ICYMI—Hagerty Joins CNN News Central to Discuss Senate IVF Show Vote

WASHINGTON -United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) today joined CNN News Central to discuss the vote on in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the U.S. Senate and the pro-family policies of President Donald Trump.

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Partial Transcript

Hagerty on the Senate IVFshow vote: "I think it [the vote count] certainly will mirror what we saw in June. This is just a 'show vote'. It's just [Senator] Chuck Schumer's attempt to bring an issue back to the fore that's not an issue [. . .] And it's not just about IVF. This goes much further into gene editing, and into cloning. Chuck Schumer designed this to fail, but what he's trying to do is put this [made-up controversy] back in front of the American public, so he can avoid talking about the issues that really do matter to Americans."

Hagerty on President Trump's stance on IVF: "What President Trump has done is what every single U.S. Senator has done on the Republican side. We support IVF, we have supported IVF, and President Trump wants to take it even further. I think families looking at their ability to access and afford IVF will find, under a Trump Administration, that they'll be even in a better place to do that from an affordability standpoint because President Trump wants to make certain that whether it's covered under private insurance or public domain, that it will be taken care of."

Hagerty on the issues with Schumer's IVF bill:"The aspect that goes too far for me, though, is the notion that we would vote for something that would include cloning and gene editing, which is what Chuck Schumer plans to put on the floor this afternoon. Again, Schumer knows it's going to fail. He's just trying to shift the narrative away from the fact that 67 percent of Americans think the country is on the wrong track. We should be talking about immigration, the economy, our national security, our border security. Instead, we're doing this? [. . .] I think what those voters, and what every voter wants to see across America, is the fact that we do support IVF. Every Republican senator has made that clear, and as you just saw, President Trump do the same [. . .] This is not illegal in any state of America. Chuck Schumer's just trying to change the narrative [. . .] on this issue, I'm clear, and I'm certainly not going to go into this realm. And as I said, this is something that is not needed and is a solution in search of a problem because IVF is legal in every state, and every Republican senator has made that very, very clear that that we support it. Again, for me it's a bridge too far to get into cloning, gene editing, and doing away with state laws that have to do with medical processes and procedures everywhere."

Hagerty on the Alabama IVF ruling:"With respect to what happened in Alabama, we also saw a State Legislature step up and move very quickly to address some uncertainty created by a court decision [. . .] I think that they tried to do it and address it as quickly as they possibly could."

Hagerty on President Trump's proposed IVF payment plan:"I commit to taking a look at the details. I serve on the Appropriations Committee, and I will certainly pursue that responsibly. I understand the direction and the content, and I understand the desire to be pro-family, which I think all of us as Republicans are [. . .] We're not talking about the economy. We're not talking about our border security. We're not talking about national security in the face of dramatic concerns. Again, Chuck Schumer's going to put a 'show vote' up today. We should be looking at the fact that the government is going to shut down next week if he doesn't act on our Appropriations bills. We're not. This, in my view, is just another irresponsible ploy to shift the narrative here in America."

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