1
00:00:02,402 --> 00:00:07,474
November 3rd, 2026. Head
spinning feints and fights

2
00:00:07,541 --> 00:00:10,444
in Washington this week, and
the Republican House speaker

3
00:00:10,511 --> 00:00:13,514
cut short the legislative
session as some

4
00:00:13,580 --> 00:00:16,083
congressional members
demanded votes on releasing

5
00:00:16,149 --> 00:00:19,086
the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Our next guest was among

6
00:00:19,152 --> 00:00:23,790
those who got an early
recess Wisconsin first

7
00:00:23,857 --> 00:00:26,193
Representative Bryan Steil
joins us. And thanks very

8
00:00:26,260 --> 00:00:28,662
much for being here.
>> Thanks for having me on.

9
00:00:28,729 --> 00:00:31,899
>> So first off, what is
your reaction to Toni? Evers

10
00:00:31,965 --> 00:00:36,103
not running for a third term?
>> I think what you're going

11
00:00:36,170 --> 00:00:39,139
to see is a large number of
Democrats get in the race

12
00:00:39,206 --> 00:00:42,209
and run to the left, but
what we have to do is get

13
00:00:42,276 --> 00:00:44,545
our state back on track, not
measuring things like

14
00:00:44,611 --> 00:00:47,114
education by just how much
money we're spending, but on

15
00:00:47,181 --> 00:00:49,550
how well we're doing,
whether or not students are

16
00:00:49,616 --> 00:00:51,652
being taught how to learn,
not what to know, whether or

17
00:00:51,718 --> 00:00:54,788
not we're getting the
spending. And in Wisconsin,

18
00:00:54,855 --> 00:00:58,659
under control and money back
to hard paying taxpayers, I

19
00:00:58,725 --> 00:01:01,595
think you're gonna have a
robust debate. I think at

20
00:01:01,662 --> 00:01:05,499
the end of the day, we have
a great opportunity to have

21
00:01:05,566 --> 00:01:07,701
a conservative governor once
again.

22
00:01:07,768 --> 00:01:10,037
candidate at this point?
>> No, I'm not running. I'm

23
00:01:10,103 --> 00:01:12,573
going to be running for
reelection to the House of

24
00:01:12,639 --> 00:01:14,474
Representatives. We'll watch
the Republican field play

25
00:01:14,541 --> 00:01:17,010
out. But I think we have a
large number of great,

26
00:01:17,077 --> 00:01:19,379
strong candidates who will
in one of them will

27
00:01:19,446 --> 00:01:23,016
ultimately be successful.
session was cut short, as we

28
00:01:23,083 --> 00:01:24,985
said by the speaker,
attributed to what the Wall

29
00:01:25,052 --> 00:01:27,588
Street Journal called,
quote, furor over

30
00:01:27,654 --> 00:01:30,524
disclosures from the Epstein
investigation. What's your

31
00:01:30,591 --> 00:01:32,860
reaction to the distraction
that the whole Jeffrey

32
00:01:32,926 --> 00:01:36,864
Epstein file is causing.
>> The broader media

33
00:01:36,930 --> 00:01:39,466
landscape loves to talk
about Epstein. They don't

34
00:01:39,533 --> 00:01:41,802
want to talk about the
president's success of

35
00:01:41,869 --> 00:01:44,538
securing the border, about
the positive impacts of the

36
00:01:44,605 --> 00:01:47,608
tax package that was just
passed. I think it's a lot

37
00:01:47,674 --> 00:01:51,178
to do about nothing. I think
I lean on the side of more.

38
00:01:51,245 --> 00:01:53,947
Disclosure is always a good
thing. The sunlight is the

39
00:01:54,014 --> 00:01:55,516
best disinfectant. And I
think actually we should

40
00:01:55,582 --> 00:01:58,785
just move forward with this,
disclose what's legally

41
00:01:58,852 --> 00:02:01,488
permissible. It's obviously
under a court seal. It's not

42
00:02:01,555 --> 00:02:03,790
under the direct control of
Congress. And then get

43
00:02:03,857 --> 00:02:07,194
really back and try to draw
the attention of the media,

44
00:02:07,261 --> 00:02:09,663
who loves to be distracted
by this. Back to the most

45
00:02:09,730 --> 00:02:12,199
important issues of the day.
>> Now, a new Marquette Law

46
00:02:12,266 --> 00:02:14,535
School national poll shows
that 41% of respondents

47
00:02:14,601 --> 00:02:17,304
support the reconciliation
bill that President Trump

48
00:02:17,371 --> 00:02:22,042
signed into law, while 59%
oppose it. Of course, with

49
00:02:22,109 --> 00:02:27,147
sharp, partisan divides, why
did you vote in favor?

50
00:02:27,214 --> 00:02:29,783
>> Look at the underlying
provisions inside the bill.

51
00:02:29,850 --> 00:02:32,286
Let's talk about what we got
done. Almost every single

52
00:02:32,352 --> 00:02:34,922
thing is not popular. Once
the American people

53
00:02:34,988 --> 00:02:37,224
understand what's in the
bill. This is about doubling

54
00:02:37,291 --> 00:02:40,360
down and making sure that
the border is secure. Wildly

55
00:02:40,427 --> 00:02:42,629
popular. The president's
moves to do that and then

56
00:02:42,696 --> 00:02:45,032
building to make sure that's
permanent a good thing.

