House Passes Spending Bill With $5 Billion For Trump's Border Wall.
BERMAN: A Defense official tells CNN the United States is planning to cut its military presence in Afghanistan in half, just like President Trump's decision to withdraw troops from Syria was reportedly a factor in Defense Sec. James Mattis -- his decision to resign. Joining me now is Republican Congressman Jim Banks of Indiana. Congressman Banks served in Afghanistan and now sits on the House Armed Services Committee. Congressman, thanks so much for being with us. I had an active duty service member tell me he was devastated by the resignation of James Mattis. What's your reaction?</s>REP. JIM BANKS (R-IN), MEMBER, HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Well, I'm disappointed. I've served with Sec. Mattis over the past couple of years as a member of the Armed Services Committee. He's served this country tremendously well and America is safer today because of his leadership at the Pentagon. I'm grateful that he's given the president a few months to make the transition and pick somebody different. I'm sure the president will find someone of the same caliber to replace Sec. Mattis and I will be waiting, somewhat impatiently, to see who that person will be.</s>BERMAN: Waiting impatiently. Sec. Mattis, in his resignation letter -- which was extraordinary in that it did not offer any praise to President Trump on his way out the door -- suggested that he thought the president was too solicitous of U.S. enemies and not respectful enough of U.S. allies. Do you feel that way?</s>BANKS: Well, when Russia is praising us for pulling out of Syria, that deeply concerns me as well. But, as Sec. Mattis' departure -- obviously, that is devastating news to our national security and to the Pentagon. A lot of leaders that I'm hearing from at the Pentagon who are disappointed. But we'll look forward to this president picking someone of the same caliber. This president has made good decisions when it comes to national security figures in his administration before and I have a little doubt that he'll do that again.</s>BERMAN: You criticized the withdrawal of the U.S. troops from Syria. You know, you served in Afghanistan. What is your reaction to the news, as both a veteran and a member of the Armed Services Committee, that the president wants to cut our troop presence in Afghanistan by half?</s>BANKS: Well, I hope that's not the case. I was in Afghanistan last month. I served there just a few years ago before being elected to Congress. And when I went back last month it was clear that the threat in Afghanistan has evolved. The rise of ISIS-K in Afghanistan poses a much more serious threat than what we've seen there in many years since -- maybe even since 9/11. So, a pullout of Afghanistan today would be a concession of defeat, not just to the Taliban, but it would be turning over the country to ISIS-K, which poses a much more significant threat to the homeland. And that's why we have to remember why we're there to begin with. We're there, to begin with, to prevent another attack on American soil, like 9/11, and I'm more concerned today than ever before that ISIS-K poses that type of threat. So I and other members of Congress, I'm sure, will call on this administration to rethink any strategy that would pull troops out of Afghanistan until the -- until the work there is done. It's clear that today, the work isn't done yet.</s>BERMAN: Just so I make sure I understand exactly what you said, you think if the United States reduces its troop presence in Afghanistan by as much as we learned the president is asking for -- you think it increases the chances of a 9/11-style attack?</s>BANKS: I think that it very much could because of the rise of ISIS-K in Afghanistan today which poses a much more complex, a much more serious threat to the homeland of the United States and a threat to our allies, as well. So now is not the time to pull back troops. I've been critical of the administration over the last year because of the lack of attention or a lack of detail about the South Asia strategy. There's been very little meat on the bones of that strategy. And I've always thought the president would serve our efforts there better if he visited Afghanistan and went and listened to the leaders on the ground. He would learn a great deal, just like I did last month when I visited with the bipartisan delegation, myself.</s>BERMAN: All right. To be fair, just so people don't think you're all critical of the president here -- you're being critical of his decision in Syria and Afghanistan -- you were very supportive of his action yesterday on the border wall and you voted for the House bill last night -- the funding bill which includes $5 billion for the border wall -- knowing that it likely will not get through the Senate and that a shutdown is likely. And the president wrote this morning that there is a shutdown that could last for a very long time. Would you be comfortable with that?</s>BANKS: Well, nobody on Capitol Hill wants a shutdown. We still have time to get through this process. When the senators return from their premature early vacation and come back to Washington, D.C. today to do their work, then we can still -- we still have time to get this done to prevent a shutdown. But what happened in the House yesterday was important. I am a rank and file member of the Republican Conference and our leadership listened to rank and file members, like myself, who come from districts with constituents who wanted us to vote on boosting border security funding like we did yesterday and send this spending deal back to the Senate so that they can take that under consideration, too. That's how this process of negotiation in the legislative process works. We still have time to prevent a shutdown.</s>BERMAN: So the blame game is one of the sillier games we play in this country, particularly before Christmas. But the president did say that he was comfortable owning the shutdown. He sat in the Oval Office with Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer and said fine, fine, I own this. I'm happy to shut down the government if it's over border security. So, if by tomorrow morning there isn't a deal made and the government is shut down, is this on him?</s>BANKS: The Legislative Branch crafts these spending deals so it is dependent upon Congress to pass a spending deal. We did that, responsibly so, with about 70 percent of the federal government that is funded for the full fiscal year that we passed before the fiscal year began earlier this year. We have about 30 percent of the federal government that isn't funded and we have a chance today to pass a spending deal that will prevent a shutdown and fund the -- fund that rest of the government for the rest of the fiscal year.</s>BERMAN: Congressman Jim Banks, thanks for being with us. Thank you also for your service -- appreciate it. Have a wonderful holiday.</s>BANKS: Thank you. Happy holidays.</s>BERMAN: All right, the president is awake and he is weighing in on all the events of the morning -- the departure of James Mattis and the government shutdown, which he says could last for a long time. NEW DAY continues right now.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For Sec. Mattis, who's never been known to quit anything, this was the breaking point.</s>SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D), CONNECTICUT: His decision to --