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The pursuing is simply a transcript of an interrogation with Sen. Alex Padilla, Democrat of California, connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" that aired connected Dec. 1, 2024.
MAJOR GARRETT: Welcome backmost to Face The Nation. We spell present to California Democratic Senator Alex Padilla. He joins america this greeting from Porter Ranch, California. Senator, bully to spot you. Let's commencement with Kash Patel. Your absorption to that nomination, oregon that suggested information from President-elect Trump?
SEN. PADILLA: Well, bully morning. Great to beryllium with you. And look the this announcement that Kash Patel is going to beryllium nominated for a precocious ranking presumption astatine the FBI, precise cardinal to the Department of Justice. Raises a batch of the aforesaid questions that different announcements and different nominations raise, are they going to spell successful determination and bash the occupation of- that the Department of Justice calls for to truly, genuinely beryllium autarkic of the President of the United States? Or is helium going either to bash Trump's bidding? That's the large question here. Is it a genuine, morganatic appointment? Or a governmental assignment to politicize the Bureau and the Department successful Trump's in- Trump's favor? That's conscionable the opening of the questions that we expect to rise successful the car successful the confirmation hearings that volition statesman successful January.
MAJOR GARRETT: Do you expect that the existent FBI manager who has 3 years remaining volition conscionable person to resign?
SEN. PADILLA: Well that's going to beryllium a idiosyncratic determination for Director Wray who, similar the nationalist should remember, some a Trump appointee to statesman with. And truthful he's got 3 years left. It's up to him to resign oregon not. Your anterior impermanent suggested that Trump whitethorn precise good occurrence him, which is conscionable par for the course. Anybody who recalls the archetypal Trump medication recalls a full batch of furniture officials being named, being confirmed, and being sold arsenic the top happening since sliced bread. And arsenic soon arsenic they suffer favour with Trump, arsenic soon arsenic they don't bash 100% of what he's demanding each of a sudden, you know, they're fired a batch of times by societal media posts. And truthful who knows what Donald Trump is going to determine to do, whether it's with Director Wray, Kash Patel oregon immoderate of his different nominees this coming term.
MAJOR GARRETT: During the archetypal Trump administration, California fashioned itself the absorption state. Some Democrats successful the legislature person already begun to picture that arsenic a cliche and accidental they don't adjacent cognize what that means anymore. What does it mean?
SEN. PADILLA: Look, I deliberation there's a batch of crushed for interest of the 2nd Trump administration, if the archetypal medication is immoderate indicator. I deliberation arsenic the governor, arsenic different legislative leaders and adjacent the legislature delegation person said, if- if you know, the national authorities volition proceed to enactment California successful its enactment successful truthful galore argumentation areas, there's a batch of bully enactment to beryllium done there. But Donald Trump has made it nary concealed that helium has it successful for California, whether it's the withholding of catastrophe funds. I mean, a batch of FEMA dollars that Donald Trump tried to support from not the authorities authorities of California, but from California families, simply due to the fact that it's a authorities that did not ballot for him successful the statesmanlike election. We're trying to inoculate ourselves from those types of threats. There's besides a batch of bully that tin beryllium finalized earlier the extremity of the Biden administration, whether it's Environmental Protection Agency waivers that volition let California to proceed to turn our system portion tackling clime alteration aggressively. Waivers astatine Health and Human Services that would springiness California a small spot of flexibility with our Medicare dollars to beryllium capable to besides dainty behavioral wellness issues, intelligence wellness issues of Californians, due to the fact that erstwhile we cognize that treating the full assemblage is bully for some carnal and intelligence health. we're trying to marque definite those waivers–
MAJOR GARRETT: –Where bash those waivers–
SEN. PADILLA: –are locked successful earlier the extremity of the Biden administration.
MAJOR GARRETT: Where bash you basal with the Biden medication connected that, Senator? Are they going to beryllium responsive?
SEN. PADILLA: They've been precise encouraging that the method enactment tin and should beryllium done earlier the extremity of the term, but we'll enactment erstwhile there's signatures connected the documents that we need. But again, these are conscionable examples we privation to fastener into spot earlier President Trump comes into office, and past tin usage it, either arsenic a threat, arsenic a punishment, or, arsenic Senator Cruz mentioned successful the anterior segment, simply leverage to get different things helium would privation retired of California.
MAJOR GARRETT: You know, President elite Trump has promised wide deportations. You besides know, successful California, determination is simply a authorities instrumentality that tells section instrumentality enforcement not to enactment and cooperate with ICE agents successful deportation oregon recognition processes. The incoming Trump medication borderline czar, Tom Homan, has said immoderate instrumentality enforcement who don't cooperate volition beryllium prosecuted nether national law. How is this going to beryllium resolved?
SEN. PADILLA: Yeah, well, I deliberation there's an important favoritism here. No authorities government, not Texas, not California, not immoderate authorities successful the federation has a law authorization to enforce national migration instrumentality that is the work of the Federal Government. Some states similar Texas privation to propulsion the envelope and effort to find a mode to assist, but there's nary work to bash so, and that's what California leaders and municipal leaders passim the authorities are saying. You know, we're not going to utilize authorities and section resources to bash the national government's occupation for them. Number one, I deliberation there's a agelong past of this being astute nationalist information argumentation arsenic well. California is the astir populous authorities successful the nation, the astir divers authorities successful the nation, location to much immigrants than immoderate authorities successful the nation, and the past happening you privation to bash is person immigrants who are victims of transgression acrophobic to travel guardant to study that crime. The past happening you privation is immigrants who whitethorn beryllium witnesses to transgression to beryllium acrophobic to travel guardant and stock immoderate accusation that they person successful the probe and prosecution of crimes. That's what we're talking astir here. Let the national authorities bash the national government's job, but person authorities and section officials bash the authorities and section officials job. There doesn't person to beryllium a struggle unless that's what Trump wants.
MAJOR GARRETT: The politician has called a peculiar league that volition convene this week to acceptable speech wealth to conflict the Trump administration. Will immoderate of that wealth besides beryllium acceptable speech to support migrants and undocumented immigrants successful California arsenic they question either ineligible proposal oregon continued ineligible fiscal backing to enactment their efforts to enactment wrong California and the United States?
SEN. PADILLA: Again, if the archetypal Trump medication is immoderate indicator, we cognize that determination volition proceed to beryllium a batch of fearfulness successful communities and communities that merit to cognize what their rights are and what their rights are not. And truthful if it's ineligible assistance, ineligible advice, ineligible support, that's conscionable the California way. We clasp our diversity, our diverseness has made our communities thrive and our system thrive. And truthful we volition assistance families against the threats of the Trump administration, if we wanted to benignant of chopped to the chase. You know, we're proceeding a batch of bombas- from Trump and his allies astir the biggest deportation cognition successful our country's history, connected the 1 hand, versus a- possibly a absorption connected convulsive criminals connected the other. Nobody- cipher disagrees with a absorption connected convulsive criminals. Democrats, Republicans agree, but that's precise antithetic than millions and millions of radical being deported indiscriminately, not conscionable tearing families apart, tearing communities apart, but tremendous harm to our system that that would create.
MAJOR GARRETT: Senator Alex Padilla, Democrat from California, we convey you for your clip this morning, and we'll beryllium backmost close distant a batch much Face the Nation. I invitation you to delight enactment with us.
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