THE REPUBLICANS REALLY DON’T
HAVE THE VOTES TO GET IT DONE IN
ANY OTHER WAY.
MARIA: JOINING ME RIGHT NOW TO
WEIGH IN DIRECTOR OF OFFICE
MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET MICK
MULVANEY.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
>> I LIKE THE OUTDOOR STUDIO.
MARIA: LITTLE COLD.
WANTS TO ACCOMPLISH WHAT HE’S
PREPARED TO DO IN THE SECOND
TERM, WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT
TONIGHT FROM YOUR STANDPOINT?
>> A LOT OF THE REPORTS HAVE
BEEN INACCURATE.
I THINK YOU WILL SEE UPBEAT,
VERY POSITIVE SPEECH, HE WILL
START TO REACH ACROSS THE AISLE
A LITTLE BIT.
WE WILL TALK ABOUT THE SUCCESS
THAT IS WE’VE HAD IN THE PAST
YEAR.
I THINK ONE THING THAT PEOPLE
SORT OF IGNORE ABOUT THE
GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN WAS THE
POLITICAL ANGLE OF IT LAST WEEK
AND THAT HAPPENED OVER THE
ANNIVERSARY OF THE INAUGURATION.
I’M STILL CONVINCED THAT THE
DEMOCRATS DID THAT IN ORDER TO
DENY THE PRESIDENT SORT OF THAT
FORUM TO TALK ABOUT WHAT A GREAT
FIRST YEAR THE ADMINISTRATION
HAS HAD.
YOU SEE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT
AND A LITTLE BIT OF LOOKING
FORWARD INTO WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
NEXT YEAR.
MARIA: OF COURSE, WE HAVE SEEN
GOOD PERFORMANCE IN TERNLS OF
ECONOMICS, WHEN YOU COME OUT
WITH THE BUDGET IN THE NEXT
COUPLE OF WEEKS, ARE YOU GOING
TO TALK ABOUT 3% GROWTH,
ECONOMIC GROWTH?
>> YEAH, IN FACT, IT’LL GIVE ME
A CHANCE TO TELL EVERYBODY I
TOLD YOU. SO EVERYBODY ON THE
LEFT ACCUSED OF USING ECONOMIC
ASSUM LS THAT WERE WAY TOO
OPTIMISTICS, 2.7% GROWTH, 2.9
FOR NEXT YEAR AND 3% AFTER THAT
AND WE WILL BEAT THAT ALREADY,
THE NUMBERS THAT EVERYBODY ON
THE LEFT SAID WE WOULD NEVER
ASHOVE WE ACHIEVED FASTER THAN
WE THOUGHT WE WOULD.
MARIA: 4%, IS THAT ACHIEVABLE?
>> WHAT’S BEING OVERLOOKED WITH
THE TAX BILL, IT’S BEEN SO LONG
THAT WE HAD A TAX BILL THAT DID
THIS MUCH AS THIS TAX BILL,
SHORT-TERM STIMULUS TO THE
ECONOMY AND WHAT WE HAVE BEEN
ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH OVER THE
COURSE OF THE LAST YEAR NOT ONLY
WITH TAX BILL BUT DEREGULATORY
POLICIES THAT WE PUT IN PLACE,
WE REALLY DO FEEL THAT WE HAVE
CHANGED THE FUNDAMENTAL
STRUCTURE OF THE AMERICAN
ECONOMY WHERE IT’S NOT A
SHORT-TERM STIMULUS, IT’S NOT A
SUGAR HIGH, NOW ENABLE AN
ECONOMY TO HAVE LONG-TERM
ECONOMIC HEALTH.
SO WE THINK THE NUMBERS CAN
STICK AROUND FOR A LONG.
MARIA: CERTAINLY WE ARE SEEING
AND SEEING IT WITH COMPANIES
TRYING TO PASS ON SOME OF THAT
SAVINGS.
LET ME ASK YOU WHERE WE ARE
TODAY, WE ARE SEEING INTEREST
RATES CREEP UP, YOU HAVE BEEN
TALKING ABOUT 10-YEAR YIELD,
STARTS GETTING INVESTORS
NERVOUS.
HOW NERVOUS ARE YOU WHEN YOU SEE
RATES GOING HIGHER AND EXPECTING
TO GO HIGHER, OUR INTEREST
PAYMENTS AS COUNTRY GO UP AS
WELL.
>> YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD,
WHY ARE THEY GOING UP, IF
THEY’RE CREEPING UP BECAUSE THE
ECONOMY IS DOING BETTER AND
BETTER, THAT SORT OF COMES WITH
THE TERRITORY, RIGHT, IT’S ONE
OF THE REASONS WE TRY TO REMIND
PEOPLE, LOOK, THIS IS ONE OF THE
RISKS TO HAVE 20 TRILLION-DOLLAR
DEBT WHEN YOU’RE SITTING ON THAT
MUCH DEBT, EVERY ADDITIONAL
MONEY.
WE TRY AND REMIND FOLKS THAT
GROWTH IS FANTASTIC AND WE WILL
TAKE IT BUT WE ALSO DO PAY VERY
CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE INTEREST
RATES.
