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CNN This Morning
Saudi Crown Prince Visits White House; Trump Voices Support for Drug Operations; Rep. Joe Morelle (D-NY) is Interviewed about the Epstein Files. Aired 6:30-7a ET
Aired November 18, 2025 - 06:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[06:30:00]
AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Border Patrol agents plan to move from Charolotte into Raleigh today. Two state lawmakers tell that to CNN. On Monday, federal agents targeted laundromats, construction sites, landscapers. The owner of a laundromat says he actually locked up after every customer came in because Border Patrol agents were staking out his parking lot. And we're hearing reports of construction workers taken off job sites by federal agents. One landscaper says he was stopped while blowing leaves.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They asked me if I was a citizen. I said, yes, I'm a citizen. And I was asked if my father was a citizen. He does have an accent. So, they pulled him to the side a little bit longer.
We don't look like criminals.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: One hundred and thirty people have been arrested since Saturday.
The L.A. County sheriff is investigating new allegations of sexual assault against Sean Combs. He was convicted in July on two counts of transportation for prostitution. Diddy currently serving 15 months in prison.
And President Trump welcoming Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the White House today. It will be his first visit in more than seven years, dating back to the first Trump administration, and his first visit since the killing of "Washington Post" journalist Jamal Khashoggi and assassination that the crown prince ordered, according to the CIA. That's something the crown prince has repeatedly denied.
Ahead of today's visit, Khashoggi's widow speaking out to keep his memory alive.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HANAN ELATR KHASHOGGI, WIDOW OF JAMAL KHASHOGGI: It's very painful. It will be better if Jamal was here and receiving the crown prince by himself and meet with him and share with him his vision and mission and all of his idea.
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: Yes.
KHASHOGGI: Because this what Jamal wished in last visit of the crown prince in the beginning of 2018.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Joining the group chat now, CNN global affairs commentator and former deputy Pentagon press secretary, Sabrina Singh.
Sabrina, welcome to the chat.
SABRINA SINGH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Thank you.
CORNISH: So, the reason why I wanted to talk to this -- about this is because I think one of the defining aspects of the Trump administration foreign policy is humanitarian concerns are not the first concerns under an American first system. Just tell me I'm wrong. What's the thesis here? What are you seeing?
SINGH: You're not wrong. The human rights concerns that, you know, previous administrations have had, particularly when it comes to Saudi Arabia and MBS, are unlikely to rise to the top of the agenda today. I think --
CORNISH: And we -- by top we mean, at one point it would be said, well, we can't talk to those people because of humanitarian concerns.
SINGH: Right.
CORNISH: And that's not a thing anymore.
SINGH: Exactly. And seven years ago, MBS was considered a pariah on the international stage. I mean, the fact that President Trump, to his first foreign visit overseas, the first stop he made to Saudi Arabia I think just proves the legitimacy of MBS on the international stage.
But human rights is unlikely to be a topic of discussion. What's likely going to be discussed today is some type of mutual defense agreement between the United States and Saudi. Some type of normalization of a defense agreement.
CORNISH: Right. We have some details about the agenda, discussion of the Abraham Accords, which, of course, helped normalize relationships throughout the region with Israel.
SINGH: Of course.
CORNISH: And then also the potential sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia. I'm going to bring it to the group in a minute.
SINGH: Yes.
CORNISH: But just defense wise, what's significant about the F-35? Why do you think it's on this list? SINGH: Well, the F-35 is significant because the only country in the
Middle East that has the F-35s is Israel. And Israel is, of course, always going to be worried about its security in the region. And Saudi, too, also feels the pressures of security with, you know, various different terrorist groups in the region as well.
The sale of the F-35s is genuinely concerning because of Saudi's such close trade relationship with China. And the F-35 is something that is incredibly technical. It is a fifth generation aircraft. For China to get access to some of that technology would be absolutely devastating for the United States, as that is one of our largest adversaries in the world. And so, it is a concern. And I'm sure Congress will have some type of role and say in that as well.
CORNISH: Can I ask, how are Republicans hearing this? Because Middle East relationships, I feel like, is where I often see MAGA tensions split.
ROB BLUEY, PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "THE DAILY SIGNAL": Particularly right now. Yes, there's a big debate among conservatives and America first individuals. The MAGA over Israel, specifically. And some of these concerns that the president is spending too much time focused on foreign affairs and not necessarily enough on the domestic issues.