57
00:02:45,098 --> 00:02:47,801
Investing in the military at
a period of time of

58
00:02:47,868 --> 00:02:50,737
dangerous global
instability, making sure the

59
00:02:50,804 --> 00:02:53,740
2017 tax cuts are permanent,
to build on the economic

60
00:02:53,807 --> 00:02:57,344
growth that we saw leading
into the pandemic, and then

61
00:02:57,411 --> 00:02:59,880
doubling down on that, in
particular for seniors,

62
00:02:59,947 --> 00:03:03,417
those working overtime or
those who are earning tips.

63
00:03:03,483 --> 00:03:06,019
And then finally getting
spending under control. And

64
00:03:06,086 --> 00:03:09,056
this is where the
demagoguery has been

65
00:03:09,122 --> 00:03:10,924
probably the most
challenging. Putting in

66
00:03:10,991 --> 00:03:14,728
place work requirements for
able bodied, childless

67
00:03:14,795 --> 00:03:17,598
adults is an 8020 issue in
the state of Wisconsin, as

68
00:03:17,664 --> 00:03:20,634
indicated by the not so long
ago referendum. That's what

69
00:03:20,701 --> 00:03:23,570
this bill does. It actually
secures the program for

70
00:03:23,637 --> 00:03:26,440
those it was designed for
permanently disabled adults,

71
00:03:26,507 --> 00:03:30,010
children, pregnant women.
And it simply says if you're

72
00:03:30,077 --> 00:03:33,514
an able bodied, childless
we're asking you to be

73
00:03:33,580 --> 00:03:36,583
looking for work,
volunteering or working a

74
00:03:36,650 --> 00:03:39,653
minimum of 20 hours a week.
And so the provisions of the

75
00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:42,189
bill, as American people
learn more and more about

76
00:03:42,256 --> 00:03:45,692
them, I think will only
become more popular because

77
00:03:45,759 --> 00:03:47,661
to get this country back on
track.

78
00:03:47,728 --> 00:03:51,565
>> So the Congressional
Budget Office did estimate

79
00:03:51,632 --> 00:03:56,436
that this law will cut
federal spending on Medicaid

80
00:03:57,137 --> 00:04:02,075
and Chip benefits by $1
trillion, due in part, the

81
00:04:02,142 --> 00:04:07,147
CBO says, to at least 10.5
million being eliminated

82
00:04:07,214 --> 00:04:10,851
from the program.
>> But let's dive into those

83
00:04:10,918 --> 00:04:14,288
numbers, right, because the
numbers to try to scare

84
00:04:14,354 --> 00:04:16,657
people in the state of
Wisconsin. Wisconsin has had

85
00:04:16,723 --> 00:04:19,459
work requirements for many
of our welfare programs, in

86
00:04:19,526 --> 00:04:20,794
particular Snap benefits
since the 1990s, when

87
00:04:20,861 --> 00:04:24,097
Governor Tommy Thompson put
them in place in Medicaid.

88
00:04:24,164 --> 00:04:26,934
We don't have the exact work
requirements that the

89
00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:30,304
federal government has or
that this law passes. What

90
00:04:30,370 --> 00:04:33,240
this law does is simply say,
if you're an able bodied,

91
00:04:33,307 --> 00:04:35,943
childless adult, we want you
to be looking for work,

92
00:04:36,009 --> 00:04:38,312
going to school,
volunteering, or working 20

93
00:04:38,378 --> 00:04:41,915
hours a week. This is an 80
over 20 common sense issue.

94
00:04:41,982 --> 00:04:44,585
If you say if you dig
further into that, who is

95
00:04:44,651 --> 00:04:48,388
the CBO examining the
positive view that as those

96
00:04:48,455 --> 00:04:52,159
people find themselves, find
themselves with an

97
00:04:52,226 --> 00:04:55,362
opportunity to get a job, to
volunteer, that we won't see

98
00:04:55,429 --> 00:04:58,265
folks losing their, their
their health benefits, what

99
00:04:58,332 --> 00:05:02,736
we'll see is people getting
into a good or a better

100
00:05:02,803 --> 00:05:04,805
paying job with the ultimate
goal of many of these able

101
00:05:04,872 --> 00:05:07,140
bodied, childless adults
getting into the workforce

102
00:05:07,207 --> 00:05:09,376
and receiving their health
care from from their

103
00:05:09,443 --> 00:05:11,311
employer. Like many
hardworking, hardworking

104
00:05:11,378 --> 00:05:13,447
families in the state of
Wisconsin do.

