‘Sunday Morning Futures’ on the gun control debate, gas prices

This is a rush transcript from “Sunday Morning Futures,” May 29, 2022. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN DUFFY, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Good Sunday morning, and welcome to “Sunday Morning Futures.” I’m Sean Duffy, for Maria Bartiromo. 

Tragedy in the Lone Star State, as a deranged gunman goes on a sickening rampage at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 students and two teachers. 

Texas Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne joins us on the investigation and the continuing humanitarian crisis at the Southern border. 

Then: pain at the pump, as Americans face record gas prices this summer driving season. Meanwhile, President Biden signals it’s all for a greater cause. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Here’s the situation. And when it comes to the gas prices, we’re going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it’s over, we’ll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: Florida Congressman Byron Donalds is here on the president’s incredible rising gas prices and the sticker shock Americans are dealing with on basic necessities, including baby formula out of stock 70 percent nationwide, up from just 45 percent last week. 

Plus, former Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann will soon learn his fate for his role in Russiagate, as a federal jury in Virginia begins to deliberate on the charges that he lied to the FBI. 

California Congressman Darrell Issa joins us on that and the federal investigation into Hunter Biden’s business dealings. 

Then: The president goes off script on China and Taiwan, causing the White House to quickly walk back his remarks. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

QUESTION: Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that? 

BIDEN: Yes. 

QUESTION: You are? 

BIDEN: That’s the commitment we made. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: New York Congresswoman Claudia Tenney is here on the president’s China strategy and Ukraine’s continued stiff resistance to the Russian invasion. 

All that and more as we look ahead on “Sunday Morning Futures.” 

But first to Uvalde, Texas, and the latest on the devastating shooting there that killed 19 children and two teachers. 

Senior correspondent Casey Stegall is in Uvalde with more — Casey. 

CASEY STEGALL, FOX NEWS SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Sean, yes, the president and the first lady will be making multiple stops here in Texas, meeting with multiple people associated with the senseless tragedy, the senseless acts that happened here, now the second deadliest school shooting in U.S. history, which happened on Tuesday. 

Nineteen children, most of which were fourth graders, and two adult teachers were murdered in their own classroom. Police say the 18-year-old shooter managed to get inside Robb Elementary School through a door that had been propped open. 

When responding officers got on scene, the incident commander decided to wait on a SWAT team, instead of engaging the gunman. As a result, 45-plus minutes ticked by, officers in the halls, as little kids flooded 911 with pleas for help, until federal agents arrived, breached that room, then shot and killed the team gunman as he emerged from hiding. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

STEVEN MCCRAW, DIRECTOR, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: From the benefit of hindsight, where I’m sitting now, of course it was not the right decision. It was the wrong decision, period. There’s no excuse for that. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

STEGALL: Officials say the suspect illegally purchased the gun and the ammunition that he used at a local store days before. 

Right now, they are poring through his social media, searching for a possible motive there, this as the National Rifle Association is holding its annual conference this weekend down in Houston, which is about 270 miles or so from here. The NRA event was on the calendar prior to this tragedy. 

A few keynote figures, we should point out, chose not to attend, like the Texas governor and lieutenant governor, while Texas Senator Ted Cruz, former President Donald Trump among some of the larger headliners that were in attendance. 

Meantime, here in Uvalde, the funerals will begin this week, a lot of them, a week that many students had looked forward to because it was supposed to be the very first week of their summer break, their summer vacation. 

Just devastating — back to you. 

DUFFY: So devastating. 

Casey Stegall, live in Uvalde, Texas, thank you. 

All right, for more, let’s bring in Republican Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne of Texas. She sits on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and is also a former mayor of Irving, Texas. 

Congresswoman, thanks for joining me. 

Obviously, this is a tragic, tragic incident, fourth graders, 19 of them, killed. And I think there’s a lot of American frustration right now that over an hour’s time went without law enforcement breaching that door, that it was assessed to be a barricaded situation, as opposed to an active shooter situation. 

What are your thoughts? 

REP. BETH VAN DUYNE (R-TX): Well, I think there’s a lot of failures that you saw happen, from the beginning, when this kid supposedly was a bully and had social media posts, to having police call because he was fighting with his mom. 

There was a lot of failures that, had people stepped in earlier, might have prevented this shooting. The question is, what do we do moving forward? 

