Democrats' spending package will 'fight inflation': Buttigieg
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on climate change, how the Democrats' spending will 'fight' inflation and the latest on backups in the supply chain.
This is a rush transcript of "Fox News Sunday" on October 31, 2021. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: I'm Chris Wallace.
President Biden overseas on the world stage, while here at home, his
domestic agenda and presidency are on the line.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No one got everything they
wanted, including me. But that's what compromise is.
WALLACE (voice-over): Mr. Biden definitely desperately looking for a win
as he meets with foreign leaders, after a last-minute stop on Capitol Hill
fails to unite Democratic moderates and progressives at odds over his
massive social spending plan.
REP. CORI BUSH (D-MO): I feel a little bamboozled because this is not --
this is not what I thought was coming today.
WALLACE: We'll discuss the ongoing gridlock with Transportation Secretary
Pete Buttigieg, and get reaction from Senator Rick Scott, head of the
Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, about what the Democrats'
disarray could mean for the 2022 midterms.
WALLACE: Plus --
MIKE PENCE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT: Totally unacceptable. The whole policy
on the Southern border has been a disaster from day one.
WALLACE: Reports the White House is in talks to pay hundreds of thousands
of dollars to families separated at the border by the Trump administration.
We'll ask our Sunday panel about the politics of the potential payout.
And, our Power Player of the Week. We'll share how you can walk in the
footsteps of the Old Guard as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier marks 100
years.
All, right now, on "FOX News Sunday".
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE (on camera): And hello again from FOX News in Washington.
President Biden is meeting with world leaders in Europe this weekend,
pushing his climate change policies and once again declaring America is
back. But back here at home, his own party continues to block his domestic
agenda, and his political team is closely watching the tight governor's
race in Virginia where a defeat could signal Democrats are endanger of
losing their control Congress and next year's midterms.
In a moment, we'll discuss the latest hold up to passing big infrastructure
and social spending bills with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
But, first, let's bring in Peter Doocy traveling with the president in Rome
with the latest on Mr. Biden's efforts to win support overseas and at home
-- Peter.
PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Chris, President Biden
left problems with inflation and immigration an ocean away and came here
looking to benefit not just the U.S. but the entire world with movement on
climate change. And at a press conference today, we'll find out how he
thinks he did.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DOOCY (voice-over): The Biden foreign policy doctrine is taking shape.
He'd like the U.S. to restart talks with Iran about their nuclear program
by November.
REPORTER: Mr. President, when would you like talks with Iran to resume?
BIDNE: They're scheduled to resume.
DOOCY: He'd like to make nice with America's oldest ally France after a
nuclear powered sub deal went sideways.
BIDEN: The answer is I think what happened was to use an English phrase,
what we did was clumsy.
DOOCY: And he's joining the G20 in endorsing a new global minimum tax of
15 percent. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says this deal will remake the
global economy. His attempt to do the same thing at home has been blocked
by progressives in the House and centrists in the Senate.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): They're throwing spaghetti at the wall and
hoping that something sticks that will get 50 votes.
DOOCY: And until progressives know the $1.7 trillion Build Back Better
plan will pass the Senate, they won't vote yes on a bipartisan
infrastructure bill.
REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): So many people, you know, yes, no,
doing the hokey pokey, one foot in, one foot out.
DOOCY: Leaders hope to bring both bills up Tuesday as the president
returns from overseas with presidents, prime ministers and the pope.
BIDEN: God bless you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DOOCY: This is the first time the full G20 has met in person since Biden
became president, but one word that is not prominently featured in any of
the public sessions or, we are told, the private meetings, Afghanistan --
Chris.
WALLACE: Peter Doocy reporting from Rome with the president -- Peter,
thanks for that.
And joining us now, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
Mr. Secretary, President Biden went to Capitol Hill on Thursday and he told
House Democrats this -- let me put it on the screen -- I don't think it's
hyperbole to say that the House and Senate majorities and my presidency
will be determined by what happens in the next week.
The immediate response was that House Democrats could not muster the
majority to pass his infrastructure bill.
Can you guarantee that House Democrats -- again, it's just your own party -
- will pass either of these bills this week? And there's talk right now
that they may try to pass both on Tuesday.
PETE BUTTIGIEG, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: Well, what I know is we're the
closest that we've ever been and it looks like we're teed up for major
action soon. And the president is sounding that note of urgency not just
because the president needs it but because the country needs it.
You look at the need for action on the climate before it's too late. You
look at the need to support our economy for the long run, to make our
economy more competitive, to deal with issues like inflation which will
benefit -- we'll have better tools for fighting inflation if we pass this
economic package.
The urgency of supporting families with things like that tax credit, that
tax cut effectively for something like 35 million families with children in
this country, putting money directly in the pockets of the Americans who
know best how to spend it for their families, making sure we have preschool
across the country. So many things that we need to do both on the family
side and then, of course, the stuff I've been working on all year, giving
our roads and bridges and ports and airports and so much more, those
urgently needed improvements that we needed for years -- honestly, have
needed for decades.
