Laredo. Hes been serving in Congress Since 2004. One of the reasons im excited for him to be here today season appropriate her. He helps decide how we spend our money. There is anything i was told in the aftermath of hurricane harvey, the five most important members of congressman are john cornyn, the Senate Majority whip in the floor park breeders. Is a democrat. Have delayed in the democratic efforts from the state of texas to get as much money for harvey as possible. My for the left is a cars man from louisville elected in 2002. His the most important texan from congress on the healthcare issue. Very powerful committee chairmanship. I once asked if he was the quarterback of the effort for healthcare reform and he said im the water boy. But hes very important on this issue. I follow these guys around the capital and annoy them and asked some questions. Theyre very much believe in their issues, they work hard. Im honored to have them here talking to us about their life in congress. [applause] and will start off with the be very sad anecdote about my life as reporter in washington. The flow, the energy, everything in washington changed a 12 00 p. M. January 20, 2017, when donald trump was inaugurated. From then on, weekends, nights, early mornings, you never knew what news was going to come. That kept me on my toes. At the peak of the Health Care Debate in february ended up resorting to using my wineglasses to drink coffee because i didnt have time to wash my dishes. Thats the emblematic thing of washington. I wanted each member to talk about how things have changed and how you have adjusted. Are you tired, are you excited . How do you feel about this new era . Thank you so much into the Texas Tribune and michael would call him the dr. Because hes an empty very good at healthcare. Every time theres a new president , theres always a new rhythm. A new congress, the president of the sets of rhythm and how we do our work. Near president obama and a rhythm, but when President Trump got elected was very different simply because a lot of the traditional norms that we had were just changed. Many president s to have better tweeting, how many that are able to sent out a tweet and basically have the media members of congress and others follow what he does. It set up faster pace because its not the same type of city work under what i call a traditional Republican Administration so thought different. It looks like theres more activity in ways is faster than what weve had. I talked to reporters and members of congress, its a faster pace because what he does. Nevertheless, in congress in many ways, most of the issues were working on were doing the same thing. I sit on the appropriations, and its very bipartisan. In fact, if we headed our way, all of the decisions were made by the root appropriators we wouldnt go into the drama that we currently see right now. But we have a budget in a continuing resolution and then shut down. On one level you have the president ial current. In congress in many ways, not all but in our committee its the same type of work were doing certain items career, the republican majority is following him on it were certain things. In many ways its a rhythm that we have not seen before. When i came in right after the Midterm Election in 2002, so the Bush Administration was there and establish. They have gone through their transition. I saw one president obama came in the transition met and things were different for us. But the henry is correct, theres a certain rhythm to the congressional year. After you pick up on it things become predictable. You will have the swearingin or if its not an Election Year the First Congress of the year that convenes. The state of the union is given and they lay that priority shortly after that than the budget is produced, the house produces a budget and the center produces a budget. Allegedly they get to work on appropriations which we do through the summer months. By september 30 its wrapped up with the balance of the year and clean up on items that didnt get done. Now thats in theory, it has really been several years, weve talked about President Trump in the disruptor but for the first time in the first year of the new administration of President Trump the congress and house have passed depreciation bills since beginning of the fiscal year. So it has been, even though hes a disruptor and things are different under his watch, the house got us worked on. The senate still behind as they typically do. Its hard to vote for an appropriations bill is either spent too much money or doesnt spend enough. Theres always to be a no vote. But i am hopeful with the house setting the standard in the age of trump. The senate is not going to understand that if were going to do the peoples business, we have to correctly spend the peoples money that allows the appropriators to go through it. You enter how many hearings in the we did it on the house floor and went late through the night. Thats with supposed to be. And a lot of criticism, common authorizer, henrys an appropriate her in the difference between the two just a you know, i try to take at least one trip every turn in the National Tutor of health is a big beautiful building and theyre all named for appropriators. Ive never been in a building that is bending for an authorizer. So, we do the work, we have the hearing to decide what needs to be done. Then henry comes in and writes a check at the last minute and gets the credit. I used to cover West Virginia politics. The senator who is now deceased from there was the most powerful appropriate ever, robert byrd, everywhere you go there is a rubber bird building, bridge, tunnel. So theres no overestimation of that power. At the beginning of this administration continuing on, a lot of republicans have avoided town halls. You dont back down from your conservative principles but you seem to be fearless when people are chasing you. Thats part of our obligation