They have shown study after study after study that shows, if you have a student resource officer that’s on campus that is armed that could perhaps stop that shooter before he ever even enters the school, that’s the best way to be able to prevent this kind of a shooting. 

That door should never have been propped open. That door should have been locked. We have got protocols in place, but if they’re not followed, expect more of this to happen. 

DUFFY: You know, Congresswoman, you’re right. We can have all the protocols in the world, but if you don’t follow the protocol, bad things can happen. 

And I watched Lieutenant Governor of Texas Dan Patrick yesterday say, yes, it was a mistake the teacher propped the door open. However, even if the door shut, it doesn’t automatically lock. So, unless there’s a physical action of locking the door, there’s not automatic locks on the door to keep these kids safe. 

VAN DUYNE: Well, absolutely. 

And this is one of those things that it’s best practices. And we can look at what those are. But that just — there was a bill that was in the — in the Senate last week that Chuck Schumer blocked that was looking at ways of sharing those best practices at schools to keep them safer with other school districts across the country. 

Democrats have one tool in their toolbox. And when you only have a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Their tool is control. Their tool is to remove our independent rights, our individual rights. And that’s what you see the situation here, and why so many of my Democrat colleagues seem to be pumping that narrative that this is all about gun control. 

There were so many failures that happened here. Let’s harden our soft targets. Let’s look at ways that could actually have prevented the shooting, instead of politicizing it and making it about the party, as opposed to actually solutions. 

DUFFY: You know, I think a lot of Americans look and say, well, the Congress just sent $40 billion to Ukraine. How much money do we send to our schools nationwide to keep our kids safe? 

And there should be a conversation about that, all with the backdrop that we have a massive $30 trillion debt. But we should have priorities. 

But isn’t there something else at play here, Congresswoman? We have a society where we have taken God out of culture. We have fatherless homes where men aren’t in homes raising young men. We have a mental health crisis, where kids are spending more time on social media and less time interacting with their families and their fellow friends. 

VAN DUYNE: Well, you have got a lot of kids right now that are growing up in single-family — or single-parent households. 

And when I say single parents, for the majority, it’s moms. Fathers have exited the situation, where you used to have — back in the ’70s, you had 7 to 9 percent of children were born into one — single-parent households. It’s now over 40 percent. 

You have got kids who are spending their time, instead of with friends and outside, on social media. You have got kids who have shown, if you don’t have a father in their life, are much more likely to have mental health issues, to have drug abuse, to drop out of school, to be lower in socioeconomic wealth. 

All of those have been proven. Why are we not having that conversation? Why are we not looking at ways that the government, the federal government has actually incentivized these single-family homes, where back when we started increasing welfare, increasing entitlement programs, we were actually paying single moms to not have fathers in the home? 

Those are conversations that we need to start having. And I think it’s just lazy politics right now to just talk about gun control, gun control, without looking at the solutions that actually would have led to preventing this horrible tragedy. 

DUFFY: Yes, I want to ask one last — I want to ask you one last quick question, because there’s a lot of conversation today about the role of social media, because this shooter, Ramos, posted a lot of things online that would have been an indicator that he was going to take drastic, horrible action. 

I don’t know what the role is of social media, but the people who are online interacting with this young man could have actually tipped people off that he was deranged and going to commit violent acts. 

Whatever happened to, if you see something, say something? And it might not be in your community, but it might be online. 

VAN DUYNE: I think — I think we, as a society, have gotten very complacent. 

We don’t think of these things ever happening to us. We don’t think of how we could be able to prevent it. And we all need to be much more diligent in what we can do. This kid’s — this shooter’s interactions with his teachers, with police, with his parents, with his fellow schoolmates, with people online, there were red flags around this kid everywhere. 

And yet nobody seemed to have done anything about it. 

DUFFY: So right. 

OK, stay with us right there. 

We will have more with Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne of Texas in just moments, as we look ahead on “Sunday Morning Futures.” 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

MARIA BARTIROMO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Senator, I have had border agents myself tell me there’s 7,000 to 8,000 people getting encountered every day. That doesn’t even include the got-aways. There’s 100,000 got-aways in the last six months. 

We don’t know their intentions. They’re in the country. We don’t know where they’re going. They were seen through surveillance cameras. So what’s the – – what’s the solution here? 

SEN. RICK SCOTT (R-FL): The only solution we could can have is, Joe Biden needs to resign. I mean, he — he’s — I don’t get this. He wants an open border. 

