Mr. Durbin. No. Mr. Durbin no. Mrs. Murray. No. Liz moments almost hollywood. A man diagnosed with brain cancer just a week ago. Senator john mccain of arizona comes rushing in on capitol hill to cast his vote to a standing ovation. He traveled all the way from arizona in way that would be approved by his doctors so that he could get to this floor and vote yes on moving forward the discussion of whether to repeal and or replace obamacare. John mccain voted yes. So he is a yes. Ron johnson, the senator from wisconsin, he of course was speaking to both senator Mitch Mcconnell who the speaker, there was some real question for the moment whether senator johnson might say im out. Im voting with mcowski who both voted no on those. So we have the tiebreaker in the chair. The tiebreaker of course is Vice President pence. And hes in the chair ready to cast that tie breaking vote. But surely, this is something people have never seen. Let me back up just a second for you. It was about 20 minutes ago or so that protests interrupted the beginning of the vote. Protesters came in yelling kill the bill. Dont kill us. You have the sergeant in arms come rushing in. But it took a while. And people are calling that pretty historic. Those that covered the senate for many, many years said they had never seen anything like that. And then i want to say at about 2 39, Vice President pence got into the chair. Then 2 42, jerry murran of kansas said he will support the bill. And then speak to Mitch Mcconnell and theres probably some verbal negotiating there. But, again, it was that rival of john mccain that caught some peoples breath and maybe a little bit of their heart too. To see how far he traveled to vote yes. Why . Because he always said what is the harm in at least moving the discussion forward to show that we will at least try to get a meeting of the minds. Adam shapiro who has been on capitol hill with the very latest, and he has watching all i know the word drama is overused. But weve seen some pretty dramatic moments here as the democrats are now starting to vote. Yeah. Its going to be no. And what youre going to have is a 5050 tie and pence will break the tie and we will be as they say on the bill. The bill will be on for repeal and replacement of obamacare. And thats when the amendments will come, and there will be a law of amendments. Sources with the Republican Leadership tell fox business that there are amendments, which are designed to make the democrats squirm. This whole discussion has been about, for instance, dean heller of nevada squirming if he were to vote no or yes. But this is now going to put the ball into the Democrats Court to work with the republicans. We will see the amendment for an outright appeal of Affordable Care act, obamacare. And that is expected to fail. But then youll get the skinny repeal, auto which is a slimmed down version of all of that, for individuals to buy health care. Will that pass . Thats what this is going to be about. But heres what i want to you listen what Mitch Mcconnell, the republican leader had to say and what chuck schumer, the minority leader had to say as we went into this historic vote today. People who sent us here expect us to begin this debate. To have the courage to tackle a tough issue. Turn back. We can go through regular order. We want to work with you. Okay. I cant hear the show. Get off the button please. Hello. Liz go ahead, adam. Yeah, so heres whats going on. They are going to have a 50 50 tie and then as we said earlier, Vice President pence will cast the tiebreaker. The debate will begin and the debate will be over. Amendments to the house bill, which was passed several weeks ago, this is the vehicle by which they will attempt to do health care reform. But, liz, this is no easy task for republicans or democrats. You have people like rand paul who want an outright repeal and do not want any spending. 45billion for opioid addiction treatment. He is not in favor of that. Well, rob portman from ohio wants that. So thats where these debates are going to take place. And whether they can put together a piece of legislation that will pass, that has yet to be seen. Liz lets not ignore rand paul. He has been a stick in the mud when it came to this vote, simply because he did not like the most recent draft. He said it was full of billions of dollars of pork, and he also said he would not vote for something that was scaled down. However, then he came out, said earlier wanted a clean repeal. But he wouldnt be opposed to something called a skinny repeal. Now, whats a skinny repeal, folks . It would be something that would not fully uproot obamacare when would not introduce new spending. Now, all the while trust us. Weve got our eye on the senate floor because senator mccain will be speaking in just a couple of minutes. And of course, we would like to hear that. He was the one who said this situation is getting way more drama than it deserves. Its a motion to proceed to a debate. However, i dont care what senators say. It has been very dramatic. Im keeping my eye on some of the health care stocks, the insurers stocks. Its a bit of a mixed picture. Most of them straddling the flight line. The pharmaceuticals straddling the flat line at the moment. But not for the markets. The markets are taking this almost as a side window issue versus the front page for wall street, and that is great, Solid Earnings in this final hour. I need to tell you, we could see not one, not two, not three, but four major embassies close at all time highs. And, no, it does not have anything to do with health care. Its just good, ol fashioned earnings that are in the driving seat. Caterpillar gripping the Steering Wheel here to hit their highest level in more than five years. Also in the passenger seat, youve got mcdonalds sizzling to an alltime high. Folks, thats a stock in a lot of your portfolios. This after sandwiches and burgers and 1 drink lifted the Company Store sales to their highest watermark in about five years. I dont want to ignore dupont. In the backseat after reported Crop Protection sales jump 10 during the quarter. So duponts up 1 right now. All this as wall street calmly lies out by the pool. Now, thats a good or bad thing. Maybe. Look at the vix. It stands right now at 9. 