← The Jim Acosta Show
The Jim Acosta Show
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, Katie Couric and Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett
01:05:15
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- [00:00]
Jim Acosta
Welcome, everybody, to the Jim Acosta show. It is Wednesday and apparently Elon Musk is just now becoming aware of the fact that Donald Trump is not serious about reducing the deficit. Thanks for joining me this afternoon. As you can see, the governor of Colorado, Jared Polis, is with us. He's my guest to start off the show. I've got a great show today, great lineup today. TV legend Katie Couric is going to be coming on in just a few moments from now. And Texas Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, who is also a rising star in the Democratic Party like Governor Polis, she's going to be joining me as well. So a lot of stuff to get through. Some great voices here. And Governor Polis, thanks so much for doing this. Really appreciate it.
- [00:40]
Jared Polis
Jim, great to see you and great to be on the show.
- [00:43]
Jim Acosta
And this is your first substack, is that right?
- [00:46]
Jared Polis
It is. I had to learn how to set up an account and do all this. I've never done this before. So I'm excited to be here.
- [00:51]
Jim Acosta
It's exciting to be here. And you'll see there are lots of folks chiming in and making comments and so on. And I find that often the questions that are being asked in the comments are better than the questions that I came up with. So that is often very helpful. But Governor, great to see this. Let's just jump right into this because I thought it was fascinating. I know you've got some comments and concerns about the big beautiful bill that Trump and the Republicans are trying to push through the Congress. But interesting that the New York Times is reporting that Elon Musk is criticizing that bill to enact Trump's agenda, saying it would undermine the administration's own efforts to shrink federal spending, I guess efforts that he allegedly led as part of Doge. And he said to cbs, I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not decreases it. I mean, he should know that when Trump was in office the first time around, he added $8 trillion to the national debt. But your thoughts on this, Governor?
- [01:47]
Jared Polis
Well, I mean, I'm not surprised when there was independent analysis during the election campaign of Donald Trump's and Kamala Harris's economic plans. The independent analysis, I believe it was University of Pennsylvania, showed that Trump's economic plan was a much greater deficit, big spending plan than Kamala Harris. So, I mean, this is what we expected. It's a big spending, big deficit bill. And I share Elon Musk's disappointment that it'll increase the size of the deficit and reduce the financial stability of our country.
- [02:18]
Jim Acosta
And there are a couple of pieces of this question that I wanted to get to. One is on Doge, because there's the common misperception, I suppose, that or misconception that the Doge cuts only adversely affect people in Washington or jobs in Washington or agencies and departments in Washington. But you have federal jobs out there in Colorado that are impacted by these Doge cuts. And you've gotta be scratching your head and thinking, okay, Elon Musk, now you're disappointed in all of this. I could have told you this a couple of months ago.
- [02:48]
Jared Polis
Well, the aggregate dollar amount of whatever was saved through those cuts was blown away and one or two days of market decreases because of the tariffs. So, I mean, it's such a small amount and you blow through it when you take a slight downtick in the economy. And sadly, the tariffs are causing more than a small downtick. Who knows whether he's going to stick with them or not? He's backed off of some of them, but even the ones he's still sticking with are a major overhang. They hurt people's buying power, they increase prices and they prevent investment, which ultimately leads to less tax revenue and less growth over time.
- [03:24]
Jim Acosta
Yeah. And since you mentioned the tariffs, Trump was asked about how he chickens out on the tariffs. Apparently the traders on Wall street have a term for it. They call it taco. Trump always chickens out. And they're trading based on this perception that they have that Trump will threaten to do tariffs, the market will go down. They they buy stocks, Trump backs down, the market goes up. I mean, your sense of how he's been handling this, and I mean, this is becoming something that stockbrokers are trading on. It's kind of remarkable.
- [03:56]
Jared Polis
Well, let's hope he continues to back off. But here it is. He's solving 80% of a problem that's entirely of his own making. Right. He'll go in with something big and then he'll back off of 80%. It's still bad. It's not as bad as what he talked about, but certainly with our allies. And we all realize that China is a special case. There's geopolitical and security concerns there. But with Europe, with Mexico, with Canada, our major trading partners are allies. We both benefit from this shared prosperity, shared supply chain integration. There's no question, and I would, of course, argue that anything like 80, 150% tariffs with China is ridiculous. I mean, again, it's a complex issue. There's some things that should have for national security Reasons we need to make here, we're all for those. But in terms of cheap clothing for American consumers that we buy at Target, it doesn't make any sense to increase the prices that American consumers have to pay.
- [04:47]
Jim Acosta
Yeah, I mean, you know, on the tariffs, I mean, I've made this observation before. I'll make it to you and I can see what you think about it. But I've been to, you know, Trump rallies in just about every state in the country and just about all of those rallies because his voters tend to be largely rural or suburban outside of cities. Those rallies tend to be within a 5 mile radius, 10 mile radius of a Walmart. And you know, if he's going to crank up, you know, tariffs on goods coming in from China that adversely affects his people. And I know, you know, being in a slightly purple but more blue state lately in Colorado, you must hear, hear about this from time to time from folks who rely on places like Walmart to buy the stuff that they need.
- [05:29]
Jared Polis
Well, it adversely affects every voter. Right. So I mean we all, I mean you try to find, you know, socks, shirts, they're, they're made overseas and we benefit from that. We, we bought, they're very inexpensive for American. Whether you buy them at a middle end place or you know, a department store, if there, there very few around now, it's hard to go to department store. I go to Target to get my clothes. But some go to Walmart, some go to other places. All that will cost more and yes, that'll hurt low and lower middle income Americans more of course to pay more on clothing. You know, the Boston Globe and New York Times did an interesting piece similar the last couple days about how it also is leading to an increase in smuggling and illegal trade. An obvious outcrop. But when you have such an outrageous tariff, it actually leads to people then smuggling false labeling of goods, bringing pirated goods in. All of these things are on the increase that also contribute to a criminal element because of the tariffs as well.
- [06:22]
Jim Acosta
And the big beautiful bill that they call it, which is obviously a huge misnomer, but your sense of it and how it's going to impact states like Colorado because obviously if you're going to, if you're going to cut back on Medicaid spending, if you're going to cut back on, on safety net spending, that is going to get dropped in your lap, you get, you get the hot potato dropped in your lap. How do you deal with this moving forward?
- [06:47]
Jared Polis
You know, I liked one of your readers by the way, just said, and we'll move on from tariffs in a moment. He said they're regressive taxes. That's very important to point out because, like, the amount of income you spend on clothing is a perfect example. If you make $200,000, you're spending a lower percentage of your income on clothing. If you make $40,000, it hurts everybody, but absolutely it hurts people that are earning 30, 40, 50, $60,000 a year more because a higher percentage of their income is going to buy the goods they need for everyday life, which go up because of tariffs. So that's important to point out. Hurts everybody. Hurts low middle income the most. The biggest thing that hurts in this bill is throwing Americans off of health care coverage through the cuts in Medicaid. Don't know exactly what they'll look like, but effectively what they're doing here is they're saying, hey, we're cutting at the federal level. We're making the states be the bad guys. You decide who loses their health care. We're going to stop, you know, make sure that people lose their health care. The other thing there is, it will shift costs onto every American who buys their own insurance or their employer pays for part of it. Usually it's a cost share because basically the cost of the uninsured Americans, those who don't have insurance, gets shifted onto those who pay for it in the commercial market. So that's. I don't want this to be lost in this. When you're talking about millions of Americans being thrown off of Medicaid, it's devastating for them. But it also leads to major cost increases for everybody who buys the insurance, either in the exchange or pays part of it with their employer.
