Capitol Report Full Broadcast (April 30)

Good evening. Tonight, on Capitol Report, a record 75-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security now over. The House voting to reopen key agencies. But what does it mean for ICE and Border Patrol? The net results passed in our reconciliation bill is that ICE and CBP are funded for three years. Democrats got absolutely... Iran, China, and a $1.5 trillion defense budget all in focus as Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth faces a second day of questions on Capitol Hill. What he told lawmakers just ahead. The budget reflects the realities of the world we live in and the capabilities we're going to need. The biggest reason for it is the underinvestment of the Biden administration. Louisiana is hitting pause on its congressional primaries. This after a Supreme Court ruling throws its voting map now into question. Now other states moving to redraw their own lines. How the fight over redistricting could reshape the midterms. This is Capitol Report, live from our global headquarters in our nation's capital, here's Steve Lance. Good evening. I'm Steve Lance. Congress moving on two urgent fronts, voting to reopen key parts of the Department of Homeland Security after weeks of impasse. While also passing a short-term extension of FISA's Section 702 just hours before it was set to expire. For the latest from Capitol Hill, we bring in NTD congressional correspondent Chris Bobb. Chris, so the House just moving to reopen parts of DHS. What exactly did they fund and what is still unresolved? So Steve, this shutdown began February 14th, 75 days ago. So far we have now funding due to President Trump signing the bill of FEMA, of CISA, of the Coast Guard, the only branch of our armed forces that's not under the Department of War, as well as the TSA. So we're expecting some of those lines to go down now and those agents are now going to be receiving pay and back pay. This is kind of a two-pronged approach, two-track approach to funding. We had this bill passed that covers all those branches of the DHS. And then last night, Wednesday, the House approved funding through the rest of President Trump's term in a budget agenda for Customs and Border Protection and ICE. We have some audio of Speaker Mike Johnson coming out today and celebrating that. Let's take a listen. The budget resolution passed that will ensure that border security and immigration enforcement will continue today and well into the future. So Speaker Mike Johnson said that he wasn't going to pass a bill to just fund the agencies of DHS that aren't related to the border enforcement, unless he had that certainty that through reconciliation, through this agenda, he would be able to fund the entire department, Steve. Now, Chris, this FISA 702 shaping up to be very interesting, I'm going to ask you about that in just a moment. But I want to get your thoughts on this two-track approach that you mentioned, partial funding now with border enforcement later. Can the House and Senate actually align on that? Or is this headed for another standoff? Well, the idea is now that the funding for CBP and ICE are going to be put into reconciliation, that this pretty much has the support of all of the GOP senators and most of the representatives that will be able to be quickly passed through that maneuver. The worry is that this will become more of a precedent of certain parts of funding for departments that have become politicized, that they'll be excluded from future bills and we're going to have these fights again. We have some of the debate that occurred earlier today. We have Congresswoman DeLauro and Congressman Chip Roy going back and forth talking about how they feel right before this bill was passed. The idea that we are isolating Border Patrol and isolating ICE is offensive to the men and women who serve in ICE and Border Patrol and are serving this country every single day to defend the people of this country. Those armed, masked agents marauding our streets and terrorizing people in our communities. We have, from the outset, wanted to negotiate how we deal with that in a separate way. So you can see and hear the tension there. Obviously, the Democrats are not going to go for any funding of ICE and CBP without the reforms that they want. We just hope that this doesn't become more of a precedent, Steve. Chris, I want to get your thoughts here on Section 702. Congress passed a short-term extension of this version of FISA. What's been the holdup on extending it fully and what do you see coming next? If you think about how this began earlier in the month, there was a House bill that would extend FISA for five years and then they came back quickly and they tried 18 months. The debate was going on until two and three in the morning and certain lawmakers are concerned that without a warrant requirement, they don't want to extend FISA. There was a debate that took place earlier in the Senate today between Senator Wyden and Senator Cotton. One side, you have the Democrat pointing to his desire to have a warrant requirement, some amendments to FISA, and then the other, you see Senator Cotton stressing the importance of FISA for national security, mentioning the Maduro raid, mentioning other things that President Trump has said that have made FISA very useful as a tool for national security. Let's take a listen to that. Every day that section 702 is extended without meaningful reforms is a day that the program can continue to be abused. Section 702, which I would remind everyone here, is about foreigners on foreign territory, not American citizens. The commander-in-chief has said this was vital for the Maduro raid, for Operation Epic Fury, for the rescue of missing troops. So they have a 45-day extension now. They put it down to the wire with just a few hours remaining for them to vote on some sort of an extension before that authorization ran out. You know, the House bill had a certain provision that was passed by a GOP leadership that would stop a, would do a ban on a central bank digital currency. There's a bunch of senators that weren't happy about that. But there are lawmakers on both sides that are quite concerned