senator merkley. >> thank you. mr. morris, you noted that some of our loans to china are helping china reduce carbon pollution and that's had a positive thing. do you share the viewpoint from the administration's report last friday that carbon pollution is a significant world problem and we need to act quickly to address it, a point that was also played by last month by the ipcc report that was described as a fire alarm going off, saying, wake up, act fast on carbon? >> absolutely. i do. and i would make the additional point that, in fact, it is, if not the most important thing, the mbd's are doing themselves today, among the most important. the capital increase at the world bank, that agreement itself makes new commitments to climate finance that i think are part of what, you know, garner my support for that agreement. i think it absolutely critical to their agendas going forward. >> miss segal, do you share that view? >> i do and i would also add the imf focuses on macroeconomic issues as well as development issues.

senator merkley. [applause] hello iowa. how are you? ready to create a blue wave to reverberate across the state? i have got to tell you this is what we the people democracy looks like showing it to the world. there is a whole lot that really doesn't look like we the people democracy. for example, the republicans tried to pass a health bill to strip health care from 30 million americans. that isn't we the people democracy. what about health care medicare for the sick and injured? and in that process take that opioid epidemic and take on the drug companies american should not pay more than europeans or canadians and they are invented right here in the united states of america. [applause] the second thing republicans are determined to do to borrow and take one train and a half dollars out of the treasury to give it to the wealthiest americans in the most powerful corporations. i do a lot of town halls i've done 316 while i've been a senator. one every ten days and the majority of the republican counties

our guest, senator jeff merkley.usic throughout) >>> new tonight, cnn has learned the office of special counsel has opened a case file on acting attorney general matt whitaker. now, let's be clear this is an independent federal agency, so it's not the mueller team. i just want to make sure we're very clear about that. the agency looking at whether whitaker may have violated rules on federal employees by accepting political contributions to his own senatorial campaign while he was serving in the justice department. so he's serving in the justice department and accepting money, political contributions. laura jarrett is outfront. >> acting attorney general matt whitaker facing new questions tonight about a mysterious trail of campaign contributions as cnn has now learned that an independent federal agency looking into whether he may have violated federal law by accepting campaign money while working at the justice department. at the crux of the issue, $8,800 in donations made to his failed 2014 bid for a u.s. senate sea

i will ask one additional question and then take it to senator merkley. it is a follow-up with respect to this idea of bringing one broad case of the wto against china. the grounds of the case would be that china has just broadly violated the expectations of the american economy and that seems a violation of the spirit of the wto agreement. also, the expectations that you have when invited into the wto. but then, there are 12 specific commitments that you indicate the charges should include as well when you commit to enter the wto. in your assessment, why hasn't a case like this been brought? >> i think it is an excellent question and i think there's a number of reasons why it has not been brought. part of it is trying to bring a case as a coalition is difficult because you have to get everybody on the same page in terms of thinking about what kind of claims we want to bring. as i mentioned in the past, there has been really a reluctance because china retaliates and so quickly and immediately against countries that do take action against china. even for a

jeff merkley / or-d it's a stupid plan, but oregon democrat senator jeff merkley says the border wall merkley / or-dit's a wasteful plan and i hope republicans will stand with democrats for being smart on border security.alexandra limon / washington correspondentdemocrats may also try to shut down the government if they don't get what they want... and that's a bill to protect special counsel robert mueller. of course, they would need republican support to do that. senator merkley says some republicans have privately expressed concern president will try to prevent congress from obtaining a report produced by the special counsel.merkelyso a hundred senators should stand up and say absolutely not, we stand that no one is above the law in the united states of american.congress is on thanksgiving break... when lawmakers return they will have just two weeks to work out a deal. in washington alexandra limon. (ryan) (ryan)(ryan) amazon has picked two cities to split its new headquarters calling them h-2-q. one in northern virginia and the second in long island city, new york. however they see

