Writing: Rep. Dan Crenshaw “faces the nation with Margaret Brennan,” Nove. 2025

The following is a transcript of the interview with Rep. Dan Crenshaw, Republican of Texas, threatened to “face the nation with Margaret Brennan” on November 2, 2025.

Margaret Brennan: Welcome back to “The Nation’s Face.” We turn now to Texas Republican Congressman Dan Crenshaw, who is joining us this morning from Humble, Texas. Welcome to “Face the Nation.”

Representative dan crenshaw (R-tx): thanks for having me.

Margaret Brennan: Congressman, I know you’ve been to Washington, but mostly members of the house don’t come to town. The House has not voted since September 19. It will be the seventh week in a row now that they have been working from home. Can you convince Speaker Johnson to bring everyone back to try to crack down on federally subsidized unemployment?

Rep. Crenshaw: To the Speaker. House Republicans and House Democrats returning to Washington, will not break the deadlock. Let’s not forget that the house passed clean. It was ur temporary thing, ok. And you know, Democrats keep saying that Republicans have no intention of negotiating. We can’t count on them wanting to negotiate when we open the government. That makes no sense. If we had looked, if we had gone through the Cr year by year, I think they could make that argument. That’s usually an indication that we don’t actually want to talk about the budget now, we want to- that we want to keep it down the road for one year. But when you go through a very short time Cr, Another seven weeks, it is a clear indication that we intend to continue those discussions. So look, there are other things we can do. The reason I keep coming back is because I work on the intelligence committee, and I have to do that work from inside DC. There are many reasons people relapse. But look, ultimately, the Senate has to deal with this, and the Democrats in the Senate just reopen the government. It’s that simple. They voted- I don’t even want what it is, 15 times, to keep you closed. They would never again vote to pay Federal workers. That was the way of madness in the madness of Senator tuneuaneud, allowing them to vote, they almost have an easy way out, let them at least vote to vote it hurts those who work well. And they voted that down. I don’t really know what their strategy is yet. They are the ones who need to find this out.

Margaret Brennan: So, you heard – maybe you heard the senator’s boss over on the show say, you know, the negotiations are happening this week. He hoped that there would be some end in sight. On your side of the capitol. Are you saying you don’t see signs of this only this week?

Rep. Crenshaw: Don’t see that I’m sorry, yeah I don’t, I don’t see going back to the schedule. I think we would have been informed by now. Yes, but again, the mishap is not in the house. You know, we took it out of the house–

Margaret Brennan: – Queryccood– – but to come to the agreement, which is the USenator I was talking about everyone and going to the White House and the President went to Hampul. The speaker, at least, doesn’t sound like he has a level of hope. But let’s talk about the impact where you are. Your district includes parts of Houston. We checked the numbers, and we come from families with 350,000 people in Houston would have some difficulty with their food stamps, these benefits snap because of the stop. Is there any guidance from the government or administration that people receive food payments this week?

Rep. Crenshaw: Well, from what I can tell from the administration’s statements, I mean, they’re going to try to use the Emergency Relief Fund on a temporary basis. But look at everything- I think there’s about $6 billion in that fund. Monthly SNAP benefits cost Americans 9 billion so that’s the biggest band aid. And the only way you will get SNAP benefits back on Track is if the Demoprats vote for our clean cr vote. I visited a food bank recently. Yes, they prepare a large batch on demand. You know, the situation can only do so much at this point. We can all do a lot more than a simple solution to this, which is to keep the government open and, you know, want to negotiate this complex health care issue, which is what the Democrats say they want. I think they chose out of the law, and all of a sudden it threw this wind. But it’s great, let’s talk, but you have to do it with open government and don’t behave – you don’t hold a gun to our heads. He’s holding a gun to the heads of ordinary Americans.

Margaret Brennan: He’s on the intelligence committee. You mentioned that you have, you should have come back here to look at what I think is organized intelligence. The President confirmed for a few weeks that he has raised some CIA activity in Venezuela, but he did not see evidence that the campaign of the US Press in Nicolas Maduro is working, that all this military Hordware is motivated to do something?