And so, I think this may just feed into that, Audie. But at the same time, let's face it, one of the things that President Trump is most proud of from his first term are the Abraham Accords. And Saudi Arabia, obviously, was not part of that during the first term. He wants to bring them into the mix, and he sees them as a key player when it comes to more peace and stability in the Middle East.
By the way, last night the U.N. Security Council voting to support the president's peace plan in the Middle East.
CORNISH: Right.
BLUEY: So, he's coming into this meeting with some wind to his back.
CORNISH: And we should say, Biden -- a lot of people have pointed out that Biden had a fist bump with MBS a few years ago.
SINGH: Right. Yes.
CORNISH: So, this legitimization thing is definitely a sliding scale.
MARIA CARDONA, : Fist bump, F-35, you know, there's a big difference there.
GARRETT GRAFF, AUTHOR, "THE DEVIL REACHED TOWARD THE SKY": Well, (INAUDIBLE) that.
[06:35:02]
I -- one of the things I think we also need to mention here is just the corruption that is the backdrop of the way that Donald Trump approaches all foreign policy.
CARDONA: Yes. Right.
GRAFF: The Trump Organization is in some series of conversations right now with the Saudi Arabian government, with its investment firms, to talk about building a big development in Saudi Arabia. We don't know the details of that. We don't know how much money is going to be involved. We don't know where that money is going to go. But this meeting today is going to be like partly an economic development meeting for Donald Trump's personal family business. And that's a real big problem for America.
CARDONA: And I think -- I think this is critical And it -- it is like a huge cloud over what could be some legitimate conversations about what's going on in the Middle East, because it's not just that deal. Let's remember in the first term, Jared Kushner had a $2 billion deal with the Saudis. And so, all of this is going to be the overlay, which a lot of American voters are going to be looking at this and are going to say, OK, how much more -- how many billions more is the Trump family going to get out of this meeting?
CORNISH: Will people notice if they feel like there is progress in a region of the world that they consider perpetually doomed to battle?
SINGH: Well, I think, you know, what does progress look like? Of course the Abraham Accords is something that the Trump administration wants to expand, but there are very clear lines that Saudi has drawn when it comes to what happens in Gaza. And a pathway to a Palestinian state is a negotiation that they have drawn their line at.
CORNISH: Yes.
SINGH: And, of course, there was the resolution that was passed in the U.N. just yesterday, which is a win for this administration, but Israel has to agree to a lot of things, and I don't think you're going to see a lot of progress right now.
CORNISH: We're going to follow up on that, especially as we hear more about this meeting.
I want to ask you one more thing, Sabrina, since you're here.
SINGH: Yes.
CORNISH: So, President Trump has been signaling support to extend his military campaign against drug operations in South America. That could mean even striking in places like Mexico and Colombia.
Now, his comments come as U.S. military strikes against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and in the Pacific have now killed, this is the number, 83 people across 21 confirmed attacks. The Department of Defense claims all those attacks have happened in international waters. President Trump now showing he's willing to go even further.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Would I launch strikes in Mexico to stop drugs? It's OK with me. Colombia is -- has cocaine factories where they make cocaine. Would I knock out those factories? I would be proud to do it, personally. I didn't say I'm doing it, but I would be proud to do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: So, one of the interesting things is the CIA, we've been told, is now operating in Venezuela, but also is the intelligence that's being used. It's not coming from like the ATF or the FBI or the Coast Guard.
SINGH: Right.
CORNISH: It's coming from the CIA, right? Can you help me understand the defense part of this?
SINGH: Well, Trump gave authorization for the CIA to expand its basically collection authorities within Venezuela. What that looks like, though, I think there's a lot of murkiness. I mean, I think, look at the footprint that you have just off the coast of Venezuela. You have more troops stationed outside of Venezuela than you do in Iraq and Syria combined. That is incredible firepower.
CORNISH: I'm sorry, Iraq and -- say that again.
SINGH: Yes, you have 15,000 troops stationed outside on the coast of Venezuela. That's more than in Iraq and Syria.
And what we're facing in Iraq and Syria are terrorist organizations that have far greater capabilities than the cartels, or, frankly, the Venezuelan military. It's a different type of threat.
