WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined CNN New Day to discuss Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the status of the Republican health care bill.

“There have been no hearings. There’s been no public discussion about it,”said Senator Coons. “And by some news reports over the weekend, we may be days or even weeks away from the Republicans moving directly to the floor a significant bill that would affect tens of millions, even hundreds of millions of Americans—give big tax cuts, cut back on health care, defund Planned Parenthood without a single public hearing. That’s also wrong.”

“All the Democrats in the Senate sent a letter to the Republican Caucus saying we recognize there are flaws and challenges with the Affordable Care Act. Stop your efforts to repeal all of the Affordable Care Act on a partisan basis and please work across the aisle with us,” said Senator Coons. “We can find a way to move forward and to get a better health care system for all Americans. The response has been a whole series of closed-door meetings with virtually no outreach to Democrats by the Republican leadership.”

Full audio and video available here.

Excerpts from the interview: 

Senator Coons on Sessions’ testimony: The attorney general comes in front of both the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that’s responsible for judiciary every single year. That is part of our regular oversight responsibilities. I think the attorney general should make his appearance this year. 

More on Sessions: Yes. He has declined for months to appear in front of the Judiciary Committee. As of this weekend, he is now seeking to testify in front of Intel as you suggested in the opening. That may well be because he is trying to have his testimony be shielded from the American people. I don't think that's appropriate. I don't think on an issue as important as whether or not the attorney general is acting outside the scope of his recusal, whether he misled our committee, the Judiciary Committee, about a third meeting with the Russian ambassador—that shouldn’t be held in secret. The other thing that shouldn’t be going on in secret is the process by which the Republicans are crafting a repeal of Obamacare. There have been no hearings. There’s been no public discussion about it. And by some news reports over the weekend, we may be days or even weeks away from the Republicans moving directly to the floor a significant bill that would affect tens of millions, even hundreds of millions of Americans—give big tax cuts, cut back on health care, defund Planned Parenthood without a single public hearing. That’s also wrong. 

More on Sessions: That's a good first step. That is a good way for the same senators who ask questions of former FBI Director Comey to be able to ask follow-up questions of Attorney General Sessions. I agree with Senator Feinstein. The Judiciary Committee has the oversight responsibility for the Department of Justice. It is the Judiciary Committee that has more former prosecutors and more lawyers on it, more folks familiar with what happens in the Justice Department than any other committee in the Senate. 

Senator Coons on Comey’s testimony: I think he has laid out the core elements of an obstruction of justice charge. It is a difficult case to make. I think a lot more investigation would have to be done. If you just took FBI Director Jim Comey's testimony on its face, he certainly spoke to intent and motivation and to substantive action by the president to try to impede an ongoing federal investigation when he directed FBI Director Comey to drop the investigation into former National Security Advisor Flynn. 

Senator Coons on whether there is a bipartisan effort to fix the Affordable Care Act: None. All the Democrats in the Senate sent a letter to the Republican Caucus saying we recognize there are flaws and challenges with the Affordable Care Act. Stop your efforts to repeal all of the Affordable Care Act on a partisan basis and please work across the aisle with us. We can find a way to move forward and to get a better health care system for all Americans. The response has been a whole series of closed-door meetings with virtually no outreach to Democrats by the Republican leadership. 

Senator Coons on whether Republicans will release their health care plan in the coming weeks: They are certainly trying. They have a shrinking window. They’re going to use a vehicle to do this called reconciliation that allows them to do it by just 51 votes, 50 votes plus the vice president. In order to do that, they are pursuing a path that would be Republican-only. They are finding it very hard to get to 50 votes in the Republican Caucus in the Senate because some of the far right wants to completely repeal the Affordable Care Act. The things that fund it and the consumer protection provisions and the ways it has helped 24 million Americans get access to health care and improved the quality of the health care that more than 150 million Americans have. But, then there are folks who are moderate Republicans who want to save or extend the Medicaid expansion that their states have benefitted so much from. They have big internal divisions. Mitch McConnell, the Republican majority leader is pushing hard to get this done before the August recess. We're hearing rumors they are making progress. But, we have very little insight to what the provisions are of the bill. When the Democrats passed the Affordable Care Act back in 2009, I wasn’t in the Senate, but there were hearings after hearings after hearings over a year before they came to the fact that they were going to have to pass the bill without Republicans. The bill had Republican amendments taken up and voted on in committee hearings before it ultimately became law. That’s a very different process than the closed-door process that the Republicans are following now. 

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