- [08:10]
Jim Acosta
Yeah, I mean, that's a great point. And it takes me back to. I covered the debate over Obamacare, and that was exactly the case that Barack Obama would, would make to people. He would say, this is not just about giving health care to the poor. This is also about getting people insured. So your health care bills go down. The more that you have people who are insured in this country, the less it's going to cost for everybody else. You take people out of that system and all of a sudden they're dependent on, you know, assistance of some sort. Perhaps they're not paying their doctor's bills at the hospital and so on. That throws the whole system into chaos and somebody's got to pick up the tab.
- [08:45]
Jared Polis
That's right. And then those with the less, you know, the less uninsured people there are, the lower health Care costs are for people who have insurance because it is a larger risk pool. And that's one of the reasons that all the countries that have universal health care, which I have to say is most of the wealthier countries, and it's something we should have. All the countries that have it have a much lower percentage of their GDP that goes over health care, less waste in the system because they don't have all these inefficiencies around paying for other people who don't have insurance.
- [09:15]
Jim Acosta
Yeah. And I don't know, I mean, I don't mean to go off on a tangent, but I mean, I, I can't figure out why we don't have national health care in this country. I mean, we're pretty close to having national health care with Obamacare, but it is not as far as it could be.
- [09:28]
Jared Polis
Right. And we have it for Medicare for seniors. We have it for, in many ways the highest cost group, but we haven't been able to work back from that. And I've been very supportive when I was in Congress and I still am. A proposal to lower the age for Medicare, allow Medicare buy ins, all those kinds of things. But we've got to do it better in this country. And with this bill, it does it worse because it actually cuts out some of the linchpins, namely Medicaid, health care for those who can't afford it and shifts those costs on the people who have commercial insurance.
- [09:55]
Jim Acosta
Yeah, that would be a big beautiful bill if you gave everybody universal health care. That would be big and it would be beautiful and it might cost less in the long run.
- [10:01]
Jared Polis
You know, I want that so bad, I'd even be willing to call it Trumpcare if you want to. I. Let's just get.
- [10:07]
Jim Acosta
Well, let's not go that far, Governor. I mean, you know, let's not go crazy here, you know, but I think.
- [10:12]
Jared Polis
If you call it Trumpcare, he might start liking it. Right. So, you know, that's how it works with the President.
- [10:17]
Jim Acosta
That's pretty much how it works. That's exactly how it works. And I mean well, and they've been trying to get this millionaire tax. There have been some, like Steve Bannon and so on, have been trying to slip the millionaire tax into this big beautiful bill, whatever you want to call it. And it's just no dice with some of the Republicans in the Congress. It's not going to go anywhere. But I think that there's a real appetite out there in the public instead of just making the debt skyrocket. I mean, I mean this this bill is going to be hugely expensive and it is going to be put on the national debt. And.
- [10:47]
Jared Polis
Yeah, and here's why. Debt skyrocketing is bad. It's bad in its own right. It leads to, you know, future tax increases and spending cuts. But it also leads to increases in interest rates which affect anybody trying to buy a home, anybody trying to take out a mortgage. So when you spend more than you take in, and that increases over time, it increases debt. That then makes the governor, government borrow more, which drives out other. Other sources of capital. That's one of the reason. It's an upward pressure on interest rates that's bad for every American, especially those who might be trying to buy a home.
- [11:16]
Jim Acosta
And can I ask you just to go in a completely different direction? I know you've been trying to tackle the housing issue in your state. I mean, this is an issue in just about every state in the country. And you recently signed an executive order to require cities and counties in Colorado to show that they're enacting recently passed state housing laws in order to be eligible for state grants. An area like transportation and energy. Why did you do this? Is this something that, I mean, is this something that governors and local elected leaders need to do is just kind of get. Get smarter to spur housing construction to get this. I mean, because it's a massive problem that it just doesn't get talked about at all.
- [11:55]
Jared Polis
Yeah. So look, Colorado is a great place to live. And I hope that secret doesn't get out to all these people who are saying they're from other places. Because the problem is when everybody moves here, it drives up the cost of living. So average home price in the Denver metro area is about $600,000. Now, again, that may not seem terribly expensive if you're from Southern California, but if you're from the Midwest, it is terribly expensive. And why. Again, housing demand is high, but we've had artificial constraints on supply. So what we have been laser focused on is how do we increase the availability of starter homes, homes that are 300, 350, 250. Some of those are condos. We did a condo liability reform. Some of those are accessory dwelling units. We did. Now, people can build accessory dwelling units by right on their property. They can subdivide and sell a separate structure on their own property, where we already have water and sewer, electricity there we have multifamily zoning near transit. So we're adding inventory. I'm proud to say for the first time, rents have stabilized, even gone down a little bit. Homes are a little bit more affordable, again because of national interest rates. It doesn't mean they're more affordable because mortgages cost more, but at least the price point. We are stabilizing and trying to create more homes that people can buy in the three hundreds and four hundreds here in near job centers like Denver and Colorado Springs.
- [13:10]
Jim Acosta
Yeah. And if Trump is going to continue to have the deficit go out of control, that is not going to be helpful for mortgage interest rates. And so it just may be a difficult problem for everybody to tackle, the whole country to tackle, while that dynamic is playing itself out. But I mean, it's an important issue to bring up. And I've been reading this book, Abundance, the Ezra Klein book. And it gets into all of these issues that have just been bedeviling local and state leaders in terms of getting housing going. And it's kind of unreal how much we pay for housing versus what other countries do.
- [13:42]
Jared Polis
It's so much more than just the innate cost. Right. You think parts and labor. But here it's the permitting, it's the time cost of the permitting, it's the delays, it's the changes that need to be made. For instance, we did another reform here in Colorado. We call it smart stair reform. It allows for more flexibility about how you do the emergency exit stairs. And we work closely with the fire marshals and others. And this is especially urban centers where they have multi story buildings. So because of this, we are now freeing up more space for actual living space and we increase the flexibility about how you build it. Another one we did is we had local governments imposing parking requirements on new buildings, saying for every, you know, thousand square feet, you have to have one and a half parking spots. And so we say, and now we ban that statewide, you know, you only have as much parking as people want. Right. So if somebody is buying a 3,000 foot house, you know, don't make them pay for four spots. Maybe they want to, maybe they want one. Every additional parking spot costs about $40,000. That's the average that it adds to the cost and it takes up space. So let that meet the market rather than impose these requirements and make people pay for empty parking spots that they don't want.
