[00:00:00] Speaker 1: You voted for this president three times.

[00:00:02] Speaker 2: Is this what you voted for? Not only did I vote for the president three times, I was one of the few Republicans that stood by him early on when the rest of the Republicans turned their back on him. I also campaigned all over the country for him and attended many of those rallies where the campaign promises were no more foreign wars, no more regime change, and putting the American people first. Caitlin, those are the things that I believe on and have stood on in principle, not only in principle but by actions as well. I never voted to fund Ukraine. I never voted to fund any of the foreign wars. And I worked hard to get rid of foreign aid and funding foreign governments and foreign people. That's what I believe in. However, it is concerning to see what's happening and the direction that the Trump administration is moving in. We can say thankfully that Maduro has been arrested. We can say we're happy for the Venezuelan people. But we can also look to all the regime changes before in Iraq and Libya and Syria. And we said the same things for the people of those countries. But then we watch those countries fall into turmoil and civil war. And we've watched the rise of ISIS and terrorism. And we watch U.S. troops remain in those countries for a very long time. And many flag-draped coffins come home. And that's what many Americans don't want to see happen. And tonight, it is disturbing to see the latest news coming out of Venezuela, where there is chaos and possibly some sort of civil war or sort of chaos and disruption happening. And we care about people, but we care about our country, too, Caitlin. And to me, America first is what matters most, and the American people matter most. And I believe the focus should be strong domestic policy to help Americans afford life, afford health care, health insurance, be able to buy a home, an affordable home, and live the American dream. And so I unapologetically support America first. And as an American, it's OK to disagree with the president that I helped get elected. And it's OK to disagree with other Americans. But what's not OK is for our government to put their full focus on foreign countries.

[00:02:26] Speaker 1: CAITLIN MCCARTHY, The Washington Post Do you think that Marco Rubio, Stephen Miller, Pete Hegseth and J.D. Vance should be running Venezuela, as the president puts it?

[00:02:35] Speaker 2: CAITLIN MCCARTHY, The Washington Post I would like to see our elected president and vice president and his administration running America. I think that's most important for the American people and our interest. And we have real problems here at home. We're nearly $40 trillion in debt. They've done a great job stabilizing inflation that was record high under the Biden administration. They've done a wonderful job securing the border. And I love seeing the crime statistics go down. But I would like to see a continued focus on domestic policy that helps the American people. That's the country that they are supposed to be running. And I hope the United States of America is the country they stay focused on running.

[00:03:18] Speaker 1: CAITLIN MCCARTHY, The Washington Post The White House is arguing they can do both, basically, that they can deal with what's happening in Venezuela and also address those other campaign promises. Do you see it that way, if there's not really a clear plan that's been laid out, at least so far, for what happens next in Venezuela?

[00:03:35] Speaker 2: CAITLIN MCCARTHY, The Washington Post Again, from an America First standpoint, Caitlin, Venezuela belongs to the Venezuelan people, and they should elect their own government leaders. We have elected our government leaders, the Trump administration, and we have elected them to run America, not to be globalist, not to run other countries, not to pursue regime change and foreign wars. We very much need our government and our government leaders to focus on the American people and the issues that we care about on Main Street USA.

[00:04:12] Speaker 1: CAITLIN MCCARTHY, The Washington Post It sounds like you think the president is breaking a campaign promise.

[00:04:18] Speaker 2: CAITLIN MCCARTHY, The Washington Post I know the campaign promises that I made, Caitlin, and that's America First. And I've stuck with those. I've said no more foreign wars, no regime change. That's why I always voted against it and never voted to fund any of the foreign wars. That's why I'm able to say I don't think this is a good thing. Of course, of course, we want the people of Venezuela to have freedoms, and we want them to have a good, stable government. And, of course, Maduro is a bad guy, and administrations in the past, the Biden administration before that, all were putting out bounties on his head. Of course, I can say killing Americans with illegal drugs is bad, and I'm fully against it. And that's why I impeached Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Those were my articles of impeachment that passed the House. So I can have all of those views and, at the same time, say I very much want our American president and his administration to focus on America First.

