Gillibrand Underscores Democrats’ Commitment To Lower Costs, End Iran War, Hold Trump Accountable On NPR’s Morning Edition

Gillibrand: “Our Goal Is To Meet The Needs Of The American People. We Are Going To Focus Laser-Like On Getting Their Costs Down.”

***Hear Senator Gillibrand’s Full Interview Here***

Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand appeared on NPR’s Morning Edition to discuss Democrats’ historic sweep of the midterm elections and their plan to deliver for the American people with their newfound majorities. 

She highlighted Democrats’ focus on lowering costs for American families, including by ending the Iran war, undoing President Trump’s tariffs, and restoring access to healthcare, as well as holding the president accountable for his corruption and his prioritization of vanity projects over the wellbeing of American families. 

Senator Gillibrand also addressed the president’s threats to veto commonsense legislation head on:

“[President Trump]’s got his little veto cap. But as you’ve seen, he’s much more focused on the Reflecting Pool and his ballroom than anything else right now. So I don’t know what to expect out of this president. But if we have a bill that is bipartisan to restore healthcare for the people who lost their Medicaid or improve access to affordable medicines and other things, like, I dare him to veto that.”

Listen to Senator Gillibrand’s interview with NPR here. Full transcript of Senator Gillibrand’s interview below:

A MARTÍNEZ: For more about what’s next for Democrats in Congress, New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand joins us now. She chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Senator, on its website, the DSCC says its purpose is electing a Democratic Senate through organizing, fundraising, and candidate recruitment. It sounds like you went three for three there. What did you see after the 2024 elections that set you up for the results you got in 2026?

SENATOR GILLIBRAND: Well, I knew that the climate that President Trump was going to create would be toxic. And he just continued to double down on things the American people didn’t want. He promised no forever wars, but he got us headlong into Iran. He promised he’d get costs down for groceries and housing and energy costs, and they continue to rise because of his war in Iran and his chaotic tariffs. And his disregard for the American people just kept growing. And so with talented candidates running all across the country, they were able to have a conversation with the American people about what they want. They want groceries to be affordable. They want to be able to afford to live where they want to live. They want to be able to get healthcare for their children and families. And when President Trump goes around canceling Medicaid for families and getting rid of food stamps for families who are struggling just to feed their children, that’s the kind of actions by the president and this administration that made the climate so favorable for these inspiring candidates that then just went to the voters and talked about their vision for America and what they want to get done for the American people. 

MARTÍNEZ: So it sounds like, Senator, maybe you weren’t so surprised over the margin of victory.

GILLIBRAND: Well, I was hoping we’d win four. I really didn’t imagine we’d be winning eight or nine seats. We are now up to win nine Senate seats. All of our expansion states and all of the opportunities in these red and purple states came to fruition because these candidates were so transformational. A lot of them are the next generation, a lot of them are very authentic to their states. You look at Mary Peltola who ran on fish, family, and freedom. You look at somebody like Scott Colom, who’s a local DA in red, red Mississippi, really taking it to his community about his vision for his community and what he wants to do to bring down costs and provide opportunity for those families. Those candidacies resonated, and that is why we are seeing unbelievable returns in states that Democrats haven’t had for decades. 

MARTÍNEZ: So with control in the House and the Senate, will Democrats try to impeach President Trump again?

GILLIBRAND: Well, our goal is to meet the needs of the American people. We are going to focus laser-like on getting their costs down. We have to end this war in Iran, which is driving up fuel and diesel, and every supply chain problem that’s driving up costs for everything. We have to deal with these chaotic tariffs and get them down because they’re driving up food costs and housing costs and everyday goods costs. And we have to restore access to healthcare. People literally lost – millions of Americans lost their healthcare. So we need to make sure Medicare and Medicaid are strengthened. We need to improve people’s healthcare. Our healthcare system in America isn’t that great. And so we need to make sure people can get hearing and dental and be able to actually get the medicines that their doctors prescribe without breaking the bank. And so good healthcare, cheaper healthcare, better healthcare are all priorities. 

MARTÍNEZ: We hear candidates, though, talk about holding the Trump administration accountable. So what if that’s what the people want, too? They want you to kind of, walk and chew gum at the same time.

GILLIBRAND: We do want to hold the administration accountable. Yeah, no, we can do both. And one thing we could do is ban stock trading. We could say members of Congress, the administration, senior cabinet officials cannot be buying and selling stocks or cryptocurrency or anything else based on inside information and lining their own pockets. The amount of corruption in Washington, particularly around this president, is the highest I’ve ever seen. It is so incredible how much pay to play, how much fraud and corruption is within this White House. And so people don’t understand how the president has this unlimited money for his ballrooms and unlimited money for his billionaire buddies, but they don’t have enough money to pay for healthcare or to get costs for groceries down. And so they want this focus that they have to make America better for them, and don’t allow this administration continually put their own preferences and their own wealth in front of the American people. That’s the part of corruption that is infuriating voters, because they’re watching this president, like, focus on his ballroom and his triumphal arch and his airplane and not focus on their lives and allowing their children to get the healthcare they need to survive and thrive. And so it’s a choice that’s being made. And that’s what they’re so angry about. So you have to do accountability of the administration, but deliver for the American people at the same time. 

MARTÍNEZ: The reason I asked that is because I was wondering what Democratic priorities would be. So let’s hear from Texas Senator-elect James Talarico on CNN. 

TALARICO: I think our top priority has to be delivering for the people of Texas, for the people of this country. They didn’t send us to Washington for political retribution. They sent us to Washington to lower costs, to root out corruption, to get this economy back on track. And that needs to be our focus. 

MARTÍNEZ: So Senator, it sounds like you agree with him, at least a little bit on this.

GILLIBRAND: Oh, I do.

MARTÍNEZ: But how do you square that sentiment with maybe a part of the party that might say, ‘Hey, lawyer up,’ like California Congressman Robert Garcia, that’s his two-word statement. He’s gonna be House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chair.

GILLIBRAND: Well, that’s one of his jobs. He’s the head of that committee. And so people want to see that the rules of the road are real. This president has broken the Constitution, the norms, every type of law you can imagine. And people feel deeply uncomfortable that you’ve broken the country in a way that isn’t fixable. So part of our job is to begin to restore order and restore all the things that President Trump has undermined. Like, he’s cut access to healthcare, to Medicaid. He has cut access to food stamps. He’s cut NIH funding. Like, things that go into the community to help the people survive, to give them the healthcare they need, to make sure there’s resources for food and housing. So they want things fixed, and they want things that have harmed them to be reversed. And so we need to double down on providing for the American people. Just as James Talarico has said, they’re expecting that we get their costs down. They’re expecting that we make sure people have healthcare. So those are must-dos. Part of how you deliver that is holding them accountable. 

MARTÍNEZ: How do you do that if President Trump becomes Mr. Veto, as he has previewed? 

GILLIBRAND: Yeah, so he’s threatened to be Mr. Veto. He’s got his little veto cap. But as you’ve seen, he’s much more focused on the Reflecting Pool and his ballroom than anything else right now. So I don’t know what to expect out of this president. But if we have a bill that is bipartisan to restore healthcare for the people who lost their Medicaid or improve access to affordable medicines and other things, like, I dare him to veto that. I dare him to stand in front of the American people and say, ‘You don’t deserve access to healthcare.’ So, if he decides to veto the commonsense things that get groceries down or housing prices down, then ‘28’s gonna be very favorable for Democrats.

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