- [14:48]
Jim Acosta
As a former city hall and state house reporter, I'm really enjoying this conversation. Governor, it's been a lot of fun. I have to ask you, just finally, I mean, are you going to town halls? What are you hearing from people? What does the Democratic Party need to do right now? I know you get asked this question a lot. You're a very popular governor in Colorado. I'm not just saying that because you came on my substack. It is just the case. And I mean, what, what needs to be done here in the next couple of years for Democrats, do you think?
- [15:15]
Jared Polis
Well, we probably need more than 15 minutes for that, Jim. But, but I'll just, you know, I think it's just meeting the challenge of where people are and how we can make life better. Right. So we talked about housing, health care. These are frustrations and costs that people have. We need thoughtful, innovative policies to deliver. We're doing our best in Colorado. We're the first state to cap the out of pocket cost of insulin as an example for diabetics. We're mo more housing, transit, we're expanding passenger rail, easy convenient bus transit for those who want it. But it's really, how do you actually solve and make life better for people in a very tangible way? And people don't care so much whether it's their mayor, their governor, their president. They just want somebody who's on our side and fighting every day to make life better.
- [15:58]
Jim Acosta
Yeah. And how do you find dealing with Trump right now? Do you deal with him? I've seen other governors go to the White House and it not go over so well. Do you like things just in Denver and rather just kind of take care of business where you are? What are your thoughts?
- [16:10]
Jared Polis
Well, look, we were a proud part of the United States of America and may not have voted for this president, but we would work with any president in their cabinet to deliver for the people of our state. You know, we had a call today with the new head of the U.S. forest Service. They own a lot of land in our state. So we work very closely with federal agencies. We appreciate flexibility, the ability to do waivers where we can. We're focused on pushing Congress not to cut Medicaid, which would be devastating. But look, we have our own work we're doing here, but we also realize that, of course, we work with the federal government however we can to make life better for Coloradans.
- [16:44]
Jim Acosta
All right. Very deft answer. Governor Jared Polis, great to talk to you. Thanks so much. I'm going to try to get out to your state this summer. Try not to make it more crowded for you, but you might have to squeeze in one more when I come out there later on this summer. But thanks a lot for the time. Really appreciate it.
- [16:58]
Jared Polis
See you soon, Jim. Take care.
- [16:59]
Jim Acosta
All right. Sounds good. Thanks, Governor. All right, thanks. That's Governor Jared Polis of the great state of Colorado. And it is. He's absolutely right about this in that it's just such a popular state right now, and people are moving there in droves. I can't imagine what it is doing in terms of running the show out there. I'm going to try to bring in very quickly now the. I mean, somebody who is just a legend in the business. I'd been in for 30 years until I did this crazy thing called Substack on the Substack machine, as I like to call it, talking about the amazing, the wonderful, the talented, talented Katie Couric. I don't know what else to say other than she's Katie Couric. And here she comes now, I believe. There she is.
- [17:42]
Jared Polis
Hey, Katie.
- [17:43]
Jim Acosta
How are you? Good to see you.
- [17:46]
Katie Couric
I'm good, Jim. So nice to see you, too. My first official day on Substack. So I'm really hoping to learn some lessons from you.
- [17:58]
Jim Acosta
I tell you. You know what? It's a work in progress.
- [18:02]
Katie Couric
Can you hear me?
- [18:03]
Jim Acosta
I can hear you. Can you hear me?
- [18:06]
Katie Couric
Yeah, I can hear you. I felt like there might be a delay. It says your Internet connection is. What?
- [18:12]
Jim Acosta
Oh, mine is doing well. Yours might be a little slow. This is okay. We all work together here at Substack.
- [18:22]
Katie Couric
Yeah. I think my. Get off the WI fi maybe.
- [18:26]
Jim Acosta
Yeah, I would say get off the WI fi if your wifi is not great. Sometimes I tell folks, no, no, no. We can workshop this in real time. There you are. You're crystal clear now.
- [18:35]
Katie Couric
I took myself. Yeah, I took myself off of WI fi. I'm blurry. They're saying I'm blurry.
- [18:41]
Jim Acosta
I don't think you look blurry.
- [18:42]
Jasmine Crockett
The WI fi. Second.
- [18:44]
Katie Couric
Okay. Maybe give it a second and then.
- [18:45]
Jared Polis
I'll look good now.
- [18:46]
Katie Couric
Better.
- [18:47]
Jared Polis
Yes.
- [18:47]
Jim Acosta
Yeah.
- [18:47]
Katie Couric
Sorry about that, everyone.
- [18:49]
Jim Acosta
No, no, no, it's okay. And there's the Katie Kirk smile that we all know and love. You know, it's great to see you.
- [18:55]
Katie Couric
That big gummy smile. Yeah.
- [18:57]
Jim Acosta
No, it's not. No, it's not. No, it's. It's wonderful to see you. It's great to talk to you. There are so many millions of ways we can start. I mean, you just saw I was interviewing the governor of Colorado. If you had asked me six months ago, would I be interviewing the governor of Colorado over my phone, I would have said, no, I wouldn't be doing that. But here we are.
- [19:17]
Katie Couric
Isn't it awesome? I know. Initially, listen, when I started doing Instagram Lives, I was sort of embarrassed a little bit back in the day, you Know, a few years ago, and I thought, gosh, people must think loser. You know, she was the anchor of the Today show and the CBS Evening News, and now she's doing Instagram Lives. And now I'm very excited to be doing it on Stuff Stack. And I used to sort of feel almost sheepish about it, Jim, but honestly, it is so much fun. It feels so much more immediate. First of all, you look amazing. Your picture is crystal clear and you look fantastic. And you don't need all the trappings of a big, you know, desk with. What do you call that plastic stuff, you guys, the acrylic desk or whatever kind of. Yeah, the acrylic top. And all the makeup people. Well, I could use some of the makeup people. No, actually, but running around kind of making sure you, you look good. And the teleprompter. And I think it leads to much more sort of natural, authentic conversations. And I'm so glad you're here. I'm so glad you're doing well on this platform because honestly, I was really pissed what happened to you at cnn. I felt it was really upsetting and I think it was an example, just one of the earliest examples of a network capitulating to an administration that is making these demands. And you see a lot of anticipatory obedience and present tense obedience, and it really upset me. So I was very excited to see you landed on your feet here.
- [21:01]
Jim Acosta
Thank you. That means so much, Katie. It means the world that you're saying that. And I mean, I've always respected you. I mean, I just think that you're a legend in this business. And I mean, I remember on 9 11, watching you report to the world what was taking place that day. I mean, your work has been burned in my memory for so many years.
- [21:20]
Katie Couric
Because I've been doing it for so long.
- [21:22]
Jim Acosta
No, no, it's.
- [21:24]
Katie Couric
Every time they refer to me in any publication, it's like veteran journalists. I'm like, you can say I'm old.
- [21:29]
Jim Acosta
It'S okay, but I'm not saying that. I mean, I just. My mom raised me to be a gentleman and she would hit me over the head if I ever offended a woman whatsoever. If I did not hold the door open or anything.
