GOP Rep. Mike Lawler says Congress will take ‘necessary action’ if Iran war drags on: Full interview

[0:00] Welcome back and joining me now is Republican Congressman Mike Lawler of New York. [0:04] Congressman Lawler, welcome to Meet the Press and Happy Easter. [0:10] Happy Easter, Kristen, and Happy Easter to everyone out watching. [0:13] Well, we appreciate your being here on the holiday, Congressman, [0:17] and I have to start by getting your reaction to this extraordinary news overnight, [0:20] the military rescuing the second pilot who was in that F-15 fighter jet that was shot down [0:27] over Iran. What were your first thoughts when you heard the news? [0:30] Well, obviously it was fantastic news both for our country and certainly the families of those [0:40] airmen that had been shot down. But it speaks to the courage, the bravery, [0:48] and the commitment to service of our armed forces. They truly are the greatest armed forces anywhere [0:54] in the world, and I think they proved that once again in this rescue mission. [1:00] Let me ask you, because the rescue mission in Iran did involve sending in special forces, [1:06] and it was notable in his primetime address on Wednesday, President Trump did not rule out [1:12] sending in U.S. forces on the ground in Iran. So let me ask you, would you support President [1:18] Trump actually putting U.S. troops on the ground in Iran? [1:24] I think in this instance, a rescue mission, it was necessary to do everything in our power to ensure [1:30] that no troops were left behind. And I commend the president for taking decisive action to do that. [1:36] I think the question moving forward with respect to any troops on the ground would be [1:41] for what purpose? And I think the only purpose that I could see would be to get the enriched uranium. [1:49] And I think that is something that does need to be discussed with Congress in a classified setting. [1:55] And I think Congress would need to be briefed on that particular matter. [2:00] But I want to push back on something Senator Kaine said. [2:04] This is not an illegal military operation. [2:08] The president is fully within his authority to conduct this military operation. [2:13] The war powers resolution, and war powers act gives him 60 to 90 days to conduct such an operation. [2:21] And Congress was lawfully notified within 48 hours of the initial incursion. [2:28] So for Tim Kaine or any other Democrat to say this is illegal, [2:32] especially after so many Democrats, including Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, [2:36] supported Barack Obama's seven-month war in Libya is just hypocritical at best. [2:42] And they are gaslighting the American people when they talk about this. [2:46] Well, look, it's not just Democrats. It's Republicans, too. [2:48] I want to drill down with you on this very point. [2:51] Republican Senator John Curtis of Utah wrote on Wednesday, [2:55] quote, [2:55] The Constitution assigns the legislative branch the clear and explicit right to declare war [3:00] to accord a president the power to wage an ongoing war without a congressional declaration of war [3:06] is to render that congressional authority void. [3:10] Do you agree that if President Trump wants more funding for the war or more time to fight it, [3:16] that he does, in fact, need congressional approval? [3:21] Congress has not declared war since World War II. [3:25] And in fact, we have had numerous operations and conflicts and wars, [3:29] Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan. [3:34] Yes, there has been congressional involvement, [3:36] but the declaration of war itself has not occurred since World War II. [3:41] But yes, look, as this moves forward, [3:44] if it goes beyond the 60 to 90-day window, [3:47] then yes, Congress will need to take necessary action, [3:52] and I would support that. [3:54] But this, the idea that the administration [3:57] and our armed forces are not meeting their objectives [4:00] or that there wasn't a plan is absurd. [4:04] The fact is that they have conducted an incredible operation [4:08] over these last five weeks, [4:11] eliminating much of the leadership of Iran and the IRGC, [4:16] obliterating their air defenses, [4:18] their ballistic missiles program, [4:20] their drone programs, their naval fleet. [4:23] These are significant steps that were taken [4:25] to eliminate the threat posed by a nuclear Iran. [4:30] And for many of my colleagues [4:32] who have said for years [4:33] that Iran could not get a nuclear weapon, [4:36] that action must be taken to prevent them from doing so, [4:40] it seems for some of them, [4:42] those were hollow and empty words [4:44] and they didn't actually mean it. [4:45] President Trump took decisive action last year [4:48] to go after three of their nuclear facilities. [4:52] He eliminated much of their leadership [4:54] in this operation with Israel [4:57] and has taken aggressive measures [5:00] to go after their ballistic missiles program, [5:03] which if allowed to continue [5:05] producing ballistic missiles at the rate that they were, [5:08] it would have made it almost impossible [5:10] to stop their nuclear ambitions in the future. [5:13] Congressman, let me just, but back to the point, [5:15] it sounds like you're saying you agree [5:17] that the president would need to seek congressional approval [5:20] if this war goes beyond 