And on top of that, what we are using to strike these boats that you're seeing on the screen here are multimillion dollar missiles that we use to take out capabilities that the Houthis were using to sink ships. So, you have to take a step back and think about, what's the cost analysis here? Why are we doing this? Trump saying that he could potentially strike within Mexico. Where does it end?
CORNISH: Well, that part he's been saying since the campaign trail, right?
SINGH: Right.
CORNISH: Drone strikes and things like that.
SINGH: Yes.
CORNISH: When does this walk and quack like regime change?
BLUEY: Well, I think one -- it's getting close to that point. I mean, obviously, Maduro, this revelation came out yesterday where Maduro wrote to the White House, Trump has now said he's willing to have a conversation with Maduro. Maybe you can resolve some of this diplomatically.
But, Audie, what I'd like to see is, this is one area where Congress should assert its authority. There -- if this is the serious concern that we see and we hear about, then why isn't Congress passing an authorization for use of military force?
CARDONA: I think this is a critical issue because one of the things that we haven't seen, Audie, is all of those attacks on these boats, we haven't seen a single shred of evidence that these boats are actually what the administration claims they are.
CORNISH: And we should say, the administration claims Hegseth has said multiple times, we don't want to reveal like sources and methods, and therefore that's why we're not giving you more detail.
CARDONA: But you know the way --
CORNISH: Your actual laughter there is noted.
CARDONA: The way that you actually would do it, if they were really concerned about wiping away the network is boarding these vessels, arresting and detaining the people that they think are on there.
[06:40:04]
If they are cartel members, getting additional information from them about what the cartel network looks like and trying to bring down -- trying -- bring all of it down. They're not doing that.
CORNISH: Apparently.
CARDONA: This could be murder and assassination on the international stage.
CORNISH: Garrett, you're like our law enforcement person.
GRAFF: Yes, and I think, not just to the point that we don't have evidence that these are drug boats. We actually are getting an increasing volume of evidence that these are not drug boats.
CARDONA: Yes. Exactly.
GRAFF: That we have seen the Associated Press and other outlets actually track down who is on these boats, that these are, in some cases, ordinary fishermen, that these are sort of not people involved in the drug trade at all.
CARDONA: Right.
GRAFF: And I think to Rob's point, there's a real role that Congress needs to step in. And I think a big part of what we have seen over the course of this year is the abdication of Congress of its core sets of authorities.
CARDONA: Yes.
CORNISH: Yes. And we should say --
GRAFF: None of which are more important than the power to make war.
CORNISH: We were talking about this from this desk in Washington. Already in places like Mexico you are seeing street protests and people raising these concerns. And so, I think there's going to be questions ahead in the coming weeks about the destabilizing effect this could have on the region.
CARDONA: Absolutely.
CORNISH: OK, Sabrina, thank you so much for being with us. I appreciate it.
Also, if you missed any part of this conversation, you want to learn more, please know we are a podcast. So, you can catch up. Scan the QR code right now. This is where you find it. CNN THIS MORNING is available anywhere you get your podcasts.
And next on CNN, in just a few hours, the House expected to vote to release the Epstein files. But will the Senate follow through? I'm going to ask Democratic Congressman Joe Morelle, next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm sending them a $10,000 bonus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: So, can the White House really afford those checks? We're going to break down the numbers.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:46:12]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If we, you know, if the path continues as we're expecting, we will have to bring this, you know, to the Senate. It will be moving there next. And we're ready to push forward there. And I think, you know, we feel optimistic about our chances OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: OK, so that is one of the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse, pushing for Congress to go all the way with the release of the Epstein files. The House is going to take up that bill today. It's expected to pass with wide bipartisan support after President Trump switched from basically trying to kill that vote to endorsing it. But the bill's fate in the Senate actually remains unclear.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I have real concerns about the discharge and how it's drafted as I've been saying for many months, but I do have some comfort that I think if and when it's processed in the Senate, that they'll be able to correct some of those, those concerns that we have, the protection of the victims and whistleblowers and all the rest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Democratic congressman from New York, Joe Morelle, is here in the chat to talk about this.
We wanted to have you here because you were an early supporter of this discharge petition that's going to force this vote. Help me translate hallway speak there. He raised concerns that I have heard before. There are still victims here. There are whistleblowers. There are names of people who are not truly related to the crimes at play. So, do you think that the Senate is going to make changes?
