and as we ve seen with clear-cut proof, a lot of those efforts were aimed at suppressing african-american vote. did they use that polling data to guide the russian social media efforts to suppress african-american vote? we don t know the answer to that yet. i would hope that mueller has got more indication. but it s a very real question. let s turn to the shutdown. you represent roughly 34,000 federal workers in virginia who are currently going without pay and contractors who may never get back pay. let s ask where you are on this debate about the border wall. is it your position that there s not one part of the border with mexico that could stand to have any barrier or wall? there is already 700 miles-plus of wall that s been built, some for more than a decade. that was decided by border security experts. i m for additional border security. but that border security ought to be driven by the experts, not
the president will sign it because he got burned before. look, the president is the head of the republican party. he is calling the plays. the white house is stunned by how intractable the democrats are. pelosi says she won t negotiate over a wall now or if they open up the government. so they re basically saying, we used to be for border security but now because it s your idea we re not for it anymore. it s completely hypocritical. the white house, by the way, they don t care about polling. they care about securing the border for are the american people. they think it s a huge problem and a vast majority of people think it s a problem and some think it s a crisis. so i do think aside from this polling, there s something that the american people understand is going on and must be dealt with. first of all, the majority of the american people don t support building a wall and that s been but they know there s a border crisis. the vast majority of the american people don t. let
or wall? there is already 700 miles-plus of wall that s been built, some for more than a decade. that was decided by border security experts. i m for additional border security. but that border security ought to be driven by the experts, not by the political whims of a campaign promise where trump said the wall was going to be built and paid for by mexico. this guy doesn t tell the truth. so more border security, let s have at it. while we re having that debate, let s reopen the government. tim kaine, my fellow senator and i met with a set of federal workers the other day very briefly. here are the things we heard. you want an air traffic controller working overtime without pay? you want that person focused on air safety. you don t want 30% of his mind focused on whether he s going to be able to pay his mortgage or pay his kids tuition. we heard from another federal worker who had to draw out she had savings. she had to draw down from her
bring up a bill until he knows the president will sign it because he got burned before. the president is the head 5 the republican party. he is calling the plays. the white house is stunned by how intractable the democrats are. pelosi says she won t negotiate over a wall now or if they open up the government. so they re basically saying, we used to be for border security but now because it s your idea we re not for it anymore. it s hypocritical. the white house doesn t care about polling. they care about securing the border for are the american people. they think it s a huge problem and a vast majority of people think it s a problem and some think it s a crisis. so i do think aside from this polling, there s something that the american people understand is going on and must be dealt with. first of all, the majority of the american people don t support building a wall and that s been but they know there s a border crisis. the vast majority of the american people don t. let s j