I mean, the secretary of homeland security comes — Mayorkas, says, oh, the border is secure, complete, complete, complete lie. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: That’s Florida Senator Rick Scott last week on “Mornings With Maria” on the impact President Biden’s immigration policies have had on the continuing humanitarian crisis at the Southern border. 

Already, over 1.2 million migrants have been encountered by border agents in the current fiscal year. This comes as a federal judge has blocked the Biden administration from lifting Title 42, a ruling the Department of Justice is actually appealing. 

All right, let’s bring back Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne of Texas. 

So, Congresswoman, I mean, one of the last vestiges of securing the border is Title 42, if it’s actually used appropriately. And here you have the Biden administration appealing the court’s ruling, so they can actually lift Title 42 and have more migrants coming to the country? 

VAN DUYNE: Well, it just seems to make no sense. 

I mean, any American came back into the country has to be tested and has to go through protocols to get back in because of COVID. And yet we are allowing on literally millions of illegal immigrants at our border to come into our country without being tested. And it makes no sense. 

It’s the one last tool that we have got to be able to protect our borders. And the Biden administration is calculating and very strategic in getting rid of it. It has been held up in court, that they need to be able to use it. And yet this administration is appealing and wasting resources on the one last tool that could actually help border control. 

DUFFY: So true. 

Now, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has a message for migrants making their way to the Southern border. Take a listen. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: The bottom line is that U.S. borders are not open. Individuals and families continue to be subject to border restrictions, including expulsion. 

Do not come to the border. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: Congresswoman, I mean, that’s a bold-faced lie, because this administration has not only lifted Title 42. 

They stopped building the wall. They eradicated remain-in-Mexico. Every strategy they have had has been to open the border, not close it. 

VAN DUYNE: Yes. 

Well, and let’s face it. If their policies were working, if the border was closed, why did we have over two million folks enter illegally last year? Why have we already in May had over 1.2 million that we can identify already enter the country illegally this year? 

Why did we have 11,000 pounds of fentanyl enter last year? The border is not closed. They have done everything that they can to make sure that that’s the case. It is destroying our country. And, quite honestly, I appreciate Rick Scott’s frustration. 

But Biden is not going to go anywhere. He is not going to resign, because this is all part of their strategy. This is all very well-calculated. And if Biden resigns, then we have got Kamala Harris, our czar who hasn’t even been down at the border, hasn’t even talked about solutions. 

And then, if Kamala Harris resigns, who do you have? Nancy Pelosi, which hasn’t — who hasn’t bothered to even bring forward any immigration reform, any border control strategies to any of the hearings that we have had in the House. 

This is planned. This is calculated. And this is — the entire Democrat party is to blame for this. 

DUFFY: You might have Nancy Pelosi today. But if the elections in November go the way many pollsters say they’re going to go, you might have Kevin McCarthy third in line. 

And I think that’s what so many Americans are waiting for. They’re waiting for an election, so at least a Republican-led majority in the House or the Senate can do oversight hearings. They can control the spending, because that’s where spending starts, is in the Congress. 

But this is not all safe, because FBI Director Christopher Wray on the border challenges facing our country, take a listen to what he had to say. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: Certainly, any porous point of entry is a potential vulnerability that bad actors of all sorts, including national security threats, can seek to exploit. 

And I have been down to all of our field offices that have border crossings as part of their area of responsibility. They have a heck of a challenge on their hands. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: So, FBI Director Christopher Wray, he’s part of the administration. You got to be somewhat measured in what you say, but I take that quote as alarm bells are ringing, the Southern border is dangerous, bad people want to come into the country that want to do us harm. 

VAN DUYNE: Well, they have seen almost 200 potential terrorists have already crossed the border this year alone. 

The administration has admitted it. They understand it’s a problem. They’re culpable in it. The question is, what are they going to do about it? What are the answers that they’re bringing to the table, other than taking away all the tools that this — that CBP actually has to be able to address the problem? 

It’s interesting, though, that you brought up the November elections, because when we start thinking about what the long-term plan is by having all of this border insecurity going on right now, I think it’s honestly to be able to have people come in that Democrats believe are going to vote for the Democratic Party. 

But it’s amazing when you start thinking about what’s going on in Texas down at our border. Areas that have historically been Democrat strongholds, those congressional seats now are up for play. And the reason why they are is, the folks who have lived there for decades have failed — have lived under the failed liberal policies and are seeing their communities absolutely destroyed. 