Rep. Crenshaw: I can just tell you what I can think of, since I’m out of time, we don’t get briefs because- because we’re not there. One of the reasons I keep going back is to look at these things. A broader question- this is a geopolitical question, is the pressure campaign working? Well, look, disconnection almost always works, especially when you’re dealing with Dictators like Maduro. They listen to only one thing, which is power. And Venezuela has been left alone by the American administration. The Western Hemisphere is left alone, and I think this representative is taking it seriously. Look, the government of Venezuela is, it’s a fake government, right? He ran a strong election. Everyone knows that the Cubans and the Russians have been raised. They have been shouting about terrorist groups like the Farc for years. It has been the rage in countries like Colombia for years. There are many high-ranking officials in the Government of Venezuela who are accused of drug trafficking. It is a success with narco-terrorists

Margaret Brennan: – But Maduro is still in power–

Rep. Crenshaw: – Maduro, what? sorry—

Margaret Brennan: But that you still have the power. That’s what we were just talking about with Senator Warner. This need for more information can go to law enforcement about how the involvement of the US military will be. Can you support the global strikes in Venezuela?

Rep. Crenshaw: Actually boots on the ground in Venezuela? –

Margaret Brennan: – World World–

Rep. Crenshaw: – I think we’re going to have to have a long discussion about doing something about that right. But I think what the president is doing now is very much in a rational and humane way, looking at the drug boats that we asked ourselves, do we really have any intelligence on what those drug boats are and who is on them? Yes we do. All I can say is, right. We have a multi-sourced intelligence that- so we know for sure what- we are actually talking about, and we don’t shoot with all the conventions. And people say, Well, why can’t you just separate everything? And I say, well how many boats do we think we have? How many boats and helicopters do you think you have? And do you know how dangerous mental activity is? You will make people – put people’s lives in danger. And you know, it’s been years, and we don’t work. Therefore, you need to try something new, because it is an imminent injury to the United States, and that is clearly within the authority of the President under Article two. So, I’m not wringing my hands about what’s happening now. Speaking of feelings about the attack on Venezuela. I mean, that’s not really what we’re talking about now.

Margaret Brennan: No- No, I was asked about the world. However, let me ask you about something that some of the following have talked a lot about including McConnell from McConnell, he is concerned about antisemitism. On the right, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said he has seen more interest in the past six months than in his entire life. Take a listen.

(Play audio on tape)

Sen. Ted Cruz: “This is poison, and I believe that we are facing a problem in our party and in our country that Adolf Hitler was cool and he couldn’t live there, and he is not intelligent, and he is a coward, and he agrees with this evil.”

(End the audio on the tape)

Margaret Brennan: You’re right when you’re quoted in an interview with Tucker Carlson who was right and Holocaust commentator Nick Fuentes. Do you share Senator Cruz’s concerns about your party?

Rep. Crenshaw: Oh, yeah. Mr. Cruz, he put it well. I had a long feud with Tucker Carlson. I’m glad everyone is here now about what a bad person he is. He has changed a lot in the last 20 years. You know, it’s hard to say why, but it doesn’t matter why. I mean you have a guy who looks like trash on your show, you suggest what a person who has really fallen off the radar. You know, he once sent his followers to my events and tried to ask me a bunch of questions about Jews and Israel funding and all that, and tried to disrupt the events. And they were trying to intervene in the maga movement. You know, they were actually on a downward slide. And with tucker to find out that penator cruz is exactly right. And this idea that we should, you know, cancel the tradition, if we- if we- if we end up going out of our gatherings from now on, it’s just. I literally wrote a letter to the Culture Council. So, you know, I thought a lot about this. Cancel the tradition means: You cancel your person’s belief that is very important, or maybe maybe less, like a past mistake they made that can be considered to be considered a cultural crime. It’s not canceling culture when you say, look, I want to separate from you because your beliefs are crazy and you’re going to separate and fall in front of everyone. You know this can’t cancel anyone, and I know others have suggested it. Therefore, I think that moral clarity is very important in this case.

Margaret Brennan: Congressman Crenshaw, we should leave it at that. Thank you for your time this morning. We will go back.