REP. JOE MORELLE, (D-NY): I -- look, this is all much about -- ado about nothing. I mean we can clearly protect whistleblowers, protect victims. That is our job and our responsibility. The speaker makes it sound like its rocket science. I think this is relatively easy to do. And the important point is not to create barriers to getting this out, but to make sure that we release it. Frankly, the president could release it today. He doesn't really need congressional action to do it.
CORNISH: Right.
MORELLE: But this is just what I fear more and more of what we've seen over the last several months, which is just to continue to distract and distort and to take away from the real challenge here, which is getting the information out so the American public knows what has happened. And I think history is not going to be kind either to the president, I believe long term, nor to the people who have looked like they're aiding and abetting his efforts to avoid accountability.
CORNISH: Yes, which we should say is through multiple administrations. And I want to ask you, what would success look like? I know what I hear from the victims about what they want. But for the people who are pushing this, what do you think is a good outcome?
MORELLE: Well, I think for the information to be made public so the American public can --
CORNISH: But is it done then? Would you suddenly just be like, well, that -- we solved it.
MORELLE: Well, I think it depends on what's in it. I think it's a little hard to judge in advance of seeing the material, what it is. But I -- look, I have -- I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but to have watched the House not go into session for five consecutive weeks while they dealt with this issue. And it tells me there's something deeply disturbing in these files that the president does not want to be made public. And it's only after he realized that he could not stop the vote in the House that he came out -- it's like a little bit like, oh, there's a parade going there, I better jump in the front of it because it's coming anyway. So, I mean --
CORNISH: If there are Democrat names in here, what happens?
MORELLE: It doesn't matter to me.
CORNISH: Are people going to push for this the same way?
MORELLE: Absolutely. I don't -- I don't --
CORNISH: You're saying yes as well.
CARDONA: Yes. Yes, I think they will (ph).
CORNISH: Is that the vibe in the party?
CARDONA: I mean the Democrats have wanted for this to be made public, regardless of who's in there. Because -- and the congressman has said this before, this should not be a partizan issue. This should be about the survivors.
I don't care what Democratic names are in there. Let them all out. And if they were involved in something nefarious and illegal, then they should be prosecuted by the full extent of the law.
CORNISH: OK. We're going to see who crosses over in this vote today.
[06:50:00]
I want to ask you something else, because you're on the House Appropriations Committee.
MORELLE: Yes.
CORNISH: And so, you actually will have to deal with the fallout of this health care subsidy issue, right? Basically, the government shutdown ended, but without a deal to extend the Obamacare subsidies. Was that a mistake from Senator Schumer?
MORELLE: No, I -- look, I -- I would never second guess what the Senate was doing. I think what's clear is, the Republicans have decided that they don't care about the Affordable Care subsidies. At least that's the message we're getting. I hope they reverse course on this. But this is going to mean significant increases in health insurance premiums for millions of Americans who go to work every day, but whose employers don't provide health insurance. And they go to the exchange to be able to find affordable health insurance. So, we have to focus on that.
CORNISH: But can I ask you a question? You did criticize him in March, right? Back in March, when it was about the -- extending, I think was it another CR?
MORELLE: Correct.
CORNISH: You were like, look, why are you guys doing this? You're handing -- you considered that a mistake? So, what's the difference between March and November?
MORELLE: Well, look, I voted no this week as well --
CORNISH: Yes.
MORELLE: Because this is the same continuing resolution that was put together last March. So, I object to it.
What I think has -- the question that the Senate -- I've seen a number of senators who voted for it. I don't agree with them. However, and I would have continued to fight for this, but the decision they made is a decision they made. And what's really important, though, for us is to focus on, how do we address the health care needs of people who struggle, who are going to be facing, because it's an open enrollment period right now, and they're going to face enormous increases.
I was at the dry cleaner a week ago, and the woman at the desk, who's working, working full time, said, I will not be able to afford health insurance if these premium subsidies aren't continued. So, it's a big deal.
CORNISH: Yes, and I understand that. I think we learned that, in your congressional district, 47,000 people who rely on tax credits to help in for -- get this insurance. Without the help, their monthly premiums would go up $122 for individuals, 244 for couples.