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. >> let's bringing in democratic senator jeff merkley of oregon.e was not up for re-election this year. watching very closely tonight. we'll have to colleagues in the senate come january. we appreciate you being with us. what's your first reaction to the senate, the map drawn tonight? >> well, certainly it's a very painful to lose a number of my very capable colleagues. i must say when you look all over at the number of races, the democrats are still winning essentially two out of three races for the u.s. senate. it's just we started with such a map that already had such a large population. >> are you surprised, senator, by some of the races let's take indiana, for example, or missouri? did you hold out hope that joe donnelly and claire mccaskill would hang on? >> yes, zerm have hope. the races we've lost were the four we were most worried about. and, of course, we're hoping jon test tore can hold on in montana. i'm looking forward to the outcome in arizona. but we had hoped really for a miracle. we wanted to win 80% of the races tonight. we didn't

senator jeff merkley, thank you for making some time tonight. have a great thanksgiving. i really appreciate it. >> you bet, chris, good thanksgiving. >>> nick akerman joins me now. it remains a scandal every day the guy is the acting attorney general of the united states. >> no question about it. testifies put in there by trump for one reason only. there are three things that trump is worried about. he doesn't want the mueller investigation going forward. he wants to prosecute jim comey. and he wants to prosecute hillary clinton. well, his in-house counsel, the white house counsel kept him from doing those things. >> right. and jeff sessions stopped him from doing the others. >> right. what does he do? he gets around it by appointing this guy who's willing to do all three of those things for trump. i mean, he is nothing but a political hack. he has absolutely no legal foundation or underpinning. he's a guy who thinks that marbury madison which held that the supreme court has the final say in the constitutionality of an act of congress, he thinks that's all wrong. however

also like to thank the president for nominating me to this position and senators ron wyden and jeff merkley, along with congressman greg walden from oregon for convening a bipartisan selection committee and thank that committee for its tremendous work in screening applicants for this position and making recommendations to the white house. i'd also like to thank former oregon governor ted goligoski who appointed me to the state court bench nine years ago and also former president george w. bush, who appointed me to serve as oregon's u.s. attorney, actually, in 2003, a position that i held for six years. before i went on to the bench. both of those jobs have prepared me well for the federal bench. i'd like to introduce some of my family members who are here today and just mention some of those who could not be here. first, my husband, jim mcdermott, who i believe is seated behind me, has always supported me and had confidence in me and my career. he's a fantastic trial trial lan his own right and now a first-time novelist. he is my biggest cheerleader and the love of my life, and i'm happy th

merkley: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. merkley: the most important words of our constitution are its first three: we the people. these words that were written in super sized font so that anyone standing across a room would know exactly what the vision of our constitution is all about. government of, by, and for the people, as abraham lincoln put it. not a nation by and for the privileged. not a nation by and for the powerful, but for the people. unfortunately, we see too much today of our government being taken over by the powerful. we see the use of gerrymandering, which is totally corrupted the distribution of power in the house of representatives just down that hallway. we see the use of voter suppression in state after state. my colleague from illinois just pointed out the man up to be a judge here in the united states of america was a key advocate, a key participant, a key architect of voter suppression should deeply trouble every member of this body, because if you believe in the vision of our constitution, you would

out early and he is demanding answers from mike lee, tweeting this "my colleague mike lee, senator merkley have a good base of this agreement on the first step act, by looking at the text, hopefully we can agree on the facts." you're to respond tonight, utah senator mike lee. good to have you with us this evening. your response to him? >> my response is that this is something that will make the american people safer. president donald trump has a strong track record of making the american people safe. and president donald trump is the leader of the republican party looking at this bill and understanding that we have to be smart in the way that we fight crime. in order to keep the american people safe, we have to make sure that our federal sentencing system or incarceration system is working correctly. the bill make some minor but very necessary tweaks to the federal criminal justice system, and that's why i wholeheartedly endorse it. >> martha: here are some specific elements, allowing credit for involvement in programs in prison. and if you participate in the programs, some of them are reh

shot candidates have taken multiple trips out to iowa, including john hickenlooper, senator jeff merkleynd john delaney and representative seth moulton and tip ryan. i've heard of those guys and there's pete buttigieg and michael avenatti and billionaire tom steyer. my hunches don't work anymore. i thought trump had support around the angry white guy. i didn't think there were that many to win those key states, turned out there were. i'm not ready to write off outsiders, like a steyer or a cuban. >> the rules are out the window. it's going to be the candidate who excites the voters. this is democracy in action. we've seen a break up of the strength of the party system over the course of the last dozen or so years due in part to citizens united, in part to mccain-feingold and you have voters deciding and to some extent donors. >> to john's point, are they going to have a chance for voters to see them? i think in this uber crowded field, what may be a key determinant can be who gets in there and gobbles up all of the best talent and makes the connection and all of the money. there's alread