- [21:40]
Katie Couric
It's okay.
- [21:41]
Jim Acosta
It's okay.
- [21:42]
Katie Couric
You know, at some point, you know, I think we should be. Embrace like every stage of life.
- [21:48]
Jim Acosta
I think so, too.
- [21:49]
Katie Couric
It shouldn't be a negative thing. And I have. I feel like I do have a lot of experience in journalism and I think it serves me really well, particularly at the time we're in right now.
- [22:03]
Jim Acosta
Well, and it works really well here on Substack and in independent media because getting back to your comment earlier, I mean, I think a lot of people are frankly pissed off and they're a little sick and tired of what's taking place with these brand name media outlets bending the knee. And we're seeing CBS right now pondering whether they should pay basically a bribe to the President of the United States. We saw ABC pay millions of dollars. This is something that you and I did not experience in this business up until this point. And it's very troubling to a lot of Americans. And I think that's why folks are gravitating over to places like Substack and independent media outlets like this and to folks like yourself because they say, I trust Katie. She might not be with a big brand name company, but I trust her. I'm going to go to her to get information.
- [22:52]
Katie Couric
Yeah, it's really quite gratifying in terms of people feeling like I'm a straight shooter. I generally know what I'm talking about and when I don't, I admit it. But I think you're right. The capitulation of all of these networks and, you know, the slow kind of acceptance and even recently, Jim, I'm sure you've read, and probably your followers too, that there's a lot of pressure, not only obviously with the lawsuits, which we can talk about, because I think the ABC News lawsuit really opened the floodgates and basically emboldened the Trump administration to make further steps. And we see what's happening at cbs, which I think is appalling and quite frankly disgusting. But it's very worrisome now that the people who are still working in traditional media, legacy media, however you want to describe it, are being pressured to hold back. I just read. I'm sure you did too, Jim. WNET took out a part of a documentary where Donald Trump was being criticized. The people on the View were told to kind of take it easy on Trump or maybe play it a little safer. I'm not sure the exact words. So I'm paraphrasing here. And of course we had the whole debacle of Wendy McMahon and of course there have been other things written that she wasn't an effective leader. So, you know, all these stories are much more complicated than they're reported at face value. But I think the overall theme is that there is tremendous pressure being placed on these journalists in these publications and these networks. And I think, you know, it's kind of a multifold problem, Jim, because I think about if I were anchoring the Today show today and back in the day, yes, I flew across the plaza as Peter Pan and dance, you know, sang with Darlene Love. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Cook with Martha Stewart. But we did pretty serious, hard hitting interviews, you know, some of which I'm very proud. And I think about the conundrum I might find myself in if I were anchoring the Today show, because these shows are already declining and they can't really afford to lose a huge, a pretty sizable swath of the American public who may be Trump supporters. So they have to really carefully navigate, unfortunately, how they cover what's happening in this administration. And I think as a result, they're not covering it very aggressively or at all. And so I have sympathy for those people because I'm sure they're getting a lot of pressure from their corporate overlords saying, hey, take it easy. You know, we are, you know, we're mass media. But as I always say, mass media has now become an oxymoron. But it's a real conundrum because if you call Trump out, as you did so well at cnn, people assume you're biased when you're actually just searching for the truth and trying to give people accurate information. And it's, I mean, I watched that Caroline Levitt and I was like confounded by just sort of what a propaganda, you know, propaganda prop she is for Donald Trump and how dismissive she is of really experienced reporters. I know I'm talking too much, but I just wanted to ask, Jim, I wanted to ask you about, like, I mean, you experienced this yourself in the Oval Office, but the other day when, when, when President Trump berated Peter Alexander, you know, who's an incredible person and a great reporter and an experienced reporter, and it was so, you know, basically tried to humiliate him on national television and it was so cringy, as the kids would say. And maybe they don't say that anymore.
- [26:59]
Jim Acosta
I think they still say that, but.
- [27:02]
Katie Couric
I just think, I just think everything that is happening, I mean, don't get discarded.
- [27:08]
Jim Acosta
No, but Katie. But you know all too well Peter is such a pro and I've worked alongside him for many years. He's an amazing person and a great reporter. You know, he just takes that stuff in stride and he's probably used to it. He's probably. Well, there you go. But it's funny that you mentioned Peter, because when I got into my back and forth with Trump, that led to the, you know, seizure of My press pass back in 2018, it was Peter who screwed up.
- [27:31]
Katie Couric
And the fight over the mic, right, Exactly.
- [27:34]
Jim Acosta
I'm not gonna give up. Damn mic. That's what I was thinking at the time. But Peter stood up for me and said, you know, Jim's a diligent reporter and everything. And then Trump turns to Peter and says, well, I don't like you very much anyway either. And it kind of went into a back and forth thing there.
- [27:46]
Katie Couric
But it's all so mature, isn't it?
- [27:51]
Jim Acosta
I mean, I, I don't know. I. I try to behave myself when I have a great journalist like yourself on, but I've called him the Man Childy and candidate Candidate. And I feel like that some. Sometimes that name sticks. But, you know, he, he, you know, he relishes this stuff, and he, he wants to have an enemy, he wants to have a foil, and he wants to go after folks like us because he thinks it scores points with his base. And what I tell people from time to time is that, listen, you know, folks like you and me, we could take it. It's not a big deal. The problem is, is that there are scores and scores of people out there, Trump supporters, who absorb this kind of hostility and abuse, and they direct it back at us. And sometimes they do it in ways that are. Can be violent and can be very threatening, and it's not good for what we're dealing with right now. And I have to say, I really think he has cracked the code. And I've said this on my show before as well. I think he's really cracked the code in how to hurt the American news media. The way he's gone after these. These news companies. And we've got to figure out a different. We got to build a better mousetrap for giving people information.
- [28:57]
Katie Couric
Yeah, yeah, that's true. But, I mean, it's terrible. And the way he treats Kaitlan Collins, I was thinking about her, and I text her occasionally. I wanted to say, like, keep your chin up, because it's terrible when. And then his base is cheering him on, and that's just a terrible position to be in. But when you say build a better mousetrap, I mean, how.
- [29:24]
Jim Acosta
Yeah, well, you know, it's funny that you mentioned that. I was going to start writing a substack on this, but I think part of it is, you know, the next time there's another administration that gets into power, there needs to be a real serious investment in public media. I think the fact that PBS and NPR being put over a barrel to ME suggests that those operations need to be built up in a way where they just become much more of a fixture in American society. Sort of like the BBC in Britain and so on. And maybe these corporate owned entities just can't hack it anymore. I just don't know. I mean, maybe when.
- [29:58]
Katie Couric
Well, there's obviously like this huge conflict of interest, Jim, right when Sherry Redstone is trying to merge Paramount with Skydance and is looking for a big deal or as big as she can get at this point in time. And they are hanging the threat of a lawsuit against 60 Minutes, which by the way, is a ludicrous.
- [30:21]
Jim Acosta
It's ludicrous.