They’re sick of it. And those races now are actually in play for Republicans, because they have seen how these liberal policies have just destroyed their communities. 

DUFFY: They destroy cities. They have destroyed the country. And, to your point, those Southern districts are mostly Hispanic. 

VAN DUYNE: Yes. 

DUFFY: The lowest a number of approval ratings for Joe Biden are Hispanics at 26 percent. They don’t approve of these policies. 

So, it’s going to be interesting to watch those elections as they come in November and where voters go on the future of the country. 

Beth Van Duyne, thanks for joining me. 

VAN DUYNE: Great to see you. 

DUFFY: All right, coming up: A federal jury in Virginia is deciding the fate of Michael Sussmann, the former Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer charged with lying to the FBI. 

Congressman Darrell Issa is here on that and the latest on the federal investigation into President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden. 

That’s coming up next. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

BARTIROMO: So, the FBI knew in September of 2016, and yet how many FISA warrants did they get to spy on the Trump campaign? I have spoken with Carter Page a number of times. He was spied on for a year by the FBI. No charges were ever brought down. 

What is the culpability for that? 

KASH PATEL, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO PRESIDENT TRUMP: Yes, four FISA warrants starting at the end of September 2016. 

And a couple — the issue is sort of metastasized by the Clinton campaign – – and Robby Mook testified to this in court, the former Clinton campaign manager, that Hillary Clinton herself knew it, authorized it, and they leaked that false information to the media to try to gin up attention against Donald Trump. 

As I have said before, all roads lead to Andy McCabe, the deputy director, and the lovebirds in their office concocting an insurance plan in August of 2015. 

And I think John Durham knows what that insurance plan is. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: That’s former DOD chief of staff Kash Patel last week speaking with Maria on what the FBI knew about the Russiagate hoax and when. 

A federal jury in Virginia is now deciding the fate of former Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann, who is charged with lying to the FBI. Special counsel John Durham says Sussmann met with the FBI general counsel, James Baker, claiming he had information on a covert communication channel between the Trump Organization and Russia’s Alfa Bank. 

That alleged info has since been completely debunked. Sussmann claimed he was not representing any specific client. But Durham’s team alleges that he billed Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign for that FBI meeting. 

All right, joining me now is California Congressman Darrell Issa. He’s a member of both the House Judiciary Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee. 

Congressman, thanks for joining me. 

I got to tell you what. I look at what information has come out now about how the Hillary Clinton campaign completely orchestrated this hoax, fed it to the FBI. But then the FBI for three years, with the media, runs with this story, right? 

And I want to know, did the FBI and DOJ know this was a hoax and this was politics, or were they completely duped? 

REP. DARRELL ISSA (R-CA): Well, they absolutely did know. 

If you have to choose with the FBI between complete incompetence or wrongdoing, you have to choose wrongdoing. They’re too well-paid, too well- trained, and too well-equipped not to know better. 

And there’s evidence that they specifically did know better, that they knew that this was incredible, even when it was brought to them. But it worked. I mean, let’s remember one thing. If something works, you keep doing it. Hunter Biden made $11 million off of his father’s name and reputation. And he’s — now he’s an art — he’s an artist making millions more selling art while his father’s the president. 

So, if a con works, you do it. In this case, it worked not only to have this false narrative, but to continue with it throughout the entire Trump administration. Most people in America today have this sort of a whiff of, well, was Trump too cozy with Russia, when, in fact, it was Hunter Biden that got millions from the mayor of Moscow that can’t be explained in any way, except a payoff to him for being the son of his father. 

DUFFY: You know, having a lack of faith in the FBI and the DOJ is dangerous. We want to have faith in those institutions, that justice is blind, that the law is equally applied and it’s not used for political purposes. 

And I think you’re right. This — they weren’t duped. They were fully in on what happened here. 

ISSA: Yes. 

DUFFY: I wonder, do you think you’re going to see more prosecutions come out of this investigation? Or does this end with Sussmann and the trial that we’re waiting for the results on? 

ISSA: Well, a lot depends on the outcome. 

To be candid, with this jury, it’s very possible to get a hung jury or even an acquittal. That doesn’t mean that the case hasn’t been made, that the American people haven’t seen sworn testimony that Hillary Clinton knew what they were doing when they falsely accused the president, when they paid to mislead in some way the FBI. 

