Adam Hamilton says blue wave will be 'one and done' if Dems don't help people: Full interview

[0:00] The challenge now? Delivering on those promises, and that includes a new Democratic senator from [0:07] Kansas where Adam Hamilton, a pastor of the largest church in the state, made history, [0:13] winning a Senate seat that Republicans had held for 94 years. And Senator-elect Hamilton joins me [0:20] now. Welcome to Meet the Press and congratulations on your win. Thank you so much, Chris. It's great [0:27] to be with you today. Well, it's great to have you here today. You made history on Tuesday night, [0:34] Mr. Senator-elect. How'd you do it? Well, I'll tell you, it was a lot of people. There were [0:41] literally thousands of volunteers, people who gave, people who knocked on doors. That was a big part [0:46] of our campaign, was getting the vote out and knocking on doors, getting people to register to [0:49] vote. But here's the big thing, is there was a lot of people in Kansas, like across the United States, [0:54] who were saying, what's happening in Washington, D.C. is not okay. This is not who we are. [0:58] Republicans saying, this is not what it means to be a Republican, what's happening in Washington, [1:02] D.C. Democrats who were clearly frustrated, disappointed, afraid, I think sometimes, [1:07] of what's happening in our country and just saying, we've got to do better. And so I had a chance to, [1:11] you know, people resonated with that message. It had to do with kitchen table conversations around [1:17] the cost of fuel, the cost of fertilizer if you're a farmer. But it was also the hidden tariff tax. It was [1:21] the 60,000 people in Kansas who lost health insurance the last year and a half. So it was these things, [1:27] snap benefits taken away from 20,000 children in Kansas. But I think it was also a sense of common [1:33] decency. This is part of our campaign, was, you know, we've got to do better. This is not decent. [1:37] There was cruelty. There was corruption. There were things happening in D.C. that people were saying, [1:41] that's just not American. It's not who we are as Kansans and we have to do better. And I think [1:46] I think that message resonated with a lot of people here. [1:48] Well, as Democrats prepare to take over control of both chambers of Congress, there seem to be two [1:56] priorities emerging, addressing the issue of affordability and investigating the Trump administration. [2:05] That's according to Democrats. Which do you think is the bigger priority? [2:09] Well, clearly the bigger priority for me and I think for most people in America, especially people living paycheck to paycheck, [2:17] is please help us with the cost of living. I am very interested in ending the war in Iran as quickly as possible. [2:22] I want to see us claw back tariff policies back to the Congress where it started in our Constitution. [2:29] And to be able to say when the president wants to impose a tariff, you've got to make the case for it. [2:33] You've got to show us who's going to be helped by this. Why are we doing this? How long is it going to last? [2:37] Who's going to be hurt by it? And so those two things are going to bring affordability back in play. [2:42] That's about $250 a month between the fuel prices and the hidden tariff taxes. That doesn't count what [2:48] farmers are paying in the ag industry, what they're paying for the hidden costs of these tariffs in [2:52] the war. Again, fertilizer, input prices. And then, so we're going to start there. If I spent the next [2:59] two years, my first two years in the Senate in investigations, I'd be deeply disappointed. I want [3:03] to get to work helping the people in my state and helping the people across the country. So what I'm [3:08] interested in is, yes, let's get guardrails put in place so that we don't see these kinds of things [3:12] happen again. But let's focus on helping the American people. And I'll tell you, the Democrats, [3:16] if they don't, if we don't figure that out and get to work on helping people, this is going to be a [3:22] one and done kind of, you know, kind of blue wave. Well, let me follow up with you on that point, [3:29] because as you know, one of the debates inside the Democratic Party is just how far to take [3:34] oversight. There's a discussion about should President Trump be impeached for a third time. [3:39] President Trump himself this week said that impeaching him would, quote, destroy the Democrat [3:45] Party. Do you think impeachment should still be on the table? Well, I'm not as interested in [3:53] impeachment as setting up guardrails. I will say, I understand the move and the desire to do this. [3:58] There