- 1 year ago
Democrat Led US Shutdown Hamas Peace Talks Deportation of illegal Aliens - Karoline Leavitt
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00:00Good afternoon, everyone.
00:03We are now in day three of the Democrat-led government shutdown.
00:08The Democrats continue to recklessly hold the American people hostage over their demands
00:13to give illegal aliens free health care.
00:16Republicans are fully unified behind passing a nonpartisan Clean Funding Bill, the exact
00:22same bill that Democrats approved back in March to reopen the federal government.
00:28But those same Senate Democrats are now voting against this Clean Funding Bill in keeping
00:32the people's government closed.
00:35I understand Democrats will have an opportunity very shortly here to change course, and we
00:39hope that they will.
00:41There are significant personal impacts on millions of Americans as a result of this current government
00:46shutdown.
00:47The 1.3 million men and women of America's Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard
00:53and Space Force who serve honorably and put their lives on the line to defend us all are
00:58not being paid.
01:00Military families are already seeking out food assistance because of financial anxiety caused
01:05by this Democrat shutdown.
01:07According to new reporting from the Military Times, staff members at the Armed Services'
01:12YMCA food pantry distribution location near Fort Hood in Texas found a line of military families
01:19stretched around the side of the building yesterday at 5 in the morning.
01:24According to the staff who work there, that is, quote, not happened ever.
01:28They've already had a 34 percent increase this week over past weeks.
01:32President Trump and Republicans fundamentally believe we have a sacred responsibility to protect
01:37and provide for our military families with the resources they need to thrive.
01:42If Democrats believe in this very simple premise too, they should end this shutdown immediately.
01:48Unfortunately, the severe impacts of the Democrat shutdown extend beyond our troops.
01:54Nearly 7 million mothers, infants, and low-income families who rely on government-run food assistance
02:00will be in jeopardy if the WIC program runs out of money in the weeks ahead.
02:05The more than 13,000 air traffic controllers who ensure that Americans fly safely in airports
02:10across the country are currently working without pay.
02:14The National Flood Insurance Program is in danger of lapsing, which could leave families without
02:19necessary help if a disaster strikes and we are in the middle of hurricane season.
02:24Critical services offered at Social Security field offices are reduced for senior citizens
02:29and disabled Americans.
02:31Helpful transition assistance programs are not being provided for veterans who fought to defend
02:36our country and are now trying to re-enter civilian life.
02:41The economic consequences of this shutdown are piling up every day.
02:45Policy makers, markets, and even the Federal Reserve are flying blind at a key juncture because
02:50BLS and BEA data are on hold until the government reopens.
02:54Democrats shutting down the federal government to give health care to illegal aliens could lead
02:59to lower growth and higher unemployment rates for Americans.
03:02According to a new memo from the Council of Economic Advisers, the U.S. economy could lose
03:07$15 billion of growth domestic product each week.
03:12Every single week, the Democrat shutdown extends, with a month-long shutdown leading to an additional
03:1643,000 unemployed people.
03:20Small businesses are likely to encounter delays in receiving federal loans.
03:24Mortgage applications will likely shrink.
03:26And just this morning, Business Roundtable, an association of more than 200 CEOs of Americans' leading
03:32companies, representing every sector of the U.S. economy, put out a statement urging Congress
03:38to pass the clean CR that will once again come before them in the Senate floor in just a few moments.
03:44Quote, a fully functioning government is essential for American businesses, workers, and consumers,
03:50while policymakers continue working on a full-year funding package and other pressing issues.
03:55Again, that is a quote from the Business Roundtable.
03:58What's clear is that the Democrats' actions account to an intentional sabotage of our country and our
04:04people by shutting down our government.
04:06This madness must end.
04:08President Trump and Republicans are calling on Democrats to reopen the government immediately
04:14on behalf of the American public.
04:17All we need are five Democrat senators to do the right thing and to stop this shutdown.
04:22Call your Democrat senator and tell them to vote yes to reopen the government.
