The GOP senator breaking with Trump on vaccines and AI (with Sen. Bill Cassidy)

Dasha Burns (0:00)

Presented by AHIP.

SPEAKER_2 (0:02)

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Bill Cassidy (0:15)

I'm just not that impressed with MAHA. And why not? Because if you really want to make America healthy again, and because of your efforts, we now have record outbreaks of measles.

Boy, that's not making America healthy again. That shows how bankrupt they are.

Dasha Burns (0:36)

Hello, hello, and welcome to The Conversation. I'm Dasha Burns. And every week on this show, I talk to some of the most compelling and sometimes unexpected power players in Washington and beyond. And this week, I sat down with Republican Senator from Louisiana, Bill Cassidy. Cassidy is serving out his final few months as senator after he lost his primary when President Trump endorsed his opponent. Compared to his colleagues duking it out on the campaign trail, he's a little more relaxed and a little more candid. We talked about the state of his party heading into the midterms, the president's handling of the war in Iran, and the future of AI in our country. Cassidy also told me he thinks the MAHA movement is, quote, way overplayed. It's a pretty personal issue for him because he is a former physician, and he cast the deciding vote to confirm RFK. Jr. as HHS secretary. We dig into that too.

Bill Cassidy (1:29)

Ultimately, restoring trust in our public health institution is too important. And I think Mr. Kennedy can help get that done.

Dasha Burns (1:37)

While Cassidy may not be on the ballot, we are about to have a bunch of conversations with people who are. In fact, we are kicking off a six-week cross-country midterm series starting next week. So subscribe and you won't miss a single episode. And now, here's my conversation with Senator Bill Cassidy.

Senator Bill Cassidy, thank you so much for joining The Conversation.

Bill Cassidy (1:59)

Thanks for having me.

Dasha Burns (2:00)

Right. You are not on the ballot in November. How does that feel?

Bill Cassidy (2:05)

Well, you know, of course, initially disappointing, but it's certainly liberating.

Dasha Burns (2:08)

Yeah.

Bill Cassidy (2:09)

And people say I look more relaxed. I'm sure I do. Yeah.

Dasha Burns (2:12)

The folks that I know that are running right now are not quite as chipper as you are.

Listen, you were not at the RNC convention last week. I was there and you're not running. And so you kind of have this interesting perspective. You're a bit at a remove much more than you have been in a very long time. Where's your head at when it comes to how you think Republicans are going to do in the midterms?

Bill Cassidy (2:38)

Tell me how well the American people perceive they've been served.

If the American people perceive they've been served well, we're going to be okay. And as they feel like, oh my gosh, you know, things which were affordable are no longer, and things which were guaranteed did not get carried out. If that's the case, then we're not going to do well. And so I can't gauge the viewpoint of the American people, but that's typically what they base their opinions on.

Dasha Burns (3:02)

Well, but you do have constituents. I mean, when you talk to folks in Louisiana, how do you think Republicans are going to do based on what you're hearing?

Bill Cassidy (3:09)

We're a very deep red state. And so obviously, if you're a Republican in my state in most districts, you're going to do well, but if you're a Republican in my state in most states, you're going to do well. But you can't help but notice rumblings that costs are going up. But I mean, I'm not telling you anything you don't know. You can look at polling and the cost of fuel and the cost of groceries and the cost of health care has gone up. And folks want solutions. So the degree to which they perceive the Republican Party or the Democratic Party is addressing that. I think those parties will do well nationally.

Dasha Burns (3:36)

As you well know, a lot of the costs you're talking about, especially when it comes to fuel, those costs are rising because of the war in Iran. In June, you voted yes on a war powers resolution that would have reigned in the president's actions in Iran before changing your vote and voting against the resolution. You said you changed your vote because you were briefed by the administration and felt confident that the administration could meet its objectives of destroying Iran's nuclear capability and warfare capabilities. It's now been almost three months since then. The IRGC is still attacking American warships and military bases.