And it does mean that, when we take control in January, as we anticipate we will, that we have got to help clean house in the Department of Justice and the FBI. These are good organizations with lots of good people, but, very clearly, they had enough people in high positions, many of whom are still there, during the Trump administration to undermine that administration. 

And that kind of what I would call lawyer treason has to be dealt with. And it has to be dealt with by a suspicious Congress. This one is not suspicious. The next one will be. We will be looking for the kind of wrongdoing. And we will do it — we will do it with the inspector general, with others that can help us root out people who have, in fact, crossed the line and not done their job. 

DUFFY: I think every American wants that to happen. We want to root out the corruption in the FBI and the DOJ. And we want faith in those institutions again. 

But I want to pivot right now. Let’s talk about Hunter Biden, because new information has come out of the laptop from hell. And we now know that Hunter Biden purchased burner phone apps so he could make phone calls and place text messages with different phone numbers. 

Now, I don’t know about you, Congressman. I don’t have a burner phone app. I don’t know any American who has a burner phone app. And I imagine, if you have that kind of app, you’re doing some pretty shady things which would necessitate an app that can help you hide your phone number. 

ISSA: Well, you’re exactly right. 

The fact is, you don’t need these kinds of virtual phone numbers unless you intend to buy drugs or do something clandestine, and then make the line go away. It’s very clear that he wanted to do that. He wanted to have multiple numbers so that someone would think they were talking to somebody or texting with somebody on a number, and then he could just make it go away, which he obviously did. 

DUFFY: You know, I’m not sure where this investigation is within the Department of Justice with Hunter Biden, and we’re not supposed to know that. And I understand that. 

But if Republicans take control of the House, will they actually do oversight? Will they do investigations? Will they issue subpoenas to get to the bottom of what Hunter Biden was doing with his foreign business dealings? Because I think, Congressman, that matters, because if he was doing foreign business dealings, Hunter, and Joe Biden was getting a kickback, Joe Biden is compromised. 

Joe Biden has given dirt to the Russians and the Chinese that can be used against him that means Joe Biden isn’t putting America first. He’s putting his family and his career and his politics out of the country. 

ISSA: Well, you’re exactly right. 

And we have to do two types of oversight, one to push to make sure the Department of Justice does their job, which is criminal prosecution, and, in our case, the kind of research we need to do to improve legislation and compliance. 

The fact that Hunter Biden got on the vice president’s aircraft and was taken to the centuries he was doing business with, it’s very likely that we need to change the law, so that could never happen again. You can’t have the president, the vice president essentially bringing his family in and using them. Current law apparently allows for it. 

So there are — there are legislative reasons we need to do investigation. But the most important one is the one we started with, which is, we have got to get the Department of Justice to be reliable and do their job and to do it blindly. 

And, right now, as you can see, Hunter Biden is not even paying a price for his income tax evasion. He’s going to pay back apparently a couple of million dollars that he deceived and got away with for a period of time. That’s not what would happen to you or I. 

DUFFY: That’s right. 

ISSA: If you and I cheated the government out of millions of dollars, it would not be just pay the fine later. There’d be criminal prosecution. 

That’s an Al Capone type of event. And yet it’s very clear he’s not being prosecuted. 

DUFFY: You know what? Paying the crime late — doesn’t mean that the crime wasn’t committed. You’re so right, Congressman. 

Listen, I want to thank you for joining me this morning on “Sunday Morning Futures.” 

ISSA: Thank you. 

DUFFY: All right, the summer driving season has begun, and it’s costing drivers more than ever to fill up the tank. Does President Biden have a solution to the out-of-control inflation facing American families on a daily basis? 

Congressman Byron Donalds of Florida joins us next, as we look ahead on “Sunday Morning Futures.” 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

BARTIROMO: We know that we have got 40-year highs. 

Inflation, it’s cutting into people’s wages. We know that we haven’t seen the worst in terms of gasoline, because we haven’t approached the summer driving months yet. And yet they still are trying to get portions of Build Back Better in other — in other policies. Isn’t that right? 

SEN. TOM COTTON (R-AR): Yes, it’s really remarkable, Maria. 

They continue to push their ideological agenda of trillions of dollars of new taxes and new welfare spending, rather than addressing the causes of inflation. One of the reasons gasoline costs so much right now is, the Biden administration has waged a war on fossil fuel. This is not an accident. This is what Joe Biden promised in the campaign. This is what far left members of the Democratic Caucus and Congress want. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: Senator Tom Cotton speaking with Maria last week about President Biden’s continued push for green energy amid sky-high energy prices. 