42. Thats it. 9. 42. So theres no fear here. But guess what . That is also very near an alltime low, and you need to watch the vix closely, and we will too because that fear index has never closed below nine. Heres Vice President mike pence, the tiebreaker. Are not permitted. On this vote, the yays are 50 and the nays are 50. The Vice President votes in the aaffirmative and the motion is agreed to. Clerk will report the bill. 120hr1628 in an act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to title two of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2017. The senior senator from arizona is recognized. I thank you, mr. President. Ive stood in this place many times and addressed this president many providing officers. Ive been so addressed i sat in that chair, and thats as close as ill ever be to a presidency. But anyway. Its an honor were almost indifferent to. It can be a nuisance, and as usual, relegated to the more junior members of the majority. I stand here today looking a little worse for wear, im sure. I have a refreshed appreciation for the protocols and customs of this body and for the other 99 privileged souls who had been elected to this senate. Eib a member of the United States senate for 30 years. I had another long, if not as long career before i arrived here. Another profession that was profoundly rewarding in which i had experiences and friendships that i revere. But make no mistake. My service here is the most important job ive had in my life. And im so grateful. So grateful to the people of arizona for the privilege, for the honor of serving here, and the opportunities it gives me to play a small role in the history of the country that i love. I admire men and women in the senate who play much more than a small role in the history. True statesman, giants of american politics, they come from both parties, and from various backgrounds. Their ambitions will frequently come conflict. They held different views on the issues of the day, and they often had very serious disagreements about how best to serve the national interest. But they knew no matter how sharp felt their disputes, however keen their suspicions, they had an obligation to work collaboratively to ensure the senate discharged its constitutional abilities effectively. Our responsibilities are important, vitally important to the continued success of our republic. And rules and customs that are deliberately intended to require broad cooperation. The most revered members of this constitution accept compromise in order to make incremental progress on solving americas problems and defender from adversaries. That principle mindset come to mind when i hear the senate referred to as the worlds greatest body. Im not sure we can claim that distinction with a straight face today. Im sure it wasnt always deserved in previous eras either. But im sure there have been times where it was, and i was privileged to witness some of those occasions. Our deliberations today, not just our debates, but the exercise of all of our responsibilities authorizing government policies, appropriating the funds to implement them, exercising our advice and consent rule are often lively and interesting. It can be sincere and principle. But they are more partisan, more tribal, more of the time than any time that i can remember. Our deliberations can still be important and useful, but i think we would all agree they havent been overburdened by greatness lately. And right now, they arent producing much for the American People. Both sides have let this happen. Lets leave the history of who shot first to the historians. I suspect theyll find we all conspired in our decline either by deliberate actions or neglect. Weve all played some role in it. Certainly, i have. Sometimes ive let my passion rule my reason. Sometimes i made it harder to find Common Ground because of something harsh i said to a colleague. Sometimes i wanted to win more for the sake of winning than to achieve a contested policy. Incremental progress, compromises that each side criticized but also accept just plane muddling through to chip away at problems and keep our enemies from doing their worst isnt glamorous or exciting. It doesnt feel like a political triumph, but its usually what we can get from our government. Operating as free as ours. Considering the injustice and cruelties inflicted by autocratic governments and how corruptible human nature can be, the system does make possible the fitful progress it produces and liberty and justice it preserves is a magnificent achievement. Our system doesnt depend on our nobility. It accounts for our imperfections and gives us an order to our individual striving that has helped make ours the most powerful and Prosperous Society on earth. It is our responsibility to preserve that. And even when it requires us to do something less satisfying than winning. Even when we must give a little to give a little. Even when our efforts managed just three yards in a cloud of dust while critics on both sides denounce us for timidity, for our failure to triumph. I hope we can, again, rely on humility on our need to cooperate, on