04:27On another matter, despite the Democrats' shutdown, President Trump's efforts to make America safe
04:31again continue.
04:33President Trump believes that American cities should be the safest places on Earth, and he
04:37is committed to making this a reality.
04:40We've already seen that President Trump successfully made D.C. safe again in only a few weeks.
04:46That same crime crackdown will continue to happen in cities across the country and is happening in
04:51Portland, Oregon.
04:53President Trump will end the radical left's reign of terror in Portland once and for all.
04:58The President has directed Secretary Hegseth to provide all necessary troops to protect war-ravaged
05:03Portland and any ICE facilities under siege from attack by Antifa and other left-wing domestic
05:09terrorists.
05:10What's been allowed to happen in Portland, and we saw disturbing video footage of this last night,
05:15this is not peaceful protesting.
05:17This is left-wing anarchy that has been destroying this great American city for years, leaving police
05:23officers battered, citizens terrorized, and business properties damaged.
05:27Since early June alone, Antifa terrorists have laid siege to the ICE field office in South Portland.
05:33These radical left-wing lunatics have violently breached the ICE facility by using a stop sign
05:38as a battering ram, hurled explosives and other projectiles at law enforcement, repeatedly assault
05:44and dox officers, berate their law-abiding neighbors, and have even rolled out a guillotine
05:50in front of the ICE facility.
05:52And more people should be reporting on that.
05:54President Trump has sent federal law enforcement to protect federal assets and arrest those fueling
05:59this violence.
06:00Just last night, we saw an extremely troubling incident where conservative journalist Nick Sorter
06:05was captured on video, being taken into custody by the Portland police after he
06:11was ambushed by Antifa and was defending himself from these assaults.
06:16But instead of arresting these violent mob members night after night after night
06:21who are ravaging this community, the police arrested a journalist who was there trying to
06:25document the chaos and everyone in this room should be extremely concerned about that.
06:29The Department of Justice spoke with that journalist this morning and they will
06:32be launching a full investigation into his arrest.
06:36This incident is part of a troubling trend in Portland where left-wing mobs believe they
06:40get to decide who can visit and live in their city.
06:44It is not their city.
06:45It is the American people's city and President Trump is going to restore that.
06:48I just spoke with the President about this and he has directed his team here at the White House
06:53to begin reviewing aid that can potentially be cut in Portland.
06:57We will not fund states that allow anarchy.
06:59There will also be an additional surge of federal resources to Portland immediately,
07:04including enhanced CBP and ICE resources.
07:07Law and order will prevail and President Trump will make sure of it.
07:11With that, I'll take your questions and we will begin today's briefing with our new media seat.
07:14Amanda Head from Just the News. Amanda, thank you for being here.
07:17Thank you, Caroline. On that most recent topic that you mentioned, reportedly Portland police
07:23have not been able to engage protesters to the degree that they normally would.
07:28Does the President plan on handling this from that angle as well with city leaders?
07:32Yes. From our understanding, the law enforcement that we have here in the Homeland Security Task Force,
07:37I spoke with them this morning, and what they're seeing is that unfortunately,
07:41local police has been restricted from responding or cooperating at all with federal authorities,
07:46which is completely absurd. We have surged federal law enforcement personnel to this city to restore
07:52law and order and to work alongside local law enforcement. And we've seen the benefits of this
07:59in Washington, D.C. And all of you live here, so you can agree, Washington, D.C. is and feels much
08:05safer because of the cooperation between federal and local law enforcement. They can and must be working
08:11together. And we think it's despicable that these local elected officials who swear an oath to protect
08:17their people are preventing law enforcement from doing their jobs on the ground. So that's why the
08:22President has directed his team here at the White House, and they are already on it to look into how
08:26we can cut funds. And the President wants to work with anyone. If the Mayor of Portland were to call him
08:31right now and say, Mr. President, please help us. I am sure the President would be willing to do that.
08:36He is genuinely serious about wanting to restore order in America's cities.