And drivers continue to feel pain at the pump as the summer driving season begins. The national average for a gallon of gas this morning is $4.61, according to AAA, over $1.50 more than this time last year. 

So, does the president have a solution to provide immediate relief for drivers? 

Let’s bring in Florida Congressman Byron Donalds. He sits on the House Oversight and Reform Committee and the House Budget Committee. 

Congressman, thanks for joining me. 

And I guess, simply put, I wonder how many people, how many Americans have to be thrown into poverty, struggling to put gas in their car and food on the table before this administration changes course in regard to American oil and gas. 

REP. BYRON DONALDS (R-FL): First of all, it’s good to be with you on this Memorial Day weekend. 

DUFFY: You too. 

DONALDS: I want to thank all of the families who lost loved ones serving our great country. 

But I got to tell you, this administration has no plans, no ideas, no strategy on reversing course on their crazy agenda when it comes to oil, natural — and natural gas and gasoline. 

Joe Biden and the Democrats want gas prices higher. Let’s stop playing games. They want gas prices higher. They want the Green New Deal accomplished. They want to follow the people that were in Davos last week at the World Economic Forum, as opposed to helping working-class families and seniors on fixed incomes here in the United States. 

The number one way you push people into poverty is with rising energy prices. And this administration is not going to change anything that they are doing. 

DUFFY: Congressman, I think you’re 100 percent right. 

And this is absolutely intentional. And to that point, President Biden seems to praise high gas prices last week. Take a listen. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

BIDEN: Here’s the situation. And when it comes to the gas prices, we’re going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it’s over, we’ll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: Congressman, it’s going to make us stronger as a country? 

We have oil and gas in America. That’s ours. If we make a transition to green energy, the critical minerals that are necessary for windmills and solar panels and batteries, we can’t mine them here. So we have to get them from somewhere else. 

So we’re actually outsourcing American security and autonomy to the rest of the world. This doesn’t make us stronger. It makes us weaker. 

DONALDS: You’re absolutely right. 

Joe Biden is wrong again. Why would we be surprised? But let’s be very specific. If you get off oil and natural gas, and you go to these renewable energies, you need China, because China is the one that’s dominating mineral production across the globe. Joe Biden is selling us out to the Chinese. 

That’s why he’s happy about this transition, while millions of Americans suffer every single day, trying to figure out how they’re putting gas in their car and also how they’re going to put food on the table. This is the reality of what happens if you follow his economic plans. They are disastrous for our country. 

They empower China primarily. And, also, if you look at food and that food prices are up, one of the reason food prices are up is because fertilizer is a derivative of oil production. You get fertilizer from oil. You don’t get it from windmills. You don’t get it from solar panels. 

This is terrible economic policy. And you are correct. It’s going to hurt us on the world stage, not help us. And, in this transition, that he thinks it’s great, that’s cool for him and his family while they’re making millions of dollars cutting deals all over the world. 

But what about the mom and pop who are just literally making $100,000 a year, and they got three kids to feed? It doesn’t work for them. This is not a glorious transition for them. 

DUFFY: And it may not be 100 grand a year, 60 grand a year. 

But you’re right. It’s not just high gas prices. Everything is costing more these days mean, groceries, used cars, airline fares, electricity all up double digits compared to a year ago at this time. 

So, I guess, when we look at this, earnings are falling when you look at the rise in your wages compared to inflation, as it’s consumed the country. And as we kind of play this out, is there anything a Republican Congress can do, should you guys take the majority, to push back on these policies? Because just one last point. 

You look at Senator Manchin right now. Senator Manchin is bringing back Build Back Better in a smaller form, but he wants to push a Green New Deal. He wants to push tax increases. He’s going to add fuel to the inflation fire if he cuts a deal with Chuck Schumer. 

DONALDS: No, there’s a lot of things that House Republicans could do if we take back the House and, mind you, if we went Senate seats on the Republican side of the aisle. 

Number one, through the budget process, we can actually force this administration to open up oil production. Through the budget process, we can actually tie the hands of this administration, actually making them defend the oil leases that they extend and the permitting process for people who are trying to produce oil and natural gas in the United States. 

And a big one that we need to tackle and we need to get on it is that we need more refining capacity here in the United States. 