are a lot of things that have happened that I think are wrong. But I also feel like there's two [4:03] things that are at play in my mind. One is, and our campaign was built around trying to bring [4:06] people together. I don't want to see us spend the next two years dividing our country further. [4:10] I want to see us come together to look at solving really big problems. And, but I also think we, [4:16] again, have to look at what's happened in Washington that's corrupt, what's happened in [4:19] Washington. I mean, the people I talk to across the state, Republicans and Democrats, don't understand [4:23] how a president makes a billion dollars in his first year back in office. That's not, that's just not [4:27] right. There's so many things that happened that were not right. And, and, and I would say, you know, [4:32] insider trading, we need to address that. We want to make sure that we're looking at, you know, [4:37] at how people in Congress are using information when it comes to making decisions on their investments. [4:42] There's a lot of things, term limits. I think these are really important age limits. There's, [4:47] you know, if you look at what are the number one concerns of American people is corruption in [4:50] Washington, DC, and that's on both sides of the aisle. And so, you know, yes, we need to address [4:55] that, but I really want us to focus on what brings Americans together, what heals our democracy, [5:00] and then what, what solves problems for the people who are living paycheck to paycheck, [5:03] who are struggling in our country. And so I want to see us focus on that. [5:07] I want to discuss the discussion of leadership within the democratic party. You have said you're [5:13] not going to support Chuck Schumer as Senate leader. Why do you think Chuck Schumer is not [5:19] right for this moment? Well, you know, I mean, no disrespect for Chuck Schumer. I just really don't. [5:25] And I've told him that as well, but I think at least where I live in Kansas, he's a kind of polarizing [5:30] figure when my opponent running against me and in both debates mentioned Chuck Schumer far more [5:35] than he ever mentioned me. It was like 17 or 18 times. And, you know, the TV spots were aimed at, [5:40] you know, addressing what a lot of people in Kansas feel who may not know Chuck Schumer personally, [5:44] who don't know him personally, but you know, that, that they perceive him to be further to the left [5:49] and somebody who's a divisive figure. And what we're looking for is how do we, how do we have, [5:54] what I'd be looking for is a leader who can lead from the center, somebody who can bring [5:57] Republicans and Democrats together, somebody who can bring the various factions in the Democratic [6:01] Party together, somebody with fresh ideas. So again, no disrespect for Chuck Schumer, just, [6:05] it feels like there's time for, it is a time for fresh and new ideas and somebody who can unite us [6:11] instead of dividing us. And so who are you planning to support? Do you have a short list? [6:15] No, you know, I don't. I'll tell you, I've been a pastor for 38 years. I know probably 10 senators [6:21] personally, and even those I only know from brief conversations. So, you know, I'm not at a place where [6:25] I can tell you these are my, this is my short list. There are a handful of people that I think [6:28] are probably, you know, lead more from the center, but I don't know enough yet to be able to say these [6:34] are the people I would endorse. All right. Well, let me ask you, because President Trump has picked [6:38] Stephen Miller to be his new chief of staff. Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries posted this in response, [6:45] quote, Stephen Miller is a dangerous xenophobe and reckless extremist who has American blood on his hands. [6:52] His presence in government should be eradicated like a malignant tumor. Fire him today. [6:59] Do you agree with leader Jeffries? Yeah, I would say about Jeffries, he's going to use language that [7:05] I wouldn't use. But I do think that Stephen Miller has been a significant part of what's happened in [7:11] the second Trump administration. The kinds of things that I think do not reflect who we are as [7:15] Americans, his values, the things that he's pushed for, and the fact that he's being brought in as chief [7:20] of staff, well, it certainly ties him much more closely to President Trump. And I suspect I would [7:29] agree with very little that Stephen Miller stands for. So do you think he should be fired? [7:33] You know, he's not even been hired in that role yet, I don't think. But I think he would not be [7:43] somebody I would be supporting