to our constituents its just one of the ways of communicating with constituents. Ive always found it interesting, not always helpful but certainly educational. The years that i voted for the debt limited 2011 was hard doing town halls, people were very angry people on the right were angry, you gave president obama everything he wanted and he didnt get a thing for it. Now, we actually were able to bend the spending curb on spending a little bit. I look back and say maybe it wasnt all that bad. But it doesnt matter what the issues. If youre doing a general town hall and people get it they say the Congress Minister in the town hall tonight, now almost everything is doing im good, i dont need to go. But if youre mad maybe are there and you come to talk about the things. Spence typically what i hear weather on the right or left. Thats just been something thats part of the congressional year. We have an obligation to hear from our folks. I will say this august the town halls, i dont ever require that there be a Police Department there, but we always tell her communities what were doing. Will be in your community this weekend, were doing a town hall. Maybe its because of the shooting at the baseball practice, the Police Presence at the last two town hall ive never seen anything quite like it. Normally you have one or two uniformed officers standing at the back of the room. And thats enough and sufficient for people to be polite. Right after Gabriel Gifford was injured in front of a lowpower congressional events in a park in the come i had one of the Police Departments ask if they could set up a magnetometer a. I said he really can ask people to go through that. They were good, they backed off, but the summer the number of Law Enforcement there, the plane close one that were there, to me it was startling, that it has become that hard for me to go and interact with constituents. Thats something i have not thought of. In midjune, i was supporting on the senate side and i turn to a friend and i said, something is in the air and its bad. I dont feel good being here. Two days later, i plan a womens up waltzing is reporters versus female members of congress, the day before i went to the female practice to scout them, and im at mile practice the next day and carls famous congressional reporter and he said practice is over, there has been a shooting. A going to the dugout and she said Steve Scalise has been shot. I went to the shooting scene and baseball cleats. All i can think about is what if they were for the women yesterday. Theres no dugout. Kevin brady who is that pointed out to me that if the picture that day had not been given the day off to rest, they would been trapped in the bullpen right by the shooter. Its none real story, i think it into politics to cover this kind of thing. Im supposed to cover the best of america, are you afraid of your safety . Certainly there is a new sense of lack of stability out there. In so many ways people come and im talking about emily constituents but you have members the way they talk to certain folks, theres just no sense of civility anymore. I grew up for my parents, you treat everybody the way you want to be treated. Theres just no sense of stability out there and civility out there. I sitting congress and communities. But to go around with security like the administration does . We dont do that. Were out there, but theres a very different environment out there. I go on the republican side to see how the lines are working. Again, every situation is different. I cannot say from a security standpoint that is something i spent a lot of time worrying about. Et cetera knows, the average member in congress doesnt have security detail. It was only because Steve Scalise was at that practice that there is actually someone who is there to return fire. Had he not been there that morning and what a tragedy, he was the one that got severely injured. But without him being there it would have been significantly worse. I want to get to a couple of issues. Most on the radar right now which i dont if i dont get to initiate care about, understand thats my life every day. Theres an issue i think im gonna write about the world changes an hour later. But where are we on health care . And where we going . Next question. Youre asking me to predict the future where the senates involved, its hard to do. I would have predicted that we would have been past this point many months ago, i will admit that it was harder on the house side than i thought it would be. Remember that the house had passed under Senate Reconciliation rules had passed the major pieces of repeal bill in december 2015. President obama vetoed that repeal bill. Our statement to his veto was okay, if we get the white house thats what we will do. When i met with my counterparts at the statehouse and state senate in december 2016, i look said look at the bill we passed a year ago and that is likely going to be what we will be doing. Now, that didnt happen and there are people who are concerned that if we passed a bill that was a repeal, that reconciliation individual mandate got rid of most of the taxes of the obama care subsidies the medicare expansion in two years time. There were people, moderates and conservatives in the president himself tweeted out that youre going to have to do some replace along with repeal, cannot be a repeal only bill. I know we dont get credit for but we did several hearings and the subcommittee on health. And they would like 18 hours. Those hearings did not because nobody wanted they just became slug fest on obama care is bad what youre doing is worse. The fact that hearings are continuous because they werent productive. We produced a bill based on 2015 reconciliation. Not like it hadnt been through that on the house side, it had been through regular committee process. The changes that were made were made to add more replace elements to the base of repeal. We marked it up in an open