our dependence on each other, to learn how to trust each other again and by so doing better, serve the people who elected us. Stop listening to the loud mouths on the radio and television and the internet. To hell with them. [applause] they dont want anything done for the public good. Our incapacity is their livelihood. Lets trust each other. Lets return to regular order. Weve been spinning our wheels on too many important issues because we keep trying to find a way to win without help from across the aisle. Thats an approach thats been employed by both sides mandating legislation from the top down without any support from the other side with all the parliamentary movement. We are getting nothing done, my friends. We are getting nothing done. And all weve really done this year is confirm neil gorsuch to the supreme court. Our Health Care Insurance system is a mess. We all know it. Those who support obamacare and this who oppose it. Something has to be done. We republicans have looked for a way to end it and replace it with Something Else without paying a terrible political price. We havent found it yet. And im not sure we will. All weve managed to do is make more popular of policy that wasnt very popular when we started trying to get rid of it. I voted for the motion to proceed to allow debate to continue and amendments we offer i will not vote for this bill as it today. Its a shell of a bill right now. We all know that. I have changes by my states governor that will have to be included by support of final passage of any bill. I know many of you will have to see the bill changed substantially for you to support it. We tried to do this by coming up with a proposal behind closed doors in consultation with the administration. Then bringing it on skeptical members trying to convince them that its better than nothing. Its better than nothing . Asking us to swallow our doubts and force pass the unified opposition. I dont think thats going to work in the end and probably shouldnt. The administration and Congressional Democrats shouldnt enforce through Congress Without any opposition support social and economic change as massive as obamacare. And we shouldnt do the same with ours. Why dont we try the old way of legislating in the senate . The ways our rules and customs encourage us to act. If this process ends in failure, which seems likely, then lets return to regular order. Let the Health Education labor and Pensions Committee under chairman alexander and Ranking Member murray hold hearings, try to report a bill out of committee with contributions from both sides. [applause] something that my dear friends on the other side of the aisle didnt allow happen nine years ago. [applause] if we lets see if we can pass something that will be imperfect, full of compromises, and not very pleasing on either side. But that might provide Workable Solutions to problems that americans are struggling with today. What have we to lose by trying to Work Together to find this solutions . Were not getting done much at all. I dont think any one of us feels good of our incapacity. Merely preventing political opponents of doing what they want isnt the most inspiring work. Respecting our differences but not letting them prevent agreements that dont require abandonment of core principles, agreements made in good faith that help improve lives, and protect the American People. The senate is capable of that. We know that. Weve seen it before. Ive seen it happen many times and the times when i was involved even in a modest way working on a bipartisan response to a National Problem or threat are the proudest moments of my career and by far the most satisfying. This place is important. The work we do is important. Our strange rules and seeming centric practices that slow our proceedings and insist on our cooperation are important. Our founders envision the senate as the more deliberative, careful body that at a greater body of the public passions of the hour. We are an important check on the executive. For the president to appoint powerful government officials and in many respects to conduct foreign policy. Whether or not we are of the same party, we are not the president s subordinates. We are his equal. As is responsibilities, many powerful so are ours. We play a vital role in shaping and directing the judiciary, military, and the cabinet and planning and supporting foreign and domestic policies, our success in meeting all of these awesome constitutional obligations depends upon Cooperation Among ourselves. Success of the senate is important to the continued success of america. This country. This big, boisterous, brave, good, and magnificent country needs us to help it thrive. That responsibility is more important than any of our personal interests or political affiliation. We are the servants of a great nation. A nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. More people have lived free and prosperous lives here than in any other nation. Weve acquired unprecedent wealth and power because of our governing principles and because our government defended those principles. America has made a greater contribution than any other nation to an International Order that has liberated more people from tyranny and poverty than ever before in history. We had been the greatest example, the greatest supporter, and the greatest defender of that order. We arent afraid. We dont covet other peoples land and wealth. We dont hide behind walls. We breach them. We are a blessing to humanity. What greater cause could we hope to serve in helping keep america the strong, aspiring, inspirational beacon of liberty and the freedom of dignity of all human beings in their right to freedom and