guest: not in a republican house since 2000 normally nine. will have to negotiate with the democrats because of the senate. at some point, you will get into a process where you pick up democratic votes and lose some republican votes. host: talking with republican oklahomaan tom cole of live back to the capitol to hear from house democrats. o >> vice chair of the democratic caucus, miss linda sanchez. we had a -- little over hour-long meeting this morning with the the democratic caucus. we had a robust discussion about the tax bill that is before us this week. the senate -- before the senate this week. reminding our colleagues the devastation this tax bill will have on the taxpayer.

the taxes are a personal issue. what we know from the senate tax bill that is being moved very quickly through the senate now is a bill that will actually -- according to the j.t.c., joint tax commission, will raise taxes on 70% of the middle class if this bill becomes law. that's 82 million households that will see a tax increase over the next decade. this bill -- it's doubly worse to the middle class. than the house bill was which is already a disaster. they are rushing this bad bill through purely for a political win. as mr. collins from buffalo has said repeatedly, or at least it has been retweeted repeatedly, his initial tweet that this is about their donors. this is about their political base. this is about ensuring that the special interest corporations needs are met. it's about ensuring for them that the wealthy in this country get the tax cut that they are

begging for. and so we will -- we're united as a democratic caucus in opposition not overwhelm to the house bill that passed but certainly to the bill that is before the senate this week. will not waste time discussing the issues as to whether or not this bill has merit. it has none. this is not a good bill for the american people. this is a political stunt. it is a scam. and if it becomes law, we believe it will be devastating on our nation's economy. we also believe that if the president is really true to his word about negotiating, he will stop tweeting, he will stop using modern technology in many respects to express his win inner thoughts as it relates to the leadership of the house and senate democrats. nancy pelosi and chuck schumer and both the house democrats and senate democrats stand ready to

negotiate a budget resolution. we stand ready -- sorry, a c.r. we stand ready to work in a toe find issues facing the american people. including the hurricanes in texas, florida, puerto rico. that we stand ready to work on the issue of chip and see that is -- that it is continued for nine million to 10 million children throughout our country. that we stand ready on myriad of issues. not the least of which is daca, the dreamers torques see their lives continue as productive individuals in our country. and many other issues that need to be negotiated and worked through. we believe there is common ground on many of these issues. and that is time for the president to really put away

childish games and invite people to a table of negotiation where there is respect and understanding of the needs of all. with that let me turn to my good friend and colleague, ms. sanchez, and we'll take questions. ms. sanchez: good afternoon, everyone. there are a mere 11 legislative days left in 2017. so there isn't a whole lot of time to get everything done before the end of the year. all of the business that our government needs to accomplish. time is ticking and republicans ultimately have the responsibility for keeping the government opened. they control all of the branches of government. they control a majority in the united states house of representatives. and if they are looking to come to the democrats for votes, that they should be able to accomplish with just their caucus alone, then we're going to ask for things in return.

we have we have made our priorities very clear. democrats want to see something happen to provide legislative relief for dreamers. so if we need a legislative fix for deferred action for childhood arrival kids. democrats want to see chip re-authorized. that is the children's health plan that is run through states. states are rupping out of money. that expired at the end of ept -- running out of money. that expired in september. republicans have not done anything to address the chip re-authorization. we want to see tagse a -- additional disaster recovery aid which includes virgin islands, puerto rico, texas, and florida. we want to see the taxpayer subsidy, c.s.r. payments, continue so that millions of americans can continue to afford their health insurance.

democrats have been ready to work with congressional republicans to finish all of these items before the end of the year. but republicans have got to want to work with democrats. and we want to make very clear what our expectations are for an agreement. and we intend to use the leverage that we possess to get that done. so far they have chosen a go-it approach on health care. they have chose a go it alone approach on taxes. now they seem headed towards a go-it-alone approach on c.r. it is time to get america's business done. no excuses. no whining. no complaining. but good old, old-fashioned roll up your shirt sleeves and work with your colleagues to get things done. i'm hopeful that republicans will get the message that we will work with them so long as

there is an honest and sincere attempt on their part. we're not here for theatrics, we're here to get america's business done. secretary ross: can we talk about the -- reporter: can we talk about the c.r. i know what the history has been on these dealings and government shutdowns. they always had to have -- but because of the way this played out, there's potential this will resolve the republicans to say a minimal bill. they don't need your side and you don't get daca, disaster aid, some of the things democrats want s that a risk? do you think there is potential maybe democrats overplayed their hand? mr. crowley: what is the risk? rhetorical question. what is the risk? they control the house of representatives. they control the senate. they have majorities in both houses. leader pelosi has said consistently, if you have the votes, pass your budget. if you have the votes pass the c.r. they haven't had them.