about FISA without a warrant requirement. And we'll see how, how that's going to play out in the next 45 days. If we're going to come down to the wire like this time with the April 30th deadline, they finally passed something. And to Chris Bobb, live from Capitol Hill. Thank you, Chris. And President Trump says negotiations are advancing and Iran is, quote, dying to make a deal. It comes as he's teasing action to pull U.S. troops from some European nations, including Germany, which he says have not been helpful during this war. Joining us now live is NTD's White House correspondent, Iris Tao. Good evening, Iris. So what is the latest? What are you hearing? Good evening to you as well, Steve. So President Trump on Thursday saying that Iran is now dying to make a deal, suggesting that negotiations are, in fact, making progress, despite the cancellation of in-person talks last weekend. The president also noting that Iran's leadership remains uncertain, while also stressing the success of the U.S. military operation. Watch. They want to make a deal badly, and we have a problem because nobody knows for sure who the leaders are. It's a little bit of a problem. You know, the leaders have been wiped out along with their military. It's actually seditious, in my opinion. You read the New York Times, you actually think they're winning the war. And the president today refreshing his warning to Iran, saying that they must give up their nuclear ambitions or they will be in even bigger trouble than they're in right now. He's also suggesting the U.S. might pull out troops from not only Germany, but also Spain and Italy. Iris, the president today also announcing new action to help more Americans access high-quality retirement accounts. How does that work? Right. So, the president this afternoon signing new executive orders to create what they call Trump IRA.gov website, which they say will allow more Americans to access high-quality retirement plans from the private sector even if their employers don't offer that to them. President Trump says that will make a huge difference for millions of Americans. Let's take a look. For millions of Americans who lack employer-sponsored plans, this will be really revolutionary because they'll be covered. Nobody thought that was possible. For example, if a 25-year-old who is eligible for a Savers match program invests just $165 a month under the matching federal contributions, they will have an estimated $465,000 in their account by the time they're 65 years old. In other words, they'll be rich. The Trump administration is also now seeking congressional approval to further expand this initiative to benefit more Americans. Steve. And Iris, the president today also responding to security concerns following Saturday's shooting less than a week ago, hard to believe, at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. Tell us more about this. Sure. So, in addition to having a fresh response from the president, we're also learning new details about the shooting and the shooting suspect. The officials saying today that amid debates over the Secret Service agent was shot by a friendly fire, they making clear today that he was shot by the suspect, indeed, adding that a suspect was actually casing around the hotel just a day before the shooting also right before the shooting that evening. Officials tonight releasing a slow down as well as high-resolution footage showing the suspect really trying to charge a security checkpoint with Secret Service Director Sean Curran telling Fox News today that the officer who was shot was actually able to fire back despite being shot and got off about five shots, though not hit the suspect. Meanwhile, amid security concerns, the president said today is saying that he's not thinking about assassination attempts to stay effective, while also adding that he's not a fan of wearing a bulletproof vest. How nervous are you about it happening again, another assassination attempt? I don't think about it. You don't think about it at all? If I did, I wouldn't be doing a very good job here. I've been thinking about nothing but that. I don't think about it. If I did, I wouldn't be effective. Is there talks about you potentially wearing a bulletproof vest moving forward, given you have now been shot at so many times? I don't know if I can handle looking 20 pounds heavier. And while the president says he's not thinking about it as much, the White House this week did hold a meeting with the Department of Homeland Security, as well as the Secret Service, to discuss how to better protect the president going forward. Steve? Iris Tao live from the White House. Thank you, Iris. And Iran and China continuing to dominate during Secretary Hegseth's second budget hearing on Capitol Hill this week. Entity correspondent Jason Blair reports. We're rebuilding a military that the American people can be proud of. Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth testifying in Congress for a second day on the department's budget request, this time in front of the Senate Armed Forces Committee. This $1.5 trillion request is chock full of important programs and initiatives that are absolutely necessary to secure American interest in the 21st century. A 45 percent increase above last year. I must say I'm skeptical and such a request demands intense scrutiny. The exact amount is actually $1.535 trillion and it was a product of a highly rigorous process throughout our department to ensure the budget reflects the realities of the world we live in and the capabilities we're going to need. The biggest reason for it is the underinvestment of the Biden administration. The current conflict with Iran was hit on throughout the hearing. President Trump has the courage, has had, unlike other presidents, to ensure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon and that their nuclear blackmail never succeeds. We know the costs that the American people are paying, both the higher fuel costs our farmers are paying because of fertilizer costs. Most of Iran's leaders are now deceased, but they and those who survived them have consistently sought violence against America, Israel, our Gulf allies, and the Iranian