equal justice . That is the cause that binds you guess that is so much more powerful than divide us. What a great honor and extraordinary opportunity it is to serve in this body. Its a privilege to serve all of you. I mean it. Many of you have reached out in the last few days with your concern and your prayers, and it means a lot to me. It really does. Ive had so many people say such nice things about me recently that i think some of you must have me confused with someone else. [laughter] i appreciate it, though. Every word. Even if much of it isnt deserved. Ill be here for a few days. I hope managing the floor debate on the Defense Authorization bill, which im proud to say is, again, a product of bipartisan cooperation and trust among the members of the senate and Armed Services committee. After that, im going home for a while to treat my illness. I have every intention of returning here and giving many of you cause to regret all the nice things you said about me. And i hope to impress on you again that it is an honor to serve the American People in your company. Thank you, fellow senators. Mr. President. [applause]. Liz vietnam war hero, just made it all of us call out sick with a surgical wound over his left eye stitched up and a diagnosis of brain cancer, he made his way to the senate floor to vote yes to move forward the debate on health care. And a bill that he very clearly said we are not getting done much apart, maybe we bring in the democrats, but he did say what is the problem with at least going toward a motion to further discuss it, but that he would not vote for this bill as it stood . But that people should calm down and get ready for the debate. Otherwise, the American People will simply lose faith. He also said all weve managed to do by all of this bickering is make obamacare more popular as we failed to get anything done. It was almost like fiddling while rome was burning. So at the moment, we do have a yes vote with the tiebreaker of Vice President pence to move forward to debate the health care bill. And right now on the right side of your screen, we are awaiting President Trump. He will be with the leader of lebanon. But something tells us that folks will be way more interested in throwing some questions about this health care situation. Maybe a question about the comments hes made through twitter about attorney general Jeff Sessions that have not been very friendly toward that relationship. But in the meantime, i want to bring in on the heels of this yes vote. The former health and Human Services secretary and former utah governor mike. The president , sir, is coming in right now to speak. But please listen along with us, and then well have you comment afterward. Stand by and here is the president. Donald trump. Trump thank you very much. Please. Im very happy to announce that with zero of the democrats votes, the motion to proceed on health care has just passed. And now we move forward towards truly Great Health Care for the American People. We look forward to that. This was a big step. I want to thank senator john mccain. Very brave man. He made a tough trip to get here and vote, so we want to thank senator mccain and all of the republicans. We passed it without one democrat vote. And thats a shame, but thats the way it is, and its very unfortunate. But i want to congratulate American People because were going to give you Great Health Care. And were going to get rid of obamacare, which should have been frankly terminated long ago. Its been a disaster for the American People. Thank you very much. Good afternoon and thank you, all, for being here. It is my honor to welcome Prime Minister of lebanon to the white house. The Prime Minister and i have just concluded an extensive conversation about the challenges and opportunities facing lebanon and its neighbors. Lebanon is on the front lines in the fight against isis, alqaeda, and hezbollah, the lebanese people of all faiths are working together and you know this, and weve been discussing this at great length. The country safe and prosperous. They love their country, and theyre going to keep it safe and prosperous. Mr. Prime minister, i want to commend you and your people for standing up for humanity in a very troubled part of the world. The ties between our two countries stretch back more than a century. Long, long relationships. In 1866, american missionaries founded the american university. Now more than 150 years later and with on going american support, this university continues to educate generations of leaders in the region. Today our two countries seek to strengthen our relationship in many ways including the pursuit of stability, mutual prosperity, and peace. What the Lebanese Armed forces have accomplished in recent years is very impressive. In 2014 when isis tried to invade northern lebanon, the Lebanese Army beat them back. Since that time, the Lebanese Army has been fighting continually to guard lebanons border and prevent isis and other terrorists, of which there are many, from gaining a foot hold inside their country. The United States military has been proud to help in that fight and will continue to do so. Americas assistance can help ensure that the Lebanese Army is the only defender lebanon needs. Its a very effective fighting force. Threats to the lebanese people come from the inside as well. Hezbollah is a menace to the lebanese state, the lebanese people, and the entire region. The Group Continues to cressets military arsenal, which threatens to start yet another conflict with israel constantly fighting them back. With the support of iran, the organization is also fueling humanitarian catastrophe in syria. Hezbollah likes to portray itself as