08:41But it's become apparent that the local and elected officials in Oregon do not feel the same.
08:46And that's very unfortunate for the people who live there.
08:49And then one more question on the government shutdown. Should there be some type of
08:54scheduled layoffs to maybe entice Democrats to come to the table, like every hour, another agency,
08:59another hundred pink slips? I'm sure Russ Vote has a list of folks ready to go.
09:04Well, look, the Office of Management and Budget, as we've said repeatedly,
09:08is working with the agencies and our cabinet secretaries to identify where cuts, unfortunately,
09:14can and have to be made. And again, we understand there's another vote happening on the Senate
09:18floor in an hour. Maybe if Democrats do the right thing, this government shutdown can be over.
09:23Our troops can get paid again. We can go back to doing the business of the American people. But if this
09:27shutdown continues, as we've said, layoffs are an unfortunate consequence of that.
09:33And Russ Vote has been in contact with our cabinet secretaries at their respective agencies to discuss
09:38that. Thank you, Amanda. Kelly. How would this administration define what makes a Democrat agency,
09:45which agencies and what constitutes being a Democrat agency? I think this administration has been very
09:52clear, Kelly, that we're not going to tolerate waste, fraud and abuse in our government. And we've also
09:56been very clear to point out when agencies or when programs do not align with this administration's
10:02values of putting our country first. You've seen that with USAID and in various other cases where
10:08there's been cuts made or funding has been slashed. And so again, unfortunately, we're having to do a
10:13massive review of the bureaucracy to be good stewards of the American taxpayer dollar. And it's the
10:18Democrats who have forced the White House and the President into this position by voting to shut the
10:23government down. You've talked about thousands likely layoffs coming. Do you have an update on the
10:29timeline for that? How quickly and if the government is restored to funding and back in operation? Will
10:36that list of potential layoffs still be on the table? Look, as I just stated, the Office of Management
10:42and Budget is in constant communication and contact right now with our cabinet secretaries and agencies
10:47across the board to identify, unfortunately, where layoffs have to be made and where cuts have to happen.
10:54But again, the Democrats have an opportunity to prevent this if they vote to reopen the government.
10:59That is all this administration and the President is asking for.
11:02Vote for a clean continuing resolution to keep the government open. Peter.
11:06Thank you, Caroline. During the campaign- Thank you, Peter.
11:11I was raised to say thank you in the White House briefing room.
11:15During the campaign, President Trump said that he did not know anything about Project 2025.
11:21Now he knows about it. Is that the blueprint for shrinking the government?
11:25Look, the blueprint is what the President and his team and his cabinet secretaries ultimately decide.
11:30And the President trusts his cabinet secretaries to identify where there is waste, fraud, and abuse.
11:37We pointed out this morning, or Russ Tweeted about this morning, a Chicago rail project
11:42that was canceled. We paused $2.1 billion in Chicago infrastructure projects, specifically
11:48the red line extension and the red and purple modernization projects. And it's because the
11:53administration is concerned that the Biden administration was handing out taxpayer dollars
11:57to pay for this construction based on DEI. DOT is reviewing the race-based contracting on unconstitutional
12:05grounds. And in the meantime, the Department of Transportation funds for these projects are on
12:09hold. So I guess this answers both of your questions. This would be an example of that.
12:13And just because there's so much shutdown talk, something different.
12:17What do you guys think about the NFL's decision to name Bad Bunny as the Super Bowl halftime performer,
12:23somebody who has not scheduled shows in the U.S. because he says that he's worried that ICE is going
12:29to come and arrest his fans? Well, look, I know there are many in this room who are very anxious to hear
12:35the president's response to Bad Bunny being the halftime show, so I won't get ahead of him.
12:40I won't reveal what he feels about this. Next time you all ask him a question, you're welcome to do that.
12:44I have my own feelings on that, but that's not what I'm up here to talk about. As far as I speak at the
12:49Super Bowl, as far as I'm aware, there's no tangible plan for that in store right now. However, of course,
12:55this administration is always going to arrest and deport illegal immigrants. When we find them,
13:01if they are criminals, we're going to do the right thing by our country. Kate.
