Up next, the New York Times talks with massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren about progressive priorities for president elect bidens administration. We are joined for our final session of the day with senator Elizabeth Warren. We could not be more joyed to have her, about whats going on and where the country is headed over the next several years. Senator, thank you very much for joining us. Sen. Warren thank you for having me. We will have fun. Lets have fun. I have so many questions, selfishly curious to see how you understand it. The thing we are trying to understand is the message that you think this outcome of the election really means. And what i mean by that is the democrats have won the white house, but have lost 10 seats in the house, and we will see what happens in the senate. Im trying to understand whether we think this is an endorsement or a repudiation of the more progressive values that i know you have argued for, or if its something about centrism. Whats your take on what this means . Sen. Warren so look, joe biden and Kamala Harris won by more than 5 million votes. It was record turnout. They won by running on the most Progressive Agenda that a general election candidate has ever run on in the United States of america. And it wasnt just what happened with joe and kamala. Florida said were tired of waiting for the federal government and they went for 15 an hour minimum wage. Arizona said were going to tax rich people more so that we can invest in public education. Colorado said weve had it, were going to go ahead and do a paid family and medical leave for everybody in the state. That is remarkable. Think of what that means. So i see it as a time when americans are saying, we need to make changes in this country and we need to make the kinds of changes that increase opportunity, that touch peoples lives. So for me, it means it is a mandate to joe biden and Kamala Harris to do the things we can do. To cancel Student Loan Debt for tens of millions of americans. Single biggest stimulus we could add to the economy. Put an investment in childcare, because we can do it. Raise the minimum wage for everybody who works for a federal contractor to 15 an hour. Get the pandemic and the economy under control. So i think theyve got a pretty clear agenda in front of them. It is huge, but a lot of tools in their toolbox and a lot they can do. So get out there and do as much good as you can, thats my view. Andrew i want to dig into these things, but i want to ask you, one comment, it does get at this issue how much of a mandate there really is in this regard. This is the comment made reportedly by congresswoman Abigail Spanberger of virginia. You may have heard this before. She said we lost races we shouldnt have lost. Defund the Police Almost cost me my race because of an attack ad. Dont say socialism ever again, we need to get back to basics. What do you make of that . Sen. Warren im not going to attack Peoples Campaign tactics, but we need to make clear what we stand for as democrats and we need to be willing to get out there and argue for it. And for me, lets talk about one of the clearest parts of it and that is our economic agenda, which is wildly popular across this country. Nobody lost any election over lets cancel Student Loan Debt, lets expand Social Security. Lets expand universal child care and universal prek. Lets make sure that everybody has access to Affordable Health care. Those are the things that Americans Care about right there youheir lives and ill tell Something Else they care about. They dont want an economy and government run by lobbyists and ofiders and just a bunch corporate folks. Andrew let me ask you specifically about the biden tax plan because were in the midst of the pandemic and there is a debate whether we should be raising taxes during a pandemic at a time when theres still conversations ongoing about the need for stimulus. We can talk about student debt as well as a form of stimulus, but where do you land on raising taxes at this moment . Sen. Warren look, joe biden has said, president elect biden said, they will not raise taxes on those making less than 400,000 a year. And i think that makes sense. I want us to make investments. Investments are stimulus spending. Look, pick universal child care, here is one. We need to make a Huge Investment and look what it would do for the economy. It would let mamas and daddies finish their education, let them go back to work, people who are otherwise otherwise locked at home. What else would it do . It would keep a lot of little businesses up and going. Oh, here is the third part. If we make part of that improving wages for every child care worker, then we will lift the salaries of tens of millions of people. Mostly women, mostly women of color. You know, thats the kind of thing we need to be doing. Now, the republicans want to cry austerity, but lets be clear. They gave buckets of money to billionaires. What we need to do is we need to be saying, no, were going to have more progressive taxation and were going to invest in making this economy work for everyone. We need to do it in a pandemic and we need to do it all the time. Andrew i want to get to some of those issues, but a personal question, do you want to be part of this administration . Sen. Warren so look, im not going to comment on either on myself or the specifics about anybody else on the cabinet. What i am going to say, and im always glad to say, personnel is policy and i think it is really important that we have people in this administration who understand the magnitude of the Health Crisis that we face, who understand the magnitude of the economic crisis that is right behind that Health Crisis and who have a real ambition for making the