Biden Asks “What Are Republicans For?” — McCarthy Fires Back: The Constitution, Kids in Schools, Safe Streets, a Secure Border

On 1/23/2022, after President Biden repeatedly asked at his press conference “What are Republicans for? What are they for? Name me one thing they’re for,” House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy delivered a detailed response, accusing Biden of adopting “the Bernie Sanders prescription for America” and refusing to work with Republicans on any issue from the border to COVID to inflation.

Biden’s Challenge

During his rare press conference, Biden had criticized Republicans for unifying against his proposals. “I did not anticipate that there’d be such a stalwart effort to make sure that the most important thing was that President Biden didn’t get anything done,” Biden said. He then challenged: “What are Republicans for? What are they for? Name me one thing they’re for.”

Biden also targeted McConnell personally. “What’s Mitch for? What’s he for on immigration? What’s he for? What’s he proposing? What’s he for dealing with Russia?”

McCarthy: “Where Did I Say We Refused?”

McCarthy pushed back forcefully in a press conference. When a reporter relayed Biden’s accusation that Republicans refused to work across the aisle, McCarthy interrupted: “Hold on. Let’s back up. Where did I say we refused to walk across the aisle?”

McCarthy then walked through a year of attempts to engage with the White House. He described how Republicans had gone to the border in February, discovered people on the terrorist watch list being arrested, sent a letter to Biden asking to meet, and received no response.

“In every single issue — not just the border, the mandates, the inflation, transportation, others — we asked to meet and work with you, Mr. President,” McCarthy said. “Everything he has done is to have one-party rule, one-side vote for it and deny. When he talks about Build Back Better, has he ever met with us about it? No."

"We Want to Answer That Question”

McCarthy directly addressed Biden’s challenge. “An interesting question that the president asked yesterday as he blamed everyone else — he asked, ‘What are Republicans for?’ We want to answer that question for him,” McCarthy said.

“We’re for kids in school. We’re for food on the shelves. We’re for America’s independence and energy — lowering the gas price so it doesn’t harm us. We’re for stopping runaway spending so we don’t create inflation like they have. We’re for a secure border with an immigration system that works. We’re for a world that is safe. We want our streets back. We want security and we want safety."

"The Second Cousin of Bernie Sanders”

McCarthy and McConnell both argued Biden had abandoned the moderate image he campaigned on. “If the president starts acting like a moderate, like he campaigned, we can do business,” McConnell said. “The reason we’ve not been speaking recently this year is because he adopted the Bernie Sanders prescription for America.”

McCarthy elaborated: “The American people who voted for President Biden thought they were getting the second coming of President Obama. They got the second cousin of Bernie Sanders. That’s not what they wanted. I like Bernie, but he tested negative for president. He lost.”

One-Party Rule From Day One

McCarthy traced the breakdown to the first major legislation of Biden’s presidency. “The minute he became president and they controlled the House and Senate, no longer were Republicans invited into the room,” he said. “What’s the first thing they passed? Purely on a partisan basis — $1.9 trillion.”

He noted the contrast with COVID legislation under Trump. “Every single bill we did dealing with COVID was bipartisan. We sat in a room with leaders on the other side, administration, and we worked it all out,” McCarthy said. “We warned them then that you would create inflation. One year later, we were right."

"I Make No Apologies”

McCarthy expressed particular alarm at Biden’s defiance about Afghanistan. “I cannot imagine, based upon the president’s own decisions on what he did in Afghanistan, to look the American public in the eye and, I quote, ‘I make no apologies for what I did,’” McCarthy said.

Biden had said at his press conference: “There is no way to get out of Afghanistan after 20 years easily. It’s not possible no matter when you did it. And I make no apologies for what I did.”

Key Takeaways

Biden asked “What are Republicans for?” at his press conference; McCarthy responded: kids in school, food on shelves, energy independence, stopping inflation, a secure border, and safe streets.
McCarthy accused Biden of never inviting Republicans into negotiations on Build Back Better or any major legislation after taking office.
McConnell said Biden had “adopted the Bernie Sanders prescription for America” after campaigning as a moderate.
McCarthy noted every COVID bill under Trump was bipartisan, but Biden’s first action was a $1.9 trillion partisan bill.
McCarthy said he “cannot imagine” Biden looking Americans in the eye and saying “I make no apologies” for the Afghanistan withdrawal.

Transcript Highlights

The following is transcribed from the video audio (unverified — AI-generated from audio).

What are Republicans for? We want to answer that question. We’re for kids in school. We’re for food on the shelves. We’re for America’s independence and energy. We’re for a secure border.
Where did I say we refused to walk across the aisle? Everything he has done is to have one-party rule.
The American people thought they were getting the second coming of President Obama. They got the second cousin of Bernie Sanders.
The minute he became president, no longer were Republicans invited into the room. We warned them you would create inflation. One year later, we were right.
I cannot imagine looking the American public in the eye and saying, I make no apologies for what I did.
If the president starts acting like a moderate, like he campaigned, we can do business.

Full transcript: 877 words transcribed via Whisper AI.