a defender of lebanese interest. But is very clear that its true interests are this of itself and its sponsor. Iran. I repeatedly emphasize that syrias neighbors in the middle east must take responsibility for helping Syrian Refugees until they can return home and rebuild their country. The lebanese people have led the way accepting more Syrian Refugees per capita than any other nation. Its not even close. I want to thank the Prime Minister and the lebanese people for giving shelter to those victimized by isis. The assad regime, and their supporters and sponsors. And pledge our continued support to lebanon. Since the state of the syrian crisis, the United States has helped lebanon support Syrian Refugees with clean water, food, shelter, and health care. Our approach supporting the humanitarian needs of displaced syrian citizens as close to their home country as possible is the best way to help most people. Americas proud to stand with this who have the courage to stand up to terrorism and take responsibility for affairs in their own region. The reliance and resilience of the lebanese people in the face of war and terror is extraordinary. We honor the citizens of lebanon who are working to secure a future of peace, stability, and prosperity for their children. Mr. Prime minister, im grateful that youre here today. Its a big day in our country because of the vote that you just heard about. We stood and watched the results on television before coming out, and you found it very interesting, i hope and very important. I look forward to working with you to strengthen our partnership and the enduring friendship between the american and lebanese peoples. Thank you very much. Mr. Prime minister. Thank you. Good afternoon. I have the honor and pleasure and the pleasure to hold a very good meeting with President Trump. I appreciate his leadership and the United States leadership in the world today. We discuss the situation in our region and the efforts we in lebanon are making to save god our political and economic stability while combating terrorism. I thank President Trump for his support to our army and security agencies as well as support to maintaining peace and stability along our southern border. Where our government is committed to the United Nation security counsel resolution 1701 as well as all resolutions. We also discussed the pressure lebanon is facing as a result of 1. 5 million syrian displaced in our country. I outline to President Trump my government vision for dealing with this crisis with the support of the international community. We also discussed economic prospects in lebanon and to jumpstart inclusive growth with a particular emphasis on job creation. I thank President Trump and the United States of america for their support to the lebanese people. Striving to keep their countr country, dialogue, coexistence, and democratic governance in our region. Thank you. Thank you very much. Margaret, please. Thank you. Hello, margaret. Hi, mr. President. Mr. Prime minister, ill have a question for you also in just a second if youll bear with me. You spoke earlier today the wall street journal. Weve all seen those comments, but i think everybody here is probably hoping that you could talk a little bit more about this. You have called your attorney general beleaguered. You have criticized his decision to recuse himself on the russia matters. And your kind of catch phrase or motto before the white house was youre fired. So im wondering if you would talk to us a little bit about whether youve lost confidence in Jeff Sessions, whether you want him to resign on his own. Whether youre prepared to fire him if he doesnt, and why youre sort of letting him twist in the wound rather than making the call for him. Well, i dont think i am doing that, but i am disappointed in the attorney general. He should not have recused himself almost immediately after he took office. And if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me prior to taking office, and i would have quite simply picked somebody else. So i think thats a bad thing not for the president but for the presidency. I think its unfair to the presidency, and thats the way i feel. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Prime minister, could you tell us what you think about the saudiled blockade of qatar . This is something that has been of great concern to the u. S. Also in terms of resolving. Do you think that qatar is doing enough on terror and if so, would you like to see President Trump increase the pressure on the Saudi Coalition to ease its blockade and, mr. President , if you would give us any more of your thinking Going Forward with the path of attorney general sessions and maybe your timeline of making a decision. You dont give up. Thats okay. Thank you. I think theres an effort by the kuwaitis. Theyre leading this effort, and i think they made progress. We think dialogue is the best way in improving this relationship between saudi arabia and qatar. I believe that maybe the United States also could help in this in solving this issue in the gulf. I have one question for the president and also for Prime Minister. Congress introduced additional sanctions against hezbollah last week. What is your position toward these sanctions and the role that hezbollah is playing in the region and syria . Ill be making my position very clear over the next 24 hours. Were going to see what is exactly taking place. I have meetings with some of my very expert military representatives and others. So ill be making that decision very shortly. Okay . Thank you. And about his role in syria and the region. Whose role . Hezbollah role. Ill be talking about that tomorrow. Prime