13:04Did the president and Russ vote decide yesterday in their meeting which cuts they wanted to make
13:09to agencies and which ones would be permanent? Again, I've kind of answered this question a few
13:13different times now. It's been asked in a few different ways. Their discussions continue between
13:17the Office of Management and Budget and cabinet agencies across the board, and they are actively
13:21identifying where these cuts and these layoffs have to be made as this government shutdown hopefully
13:27does not continue. And on Hamas, the president said that if Hamas rejects the proposal that Netanyahu
13:33would have his full backing to finish the job. A U.N. report found that Israel was committing genocide
13:38in Gaza. Does the president have concerns about the civilians being killed, the worsening humanitarian
13:43crisis, and are there limits to what the White House would support when it comes to Israel's actions in
13:48Gaza? Look, the president has deep concerns about all of the atrocities that have taken place in the
13:53Middle East over the past few years. It's deeply unfortunate that he inherited this mess from
13:59the Biden administration. If you all recall, under President Trump in his first term, the Middle East
14:04was on a pathway for peace and prosperity. There was the historic signing of the Abraham Accords.
14:09Israel was on a path to normalization between Arab and Gulf nations, and we hope that can continue.
14:15But right now, the president has made it very clear to Hamas that this is an acceptable and detailed
14:21proposal that they must accept, or the consequences are going to be very grave for them. And he has
14:27given them a deadline of Sunday evening at 6 p.m. When I was out here on Wednesday, I told all of you,
14:33I'll leave it to the president to make that red line, and he now has. I think the entire world should
14:37hear the president of the United States loud and clear. And Hamas has an opportunity to accept this
14:43plan and to move forward in a peaceful and prosperous manner in the region. And if they don't,
14:48the consequences, unfortunately, are going to be very tragic. Michael.
14:51Thank you, Caroline. Has the president declared war on international drug cartels? And if so,
14:56or if he will, does he feel he needs congressional approval?
14:59As the White House has said many times, the president has directed these actions,
15:03these strikes against Venezuelan drug cartels and these boats, consistent with his responsibility to
15:09protect the United States' interests abroad and in furtherance of the U.S. national security and
15:14foreign policy entrance. This is pursuant to his constitutional authority as commander-in-chief
15:19and the chief executive to conduct foreign relations. In each of these cases, Michael,
15:23the vessels have been assessed by the U.S. intelligence community to be affiliated with
15:28designated terrorist organizations engaged at the time in trafficking illicit drugs to our country.
15:35The president has been very clear, dating back to the campaign trail, that he is always going to do
15:39what's in the best interest of the American homeland. And he also promised the American people he was going to
15:43end the drug epidemic that has taken far too many American lives. And you're seeing those actions
15:49play out almost every single day here. One last question on the shutdown, Caroline.
15:53Hakeem Jeffries has said that President Trump is in the Presidential Witness Protection Program
15:59since the shutdown has begun. What's the White House's reaction to that?
16:02That's just more ridiculous fodder from Hakeem Jeffries. As you all know, because you're here
16:07every day, the president is literally working around the clock right now. I think he has a swearing-in ceremony,
16:12or he already did. He has several meetings on the books today. He literally works 24-7. Anyone who
16:18works in this place or covers this place, as you all do, knows that to be true. And Hakeem Jeffries
16:23and the Senate Democrats should get back to work in a few minutes and vote to reopen the government.
16:28Emily. Thank you, Caroline.
16:29You spoke earlier about the energy and infrastructure projects that Director Vote paused.
16:34Will the White House agree to restore that funding as part of the deal to end the shutdown?
16:39Well, I won't make any agreements here. Senate Republicans are talking with their colleagues
16:45on the Democrat side, but right now, Russ Vote is doing what he's been tasked to do in the midst of
16:49this government shutdown, which is to look at funds that need to be temporarily halted or need to be
16:55canceled. And Chicago is just another example of that. Caroline. Go to Libby in the back.