for chief of staff, for the president. But the president, I think, makes [7:47] his own decision on chief of staff. I don't think that's approved by the Congress. [7:50] Well, I wanted to ask you how you see the Democratic Party moving forward. You've been both a Republican, [7:57] you've been a Democrat as well, obviously. Now you know both parties. What is the biggest mistake [8:04] that Democrats could make right now with this new control that they will have over Congress? [8:11] Yeah. Well, I've had this conversation with several senators and I've just said, you know, [8:15] people didn't vote for me because I was a Democrat. I mean, some did. But I think many of them voted for [8:19] me because they were upset with what's happening in Washington, D.C. and the policies that are [8:23] hurting people back in Kansas. And if Democrats, I don't think that I think the Democrats understand [8:27] this, at least those I've talked to. But this wasn't a this wasn't a, you know, a rousing endorsement [8:33] of Democrats. It was a it was a huge repudiation of what's happening in Washington, D.C. [8:38] So if Democrats don't understand that and then, you know, reinvent themselves, I would say maybe [8:43] reinvent is a strong word. But it's like, who are we? What do we stand for? And we've got to make sure [8:47] we've got a clear message that speaks to American people and then we've got to deliver. So in the [8:51] first hundred days, we've got to deliver on a lot of these promises. And we have to be able to show [8:55] people across the, you know, across America, Republicans, independents and Democrats, that [9:00] these people deeply care about our country. They deeply care about solving problems. They can get [9:04] things done and they can work across the aisle to be able to deliver for the American people. If we can't [9:09] do that, then we will have failed. And I think this is a huge opportunity for Democrats. But we've got to be able to [9:15] say, OK, but what do we really stand for? Who are we? Because the Democratic brand has been damaged in [9:19] America. And it's I think it's really important that Democrats recognize that and say, what are we [9:24] going to do to address this? And and again, you know, there are going to be extremes in either party. [9:29] So on the in the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. But I think the vast majority of Americans are [9:33] somewhere right or left of center. And we've got to be able to speak to that vast majority and bring people [9:38] together. Senator-elect Hamilton, before I let you go, how will your faith inform how you [9:45] see your role as a U.S. senator? Thank you for asking that. So I wake up every morning. I get on [9:52] my knees. I did this morning. I lift up my hands. I say, here I am. God, please use me, guide me, lead me. [9:58] Help me to do to know and do your will. I invite the Holy Spirit to lead me, to help me to pay attention, [10:03] to see what I need to see and care for people I need to care for. I am a follower of Jesus Christ. [10:08] So I read the scriptures, the gospels in particular. And I just say, help me to live this way. [10:12] You know, and the things that Jesus said, love your neighbors, you love yourself. I mean, [10:16] who could disagree with that? Do unto others as you'd have them do unto you. You know, [10:19] he talks, he calls us to love even our enemies. You know, he tells us to care for the hungry and [10:24] the thirsty, the naked, the stranger, the sick, the in prison. I mean, all of these are just [10:28] fundamental values that shape who I am. And so, you know, this is how I see in life. And I'll just [10:33] tell you, I carry with me in my back pocket, my pocket New Testament. I read it every day. And I ask, [10:38] you know, please help me to know how to live these words. And so, you know, that's how it's going to [10:43] shape my life. When I get to D.C., people are like, well, don't be changed by D.C. And I'm like, [10:47] you know, I don't know what D.C. does to people, but I will tell you, I'm going to get on my knees [10:49] every morning in Washington, D.C. and do the same thing. Here I am. Please use me to be a blessing, [10:54] to care for people, to see the world as it's supposed to be, and to try to inspire and work towards [10:59] it being that kind of world. That's how my faith is going to shape who I am in Washington, D.C. [11:04] Senator-elect Hamilton, thank you so very much for that. We know you are off to church [11:09] right now. We appreciate your stopping by here first. Thank you so much. [11:14] Thank you so much, Kristin. It was an honor to be with you on this program. [11:18] Honor to have you. Thank you.