people. As well as the ongoing threat from China. The Chinese Communist Party has accelerated its historic military buildup and its predatory economic practices. China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, they're united around this goal. To oppose America's interests and the interests of other like-minded democratic countries across the globe. Do you agree that enhanced Chinese AI capabilities could put American service members at risk? Senator, we absolutely have to stay ahead. It's AI first with everything that we do, integrating it at every potential echelon. Reporting in Washington, D.C., Jason Blair at J.D. News. President Trump says Iran's economy is buckling and Treasury Secretary Scott Besson saying its currency crisis shows U.S. pressure is taking hold. To break down what this means for Tehran, markets, and U.S. policy, we're now joined by Ed Bukowski, Managing Partner at Chapwood Investments. Ed, great to have you on the program. So President Trump says Iran's economy is dead. Here's what he said. And their economy is crashing, the blockade is incredible, the power of the blockade is incredible. They're not getting any money from oil. Treasury Secretary Scott Besson saying Iran is in a currency crisis as the regime is, or excuse me, their currency is down 60 to 70 percent compared to the U.S. dollar. How do you assess the economic impact of the blockade that we see at the Strait of Hormuz right now that's been such a, you know, point of conversation? Yes, so first of all, thanks for having me. The rial is down 60 to 70 percent, and that is the currency. So that means that they're able to buy, or their currency will not buy as much product as they used to, which then turns out to become inflationary. So their prices are rising at about 145 percent a year. That's what their inflation is growing at, which is just not sustainable. So, you know, we live in a world economy, and nobody will do business and give any, they'll get no credit at all. Can you imagine someone from Iran saying, hey, I'll pay you in 30 days? Would you believe them? I wouldn't believe them. I don't think they're able to do it. So this is really putting a complete, you know, lock on anything that Iran wants to do from a business standpoint. And that's if they can get out of the Strait of Hormuz, and they can't. So it's a, they truly are, as the president said, their economy is dead. And as a result of that, you're going to start to see people in the streets looking for food and stealing is going to create a tremendous amount of problems in Tehran. To your point, lots of uncertainty over there after, you know, the regime being taken out and decapitated many of their top leaders. Help us put these numbers into perspective, Ed, if you could. CENTCOM says there's now 41 tankers with 69 million barrels of oil that Iran is not able to sell. How big of a proportion is this compared to Iran's usual output? And why is it such a pressing issue for Iran if their oil storage fills up? Well, I'll tell you that, you know, what they have sitting out there in the tankers is 12% of what they produce in an entire year. And that adds up to a lot of money. And we're talking about, you know, $43 billion is what they normally bring in in a year. So you just take 12% of $43 billion. I can't do that very quickly, but it is a real problem. We've got Iran by the you know what's. And they have to do something because if the blockade continues and they can't get their oil out and therefore they can't do any business. And if the blockade, you know, keeps any companies from coming into, you know, Iran. So their real is going to continue to drop and it will eventually become worthless. And the whole country will be just completely like just destroyed economically. Practically speaking, they won't be able to pay their soldiers, the IRGC, let alone fund the proxy terrorist networks across the Middle East that they've been doing with that oil money, thanks to China. As for the impact of gas and oil prices back here at home, Treasury Secretary Scott Besant is saying that the conflict will lead to lower prices in the end. Here's what he said. We are an energy superpower. We have never exported as much energy. The crude prices are up, but natural gas prices are actually down since February 27, which is very, very important. The UAE has made the decision to get out of OPEC, which is why I'm confident that once we get on the other side of this conflict, that we will see oil prices and gasoline prices lower than they were when the conflict began. Getting a nod of approval there from Kudlow. What do you make of his assessment? You get a nod of approval right here as well. I believe every single thing that Secretary Besant has said. You have such a production of oil all throughout the world, and oil prices will start to come lower as the conflict starts to get solved. It's not going to help Iran at all in terms of their economy, in terms of their inflation, but it is going to help with the world market. You have Brent crude, which is out of Norway. That's really where that's measured by. Then you have West Texas crude, which is the United States, and Brent crude is much higher than West Texas crude. I just don't believe that we're going to see a big move north in terms of pricing for oil, but if we do, it will be short-lived. That's without question. We've also imposed secondary sanctions on the buyers of Iranian oil and its international shadow banking infrastructure and weapons procurement networks. While our energy outlook is positive, is it a different picture for our adversaries and Iran's allies like China when this all shakes out? Well, if we're sanctioning these countries for buying Iranian oil, then that's kind of a joke because they're not getting any oil. These secondary sanctions are really more or less just fluff because if, in fact, they're not able to get the oil, then they can't be doing business with them. One of the two things have to happen, and one of them is the blockade, which is going to continue to occur, or somehow oil gets out of the Gulf and gets over to China and to other countries that Iran was supplying oil to. But I just don't see that