- [30:22]
Katie Couric
It is such bullshit, honestly. And it's so specious. I mean, everything you can say about it.
- [30:29]
Jim Acosta
Oh, it's a crock of shit. It's a total crock of shit. And it speaks to how he is such a child about this stuff. I'm sorry, I hate to say it, but he just, you know, we have a toddler, somebody who behaves like a toddler as president and I, maybe I shouldn't be saying that sort of thing, but I don't know.
- [30:46]
Katie Couric
I think there's something more malevolent even than being a toddler. I think it goes beyond his sort of petulant, thin skinned Persona. I think it's really about dismantling institutions. You know, I don't think it's about him having a hissy fit. I think it's about him, you know, requiring people to live in fear. You know, for journalists to not report the truth, for them to think twice before they report something. For their executives to now be afraid. Look what happened to cbs, right? We better be extra careful. And as a result, I think it's, you know, a much the ramifications are much bigger than just him getting his way and, you know.
- [31:39]
Jim Acosta
Oh, I totally agree. No, I think, I think him behaving like a toddler is just one component of this. I think at the heart of the matter here is somebody who wants to transform American society into something that it's never been and that is a much more authoritarian like government, a Putin style, corrupt, authoritarian government. And you know, you see the way he's been handling these, these pardons, the way he's been peddling this meme coin.
- [32:07]
Katie Couric
The way the corruption, the corruption is just not to be believed. And you know, I don't know about you, Jim, and I think probably people watching this, it's like you're drinking out of a fire hose every day. That's true because, you know, there you could just, you know, blind for yourself and throw a dot. And wherever it lands, it would be a story of corruption or malfeasance or just pure obnoxiousness or, you know, hurting, hurting people with legislation, you know, the quote, unquote, big beautiful bill, I mean, you know, tweeting about or on social media, you know, saying, vladimir Putin, you're a bad boy.
- [32:51]
Jim Acosta
You know, it's targeting migrants without due process. I mean, the list goes on and on. And we would be able to focus on the CBS story for a moment if it weren't for all of these other things. And it's this Steve Bannon flood the zone with shit, shock and awesome.
- [33:06]
Katie Couric
Someone named Tracy just said it's intentional. And I think she's absolutely right. I think, I think, you know, I know that you see this as, you know, a calling journalism and trying to inform the public. I have always felt that way too. And I think the goal is to discuss people, exhaust people and make people stop paying attention because it is too overwhelming. But that's why we have to really continue and I think join forces in a way. I think my husband was talking about Kara Swisher, who I'm friendly with, and, and I guess she and Scott Galloway, I love Kara. And they were talking about how people who are pointing some of these transgressions out, I mean, that's sort of a mild term for everything that's happening, need to kind of form their own network, their own ecosystem and prop each other up to not only, you know, make sure the message gets out loud and clear, but also as a way to fight extreme right wing media, which is obviously propping him up and celebrating and, and, and perpetuating his agenda. And so, you know, we just keep doing what we're doing. And honestly, I had never felt, I mean, I always felt a huge responsibility. You talk about 9, 11, that terrible day where the whole world seemed like, honestly, it seemed like who knew what was happening. It felt kind of weirdly War of the World ish. And I felt this enormous responsibility back then, Jim, but I don't think I have ever felt a sense of responsibility to make sure people understand and appreciate and really comprehend the context of everything that's going on in this country. I feel an enormous sense of purpose and an enormous responsibility to do that right now. And I know you do too. And I don't think I could do it if I was in network news.
- [35:14]
Jim Acosta
Well, let's do this. Let's join forces and let's keep doing this. I would love to Keep having this conversation, keep it going. Because honestly, I think this is what folks are looking for. We can give folks the information, but do it in an unvarnished way where you just, you just, you know, grab by the shirt collar a little bit and tell them like, hey, this is what's happening. We're not going to sugarcoat this here. You need to hear the truth. What happened, what's happening right now is very serious stuff. But it's so great to talk to.
- [35:40]
Katie Couric
You, to report and to report the truth isn't being biased.
- [35:45]
Jim Acosta
Exactly. That's right. I, I mean, I've said it. There aren't two sides to a story when it's a matter of right versus wrong. And that's what I'm going to keep doing here and, you know, damn the torpedoes. But, but Katie, it's an honor to speak with you. I'm so happy that we were able to do this. I hope we can do it again. It would be.
- [36:03]
Katie Couric
Yeah, definitely. And I can tell you all about my experience kind of going into digital media. I was an early adapter, as they say. I know doing this for about seven years because I think I saw the handwriting on the wall. That technology was going to really transform the way we communicate and the way we share information. And you know, it's been, it's been a really interesting journey. And you know, it doesn't make me, it doesn't mean that I'm not sad in a way about sort of linear television and newspapers, especially local newspapers, folding or having financial trouble, but. But I'm really glad that I was on the front end of making a change and adjusting to what really is a new normal in terms of reporting and sharing content and information for people.
- [37:07]
Jim Acosta
Well, Katie, again, such an honor to speak with you. Thank you so much for doing this. And make sure you check out Katie here on Substack and everywhere else.
- [37:16]
Katie Couric
Yeah, it's my first day, everyone. I'm very excited.
- [37:19]
Jim Acosta
First day at school, so to speak, on the substack machine.
- [37:22]
Katie Couric
I feel like it's the first day at school and I'll look for you if I have any questions about stuff. Jim, I'll reach out and maybe you can give. You can be sort of, what do you call it, your mentor. Well, not mentor. Like when you're in school. Don't you have like a big backpack.
- [37:39]
Jim Acosta
Buddy or something like that?
- [37:40]
Katie Couric
Yeah, yeah. You're my big.
- [37:42]
Jim Acosta
You got it. Anytime. I'll always be your biggest reach out. Anytime.
- [37:46]
Katie Couric
Okay, thanks, Jim. And thanks everyone for watching.
- [37:50]
Jim Acosta
Okay, great to see you we'll do it again soon. The one and only, the legend, Katie Kirk. Wow, that was amazing. I'm going to go quickly to Representative Jasmine Crockett, who I believe is standing by, and I'm thrilled that we're able to speak with her as well. She is obviously a rising star in the Democratic Party right now. I feel completely blessed. I mean, this is just one of those days where I just feel completely blessed with the lineup. It just sometimes these things come into place. Folks might remember when I did the People to judge Hakeem Jeffries, one that was amazing. And look at this. It's all coming together. I can't believe this. Wow. There's. I believe Congresswoman Crockett is coming in right now. I believe we're going to see her at any moment. But as I said earlier, she's a rising star in the Democratic Party right now. I recently saw her over at the Webbies. She won an award there. And you know where Congresswoman Crockett goes, people are listening these days because she's figured out sort of the secret sauce, as I like to call it when it comes to speaking to Democratic voters and speaking to just folks in general. Oh, we lost it. Let's try it one more time. We lost her connection staff. If you're with Jasmine, Congresswoman Crockett right now, you might want to turn off the WI fi and just go off the cell. This occasionally happens. We saw that happen with Katie Couric. We need to make this a topic on the show at some point. Why is it everybody we pay so, so much damn money. The WI fi is just too damn high. We pay all this money for WI fi these days, and the WI fi doesn't work in so many parts of the country right now. It's just absolutely absurd. And we've got to switch to our, our cell phone service in order to make something happen for the folks with Congresswoman Crockett. If you're watching me, I am trying to link up with you again. Sometimes it takes a couple of, you know, spins of the wheel in the substack machine, as I like to call it, as we're getting Congresswoman Crockett set up. I mean, one of the things I did want to speak with Congresswoman about is Trump's sketchy pardons. I didn't get to talk about this with Governor Polis. Didn't really get to talk about this with Katie Couric. But the AP reporting that Trump says he will fully pardon Todd and Julie Chrisley. I don't know if I'm saying their names, right? They're reality TV personalities. I don't follow them. I don't watch them. Who have been. Who have been serving more than two years in prison after being convicted of funding their lavish lifestyle. There's the congresswoman right there. Hey, Congresswoman.