17:00Thank you, Caroline. I have two questions for you. One on the FDA, but first on the shutdown.
17:03Will the administration get this government shutdown and still move forward with firing
17:08thousands of federal workers? Look, as I've said repeatedly, Libby,
17:12right now, we want the government to be open. Layoffs are an unfortunate consequence of a
17:16government shutdown, and it's something the administration is examining. If the government
17:20is reopened, we're going to get back to doing what we were doing last week and the week before,
17:24working on the issues that the American people care about. And then on the FDA, they just approved that
17:29new abortion pill. And it's causing a lot of uproar among Republicans. What is the President's
17:34response to that? And does the administration plan to have that hope for that advocate?
17:39Well, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Bobby Kennedy, has put out several statements on
17:44this. The HHS's decision, it's not an endorsement of this drug by any means. They are just simply
17:50following the law. And as they put out in their statement, by law, the Secretary of Health and Human
17:55Services must approve a generic drug application if the application demonstrates the generic drug
18:01is the, quote, same as the brand name drug. Generic applicants are not required to submit
18:06independent evidence proving safety and effectiveness. As such, FDA's decision to approve
18:11a second generic version does not address the merits of the current safety program. HHS is reviewing
18:17adverse effects to ensure that FDA's required safety program for the drug is sufficient to protect
18:22women. The safety review equally applies to generic versions of this drug. So FDA and HHS are following
18:29the law. It's again, not an endorsement of the drug itself. Mary. Thanks, Caroline. Two questions on
18:34the shutdown. You've argued that these impending layoffs are necessary to keep essential services
18:38up and running. But that has never been the case in any previous shutdown. Even when the government was
18:43shut down for 35 days in Trump's first term, you've never had to lay off thousands of workers
18:49to keep essential services up and running. So why are layoffs now necessary in this shutdown?
18:54Because we have an administration and we have a president who are wholeheartedly focused on
18:59restoring fiscal sanity to our government and doing the right thing by the American taxpayer. We are 37
19:05trillion dollars in debt and the federal government is currently shut down. There is no more money
19:09coming into the federal government's coffers. And as you've also seen since the beginning in January,
19:13this administration is focusing on waste fraud and abuse. And so Democrats have given this
19:20administration an unenviable choice to have to take a look at the balance sheet and identify where
19:27these cuts and layoffs can be made. And you just said this is an unenviable choice, that this is an
19:31unfortunate consequence. But the president has described this as an unprecedented opportunity
19:36to lay off additional workers. He's posted a video likening Russ vote to the grim reaper. So which is
19:42this? Is this a an opportunity to fire more workers or an unfortunate consequence? Look,
19:46the president likes to have a little fun every now and then. And I think both things can be true at
19:50the same time. The Democrats have given the administration this opportunity and we don't
19:54like laying people off. Nobody takes joy in that around here. And if you think that, then I think
19:59that's very sad. You view the White House and our staff as wanting to put people out of work. Nobody wants
20:04to do that. But sometimes in government, you have to make tough decisions.
20:07Going back to Portland, as far as the city council there is concerned, they appear to be very sympathetic
20:13towards the protesters who are at the ICE facility. Is the White House considering invoking the
20:20Insurrection Act over in Portland? Is that something they are considering? Also, as far as the Portland
20:27City Council is concerned, are they looking at the members there who are apparently helping out the
20:33protesters as far as suggesting to get burner phones, et cetera, et cetera? That's not something I've
20:40heard that's under consideration or discussion at this time. Caroline. Caroline. Caroline, is
20:45everybody yelling in the back? Go ahead. Sure. Thank you. Bianca Garcia here. And I have a question.