MORELLE: Yes.
CORNISH: So this is -- they're looking at a 40 percent increase.
MORELLE: And you -- and you consider this at a time when we're talking about getting $40 billion to Argentina to try to affect the outcome of the presidential election. The president of the United States is suing the Justice Department for $230 million because he feels wronged by an investigation which he was culpable for and was indicted in trying to overturn an election in the United States.
CORNISH: Yes.
MORELLE: And now we have U.S. senators asking for millions of dollars in the same space from American taxpayers. That they can -- fine.
CORNISH: I want to come --
MORELLE: Yes.
CORNISH: I want to come to this in a minute, but I actually want to bring this up with you.
I keep hearing about the Argentina money. And I keep hearing about it on the right. People that are like, what is going on? What is this administration doing giving money just to kind of bail someone out politically when people are looking for cash at home. What's the debate about?
BLUEY: Well, it goes back to the earlier conversation we had about focusing on foreign affairs versus domestic issues. And I think that that's where some of the concerns are on the right, Audie.
As it pertains to some of these very issues that the congressman's talking about, I would love to see Congress have a conversation about health care. I think what you've indicated is there are problems with the Affordable Care Act that need to be addressed. I think if Republicans and Democrats are able to come together and solve some of those issues so that money isn't going to the insurance companies, but actually more Americans are able to get that money directly and afford health care, that's a good -- that's a good thing.
CORNISH: Yes. Can you respond to that. I'm hearing this idea floated more and more, I think Senator Cassidy in the Senate said the same thing, put it in people's health savings accounts. Why give it to insurers directly as subsidies?
MORELLE: Well, I will say this. I chaired the Insurance Committee when I was back in the New York state legislature. We have not for profit insurers in Rochester, which are really different than some of the insurers around the country. But fundamentally, health care is getting much more expensive, right? I mean we need to look at, not only what drives insurance rates and look at insurance companies, but also the delivery of health care. And --
CORNISH: But do you feel like the Obamacare has improved things or not?
MORELLE: Oh, there's no question.
BLUEY: Yes.
MORELLE: More Americans have health insurance than at any time in American history. That's directly because of the Affordable Care Act exchange policies.
CORNISH: But has it brought the cost of it down in any way?
MORELLE: Well, I don't think -- I mean if you look at --
GRAFF: It has in some -- in some ways. Yes. Yes.
(CROSS TALK)
CARDONA: The rate of it increasing has actually decreased because of the ACA.
GRAFF: Yes.
CARDONA: If the ACA was not in place, health care premiums would be incredibly impossible. And Republicans have yet, for 15 years, they have not been able to come up with a viable alternative and have not even been able or willing to sit down with Democrats to say, let's try to come up with something together or let's improve it.
CORNISH: Are there conversations happening on appropriations, real ones, about these alternative ideas? MORELLE: Absolutely. And I think there will continue to be conversations, both -- and I agree with you that it ought to be a bipartisan way to get people together to say, what makes the most sense.
Yes, I think the Republican idea that I heard floated by the president is simply to give money to everybody so that they don't have to get the subsidies. There's real challenge. That doesn't necessarily have anything to do with health insurance. But then, you know, after 15 years of listening to Donald Trump come up with concepts of a plan.
[06:55:01]
CORNISH: Right.
MORELLE: I mean it's clear he doesn't know anything about health care or health care insurance because you'd think that there would be a proposal that he'd be advancing. I heard him say that he talked a little bit over the weekend about it. I mean this is like a passing thing when -- it's like, well, this is -- I'm going to talk about it for a few minutes and then I'm going to move on because my attention span is about the same as a -- as a fly. And I can't focus on anything. So, I'll just say something in passing and let's move on and maybe I'll give people money, maybe I won't. It's crazy. This is no way to deal with --
CORNISH: All right, I can't believe you're bringing it up because we're actually about to talk about this next. Congressman, stay with me.
We're talking about this idea of the president having a few ideas about getting checks to Americans. So that includes rebates from savings connected to DOGE cuts, bonuses to air traffic controllers and TSA agents who showed up for work during the government shutdown, and now a $2,000 dividend from the administration's tariff policy to middle income families.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're going to be issuing dividends later on some -- somewhere prior to, you know, probably the middle of next year, a little bit later than that, of thousands of dollars for individuals. Moderate income. Middle income. We're going to pay down debt. You know, we have a lot of money from tariffs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: You might be waiting for your check, but unfortunately the numbers at this point don't add up. It would cost $600 billion to actually cut those checks according to an analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, which is, frankly, more than the tariff revenue already brought in or projected.
