SCHULTZ: Congressman Garamendi, your reaction to that.

GARAMENDI: Well, the president is right once again. If the tables returned it would be exactly the opposite (ph). No, this is all about the tea party agenda and frankly it`s a very small group within the republican caucus that is driving this particular train off the cliff by maybe 40 to 60 of them and those are the tea party republicans, Boehner cannot gain control of his caucus and it is running out of control and about to run America over the cliff.

SCHULTZ: Well, I wonder, does John Boehner have any spine at all? This is the House Speaker, his office released a statement today. He hasn`t come in front of the camera. He`s probably having a couple of (inaudible) right now. He says the house will take action that reflects the fundamental fact that Americans don`t want a government shutdown and that they don`t want the train wreck that is ObamaCare, grandstanding from the president who refuses to even be a part of the process, won`t bring congress any closer to a resolution". The tea party must have written that statement form, Congressman.

GARAMENDI: Well, no doubt about it. That`s been the statement of the tea party this afternoon for a whole hour. Michelle Bachmann and the tea party crew took the floor of the house and went on and one with the very same message. And frankly I took the floor they`re up and said, "Wait a minute. What`s exactly what are you repealing? Are you repealing all of those drug benefits that the seniors had? Are you repealing the billion dollars and rebates that people have? Are you repealing the fact that children are able to get insurance now up to the age of 26 and preexisting conditions don`t exist anymore? Is that what you are repealing?

Apparently, that`s what they want to do. They just don`t understand that they lost the election. And we need to move on. We need to build the jobs. We need to get this economy going, transportation, infrastructure, but right now all of this .

SCHULTZ: We`re not going to do with this crowd.

GARAMENDI: No, not with this crowd but they`re hurting the economy right now Ed. You shut the government down. It`s going to hurt the economy. People are going to lose their jobs.

SCHULTZ: No question. Congressman John Garamendi of California, great to have with us tonight. I appreciate your time.

GARAMENDI: Thank you.

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