- [40:28]
Jared Polis
How are you?
- [40:28]
Jim Acosta
Good to see you.
- [40:30]
Jasmine Crockett
I'm doing well. How are you?
- [40:32]
Jim Acosta
I'm doing great. Thanks so much for doing this. Oh, I love those pictures behind you.
- [40:36]
Jasmine Crockett
Oh, yeah. I love my wall.
- [40:39]
Jim Acosta
Is this your office?
- [40:42]
Jasmine Crockett
Actually, no, this is my living room in Dallas.
- [40:44]
Jim Acosta
Oh, in Dallas. Okay, you're back in Dallas. And I was just talking to the viewers here. And first of all, thank you so much for doing. Is this your first substack? I guess I should ask this.
- [40:56]
Jasmine Crockett
It is definitely my first substack Live. So my apologies. The first time I had to change my settings because it wasn't going to allow you to see me.
- [41:05]
Jim Acosta
I know it sometimes happens, and it's such a new and unique tool that we're using now in independent media. It's basically like a TV studio in your phone that we're still working out some of the kinks. But it's great to see you. And how are you?
- [41:23]
Jasmine Crockett
You know, I'm here. I've had a few hours of sleep, which is an improvement over probably this time last week. Things are looking up. Yeah. I mean, it'll be interesting to see what happens once we get back since obviously Congress in both chambers is currently out on recess. But we were not sleeping. I remember that. Yeah. From dealing with. Well, for me, it started at least probably two days earlier, because the MacGyver situation that took place with Representative MacGyver in New Jersey, they decided that they were going to have a hearing on that. They announced the hearing before they actually had announced charges against her. And that hearing was going to be or was held in the Judiciary Subcommittee that I actually am the ranking member on. So I needed to prepare for that. I needed to make sure that they didn't just kind of. Of steamroll over us and just get all of their crazy talking points out, but make sure that I could put up a fierce defense of what it is that Representative McIver, as well as the other two representatives were doing on that day and what representatives all over the country are doing as we are trying to make sure that we are honoring our constitutional oaths that we have taken and we are conducting oversight at these ICE detention facilities. So I needed to get ready for that. And then that poured over into all of the ridiculousness overnight for Two days trying to get through the reconciliation bill in the Rules Committee, as well as trying to get through it on the floor.
- [42:59]
Jim Acosta
Well, let me ask you about the ICE stuff, because, I mean, I have been going off on this on my show. To me, it's not America when ICE agents can show up in masks, sweep people up off the street, send them out of the country without due process, put them in these facilities, and we don't even know what's happening inside these facilities. So, of course, it makes sense that members of Congress would want to go visit one of these ICE facilities and say, okay, what's going on here? We're members of Congress. We represent the people. We want to know what's going on here. And then there's this whole. There's this scuffle where they're giving these members of Congress a hard time. And I'm worried about folks like yourself, Congresswoman, because I have to assume that, you know, of course, they would like to arrest you and some of the others who are more outspoken in the House. That's just me thinking that.
- [43:48]
Jasmine Crockett
No, you're absolutely right. It's interesting because my deputy chief, who's quite young, still has his grandmother, who he calls this particular one Nene. And so I was having to go to El Paso after I got done in D.C. i had to go to El Paso to testify in federal court as relates to the redistricting that was done in 2020 in the state of Texas. And his grandmother did not know why we were going to El Paso, but she thought we were going to a detention facility that I don't know about Jasmine going because, you know, they want to lock her up and they probably gonna grab her and throw her in, too. And so, you know, it is sad that people are fearful and that they are looking at people like me and really scared because they know there is a target on my back. When you have the President of the United States who consistently drops my name and gets, yeah, what's that all about? Yeah, it's, you know, for me, I think that he is listening to the polling, Republicans poll all the time. And I have no idea what all is happening in their polling. But I can tell you in real life that I've had a number of Republicans that approach me as they see me out and they say, hey, I just wanted to let you know that I really like you. Like, we come from completely different parties, but I believe that you are fighting for the people. I believe that you are trying to do what's best for all of us. I may disagree with, like, how you feel like we get there, but I agree with your fight. And I think that that's what's scary for them is this idea that it's not just say, black folk that are listening to me. Right. Or it's not just like, super liberal folk. It's this idea that, you know, people who even aren't Democrats would actually listen to what I have to say.
- [45:43]
Jim Acosta
What you're saying, Congresswoman, is resonating because people out there are looking for an answer. They're looking for an answer to this crazy moment that we've been thrown into. Who the heck thought that Donald Trump was going to get back in the White House? And who the hell thought that he was going to go this bananas? We knew he would go nuts. But this is way beyond what anybody thought he was going to do. And so, of course, members of Congress like yourself, are going to want to speak up. And so, I mean, I think it's only natural that you're hearing from folks from all categories who are saying, keep going, Keep doing what you're doing, because people like a fighter. And I think that's what people want right now. And Trump doesn't like that. As somebody I've been tweeted about, too, by Donald Trump, he doesn't like people who are willing to stand up to the bully.
- [46:32]
Katie Couric
Yeah.
- [46:32]
Jasmine Crockett
Yeah, he absolutely doesn't. And I think that you're right. I think that we constantly have these conversations in the caucus and members are trying to figure out why people are saying that we're not fighting or we're not fighting hard enough, and they're trying to really better understand what it is that they can do. And one of the things that I continue to reiterate is that I absolutely believe that Joe Biden will go down as one of the best presidents that we've ever had. And I say that. And there are those that may disagree with me, and I think history will ultimately agree with me, but I think that it's about how much people knew that Joe Biden was doing and how that was positively impacting their lives. And I think that that's the same thing about the fight. Right? Like, we all fight in different ways. We all have different fighting styles. But if we are not able to communicate out what exactly it is that we're doing, then there is this perception of you're not doing anything because I haven't seen you or heard from you. And so, you know, it is my hope that we can get on a page in which we can elevate the collective fight of at least House Democrats and get people to say, you know what? They're fighting for us and not this person or that person, but they collectively are fighting for us.