. >> senator merkley, he can offer no legitimate answer why she wasn't there. >> and essentially whatconveying today was that because saudi arabia was a player in the region that supports some of our u.s. objectives that we're not going to hold them accountable for this murder. it's -- it's basically unbelievable to me that we're saying that you can murder an american resident with impunity if you buy our arms or help us with some other policy. >> senator, how is it that this administration has come to see the saudi-u.s. relationship as one in which the saudis have all the power and the united states has none? the saudis have all the power over the united states to determine what the united states' posture must be to saudi arabia. >> well, this is a bit of a mystery because it very much is the tail wagging the dog. is it because they supply oil to us? is it because they buy our arms? that's what the president has said. is it because they helped us against isis, and i must say that help wasn't massive. let's remember that it was the saudis, mostly saudis that attacked us on 9/11. and r

i'm joined live by senator jeff merkley to talk about ways to protect robert mueller. >>> plus, nancy pelosi is poised to become the next speaker of the house, unless she isn't. democrats feud publicly and privately with 45 days to go until the speaker election. and later, andrew gillum, bill nelson and stacey abrams all end their campaigns but not before raising serious questions about the faithfulness of our elections. first, this week, there have been a lot of developments in and around robert mueller's russia investigation. president trump says he has personally prepared and finished written questions written answers to questions from mueller. a source tells nbc news the president's legal team plans to submit them by thanksgiving. meanwhile, charges filed against wikileaks founder julian assange were mistakenly reveals by the u.s. attorney's office in the eastern district of virginia this week. at the same time, alleged russian operative maria butina is negotiating with prosecutors. the department of justice defended acting attorney general matt whitaker as unquestionably authoriz

you might fresh off a trip to mexico, senator merkley gives us the inside scoop on the caravan aunt interior secretary ryan zinke response to the climate change report and his many critics. first, we are following two major breaking story tonight. michael cohen was a fierce ally of the president, cutting a plea deal with the special counsel. and as russia doubled down on ukraine, president trump cancels his saturday meeting with vladimir putin. chief white house correspondent john roberts' live in argentina tonight. good evening, john. >> good evening to you. when the president left my house earlier today, in the morning headed for the helicopter and then air force one, he seemed to think that that meeting here at the g20 with vladimir putin was scheduled for saturday was a gos going to get a briefing when he got aboard air force one on what was going on with russia and the aggression against ukraine. shortly after the president boarded air force one, he was given a briefing by secretary of state mike pompeo along with the national security advisor john bolton and the chief of staff john kel

senator jeff merkley and john delaney have announced he's running.ete buttigieg, and michael avenatti and tom steyer. i always thought trump has the support of the angry white guy. i didn't think there were that many to win the key states. there were. i'm not willing to write off outsiders. i mean a nonpolitician like a cube snn. >> the rules are out the window. >> schultz? >> it's the candidate who excites the voters. this is democracy in action. we've seen a breakup of the strength of the party system over the course of the last dozen or so years due no part to citizen's united. at the moment what you've got is voters deciding and donors. >> are they going to have a chance for voters to see them? i do think in this uber crowded field, what may be also a key determinant is who gets in there the earliest and gobbles up all the best talent and makes all of the connections and all the money. there's already stories running about there being a staffed talent shortage in the state of iowa because there are so many people starting to go there and recruit.

. >> senator jeff merkley, thank you for coming on with your positions. >>> so a man goes hand gliding attach him to the glider. let me rephrase that. the pilot forgot to attach him to the glider. if you do one thing one would think it's to be attached to the glider. >> that should be the first thing. >> you will not believe what happened after. check out this video. we will tell you the whole story in a bit. alright, i brought in ensure max protein... ...to give you the protein you need with less of the sugar you don't. [grunting noise] i'll take that. 30 grams of protein and 1 gram of sugar. ensure max protein. in two great flavors. janice, mom told me you bought a house. okay. [ buttons clicking ] [ camera shutter clicks ] so, now that you have a house, you can use homequote explorer. quiet. i'm blasting my quads. janice, look. i'm in a meeting. -janice, look. -[ chuckles ] -look, look. -i'm looking. it's easy. you just answer some simple questions online, and you get coverage options to choose from. you're ruining my workout. cycling is my passion. you're ruining my workout. our ne

there are some very good people like jeff merkley of oregon was very thoughtful, a real spokesman, buthere just isn't anybody with the dynamism or what have you to replace a hubert humphrey. we could use him badly now. >> what about ideologically, apart from personality? >> warren maybe, kamala harris out in california. there are a few, but nobody systematic, thoughtful. it may say more about the state of american politics than it does about the democratic party in particular. >> and no reference to the republican party at all? >> in the republican party? [laughing] >> thank you. >> considering his amiable personality and all of the things said can what kind the president do think humphrey would've been? what he been an effective president? let's leave out vietnam for the moment. how we get served as president and do with all the complex and reasoning together and turns it into an effective presidency? >> i think he would've been a very effective president in the same way he galvanize people to vote for the legislation he wanted to push through. it would've been difficult, long and har

