Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy is a man who does not concern himself with throwing red meat around, but even he ran out of patience with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins for repeating White House talking points about Republicans and Social Security, telling her that “you know better than that” during an interview on Thursday’s CNN This Morning.
Since Social Security reform is something Cassidy finds greatly important, Collins asked what he thought of Nikki Haley’s proposal to raise the retirement age. Cassidy replied that by itself, it would not and then turned to his own plan, but unfortunately, the White House is not interested, “they've not presented a plan. The president's willing to let this go bankrupt because he doesn't want to talk about it before his re-election. It is irresponsible. It is foolish and it is wrong for the American people.”
Collins then interrupted, “You’re saying you want to see President Biden come out with a plan that would -- would you be working with the White House on that?” After Cassidy declared that “of course” he would, Collins added “‘Cause I think that's a part of the pushback.”
Holding firm, Cassidy replied, “No, that's not true. There’s no pushback. I can tell you that we have made ourselves clear that we’d be open to working with the White House. We have a bipartisan group approaching this.”
Earlier in the interview, Collins suggested the Silicon Valley Bank collapsed due to deregulation that Republicans passed in 2018. Now, she again repeated White House talking points, “Well, I just I wanted to say because the White House, you know, is going to point out what Senator Rick Scott has said on Social Security.”
Cassidy promptly dismissed that as an excuse, “Well, of course, that’s what they have to retreat to,” to which Collins replied, “Well, he is a fellow Republican.”
Not buying it, Cassidy sardonically retorted, “Oh yeah, and there’s a Democrat who said something kind of stupid too and so we’re going to take one person as an excuse not to engage when the average beneficiary will see a 25 percent cut.”
After Collins declared Scott to be “not just an average senator,” Cassidy finally called out Collins’s questioning:
Oh come on, Kaitlan, you know better than that, it’s one senator saying one thing that the president gloms onto because he doesn't want to actually have to come up with a plan. He’s the president of the United States. He should come forward with a plan or else there'll be a 25 percent cut for people who currently depend upon Social Security. If that doesn't matter to you, you’re either running for re-election, you’re are too old to care or too rich to need the money.
Collins proceed to double down, “I do think it matters. I just think we have to note what Senator Rick Scott has said because that is important here.”
Again, Cassidy wasn’t buying it “Oh, Rick Scott has actually retreated from that. I mean that is a talking point from the president… that has no relevance to what we’re trying to do. We have a bipartisan solution, approach that we're willing to talk to the White House about and the White House doesn't want to talk to us.”
Even Republican senators who voted to convict Trump have had enough of CNN spinning on behalf of the White House, but CNN will certainly continue to claim that Trump is why Republicans do not trust the media.
This segment was sponsored by Consumer Cellular.
Here is a transcript for the March 16 show:
CNN This Morning
3/16/2023
8:32 AM ET
KAITLAN COLLINS: But I do want to ask you about something that a fellow Republican of yours is proposing on Social Security and that’s raising the age—the retirement age. This is something Nikki Haley has proposed for people who are in their 20s and younger now, doing that. Is that something you think that would be effective?
BILL CASSIDY: It depends! To do it by itself, it’d clearly not be effective. What we’ve done in our approach, by the way, is to create a fund separate from Social Security, separate, but have a diversified investment fund that would grow and could take up by far the majority of our future obligation. Now, that is an approach that we're taking that the White House could engage with us on.
I’ll go back to Miss Young, who I really like, but nonetheless, they've not presented a plan. The president's willing to let this go bankrupt because he doesn't want to talk about it before his re-election. It is irresponsible. It is foolish and it is wrong for the American people.
COLLINS: You’re saying you want to see President Biden come out with a plan that would -- would you be working with the White House on that?
CASSIDY: Of course. Of course.
COLLINS: ‘Cause I think that's a part of the pushback.
CASSIDY: No, that's not true. There’s no pushback. I can tell you that we have made ourselves clear that we’d be open to working with the White House. We have a bipartisan group approaching this.
COLLINS: Well, I just I wanted to say because the White House, you know, is going to point out what Senator Rick Scott has said on Social Security.
CASSIDY: Well, of course, that’s what they have to retreat to.
COLLINS: Well, he is a fellow Republican.
CASSIDY: Oh yeah, and there’s a Democrat who said something kind of stupid too and so we’re going to take one person as an excuse not to engage when the average beneficiary will see a 25 percent cut.
COLLINS: He’s not just an average senator, you –
CASSIDY: Oh come on, Kaitlan, you know better than that, it’s one senator saying one thing that the president gloms onto because he doesn't want to actually have to come up with a plan. He’s the president of the United States. He should come forward with a plan or else there'll be a 25 percent cut for people who currently depend upon Social Security. If that doesn't matter to you, you’re either running for re-election, you’re are too old to care or too rich to need the money.
COLLINS: I do think it matters. I just think we have to note what Senator Rick Scott has said because that is important here.
CASSIDY: Oh, Rick Scott has actually retreated from that. I mean that is a talking point from the president
COLLINS: I know; we've had him on the program--
CASSIDY: --that has no relevance to what we’re trying to do. We have a bipartisan solution, approach that we're willing to talk to the White House about and the White House doesn't want to talk to us.