Everybody likes talking about how we need to fix supply chains and bring more manufacturing back to the United States and get it away from China and other countries around the globe, but if you’re not refining more oil and natural gas here at home, if we don’t expand our refining capacity, it is going to be so difficult for manufacturing plants to come back to the United States, because you won’t have the energy foundation for those manufacturing plants to actually operate. 

These are things we can do through the budget process. It’s important that Republicans take a stand against one of the most radical economic and energy agendas our country has ever seen. 

DUFFY: You know, it’s not just refining. You’re right. But it’s also pipelines. 

You have to be able to transfer energy around the country. And pipelines are how we do that. But I think, as you pointed out, this is really bad politics for Democrats. They have a tough election coming in November. But, in a way to buy votes, Joe Biden now has a plan that he’s going to forgive $10,000 of student loan debt for young Americans who’ve gone to great universities. 

They have gotten the skill sets coming from that university. What frustrates me is, why is the taxpayer footing the bill for college? Why don’t those kids, if they can’t afford to pay those debts, go back to the college themselves, have the college pay for the education those kids didn’t get, or, frankly, tap into their billion-dollar trust funds in these universities? 

DONALDS: Well, first of all, let’s just be honest about this. 

The universities aren’t going to go back and pay back some of these debts, because the second you graduate, they’re busy calling you to get a donation. That’s number one. 

Number two, even Nancy Pelosi said that Joe Biden doesn’t have the authority to do this. Folks, he has no legal authority to do this. If he does it, in my view, it’s unconstitutional. Number three — and this is the one that’s more important than anything else — this creates a significant moral hazard in our country. 

When has it ever been OK for our president randomly to say that contracts – – that contract law, binding contracts are now — are no longer valid, that they are null and void, simply because he chooses to? 

Listen, I know people are struggling with student loan debt, especially if you got a degree from a university and you’re not working in that field today as an adult. That’s a terrible situation to be in. But the president has no authority to void contracts in the United States. 

That is a complete violation and a destruction of the rule of law. He doesn’t have this authority. I don’t care how bad his polling numbers suck. He can’t do this. He shouldn’t do this. 

DUFFY: Congressman Byron Donalds saying it the way it is. 

I couldn’t agree with you more. And, listen, thanks for joining me this morning on “Sunday Morning Futures.” 

DONALDS: Any time. 

DUFFY: All right. 

Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine is closing in on 100 days. What will it take to bring peace to the region? 

New York Congresswoman Claudia Tenney, who sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is here on that and the growing threat from China, as we look ahead on “Sunday Morning Futures.” 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): The Ukrainian people don’t ask for American men and women to fight. They just want to have the weapons to defend themselves. 

I think, in part, that I told the president prior, just saying sanctions after you enter, I think, wasn’t the appropriate thing. If you had provided the weapons that we are now to Ukraine, I think the war would have been different. It could have maybe never happened. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: That’s House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy last week on President Biden’s response to Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine. 

The war is now closing in on 100 days, with Ukrainian resistance continuing to hold strong against the Kremlin. But, with no peace yet in sight, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says his country will likely need to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war. 

New York Congresswoman Claudia Tenney, who is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee joins us now. 

Congresswoman, thanks for joining me. 

So, I think that was really good point. They’re going to have to have peace talks at some point. Is anyone in this administration or in the Congress incentivizing Ukraine to sit down and have a conversation with Russia to see how we can end this war? 

REP. CLAUDIA TENNEY (R-NY): Look, first, I want to just say, as the mother of a Marine who’s also a logistics officer, I just want to recognize Memorial Day this weekend. It’s a really important weekend to honor those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and to the families. 

But here we are talking about a war, an incredible, unprovoked war in Ukraine in a modern era that we never thought we’d see again after World War II. 

But we have a crisis here. And we do have to find a way to stop the human suffering and the destruction that’s happening in Ukraine. Remember something that I think a lot of people forget. President Trump was proactive. And when you’re proactive, that’s the best deterrence. We have a president that is indecisive, is reactive, and was really not quick to deal with this problem with Russia, which is costing lives and costing money to the Americans and people across the — across the European continent. 

And many of our allies are taking numerous — millions of refugees and providing aid and care to them. So it is a problem. But we are seeing, I think, an erosion in many cases. 

