Democratic Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey was in Pittsfield today for the Berkshire Family YMCA’s ribbon cutting ceremony after a multi-million-dollar renovation. Markey helped secure federal funding for the project, which will ultimately cost around $12.4 million. The senator’s visit to the Berkshires comes as debt ceiling negotiations between the White House and Congress continue in Washington. The country risks defaulting on its debt of over $31 trillion unless the borrowing cap is raised. After a press conference on the Y’s new basketball court, Markey spoke with WAMC.
MARKEY: If we default, then the global markets will rock. There will be a financial earthquake all across the planet, but it will ripple right down to people's mortgage rates, to what they pay to buy a new car. It just has enormous ramifications for our economy, but because we're the most important economy, for the entire world.
WAMC: So, from your vantage point, when it comes to working with the Republican Party, how far is too far when it comes to concessions in this negotiation?
Well, from my perspective, if they want to impose onerous burdens on the most vulnerable in our society, that is completely unacceptable. What the Republicans is saying right now is that reclaiming any of the tax breaks for billionaires and millionaires is off the table, that they want to increase defense spending at the same time. Well, that leaves then the poorest amongst us. So, any deal has to ultimately be fair, and that's the test that I'm going to apply. And if, as part of the deal, they also undermine environmental safeguards, if they allow for a carbon bomb to go off in various parts of our country because of lessened environmental standards, that's going to be a problem as well.
Do you have any regrets that your party did not work on raising the debt ceiling when you fully controlled the government just a couple of years ago?
It doesn't do us any good to look back. We didn't do it. And so, we just have to deal handle the situation as it exists today.
Now, I’m interested about your recent bipartisan legislation about AM radio. I found that very interesting, and of course, I'm here with a radio station. Talk to me about that- What's the purpose of keeping AM radio in cars?
Well, Tesla and Ford and other auto manufacturers are saying that they can't figure out a way of keeping an AM radio in their new electric vehicles. However, at the same time, Toyota and Kia and Chrysler say they can and are going to figure out a way of keeping AM radio in their cars. So, what I'm saying is that for local news, sports entertainment, but for emergencies especially, AM radio is a place where people go. And “AM” really stands for “avoiding mayhem: when crisis hits, and I'm going to work hard with Ted Cruz to make sure that AM radio stays in new, all electric vehicles as well as traditional vehicles.
News about US Attorney Rachael Rollins has been all over the headlines, her resignation. You backed her and her bid to become a US Attorney. Where do you stand now that she's chosen to step down amidst this ethics probe?
Well, the fact that Rachael had strong qualifications for this position, that's why she was nominated after thorough vetting by both our nominating committee and by the White House. Ultimately, the ethical standards of this revision of this position were not upheld, and we're going to work closely with our partners now to create a new process in conjunction with the White House to select a replacement.
Now, your staff became the first in Senate history to unionize this year. You chose to acknowledge that process- Talk to me, why was it important to you to stand with your employees to unionize?
Well, I support their right to unionize and I think that in this era, it's important to validate that, which is what I'm doing, and they are negotiating with my chief of staff, deputy chief of staff, leaders in the Massachusetts office in order to implement any unionization pathway.
