REPUBLICAN PARTY ARE WAGING A CULTURE WAR ON THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. JOINING ME NOW, CONGRESSWOMAN ADAM SMITH DEMOCRAT FROM WASHINGTON STATE RANKING MEMBER ON THE HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE. CONGRESSMAN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BEING HERE. YOU WORKED ON THE ORIGINAL AND THE AA LEGISLATION. YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHAT THEY DID WITH THAT ORIGINAL TAX AND WHAT COMES NEXT? >> WELL I THINK THE POLICY THAT THE REPUBLICANS ARE ADVANCING, OBVIOUSLY A PART OF THE LARGER AGENDA AND IS EXTREMELY PROBLEMATIC FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE. AND WE, NORMALLY WE MAKE THE DECISION TO WORK ON THIS IN A BIPARTISAN WAY. CERTAINLY, IT IS TROUBLING THAT SPEAKER MCCARTHY CHOSE NOT TO DO THAT. BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE FOCUS ON THE POLICY THAT THEY ARE TRYING TO ADVANCE. THE BILL THAT THEY PASSED WILL MAKE IT LESS LIKELY AND MORE DIFFICULT FOR WOMEN TO SERVE IN THE MILITARY, FOR A TRANSFERABLE TO SERVE IN THE MILITARY. IT WILL ALSO MAKE IT LESS LIKELY THAT PEOPLE OF COLOR GET INADEQUATE CHANCE WITHIN THE MILITARY BECAUSE IT WILL NOT ADDRESS THOSE ISSUES. WHAT THAT MEANS IT IS IN A TIME ONE OF DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE IS TROUBLING TO MEET ITS RECRUITMENT CALLS, IT'LL BE EVEN MORE DIFFICULT BECAUSE WE WILL HAVE LARGE POOLS OF PEOPLE WHO WILL BE LESS LIKELY TO JOIN THE MILITARY, OR MAKE THAT PROBLEM WORSE AND ALSO AS YOU WATCH THE DEBATE PLAY OUT OF, COURSE YOU PICK THE MOST AGREED TO SPLIT TO SHOW THEIR. IT WAS REALLY THE BIGOTRY ON DISPLAY ABOUT TRANS PEOPLE, ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THIS COUNTRY. WE HAD ONE AMENDMENT TO APPEAL THE EFFORTS OF THE BASE RENAMING COMMISSION. SOMETHING WE DID WHEN I WAS CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMITTEE TO CHANGE NAMES OF ALL OF THE BASES THAT HAD BEEN NAMED FOR CONFEDERATE LEADERS. NAMES THAT WERE CHANGED DURING A PERIOD OF TIME WHEN OUR COUNTRY WAS LITERALLY TRYING TO ESTABLISH WHITE SUPREMACY. THAT IS WHY THE BASES WERE NAMED WHAT THEY WERE NAMED. WE HAVE CONGRESSMAN GOOD FROM VIRGINIA GO ON AND ON ABOUT HOW WE NEED TO HONOR OUR HISTORY. THE EXACT SAME ARGUMENTS THAT WERE MADE AT THE END OF RECONSTRUCTION, WHEN THIS COUNTRY ESTABLISH THE KU KLUX KLAN, JIM CROW. THE DEPTH OF THE IGNORANCE ON THIS, I HOPE IT IS IGNORANCE ANYWAY MEANS THAT WE ARE ATTACKING THE DIVERSITY OF THIS COUNTRY AND UNDERMINING OUR NATIONAL SECURITY. >> WELL YES, THE IGNORANCE ON THIS PLAY BUT UNFORTUNATELY, THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE HELPS TO PERPETUATE AND FURTHER IT ALONG. LISTEN TO WHAT HE HAD TO SAY AFTER THE VOTE. >> FOCUS ON THE MILITARY. STOP USING TAXPAYER MONEY TO DO THEIR OWN -- >> A MILITARY CANNOT -- >> [INAUDIBLE] DOES. >> I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE -- WITH BUT YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT? >> -- AS THE HISTORY OF RACE IN THIS COUNTRY. AND WHAT THE REPUBLICANS WANT TO BRITAIN IS THAT THERE IS NO HISTORY, OKAY? NOW YOU KNOW TO THE EXTENT, THE RACISM WAS A PROBLEM. THERE'S SOMETHING REALLY WASN'T THAT BIG OF A DEAL AND IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO. IT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT. BUT THIS HAS PRACTICAL, REAL WORLD CONSEQUENCES. THE PRACTICAL REAL WORLD CONSEQUENCE IS THAT IF YOU ARE A PERSON OF COLOR, OR ALSO A WOMAN OR PART OF THE LGBTQ MEAN 80, YOU WILL WONDER WHETHER NOT THAT IT WILL GET A FAIR SHAKE IN THE MILITARY. UNTIL 13 YEARS AGO, GAY PEOPLE WERE BANNED FROM SERVING IN THE MILITARY. THEY'RE REPUBLICANS AND REPEATEDLY BANNED TRANS PEOPLE FROM SERVING IN THE MILITARY. WOMEN HAVE BEEN -- FACING HIGHER BARRIERS, IN FACT ONE OF THE MEMORABLE MOMENTS OF THIS DEBATE HAPPEN IN COMMITTEE WHEN WE WERE ARGUING ABOUT THE ABORTION POLICY. HOW DIFFICULT IT WAS FOR A WOMAN TO SERVE AND I NEED TO BE MORE WELCOMING FOR THE WOMEN. THERE WAS A MEMBER, WHOSE NAME I FORGET AND I APOLOGIZE, A WOMAN WHO SERVED IN THE MILITARY. SHE SAID LOOK, IT'S NOT A PROBLEM I SERVED IN THE MILITARY AND I KNEW WHEN I WAS IN THE MILITARY, I HAD TO WORK TWICE AS HARD AS THE MAN TO GET THE SAME RESULT. THAT WAS OKAY. NO, NO IT'S NOT OKAY. AND IF YOU ARE A WOMAN TODAY, WE'RE THINKING ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT YOU ARE GOING TO JOIN THE MILITARY, AND THEY'RE TELLING YOU WHILE YOU CAN JOIN AND IT WILL BE FINE, I HAVE TO DO IS WORK TWICE AS HARD AS EVERYBODY ELSE AND MAYBE LOOK AT THE SAME OPPORTUNITY. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO DO THAT AND THE SAME APPLIES VERY SPECIFICALLY TO AFRICAN AMERICANS. YES, THE MILITARY HAS BEEN WELCOMING BY IN LARGE AND LETTING AFRICAN AMERICANS JOIN. WHEN YOU LOOK AT PROMOTIONS PRIOR TO A COUPLE YEARS AGO, WHEN HE FINALLY STARTED TO BEGIN THE SLOWLY MAKE UP FOR IT, THE NUMBER OF AFRICAN AMERICAN SERVING IN LEADERSHIP POSITIONS WAS PATHETICALLY LOW, STILL IS. SO THEY ARE NOT GETTING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES. SO OF DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION DOES IS IT TRIES TO RECRUIT MORE AGGRESSIVELY FROM HISTORICALLY DISCRIMINATED AGAINST POPULATIONS AND TO MAKE SURE THEY WILL BE TREATED FAIRLY IN THE MILITARY. THAT STRENGTHENS US AND BEADING, OLD RACES IDEAS DOES NOT MAKE US STRONGER. THAT IS THE BIG CONCERN HERE ABOUT WHERE THIS BILL WENT AND THEY JUST KEEP SAYING WELL, WOKE, WOKE, WOKE BECAUSE APPARENTLY THAT'S REALLY A TRIGGER WORD IF YOU WILL FOR THE RIGHT WING. WHEN THEY ARE DOING IS UNDERMINING THE MILITARY. >> YES THE WOKE IS CATNIP FOR CONSERVATIVES. LET'S TALK ABOUT ANOTHER REAL WORLD CONSEQUENCE OF WHAT HAPPENED IN THE HOUSE YESTERDAY. WE, GREAT SPIRIT GOT YOU GOT A VICTORY. THAT BILL PASSED, SQUEAKED BY WITH 219 VOTES. YOU NEED 218 TO PASS ANYTHING IN THE HOUSE. NOW, IT OVER THE DEMOCRATIC-CONTROLLED SENATE WHERE NOTHING IS DEAD ON ARRIVAL. SO ONE OF THE REAL WORLD CONSEQUENCES THAT WE ARE FACING AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, CONGRESSMAN IS THAT WE ARE HEADED TO A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN. THERE IS NO WAY THE SENATE IS GOING TO PASS WITH THE HOUSE PASSED AND WHAT YOU GET INTO A CONFERENCE COMMITTEE WITH THE LIKES OF MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE WILL BE SITTING, THERE IS NO WAY THAT THE TWO SIDES ARE GOING TO COME TO ANY KIND OF AGREEMENT THAT WILL MAKE THE NDAA PASS. MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR ANY OF THESE OTHER BILLS TO PASS AND TO KEEP THE GOVERNMENT FUNDED ONCE THE FUNDING RUNS OUT ON SEPTEMBER 30TH. RIGHT? >> YEAH THERE IS A LOT TO UNPACK THERE, I WILL TRY TO DO THIS QUICKLY, FIRST OF ALL IT IS THE APPROPRIATIONS BILLS THAT WOULD SHIFT ON THE GOVERNMENT, NOT THE NDAA. HERE IS THE APPROPRIATION BILL WORKING ITS WAY THROUGH THE HOUSE, THEY ARE WORSE THAN THE NDAA. THEY ARE MORE EXTREME AND MORE PROBLEMATIC, EVEN LESS LIKELY TO SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY IN THE SENATE. WHEN YOU ARE, CORRECT WE ARE SCREAMING TOWARDS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN AND I REALLY WANT TO EMPHASIZE ONE POINT. THE BILL THAT WE PASSED OUT OF THE COMMITTEE IN THE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE, WOULD HAVE PASSED ON THE FLOOR OF THE HOUSE WITH ABOUT 260 VOTES. CHAIRMAN RICK RAPTORS WHO'S REPUBLICAN CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE AGREES WITH ME ON THIS POINT. WE HAD A BILL THAT WOULD'VE BEEN ENTHUSIASTICALLY EMBRACED BY THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF THE REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS, BUT WHAT KEVIN MCCARTHY HAD TO HAVE WAS A BILL THAT WAS ENTHUSIASTICALLY EMBRACED BY THE FREEDOM CAUCUS. THEY ARE DOING THE SAME THING TO THE APPROPRIATIONS BILLS. , YES YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. YOU KNOW THE APPROPRIATIONS BILL KNOW THE DEFENSE BILL WILL PASS THE SENATE. AND THEN THE FREEDOM CAUCUS WILL DO WHAT THEY DO WHICH IS IF THEY DON'T GET THEIR WAY, EVEN IF THE OR HOLMAN MAJORITY OF THE HOUSE AND THE SENATE DISA
