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Richard Blumenthal: “We were pretty unified as a caucus as Democrats.”

Featuring: Richard Blumenthal, Democratic | U.S. Senate from Connecticut

CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal"

Published November 25, 2025 | Video Starts at 12:26

Since there was no continuing resolution, the government was shut down. And their idea of a clean funding proposal was no health care. My reaction, and We were pretty unified as a caucus as Democrats. was no health care, no agreement on the funding proposal. Okay. That lasted for quite some time, and that's what happened. (12:26–12:32)

CLAIM

Asserts that the Democratic caucus was unified in their stance.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

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Richard Blumenthal

“People in Connecticut are forced to pay literally $20,000 more for this health care insurance.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 14:22-14:30
“Three quarters of all the people who will pay more as a result of ending these health care tax credits live in red states that Donald Trump…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 17:24-17:37
“When Bill Clinton left office, there was no national debt.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 34:04-34:08
“We have hundreds of billions of dollars in Russian assets that are in European banks.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 53:29-53:36
“Republicans were calling votes again and again on the same piece of legislation, namely what they called a clean CR.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 11:52-12:05
“Since there was no continuing resolution, the government was shut down.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 12:14-12:19
“Their idea of a clean funding proposal was no health care.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 12:19-12:25
“I was disappointed and angry that Republicans forced this false choice on us.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 13:06-13:15
“The promise they made to the eight who decided to go along with their continuing resolution was that we would have a vote on continuing the…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 13:21-13:37
“These health care subsidies are necessary for thousands of people who buy their insurance through open enrollment in the Affordable Care…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 13:58-14:10
“In Connecticut, it's known as Health Access Health Connecticut to buy health insurance. And the prices premiums are spiking double, triple…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 14:09-14:23
“Everybody pays more because the sickest people have to get insurance.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 14:56-15:01
“Social Security may be insolvent unless we reform it by eliminating some of the exemptions for people above certain incomes.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 19:26-19:38
“I think there will be a vote. And unfortunately I think Republicans will be bludgeoned into voting against health care tax credits…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 20:10-20:21
“I've supported Medicare for All from day one when Bernie Sanders helped to lead it.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 20:56-21:03
“Medicare for All makes Medicare available for everyone in this country.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 21:15-21:20
“We have passed a bill as part of the time when we were in the majority that permits negotiation of Medicare drug prices for everyone.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 22:40-22:54
“The nation has followed Connecticut and putting a cap on insulin prices.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 22:56-23:02
“We pay tons of money, more for pharmaceutical drugs, for example, than other countries do.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 23:48-23:57
“SNAP provides for 42 million people.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 27:31-27:36
“There's no reason that we have a debt ceiling.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 28:47-28:50
“We don't have tax breaks for billionaires. We don't have 4 trillion. We're not talking about billion. We're talking about trillion dollars…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 29:36-29:45
“You want an effective SNAP program, you want effective health care, you don't cut a third of all the Medicaid recipients.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 29:58-30:08
“Connecticut, fortunately, is in a good fiscal position.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 30:08-30:13
“The governor, to his great credit, committed. He was going to provide for the SNAP benefits even if the federal government cut off.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 30:12-30:19
“We are in effect eviscerating our middle class.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 30:44-30:49
“Republicans may talk about reducing the national debt, but look at what they did on the tax breaks for billionaires.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 34:15-34:21
“Extremist violence is one of the greatest threats to the stability of our country.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 36:05-36:11
“There was a point where I received the intelligence briefings on threats to this country where they shifted from fears about extremists from…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 36:11-36:26
“You have a right not to obey an illegal order, which is actually one of the first principles of the Uniform Code of Military justice.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 37:46-37:56
“A number of my colleagues have raised this issue with respect to the strikes on those boats in the Caribbean that supposedly are carrying…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 39:18-39:29
“I have reviewed the classified Office of Legal Counsel memorandum that supposedly justifies these strikes on the boats. And I came away very…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 39:37-39:55