A lot of people see that the Ukrainians are struggling right now. The Russians are continuing their onslaught against them, and, obviously, probably with help from some of our bigger adversaries, like China and others, including those enemies in the Middle East who are helping the Russians continue this just destruction and unprovoked war against Ukraine. 

I think that we could try to have some talks. I know Zelenskyy has been trying to do that. But every time we have talks, there’s a breakdown. You have seen just this week one of the Russian diplomats, the foreign minister, said that we needed to — that Putin needed to draw down this war, and he was removed and criticized by Putin’s leadership. 

So we have a dictator who is — just does not seem to want to stop. And so, unfortunately, we have a weak president and a weak foreign policy that is costing us problems around the world. And I think that, right now, we do have to look at every option the table. 

DUFFY: Yes, I think you’re 100 percent right. Every option has to be on the table. And you would see, with strong leadership, you get respect. You have weak leadership, and bad things happen. 

All right, we will have more with New York Congresswoman Claudia Tenney in just moments. 

You are watching “Sunday Morning Futures” right here on FOX News. 

And be sure to catch “Mornings With Maria” with Maria Bartiromo weekdays from 6:00 to 9:00 a.m. Eastern on FOX Business. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

QUESTION: Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that? 

BIDEN: Yes. 

QUESTION: You are? 

BIDEN: That’s the commitment we made. 

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The United States remains committed to our one China policy. 

We oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side. We do not support Taiwan independence. And we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

DUFFY: That is Secretary of State Antony Blinken trying to clarify remarks by President Biden on U.S. defense of Taiwan against China. 

Let’s bring back Congresswoman Claudia Tenney, who sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee. 

Congresswoman, so, I mean, I got to tell you, this just reeks of projecting weakness, where the president says one thing about our strategy on Taiwan and defense of China, but then the administration has to come out and continually correct him and say, no, no, that’s not what he meant. 

TENNEY: This is, you’re exactly right, projecting weakness. Who’s in charge? Is it the bureaucrats and the people in the White House, while Joe Biden wanders around and just state things? 

But I got to agree with Joe Biden on this, because, first of all, we have a policy of strategic ambiguity when it comes to Taiwan. I think it’s dangerous. And I think we need to go back to a strategic clarity. We need to show that we are going to support Taiwan. 

If we don’t, the Chinese are only empowered. They have been using military actions in the strait — in the strait between Taiwan and China. And we know that they’re getting aggressive. They’re seeing an opening, just like Putin saw an opening. 

And I want to just point everybody to President Trump. I referred to being proactive. President Trump is not a Pat Buchanan isolationist. President Trump was more Jacksonian, more like a peace-through-strength Reagan type of doctrine. 

If we are projecting weakness, and we are not taking action to defend our allies and defend strategic assets, we are projecting weakness and inviting provocation and inviting eventually war, which is what we saw in Ukraine. We saw the disastrous situation in Afghanistan, which killed 13 service members. 

And now we’re seeing this rift, confusing policy toward Taiwan, where we need to defend Taiwan. A lot — you had some of your guests on earlier talking about energy. A lot of our chips and a lot of our technology are produced in Taiwan. They have been an important diplomatic ally, in terms of economic — economy. 

We have a Taiwan Relations Act, which I think is a little bit vague. 

DUFFY: But, Congresswoman… 

TENNEY: But I think we need to be really clear. 

DUFFY: To that point, though, you — I mean, we — there’s lessons learned coming out of Ukraine. 

Is the lesson that we’re supposed to be arming Taiwan to the teeth as a disincentive for China to invade? 

TENNEY: Well, we are actually providing — we are — said that we will come to the defense of Taiwan. That’s in the Taiwan Relations Act that was signed in 1979 under, believe it or not, Jimmy Carter. 

So that is still in — it’s sort of a vague standard. But the Chinese are moving in and taking advantage. And they’re teaming up with our allies. 

I think this is an important distinction, where we’re talking about, what are we doing with Taiwan? Is it just economic relations? Is it just one China policy, and we’re going to recognize Taiwan as a separate, sort of vague entity? 

DUFFY: You know, Congresswoman, it’s confusing, to say the least. 

But, listen, thanks for joining me today on “Sunday Morning Futures.” I appreciate it. 

Well, that does it for us on “Sunday Morning Futures.” I’m Sean Duffy, in for Maria Bartiromo. 

From all of us at FOX News this Memorial Day, we express our deepest gratitude and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our great nation. 

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