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The pursuing is the transcript of an interrogation with Sen. Mark Warner, Democrat of Virginia, that volition aerial connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected June 29, 2025.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We statesman contiguous with Virginia Democrat Mark Warner. He is the Vice Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Good morning.
SEN. MARK WARNER: Good morning.
MARGARET BRENNAN: You've been, probably, sleep-deprived with each of what is happening, but I privation to inquire you astir what's going connected successful Capitol Hill. Republicans are going to walk this on enactment lines. It's expected, right? But, it includes things successful present that Democrats, including you, had supported, right? The nary taxes connected tips provision, much wealth for Border Patrol, enlargement of the Child Care Tax Credit upwards of $2,000. Why ballot against it, erstwhile determination are fashionable provisions wrong it, and doesn't that conscionable let the President to say, oh, you privation to rise taxes?
SEN. WARNER: You tin enactment arsenic overmuch lipstick connected this pig arsenic you want. This will- this volition beryllium a governmental albatross for the Republicans --
MARGARET BRENNAN: -- Why? --
SEN. WARNER: -- due to the fact that it takes 16 cardinal Americans disconnected of wellness attraction sum with cuts to Medicaid, and cuts to the Obamacare marketplace. That volition determination us, arsenic a nation, backmost to the aforesaid percent of uninsured we had before- earlier Obamacare. And, it's not similar these radical are not going to get sick. They're going to amusement up astatine the exigency room. Rural hospitals are going to unopen down. That has been evidenced crossed the nation. It besides goes aft nutrient assistance. So we are truly successful specified a spot that we're cutting, successful my state, a mates 100 1000 radical disconnected of schoolhouse lunches, schoolhouse breakfasts. They adjacent chopped nutrient banks. It's- it's cruel. They person besides ended up, astatine the extremity of the day, cutting 20,000-plus cleanable vigor jobs. And for what? This was to marque definite that the highest, astir affluent Americans tin get an other tax-break. And, arsenic you conscionable saw connected your chyron, there, it adds $4.5 trillion to the debt. I deliberation galore of my Republican friends cognize they're walking the plank connected this, and we'll spot if those who've expressed quiescent consternation volition really person the courageousness of their convictions.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, immoderate of the Republicans are arguing, well, we person to woody with these entitlements and the enactment requirements and things that whitethorn pb to immoderate of the deficiency of qualifications you speech about. They're not that burdensome. It's unpaid enactment oregon part-time work. So, are you overstating it?
SEN. WARNER: No. It's 16 cardinal Americans disconnected of wellness care. You know, Medicaid cuts- these numbers, they're not my numbers. They're each autarkic sources. And what- the happening that I don't deliberation radical person realized is radical say, well, Medicaid, I'm not poor. I, maybe, bargain my wellness security done the marketplace. Your rates volition spell up $800 oregon $900 a month. And that volition trickle done the full remainder of the healthcare market, due to the fact that if you abruptly instrumentality radical retired of the system, they amusement up astatine the exigency country successful uncompensated care. The lone mode those costs get passed on, is higher wellness security to each of america who person accepted coverage.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So, if this is truthful against their ain interest, wherefore haven't you been capable to peel much Republicans away?
SEN. WARNER: Well, I deliberation we'll see. Even arsenic precocious arsenic conscionable an hr ago, immoderate of the peculiar Medicaid provisions for definite states, I think, were disallowed due to the fact that of the alleged Byrd Rule. It's not implicit until it's over. I volition springiness you- I volition assistance that President Trump has been capable to clasp his enactment successful enactment successful an unprecedented manner. At the different end, this measure volition travel backmost and wound them. This is going to bash truthful overmuch harm successful presumption of, not lone wellness care, nutrient assistance, you know, the full conception that we are moving towards cleaner vigor jobs, each connected the chopping block, adding $4 trillion to the debt. Tell me, astatine the extremity of the day, however that is bully for America? I don't deliberation you tin marque the case.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Education is different beforehand successful this combat with the President. And I privation to inquire you astir what's happening successful Virginia. We saw the University of Virginia's President, James Ryan, resign connected Friday. This was extraordinary. This was a unit run from the Trump medication implicit diversity, oregon alleged DEI programs. In the letter, and I privation to work this, Ryan wrote that if helium had tried to combat back, hundreds of employees would suffer jobs, researchers would suffer funding, and hundreds of students could suffer fiscal assistance oregon person their visas withheld. But, helium resigned to debar this. Is that present the playbook for different assemblage presidents: locomotion away, don't person the fight?
SEN. WARNER: This is the astir outrageous action, I think, this assemblage has taken connected education. We person large nationalist universities successful Virginia. We person a precise beardown governance system, wherever we person an autarkic committee of visitors appointed by the Governor. Jim Ryan had done a precise bully job; conscionable completed a large superior campaign. For him to beryllium threatened, and, literally, determination was denotation that they received the missive that if helium didn't resign connected a time past week, by 5 o'clock, each these cuts would instrumentality place. --
MARGARET BRENNAN: -- It was that explicit? --
SEN. WARNER: -- It was that explicit. --
MARGARET BRENNAN: This is- but that sounds personal. That doesn't dependable circumstantial to argumentation oregon changes. Like, however does the adjacent assemblage president get successful enactment and get the money?
SEN. WARNER: You're shocked it's coming- idiosyncratic attacks are coming retired of this administration? This is, you know- I thought the Republicans were astir states' rights. I thought the Republicans were about, let's transportation much powerfulness successful the States. This national D.O.E. and Department of Justice should get their chemoreceptor retired of University of Virginia. They are doing harm to our flagship university. And if they tin bash it here, they'll bash it elsewhere. At the extremity of the day, I recognize that, with truthful galore things astatine stake, that the idea, and I deliberation Jim Ryan laid it out, that helium was going to marque his personal- idiosyncratic occupation much important than these cuts. But, boy, that shouldn't person been the choice.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, and we cognize that the beingness that the medication is looking astatine much universities, and the adjunct A.G., Harmeet Dhillon, indicated that publicly, and University of California is adjacent to the crosshairs, truthful we're going to beryllium watching that cautiously --
SEN. WARNER: They each privation to marque them similar Harvard. They privation to instrumentality connected nationalist universities, the mode they person present taken connected the Ivys. End of the day, this is going to wounded our universities, pursuit distant what world-class talent. And, frankly, if we don't person immoderate level of world freedom, past what benignant of state are we?
MARGARET BRENNAN: I privation to inquire you astir your oversight relation connected intelligence. You were briefed connected what's going connected with Iran. You said you fearfulness the American radical are being fixed a mendacious consciousness of comfortableness with these declarations of ngo accomplished. Do you judge U.S. quality knows however overmuch of a capableness Iran maintains now?
SEN. WARNER: I don't deliberation we person last assessments. Let me- archetypal of all, we don't privation Iran to person a atomic weapon. Secondly, the subject performed an bonzer mission, and I deliberation they affected a large woody of harm to Iran's facilities. But, the thought that the President of the United States, with nary data, 2 hours aft the strike, is abruptly hitting the modular of saying full obliteration. That leads america to deliberation that they are retired of the game, and we don't cognize that yet. And, let's conscionable beryllium clear, you tin really acceptable backmost the large programme wherever they were trying to create, potentially, and there'd been nary determination made by the Ayatollah to really determination towards weaponization, but wherever they could person a weaponized strategy with a dozen-plus missiles that are atomic warned. But what they don't cognize is they didn't, and this was appropriate, I'm not criticizing the administration; they didn't spell aft the enriched uranium that was Isfahan, astatine that base, due to the fact that it's buried truthful profoundly --
MARGARET BRENNAN: -- They conscionable deed it with Tomahawks, not the bunker-busters --
SEN. WARNER: -- So, the information that they tin have, still, enriched uranium, they whitethorn person immoderate quality to inactive cascade that- means they could still determination guardant connected something, that mightiness beryllium not delivered by a missile, but a weaponry successful a trunk of a car. And each I don't privation is the American people, or, for that matter, our allies successful the region, to trust connected a word that was acceptable by the President earlier helium had immoderate facts.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Point taken determination connected the specifics of the rudimentary bomb. But, coming backmost to what you conscionable said, determination had been nary determination by the Supreme Leader to marque a weapon. Secretary of State Rubio, connected this program, past Sunday, told maine it was irrelevant, the reply to that question, due to the fact that Iran had everything it needed to marque and physique a weapon. So, based connected what you know, was determination an emergency? Was determination a crushed the US had to enactment successful the infinitesimal it did?
SEN. WARNER: We were connected the verge of what could person been a overmuch greater war, successful presumption of Iran and Israel spreading to the full region. Was determination the imminent exigency that would trigger? Because tons of presidents person looked astatine taking this action, I deliberation that's- that's precise debatable. If, astatine the extremity of the day, we extremity up wherever this bid holds, and Iran doesn't onslaught back, Hallelujah. But, what we don't know, for example, is Iran going to effort to deed america connected cyber with this medication cutting, literally, fractional of our cyber-security unit successful this country? So, I conscionable privation to marque definite that we- we bash this successful a measured way. The subject did great. We person acceptable them back. But let's not unreal that they don't person immoderate capabilities. And the lone mode we tin get solution connected that, Margaret, and Secretary Rubio acknowledged this successful the brief, is if we person boots connected the crushed with inspectors. That means we've got to spell to diplomacy. If America and Iran commencement negotiating this week, face-to-face, that would beryllium good.
MARGARET BRENNAN: And we were- we volition speech to the antheral who directs those boots connected the grounds, potentially, the inspectors aboriginal connected successful the programme from the IAEA. Thank you precise much, Senator. We're going to person to permission it there. We'll beryllium backmost successful a moment.
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