“I led a group of my colleagues, all of us Democrats on the Armed Services Committee. We just released the letter to the Secretary of Defense…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 40:16-40:36
“The rationale given so far publicly is inadequate based just on what has been publicly disclosed.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 41:07-41:19
“There have not been acts of war against Venezuela, but there have been potentially violations of international law in essentially killing…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 42:47-43:06
“It's not fentanyl which comes from Mexico, it is mostly cocaine that's going to other Caribbean islands or to Central America.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 43:59-44:10
“In 2014, I was in the United States Senate and on the Judiciary Committee, and we negotiated an immigration reform bill.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 45:13-45:28
“We provided for more visas, agricultural visas, as well as H1B visas for industry and manufacturing.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 45:53-46:02
“We provided a number of reforms to the asylum process to eliminate the backlog asylum claims and provided more resources for judges.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 46:02-46:14
“We provided a path to earn citizenship for undocumented people who are here, 11 million at the time.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 46:14-46:19
“It passed the United States Senate with more than 60 votes. Bipartisan measure.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 47:38-47:46
“The opportunity was lost because John Boehner, then Speaker of the House, would not give it a vote.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 48:02-48:09
“NATO membership [for Ukraine] be barred, Ukraine's military be decimated, foreign military presence in Ukraine be banned.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 49:08-49:22
“I've been to Ukraine eight times since the beginning of the war.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 49:47-49:53
“A Russia sanctions bill with 85 co-sponsors.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 50:03-50:16
“Putin is slaughtering children, women in their homes, in schools and hospitals.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 52:05-52:12
“Putin is committing war crimes. He's been charged with war crimes.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 52:17-52:23
“Europeans are paying for arms coming from the United States.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 53:01-53:06
“I have a bill that would essentially use those Russian assets to pay for American arms bought by the Europeans.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 53:38-53:49
“Putin wants to restore the old Russian empire.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 54:31-54:34
“The Department of Justice will do everything it can to avoid disclosure [of the Epstein files].”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 55:28-55:34
“We will do everything we can to force disclosure [of the Epstein files].”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 55:59-56:06
“My hope is, John, that we'll have bipartisan agreement that the Epstein files have to be made transparent.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 56:28-56:36
“The most important part to me is the survivors. They are the heroes here. They are the reasons that this legislation passed.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 57:17-57:27
“Trump reversed himself instead of opposing it so staunchly and steadfastly.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 57:27-57:35
“The norm. And the tradition has been that [the Department of Justice] doesn't [take orders from the White House].”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 59:01-59:06
“There were laws passed that protected against disclosure from the IRS, even to the Justice Department.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 59:57-1:00:05
“What we're seeing now is the most kind of flagrant abuse of that tradition and norm.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:00:07-1:00:15
“I have proposed a bill with Dan Goldman...that would essentially prohibit these kinds of contacts between the White House directing the…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:00:54-1:01:19
“We also proposed a right of action for abusive prosecution.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:01:18-1:01:26
“There are a lot of measures where guardrails and safeguards should be imposed that we will not see in this administration.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:02:18-1:02:25
“Republicans talk a good game privately and then fall into line publicly because they are so fearful of primaries supported or launched by…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:03:11-1:03:22
“Chris Murphy and I have been working on this bill for a very long time.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:04:00-1:04:06
“Background checks apply if you go into a gun store where the owner is licensed, but the private sales at gun shows or other kinds of ways…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:04:23-1:04:38
“We'd expand the background check coverage.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:04:37-1:04:41
“Background checks in Connecticut cover those sales more expansively.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:04:56-1:05:01
“Connecticut has shown that good, responsible gun violence prevention actually works. It saves lives.”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:05:01-1:05:11
“This Veterans Administration leadership has engaged in unnecessary and actual counterproductive cuts in for example, the Veterans Crisis…”
CT Mirror Presents: "In The Room: A Conversation with US Senator Richard Blumenthal" | Uploaded November 25, 2025 | 1:05:45-1:05:57