Deirdre Walsh
speaker
394 appearances
48 recordings
2 series
first heard Nov 2024
last heard 11 Dec
Deirdre Walsh’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
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recordings per month · last 12 monthsRecordings per month over the last 12 months — 22 in all, peaking in Nov 2025 with 9.
Appearances
It does not look like we are heading towards a shutdown. Democrats are not happy with this bill at all. It was written without their input, but enough are expected to join with Republicans to pass it later today. Since the House passed this bill largely along party lines on Tuesday, Senate Democrats have been debating and agonizing about what to do.
Do they help Republicans avoid a shutdown or block the bill and trigger one? They say both options are terrible. Last night, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer argued a shutdown would be worse.
No, most will vote against it, but we expect enough will join Republicans to get it through. Schumer declined to say how many, but his support does give undecided Democrats the cover to vote yes. Republicans control the White House, the House, and the Senate, but they have a 53-seat majority in the Senate, and you need 60 to get around a filibuster.
They are going to need about eight Democrats to join them later today because one of their own, Republican Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, is planning to vote no. Okay, so just walk us through why the Democrats have been and still are so divided on what to do here. Right. It has been a, you know, intense discussions.
The Democratic base is really angry about how President Trump and Elon Musk have been slashing the federal government. They want Democrats on Capitol Hill to use this one moment where they actually have some leverage in the minority to fight back. But since Schumer said last night he will vote for this bill, we're already seeing some major blowback from other Democrats.
All three top House Democratic leaders put out a statement last night saying they remain strongly opposed to the bill. And New York Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did not mince her words talking to NPR's Barbara Sprunt last night.
She also said moderates in the House Democrats who won in Trump districts voted no on this. And she said today House Democrats are still going to urge Democrats to block this bill. OK, so what are Republicans saying about when we should expect this vote? You know, it's Congress, so they always wait until the last minute. So we expect the vote on this bill later this afternoon.
That obviously gives Congress just hours before the deadline. Republicans were gearing up for a message war if Democrats block the bill to label this a Schumer shutdown.
Thank you.
Good morning, Steve.
This is an on-the-record signed sworn statement from Hegseth's former sister-in-law, as you noted, Danielle Hegseth. She was married to his brother, Nathaniel. And she states that she was asked to provide the statement by the top Democrat on the panel, Jack Reed.
Senator Reed told me last night he made the request for the details because he didn't think the FBI background check on Hegseth was adequate. Hmm. Danielle Hegseth says in her personal opinion, Pete Hegseth is, quote, unfit for the job. She says her former sister-in-law, Samantha, Hegseth's second wife, who he divorced, feared for her personal safety during their marriage.
She often hid in a closet. She said Samantha had a plan about texting her a safe word or code word that meant she wanted someone to fly to Minnesota to help her. Danielle Hegseth also said she personally witnessed Hegseth intoxicated, yelling in her face. She told the FBI that Hegseth abused alcohol numerous times over the years to the point of actually passing out during a holiday gathering.
Well, NPR reached out to his attorney, Tim Parlatori. He has not responded. But Parlatori told NBC, which first reported on this affidavit, that Samantha Hegseth, this ex-wife, never alleged any abuse and actually signed court documents acknowledging there was no abuse. And she affirmed that as part of Hegseth's background check.
He maintained, Parlatori, that Danielle was, quote, an anti-Trump far-left Democrat. who was divorced from Hegseth's brother and never got along with the family. He said she has an ax to grind. In Samantha Hegseth's case, she told NBC in a statement there was no physical abuse, she wasn't going to comment on her marriage, and she didn't have representatives speaking on her behalf.
It's worth noting that during the public confirmation hearing, Pete Hegseth was pressed about previous allegations about excessive drinking, inappropriate behavior, which he denied.
You know, they're standing behind them. I spoke with several last night after this affidavit became public. Most said they hadn't read the document, but they questioned the timing, the motivation. Hegseth's nomination is on track for a full Senate vote later this week or over the weekend at the latest. I talked to Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker.
He told reporters he had grave doubts about Daniel Hegseth's account in the affidavit, but he also admitted he hadn't read it. He said he was planning to review it, but he dismissed it as political. So far, no Senate Republican has publicly said they're going to oppose Pete Hegseth's nomination. With the 53-seat majority, he can lose three votes and still win.
three Republican votes and still get confirmed. He's not likely to get any support from Democrats, but he's not going to need them right now. He has the votes.
Well, it took some heavy lobbying and critically the help of President-elect Donald Trump to get Johnson over the line. The speaker could only afford to lose one Republican going into this vote, and Kentucky Congressman Tom Massey made it clear he wasn't going to vote for him. He voted for the Republican whip instead.
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