as being a viable problem for any of these countries with the secondary sanctions. Ed Butowsky, appreciate you joining. Thank you. And right now you're taking a live look at the United States Capitol, where Senator Ron Johnson is laying out evidence that the Biden health officials purposefully looked away from COVID-19 vaccine safety signals and vaccine injuries. The senator will join us after the break. This is how I keep my joints happy. Omega XL is a powerful natural supplement backed by 40 years of clinical research. Take control of your pain like Cynthia Bailey. My knees in particular started giving me pain issues all the way back to my modeling days from just running through airports, photo shoots. After taking Omega XL, I really started to notice how less stiff I was, especially my knees and my hip. Has Omega XL changed my life? Yes. I barely notice my joint pain anymore. Now I'm like literally sprinting through the airports. My secret is Omega XL. Pick up the phone and call now to get this exclusive TV offer. Buy one Omega XL and we'll send you a second bottle absolutely free. You'll also get a free bottle of vitamin XL D3. Buy one, get two free. A total value of over $115, all for just $49.95. You save more than 55% and shipping is free. Backed by a money back guarantee and is not available in stores. Operators are standing by. So call now. How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me was lost but was found, was blind but I They're just young people. Hungry, homeless, and vulnerable. Abused youth often feel safer on the street. Now, more than ever, that's the most dangerous place of all. Covenant House is helping young adults facing homelessness. We're providing safe shelter to thousands. But the need is overwhelming and no young person is ever turned away. Please call or go online now with your gift of $19 a month to help a young person. You'll provide safe shelter, hot meals, and medical care. Your gift will show them they're loved. Homeless young people are afraid and alone with nowhere else to turn. You want to know that there's somewhere you can go that's safe. So the Covenant House did that for us. Please call now with your gift of $19 a month. We'll send you this blanket as a reminder of the comfort your gift provides a young person tonight. Please don't wait. Your gift is the lifeline a young person needs now. Call the number on your screen or go online to safeplacetosleep.org. Thank you for saving precious lives. And welcome back to the Capitol Report. I'm Steve Lance. A new Senate report is putting Biden-era health officials under scrutiny, accusing them of ignoring potential COVID-19 vaccine safety signals. The report, released Wednesday by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, is titled Unmasked How Biden Health Officials Purposefully Turned a Blind Eye Toward COVID-19 Vaccine Safety Signals. Joining me now to discuss the findings is the committee's subcommittee's chairman, Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson. Senator Ron Johnson, thanks so much for joining us. Well, Steve, thanks for having me on. Really great to have you on, Senator. You just released a report that's focusing on Biden administration health officials knowingly turning a blind eye to risks for the COVID-19 vaccine. If you could, please brief us on what you discovered about the algorithm that they were using to analyze these injury reports. This should be a bombshell revelation. Basically, on March 1st, 2021, about two and a half months after both Pfizer and Moderna received the emergency use authorization, the primary person dealing with data inside FDA, working with the architect, the inventor of the analytic algorithm they use to analyze the VAERS system, all the thousands of reports coming in, held a briefing with Peter Marks, the head of CBER, to notify him that the current system, based on these two similar types of injections, that analytic system was going to hide, was going to mask the safety signals. And again, multi-page presentation to Peter Marks, the head of the Center for Biologics and Evaluation and Review. 26 days later, the inventor had already come up with a state-of-the-art system to analyze VAERS, and so they presented the results of that new algorithm. And what that new algorithm showed was 49 cases of extreme masking and 25 safety signals of very serious adverse events, sudden cardiac death, pulmonary infarction, Bell's palsy, different types of strokes. I mean, serious, life-threatening, deadly safety signals, and FDA did nothing about it other than shunt her off to the side, tell her to cease and desist over the next coming months, and she continued to brief people, you know, repeatedly over the months, kept telling them about this, and they didn't want to look. My own assumption here is they were seeing what was coming in on VAERS, and again, I didn't need a mathematical model to tell me something was really wrong here. We went from a few hundred deaths per year reported to VAERS associated with vaccines since its inception in 1990 to 21,000 deaths in 2021. Something was obviously going wrong there, but my belief is these people, because they didn't want to create vaccine hesitancy, that is a very common theme throughout the documents, hid behind this algorithm so that they wouldn't see safety signals. So, they were fully aware of this, and what makes it even sicker, Steve, also in March of 2021, the NIH was treating about 23 severely injured people from the COVID injections. They were treating them. They were diagnosing them with COVID injection injuries, so they were well aware that there were some serious side effects to these injections. They were aware that their analytic system was going to mask it. They were aware that a different system showed, you know, incredibly serious adverse events being signaled, screaming at them, and they said nothing, and to compound the evil, the people they were treating, the 23, also were part of support groups of other injection injured people who were counting on them to be studied, to receive treatment, and they were being told that, oh, we're going to publish these studies. We're going to acknowledge your injuries, but