WALLACE: You have talked in that answer, I think you said three or four
times, you used the word "urgent". But let's look at some of the issues
that as we talk today are still unresolved -- allowing Medicare to
negotiate lower drug prices, paid family and medical leave, raising the cap
on state and local tax deductions, beefing up the IRS to go after tax
cheats.
Here's Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT): It is a major, major step forward. But
clearly, to my mind, it has some major gaps in it.
(END VIDEOI CLIP)
WALLACE: Again, you talk about teed up for action and urgency, can you
guarantee that all of these issues -- and these are just among Democrats
and Republicans are out of it. Can you guarantee that all of these issues
will be resolved by the Democrats this week?
BUTTIGIEG: What I can tell you is that what's in the framework is utterly
transformational and historic, finally getting preschool for every kid in
this country, making child care affordable for every family in this
country. The biggest action we've done on climate ever in U.S. history,
obviously, all the transportation work. These are huge benefits.
You think about what it would mean to American families who are looking at
these electric vehicles coming on the market, to get that discount of up to
$12,500 so you could buy one of these electric vehicles and never have to
worry about gas prices again.
These are real concrete things for the American people. And taken together,
just a framework that's been put forward would represent one of the biggest
achievements in my lifetime for really any member of the House, the Senate,
any president would be proud of that.
Is there more that we could be working on, more that we hope to do? Of
course there is and we'll keep fighting for it but what we have on the
table it right this minute in this framework is historic, it's good policy
and, of course, good policy is good politics.
WALLACE: You're a good spokesman for the administration but you didn't
answer my question. So I'm going to assume the answer is no, you can't
guarantee the Democrats are going to pass one, let alone both bills this
week.
BUTTIGIEG: Well, again, we're the closest we've ever been. I don't speak
for members of the House or the Senate.
But I can tell you, this administration is ready to go. And I can tell you
that the president put forward this framework with this particular shape
because he's confident that he can get through the House and the Senate,
and that's after engaging members of all corners of our Democratic Party,
not to mention an awful lot of Republicans, over the course of a year.
There's been so much back and forth. There's been so much give-and-take,
and what we've arrived at is not perfect, it's not what everybody wanted,
but it is enormously important, beneficial and good for the American
people. And that's why we think it will and must pass.
WALLACE: Critics say that instead of focusing on these issues that the
president and Democrats in the House and Senate should be focusing on the
issues that Americans care about most. You mention one of them in your
first answer and that's inflation.
Gas prices have jumped from $2.14 a gallon a year ago to $3.41 now. Natural
gas prices have more than doubled.
And, Mr. Secretary, in September, consumer prices rose at the fastest pace
in 30 years. So instead of -- I'm not denying or denigrating some of the
social policies, but that's what Americans are most concerned about is
inflation.
BUTTIGIEG: I'm so glad you raised this, Chris. This is extremely
important. This bill will fight inflation. The reason this bill will fight
inflation, among other things, is that we have a drag on our economy in
labor supply because a lot of parents aren't going back to work because
they can't find child care.
Now, you're going to see some politicians, maybe even on this program,
saying that up is down and black is white, and somehow saying the opposite.
But let me be clear, this bill will flight inflation. And when I say that,
that's not just me as a represent -- hold on, it's very important, Chris --
17 Nobel Prize-winning economists have signed a letter talking about how
the president's pro-family policies in this package will help fight
inflation.
(CROSSTALK)
BUTTIGIEG: Moody's and other Wall Street analytics firms have talked about
how the president's bill will fight inflation.
WALLACE: But, Mr. Secretary, this administration has been talking down,
minimizing inflation for months. I mean, you know the word that keeps being
used by this administration -- I suspect you said it -- transitory.
The fact that it isn't transitory, the -- you want to talk about experts,
the former secretary of the treasury under Bill Clinton, former top
economic advisor to Barack Obama, Larry Summers, has been talking about
inflation for months. And a lot of people worry that when you take an
inflationary, overheated economy and you add $3 trillion, which is what
these two bills would do, $3 trillion in new government spending, you're
going to make it even worse. And there are a lot of economic experts who
say pass it or not pass it, inflation will continue well into 2022.
BUTTIGIEG: Yeah. So let's break this down, okay? There's long-term and
short-term. That's definitely true.
Now, as I said, 17 Nobel Prize-winning economists are among those who have
talked about how doing things to allow Americans to get back to work,
putting money in their pockets, but also just making child care more
affordable, is going to help with inflation in the long run.
Now, you're right, there's a short-term transitory inflation efforts. The
ones that we're already seeing slowing down a little bit, but we're very
mindful of, of course, because that's impacting Americans. That, of course,
is a consequence of the economic effects of the pandemic.
Look, there are so many things that are still happening in our economy --
distortions, disruptions, things in our supply chain that are affecting
prices, that are clearly a direct consequence of the pandemic, which is why
the best thing we can do for our economy in the short term and to deal with
these transitory issues is to put the pandemic behind us, which is where
the presidents decisive leadership is so important.
The best thing we can do for the long run, for issues around pricing and
supply chain is better infrastructure so that goods can move smoothly in
this country and better pro-family policies like child care.