minister. [. [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] trump blake burman. Thank you. Hello, blake. President trump. Hello. Thank you. Indulge us here for a second. Just to pick up for margaret. The American People i think would like to know doubtful that the attorney general should indeed stay if you intend on why should he remain as the attorney general . And secondly, on a separate topic with the Health Care Vote that just came about, still a long ways to go. At what point do you feel that republicans if they cant get something done should just say you know what . We gave it a go. Lets move on to tax reform instead. Thank you. I want the attorney general to be much tougher on the leaks from intelligence agencies, which are leaking like rarely have they ever leaked before at a very important level. These are intelligence agencies. We cannot have that happen. You know many of my views in addition to that, but i think thats one of the very important things that they have to get on with. I told you before im very disappointed with the attorney general, but we will see what happens. Time will tell. Time will tell. On health care, im extremely happy that we got this vote. This is they say if you look historically, this is the tough vote to get. Now were all going to sit together, and were going to try and come up with something thats really spectacular. We have a lot of options and a lot of great options. And the republican senators really went out there. Its not easy when you have 52 senators, and you have a block of 48 voting against you. No matter what it is, no matter how good it sounds, its very hard to get the kind of numbers that we got. We ended up with 51 votes. 51 to whatever. I dont know what it is. Yeah, 51 to 50. So we had two republicans that went against us, which is very sad i think. Its very, very sad for them. But im very, very happy with the result. Im hoping we will come up in the next day or two a plan thats going to be really, really wonderful for the American People. Obamacare is a disaster. Its failing in every front. Its too expensive, it gives horrible coverage, it was gotten by a lie 28 times it was a lie. You can keep your doctor. You can keep your plan. All lies. And the people are sick of it. And were going to come up with a Great Health Care that satisfies the needs of the people that we serve, which is the people of the United States. I will say, and i said it right at the beginning. Health care is always difficult because you have to weed a very, very narrow path like a quarter of an inch wide right down the middle. And if you go a little bit too far right, you lose three people on the left, and if you go a little bit too far left, you lose five people on the right. It is a very, very complex and difficult task. But its something i actually know quite a bit about. I want to just thank some of the republican senators who are really fantastic in getting us here. Particular john mccain for making the trip. But i think were going to have a Great Health Care. This is the beginning of the end for the disaster known as obamacare. Thank you very much. And, mr. President. Mr. President , how can the United States have lebanon cope with a massive number of Syrian Refugees and is there a way you can help facilitate refugees return to their home country . Well, we are helping. And one of the things that we have made tremendous strides at is getting rid of isis. We have generals that dont like to talk. They like to do. And we were with general mattis last night. And the success theyve had against isis is extraordinary. Weve made more progress in the last four or five months than previous really, i could see the Previous Administration made in eight years. And then we have to see what we have to see. But i will tell you isis in syria, isis in iraq, isis in other locations. We have made tremendous strides. Our military is an Incredible Fighting force. And as you know, i let the commanders on the ground do what they had to do. Before, they used to have to call in this Beautiful House and speak to people that didnt know what was happenin happening. Where they were, what locations. Practically, probably never heard of the countries they were talking about or the towns. I let the generals do what they had to do. And we have made tremendous plans. We were discussing it just before. We have made tremendous gains with respect to isis and syria, iraq, and other places. Assad . Im not a fan of assad. He will tell you that because we hit 58 out of 58. Or you could even say 59 out of 59 when we launched the tomahawk missiles. No, i am not a fan of assad. I certainly think that what hes done to that country and to humanity is horrible. So i have been saying that for a long time. I am not somebody that will stand by and let him get away with what he tried to do. And he did it a number of times. When president obama drew the red line in the sand and then he should have crossed that red line because some horrible acts against humanity took place, including gas. And the killing through gases. That was a bad day for this country, and i go a step further that had president obama gone across that line and done what he should have done, i dont believe you would have russia, and i dont believe you would have iran to anywhere near the extent and maybe not at all in syria today. Okay . Thank you very much. [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] trump thank you very much, everybody. Liz President Trump and the Prime Minister of lebanon are now shaking hands taking pictures. But what is extraordinarily at least to us here on countdown to the closing bell even in the wake of the hard fought yes vote on health care complete with a