The following is a distilled and edited transcript of an interview between Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on a weekend edition of Morning Wire.
As Tesla owners face escalating attacks and the Biden-era federal budget balloons, Senator Marsha Blackburn says Americans are witnessing the backlash to Republican efficiency reforms and shrinking government. In a recent Morning Wire interview with Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley, Senator Blackburn outlines why the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is under fire, and why she believes Democrats are “rudderless” and losing their grip on power.
* * *
John Bickley: Senator, you’re bringing a resolution to the Senate floor that condemns attacks on Tesla. What prompted that move?
Senator Marsha Blackburn: It’s stunning that we’re seeing these violent attacks—vandalism, destruction of private property, even firebombings—and yet Democratic leadership is not standing up and calling out these acts of domestic terrorism. This resolution says the U.S. Senate stands against those acts of violence. Whether it’s Tesla dealerships, electric car owners, or charging stations being targeted, it’s unacceptable. So we think this resolution is appropriate. We want to give members of the U.S. Senate from each party, along with a couple of independents, the opportunity to stand up and say, “We condemn these attacks.”
Bickley: Elon Musk has suggested there’s big money and coordination behind these protests. Are you seeing evidence that this isn’t just grassroots chaos?
Sen. Blackburn: Yes. What we’ve heard — and what Musk has highlighted — is that this is something that is quite organized. We know they’re planning a so-called “Global Day of Action” against Tesla. The reasoning behind it is telling: it’s about their hatred for Donald Trump, their disdain for Elon Musk, and opposition to DOGE — the Department of Government Efficiency — which Musk helped establish in partnership with Congress. That’s the real target. Leftists need big government in order to survive. That’s their mother’s milk, if you will. These activist organizations can’t survive on their own — so when we start rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal system, they become distraught. DOGE is cutting off the pipeline of taxpayer money that’s been flowing into these nonprofits.
Bickley: What kind of waste are we talking about here?
Sen. Blackburn: The Biden administration handed out billions to organizations that have no ability to stand on their own. I’ll give you one example: Stacey Abrams’ so-called “climate justice” nonprofit had about $100 in the bank, but somehow received $2 billion in federal money — that’s billion with a “B.” That’s not just wasteful, it’s offensive to taxpayers. All that money needs to be clawed back. It should go back to the U.S. Treasury and used to pay down our $36 trillion in debt. Then, we need to codify those cuts, making them permanent through rescission bills and reconciliation processes. That’s how we get to a balanced budget again. Right now we’re at $7.3 trillion. Trump’s target is $5.5 trillion.
Bickley: What specifically will the Senate do to make DOGE reforms permanent?
Sen. Blackburn: You’ll see us move quickly on a reconciliation bill to make the Trump 2017 tax cuts permanent. That’s step one. But just as important, we’re planning a rescission bill that includes DOGE’s spending reductions. That’s the mechanism for cutting these funds out of the federal budget baseline. The beauty of the rescission process is that it only requires 51 votes in the Senate, not 60. That gives us a real path to codify these cuts. We’re aiming to get back to pre-COVID levels of spending.
Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Bickley: Final question. We’ve seen a lot of pressure mounting on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Do you foresee a real shakeup with the Democrats in the near future?
Sen. Blackburn: I don’t think Chuck Schumer’s going anywhere. They’ve gone so far Left, however, that even their base is frustrated. If you look at the issues Americans care about — securing the border, deporting criminal illegal aliens, restoring law and order, getting men out of women’s sports, balancing the budget — these are 80/20 issues. Eighty percent of the people are in favor while 20% are opposed. But the Democrats are on the wrong side of every one of them. They oppose everything that’s being done to secure the border and deport criminal illegal aliens and get inflation down and get men out of women’s sports. The list goes on and on. So, they’re rudderless. They have no message, no messenger, no designated leaders. They’re pretty much out of the game.
Bickley: Senator Blackburn, thank you for your time.
Sen. Blackburn: Thanks. Always good to join you.
* * *
Catch the full interview on Morning Wire.
