first i want to thank senator phil gramm for agreeing to testify this morning. he's always been one of my heroes of the senate, he was one of the first people that i met when i got to washington, and after listening to a few of his debates when i can see terror in the face of his opponents, i actually got to sit down and visit with him about some critical issues. i was on the banking committee that he was the chairman of at the time and i learned a lot. and i wanted to specifically to have him here for a hearing because of his past experience, not while i was in the senate but before that when he worked with redmond and hallings and that's had a carryover effect on us today and that was kwielt a while ago so there need to be some revisions in it so we'll be relying on him and others who have chaired the budget committee to come up with solutions that will make it possible for us to get control of the budget while we improve the economy. so, senator graham's decades of experience serving as an elected official both in the house and then in the senate, both as dem

the way i look at the payment because i introduced a bill in 2010 which brushed off the phil gramm, bill clinton proposal and updated it if you will. incentive between the federal and state government. >> so important because having taken care of medicaid patients in our practices the medicaid population is not monolithic. as individuals who are seniors, disabled, blind and disabled individuals. all of the need to be treated uniquely because of their unique individuals. what we do is a system of state you have to take care of all those people the same way which doesn't allow for that dynamism and flexibility so states can tailor their medicaid programs to suit the population we do the payments somewhat different than the house does. as an example, as we know right now states recover waste fraud and abuse they have to get back to the federal government the portion that the taxpayer put in. if it's a 40% state, 60% of that goes back to the federal government. that works to disincentive eyes the state to go after waste fraud and abuse because after kick it back, they would keep a hundred% i

, and they also nonprofit taxaxg law according to at least one gramm,blower and wendy wife of f phil grammwas sendig a very partisan letters, fundraising letters for the buchanan center saying how it was going to change our politics. i think that is interesting. buchanan wasknow sickened by that. buchanan pulls away from this as it takes off, but koch is so well-funded -- we would not be your without buchanan's ideas and koch money. the money they are pulled together, they're pushing this system through in a way i actually believe might have appalled buchanan, too, because it is such a task use of the --itical system and of the grotesque use of the political system. amy: we want to thank you for being with us, nancy maclean, author of "democracy in chains: the deep history of the radical right's stealth plan for america." professor of history and public policy at duke university. when we come back, the epa's new water safety official is a lobbyist with deep ties to the dakota access pipeline. we will talk about that with the intercept investigative reporter lee fang. stay with us. ♪ [music

because as you know i introduced a bill in 2010-- i don't know when it was that brushed off the phil grammill clinton proposal and updated it, if you will. the incentive between the federal and state government. >> exactly and its own port because as you know having taken care of as i did medicaid patients in our practices, the medicaid population is not a monolithic population. they are individuals who are healthy moms and kids and also individuals who are seniors, low income seniors and disabled, blind and disabled individuals and all of those individuals need to be treated uniquely because they are unique individuals and what we do as a system by and large is a you have to take care of every one of those people the same way, which doesn't allow for that dynamism and flexibility in the program so states can deal with their medicaid programs to deal with their population. >> i don't know if this is in the hospital, because the way we do it is different than the house, but an example of zero mining incentive, as we know right now if states recover waste, fraud and abuse they have to give b

in the northeast, ronald reagan to do tax reform with the conservative democrat from texas and phil gramm. -- from texas named phil graham. you think about the parties .hrough a tribal lens contempt is a decision. i don't think these voters like trump so much, but they sure as byl hate the people attacking his voters and calling and racists and homophobes, misogynist, and every other label you can under the book. i will say this. the democrats, as a strategic , have an enormous elitism problem. valley, you silicon couldn't find people more out of touch of the lives of average americans than if they lived on the moon base on jupiter that was built in 1996. [laughter] i digress. that is contempt. the truth of it is, and i live in park city, utah and spend a lot of time in manhattan. , peoplet dinner parties deplorableersations, is how they feel about the people that do the dirty jobs. he don't have the fancy college .egree ronald reagan in 1980, when he ran against jimmy carter, he did it to contact the carter voter ne created a environment for them to cross over. he asked, are you better o

republicans in the northeast, ronald reagan used tax reform as a conservative democrat from texas named phil grammand all of that as out. i do think that when you think about the parties anything about it. tribal lands contempt is a reciprocal emotion. i don't know if those republican voters, right, like trump so much but they said sure as hell hate the people who explain trump's election by attacking his voters and calling them racists and homophobes and misogynists and every other label you can under the book. i will say this, the democrats as a strategic issue, have an enormous elitism problem. they have a coastal elitism problem. you go to silicon valley, you couldn't find people more out of touch with the lives of average americans than if they lived on the moon based on jupiter that newt gingrich built in 1996. i'm kidding. i digress. but that's a fact. the truth of it is, right i live in utah and i spent a lot of time in manhattan and a lot of time in the bay area in los angeles. people at the dinner parties, people and the conversations, deplorable is exactly how they feel about these peop

united states senate, i worked my first four years oria this distinguished body, mostly for senator phil gramm and his hours on the senate floor oria committee and at my desk learning how the senate works as well, how an institution protects the rights of the minority to be heard and how statesmen ought to debate their colleagues to move the vote and shape public opinion. it was here that i developed a lug for public policy, seeing how it could be used to help this country live free or and more prosperous lives. it is an honor to be nominated and serve as the director of of management budget. it is a job that comes with great responsibility and i am humbled that president trump and director mulvaney asked me to serve. i know the quality of the men and women who had previously served oria this particular role and i want to contribute to that long line of distinguished public service. my career has readied for me for this moment. i spent over 12 years working oria the house and senate with a specific emphasis on budget policy. i was a publican study committei budget writing is budget resolutions

. >>> former republican senator phil gramm of texas appeared before the budget committee to talk about economic growth under the trump administration. mr. gramm touched on tax policy, debt and deficit and immigration. this is about an hour and 20 minutes. >> i'm going to go ahead and call this hearing to order and i know that people aren't interested in our opening statements, i'll go ahead and do my opening statement and if