WALLACE: Let's talk about the backups in the supply chain. Since the
president announced two weeks ago that the port of Los Angeles was going to
24/7 operations, the number of container ships waiting offshore has not
gone down, it's gone up from 56 to 77. One day last week, a terminal pier
in Long Beach announced 2,000 appointments for truckers went unused.
Goldman Sachs says that port congestion is not going to ease until the
second half of next year.
BUTTIGIEG: Yeah, there are definitely going to continue to be issues,
especially as long as the pandemic continues, right? If you have, for
example, the third largest container port in the world in China shutting
down because of a COVID outbreak in late summer, you'll feel that in the
fall here on the West Coast.
Now, we're taking the actions that we know that we can as an honest broker
in the administration, phenomenal work by our ports envoy, working with
different players to get the gates of the ports open longer, to work with
the truckers, the rail players, we're seeing expanded hours -- all of
that's good.
But let's remember, we are talking about global imbalances between demand,
which is off the charts right now, and supply which is racing to keep up.
So, even when supply is up, and let me emphasize, in many cases supply is
up, right? Americans are buying and getting more than ever before but it's
still not keeping up.
For the long term, the best thing we can do about that is invest in our
infrastructure. For the very short time, there are steps we can take in and
around the ports that we think are helping. And in the medium-term, again,
at risk of repeating myself, if we really want to see all of these
disruptions end, we've got to end the pandemic. That's what getting
everybody vaccinated is all about.
WALLACE: I've got about 30 seconds left. Inquiring minds want to know,
your twin children, Penelope and Gus, are they going out tonight for
Halloween? And if so, how will they be dressed?
BUTTIGIEG: So, Chas, my husband, found costumes that -- it's kind of like
a traffic cone. It's a little bit hard to describe. But bottom line is
they're going to be dressed up as infrastructure and I can't wait.
(LAUGHTER)
WALLACE: So even if you can't get the bill through the House, Gus and
Penelope will be infrastructure.
BUTTIGIEG: We're going to get both, Chris.
WALLACE: And how are you dealing with the lack of sleep?
BUTTIGIEG: Sleep is a -- is a distant memory but we -- we're adjusting. We
had on a shift system. My day starts at 3:00 a.m. and it is what it is, as
every parent knows.
WALLACE: So getting up early to do our show was no problem.
Mr. Secretary, thank you. Thanks for your time today, always good to talk
with you, sir
BUTTIGIEG: Same here, thank you.
WALLACE: Up next, we'll get reaction from Republican Senator Rick Scott on
the Democratic infighting and what it may mean for his efforts to win back
control of the Senate in next year's midterms.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: As Democrats fight amongst themselves over infrastructure and the
Build Back Better plan, Republicans have formed a united front with their
sights set on taking back the House and Senate in 2022.
Joining us now from Florida, Senator Rick Scott, chair of the National
Republican Senatorial Committee.
Senator, welcome back to "FOX News Sunday".
SEN. RICK SCOTT (R-FL): It's nice to be with you, Chris.
WALLACE: You just heard my conversation with Secretary Buttigieg. What's
your reaction to what he said and where the president's domestic agenda
stands right now?
SCOTT: First, if the secretary of transportation wanted to solve the --
the port issue, you'd fly out to the port, you'd sit down with everybody
and find out what the problem is and then you go solve it. Typically, the
problem is caused by some government regulation or some government red
tape.
When I had hurricanes in Florida, I had to make sure we didn't run out of
fuel, so I was constantly on the phone with everybody involved in
delivering fuel. And even though we were selling sometimes nine-times our
normal average of fuel, we didn't run out because we kept solving their
problem.
If you look at what -- what they're talking about with this -- name
whatever the bill is -- all it's going to do is cause more inflation. Make
-- you -- look at what it's doing to poor families in this country with gas
prices up 55 percent. Go to the grocery store. Food prices are up. It's all
caused by government spending.
And, by the way, if you look at inflation, the border, parents involvement
in schools, our military support, there is nothing that they're talking
about doing, there's nothing that Democrats are talking about doing that
solving a problem that Americans care about. I mean it's -- it's -- it's --
they're saying, solve the problem for you -- this is every family. Like, my
-- growing up, I -- my mom struggled to put food on the table. Inflations
hurt her. Solve it. Fix it. They have no fixes in this administration. They
just -- they're like commentators. Yes, we're going to have a problem
through the -- through next year. No, go solve the problem.
WALLACE: Well, that's a real insult to compare them to commentators,
Senator.
Let me -- let me ask you about -- about the infrastructure bill, though,
because it's -- it is not a political game. It affects real people. And
while 19 senators voted for the bipartisan infrastructure plan that -- that
passed the Senate with a healthy bipartisan majority, you opposed it. And I
-- I want to put some of the things that -- that would be affected in your
home state of Florida. More than 3,500 miles of Florida highways are in
poor condition. You voted against $13 billion to repair them.
Here's White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: This package is for -- would extend
high-speed Internet to every American. Are you against that? Would -- would
ensure that children don't -- aren't drinking poisoned water. Are you
against that?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: You also voted against money in the infrastructure bill to help
your home state of Florida to deal with extreme weather, which you have
plenty of in Florida.
