Welcome back to State of the Union. Mt. Tapper. Already there are questions about how Republicans will manage their new House majority. Former President Trump is bringing his brand of chaos back to his party, just as Kevin McCarthy is trying to convince a rebellious conference to back him for speaker.
My next guest says that fight would hurt the Republican Party just as it takes control of the House. And joining me now to discuss the incoming Republican Congressman-elect and Mike Lawler of New York. Congressman-Elect, congratulations on your victory.
I do want to ask you about something that the front-runner for your party's presidential nomination, former President Donald Trump, wrote on his social media platform this weekend. He says, quote, do you throw the presidential election results of 2020 out and declare the rightful winner, or do you have a new election?
A massive fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution unquote. So Congressman-elect, what is your reaction to Donald Trump calling for the termination of the US?
Constitution? Well, I don't support that. The Constitution is set as a reason to protect the rights of every American. And so I certainly don't endorse that language or that sentiment. I think the question for everyone is how we move forward.
I ran for Congress to address the challenges that we're facing and be forward-looking. Frankly, I think people are tired of looking backward. I think people are tired of discussing the grievances of prior elections and they want to know what we're going to do to address the challenges.
And I think the former President would be well advised to focus on the future if he is going to run for President again. Alright. Let's let us move on, because right now, there's a big House leadership race, and you are supporting Kevin McCarthy, the current Republican leader for speaker.
You say, quote, you stick with the one who brought you to the dance. As of right now, it does not seem as though McCarthy has the 218 votes he will need to become a speaker. Are you worried there's a chance he won't become a speaker?
He won't get those 218 votes? Well, listen, a month is a long time in politics, but I am confident that Kevin McCarthy will have 218 votes on January 3 to become a speaker. And I, as has been alluded to, I'm in full support of Kevin.
And frankly, Kevin is the only person that I will be voting for speaker if it's one vote or multiple votes. And I think there are many of my colleagues who feel the same way. And frankly, we're not going to be held hostage by a handful of members when the overwhelming majority of the conference is in full support of Kevin.
I think the objective here needs to be to focus on our agenda and what we all got elected on, which was, number one, to stop the out-of-control Biden agenda, and number two, the commitment to America.
And I think the American people are looking for members of Congress to be serious, to be sober, to be focused on addressing these challenges. And that's where our efforts and attention should be. The conference has spoken loud and clear, and I think all of my colleagues should move forward in support of Kevin so that we can get to work on behalf of the American people.
You're right. It is just a handful of House Republicans that are opposing him. But as of right now, there are at least five of them, and he can't afford to lose five of them. There might be multiple votes, as you say.
You're saying that you're going to stick with McCarthy, even if it is multiple votes? I will only be voting for Kevin McCarthy for speaker, and I know many of my colleagues within the conference feel the same way.
So, you know, this is, you know, potentially, obviously something that could come to a head. But I do think cooler heads will prevail, and I do think in January, Kevin will have the necessary votes to become a speaker.
Let's talk about some issues of policy. Republican Senator John Thune, who is a member of the Senate Republican leadership, said this week that he thinks the next Congress so that's the one that you'll be a member of will have to deal with raising the debt ceiling.
House Republicans say that they're prepared to use that vote. Raising the debt ceiling is leveraged to force spending cuts. Are you comfortable with that tactic, risking default on the US. Debt? Well, listen, there's no question our debt is out of control.
I mean, we're talking about over $30 trillion. We need to get spending under control. Under the Biden administration, we've increased spending by over $4 trillion. There's no question that this is unsustainable.
And so certainly, there are levers of power within Congress, and debt ceiling votes are one of them. At the end of the day, we have to pay our debt, and we have to ensure that the government is functional and operating.
But I think there needs to be, frankly, a come to Jesus on this when it comes to spending. Both parties have been guilty of this over recent years, and we need to be serious about tackling our out-of-control spending and debt.
And so I think this is going to be a discussion that is warranted moving forward. You say that, and you notice both parties, and that's true. I just want to note that the deficit grew every year under the Trump administration, and the debt grew by $8,000,000,000.02 over those years.
Republicans were in control. I don't sense an appetite among your fellow House Republicans to take on. The fight. There are individuals like John Thune and others, but generally, in the house, I don't sense it.
Senator Thun floated this week too, quote, get serious about possible changes to make Social Security and Medicare more sustainable. He wants to do this during the debt ceiling battle. Would you support any changes to these social safety nets or entitlement programs?
Well, as I said during my campaign, we have to protect Social Security and Medicare. It is critically important. There are significant challenges with both programs going forward. We need to ensure that the trust fund is sustainable.
And so I think we need to evaluate what needs to be done. Frankly, I think there should be a blue ribbon commission much like what was done back in the bipartisan commission to evaluate the long-term aspect of Social Security and Medicare.
But we have a responsibility to fulfill our commitments there. And so my objective is to make sure that they are sustainable for the long term. All right, congressman-elect McLaughlin of New York, thanks so much for being with us today.