20:52This week, the Democrats have chosen illegals over hardworking Hispanic Americans during Hispanic
21:00Heritage Month causing the White House to cancel the celebration with the president. Is the president
21:06open to letting the Hispanics, who overwhelmingly voted for him, have their own siesta fiesta in the
21:13White House lawn opposed to the fancy, you know, we don't need fancy spancy, right? You can give us the
21:19backyard and we'll fill it all in and have in our own fiesta. Is the president open to that? I had no idea
21:24she was going to ask that question. I just want to preface that. I've never met you. I just want to
21:30say that. But welcome to the briefing room. I love your energy. I can't personally unilaterally
21:36promise the South Lawn grounds. We have some construction going on out there. But I do think,
21:42I know that everyone here views it as very unfortunate. We had to cancel or hopefully just
21:47reschedule the Hispanic American Heritage Month event. And it's because we are working around the clock
21:52during this government shutdown. So when the Democrats vote to reopen the government,
21:57that event will be back in the planning stages. Brian, go ahead.
22:01Thank you very much. Welcome to the briefing room, by the way. I was with the Secretary of War and the
22:06Attorney General in Memphis just the other day as we were going to a command center. And I noticed
22:11a billboard along the highway that said, Memphis welcomes the National Guard. Now, what is your message
22:17today to Democrat mayors watching us right now that suffer from TDS and they cannot get Trump out of
22:23the way to saving their city, Portland being one of them? They should do the right thing by their
22:28citizens, Brian. They should call the president. They should call the White House and say,
22:32we want to work with you. And in Memphis, we are seeing some cooperation. As you saw from that billboard,
22:38the people of Memphis are loving this and they are very grateful for the federal government's efforts.
22:43And federal law enforcement is there. We're working alongside local law enforcement. We'd like to see
22:49it ramped up a little bit because we want to make progress and we want to arrest as many bad
22:54criminals as we can. Since Monday, I do have some updated statistics from the Homeland Security
22:59Council this morning. Since Monday, 153 arrests have been made in Memphis, including five gang members.
23:0648 illegal guns have been seized and five missing children have already been recovered. Last night,
23:1260 arrests were made and 21 illegal firearms were seized. Arrests from last night include a
23:17suspect wanted for rape of a child under 13, first degree murder, breaking and entering,
23:23aggravated assault, illegal drug possession, and many more. So we continue to see good results
23:28coming in through Memphis and the president is very excited about making Memphis safe again.
23:34Thank you. At the top of the briefing, you made a statement about that the Democrats are
23:39interested in giving health care to illegal immigrants? Yes, they are.
23:42U.S. law already prohibits that. It's a 1996 law saying that they cannot give unauthorized immigrants
23:51any federally subsidized health care coverage through Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act,
23:55or the Children's Health Insurance Program. There seems to be a disconnect in the message.
24:00Are you denying that Medicaid money has never gone to illegal aliens in the United States of America?
24:06I'm not denying anything. I'm asking you if you can explain the disconnect in the message.
24:10I most certainly can. The Democrats' proposal, their continuing resolution, let me just reiterate,
24:16the Republicans' continuing resolution was a clean continuing resolution. There was no partisan
24:21politics injected into it. There were no conservative wishlists injected to it. What the Republicans
24:26want and still want to this very second is a clean continuing resolution to fund the United States
24:32government. What did the Democrats want in their continuing resolution? They inserted a provision
24:37to undo a provision in the working families tax cut, the one big beautiful bill that ended taxpayer
24:44funded health care illegal benefits for illegal aliens. Democrats' proposal would require Medicaid
24:51to pay more for emergency care provided to illegal aliens than Medicaid does for American patients who are
24:56disabled, elderly, or children. And this bill would have also allowed California to continue a gimmick
25:02that funds its Medicaid for illegals program. Those are things that we ended, the Trump administration
25:07ended with the passage and the signage of the one big beautiful bill. And it is an undisputed fact,
25:12a fact that under the Biden administration, illegal aliens were absolutely receiving taxpayer funded
25:19health care benefits. In fact, in fiscal year 2024, Medicaid costs for emergency services for illegal immigrants