Why did you oppose the infrastructure bill when 19 Republican senators
supported it?
SCOTT: Chris, I believe in spending money on real infrastructure, roads,
bridges, airports and seaports.
WALLACE: But that's what this bill is -- has in it, sir.
SCOTT: I spent -- I spent $85 billion in my eight years as governor, all
right. Let's look at the bill that they -- that passed the Senate. It's --
one, it's not paid for. I paid for my -- my infrastructure. I actually pay
down debt. I balance the budget. This bill would -- they said it was going
to be paid for. It wasn't paid for. This bill said it was infrastructure.
Less than half of that bill was roads, bridges, airports and seaports.
You put a bill in front of me that's going to be roads, bridges, airports
and seaports, paid for, I'm very interested in doing something like that.
But I am not going to bankrupt this country. This country has almost $30
trillion worth of debt. That bill by itself was a quarter of a trillion
dollars of debt.
This has got to end. This is causing inflation. I mean this is hurting the
poor families. It's not hurting the rich, it's hurting families like mine
growing up that had to struggle to put food on the table with this
ridiculous inflation. Solve that.
WALLACE: But --
SCOTT: We've got to live within our means like every family does.
WALLACE: But, Senator, you talk about living within your means. You talk
about debt. You talk about deficit. The Trump tax cuts, which were passed
in 2017, the air before you were elected to the Senate, is estimated by the
Congressional Budget Office that it is going to increase the deficit by
over $2 trillion over 11 years. So, should the Trump tax cuts be repealed?
SCOTT: My experience is, I cut taxes and fees 100 times, over $10 billion
and I actually balanced a budget and paid off a third of the state debt.
You can do both.
The reason -- the way you do it is you look at every line of your budget. I
think there's about 4,000 lines of the Florida budget. I went through every
line and said, I am not going to waste anybody's money. We've got to do
that at the federal level.
WALLACE: But -- but -- but, sir, we're --
SCOTT: We need lower taxes and watch how we spend our money.
WALLACE: But -- but, sir, respectfully -- respectfully, when Donald Trump
was president, you had this tax cut which added $2 trillion to the deficit
according to the CBO and you didn't have the commencement spending cuts. So
the question is, if you're not going to have the spending cuts, should you
repeal the tax cuts if -- if -- if the debt and deficit are so vital?
SCOTT: Well, I'm -- I'm -- first off, I am not raising anybody's taxes. I
want lower taxes. I want to watch how we spend our money.
I've been up -- I've been in the Senate now two years and nine months. The
amount of waste is staggering. Americans should be furious with the way
money is spent in the Senate and in all of Congress. It's -- it's -- it's -
- it's your money. It's not -- it's not government's money. We've got to
figure out how to live within our means.
We -- I did it at the state level and actually paid off a third of the
state debt. We've got to look at the -- every line, take every line in the
budget. Don't -- don't say, well, you know, that's only a billion dollars.
It's a billion dollars. That's a lot of money. We should watch how we spend
every dollar, and we're not doing that.
WALLACE: I want to ask you about a non-budget related issue, but it
involves real money.
There is a report out this week that the Biden administration is
considering giving huge payouts, up to $450,000 per person to families that
were separated at the border during the Trump administration. Now the
argument they make is, if this goes to court and the settlements may be
even bigger. But about is your thought about that, about paying $450,000
per person to people who came across the board in the first place
illegally?
SCOTT: I -- we -- what are we thinking? Why would we be doing this? They
broke our laws. These individuals broke the laws of the United States of
America and then the Biden administration wants to write them a check? I
mean at first -- and then they want to -- the same -- the same
administration wants to go snoop into your bank account and take more of
your money. This is wrong. We've got to start -- do the logical things,
secure the border, balance the budget, watch how you spend money, cut
taxes. This is what Americans want. They don't -- they don't want this
crazy, radical, socialist agenda that the Biden administration has come up
with.
WALLACE: Finally --
SCOTT: It makes you mad what's going on in this country.
WALLACE: Finally, you are the head of the National Republican Senate
Committee, Senate Committee, but I want to ask you about the governor's
race in Virginia on Tuesday because in a state that has trended from red to
purple to now kind of blue, right at this point, Glenn Youngkin, the
Republican, is in a neck and neck fight, according to the Fox poll he's
ahead, of Democrat former Governor Terry McAuliffe.
If Youngkin wins and if he does well in the suburbs which have been
bleeding support for the Republicans, what kind of a blueprint will that
set for you as you chart Senate races in the 2022 midterms?
SCOTT: Oh, the '22 is going to be a great year for the Republican Senate.
We're going to get a majority back. And part of it is exactly what's
happened with Glenn Youngkin's race. I mean suburban voters are coming back
because they are saying, this idea that parents shouldn't be involved in
schools that the Democrats want, it's wrong. The fact that the border's not
secure is wrong. The fact that, you know, this critical race theory that
they want to teach in our schools is wrong. Parents are coming back. We're
going to win the Hispanic vote. We're going to win the suburban vote. And
we're going to have a majority in the U.S. Senate.