MARIA: SO WHAT ABOUT THE DEBT,
WHEN DOES IT BECOME PRIORITY, I
RECOGNIZE THAT GROWTH HAS BEEN
YOUR PRIORITY GOING INTO THE
STATE OF THE UNION BUT NOW WE
ARE TALKING ABOUT 1 AND A HALF
TRILLION DOLLAR TAX PLAN, MORE
MONEY BEING SPENT ON
INFRASTRUCTURE, IN FACT, THAT
MATERIALIZES, WHAT DO YOU DO TO
CUT BACK IN TERMS OF GETTING
YOUR ARMS AROUND THAT?
>> ONE OF THE THINGS WE TALKED
ABOUT DURING THE TAX PLAN, TO
CONVINCE FOLKS TO VOTE FOR IT,
YES, YOU WOULD SEE A SHORT-TERM
SPIKE IN THE DEFICIT BECAUSE THE
WAY THE TAX PLAN LAYED OUT.
IT WOULD TAKE A COUPLE YEARS FOR
BENEFITS TO PAY OFF.
ONE OF THE THINGS WE DIDN’T TALK
ABOUT, VERY FEW PEOPLE TALKED
ABOUT CAPITAL INVESTMENT NUMBERS
THAT CAME OUT ON FRIDAY, ALMOST
FOUR TIMES THAT WE EXPECTED.
THOSE TYPES OF INVESTMENT TAKE
TIME TO PAY OFF.
YOU HAVE A SHORT-TERM HIT TO THE
REVENUE SIDE OF THE EQUATION
WHICH YOU HAVE LONG-TERM PAYOFF
AND YOU SEE TEMPORARY SPIKE IN
THE DEFICIT AND AS GROWTH KICKS
IN YOU SEE DEFICIT START TAIL
OFF.
MARIA: YOU HAVE TO SEE SPENDING
CUTS IN ORDER TO REALLY MOVE THE
THERE, RIGHT?
YOU LOOK AT SOMEBODY LIKE
COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE
BUDGET, SHE FEELS THAT, YOU
KNOW, YOU NEED TO ACTUALLY COME
OUT WITH SPECIFICS IN TERMS OF
CUTTING BACK SPENDING IN THIS
UPCOMING BUDGET.
>> YEAH, SPENDING RESTRAINT HAS
ALWAYS BEEN PART OF THE PLAN, IT
WAS PART OF THE PLAN IN LAST
YEAR’S BUDGET AND THIS YEAR’S
BUDGET, WE GO BACK TO LAST TIME
WE BALANCED THE BUDGET IN LATE
1990’s.
THERE WASN’T DRAMATIC CUTS.
THAT’S THE SAME FORMULA WE ARE
TRYING TO GET BACK TO TODAY.
MARIA: WE WERE TALKING ABOUT
47 TRILLION-DOLLAR BUDGET AND
YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT VERY LITTLE
IN TERMS OF SPENDING, COME ON,
YOU HAVE A LOT OF PRIORITIES,
RAISE MONEY FOR MILITARY, RAISE
THE NUMBERS, YOU TO RAISE THE
NUMBERS IN TERMS OF
INFRASTRUCTURE PACKAGE, ARE WE
TALKING $1.7 TRILLION
INFRASTRUCTURE PACKAGE AND HOW
MUCH OF THAT IS FEDERAL MONEY?
>> AGAIN, I DON’T WANTING TO IN
SPECIFICS ON THE DOLLAR AMOUNTS
UNTIL WE ROLL OUT THE PLAN HERE
WHICH I THINK IS IN THE NEXT
WEEK OR TO BUT I WANT TO TALK
ABOUT THE CONCEPT OF HOWEVER
THIS IS FEDERAL MONEY, ONE OF
THE THINGS YOU’RE GOING TO SEE
IS INNOVATIVE IDEAS ON HOW TO
STRETCH THE FEDERAL DOLLAR, KEEP
IN MIND, THE LARGE MAJORITY IS
PAID BY STATE AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS, FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
ONLY PAYS ABOUT 20% BUT WE
REGULATE 100% OF IT.
IN ADDITION TALKING ABOUT HOW WE
ARE GOING RAISE MONEY, STRETCH
FEDERAL DOLLARS, YOU WILL SEE
ABOUT HOW WE CAN MAKE THE MONEY
THAT’S ALREADY THERE GET ON THE
GROUND FASTER BY STREAMLINING
REGULATION.
MARIA: DO YOU EXPECT TO BALANCE
BUDGET ’19 BUDGET?
>> HOPE SO.
THE LONGER WE WAIT, MORE AND
MORE DIFFICULT TO DO.
I DON’T KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT
QUESTION.
MARIA: WITH ECONOMIC GROWTH
THAT’S ALWAYS HELPFUL AND YOU
WANT TO KEEP SEEING THE NUMBERS
GO UP IN TERMS OF GDP.
>> WE WILL TRACK A COUPLE OF
THINGS, THE NOMINAL SIZE OF THE