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[[{“value”:”
The following is a distilled and edited transcript of an interview between Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on a weekend edition of Morning Wire.
As Tesla owners face escalating attacks and the Biden-era federal budget balloons, Senator Marsha Blackburn says Americans are witnessing the backlash to Republican efficiency reforms and shrinking government. In a recent Morning Wire interview with Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley, Senator Blackburn outlines why the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is under fire, and why she believes Democrats are “rudderless” and losing their grip on power.
* * *
John Bickley: Senator, you’re bringing a resolution to the Senate floor that condemns attacks on Tesla. What prompted that move?
Senator Marsha Blackburn: It’s stunning that we’re seeing these violent attacks—vandalism, destruction of private property, even firebombings—and yet Democratic leadership is not standing up and calling out these acts of domestic terrorism. This resolution says the U.S. Senate stands against those acts of violence. Whether it’s Tesla dealerships, electric car owners, or charging stations being targeted, it’s unacceptable. So we think this resolution is appropriate. We want to give members of the U.S. Senate from each party, along with a couple of independents, the opportunity to stand up and say, “We condemn these attacks.”
Bickley: Elon Musk has suggested there’s big money and coordination behind these protests. Are you seeing evidence that this isn’t just grassroots chaos?
Sen. Blackburn: Yes. What we’ve heard — and what Musk has highlighted — is that this is something that is quite organized. We know they’re planning a so-called “Global Day of Action” against Tesla. The reasoning behind it is telling: it’s about their hatred for Donald Trump, their disdain for Elon Musk, and opposition to DOGE — the Department of Government Efficiency — which Musk helped establish in partnership with Congress. That’s the real target. Leftists need big government in order to survive. That’s their mother’s milk, if you will. These activist organizations can’t survive on their own — so when we start rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal system, they become distraught. DOGE is cutting off the pipeline of taxpayer money that’s been flowing into these nonprofits.
Bickley: What kind of waste are we talking about here?
Sen. Blackburn: The Biden administration handed out billions to organizations that have no ability to stand on their own. I’ll give you one example: Stacey Abrams’ so-called “climate justice” nonprofit had about $100 in the bank, but somehow received $2 billion in federal money — that’s billion with a “B.” That’s not just wasteful, it’s offensive to taxpayers. All that money needs to be clawed back. It should go back to the U.S. Treasury and used to pay down our $36 trillion in debt. Then, we need to codify those cuts, making them permanent through rescission bills and reconciliation processes. That’s how we get to a balanced budget again. Right now we’re at $7.3 trillion. Trump’s target is $5.5 trillion.
Bickley: What specifically will the Senate do to make DOGE reforms permanent?
Sen. Blackburn: You’ll see us move quickly on a reconciliation bill to make the Trump 2017 tax cuts permanent. That’s step one. But just as important, we’re planning a rescission bill that includes DOGE’s spending reductions. That’s the mechanism for cutting these funds out of the federal budget baseline. The beauty of the rescission process is that it only requires 51 votes in the Senate, not 60. That gives us a real path to codify these cuts. We’re aiming to get back to pre-COVID levels of spending.
Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Bickley: Final question. We’ve seen a lot of pressure mounting on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Do you foresee a real shakeup with the Democrats in the near future?
Sen. Blackburn: I don’t think Chuck Schumer’s going anywhere. They’ve gone so far Left, however, that even their base is frustrated. If you look at the issues Americans care about — securing the border, deporting criminal illegal aliens, restoring law and order, getting men out of women’s sports, balancing the budget — these are 80/20 issues. Eighty percent of the people are in favor while 20% are opposed. But the Democrats are on the wrong side of every one of them. They oppose everything that’s being done to secure the border and deport criminal illegal aliens and get inflation down and get men out of women’s sports. The list goes on and on. So, they’re rudderless. They have no message, no messenger, no designated leaders. They’re pretty much out of the game.
Bickley: Senator Blackburn, thank you for your time.
Sen. Blackburn: Thanks. Always good to join you.
* * *
Catch the full interview on Morning Wire.
“}]]
