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Sen. Mike Lee discussed some of the biggest issues in our Nation\\u2019s Capital with Heidi Hatch on Wednesday, Jan. 25.

They discussed Classified documents now found in former President Trump\\u2019s home, President Biden, and former Vice President Mike Pence. They addressed the debt ceiling, how to roll back spending, negotiations on the release of Lt. Ridge Alkonis and the Senator\\u2019s top priorities.

DEBT CEILING

\\u201cWe\'ve got to raise the death ceiling because it\'s coming, it\'s coming at us.\\u201d

Senator Mike Lee told 2 News Heidi Hatch \\u201cThe question is not about whether to raise it. It is about what conditions to attach to it.\\u201d

President Biden is hosting Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy at the White House Wednesday for a one on meeting. The White reiterated that there will be no negotiations on the debt ceiling.

Lee said that cannot happen. \\u201cThis doesn\'t reflect modern realities.\\u201d The reality he says is an approaching thirty-two trillion in debt and baseline federal spending that went from \\u201c$4 trillion, a year as recently as 2019, to an average of about $6 trillion a year right now, these things aren\'t sustainable.\\u201d

Lee sees the goal as getting back to spending at or below 2019 levels.

When asked what conditions would be reasonable?

Lee said, Senate Republicans have adopted a position, as a conference that anytime they are asked to raise the debt ceiling- \\u201cthe debt ceiling increase ought to be accompanied by spending cuts, equal to or greater than the value of the debt limit increase or alternatively structural spending reforms.\\u201d

The Senator noted- The House of Representatives is going to be in the principal driver\'s seat here. He plans on meeting with his counterparts in the house representatives to find common ground.

Senator Lee can is often a reliable no vote on massive spending bills- but if there is to be change- he will need more Senators to do the same.

Lee told 2News Heidi Hatch, he is never \\u201cthe only no vote on these things,\\u201d and \\u201cthere are a growing number of senators and representatives who, who are seeing the devastating consequences of this.\\u201d

Are Republicans part of the burgeoning debt problem?

Lee quickly answered yes. \\u201cThere\'s no question that the accumulated debt is a problem of bipartisan creation. If you look back 20 years ago or a national debt was under $5 trillion. It then doubled over the next seven or eight years under a Republican president and under a Democratic president.\\u201d It doubled again over the next eight years between a Republican and a Democratic president.

\\u201cSo, yeah, we\'ve contributed to it.\\u201d

CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS TRUMP, BIDEN, PENCE

Some of the classified documents found \\u2013 date back to President Biden\'s time as a Senator. When asked if there is concern there are other Senators with classified documents at home:

\\u201cAs to senators, it is highly, highly unusual that in a US Senator would have classified documents in his or her personal possession ever. I mean with very, very rare, very unusual exceptions. When we as senators review classified material, which we do all the time, we do it only in the confines of a secured facility known as a SCIF, that documents do not leave, that we don\'t walk out with them. It would be a felony if we did so.\\u201d

\\u201cAs to the broader issue of documents in the possession of President Trump, president Biden, vice President Pence, former Vice President Biden, we\'re trying to get answers on this.\\u201d Lee said that Senators have asked for classified briefings so they can understand what these documents are in \\u201corder to understand the full ramifications.\\u201d Lee said it is imperative that they know what kind of documents they are dealing with and how they came into possession of them.

LT RIDGE ALKONIS

Sen. Mike Lee has been working to free Lt. Ridge Alkonis from a Japanese prison where a judge sentenced him to a 3-year term, after an accident where he hit and killed two people. Military doctors believe the Lt. suffered from altitude sickness, passing out while driving.

Lee said that in just the last few days he has had follow up conversations with the US Ambassador to Japan, Ambassador Ram Emanuel. \\u201cEmmanuel and I have been working on this together closely for many, many months.\\u201d

Emmanuel helped the Senator visit Alkonis in prison as he worked to negotiate his release.

\\u201cThere have been ongoing conversations, including conversations between President Biden and, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during his recent visit to the United States.

Lee said there are ongoing efforts to secure his return to the United States, as part of a prisoner transfer agreement. \\u201cI remain hopeful and optimistic that we\'re going to get there and we\'re going to get there within the next month or two.\\u201d

CONGRESSIONAL PRIORITES

1. Rein in Federal spending
2. Rein in federal regulations with legislative reform.
3. Competition including Google\'s power to dominate online advertising.

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