for the time being, don't tell anybody. Remain silent. Of course, they wanted to keep being treated. They wanted these treatments available for the other people in their support groups, so they stayed quiet, and I presented a video of Peter Morris. As late as December 2022, continued to tell these groups in Zoom chats that, you know, we're just not seeing safety signals. We're not denying these injection injuries exist, but we're just not seeing safety signals. I mean, Craven, this is outrageous. It should outrage every American that relies on these federal health agencies and the officials to be honest and actually survey these safety systems, and when they see signals, to alert the public, so you had informed consent, so anybody who has a loved one who got an injection, and about 24% of Americans believe they know somebody who died because of the injections or had a severe adverse event or, you know, those things didn't have to happen. How many people wouldn't have taken those injections? How many children would not have been exposed to that injection had the FDA simply been honest with the American people about what they were seeing, what they would be warned about? Senator, this March, it also came out that the Biden White House edited messaging on the number of strokes following COVID-19 injections, such as removing the words potential risk. Are we getting a clearer picture of how many people were involved in sort of pushing the American people to conform to one view on these vaccines? Well, again, these are the top officials within the FDA that were responsible for the safety for surveillance systems. They're the ones that assured us that they had this under control. They're going to be watching this like a hawk, and again, they did the exact opposite. So no, because we have, because Bobby Kennedy's HHS secretary committed himself to radical transparency, we were getting resistance, we weren't getting productions from our subpoena till Bobby Kennedy cut through it. I said, no, give them these documents. We got about 11 million pages, not the easiest thing to go through, but it's because of that radical transparency. Now we have the documents. Now we can bring those folks in for transcribed interviews and find out even more of what they did. Senator, I know you're busy. Lastly, a former advisor, senior advisor to Anthony Fauci has now been indicted. David Moran's allegedly concealed records about coronavirus research. The Trump administration has made great efforts to bring cases like these to light. Do you think we're going to find further evidence of coverups and misdirection surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic? What is your assessment of this indictment? Well, first of all, a huge shout out to my staff who found that needle in the haystack. Again, not from documents we got from the Biden administration. We got zero from their health agencies, but my investigators are good, so they go to the universities that obtained these grants. This was that email that you're talking about that really led to Dr. Moran's indictment. My staff pulled that needle out of the haystack from a production of 115,000 pages where he was communicating with somebody and saying, I've got this FOIA lady who showed me how to make emails disappear. If you're going to send me something sensitive, send it to my Gmail. In our report, we see other instances of the exact same thing. Oh, this is pretty sensitive. Probably shouldn't be including this in email. Let's talk offline. They stopped sending these VAERS data between CDC and FDA because we were FOIAing the information. So they stopped communicating so it wouldn't be in FOIA. So no, we're seeing plenty of instances where these officials know full well that what they're communicating via email can be FOIAed so they don't do it. They get on the phone. So I think it's become endemic. This has been cultural within federal agencies, how to avoid disclosure, how not to tell the public what the public has a right to know. Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson, really appreciate coming on to share this. Have a great day. A Marine Corps colonel warning the United States needs to plan now for a protracted war with China. Why he anticipates the war in the Pacific would be both brutal and long. Find out more tonight on China in Focus with Tiffany Meyer at 8 p.m. Eastern. And right now you're looking at another live shot of the U.S. Capitol, where the Department of Homeland Security shutdown has now ended, just as the emergency funding to pay workers was about to expire. Our panelists will join us for analysis when we come back. Hi, I'm Ryan Blaney, a third-generation race car driver, and we dedicate a lot of our time to going as fast as possible. My Grandpa Lou is the reason why my dad and I started racing, and I'm really proud to follow in his tracks. But when my grandpa was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, it was a very unexpected bump in the road for us. I've learned a lot on this journey with my Grandpa Lou, and the memories of my grandpa will always be with me. And in our family, we're used to getting involved, and I encourage you to do the same, especially when it comes to caring for your loved ones. When I think about Alzheimer's and the impact it had on my family, I recognize that losing a race isn't such a bad day after all. It's important to notice if older family members are acting differently, experiencing problems with their memory, or having trouble with routine tasks. Talking about Alzheimer's can be really tough, but if you notice something, have a conversation with your loved one. Encourage them to see a doctor or offer to go with them. Early detection of Alzheimer's can give your family time to explore support services, make a plan for the future, and access available treatments. If you or your family are noticing changes, it could be Alzheimer's. Talk about seeing a doctor together. Today's seniors are enjoying life more than ever before, and part of that comes from the independence of driving. However, car insurance for older drivers becomes more expensive the older we get. Just because I'm a senior, and maybe you are too, do we really have to pay outrageously high insurance rates? Well, the answer is no, we don't. When was the last time you checked to make sure you're paying the lowest available rate? Well, maybe it's time to give your car insurance a tune-up just to make sure your rates are running properly. You change your oil, you change your tires, well, maybe it's time to change your car's insurance company. Are you paying too much for your auto insurance? If so, you're just throwing your money away. So the only way to really know if you're paying too much is to call the number on your screen. 