And by the way, if you want to help, you can go to nrsc.org and help us
raise money to get more Republican senators because we're going to change
this country.
WALLACE: And, real quickly, 30 seconds, you see Terry McAuliffe, he's
campaigning as much against Donald Trump as he is against Glenn Youngkin.
Now, there's some feeling that that helped Gavin Newsom in the recall in
California. Does -- does the tightness of this race indicate that maybe
Donald Trump is not such a strong weapon anymore for Democrats?
SCOTT: Clearly not. But, by the way, why are people going to vote with us?
They want a secure border. They want parents involved in schools. They want
to fund the police. They don't want this ridiculous inflation. And they
like an administration that will actually show up and do something and some
-- come up with problems rather than just be simple commentators and say,
oh, yes, we have a problem but we have no solution.
WALLACE: Again, stop attacking the commentators, Senator Scott.
SCOTT: Yes, but -- but they got elected to do something else.
WALLACE: That's true. That's true.
Thank -- and -- and good for the country that we're not elected.
Senator Scott, thank you. Thanks for joining us.
SCOTT: Sure, Chris.
WALLACE: We'll be following development for Capitol Hill closely this
week.
Coming up, we'll bring in our Sunday group to discuss talk of big payouts
to families across the border illegally and were then separated. That's
next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: Coming up, the election two days from now that's capturing
nation's attention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GLENN YOUNGKIN (R), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I do think that
America is watching Virginia because America needs us to vote for them,
too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: We'll ask our Sunday panel about the neck and neck battle and
what its outcome may foreshadow for 2022.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JIM JORDAN (R-OH): Think about this, you're going to -- you're going
to pay people half a million dollars who broke the law and at the same time
the Biden administration is getting ready to raise taxes on the hardworking
families of this country. It makes absolute no sense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Republican Congressman Jim Jordan reacting
to reports the Biden administration may give payments of up to $450,000 per
person to families that were separated at the border under Trump
immigration policy.
And it's time now for our Sunday group.
Former Republican Congressman Jason Chaffetz, from "USA Today," Susan Page,
and Charles Lane of "The Washington Post."
Well, Susan, "The Wall Street Journal" broke the story this week.
Apparently there are some 900 claims that have been filed. People saying
that they suffered emotional distress when families were separated back in
2018 by the Trump administration. And rather than go to trial, the Biden
administration is considering a very healthy, expensive settlement. It may
make sense legally but it sure is hard to defend politically, isn't it?
SUSAN PAGE, "USA TODAY": Yes, it is. You know, I think a lot of Americans
were very distressed by the separation of families back in 2018. But this
number seems really high. The TV attack ads right themselves if this kind
of payout happens. You know, we know that from the beginning President
Biden's lowest approval ratings have been around the issue of immigration,
and this would really risk making those numbers even worse.
WALLACE: I mean, literally, Jason, they -- they -- this would be a bigger
payout than the U.S. military, U.S. government pays to the next of kin of
Americans who are killed in combat in wars.
I fully understand why it's so hard to stomach, as -- as Susan said, these
people came into the country illegally. But on the other hand, there are a
lot of smart lawyers that say, you go to court in one of these cases and a
very sympathetic mother gets up and starts talking about all the pain of
being separated for an extended period of time from her child, and that
jury may award that mother a lot of money and that just sets a standard for
all other 899 cases.
JASON CHAFFETZ, FORMER CONGRESSMAN (R-UT) AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I
think they should go to court. I think this is wholly offensive. Not only,
you're right, is it more than a service member that is killed in -- in
battle, it's more than the victims of 9/11 were paid out. I don't think
there's any American that will understand why this would happen, why the
Biden/Harris administration would do this.
And, by the way, if you're talking about separation, you're talking about
two people. The payment could be $900,000, which is an absurd amount of
money.
These people are fleeing because supposedly of asylum. They're -- they're
being oppressed. And you're telling them that the United States didn't
treat them well enough when they came across the border? That -- I -- I
don't believe that this is a -- this is just absolutely absurd.
WALLACE: We -- we should just point out, the reports are, and have not been
denied by the administrations. So we -- it seems to be true, that the --
that the administration is considering this. They haven't put it into
effect yet. But there's going to be quite a debate.
Meanwhile, after months of bitter and expensive campaigning, we're finally
going to get to the vote in the Virginia governor's race on Tuesday. Glenn
Youngkin and Terry McAuliffe are busy making their closing arguments.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GLENN YOUNGKIN (R), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: We know this on one
side, Terry McAuliffe thinks the government should stand between parents
and their children. I mean, come on.
TERRY MCAULIFFE (D), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: He said so much of
the reason why I'm running is because of Donald Trump. You know what, he's
running for Donald Trump. I'm running for you folks and -- and --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: Chuck, what strikes you about the Virginia's governor's race and
how much of a bellwether could it turn out to be for the 2022 midterms?
