Tune in Sunday for More from California Gov. Jerry Brown, Exclusively on “Meet the Press with Chuck Todd”
MARCH 23, 2017 – Gov. Jerry Brown (D-Calif.) exclusively told “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd that when it comes to the Republican-proposed health care plan, known as the American Health Care Act (AHCA), “anybody with their name on this bill, in most districts in America, their name is going to be mud.”
Brown added the bill “is not health care reform, or repeal and replace. It’s death, disease, and suffering.”
Tune in this Sunday for more from the exclusive interview with Brown as well as an exclusive interview with Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
See below for the transcript of the exchange, which also aired today on MSNBC’s “MTP Daily.” Watch here: http://nbcnews.to/2mW1vi5
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CHUCK TODD:
You’re here this week because essentially this is your first official meet-and-greet of, here in Washington with Republicans now in charge. I assume your most immediate concern is what could be a huge budget hole that a changing of the health care system would create in your state.
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
Well, I’m more concerned about the millions of people who wouldn’t have health care. That’s why I say this bill is not health care reform, or repeal and replace, it’s death, disease, and suffering. It’s a terrible thing. Now, yeah, it’ll cost money, billions of dollars which we wouldn’t have. Around the country, we’re talking hundreds of billions.
So it’s a disaster. If it does happen to get out of the House, I would imagine the Senate is going to take a very hard look at it because anybody with their name on this bill, in most districts in America, their name is going to be mud. No question about it.
CHUCK TODD:
I understand you’re still trying to fight this from ever becoming law. But it’s clear Republicans want to cut back on Medicaid. In some form, this is going–
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
Yeah, but the president–
CHUCK TODD:
–to cost California money. Are you prepared–
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
Wait a minute, President Trump said everyone would have health care. He said that. And we’ll see whether he’s–
CHUCK TODD:
It may depe–
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
–telling the truth or not.
CHUCK TODD:
It may depend on what your definition of health care is. Their version of what health insurance is may be different than somebody else’s version of health insurance.
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
Yeah, there’s a minimum level of insurance that, if you don’t have that, you don’t really have health insurance.
CHUCK TODD:
But if they create a hole in Medicaid in some form, maybe it’s not as bad as what you’re facing now, are you prepared to go to the California taxpayers and say, “Fill the gap–”
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
I’m not prepared–
CHUCK TODD:
–“and keep this system going”?
GOV. JERRY BROWN:
I’m certainly not prepared on this show to decide that. And it’s going to be very difficult to get additional tax money for that. We’re looking for more money for roads and bridges. We have all this deferred maintenance. We just– The people just voted to raise the income tax. They just voted to raise the cigarette tax.
The idea that we’re going to get more taxes would be a very tall mountain to climb.
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