105
00:05:13,514 --> 00:05:16,950
>> What about changes to the
Affordable Care Act that I

106
00:05:17,017 --> 00:05:19,353
understand, and according to
Congresswoman Moore, will

107
00:05:19,419 --> 00:05:23,524
raise premiums and also
impose other restrictions,

108
00:05:23,590 --> 00:05:25,959
restrictions potentially
causing people to lose their

109
00:05:26,026 --> 00:05:29,029
coverage.
>> Give me give me the

110
00:05:29,096 --> 00:05:32,065
details on that. I think
what what you're taking

111
00:05:32,132 --> 00:05:35,335
there is national analysis
on the state of Wisconsin

112
00:05:35,402 --> 00:05:37,504
that doesn't apply.
Wisconsin didn't expand

113
00:05:37,571 --> 00:05:40,507
Medicaid. And so some of the
reforms are made in other

114
00:05:40,574 --> 00:05:43,844
states apply differently.
dangerous about the

115
00:05:43,911 --> 00:05:45,913
demagoguery that some
individuals want to engage

116
00:05:45,979 --> 00:05:48,749
in. They want to take a
national narrative and apply

117
00:05:48,815 --> 00:05:50,851
it to Wisconsin. Wisconsin,
I think very thoughtfully,

118
00:05:50,918 --> 00:05:54,087
did not expand Medicaid
further into the able

119
00:05:54,154 --> 00:05:57,224
bodied, childless working
age population. And so,

120
00:05:57,291 --> 00:06:00,861
again, of the 1.2 million
individuals in the state of

121
00:06:00,928 --> 00:06:04,264
Wisconsin who currently are
on Medicaid, Tony Evers

122
00:06:04,331 --> 00:06:07,701
appointee noted that there's
about 163,000 of them that

123
00:06:07,768 --> 00:06:10,170
are that are of the
demographic that we should

124
00:06:10,237 --> 00:06:12,773
look at, able bodied,
childless adults. Well over

125
00:06:12,840 --> 00:06:15,709
half of those are already
already working 20 hours a

126
00:06:15,776 --> 00:06:18,979
week, going to school,
volunteering, 63,000 are not

127
00:06:19,046 --> 00:06:22,883
or are not documenting it.
And so this is about making

128
00:06:22,950 --> 00:06:25,452
sure that we're
strengthening the program

129
00:06:25,519 --> 00:06:28,322
for those that it's designed
for no changes. And in fact,

130
00:06:28,388 --> 00:06:31,525
in my opinion, strengthening
Wisconsin after the passage

131
00:06:31,592 --> 00:06:33,660
of the state budget will
actually receive about $1

132
00:06:33,727 --> 00:06:36,263
billion a year more in
federal money. We have a

133
00:06:36,330 --> 00:06:39,566
whole debate about that, but
more money is coming in. And

134
00:06:39,633 --> 00:06:43,136
so the left is trying really
hard to demagogue on this

135
00:06:43,203 --> 00:06:47,007
issue. As the facts got out,
you saw a quick pivot into

136
00:06:47,074 --> 00:06:49,042
Epstein, which was the lead
question of your interview.

137
00:06:49,109 --> 00:06:52,412
So what we need to do is to
dive in, get the information

138
00:06:52,479 --> 00:06:54,948
out to the American people
about how we're

139
00:06:55,015 --> 00:06:56,884
strengthening the program.
And I think as the American

140
00:06:56,950 --> 00:07:00,120
people learn more and more
about this, it's only going

141
00:07:00,187 --> 00:07:01,722
to be more popular. Again,
the work requirements in the

142
00:07:01,788 --> 00:07:04,892
state of Wisconsin had a
referendum 8020, popular.

143
00:07:04,958 --> 00:07:07,761
>> As to the recent
Rescissions package that

144
00:07:07,828 --> 00:07:13,100
stripped appropriation
funding from USAID and the

145
00:07:13,166 --> 00:07:16,170
Corporation for Public
Broadcasting. Do you expect

146
00:07:16,236 --> 00:07:18,672
and support additional
Rescissions as a way to cut

147
00:07:18,739 --> 00:07:22,843
costs going forward?
>> Washington has a massive

148
00:07:22,910 --> 00:07:25,212
spending power. We're
spending almost $2 trillion

149
00:07:25,279 --> 00:07:29,082
a year more than we're
taking in in the debt as

150
00:07:29,149 --> 00:07:31,251
well over $30 trillion. I
think we need to go through

151
00:07:31,318 --> 00:07:34,021
the federal budget with a
fine tooth comb to remove

152
00:07:34,087 --> 00:07:36,456
waste, fraud and abuse, look
at programs that could find

153
00:07:36,523 --> 00:07:38,592
either other sources of
funding or aren't necessary.

154
00:07:38,659 --> 00:07:40,594
And so I think it's
appropriate to make sure

155
00:07:40,661 --> 00:07:43,096
that we're combing through
the federal budget, looking

156
00:07:43,163 --> 00:07:46,033
for ways to save taxpayer
dollars. And again, in a

157
00:07:46,099 --> 00:07:49,136
period of time where every
extra dollar we spend is

158
00:07:49,203 --> 00:07:51,505
effectively a dollar
borrowed from China, I think

159
00:07:51,572 --> 00:07:54,041
it's absolutely appropriate
to dig through the federal

160
00:07:54,107 --> 00:07:56,610
budget and look for ways to
save funds for hard working

161
00:07:56,677 --> 00:08:00,480
families.
>> U.S. Representative Bryan