CHARLES LANE, "THE WASHINGTON POST" AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, so many
things strike me about it. The most obvious one being this is now a blue
state that Joe Biden won very comfortably by double digits in 2020, and
veteran former successful Democratic governor running for what would be
consecutive second term but another term is fighting for his life. And
fighting for his life in the very part of the state, the northern Virginia
suburbs, that had been the bastion of Democratic support.
So, I think the issue that it has turned into his education. And
specifically in Virginia there are a lot of parental discontent with the
closure of the schools during the pandemic and how that was done, perhaps
that's even more in people's minds than these other issues, such as
critical race theory and transgender students and those things are
significant.
But if the Democrats lose in this race, and I think there's a good chance
they will, it will send a signal that Republicans have found a formula to
recover in the suburbs that had been there week point in the last few
election cycles and it will signal that the attachment of any Republican to
Donald Trump in this very aggressive way that Terry McAuliffe has been
trying to do is not a surefire formula for winning.
WALLACE: The closing polls are all over the place. A Fox News poll this
week has Youngkin up eight, but a "Washington Post" poll just out this
morning has McAuliffe up by one.
But I want to dig down into the poll and look at some of the internal
numbers because they're very interesting. Forty-three percent approve of
the job Joe Biden is doing. This is in Virginia, a state he won by ten
points over Biden -- over, rather, Trump a year ago. Forty-three percent
approve of the job he's doing, 56 percent disapprove. That tracks about
with national numbers. And on education, which as we've been saying has
become a big issue in this race, 44 percent trust McAuliffe to do a better
job, 52 percent trust Youngkin.
Susan, how big of a drag is Biden for the Democrats and how big a boost is
education for the Republicans in this race?
PAGE: Yes, well, Biden has not been the asset that Democrats had hoped he
would be. And that's one of the signals that we'll be looking for, for next
year's midterms. You know, the president's approval rating traditionally
has a big sway when it comes to the -- the midterm returns that we'll --
we'll see next year.
You know, there are -- I think there are two things to look at with the way
Virginia might serve as a template or Republicans next year. One is on the
demographics, what happens with those suburban voters, do they come back to
the GOP. The other is on the -- on the issue front because this has turned
into a culture war kind of election where they're fighting about teaching
of racism in schools and treatment of transgender kids. It is not an
election that seems to be turning on COVID and the economy, which is what
we might have expected maybe six months ago.
WALLACE: Jason, if Youngkin goes on to win on Tuesday, and it's very much
up in the air as to whether he's going to win or not, but if he wins in a
state that had seemed to be turning this blue, what is that going to say
for Republicans? What -- how big a blueprint will Virginia be for how they
pursue the 2022 midterms?
CHAFFETZ: Well, as you pointed out, Chris, Joe Biden won that state by ten
percentage points. So if Youngkin does anything better than that, I think
you're going to show that what -- what the Democrats really need to be
worried about are those true centrists, those true independents who are
swinging to the Republican side of the aisle. Not only is it about
education and who gets to make these types of discussions, but I think
they're looking at their own pocketbook. I think they're going to the gas
station and spending $100 to fill up that suburban and they're going to the
grocery store and not being able to find what they want, and when they do
find it, it's actually expensive. So it's hitting at all the wrong places.
And as Terry McAuliffe said himself, Joe Biden is a headwind. And -- and I
think you have a poor communicator in Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. They
can't blow into town and be able to command the airwaves and create a
message that say maybe like a Barack Obama or -- or a Clinton or a Trump
could do. They're just not capable of communicating and driving a vote in a
positive direction for Democrats.
WALLACE: It also strikes me, if McAuliffe loses on Tuesday these votes on
infrastructure and Build Back Better, which are tough votes for a lot of
Democrats, moderates thinks they -- particularly the Build Back Better goes
too far, progressives think it doesn't go far enough. They may run for the
hills if McAuliffe loses on Tuesday.
Panel, we have to take a break here.
But coming up, the race for -- the -- the race for governor of Virginia in
the home stretch, what it means for the state and the country, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Some of you guys who have worked
with me know this. I've said it a thousand times. It's never a good bet to
get -- to bet against the American people. Never a good bet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: President Biden setting expectations for his second trip overseas
as president where he's now meeting with world leaders at the G-20 economic
conference in Rome, and then the U.N. Climate Summit in Scotland.
And we're back now with the panel.
Well, Susan, as we say, the president is in Rome for the G-20, then headed
to Glasgow for the climate summit.
Given the -- the gridlock on his domestic agenda in Washington, how strong
a hand is he playing with?
PAGE: You know, Chris, this is why presidents love to go abroad, right?
Things are messy in Washington. He's having a hard time on Capitol Hill. He
goes abroad. He has a very friendly meeting with the pope. He smooths over
relations with France, which have been in some trouble. They managed to
reach a deal on a 15 percent minimum global corporate tax. That's something
that the United States and other countries have been seeking for years.
And so I think this has been a pretty good trip for him. He goes to this
difficult U.N. climate summit. Of course, that's a big issue and one that
there's -- there's -- there's been divisions over whether the United States
and other developed nations have done enough. But he does walk in with the
promise of this $555 billion expenditure in the reconciliation bill,
assuming it's through the biggest investment ever in climate change.