fashion. Amendments were not limited, votes were not limited. We went for 28 hours throughout the day. We read the bill to work. Some people say we didnt even read the bill. In fact, we did. We rented in committee. The clerks read the bill and off they went. Then to follow that, we had 18 hours on the rules committee. That bill came there. Eighteen hours of debate. Minority leader pelosi and hoyer came in for three hours talked about how great the Affordable Care act was but it wasnt an open process in the past. Nevertheless, people forget that the time invested in this on the house side was significant. We had to go back to rules to additional time stat amendments were people said were knocking about four because it doesnt have this or that, it was pulled from the floor and house which i thought was a mistake. The rules committee had already provided same Day Authority which meant we couldve stayed through the weekend until we got it done. We went home instead. Thirtyfour weeks later it did pass and went over to the Senate Plenty of time for them to get it done before the memorial day recess which is what they said they wanted to do. They had plenty of time to do it before the fourth of july resource but they didnt. Plenty of time before the august recess and it turns out they werent ready. The bill as it has changed, the Graham Cassidy bell, what i have tried to get my staff to do is prepare, we dont know completely what the bill is, but try to prepare a sidebyside for members of the house, you know what you voted for in may, the said things that saying these are different so people will be able to work to the process, is it something i can support or not. The house will not have a great deal of time. The senate if it does what will be midweek or later. The Senate Parliamentarian has said this must happen by the 30th at midnight. The house could vote on it the following week, but i think everyone is anxious if the Senate Passes to get it evaluated. Congressman, dear considered one of the democrats was most approachable to republicans. Did you ever think of supporting the healthcare legislation that came to the house . No. On bipartisan but im not going to vote on a piece of legislation that i think does harm. I voted for healthcare law some years ago. It was not a perfect bill, but i know when you pass a piece of legislation you always come back and finetune the things that work and dont work. The problem was, to be fair and both sides the democrats when we are in power they didnt want to make changes with acted like it was a perfect bill. Then the republicans wanted to repeal the whole thing. So we had to extremes and nobody it to sit down and talk and see what works and what doesnt work, you either modified or change it. Then of course republicans committed and they control the white house and senate so they go back and go to a replace something. The replacement my thing is if youre going to go for one with all due respect and youre gonna knock out the different proposals when they saw it come out with the numbers but if you get a not count 16 or 32 million, were living in two different worlds. With all due respect. If youre gonna focus on premiums but not going to find a way to lower the premiums then youre not doing the job. The piece of legislation is one that will knock out millions of individuals for healthcare have you thought about that, vote for that. Second of all, there is some feelgood language that says preexisting clause says these conditions are not going to be affected. But then you leave it up to the states to decide and with all due respect, you get a state like texas you know its going to happen though get rid of some of those placentas mental and maternal care under this piece of legislation. If you feel congress if the states that are doing obama care lose and the states that are anti trauma care had no state Insurance Program are benefited by getting billions of dollars. Basically what youre saying is congress cant do it so they put a short limit where they put up the exchange plan. So they set up a different thing same in 2027 money will be gone, now, will congress appropriate that money, we know what happens so again, my thing has been and i am a democrat but i believe we have to work in a bipartisan way. At the beginning of the year hes to be the chief of staff but hes now the white house legislator and says we want to see if theres anything we can back in february says except for healthcare we can talk about taxes, transportation and other items except for healthcare. Now, a couple weeks ago when the president asked for republicans to sit down there are blue dogs but theres a couple of republicans. They dont want to sit down and work thing now. That is the bottom line. We will move on but with health care. First off if your insurance is so bad he will not buy it unless you have the threat of the federal government breathing down your neck, is it a good product . Are you being well served by the People Better offering of product and are you getting good value . There is the problem. My personal feeling is the individual mandate with the centerpiece of the Affordable Care act fundamentally realtors the relationship between the government and the governed the mattis will be jettisoned. Now with the cbo to repeal that individual mandate . There would still have this sense they cannot use it but they are functionally the insured so to talk about people in the individual market so may i point out previously before the Affordable Care act came down the pike that you are covered with a preexisting conditions but in the individual market yes you pay a higher premium but the premium that you paid was lower than the premium that you paid now with obamacare. And Kelly Hancock is a state senator reorder the risk pools in the states of texas right now nobody is enrolled there is no money but if that was available they could be up and running in a short period of time.