1-800-952-5196. 1-800-952-5196. You'll speak with a licensed insurance agent. They may have an insurance plan that could lower your yearly premiums by hundreds of dollars. Seniors can save money on their car insurance. So call right now and find out just how much money you might be able to save. Come on, call now. You may be able to save a lot of money, maybe hundreds of dollars a year. Just call the number on your screen and speak with a licensed insurance agent. Yes, it is possible for seniors to save on car insurance. You could lower your premiums by hundreds of dollars a year. As a responsible driver, you always check your gauges, right? And you check for other cars and pedestrians. You check your oil and you check your mirrors. Well, now is the time to check on your auto insurance rates. You need to make sure that you're not paying more than you need to. Call the number on your screen right now. 1-800-952-5196. 1-800-952-5196. And welcome back to the Capitol Report. I'm Steve Lance. The record-setting 76-day shutdown coming to an end after the House passing the Senate's DHS funding bill, keeping most of the department funded through September. Vote Caps Weeks of Gridlock. Joining me now, David Carlucci, former New York State Senator and founder of Carlucci Consulting, and Mark Meckler, president and co-founder of Convention of States. Gentlemen, great to have you both with us. So the House has now passed the Senate's DHS funding bill. Here's Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. The net result of passing our reconciliation bill is that ICE and CBP are funded for three years. Democrats got absolutely nothing for their political charade and shenanigans out of that, and we had to. We held the Homeland Bill to isolate and eliminate those two critical agencies. We are getting those done now. David, we'll start with you. Are Democrats still assessing the shutdown as a winning political move to show voters that they're trying to push back on ICE? Or what is the strategy here? Yeah, well, I think the strategy was just policy and trying to do the right thing to make sure that Americans are protected, that due process still exists in this country, no matter what level of law enforcement we're talking about. But I think the problem politically, and I don't think this is a strategy on the Democrats. I think it's just the fault of the Republicans. The fact that even there, Speaker Johnson wants to talk about Democrats get nothing. Well, the American people don't care. And the American people know that Speaker Johnson is a Republican. He's the speaker. The president is a Republican. The leader of the Senate is a Republican. And yet still, they can't govern for the American people and have to blame the Democrats, even when they control every lever of power in our federal government. So I think that speaks volumes to the American people. And I think we're going to see that play out come the midterms. Mark, what was your assessment of this bill passing today? Who's the ultimate winner? I think the Republicans are the disingenuous here. When people say that the Republicans control all levers of power, and they actually understand how the United States Senate works, they're being disingenuous, because the reality is, it takes normally 60 votes for cloture. Republicans don't have those 60 votes. So they had to go through the reconciliation process to get this done. They had to wire around the Democrats, who would still have the government shutdown. And what they're doing is not playing to regular Democrats. Because regular Democrats, like regular Republicans, support law enforcement. What they're playing to is the radical fringe of their base. That's who's driving the Democrat Party right now. And this is a 100% loss for the Democrats. I want to get your thoughts, guys, on another major story. Louisiana has suspended its congressional primaries today, just after the Supreme Court ruled that its map was unconstitutionally race-based. Mark, do they have enough time to work out the map and hold primaries before the midterms? And what is your thoughts on this? Yeah, I think they do. I think they're going to do this very rapidly. And I think this is actually, from an ethical and legal perspective, the only correct course. And the reason I say that is the Supreme Court has determined that racial gerrymandering is unconstitutional. So any district that's been drawn according to a racial gerrymander, it would be both unconstitutional and immoral at this point to continue to hold elections according to that racially gerrymandered district. David, midterms are expected to have fewer competitive House races this year than past elections. And the voters that turn out at the primaries will ultimately be the most engaged and ideological voters. What does that do to candidates on either side? Yeah, unfortunately, I think this is a race to the bottom, right? The redistricting or gerrymandering that we've seen has proliferated, right? It's been in existence since 1790, since the first redistricting. However, with technology, with the rise of political consultancies, we see this at just a proliferate pace where, yes, you're right, the politicians are picking the voters, the voters are not picking the politicians. And we have estimates that about 400 elections will already be determined. We know which party will win those races, and we have fewer and fewer districts that are up for grabs. So yeah, what does that do? That means that special interests have undue influence in our Congress. It means that you have a radicalization that our elected officials need