Rep. Jayapal talks rescissions, protecting U.S. citizens from ICE, and the Epstein files

Congressional Republicans gave President Trump a big win last week. The Senate and House passed his $9 billion rescission request along a mostly party-line vote. Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal represents Washington's 7th District, in the Seattle area. She talked to KUOW’s Kim Malcolm about the rescission package, a new bill she sponsored last week, and other matters.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

Kim Malcolm: The rescission package pulls back congressionally approved foreign aid and funding for public broadcasting. The last time Congress approved such a package was in the Clinton administration, but that version had bipartisan support. What is most concerning to you about this spending move now?

Rep. Pramila Jayapal: There's really two things. The first is what it means for the entire process if any time a president and the majority party can unilaterally rescind funding that was just appropriated. The sole authority for appropriations comes to Congress. We are the only ones that have the ability to do that. It's a super-long, complicated process to get agreement. You have to get 60 votes in the Senate, and that's a bipartisan process. Rescissions completely undermine the entire appropriations process, and that's a problem. It's a real threat to the entire appropriations process and Article One powers of Congress.

And in this case, the actual funding cuts, they're terrible. They're going to kill people because the USAID cuts, about $8 billion, is money that's being taken away from getting vaccines out to people who need them around the world, cuts to U.S.-based clinics, disease prevention, really things that are important to save lives elsewhere, but also to protect Americans from having diseases cross our borders.

The public broadcasting cuts, which are about $1 billion, are cuts that are going to mean that over 1,000 radio stations, many in rural areas, are going to close down. Most of the funding goes in grants to local radio and television stations that carry weather alerts, news, and other critical programming for every American to be able to have access. And while we may be OK in Seattle because we have a generous public, that is not the case in many rural areas. So, people will die if they can't get weather alerts, like in North Carolina when there was a hurricane, or in the recent flooding in Texas.

So, both at the specific level of these cuts, but also at the general level of rescissions packages, it is a terrible problem for how Congress appropriates, and for how we continue to save American lives and lives around the world.

This past week, you introduced a new piece of legislation in the House. On the surface, your intention seems straightforward. You called it the “Stop ICE from Kidnapping U.S. Citizens Act.” But tell us what exactly your bill would do.

What the bill does is it says very clearly that ICE cannot use any funding to arrest, detain or deport U.S. citizens. It's that simple. Look, U.S. citizens already cannot be deported under U.S. law because they are literally, by definition, citizens of the country. But ICE has been arresting, detaining and even deporting U.S. citizens under Donald Trump's administration. We are in a terrible and dangerous situation where ICE is acting like a rogue force. They're kidnapping and disappearing people off the streets with no due process. I introduced this bill to make it abundantly clear that ICE cannot use any money to detain or deport U.S. citizens.

House Speaker Mike Johnson is going to start the congressional summer recess early, apparently to avoid more votes on measures calling for the release of investigative files into Jeffrey Epstein. What do you make of that, and how do you think minority Democrats are going to respond?

Well, they have shut down the floor. Basically, they're not taking any bills to the Rules Committee, because every time they do, we introduce amendments to demand that they release the files related to Epstein. And obviously they have something to hide. If you think there's nothing in there, as you keep claiming, then go ahead and release the files. But let's be clear, this is a child sexual predator. It was Republicans, including Donald Trump and the MAGA right, that was insisting all along that these files should be released, and now all of a sudden, Pam Bondi, Trump, and all of these Republicans don't seem to want to pass a bill that makes it possible for the files to be released.

We learned last week that your colleague, Dan Newhouse of Central Washington, has avoided public appearances in recent months after someone was arrested for threatening to kill him and his staff here in Washington. I know you've been the target of personal threats. I'm wondering how safe you feel at your offices and your home here in Seattle.

This is, unfortunately, the situation that too many lawmakers find themselves in. I have been in that situation. I've had to move homes. I've had a man with a gun show up at my door. Our staff has to be careful. We have had to increase our security for everything we do, and it is not the way we should be proceeding. There is violence against lawmakers instead of discussion, instead of debate, instead of disagreement. People are targeting lawmakers at their homes, and it is wrong. It is wrong whether it's a Republican, whether it's a Democrat, this is not the way we should proceed as a country. We should be able to debate. We should be able to disagree without violence.

Listen to the interview by clicking the play button above.