25:26skyrocketed by 142% from the previous year to $9.1 billion. That's $9.1 billion taxpayer dollars that were going
25:36to emergency services for illegals. Between President Trump's last full fiscal year under his first
25:42administration and Joe Biden's last full fiscal year, Medicaid spending on emergency services for illegal
25:48immigrants nearly tripled. There was an increase of 196% between 2020 and 2024. And I have a
25:55chart here for you and I'm more than happy to email it to you. I'd also like to add because some were
26:00asking dishonest questions yesterday about emergency rooms. In Southern California, according to health
26:05care professionals in 2023, under the Biden administration, Southern California's quote,
26:10entire health care system was being bombarded with illegal immigrants and forcing American patients to
26:16endure longer wait times. In Denver, Colorado, the CEO of Denver Health stated that 8,000 illegal immigrants
26:23made 20,000 visits to the city's health system in 2023, leaving an uncompensated bill totaling over
26:3010 million dollars. So when a legal alien goes to the emergency room, who's paying for it? The American
26:36taxpayer. The main safety net hospital in Denver had to turn away patients due to the massive influx of
26:42illegal immigrants into the community. And UC health hospitals in 2024 reported their system was under
26:49stress from an increasing number of migrants. As a result, according to the head of emergency
26:54departments and urgent cares across the hospital system, quote, access is impeded for everyone. These
26:59are health care professionals who dealt with this directly. And there's a lot more where that came
27:03from. It is an undisputed fact that Democrats want to give taxpayer funded health care benefits to illegal
27:08immigrants, period.
27:09Yeah, thank you. Is the president talking directly to Democratic senators to try and get their vote
27:16for a clean CR? The Senate Republicans are speaking directly with moderate Democrats. I understand
27:23those conversations have become very serious and we hope positive in the right direction so that
27:28Democrats will do the right thing. I don't know if you saw overnight a refinery in California went up
27:33in flames. Is the president going to help the governor should gas prices spike or could he help the
27:38governor? Look, I know the administration and the White House are aware of that situation that took
27:43place. I don't have any announcements for you out on that. Has the president seen that the first draft
27:48of the commemorative coin that the Treasury is doing for the 250th anniversary? It has his face on it.
27:54Oh, I'm not sure if he's seen it, but I'm sure he'll love it.
27:57Caroline. Thank you, Caroline. It's now being reported that former President Biden's DHS and TSA
28:04placed peaceful January 6 protesters and even Americans who refused to wear masks during COVID onto watch
28:10lists usually reserved for terrorists. Most of these people were not charged with crimes. Does the
28:15White House have a comment on the prior administration violating the free speech and due
28:19process of these Americans? And where is the outrage from the left that claims to stand for
28:24due process and free speech? And after that, I have another question about protecting journalists from
28:28Antiqua. Sure. Well, Cara, to your first point, please send me that report. That's certainly very
28:33concerning. I haven't seen it myself, but if indeed that was happening, it's something I'm sure the
28:37Department of Justice and the FBI would deem worthy of looking into. I will. And journalists,
28:42as you mentioned earlier, are being increasingly attacked by elected protesters. I was actually
28:46assaulted outside of President Trump's United Nations speech, and I think the White House is
28:50aware that a Portland journalist was almost blinded by an Antifa protester. This has been a problem
28:55that's gone on for years, and police often say that their hands are tied. Does the White House have a
29:00plan or a plan on issuing a statement, maybe, discouraging this violence against journalists out on the
29:05street like me and so many others in this room? Well, I hope that my statement earlier in the
29:09briefing served that purpose. Yes. But of course, we condemn violence against anyone in this country
29:14and journalists as well who are exercising their First Amendment right. And there have been so many
29:18incredible independent journalists across the country who have gone undercover within Antifa and
29:23really have come to understand how this is a growing domestic terrorism threat inside of our
29:28country. And I would encourage maybe some of you in this room to get outside the beltway and go do some of
29:33that undercover investigative reporting because it is really incredible what they found. I met with
29:37one of them in my office yesterday, and they're doing very dangerous work in difficult circumstances.