last second almost big budget film dramatic moment where senator john mccain ran in and voted yes, having just been diagnosed with brain cancer. This News Conference focused not on the Health Care Vote, which, again, was very hard fought. But on the attorney general Jeff Sessions whom President Trump has called beleaguered, he has made it very clear he is disappointed in Jeff Sessions to have recused himself. And there were not one but two questions right there, including our own blake burman about that. I first want to hear is it blakes question and response. Whatever it is, lets listen to what happened when he was asked about Jeff Sessions. Not there. Were going to have it in one second. And now its there. Now its not. Okay. For the moment, let me just tell you that he gave the wall street journal a sitdown interview earlier this morning, during which and this is rather extraordinary. He declined to say whether he fired Jeff Sessions. He dismissed the fact that sessions was first to endorse him saying quote its not and this is a quote. Its not like a great, loyal thing about the endorsement. Remember, Jeff Sessions was the very first senator, the very first congressperson to even say im with donald trump during the campaign. Now we do have blakes question. Lets listen in. But i am disappointed in the attorney general. He should not have recused himself almost immediately after he took office. And if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me prior to taking office, and i would have quite simply picked somebody else. So i think thats a bad thing not for the president but for the presidency. I think its unfair to the presidency, and thats the way i feel. Liz lets bring in our Political Panel republican strategist adam good man is here, along with democratic strategist christopher. You guys with me . That was pretty extraordinary that you have a rose garden event right after something that has talk about twisting in the wind. The Health Care Vote has been twisting and turning in the wind and yet the press, including our own blake burman went to the Jeff Sessions issue. Adam, you first. What did you think of that . Well, you put it right. What an extraordinary day when john mccain comes on a sick day to make america well, and were treat to another issue where all is not well within paradise within trumps inner circle. What is really going on here are two things. One, of course. Everyone in the administration serves at the pleasure of the president. We have to remember that because theres a tradition that we have to respect. The second thing is Jeff Sessions is clearly tested. Hes clearly tested in terms of of his term of service as an attorney general and home state of the u. S. Attorney general as a u. S. Senator. But is he tough enough to hang with what is necessary to take on a system that the president believes is broken, and i think thats where the president has had a crisis of confidence, and i think thats what were seeing play out. Liz okay. Let me for a moment stick up for Jeff Sessions, only because the other day it was announced, and our gerri willis covered did extensively because shes our person when it comes to things like medicare fraud. I announced the arrest, chris of 400 doctors, nurses, and who knows what else. Business people who were basically just raping medicare. Fraud. All kinds of problems, and he arrested 400 of them, and it was totaling about 1. 3 billion. There was that. But also, his crack down on ms13, the gang members who have saturated certain areas of long island. Thats tough enough, isnt it . Yeah. I think he is tough enough. And watching the president beat on Jeff Sessions, who was loyal to him, who was there early and often and first and foremost for him. Its like watching a man kick his dog. It shows no loyalty on the president s part, and i feel for Jeff Sessions. And let me tell you who else feels for him. There are 52 republican senators right now who say to themself if the president wont be loyal to Jeff Sessions, how can we count on the president to be loyal to us . Every action has an equal, opposite reaction, liz. And this is going to backfire on the president , and its going to lead us all into a constitutional crisis on the day he fires this attorney general. So he can get to Robert Mueller and end the investigation into russian medaling in our election. Remember, its not an investigation simply into trump. Its an investigation into how the russians medalled in our election generally. And if the president continues down this path, hes causing more and more americans to start wondering why he cares so much about it. Liz Charlie Gasparino has just come down from the newsroom. Charlie, your thoughts about this. You know, we talk a lot about loyalty here, should the president be loyal to Jeff Sessions . Liz well, the president talks about loyalty a lot. Should Jeff Sessions be loyal to the president . Lets be clear here. The attorney general serves at the pleasure of the president , i suppose; right . Hes appointed by the president. But his loyalty is to the constitution. And i think thats something that donald trump that hasnt got through his head is that when Jeff Sessions took his oath of office, because he had to be sworn in. Congress had to confirm him. He was pledging allegiance to the constitution of the augments. Not to donald trump. Hes not Donald Trumps personal lawyer, am i missing something here . Liz and the president was supposedly listening to john mccains speech from the senate floor and about the job in general that the senate is tasked to do by the American People. An and i found this extraordinary where he said we are not the president s subordinates. We are his