'Don't think that's right': CNN fact-checks GOP rep over false megabill claim
As Alaskan Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK) celebrated the Republican win on the "big beautiful bill" Thursday, a CNN host had questions about Sen. Lisa Murkowski's (R-AK) struggles to accept some of the provisions.
Murkowski acknowledged the bill would "harm Americans" but capitulated after winning "carve-outs" for her state on issues like SNAP benefits and Medicaid, "to protect her constituents from its harshest impacts," according to The New York Times.
“Do I like this bill? No,” Murkowski told NBC News on Wednesday. “But I tried to take care of Alaska’s interests. But I know that in many parts of the country, there are Americans that are not going to be advantaged by this bill.”
CNN's Pamela Brown asked Begich, "You know, what do you say to that? Would you have voted for this bill if Murkowski had not secured those carve-outs?"
Begich answered, "I voted for this bill when it left the House, and I was happy with what we had."
He then addressed the controversial work requirement for Medicaid.
"This has really been designed to isolate the very small, very small population of folks who are leveraging the system, able to work, but are choosing actively not to. And those folks, to them I say, 'Look, be a part of the solution. Get a job, look for a job, volunteer, but do something to contribute like the rest of America is contributing."
Brown then fact-checked Begich over his assertion that if Congress had not passed the bill, "the average American would see a 68% tax increase."
"I'm not sure that's actually accurate," Brown interjected. "My producer can tell me in my ear — I don't think it's a 68% increase. It's a continuation, you're right, of the 2017 Trump tax cuts, for the most part. And, of course, there was the addition of no tax on overtime or tips. But, I don't think that's right. And I just want to be clear: the number that I mentioned was from the Penn Wharton budget model that uncovered that statistic. It's a nonpartisan entity that conducts these analyses. I just want to be transparent with our viewers."