to be beholden to on the left and the right. And so I think what our politicians should be doing, and this is why I'm disappointed with President Trump, because he asked Texas to do this redistricting mid-cycle hyper-partisanship and instead should be calling for independent redistricting, like we've been able to do in New York. We had a constitutional amendment to do redistricting, independent redistricting. Is it perfect? No, but it's much better than this hyper-partisan process that even the U.S. Supreme Court has said, look, the legislature can be partisan in their gerrymandering or in their redistricting. That's a race to the bottom, and the American people should demand more. And we can do something. We can change this. It shouldn't just be, oh, well, the Democrats did it. The Republicans did it. We point fingers at each other. No. And President Trump has a vice grip on the Republican Party, and the Democrats have been willing to do independent redistricting. This is the time to do it. But instead, what? We see these politicians catering to their own self-interest in getting reelected. So independent redistricting, that's something we should push for, we should try for, and we should demand of our elected officials. Mark, has it come to a point where primaries may determine the outcome of the broader election? I mean, that's been true for a very long time, and roughly 85 percent of the districts around the country are uncontested between the parties. So this is just a historical fact, and it does go back to the late 1700s. I think one of the things that is important to note is that Democrats have been doing this and playing this game for a very long time. Massachusetts is a great example. Massachusetts is a state that has literally zero Republican representation in Congress. If you compare that to Tennessee, Massachusetts is a much more red state than Tennessee is a blue state, and yet Tennessee has a blue congressional district. So this is just Republicans playing catch-up for what the Democrats have been doing all over the country for a very long time. Switching gears here and looking at the White House, the president again today calling to eliminate the Senate filibuster, saying that Democrats will use any means to lock Republicans out of power for good once they regain the majority. Here's the president earlier today. But if we did it, we could pass one bill after the other. We could pass laws and acts and things that we never even dreamt of passing. And you know what else? We wouldn't lose for 50 years. You know, if we passed, if we terminated the filibuster, we would have a 50-year run. You'd stop cheating. David, I guess I'll start with you. If the Republicans don't do it now, do you see in the near horizon Democrats potentially breaking from the Norman tradition? Well, I don't think so. But I think this is that issue. We should do what's right, and not just what we think is right for our self-interest and our reelection. And that's the problem here with this president. He is just trying to set precedent that once you take that genie out of the bottle, it's hard to get it back in. And that's what this president is doing. He's saying we should eliminate the filibuster. That is something just so sad for the American public, and not just as a politician, but as someone that's supposed to be an example and a leader. And we have this hyper-partisanship coming from the president. The best thing that this president could do is show a little bit of bipartisanship, a little bit of humility that would go so far in breaking the logjams we see in Congress. But instead, it's this constant scarcity idea that the only way Republicans can win is if Democrats lose. And unfortunately, that doesn't have to be the case. We can work on bipartisan legislation that can help this country that desperately needs it. Instead, we have this political brinksmanship that we constantly see from the president. Mark, if the president were to extend an olive branch, and perhaps he already has, do you see Democrats accepting that? And what would you say is the strongest argument that the Republicans have when it comes to eliminating the filibuster? Look, I like the institution of the filibuster, and I would prefer we don't get rid of it. However, the Democrats were very clear. Broadly speaking, all of their leadership tried to remove the filibuster last time they were in control. The only reason they weren't able to is because of Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin. They're now gone from the Senate. They have repeatedly promised they are campaigning on removing the filibuster. So the idea that the Republicans should somehow go weapons down when the Democrats never have, and they're telling us point blank what they're going to do, again, it's just disingenuous. These attacks began under the Biden administration. I can tell you personally, as somebody engaged in politics, that I've been called Nazi, homophobe, racist, Islamophobe, misogynist. This is what the president gets called every day, a fascist. The idea that somehow it's up to the president to go weapons down when people are literally shooting at him on a regular basis is pretty outrageous. But all I hear is this, it only makes it right because the Democrats were bad actors. That's unfortunate that it's just a tit for tat. Unfortunately, we do get to leave it there. David Carlucci, Mark Meckler, appreciate you both. And from new passports featuring President Trump's portrait to construction and renovation projects across the nation's capital. We'll hear from the folks in DC about the president's plan to celebrate America's 250th anniversary when we come back. Hi, I'm Susan Lucci. You may know me from my many years on television. I never thought about heart disease until I had my own heart event. I felt this slight pressure in my chest, just slight. I thought, oh, it's nothing, it'll go away. I didn't get it. I did not get it. A few days later, while shopping at a boutique, that pressure returned much stronger. It felt like an elephant pressing on my chest. I had a 90% blockage in my main artery and a 75% blockage in the adjacent artery. I was rushed into surgery where