Van Jones: GOP only an 'anti-Obama party'

DONALD TRUMP: I once said it's complicated.
It's not complicated compared to other things being complicated.
It's not that hard.
I was disappointed that they didn't have more in line
by the time I walked in.
JAKE TRAPPER: President Trump taking
a swipe at the Republican-controlled
Congress on health care.
Is he really ready for round two?
Here to talk with me about it, former Republican presidential
candidate and Senator from the great commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum.
Jennifer Granholm, former Democratic governor
of Michigan, CNN political commentators
Anna Navarro and Van Jones.
Anna, doesn't President Trump have a point?
Republicans have been in Congress
and controlling Congress now for quite some time.
They've been waiting for a Republican president.
And Senator Santorum, a few months ago,
expressed surprise that the Republicans didn't have
a health care bill ready to go.
I don't know that he's wrong.
What do you think?
ANNA NAVARRO: Well, I think it's a good point.
I think they caught the bus, and then they
weren't ready to catch the bus.
Oh, Lord.
Look what happened.
But also, I think that Donald Trump's victory was a surprise,
even to most Republicans in Congress,
certainly to the leadership.
It's also-- right now, I think the toughest
thing going on in Washington is the itra-Republican Party
infighting.
It is a family that is in shambles right now.
There are so many different factions.
So it is a tougher job than it used to be.
And on the other hand, Donald Trump should
put out some detailed policy.
I think he's actually done a pretty good job reaching out
to Congress, better than President Obama did,
not something that was his forte.
But he hasn't been very good about the details
and about leading in policy.
JAKE TRAPPER: Van?
VAN JONES: The Republican Party was a good anti-Obama party.
But Obama is gone.
And so now you actually--
this party passed a gazillion bills to repeal health care,
I think 4,800.
I can't remember.
JAKE TRAPPER: When they weren't going to count.
VAN JONES: When they weren't going to count.
When no one was going to sign these things.
Suddenly, someone may sign the thing,
and they can't figure out how to pass the bill,
because they weren't serious in the first place.
You had an anti-Obama party--
not a populous party, not a Conservative Party,
not a right-wing party an anti-Obama party.
And now they can't govern.
JAKE TRAPPER: Is the problem, Senator Santorum--
to try to play devil's advocate on behalf
of our Republican congressional friends,
is the problem that President Trump's positions don't
necessarily line up on many of these issues
with Republican congressional orthodoxy?
He is more populist on trade, and issues like that?
RICK SANTORUM: Yeah, I think that's true overall.
I don't think that's true on health care.
I think on health care, President Trump
is very much in favor of doing something and really
putting it to the Congress.
And the Congress wasn't ready.
The Congress dropped the ball.
They put together a plan that wasn't passable.
And I know there are folks working on alternative plans
right now.
I'm working with some of those folks.
I hope we can get something that is workable.
The president has to be more engaged
and involved in these issues.
If there's one failing I would give to the president that
maybe isn't talked about very much,
is he really needs to get his policy chops in line.
He has to start understanding the details,
particularly when it comes to health care,
and understand that unless he engages
and is convincing members--
not I'm going to run somebody in a primary against you,
but here's the policy reasons why we need to do this,
here's why this is best for America--
we're going to be in trouble.
But on your major point, you're right.
He is a populist.
He is not your typical Republican.
And on a lot of issues going forward--
this is what always surprises me about the Democrats.
There are so many issues out there
the Democrats should be embracing Donald Trump on,
trade being one of them.
JENNIFER GRANHOLM: And I think they will.
RICK SANTORUM: And infrastructure.
And right now, it's just hardcore no,
because they just hate them.
But I agree that.
JAKE TRAPPER: But Governor, let me ask you--
President Trump-- I think what Senator Santorum is saying--
and hopefully he's listening, because it's coming
from Senator Santorum-- we know he watches CNN--
is that he doesn't know what's in his bills
that he's supporting.
And it's very clear.
Nobody is fooled when he says you're going to have the best
health care, you're going to have lower costs,
you're going to lower premiums.
Everybody is going to be covered.
A lot of these points that he's making
are completely in conflict.
JENNIFER GRANHOLM: Right-- at odds with the bills
that are actually being considered,
which continue to get worse.
I would say if you look at, for example, this period of time
in all of his predecessors' points of time in office,
Reagan and Obama and Bush--
they all had significant bills through that involved complex
issues, like the budget.
They were all through one chamber.
Or tax plans that were all through chamber
and in committees that were signed
within weeks of that 100.
Because each of them were working it.
They worked it inside of Congress.
He has not done that.
He doesn't know the substance, as Rick is suggesting.
He could really have come out strong and done something
on renegotiating NAFTA.
There's lots that can be done that Democrats would agree on.
He could appoint trade prosecutors.
He could do things that really spoke to his base.
But he's not-- he didn't do any of that, and that was foolish.
VAN JONES: One of the great benefits for Democrats
is he started with the stuff that
was easy to unite us against.
It if he had started with trade and infrastructure,
you would be seeing a big problem on the left.
He started doing all the stuff that we hated.
It helped us build the resistance up.
I give the resistance an a-plus in terms
of being able to take advantage and be
able to put up real opposition.
But the other thing is I'd give Trump an F minus
for letting down his own base.
There's real pain in the Trump voter base
that he hasn't dealt with.
The opioid crisis is worse than ever.
His health care plan would have let
insurance companies off the hook for helping with addiction.
You have coal miners right now who are about to lose--
20,000 of them are going to lose their health care.
He hasn't done anything about it.
RICK SANTORUM: Well, he's talked about that.
VAN JONES: He's talked about it.
RICK SANTORUM: But there's a bill working its way
through the Congress right now.
That's going to get it done.
VAN JONES: I'm going to tell you this, though.
He is getting the benefit of the doubt from the Trump base.
The first 100 days, they're not going to be on him.
But if he continues to just offend liberals and then not
deliver for his own base, at some point,
this begins to pile up.
He has not done anything substantive
on easy stuff for his base.
ANNA NAVARRO: I spent a year saying that at some point,
this is going to start mattering.
At some point, the lies are going to start mattering.
At some point, "Access Hollywood" tapes
are going to start mattering.
At some point, the insults are going to start mattering.
We went through an entire campaign,
and it never mattered.
And I think it's incredibly impressive to see how much
his base is sticking with him.
RICK SANTORUM: 96%.
ANNA NAVARRO: Despite what you say.
I think the people who voted for Trump
have a pride of authorship.
And it is going to take a lot, like felony lot to get them--
and maybe not even that-- to not be behind him.
It is impressive.
VAN JONES: Listen, he's doing a great job keeping his base.
I have to say-- because I spend a lot of time
now in Trump territory--
there is a desperation that I think Democrats and Republicans
should pay more attention to for real relief for the people who
are really hurting.
And this opioid crisis is still not being handled
JAKE TRAPPER: And the media.
Everyone stay right there.
We're going to come right back.
Donald Trump getting personal about his first 100 days as
President of the United States.
His biggest regret so far-- what is it?
That's next.

Van Jones: GOP only an 'anti-Obama party'

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