So, I think this has been an example of why presidents like to leave the
country, especially when things are messy at home.
WALLACE: Well, yes, I've got to say, you're accentuating the positive when
you say the promise if the $555 billion, because he still isn't getting it
passed through Congress.
And, Chuck, let's talk about that climate summit starting tomorrow in
Scotland because China, which is not going to be at the summit, President
Xi is not, has just announced that it's going to -- because of economic
demand -- is going to building even more coal-fired power plants and Russia
appears to be threatening Europe, which is in a real energy crunch, with
natural gas. So for all of the talking and all of the promises about
bending the curve and getting climate neutral by 2050, is so all of this
talk going to come to anything?
LANE: Well, you know, our intelligence community often is criticized but
the national intelligence estimate on climate came out a few days ago in
preparation for this and it's key judgment number one in climate -- of
pending climate risks was, geopolitical tensions are likely to rise as
countries increasingly argue over just the sort of things that you're
mentioning.
There's a lot of criticism in addition to the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and
Australia, which are large producers of carbon emissions, for tepid
promises to go carbon neutral by some date in the future. And I think the
crunch is really starting to come. People are beginning to realize that the
2015 commitments made in the Paris Accords are probably insufficient on
paper, and are not even being met in practice.
And this Glasgow summit perhaps will approve even additional promises on
top of that, even before there's been implementation. It is a major problem
that Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping are not personally participating in this
G-20 and will not be, although their countries are participating in
Glasgow, because after all China emits 27 percent of the carbon. We've got
a lot of work to do and it's hard to see how we get from here to there.
WALLACE: No, that's right. And we should point out that as ambitious and
certainly as expensive as President Biden's economic agenda is when it
comes to climate change, the fact is the centerpiece, the clean electricity
plan, which was going to give bonuses to power plants that went to
alternative energy and fines to utilities that stayed with fossil fuels,
that was taken out of the plan. So it ends up being about $500 billion in
corporate welfare in bonuses to companies. And we've seen how that works
out.
Jason, President Biden has gone to Capitol Hill twice in just over a month
to push his domestic agenda, and twice he has come up empty. In fact, this
is what he came up with or got -- got from his own Democrats on Thursday.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUESTION: Sir, are you confident that all 50 Democrats are on board this
deal that President Biden is coming to announce today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): I think we're open to other
mechanisms, but it needs to be something a little bit more than a back of
an envelope.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: Jason, my experience in 40 years in Washington is, if you put the
president in a room, particularly a room with members of his own party as
opposed to foreign leaders, you have to know what's going to be the result
when it comes out of that room. Twice the president has gone up to Capitol
Hill to plead with House Democrats to pass part or all of his agenda. Twice
he has come up empty.
What does that tell you about the competence of this White House?
CHAFFETZ: Well, I think it shows that Biden and Harris, by the way, who has
not been an asset in this, that they're very weak. I mean twice he went up
to Capitol Hill and twice members walked out of that meeting and said, why
did he even bother coming up there? He wasn't even making a hard ask and he
certainly didn't get what he was asking for.
So he's a weak communicator. I think he's a weak president that way.
And the Democrats are acting as if they have some global or national
mandate, but they don't. They have razor-thin margins. And I think -- I
didn't think that the progressives would hold the line as -- as strong as
they did. I didn't think they'd have that backbone. I thought they would
cave. But, so far, they've shown that they're very strong.
And, you know, while Joe Biden's over in Glasgow, where he's not is at the
ports. And where he's not is on the border. And America understands and
recognizes this and that's why I think Terry McAuliffe and other Democrats
and people who are in these House races are going to say, whoa, going into
2022, we're in a lot of trouble.
WALLACE: Susan, to bring this back to the -- to the president's trip
overseas, Joe Biden has, for months, really his whole presidency, has
framed all of this as a competition between the world's democracies and the
world's autocracies.
Take a look at what he said earlier this year.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think we're in a contest, not
with China per say, but a contest with autocrats, autocratic governments
around the world, as to whether or not democracies can compete with them in
the rapidly changing 21st century.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: Susan, if that is the test here between democracies and
autocracies, as Joe Biden is framing it, we're not doing so well.
PAGE: Yes. The failure to get this over the finish line, I think, has been
damaging to Biden. It's one reason his approval ratings are down in the
40s. It's been trouble for Terry McAuliffe in Virginia. It's not been good
for Nancy Pelosi, known as the master legislative leader, but someone who
has set a series of deadlines that she has then been unable to meet.
But if they manage to do it on Tuesday, number one, they'll have done it
before in results from Virginia. I know you mentioned that as a potential
problem.
It also means there will be a competing headline Wednesday, even if the
worst happens in Virginia. If they get it over the finish line, if they
finally passed the heart of Biden's domestic agenda, I think some of the
bad feeling over the messiness of the process will fade.
WALLACE: Just really quickly, Susan, you -- you think that, that we'll
forget how messy this has been and we'll just focus that, you know, he
ended up with a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill and $1.75 on the social
spending?
PAGE: You know, it's not as much as the progressives wanted, but it is a
lot of money.