federal government work for people, making it meet the moment. Thats what i want to see us do. Andrew ok, let me ask you in a different way. People talk about whether you could be up for being the treasury secretary. If you were the treasury secretary, what is the first thing you would do . Sen. Warren right now, we have got to get this pandemic under control. The economy cannot reopen in any meaningful way until we actually have a plan to deal with the pandemic. And letting people die, which is what donald trump is doing, is not a plan. Hoping that there are folks out there who will find access to personal protective equipment and have adequate testing is not a plan. I am so glad to see president elect biden focus immediately on the pandemic and look at the people he put in charge. Doctors, health care professionals, people who are Public Health experts. People who will come in and say look, this is what it will take to get this thing under control. And thats what weve got to do. We get it under control and support as many people as we can. That is why we need a stimulus package right now out of the congress. And then we talk about what it will take to rebuild this economy. Im really worried, the kshaped recovery, we run a real risk right now that the next four years, because of the pandemic, could take inequality that was already on a disastrous path for our nation and make it far worse. We are going to have to take steps in the opposite direction to make sure that we have an economy that works for everyone. That has to be at the heart of everything that happens in the next administration. Andrew how concerned are you right now about the transition process . Maybe i should just ask it to you directly, are you worried about a coup . Sen. Warren i am very worried about the transition process. At different points donald trump threatens in different ways. Heres what really has me worried. Where are the rest of the republicans . Ok, we have all based into our baked into our assumptions that donald trump will put no ones interests front and center except his own. But the republicans who arent calling him out, that is dangerous. And this is not a game. People around the world, people who would do us harm are watching what is happening. They are watching a delay in the transition. The pandemic is raging out of control. Nearly one million new cases in a week, and trump is all about trump, and he is being enabled by the republicans in the house and the senate and that is outrageous and it is dangerous. Andrew when you talk to your peers, republican peers, and i imagine you have this conversation with them maybe over the telephone, maybe not, what do they tell you . What do they say to you privately . Sen. Warren you know, its like nobody wants to talk about it. This is one of the things that is amazing about this. It really is kind of the things that is hear no evil, see no evil, i dont pay attention, they just dont want to talk about it. They dont want to talk about it. And it is a way, in my view, to evade taking any responsibility for it. This is a moment when every republican in the United States senate needs to stand up and say, we are done. This election was called. Joe biden won. He won by more than 5 million votes. There has been effort after effort after effort to delegitimize this election, we are not quite to be a party to that, it is wrong. Theyve gone to court over and over and knocked around and thrown out because theres no evidence here about widespread fraud, and yet they keep trying to do it. And for the republicans, people who are supposed to be leaders in this nation. Not to stand up and put democracy, put the nation ahead of donald trump, is dangerous to all of us and truly, they should be ashamed. Andrew let me ask you a question, this goes maybe back to the first question about where the country is. There are clearly a lot of Trump Supporters in this country who are willing to support many of those republicans who are not speaking out in large part because they feel they have the political will of at least some group of people that may act as their base. My question to you is what it means for democracy, but also for democrats and your ability to get across the finish line, if you will, some if not many of the policy proposals you want to enact . Sen. Warren listen to what you just said. I think you very well described it, but listen to it. What you are saying is they found it is politically convenient not to speak up. Thats not what Public Service is about. Thats not what leadership is about. There comes a time when there is a sufficient threat to your nation, when the matter is urgent enough that whatever the politics, it is time to speak up and that is the case in a transition. A peaceful transition is the heart of democracy. It is how the pieces work. It is how we go your by year and year by year and how we stay in a democracy. It is the election that matters. On this one, i dont relieve them of any responsibility by saying it works out politically for them, but what it does tell me is to get things done going forward, it is going to, in my view, take two things. One is joe biden and Kamala Harris need to use all the tools and i mean all the tools of their administration. The tools of executive order, but also the tools of the agency. That is part one because the American People want them to get things done. But the second is it means now the election is over, people cant just go home. We dont live in a world where we can now say i voted, im done, i quit. People have to stay engaged to hold government accountable, and that means Holding Joe Biden accountable and it means holding these republicans accountable. I believe if people stay engaged, then we are here in washington more