- [47:53]
Jim Acosta
And what do you think about these pardons that Trump has been doing? I mean, first he does one for these reality TV stars, Todd and Julie Chrisley. I don't know who they are. They were on the TV show Chrisley Knows Best. I guess Trump knew that they were celebrities, so he thought, let's pardon them. And then there's this lady who apparently went to a $1 million. Her name is Elizabeth Faygo. I don't know, how do you say her last name? She was invited to a $1 million per person fundraiser at Mar A Lago. Her son was in a pinch. He had been, he had pleaded guilty to tax crimes days after the 2024 election, sent off his, his pardon application. She goes to this big fundraiser. Three weeks after the fundraisers, according to New York Times, Trump signs a full and unconditional pardon. I mean, it just seems what we're seeing right now with the pardons is way beyond what the President's authority should be.
- [48:44]
Jasmine Crockett
Yeah, it sounds like pay for play. I mean, that's just the bottom line. And right now he knows that there is no check on him. Obviously, there's been a lot of conversations around oversight because we just recently lost our colleague last week as well. Last week was a big week. Gerry Connolly overseeing the Oversight Committee. And what most people don't realize is that the only committee that actually has authority over the President to conduct oversight is the Oversight Committee. And so there's a lot that we can do. There's a lot that we can do as far as conducting investigations and really digging in, because the idea that someone could buy a pardon, well, that is a little problematic. Right? So, like, when you're looking at it, does it look like a duck? Does it quack like a duck? Does it walk like a duck? Kinda. Right. But, you know, before you start to really get to that level of saying, oh, no, it absolutely is a duck, then that's where oversight should be coming in and should, like, lay it out as plainly as possible and make the case. And so I think that there is a lot. In fact, I got a news alert a little bit earlier today, but I've been out in the district, and so I finally was just reading the article as I was listening to you and Katie have your conversation. But there was this article that came out today where a Republican, who I do not know who he is I would have to Google to figure out who this guy is. Recently did an interview saying that he is scared if I become the highest ranked Democrat on oversight and if I become the chair because I have made it clear there will be no passes. Like, we are looking into this plane from the Qataris. Like, we are looking into the golf deals that he is making for. Actually, he was doing one of those over in Qatar. We are looking into the deals that his family is making with Saudi Arabia. We are looking into this crypto situation that he just had at the White House. We are looking into everything.
- [50:49]
Jim Acosta
It was like the Price is Right over at the White House with the meme coin. It was like, come on down.
- [50:55]
Jasmine Crockett
Absolutely. Highest bidder, you get whatever you want. So. But we're going to look into this stuff and frankly, if y' all have signed off on it, if you think it's all above board, then you're not concerned that we're looking into it. But they do fear that if I become the highest ranking Democrat that I'm going to look in. And I think that that's just me doing my job.
- [51:17]
Jim Acosta
Yeah. Lot of ducks in D.C. these days. Maybe it's because the swamp is growing, the Trump swamp is growing and there's plenty of room for all these ducks. I don't know, maybe that's. That's what it is.
- [51:26]
Jasmine Crockett
But yeah.
- [51:26]
Jim Acosta
So it sounds like you want to be the ranking member on the Oversight Committee. I've read that your name has been mentioned. It sounds like you'd like to get that job.
- [51:35]
Jasmine Crockett
Yeah, absolutely. You know, this is a position in which my colleagues will be the ones to decide. And you know, I'm going to be perfectly honest, I can tell you that every single person that is running in this race is absolutely qualified to serve as the ranker. And the question is, why me? Right? And I think that it's a matter of who else but me in this moment. I think it comes down to the moment that we're in. You've seen, you know, rankers and chairs rise through the years as you have worked in and around politics for a very long time. And you know that this is not the traditional route. You don't normally have a sophomore who really even has the gumption to say, you know what, I am going to run to become the highest ranked member of this committee. But I will tell you that I am trying to make an unprecedented run because we are living in unprecedented times. And but for it being, it could be a Republican, but for it being this level of corruption that we are seeing and this level of lawlessness that is coming out, I think that there needs to be someone who is absolutely fearless as they are going out and trying to pursue the truth on behalf of the people and making sure that you can not only pursue the truth and conduct these investigations, but you've got to be able to effectively communicate what it is that you're doing and why, to the extent the American people, regardless as to whether or not we actually go through with an impeachment vote. So I want to try him in front of the American people. I think the American people need to understand about the Constitution. I think we are absolutely in a constitutional crisis for various reasons. But instead of me being the legal scholar, I have to then become the legal educator and educate people. The fact that I have colleagues that don't understand that due process should be guaranteed and is guaranteed per the Constitution to anyone on our soil tells me that we literally are in just a crisis that is on a gazillion levels. And I can't think of anyone who would be better suited to, number one, give the American people this idea and this hope of, you know what? The Democrats have a fighter that is going to fight for us and they are listening to us, as well as someone who is just going to make sure that I communicate why we are fighting and why it's so important.
- [54:05]
Jim Acosta
Well, I'm glad you mentioned due process, because to me, if there's one constitutional red line that Donald Trump cannot cross, it is to have a policy where you are going to deny due process to people in this country, whether they be legal or undocumented. And, you know, when they're talking about suspending habeas corpus, that, to me, you know, people say, oh, well, what do we do if the president defies the courts and so on. Hello, there's, there's the, the impeachment section of the Constitution. It says he can be impeached. And so, I mean, it may. It leads me to this question, which is, is he moving in that direction where you think that needs to be entertained as a possibility if Democrats gain back control of the House?
- [54:50]
Jasmine Crockett
You know, I think gaining back control of the House is only one part of the equation. Right. You know, like, I know that an impeachment is basically just an indictment. Right. He still has to be tried and he has to be convicted, and he's been impeached twice. And somehow it only strengthened him to the extent that he was able to come back by playing the victim and become the President of the United States. And So a lot of things that we do typically are in coordination with the Senate. If for some reason there is an inkling that even Republican senators will take their oath and their duty seriously and will listen to all the evidence and will actually render a true finding, then I absolutely believe that we need to. If we feel like we've got the votes in the House, not because of partisanship, but literally because we have been able to show that there is enough to rise to the level of impeaching the president, I think even a blind man can see without us conducting the investigation. But even when you have someone that goes in and robs a bank in broad daylight and you have all those witnesses, you don't just take somebody to jail and say you're indicted, you still pull together a case file. You still pull together and get that gun that they use. You get the footage, you get the fingerprints, you go through the process. And so what I'm saying is that so long as I am allowed to become the ranker and hopefully the chair in the second half of his term, then absolutely, I think that there is enough for what we would consider to be probable cause to go forward and to start to kind of introduce this information and figure out what else we can find. Ultimately, though, I think that it will be a political decision to determine whether or not we do more harm if we actually impeach him and then we can't get a conviction, or if we should just impeach him in the realm of public opinion in such a way that they did this last term with Joe Biden through Hunter Biden.
- [56:58]
Jim Acosta
So it needs to be considered at the very least, I think.
- [57:01]
Jasmine Crockett
Absolutely. Absolutely.