Group chat is back.
You brought up this idea of -- you're just putting your head down and chuckling now. What are you doing, Congressman, here? We got to talk.
MORELLE: Well, I feel like listening to the president is a little bit like being at the corner bar. And there's a guy in the end in the corner stool who's had too many. He just keeps spouting off crazy ideas. That feels like the president of the United States these days. He just makes stuff up.
CORNISH: Not a crazy idea. Biden sent out checks. This is a thing that can happen.
MORELLE: Yes, you can -- yes, we did it during the middle of a pandemic when we were trying desperately to deal with the impacts of the virus, health care, the impacts on the economy. This is, I think, in part -- look, I have a problem. My tariffs, by the way, are most likely unconstitutional.
CORNISH: Right. We should say, so they're still before the courts.
MORELLE: So, let me spend the money before I'm required to rebate them back to the people who deserve the money back, which is the American consumer that's paying more and more for tariffs that are unconstitutional. It -- I mean none of this makes sense because -- because the truth is, and I think people know this, for the most corrupt administration in American history, here's a guy who has no theory of governance, no theory of anything. Let's just -- OK, I woke up and I had an idea this morning, I'm just going to talk about it.
CORNISH: Well, I would challenge that he does have a theory, which is tariffs, right? Like he's very much reshaped the economy in his image.
The Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, was asked about those potential tariff dividend checks. Here's what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA BARTIROMO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Is he going to be sending these direct payments to Americans of $2,000 or more?
SCOTT BESSENT, TREASURY SECRETARY: We will see. We need legislation for that.
So, President Trump is committed to getting the money back to families.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: You're writing that bill? Where is it? Where is it?
MORELLE: I mean, yes, you are right, he does have the theory that tariffs are good. Why that's the case is anyone's -- and, in fact, the Republican Party, for decades and decades, has talked about global trade, has talked about the importance, both in terms of stabilizing, not only the global economy, but our relationship with other nations in the world, trading partners.
CORNISH: Yes. MORELLE: All that's gone away. The poor Republican Party, I feel bad for them twisting themselves into pretzels.
CORNISH: OK, don't feel bad. Rob's right here. Rob's right here.
MORELLE: Twisting themselves into pretzels. You've got to make sense of this.
CORNISH: Rob, I know you're a fiscal hawk but let me give you the last minute here.
BLUEY: Conservative, not a Republican.
CORNISH: Oh, fair. Fair. No, no, that distinction is real.
BLUEY: No, there -- Audie, I would say, there are appropriate times to send money to citizens. Governor Youngkin in Virginia just did this because they were running a surplus. So, individuals got $200 and couples got $400. The United States has a $38 trillion debt.
CARDONA: Yes.
BLUEY: Now is not the time to be cutting a check. What we should be doing is using any surplus to pay down that debt.
CARDONA: And that debt and that deficit was made worse when Donald Trump and the Republicans passed that horrible bill that gave rich people billions and billions of dollars in tax cuts.
CORNISH: Yes. Although the debt building in Washington was a bipartisan effort, I would say.
GRAFF: And lastly, I'm struck by the timing of this, where Donald Trump is saying American families are in real distress right now. We'll have the checks land just before midterms next year.
CORNISH: Not quite. Yes. Well, Congressman, thank you so much for being here.
MORELLE: Thank you. This is a lot of fun.
CORNISH: Oh, look at you laughing. Thank you. Well, now you're going to come back. You're going to regret that.
You guys, we talked a lot this hour. And we're going to talk next, I think, we have a little bit of time, about what's in our group chat.
And, Congressman, to you. You said it's your daughter.
MORELLE: My sister is being honored at the Boys and Girls Club of Rochester for her work. And the family is all trying to figure out who's sitting where, because that's a big deal, which table?
[07:00:02]
CORNISH: Yes. MORELLE: Brothers and sisters, and aunts and uncles are (INAUDIBLE).
CORNISH: Yes. Congratulations to her.
Thank you all for waking up with us. The news headlines are next.