60 days, [5:22] but let me ask you about new funding. [5:23] After the 60 to 90 day window, [5:26] which is part of the War Powers Act. [5:28] But would you vote for new funding [5:30] for a war that Congress has not approved? [5:35] Look, Congress has continually funded military operations. [5:40] There is an appropriations process to do that. [5:43] We will go through that process. [5:44] The administration released its budget. [5:47] That is not going to be the final budget [5:50] or appropriations, you know, numbers. [5:52] As we saw this past January, [5:57] Congress finalized bipartisan appropriations [5:59] on 11 of the 12 bills, [6:01] including the Defense Department. [6:04] And so we will continue to ensure [6:06] that our armed forces have the resources [6:09] that they need to conduct military operations. [6:13] And so we will go through that legislative process. [6:16] So you're a yes, you're a yes, Congressman? [6:17] And the appropriations process. [6:17] You're a yes, you would be a yes for the new... [6:20] I'm a yes, I'm a yes for funding our military [6:23] and ensuring they have the capabilities [6:25] to perform their operations, absolutely. [6:29] All right, let me move now to the funding fight [6:31] over the Department of Homeland Security, [6:33] which has been shut down now for 50 days, [6:35] the longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history. [6:38] There appears to be a plan to reopen the government. [6:41] There were days of disagreements [6:42] between Republican leaders. [6:44] The Senate did pass a bill. [6:46] Now it appears as though House Speaker Mike Johnson [6:49] is on board with trying to get that passed. [6:51] But Congress is not back until April 14th, Congressman. [6:55] Is that acceptable to wait that long [6:58] to fully fund the government? [6:59] Or should House Speaker Mike Johnson [7:01] call everyone back this week [7:03] and get the government reopened? [7:07] Kristen, what's not acceptable [7:09] is that for this fiscal year, [7:11] Democrats have shut down [7:12] the Department of Homeland Security [7:14] for over 90 days. [7:16] Not paying FEMA, not paying the Coast Guard, [7:19] not paying the Secret Service, [7:20] and not paying critical operations [7:23] within the Department of Homeland Security. [7:26] The fact is, Democrats made a very calculated decision [7:29] to shut down the department [7:31] because they do not want to enforce [7:33] our immigration laws. [7:34] But, and yet... [7:35] Here is an example of not enforcing, [7:37] Kristen, this is critical. [7:38] Here is an example of not enforcing [7:40] our immigration laws. [7:41] An 18-year-old girl in my district, [7:44] Sheridan Gorman, was killed in Chicago [7:47] after an illegal immigrant was allowed [7:49] to enter into the United States [7:51] during the Biden administration. [7:53] He was captured. [7:54] He was detained. [7:54] He was released. [7:55] He went to Chicago. [7:56] He committed a crime. [7:57] He was arrested under Chicago's [7:59] disastrous criminal justice laws. [8:01] He was released back out onto the street [8:03] and he executed this 18-year-old girl. [8:06] Democrats do not want to fund ICE [8:09] and Customs and Border Patrol. [8:11] And what will happen is individuals [8:13] like Jose Medina will be allowed [8:16] to enter into the country [8:17] and kill innocent Americans. [8:19] Congressman, let me just get back to the question. [8:20] That is wrong. I will not stand for it. [8:21] And that is why we are pushing back [8:23] against this. [8:24] Let me just get back to the question, [8:25] though. Republicans are in charge [8:28] of all three branches of government. [8:31] House Speaker Mike Johnson has the capacity [8:34] to call everyone back. [8:36] Does he have a responsibility to do so, [8:39] to bring everyone back, [8:40] to get the government reopened? [8:42] Does this not fall to Republicans to do this? [8:45] Kristen, no, Kristen. [8:47] We have passed Homeland Security funding [8:50] four times, four times in the last few weeks. [8:53] But the Senate passed a bill unanimously. [8:55] And every Democrat has voted against it. [8:56] But the Senate passed a bill unanimously. [8:57] The Senate passed a bill unanimously. [8:58] But the Senate passed a bill unanimously. [9:00] But they're not funding, they're not funding, [9:02] Kristen, they're not funding [9:04] the full Department of Homeland Security. [9:06] They're not funding ICE. [9:07] They're not funding Customs and Border Patrols. [9:10] They say that, oh, we passed funding [9:12] during reconciliation. [9:14] And we did for much of the operations. [9:16] But many people within ICE and Customs [9:20] and Border Patrol, civilians, are not being paid. [9:23] You cannot defund critical elements [9:26] of our homeland security. [9:28] And so we are going to go through this process [9:30] and not only fund the other components [9:34] of the department, but we are going to ensure [9:37] that ICE and Customs and Border Patrol [9:39] are fully funded. [9:40] That is what the House and Senate Republican leadership [9:44] are going to put forth as we come back. [9:48] All right. [9:48] Well, we'll see how it all unfolds [9:50] when Congress does come back. [9:52] Congressman Lawler, appreciate it. [9:54] Hope you have a fantastic holiday. [9:55] Thank you so much. [9:58] Thanks, Kristen. [9:58] Happy Easter.