- [57:03]
Jim Acosta
And, I mean, I'm so glad you brought up the broad daylight thing, because I do want to ask you what you think of when Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House, says, well, Trump is doing all these things in broad daylight. He at least the Qatari plane is doing in broad daylight. As you were just mentioning, banks get robbed in broad daylight. Crimes are committed in broad daylight. Just because it's done in broad daylight doesn't mean they're not crimes. I just. It's astounding to hear the speaker of the House say that the speaker of the House should be saying, Mr. President, follow the law.
- [57:31]
Jasmine Crockett
Yes, yes, but he knows that he can't even say that. Not. Not with a straight face, at least.
- [57:37]
Jim Acosta
No.
- [57:38]
Jasmine Crockett
So, no, you're absolutely right, that that's the exact point. I think that that is the reason that we know that there's at least something that we should be talking about. It's because it has been in broad daylight. It has been in a space in which we can see it. And again, like I said, even a blind man can see that there is enough to at least continue to kind of dig and figure out what's going on. What's going on with crypto, what's going on with the pardons? I mean, we know that 40% of his wealth has been accumulated since he got into office. Like, it is astounding this time around. Yeah, this time around. Right. And it's astounding to think of when somebody like me, who is one of 435, even has issues with, like, book deals. And, like, there's all these, like, rules and parameters around, like, how much money I can make in a book deal as a sitting member of the House, yet this guy is out literally going and soliciting and getting $400 million planes. It's. It's crazy.
- [58:42]
Jim Acosta
Yeah, I know. And you have to wonder. I mean, he's Mr. Quid Pro Quo, so there's gotta be a quo to go with that quid, you know? You know, it just. It just says. It says to me that something's going on there. Well, Congresswoman, thank you so much for doing this. I appreciate it. I'm glad you're getting some rest after that big, beautiful bill, as they call it. I don't call it that, but that's what they call it. Do you think that thing has any hope of actually becoming law, just. Just finally? What do you think?
- [59:08]
Jasmine Crockett
I don't think that the House bill goes anywhere. I think it's dead on arrival. And I think the more time that we're out and people are able to really dig into it, I think the more pressure that exists on the senators. And unlike House members who have a district that may or may not include a hospital, that may or may not include a ton of people that are on Medicaid or Medicare. The senators have a different scenario. They definitely have to worry about the entire state. They absolutely have hospitals that most likely will shutter. They also have to answer to these farmers who may end up losing their farms. Because if we start to pull out that much money out of SNAP benefits, who have constituents, because we know that rural America uses more SNAP benefits than urban America that are potentially going to not be able to eat whatsoever. I just think that. That the senators have a bigger picture that they have to consider. And so I don't anticipate that the Senate is going to pass the House bill. We will see what they pass. And I absolutely don't necessarily anticipate we'll get anything that's good or great, but I don't think that it will be as bad as the House bill.
- [60:18]
Jim Acosta
Well, Congresswoman, thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate it. I can see why you're lighting it up at those town halls and the Webbies and everything else under the sun. You're in debate these days, so I appreciate you making time for little old me. I thank thank you so much.
- [60:30]
Jasmine Crockett
It's good to see you, Jim. Have a good one.
- [60:32]
Jim Acosta
Are you too? Good to see you as well. That's Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett of the great state of Texas. I'm going to be in the great state of Texas actually this weekend. I'll be down in the Lone Star State and Big D. I'll be speaking at an organization called the Hispanic Communicators of Dallas, Fort Worth. They invited me to come down and give a keynote speech. I'm going to be talking about some of the issues that we just tackled today. What's happening with with free press and migrants being swept up off the streets in this country and not being given due process. It's downright un American. But my thanks to Congresswoman Crockett for making time. She's absolutely somebody to watch in American politics these days. Fascinating conversation. Also, while I have everybody, before you go, I have to remind everybody one more time, and I'm going to keep doing it until you keep buying those tickets. My live town hall coming up on Monday, June 2nd. That's what, four or five days from now? You got to go get your ticket. Right now. We're going to be at the Lincoln theater in Washington, D.C. on historic U Street. And it's going to be a fabulous evening full of just so much fun. But also the reason why we're doing this is because I'm from this area. I'm from the Washington, D.C. area. I grew up in Northern Virginia and Fairfax county county. And I care deeply about the people in this area. This is where I grew up. I went to public school in Fairfax county, and that community gave so much to me that I want to give back. This, this entire DMV area has given so much to me that I want to give back. And I'm so we're putting on this town hall. It's coming up on Monday. Michael Fanone, Olivia Troy, they're going to be there. And I'm going to announce right now another guest that was not announced up until this point. Whistleblower Miles Taylor, who you might recall in recent days was singled out by Donald Trump, saying he wanted to have the Department of Justice investigate Miles Taylor. Miles Taylor wrote that book, the Warning about Donald Trump during the first Trump administration. He also wrote that famous op ed that was calling attention to the fact that people inside the Trump White House the first time around were concerned about Trump's behavior as president. Miles Taylor is going to be coming to our town hall on Monday evening. That's coming up on June 2nd with yours truly, Michael Fanone, Olivia Troy. I understand my friend Harry Dunn's going to be there. I believe my friend Tara Settmeier is going to be there. Aaron Parnas is going to be there. So it's going to be a lot of great guests. Akalina Ganell is going to be there. It's going to be a really incredible night. And so if you're in the Washington, D.C. area, you really need to come and check us out. It's going to be very serious. We're going to try to give as much information that we can to people out there. We're going to have representatives from the Federal Employees Union on hand to take questions. So we're going to try to provide as much information as we can, but also try to provide a bit of a stress reliever to people out there. So I'm warming up. My dad jokes I might open up with a bit of an opening monologue that might be aimed at somebody who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. I, I mean, you know, listen, am I Jimmy Kimmel? No, I'm Jimmy Acosta. All right, listen, I'll do the best that I can, but I, it's going to be a fun evening at the Lincoln theater in Washington, D.C. if you're in the area, please get your tickets at the Lincoln Theater's website. And, and, and we'd love to see you there on Monday night. It's going to be a lot of fun. Want to thank once again, I mean, what a show today. My goodness, the governor of Colorado, Jared Polis, who, by the way, is also a rising star in the Democratic Party. And could he be wonkier? I mean, just very interesting to listen to. Fascinating the issues that he's been tackling in Colorado and the way he's done it. And of course, television legend Katie Couric. I was trying not to geek out too much. I was trying to contain that as much as possible. But it was remarkable to talk to Katie and good to hear her just speaking in this unvarnished, real way that I think folks at home want to hear. They want to hear this as straightforward as humanly possible as to what is going on in this country right now. And, of course, my thanks to Jasmine Crockett, who may have made a little news. I saw some tweets go out as we were wrapping up our interview. So I think she made some news during that interview. I'll send out some clips in a little bit, but in the the meantime, I really appreciate everybody tuning in. Thanks so much for watching. Still reporting from Washington, I'm Jim Acosta. Have a great evening, everybody. Have a good night. Bye. Bye.