ICYMI: Larson Demands Accountability from Trump-Musk's ‘DOGE’ on NBC CT’s Face the Facts

“I'm sure Elon or Donald don't miss a moment's sleep at night thinking about the roof over their head, the food they have to put on the table, etc. But the people I grew up with in East Hartford do, and all across this state and this nation,” said Larson. “Publicly, they say on Fox News, and they say to reporters that they're going to privatize [Social Security]. Neither Trump, nor Musk, should be underestimated. They should be challenged and taken to task, and they owe it to the American people and certainly to the United States Congress, to come before it and speak the truth. Put your hand up, take an oath and then tell us what you think.”   

You can view the full transcript below: 

Mike Hydeck: Congressman, good to see you. Welcome back once again. Alright, so move fast and break things is the way they do things in Silicon Valley. That's the way Elon Musk is apparently handling all these mass firings. They're working at high speeds in the Silicon Valley to get results for investors. Can you use that process here? 

Rep. Larson: No, this is about people. The Constitution starts off with, ‘We the People.’ And in the case of Social Security, we're talking about 40% of the 70 million people. This is the only benefit they have. And for him to treat this as a number, I'm sure Elon or Donald don't miss a moment's sleep at night thinking about the roof over their head, the food they have to put on the table, etc., but the people I grew up with in East Hartford do, and all across this state and this nation. 

Mike Hydeck: Now, they claim Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, are not going to be touched. They say that publicly. You think differently. 

Rep. Larson: Yeah, they say they're not going to do it publicly. But yet publicly, they say on Fox News, and they say to reporters that they're going to privatize this. So, what's the truth? So therefore, you should come before the committee. No one is above the law. He may be a genius and a smart billionaire. God bless him. He's been very successful. But you know what? He's not above the law, and he's not above the people, and he's answerable to the United States Congress, and shame on the Republicans. That's what I was concerned about. They need to bring him before us, so we get the answers. If he's doing all these great things, or supposedly, he's rooting out all this fraud and abuse, we'll join him with that. But what is it? Come before the committee, tell us what you're doing. Why do you need this personal information on all these individuals and people? We'd like to know that. And, oh, by the way, you're right. They're saying you're not going to touch it, but you're saying you're going to privatize it, because that's the best way to go. 

Mike Hydeck: Well, that's been tried years before. So how do you compel Elon Musk to come before Congress? Is that only because the Republicans are in majority, they can do it? Democrats can't do it? 

Rep. Larson: They control the executive, the House, and the Senate to your point, but they know that they're responsible. You can't make these allegations and charges, all of which are mistruths. Rich Neal said, ‘Can we at least agree that no one over 300 years of age has received a Social Security check?’ The nation wasn't even founded then. And they still wouldn't answer that, right? So, they're scared of him, and I don't know the reason why exactly, Mike, but he needs to be answerable, not just to the Congress, but they owe that to the American people. 

Mike Hydeck: But shouldn't there be pushback here? Let's go to that 300-year-old thing. There are people who have the real data, who can come out and go on camera and say, ‘Look, that's baloney. It's not 300. That's maybe a data error.’ And here's the data error. Why didn't somebody stand up and answer and say, ‘Look, I have the facts to this.’ It just sits out there and floats in the universe. 

Rep. Larson: They do, including even the designee of Trump, the acting commissioner, who is willing to give DOGE access, much to our chagrin, but has also said this is false and untrue. But you have the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, you have all these other sources that are saying that, to your point. So why not, if that's not true, why not come before the committee in the hearing process that is designated to do that, to get to the truth. Why won't he appear before Congress? 

Mike Hydeck: So, when these arguments happen in public, they're starting to happen more and more often. What's your opinion with, both on the Republican and Democratic side, in blue and red states, people are having town halls, and they're getting shouted down. They're saying, ‘do your job.’ They're saying it to Congress, saying it to Republicans, and they're saying that to the Democrats. What happens? How does this play out? 

Rep. Larson: And what their job is. So here you have the Republicans saying, ‘Don't do any town halls,’ because you're going to hear from the people, and what you're going to hear is the truth. They're angry. Every town hall that I go to, people have the same thing. 

Mike Hydeck: Right. Veterans are losing their jobs in red and blue states. 

Rep. Larson: They're angry at me, too, saying, ‘Hey…why aren't you guys doing enough?’ And when they say doing enough, what they mean is, why aren't you holding them accountable? 

Mike Hydeck: Let me interrupt you real quick. Speaking of holding them accountable. The joint session of Congress holding up a paddle. Is that holding them accountable? 

Rep. Larson: No, but it's a message. It's a message. And guess what? That's what's dominating today. It's amazing. When people don't trust the government and when people don't trust the media, we've got a real problem. When people are getting their information not from NBC, or from the United States Congress, but on the internet, where anything can be said. And Elon Musk understands this, and so he's able to say, even just this past week, Democrats have a plan to bring in illegal immigrants, and their plan is to coax them in by saying, we're going to give you Social Security. Everyone knows that that's false and can't possibly be true, but he gets away with it. But if you have a prejudice and a concern about immigrants coming to this country legally or illegally, it plays to their fear and their concern. He's very good at it. Neither Trump, nor Musk, should be underestimated. They should be challenged and taken to task, and they owe it to the American people and certainly to the United States Congress, to come before it and speak the truth. Put your hand up, take an oath and then tell us what you think.