the reality is that we recognized for some time that washington south of balance. there really is no check and balance when it comes to the legislative branch right now. they control the presidency, the senate, and the house. so if they have the votes, they'll exercise it. we hope that for the sake of the american people we think that the best legislation, the best legislation is one that is put together in a bipartisan way. from the outset this notion or idea, these crocodile tears from the senate, boo who, what's going on? they say there is a lack of democratic participation. the use of the budget resolution was done to was done to only need 50 votes in the senate. that meant they overwhelm needed their own votes to pass anything. they weren't looking for a moreau bust -- more robust involvement by democrats where you could have a 60 vote need

that would have required the involvement of democrats in the senate. certainly what happened here in the house, i know people don't care about procedure, reality is we were never invited to rticipate in this we saw how quickly this bill went through the committee without a sidge committee hearing. those are all crocodile tears. somehow they can't work with democrats. never involved democrats in the first place. ms. sanchez: i would echo they have this unique ability to lock us out of the room and cry we're not at the table. and it's completely disingenuous. they are the al party in charge of governing. they have the majority. let's see if they can accomplish our country's business with their votes. reporter: they didn't block the leaders out of the room yesterday. the leaders decided not to go.

ms. sanchez: when you are verbally demeaned and attacked on twitter and shown so little respect, i don't think it's a clear invitation to come sit at a table and have a real honest discussion. our president is a bully. he loves to demean other people. verbally abuse them. and then he's surprised that people don't want to sit down and have a civilized conversation with him. i think the president could go a long way towards building relationships if he just didn't attack people and kept his mouth shut. apparently he has a problem doing that. reporter: john conjers, you have two members now calling for his resignation. a mild response -- do you think leadership should have gone faster. do you think he thud resign? mr. crowley: the leaders including myself, hopefully on behalf of ms. sanchez as well,

as well as the members of the democratic caucus believe these are very, very, very serious allegation that is have been laid forth. and that understanding that the sensitivities here involved. that's why we have called for a full ethics investigation and immediate investigation. at the end of the day there will be accountability. most importantly, accountability on behalf of the women, brave women who have come forth with these allegations. ms. sanchez: i would like to add the following. i think we're at a turning point in our country's consciousness where -- and i practiced employment and labor law before i ever became a member of congress. and the presumption used to be that when complaintants came forward with allegations, the natural inclination was to disbelieve them. that's why it was so hard for so many people to get the justice

they deserved. i think our consciousness has timely shifted to where the presumption now at least among the public is that if there are allegations that are made and somebody comes forward, the presumption is, hey, there's merit or there may be merit to this claim. it's not an automatic dismissal that this can't possibly be true. i think that's a good thing because i think many people have had to suffer in silence for too long. i believe that with the bill that we have opt floor today, which would require sexual harassment trade promotioning, that's a good first step because prevention is always the best starting point. i believe that there are -- this is something that's not commonly known, there are several processes in copping by which somebody can make an allegation. one is through the ethics committee, a separate and completely distidget -- distinct process from o.o.c., the office of compliance, which i think we

all agree has some very outdated, onerous hurdles for complaintants to try to overcome before they can ever have their day in court. we're having very serious ongoing discussions about how we can reform that process and how we can educate those who work on the hill about where they can go to seek redress if they have these complaints. and i think that we had a very fruitful discussion in the caucus today about what we need to do moving forward to try to make the process a fair one. the process needs to be fair for all parties involved. it needs to be fair for the complaintant, and it needs to be fair for the person that's being accused. they need to have due process. you need to have triers of fact verify and see whether complaints are -- if there is evidence to support those. you don't want character assassinations nor do you want victims don't get their day in court. i think we will continue to work

at producing something which will make that process a better and fairer one. reporter: tax reform for a moment, please. one of the provisions proposed is that of a higher deductibility for childcare. what are your thoughts on senate versus the house version? will it benefit the middle class? mr. crowley: i think it's one of the most compelling issues facing americans today. the ability to have both -- immediate yum requires both parents to work. that's certainly in many households something that's welcomed. they want to be able to continue their careers as well. to have the -- have a high deductibility, to be able to access more help from the federal government in terms of making that happen for childcare, knowing not only that there's more resources for it, but that their child -- i think more needs to be done to ensure safety standards in the setting that those children are in. that they are being looked over