I received two stents in my arteries. Stents developed through research funded by the American Heart Association. Those stents saved my life. That's why I'm in front of you today, asking you to join me in supporting the American Heart Association by becoming a monthly donor. Call now or go to helpheart.org. For only $19 a month, just 63 cents a day, you can help fund the next medical breakthrough. Get the next person trained in CPR, the next hospital certified in high-quality cardiovascular care. I'm so grateful to the American Heart Association. Their research helped save my life. I can enjoy life with my children, my grandchildren, and my friends. Heart disease is America's number one killer, and your support now can help save your life or the life of someone you love. Give $19 a month with your credit card, and we'll send you this special t-shirt that you can wear to show that you are helping save lives. Please, listen to your heart. The only reason I'm here today is because I did. Please call or go online to helpheart.org. Become a monthly donor, and for a limited time only, your first month's gift will be matched. Thank you. Discover the ancient secret to vitality and longevity with Puritay Black Ginseng. Crafted from premium six-year-old Korean ginseng, each root is carefully nurtured for over 2,260 days, undergoing the traditional nine-round handcrafted process of steaming and drying to unlock full potency and absorption. Experience pure natural energy with Puritay Black Ginseng. Order now at puritay.com. Looking to refresh the style in your house? Come to Matheson during the Spring Style Event and see hundreds of options for your perfect living room. Take a look at this sectional. We can help you build it into the style you want. From sleek and modern to something more eclectic to an updated traditional look. You can also reconfigure it just by adding or removing pieces. The sofa version is a great value at just $12.89. Come find the look that's right for you at your furniture superstore, Matheson. And welcome back. The State Department will soon be rolling out passports featuring President Trump's portrait and signature as America prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary. The Trump administration also commemorating the occasion by launching several renovation projects across the nation's capital. So how are everyday Americans feeling about these initiatives? And TD Sam Wong was out in the National Mall in D.C. to hear from the people. The State Department is rolling out a new passport featuring President Trump's portrait and his golden signature. What do you guys make of that? I'm good with that. I'm 100% Trump, so bring it on. Let's go. You know, in a weird way, I can see how it's kind of cool if it becomes like a long going tradition. But I think I think he loves himself. Right. And I think self-love is good. But I think I think it does get to a point, though. Oh, I don't know. You know, you have to let Trump be Trump. And I don't think it's going to hurt. I've heard that his face is going to be on on money. There'll be other presidents. They put their stamp on things. You have to let Trump be Trump. What do you guys make of all of these efforts, the renovation, the construction that is happening right now? It's neat to see the release of the best face on everything coming up with the 150th. I mean, that's a that's a pretty big milestone coming in. It's nice to see that at least during all the celebrations, we'll have our best foot forward. Just seeing that Trump is like taking the time and the effort to like actually like honor our memories and our history is really cool. Honestly, I think it's beautiful how it is. I think that there is change needed in some places. But honestly, it's not a problem. I would say leave it alone personally. I think it's wonderful, you know, to leave something behind. You know, he needs to show that we I mean, we're Americans. We we come together. We're we're united. I kind of want to come back now with all the construction and all the upgrades. I think it's great. I think it provides jobs here. And you're too young to remember Jackie Kennedy. She believed that that the monuments to the United States should be the best, should be the best art, the best furniture. We can't let things go and deteriorate because they mean so much to 330 million Americans. If you look back at the arch of American history, the past 250 years, how does everything stand now? Definitely now it's another time where you're really having a struggle to see how are our ideals going to survive and look for the next generation to make sure they have the same same freedoms and liberties that we have today. It's nice to have somebody in there that looks out for us Americans. In four or eight years, we'll be going if somebody can follow in his footsteps and continue what we're doing, we'll we'll be better off as Americans. America has always been an exceptional country. We're only 250 years old. But there's a reason we've made a significant mark on the world. And we support free speech and rights that other countries, even today, even in Europe, do not have. This is a wonderful country. And I'm so proud to be an American. As America approaches its 250th birthday, one of the nation's most enduring symbols of freedom may be closer than you think. The original Liberty Bell is in Philadelphia, of course, but replicas of it can be found across the country, each carrying a piece of its legacy. They were cast in 1950, designed to mirror the original right down to its famous crack. But unlike the 18th century bell, these replicas were made with stronger, more precise bronze. After touring the nation, they were turned over to the states. Some were proudly displayed, others were neglected. You were still sitting in storage. Now a small group of enthusiasts is tracking them all down and bringing them back into the spotlight for America's 250th anniversary. And that is all we have for you tonight on the Capitol Report. For around the clock original coverage, be sure to visit NTD.com and download the NTD mobile app from the nation's capital. I'm Steve Lance. Have a nice evening. See you back here tomorrow.