inclined to do the peoples business. Andrew we only have two more minutes, so i will go rapidfire with you if i could. During your campaign, you said you would investigate President Trump after he left office and potentially prosecute him. Would you still potentially in this instance . Sen. Warren my view is we are a rule of law nation and that means we need to hold people accountable when they break the law. Andrew irrespective. Ok. Education. If we fix student debt, current student debt, what do we do about the longterm cost of education . Because higher ed, as you know, is through the roof, and getting rid of the debt onto itself will help a lot of people but not necessarily help the problem which we will have in 10 or 20 years again if it continues this way. Senator warren you are exactly right. We need to do both parts together, cancel out the Student Loan Debt overhang, which president elect biden can do all by himself, and we need collectively to make an investment in our public colleges, universities, and Technical Schools so that people historically black colleges and universities so people can get an education without going into debt. I want to remind everybody, i went to what was then a commuter college, cost 50 a semester down in texas, got my four year diploma and became a special education teacher. Why did that happen . Invest america used to in the education of our kids. Not just rich kids, not just kids born into wealth, and not just kids willing to take on a zillion dollars in debt. It was invested in all of our kids. I think that is what we ought to do for our babies and for our kids post high school. Andrew three other quick ones. You have talked about how you think people in industries, especially the lobbyist community, should be part of the should not be part of the administration. In terms of expertise, do you believe anybody from wall street or big business should be allowed to be in the administration . Sen. Warren remember, i hired people whose background was from wall street when i set up the Consumer Financial protection bureau. The question is what does your overall Team Look Like . It is important to have a team that brings a lot of different perspectives. I think that is really critical. Andrew ok. We had some great news about the vaccine, as you know, from pfizer. And you have been very critical, in fact, i think you called for his resignation talking about this issue of a lobbyist and industry folks, a former pharma exec who runs operation warp speed. Now that they are getting more kudos, do you have a different view . Sen. Warren look, see how you just introduced him. Not just as a former executive, he is a current major investor. He has money. And anyone who has money on the line in the outcome of something that has a Government Investment and is determining where the Government Investment is going to go, that is a conflict of interest. He has a conflict of interest and that means he should not be simultaneously representing the taxpayers of the United States of america and his own personal wealth. Period. Andrew final question, and a personal one. You ran for president. I want to know personally, what was the biggest lesson for yourself in the experience . What do you think you learned from it . Is there something you have taken away from it, something you have learned about yourself or from the experience . Sen. Warren probably that millions of people across this country are willing to sacrifice, willing to work hard, to try to build an america that doesnt just work for themselves, but that works for everyone. You know i did town halls, just zillions of them. And afterwards, always did selfie lines. And the number of people who would ask questions, who would show up, who would talk in a town hall in a selfie line about the things they wanted to see just to make our country work better, people who were in their 60s who just wanted to see us make an investment in childcare so that moms and dads could go to work. People who were in their 20s who wanted us to see make an investment to expand Social Security and disability payments. I think americans are fundamentally good and generous people. And we want to make this country work for everyone. It really was a wonderful experience. Andrew senator warren, we very much appreciate you being with us today. Thank you so very much. It is nice to see you virtually. I hope next time we get to do it in person. Sen. Warren me too. Thank you for having me. Andrew you bet. Biden asoe president elect, stick with cspan for live coverage of the election process and transition of power. Cspan your unfiltered view of politics. Topped tv on cspan2 has nonfiction books and authors every weekend. This weekend, tonight at 9 00 p. M. Eastern, the former resident barack obama reflects on his life and political career in his memoir a promised land. Sunday at 9 00 p. M. Eastern on after marx, Sally Hubbard seven ways big corporations rule your life and how to take back control. Judge00, former appellate and george mason law professor ginsburg, examining the constitution through the eyes of justice and historians. Watch book tv on cspan2 this weekend and be sure to watch 6depth live sunday december at noon eastern with our guest come author and chair of africanamerican son studies at princeton, eddie law junior. Now, remarks by former Homeland Security secretary jeh johnson on National Security threats against america and what policies president elect biden might enact to address them. He was joined by former principal director of National Intelligence sue gordon at this event held by the center for new american security. Its an hour. I am richard fontaine, ceo of the center for new american
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