equals. Was that a message or just a statement . That was both a message and a statement. I mean, you know, right now you have the United States house and senate who are at 12 approval in terms of confidence. And i think the president feels any time he needs a lift, its an easy place to go to curry public favor. Now, is it healthy to the country and advancing the debate in trying to pass things like Meaningful Health care reform . That certainly is arguable. I think it is not helpful. And i think its time that everyone kind of pull up to the table and say the only way that people are going to feel confident in our system again is by getting things done. In fact, the votes that happened was a good first step. But lets be clear. You can hold Congress Accountable for being whatever dysfunctional. The white house is dysfunctional. Think about what an extraordinary day we had today. We had, you know, Health Care Vote, were going to proceed to redoing obamacare, the senate voted to proceed. We had john mccain make one of the best speeches ive heard in a long time just back from cancer surgery. And we had President Trump making news by attacking his attorney general. And hes head much communications. A guy that used to work here talking about firing the deputy press secretary. That is bizarre. Liz chris, weve got to run because we have health and Human Services former director Michael Lovitz standing by. But if the president did Say Something that hes ashamed that we passed it with no democrats voting yes. At what point will the democrats at least take an olive branch if its handed to them . Quickly. When the democrats are given a seat at the table. Drafted in private. Theres been no democratic allowed in this bill. Chris, chris. And the republicans listen to what john mccain says. Listen, john mccain gave the olive branch but democrats are going to do nothing but try to kill this thing and, you know, its not going to happen. Its not going to be a kumbaya moment. Liz guys, weve got to end it there. Chris, thank you and adam good man as well. Charlie, always. And the president is not done, by the way. Hes actually heading to a rally in youngstown, ohio tonight. Fox business has it all covered. What were going to do is weve got a special twohour edition of lou dobbs. That starts at 7 00 p. M. Eastern live, live, live. And then thats followed by special kennedy 9 00 p. M. Eastern only on fox business. We do have a couple records here but not the dow right now. Stay tuned. Were coming right back. Introducing new parodontax. The toothpaste that helps prevent bleeding gums. If you spit blood when you brush or floss you may have gum problems and could be on the journey to much worse. Help stop the journey of gum disease. Try new parodontax toothpaste. i wanted to know where my family came from. I did my ancestrydna. The most shocking result was that im 26 native american. I had no idea. Its opened up a whole new world for me. Breaking news, we have Senate Democrats who are gathering on the steps outside of capitol hill there, and what do you see . You see senator al franken of minnesota as well as other democratic senators. They got not a single vote to move forward with the health care bill, and they are in essence trashing what happened and saying that 22, 23 Million People will be left in the current bill uninsured. Remember, its important to note some of those, millions of those will be left uncovered by insurance due to their own choice. Not necessarily a good thing but you got to call it like you see it. Let us bring in a fox business exclusive health and Human Services secretary and former utah governor mike leavitt. Secretary, thank you for being here. Moves onto the next phase, what must the tone be by the gop who are molding this bill, senator mccain said i will not vote for it as it stands right now. What is the first step they have to take . I think we should pause momentarily and realize what we heard was a historic address on the senate floor by senator mccain. Indeed. It was dramatic. It was wise, and ts eloquent. And i think it framed the tone that has to exist from this point forward. He said not just to the republicans and the democrats but to all partisans. Were here to do the peoples business and its time to set about doing it. It was the perfect message at the right moment, and i hope it was well heard. Well, do you get a sense that it will finally pass at some point with only republicans because you do have some no votes within this group . Its hard still to know, no one knows the future, but Mitch Mcconnell, in my judgment has done a good job driving the senate forward to do its business. Now the senate needs to set up and do about finding a conclusion and not and moving forward. I still have optimism that a bill will be passed. I think this is an incremental step in a much longer health care struggle. It probably will not end here. Well, we really appreciate you being here, former secretary of health and Human Services mike levitt. Weve got a nasdaq record, and i believe an s p alltime record close once again. Weve got dave and melissa to challenge that. David we do. The dow snapping a threeday losing streak to close up just over 100 points and a huge close for the s p and nasdaq. They did end at new record highs. Hi, everybody, im david asman. Melissa melissa francis. This is after the bell. More on the big market movers. First heres what else were covering during this incredibly busy hour. Republicans clearing a major hurtle. Enough members feeling the heat from President Trump to unite behind a crucial vote in the senate this afternoon, pushing the gop closer to repealing and replacing obamacare. A live update and reaction from