WALLACE: Even in Washington.
Thank you, panel. See you next Sunday.
Up next, our "Power Player of the Week." We'll take you to the iconic Tomb
of the Unknown Soldier and explain how you can walk in the footsteps of the
old guard.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: The procession of the sentinels who guard the Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier is an unmistakable symbol of our reverence for these fallen heroes.
On November 9th and 10th, just ahead of the Tomb's 100th anniversary,
Arlington National Cemetery is opening up the guards pathway so any of us
can walk in their steps and share their solemn mission.
Here's our "Power Player of the Week."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAREN DURHAM-AGUILERA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ARMY NATIONAL MILITARY
CEMETERIES: We want people to make that connection, to realize that the
unknown gave not just their lives for our liberty and our freedom, but they
also gave their identities.
WALLACE: Karen Durham Aguilera is talking about the Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: We say that we, Arlington National Cemetery, are the
unknown's hometown, but their hometown could be anywhere in America. I'm
really proud and honored.
WALLACE: Executive director of Army National Military Cemeteries, she's in
charge of marking its 100th anniversary.
Generations of presidents have come to the tomb to lay wreaths and
thousands of people are here every day making it Arlington's most visited
site.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: On a usual day we'll have 3,000 to 5,000 people out here.
On a busy holiday weekends, we could have 20,000 people a day out here.
WALLACE: Sentinels have kept watch here since the '20s when tourists used
to hold picnics at the tomb. In 1948, the U.S. Army's Old Guard was given
the assignment and they remain a constant presence.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: They are truly special and they literally training for
perfection, not just perfection in their uniform, perfection in their
steps.
WALLACE: In the silence as the guard changes, the solitary click of the
sentinel's heels echoes across the granite plaza. Then, a lone sentinel
walks 21 steps in front of the tomb, turns and pauses twice for 21 seconds
each, and then walks 21 steps back. It signifies the military's highest
honor, the 21 gun salute. The sentinel's watch is unending, 24 hours every
day of the year, in heat and cold, snow and rain.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: When no one's watching, the honor will always continue.
WALLACE: Now, to mark the tomb's centennial, Arlington is inviting the
public to take these steps themselves.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: The public will be able to walk on the plaza similar to
what our tomb sentinels do every day as they guard the unknown.
WALLACE (on camera): Walk right down this same path?
DURHAM-AGUILERA: They will be able to walk down the same path as the tomb
sentinels and they will be able to place flowers at the gravesite.
WALLACE: Like presidents and foreign leaders?
DURHAM-AGUILERA: Yes. And so we are making our own present-day history.
WALLACE: And what's the response you've gotten as people have heard they're
going to be able to walk in the footsteps?
DURHAM-AGUILERA: Oh, people are excited. We want the public to be here. It
is really going to be extraordinary.
WALLACE (voice over): It will evoke the pomp of the original dedication on
Armistice Day, November 11, 1921.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: The Department of Defense wanted to provide comfort and
solace and the ability to mourn for families of those that lost their loved
ones.
WALLACE (on camera): And it might just be their son, their husband, who is
in that tomb?
DURHAM-AGUILERA: It could be their son. Yes, it could be their son, their
brother or their -- their husband.
WALLACE (voice over): The unknown warrior was brought back to Washington
and honored in the U.S. Capitol. Then, he was brought to Arlington and laid
to rest. His race, creed and name forever known but to God.
WALLACE (on camera): What was the reaction around the country?
DURHAM-AGUILERA: Ninety thousand people came and view the unknown as he
laid in state. Then there were tens of thousands that were here that day
for the funeral procession.
WALLACE (voice over): In 1958, the U.S. Army selected a World War II
unknown. Those remains were interred alongside an unknown from the Korean
War. In 1984, remains from Vietnam were also buried here. But in the 90s,
DNA testing confirmed his identity as Air Force Lieutenant Michael Blassie,
a pilot shot down in 1972. Blassie was returned to his family.
DURHAM-AGUILERA: It doesn't matter how much time it's been. For the
families, it's closer. It's comfort. Their loved one is home and they're
not alone.
WALLACE: This is Durham's fifth year at Arlington. Like every visitor, she
is still humbled walk in the hollowed grounds.
WALLACE (on camera): What is it that you hope that Americans, either
whether they're here in person or watching on TV, what they'll take from
this?
DURHAM-AGUILERA: We want them to be able to connect with the unknown who
represent all of us. Every day, as I come in, come to work, I turn the
radio off so I can just reflect on those who are laid to rest here and what
we do to take care of our veterans, our patriots and our families.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE: If you'd like to visit the tomb and lay a flower there on November
9th or 10th, please go to our website, foxnewssunday.com. You'll find a
link where you can register for free tickets.
And that's it for today. Have a great week and we'll see you next FOX NEWS
SUNDAY.
Copy: Content and Programming Copyright 2021 Fox News Network, LLC. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED. Copyright 2021 VIQ Media Transcription, Inc. All
materials herein are protected by United States copyright law and may not
be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast
without the prior written permission of VIQ Media Transcription, Inc. You
may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from
copies of the content.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox