TRANSCRIPT: Leader Schumer Joins “The Lead With Jake Tapper” To Discuss Trump’s Reckless Military Operation In Venezuela And Rising Costs For American Families

Washington, D.C. - Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today joined CNN's The Lead with Jake Tapper to discuss the Trump administration's handling of its military operation in Venezuela, the administration's threats toward allied nations, and Republicans' failure to address rising costs for American families. Below is the transcript of the interview between Leader Schumer and Jake Tapper:

Jake Tapper: Democrat of New York says the administration provided no real answers during a closed-door briefing on that operation. He's accusing the White House of not having a plan for what happens next in Venezuela. Leader Schumer joins us now live from Capitol Hill. Leader Schumer, thanks for joining us.

Leader Chuck Schumer: Hi Jake.

Tapper: So, you said they didn't have answers. What did you want answers to that they didn't that they didn't provide them?

Schumer: There were so many questions Jake. When you emerge from that briefing you got really worried because they don't have a plan. They knew they wanted to take Maduro. That's step one. Steps two through ten they have no answers for such as: how many troops will we need on the ground? How much will it cost? How long should it last? Do you have plans to go to other countries like Colombia or Cuba or even Greenland? Is Stephen Miller going to be involved? Let me just say it was a classified briefing I can't tell you exactly what they said but every one of those answers would disappoint almost all of America. They just didn't have their act together. It was almost a back of the envelope operation, and it was really troubling that to go through, to do what they did, and everyone wants to get rid of Maduro. He's a bad guy, you know, they're glad that he's gone rather, but to not have thought this out. We've been through endless wars. In Iraq. In Libya. Trump campaigned on endless wars and maybe the worst thing of all or just as bad, he's neglecting what the American people want, Jake, which is lower costs. Health care costs lower, housing costs lower, grocery costs lower and he's off on these foreign adventures. That's not what America wants and that's not America first which is what he campaigned on.

Tapper: You mentioned Stephen Miller, he was on the show yesterday. He told me that military options to acquire Greenland are not off the table. The White House Press Secretary also reiterated some message like that today. Not off the table. What do you think about that? Obviously, I know a lot of leaders in Europe are very distressed about that given that-

Schumer: It's absolutely nuts! We're gonna send troops into a NATO ally? Denmark owns Greenland. We're gonna send troops to Colombia? We're gonna police the world when there's so many people hurting at home who are worried about their cost of living and Trump is doing nothing about it and engaging in these foreign adventures without planning, without forethought. Again, when you sat in that room you thought it was sort of the back of the envelope. They were just sort of coming up with answers. I'll give you one example. Who do they want to take Maduro's place? You know now Trump says he's gonna be, he's gonna run the country. But who was going to be the leader there? They had no good answer. They don't like the vice president. There are people under the vice president who might be even worse than Maduro. How can you do a serious operation like this which risks American lives without any planning or forethought? It almost seems like Donald Trump just popped into his head and all the yes people around him just said go ahead.

Tapper: Let me turn to domestic issues if I can. Democrats shut down the government for 43 days last year in an effort to extend COVID era health insurance subsidies. Those have now obviously expired. Millions of Americans are going to see their insurance costs rise this month. Do Democrats have a plan to address that? A plan that could actually pass Congress, get Republican support, and are you willing to rule out another shutdown over that issue?

Schumer: Look the best way to get this done is for the House on Thursday to pass the three-year extension that Hakeem Jeffries put together in a discharge petition and then to have Thune put it on the floor and it will pass. That's the only way to get this done. We're not going to get health care done if the Republicans stay in shambles. They don't have their own plan. They're divided on every type of issue, whether to privatize it. Thune and Johnson, the two leaders, said they wouldn't even extend health care benefits by a day let alone a month, a year, three months, sorry, three years. So, until the Republicans get their act together, we're not going to get anything done on health care.

Tapper: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer Democrat of New York. Thank you, sir, appreciate your time.

Schumer: Thanks Jake.

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