and cared for by qualified individuals. who are well paid. there are a myriad of issues that this issue really touches on. the this is something that both linda and myself, democrats, have been support thive of. i will say that one -- ewing something that may be positive in the bill does not make a bill a good bill. there are so many erroneous aspects to this bill, there are so many problems with this bill, either the house version or senate version, that make it nonstarters for democrats. ms. sanchez: let me add on that child provision. clearly they want to tout this as some kind of boon to the middle class, but the house bill , their provision, the eligibility requirements for that, meant that those on the lowest economic ends could not claim that increased credit. and that those who were a higher

income earners now qualified for the benefit. so if you look how that benefit is distributed, those who earn more are actually going to be the beneficiaries of that provision not those that are lower income earners and need the help the most. the difficulty that we have is, although there are senate provision that is may be different than the house bill, ultimately they will need to reconcile what is in the house bill with what is in the senate bill. and as joe said very aptly, one provision in the bill doesn't make the whole bill bert. we think both of the bills are irresponsible and reckless. i will be voting no on their tax bill. reporter: for both of you. you spoke about congressman conyers obviously stopping short calling for his resignation. we're at a time in our national conversation about sexual harassment where we have seen really swift reaction in news and entertainment, in corporate america. why is congress dealing with a

different standard here? you called for a ethics investigation, but they are not known for their swift work. should you be more forceful? mr. crowley: i believe congress should not be the gold standard but platinum. we should be a beacon on a hill to say that sexual harassment, or harassment of any kind is not acceptable in the workplace anywhere. whether it be in media, on wall street, in any departments or public or private departments in our country. and that we need to set that gold standard. i believe as linda indicated the legislation, the resolution before the house in terms of requiring sexual harassment training for all members of congress and all employees here on the hill is a start. reporter: why aren't you calling for his resignation? mr. crowley: calling for the resignation of someone does not create the resignation. the reality is we have a process in place and we're calling for a expedited process of the ethics

committee to bring this to the forefront so it can be as much transparency as possible. recognizing the rights of the alleged -- those who are bringing these very, very serious allegations before mr. conyers. ms. sanchez: this is my legal training. i am not a trier of fact in this. i don't know all the facts. don't know the specific allegations. it appears there is more than one complaintant which does heighten my sense of there may be something there. again, i can't sit and judge a member and call for the resignation unless there -- unless i have been party to hearing all of the evidence and hearing the defense of the evidence. and trust me, again, i prosecuted -- sexual harassment and employment discrimination cases. i have seen cases where there were cases without merit. i have seen that as well. we want it to be a fair process for both. we have asked for a expedited

investigation by the ethics committee. we understand they have undertaken that charge and working towards that end right now. i think it is right that congressman conyers step down from his ranking member post on the judiciary committee. and we will wait to see where the chips fall. and based on what the trier of fact decides, if there are consequences to be meated out, there is accountability -- meted out there is accountability and consequences. mr. crowley: tend of the day and chair of the democratic caucus, will i do everything i can to ensure that there is accountability. at the end of the day. as it perfect tates to this particular case. especially accountability on behalf of individuals who have brought these allegations forward. reporter: if you don't know the facts and waiting for the ethics investigation to conclude, then it sound very much like leader losi is working behind the

scenes to compel a resignation even before the ethics investigation is done. what do you say to that? is that premature? mr. crowley: i read there was a meeting that took place yesterday. there was a statement made by the chair of the c.b.c. regards to the discussion that is were made or had with mr. conyers. listen, i think mr. conyers has gone back to his district. i think he's probably -- can't speak for what he's doing, but i suppose he's taking counsel for his family and constituents. people who sent him to washington. i believe at the end of the day the right will be done. accountability will be had. we need to focus ourselves right now as to what we can do. that is ensuring that there is a platinum standard when it comes to the issue of sexual harassment, or harassment on the job right here on capitol hill that we're second or third to no entity in this country.

[captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2017] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] a >> the house itself returning at the noon eastern. among the issues they'll take up is a resolution that would call for mandatory sexual harassment the training by members and their staff. debate on that coming up later this afternoon. that issue came up as well in a briefing just a short while ago with republican leaders at the capitol. here's a look. mrs. mcmorris rodgers: i hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving n our family we're grateful to have the time together. put those fopesway and focus on one another. the this