[00:05:22] Speaker 1: You have been very outspoken as a member of Congress. As of tomorrow morning, you're no longer going to be a member of Congress. How do you plan to hold a role if you're no longer in that position of power? What do you think that looks like for you going forward?

[00:05:41] Speaker 2: Thankfully, I get to be an American citizen, just like I was before I became a member of Congress. Before I became a member of Congress in January of 2021, I had never held any political position. I was just a business owner, raised three kids, and enjoyed American life. And thankfully, that's something that I'll be able to enjoy once again. And being an American is such a privilege. We have such great freedoms and rights, and I'll use my voice to always, always defend those. But I've thankfully held the job title Representative Caitlyn, and I think the job title speaks everything for the job. And so it's my hopes that whoever's the next representative for the great 14th District of Georgia will take that job title seriously, because I think that's something that's lost in Washington, D.C. Everyone goes to Washington, and they get lost in all the special causes and the lobbyists in the hallways and the foreign interests and the committees, and they lose sight of the people back at home. And I never lost sight of the people back at home. They always were number one to me, and I really enjoyed going home as much as possible. So, Caitlyn, I'm very thankful that I get to spend more time with my family and friends and hold the very proud title of U.S. citizen.

[00:07:08] Speaker 1: Well, two of the biggest things you've spoken about in your last few weeks and months as a representative was Jeffrey Epstein and how the Justice Department has handled that and also health care. We heard from your colleague AOC, who was saying she believed the Venezuelan move is about oil and regime change, that, quote, they need a trial now to pretend that it isn't, especially to distract from Epstein plus skyrocketing health care costs. Is that something that you agree with?

[00:07:36] Speaker 2: I wouldn't say that it's meant to be a distraction. I think those are all separate issues. So, no, I don't necessarily agree with what she said. I signed my name on the discharge petition to release the Epstein files because I fully stand with women who were raped as teenagers. And releasing those files was a campaign promise. That was something that MAGA voted for. And the American people across political spectrums believe in and overwhelmingly demanded. So I'll never apologize for that, even though the president called me a traitor for standing with those victims. I think that health care is a separate issue and it's extremely important. The Democrats created Obamacare and they passed the ACA tax credits. I didn't vote for those. And that has driven the cost of health care and health insurance to be unaffordable for many Americans. And it is a serious issue. And that's why I have pushed hard on my own party and the Speaker of the House, because Republicans have never presented an alternative plan, even though Mike Johnson said over and over again that he would have one on day one. And I think that's a complete failure to the American people. It's a serious issue and Republicans can't dismiss it. But another serious issue is regime change and foreign wars. And I really hope to see the American people push back and say, let's focus on the United States of America, Mr. President, because that's what the American people deserve.

[00:09:05] Speaker 1: On the Jeffrey Epstein release, we still haven't seen the administration fully comply with the law that Congress passed to release all of those files. They say they're still going through millions of them that it could take maybe until the end of January. It's not really clear. Do you trust that they will ultimately release everything they are legally required to put out there?

[00:09:26] Speaker 2: At this point, Caitlyn, after serving under the Biden administration and now under a Republican Trump administration, many things in Washington stay the same, no matter who is in charge. And I think that's something that most Americans have come to realize. So I won't trust anything happens until I actually see it happen with my own eyes. But I certainly hope for the women that that were victimized by Jeffrey Epstein and other rich, powerful elite men. I hope for them that the files do get released and they are the ones that will know when it happens.

[00:10:02] Speaker 1: Do you have a parting message for your fellow lawmakers here in Washington, namely Republicans, your party?

[00:10:12] Speaker 2: My parting message for everyone is that that we really need to join together and put America first. I'm one that has been vocal about being very tired of the toxic nature of politics because the division is causing us more problems. It isn't fixing any of our problems. So what I would say is I would encourage all lawmakers to look within themselves, examine their job title, which is representative, and work together to do good for the American people because it's the American people that elects them. It's the American people that pay taxes, that pay for our government, and it's the American people that they swear an oath to serve. And so that would be my parting message for lawmakers. But my parting message would be for my district, Caitlin, and that's thank you for the honor of the lifetime, allowing me to serve them in the 14th district.