CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: Interview with Chris Van Hollen

Interview

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Joining me now is discuss, Senator Chris Van Hollen. He's a Democrat from Maryland. He also sits on the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.

Senator, thanks so much for taking the time this morning.

SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D-MD): Jim, it's great to be with you.

SCIUTTO: So, you know, vote-a-rama on these amendments going here. Will the Senate get through this amendment process without jeopardizing the final passage of the legislation?

VAN HOLLEN: Yes, I'm confident we will. I will work through the weekend likely. And I do think at the end of the day we will have the votes to pass this bipartisan bill, which, as you described, is a very important investment in modernizing our infrastructure, putting more Americans to work, repairing bridges and roads, but also building out the infrastructure of the 21st century. Universal access to broadband, dealing with clean energy, dealing with transit. So a lot of work still ahead but I'm confident.

SCIUTTO: We saw that digital divide play out during remote learning last year during the pandemic.

As you know, there are progressive Democrats in the House, among them Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who believe they need to see changes in the legislation before passing.

[09:35:10]

Also demands to tie it to this broader legislation to follow.

I just wonder, are you concerned that Democrats in the House could sink this?

VAN HOLLEN: I'm not concerned that this will sink in the end. This has been a two-track process from the start. And Senator Schumer's been clear about that. We're going to pass this bipartisan infrastructure bill.

But President Biden has laid out his Build Back Better agenda, and that includes not only modernizing our infrastructure, but also what he calls the American Families Plan. So extending those child tax credits, those monthly payments to help families cover all sorts of costs.

That expires at the end of the year if we don't continue it. We want to lower the cost of prescription drugs. We want to include coverage for vision and dental and hearing within Medicare. Many other important things for families. That will also happen. And, Jim, we will pass the budget resolution here in the Senate before the August break as well to set up that process.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

VAN HOLLEN: So it's a two-track process.

SCIUTTO: You mentioned a lot of elements of that $3.5 trillion human infrastructure bill as it's sometimes called. Many of those are popular. But the overall price tag of $3.5 trillion does have pushback even from Democrats. Kyrsten Sinema has expressed reservations about the size of that.

Are all 50 Democrats on board for that expansive legislation as it stands?

VAN HOLLEN: Well, all 50 Senate Democrats are on board for setting up this process so that we can move forward on it. And I will just point out that the president has put forward lots of ways to pay for this, including reforming the corporate tax code.

Right now U.S. corporations can park lots of their profits overseas in places like the Carmen Islands and some of them, big ones, pay no corporate income tax at all. We saw that some of the wealthiest people in the country are not paying any income taxes. So we should be reforming our income tax code anyway, but that also will provide revenues for this.

I will also point out, Jim, that when you give Medicare the power to negotiate prescription drug prices, you're going to lower the cost of Medicare, as well as (INAUDIBLE).

SCIUTTO: Yes.

Policing reform, as you know, has been a difficult issue. It's been sort of on the back burner and sometimes the front burner for more than a year now, going back to the wake of George Floyd's killing.

Are you optimistic the Senate will reach an agreement there, that you will see similar bipartisan agreement that you saw with the infrastructure bill?

VAN HOLLEN: Well, we're working very hard to do that. I'm in regular communication with Senator Cory Booker and Tim Scott. They're our lead negotiators. Congresswoman Karen Bass, in regular communication with her. I know that they're, you know, working non-stop to try to get this done.

It's very important that we pass this bill to provide reform, to provide accountability, to send a signal to the family of George Floyd and so many others that their pleas for help were heard and that Congress is acting. But we're trying very hard to get it done.

SCIUTTO: Has the rise in crime in many cities around the country fundamentally changed the politics of this negotiation here? I've heard some Republicans say this may not be the time to pass something like that given the rise in crime. Have you heard that from your Republican colleagues and could that stand in the way?

VAN HOLLEN: I've not heard that and I think President Biden has been very clear, and I agree, that there's nothing inconsistent between ensuring public safety and making sure we have accountability from law enforcement, that we have constitutional policing. And, in fact, that should improve public safety overall because it's very important that communities have confidence in the law enforcement officers in their neighborhoods. It works best when there's that trust.

And so everybody, if (INAUDIBLE), if you have accountability, along with making sure that officers have the resources to do their job.

I would also point out that one of the things I've been working on, and I know Karen Bass has been (INAUDIBLE) this conversation, is to create alternatives to 911 emergency calls. When someone calls with a mental health issue or somebody is homeless, it doesn't make sense to deploy and dispatch the police. In fact, we've seen too many of those situations unnecessarily escalate and (INAUDIBLE). We should want our police focusing their resources on going after violent crime. And that helps everyone.

[09:40:00]

SCIUTTO: I was out with New York police officers just a few weeks ago and saw them responding to mental health issues. Many of their calls, frankly, in that category.

Senator Chris Van Hollen, good to have you back on the program.

VAN HOLLEN: Jim, great to be with you. Thanks.

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