29:42And Antifa is a very violent group, as you've experienced, and that many others in the media have as well.
29:48Christian. Yeah, thanks, Caroline. Following up on Libby, sort of on the other side of the abortion debate,
29:55has the President abandoned his campaign pledge to band-aid insurance coverage for IVF services? No.
30:01Was there any update on that? We flew by that May EO deadline for the White House to produce a plan.
30:07I literally just read a statement from the Health and Human Services on you, for you, for Libby at
30:12least, as far as IVF goes. I'll check in with our policy team and we'll get you some updates.
30:17And then on Russia, how concerned is the White House that the Russian Navy seems to be escalating
30:23its provocation of NATO allies? I'm talking, of course, to the several close calls they've had
30:28with the Danish military during the leaders meeting in Copenhagen.
30:33It's something the administration takes very seriously, and we are constantly monitoring it.
30:38The National Security Council here at the White House is in constant correspondence with our NATO
30:43allies, and the President speaks to many of them as well.
30:45Caroline, we've seen a spate of gun violence in this country, both mass shootings. We've seen this
30:51Michigan church that was attacked, children being shot in pews in Minnesota. We've also seen
30:56politically motivated assassinations of Minnesota lawmakers Charlie Kirk. Has any of this made the
31:02President or the White House rethink gun safety prevention in this country? Either red flag laws,
31:08I know that that was a conversation in the first Trump administration, or is there anything on the
31:12table right now on gun violence? Of course, this is an extremely pressing issue for the
31:18administration in our entire country. It's deeply alarming to everyone here, the violence that
31:22we've seen taking place all over the country, the assassinations that have, unfortunately,
31:27tragically taken place throughout the last several months. There are many discussions about how to
31:32prevent such violence and how we can ensure that law enforcement has the resources they can on the
31:38ground to not only respond, but again, to prevent such tragedies from taking place. If there are red flags
31:43with an individual in the community, that they are treated as an emergency, a public safety emergency,
31:49not just, you know, turn a blind eye to. There's many other things we can do, but the administration
31:53and the President has always also made it clear he's always going to protect the constitutional right,
31:59Second Amendment constitutional right of Americans to own guns.
32:03Would he advocate for Congress to pass a federal red flag law? Right now they just incentivize states
32:08their rights financially to have red flag laws. But I know Lindsey Graham has worked on this as a
32:14Republican. There are some Republicans that do support this kind of gun safety legislation.
32:18I don't want to get ahead of the President on any congressional action or any suggestion to
32:23Congress on that matter. Andrew.
32:26Thank you. Two things. First, a follow-up on something you said earlier about
32:32hospitals treating undocumented or illegal aliens. Is it the administration's position
32:40that hospitals should not have to treat people who come into the emergency department who are not
32:46here legally? No, that's not our position. Our position is that it's completely unacceptable that
32:51the Biden administration paroled and encouraged an invasion of tens of millions of illegal aliens into
32:58our country and then promised them free health care. And the Democrats are on the record repeatedly
33:04stating that they believe illegal aliens should have health care benefits, free health care benefits
33:08in the United States of America. So that is a recipe for a disaster. Of course, you're going to encourage
33:13a mass illegal invasion of our country, which is exactly what happened. And we've seen the unfortunate
33:18consequence of that where American patients are being put last, where American patients are having to
33:24wait in wait rooms, where grandmothers and grandfathers are waiting hours and hours for care
33:29because they're being put behind the line to illegal aliens. And we don't agree with that. We don't
33:33support that. That's why the administration is desperately trying to fix it and deport the tens of
33:38millions of illegal aliens that the Democrats and the Biden administration allowed into our country.
33:43And we'd love to continue doing that work so long as the federal government is reopened. And there are
33:48many federal law enforcement agents and officers right now who are working without pay. That's unacceptable.
33:53The Democrats need to reopen the United States government. And we hope that they will do the
33:57right thing on the Senate floor in just a few moments. Thank you, everyone.