in september, democratic senator jeff merkley revealed the trump administration transferred nearly $10 million from fema to ice over the summer. this comes as "the washington post" is reporting that president trump is preparing to oust homeland security secretary kirstjen nielsen. she came under intense fire this summer over the trump administration's family separation policy, with democratic lawmakers demanding her resignation. trump cancnceled a visit with nielsen to texas this week to visit troops at the u.s.-mexico border after trump deployed thousands of soldiers to counter this ahead of the arrival of several central american caravans. this comes as human rights groups are seeking to halt trump's recent order barring immigrants who enter the u.s. between legal ports of entry from seeking asylum. details are emerging about the audio recordings that reportedly capture the last moments of the slain n saudi journalist jamal khashoggi's life and could direct with implicate crown prince mohammed bin salman in his murder. a member of the saudi kill team responsible for the assassination

according to "the merkley news" this is at least the second time 49ers cheerleaders have knelt during anthem. the paper reports that two members of the gold rush squad knelt here at levi's during a christmas eve game last year against jacksonville to join in the protest against police brutality and racial inequality that former 49ers quarterback colin kaepernick started during the 2016 season. last week nfl cheerleaders asked why they hadn't been taking a knee, their response, lack of support and the fear of losing their position on their respective squads. as you can imagine, the response on social media to this cheerleader's protest last night has ranged from praise to anger. there was some anger in the stands last night's game, niners and raiders fans duking it out during a pretty big brawl in the stands. no injuries. we have brand new numbers from the santa clara police department. there are at least 21 people arrested, 20 for drunk in public, one a parole violation. >> it would be unreasonable to expect 70,000 people to get together and not to be a single rest. arrest. >> reporte

. >>> and i want to go now to senator jeff merkley, democrat, member of the foreign relations committeet that classified briefing today from secretaries pompeo and mattis and not director haspel. so, senator, good to have you with me. secretary pompeo, of course, siding with the president, quote, turning a blind eye, as senator paul says, to the cia. now, pompeo says, look, i've read all the intelligence, there's no direct reporting, his words, that connect the crown prince of saudi arabia to khashoggi's murder. your response. >> well, the emphasis he put in that sentence was on the word "direct." he's saying we don't have the smoking gun but if you were to push him, i suspect that he would say he's not disputing the cia report or a conclusion. he's not disputing that there's massive amounts of indirect evidence in terms of the family members of the crown prince and the associates, the body guards, other members of the team closely related, not disputing the notion that this type of action would never happen without the crown prince's approval. so, it's a choice. it's a choice to ignore

i'm joined live by senator jeff merkley to talk about ways to protect robert mueller. >>> plus, nancy poised to become the next speaker of the house, unless she isn't. democrats feud publicly and privatit

thank you again, and thank you, senator merkley, for our continued partnership. this hearing is now adjourned. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] >> the u.s. senate continues work on nominations today. one is for thomas farr a north carolina attorney to work on congressional redistricting and voter i.d. laws in that state. he's being considered to be a federal judge in north carolina's eastern district. also today votes to limit debate on a federal appeals court judge confirmation and for the next consumer financial protection bureau director. live senate coverage now here on c-span2. the president pro tempore: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, dr. barry black, will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. lord, through all generations you have been the source of our hope and strength. we are astounded by the majesty of your sovereignty for a thousand years for you are like a few hours. today, inspire our lawmakers to think your thoughts and follow your precepts, seeking always to be receptive to your guidance. may they st

i'm joined live by senator jeff merkley to talk about ways to protect robert mueller. >>> plus, nancy of

jeff merkley was on the show last week.uld perhaps vote to shut down the government if it didn't include such a provision. is that your position as well? would you vote against this funding bill if it doesn't include protections for robert mueller? >> no. no, i think there are ways to protect robert mueller and i think there are ways to do that. there's a bipartisan bill out of the judiciary committee that mitch mcconnell could bring to the floor this week if he chose. i think there is a vehicle. i think shutting down the government should not be a regular practice to get what you want on policy. some kind of policy grounds. it never works, it doesn't further anybody's goal. so i wouldn't, i wouldn't go there. now the question of border security, i think it's really important, kasie, nobody is in favor of open borders. i've never heard anybody say we want to open borders. i voted in 2013, along with most of the democratic caucus and a lot of republicans, 68 votes for a comprehensive immigration package that had a huge borde