--- title: Susan Collins Mocks Blake Farenthold on Hot Mic description: Chairman Susan Collins and Jack Reed were unintentionally recorded talking about President Donald Trump and Rep. Blake Farenthold canonical: https://time.com/4873106/susan-collins-jack-reed-blake-farenthold-donald-trump-hot-mic/ author: Madeline Farber article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-07-25T18:28:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T05:24:19.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: 'I Think He's Crazy': Senators Caught Talking About President Trump on a Hot Mic og:description: “I’m worried,” Sen. Susan Collins said og:url: https://time.com/4873106/susan-collins-jack-reed-blake-farenthold-donald-trump-hot-mic/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3357b0d6cd83db78/698896b9ab6d77dfd56a9f9d/susan-collins.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, speaks with reporters as she arrives in the Capitol for a vote on Wednesday, March 25, 2015. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'I Think He's Crazy': Senators Caught Talking About President Trump on a Hot Mic twitter:description: “I’m worried,” Sen. Susan Collins said twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3357b0d6cd83db78/698896b9ab6d77dfd56a9f9d/susan-collins.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:30 video:published: 2017-07-25 section: politics topics: Obamacare repeal, Health and Human Services, Tom Price, Washington swamp, America first, Boy Scout values, loyalty, Congressional votes genre: speech, political remarks tones: combative, boastful, patriotic, informal emotions: pride (medium), anger (medium), contempt (medium), enthusiasm (medium) sentiment: neutral audience: political observers, Boy Scouts and families, voters interested in healthcare policy, news readers people: Donald Trump, Tom Price organizations: Boy Scouts, Congress, Department of Health and Human Services products: Obamacare content_suitability: politics [00:00-01:30]; profanity [00:54-01:02] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # 'I Think He's Crazy': Senators Caught Talking About President Trump on a Hot Mic > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=a693b92e-34c7-471c-901c-1646a648d99c&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Trump Brags About His Election Victory During Boy Scout Jamboree Speech [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump Brags About His Election Victory During Boy Scout Jamboree Speech](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/jgJePnRt.m3u8) (1:30)  _Published 2017-07-25. President Donald Trump spoke Monday night at the 2017 Boy Scout Jamboree, where he bragged about his victory over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 campaign and bashed the media._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary President Trump speaks at the 2017 Boy Scout Jamboree, praising Secretary Tom Price and urging Congress to pass a vote to repeal Obamacare. He then criticizes Washington politicians and the 'swamp,' suggesting alternative terms for it. He closes by linking Scout values and the Scout Law to American values, including loyalty. ## Key points - Trump introduces Secretary Tom Price as doing a great job as Secretary of Health and Human Services. (00:00) - Trump says he hopes Congress gets the votes tomorrow to start the path toward killing Obamacare, which he says is really hurting people. (00:16) - Trump warns that if the votes are not secured, he will say Tom, you're fired and get somebody else. (00:30) - Trump says the Scouts believe in putting America first. (00:43) - Trump describes Washington politicians and says he sees the swamp, which he calls not a good place. (00:54) - Trump says he suggested changing the word swamp to cesspool or sewer. (01:02) - Trump says Boy Scout values are American values and great Boy Scouts become great Americans. (01:12) - Trump says the Scout Law describes a scout as trustworthy and loyal, and that the country could use more loyalty. (01:21) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:16] Praise for Secretary Tom Price. Trump introduces Tom Price and praises his work as Health and Human Services Secretary. - [00:16 to 00:43] Obamacare vote and firing threat. Trump urges a vote to repeal Obamacare and warns Price he will be fired if the votes fail. - [00:43 to 01:12] Swamp remarks and America first. Trump says Scouts put America first, then criticizes Washington politicians and the swamp. - [01:12 to 01:30] Scout values and loyalty. Trump links Boy Scout values to American values and calls for more loyalty, citing the Scout Law. ## Key quotes - [00:30] Donald Trump: "I bet, otherwise I'll say Tom, you're fired. I'll get somebody." - [00:43] Donald Trump: "The scouts believe in putting America first." - [00:54] Donald Trump: "I see the swamp And it's not a good place." - [01:12] Donald Trump: "Boys scout values are American values, and great boys scouts become great, great, Americans." - [01:30] Donald Trump: "We could use some more loyalty I will tell you that." ## Questions this video answers - What does Trump say about Secretary Tom Price's job performance? [00:00] - What vote does Trump want Congress to take on Obamacare? [00:16] - What does Trump threaten will happen to Tom Price if the votes are not secured? [00:30] - What does Trump say about Washington politicians and the swamp? [00:54] - How does Trump connect Boy Scout values to American values? [01:12] ## Content suitability - politics [00:00-01:30]: Entire video is a political speech discussing Obamacare, Washington politicians and a cabinet member. - profanity [00:54-01:02]: Insulting slang used to describe Washington, including 'cess pool' and 'sewer' as alternatives to 'swamp'. by [Madeline Farber](https://time.com/author/madeline-farber/) ## Madeline Farber Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:24 AM UTCPublished: Jul 25, 2017 6:28 PM UTC President Donald Trump spoke Monday night at the 2017 Boy Scout Jamboree, where he bragged about his victory over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 campaign and bashed the media. by [Madeline Farber](https://time.com/author/madeline-farber/) ## Madeline Farber Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:24 AM UTCPublished: Jul 25, 2017 6:28 PM UTC Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) was accidentally recorded talking about President Donald Trump and the Texas Republican congressman Blake Farenthold during a Senate subcommittee hearing on Tuesday. According to a spokesperson for Sen. Collins, someone sitting near her didn’t turn off the microphone. It’s currently unclear whose microphone was left on. At the start of the recording, Collins speaks to Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, who is the ranking Democrat of the subcommittee. The two discussed Trump’s federal budget, calling his administration’s handling of the budget “irresponsible,” according to the Washington [_Post._ ](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/07/25/senators-on-hot-mic-trump-is-crazy-im-worried/?utm%5Fterm=.3a1114671bb1) “I swear, \[the Office of Management and Budget\] just went through and whenever there was ‘grant,’ they just X it out,” Collins said, according to the _Post_. “With no measurement, no thinking about it, no metrics, no nothing. It’s just incredibly irresponsible.” “Yes,” Reed replied. “I think — I think he’s crazy,” he said, referring to the president, according the _Post_. “I mean, I don’t say that lightly and as a kind of a goofy guy.” “I’m worried,” Collins added. The two continue to speak about the budget. But in a more crude portion of their unintentionally recorded chat, Collins addresses Rep. Blake Farenthold’s (R-Tex.) recent radio interview where he blamed “some female senators from the Northeast” for failing to repeal and replace Obamacare. Collins has consistently opposed the GOP’s plan to repeal and replace Obamacare, and appeared to be the target of Farenthold’s criticism. During his interview, he said that if Collins were a man, he would challenge her to an [“Aaron Burr-style” duel.](http://time.com/4871491/blake-farenthold-female-senators-republicans-health-care-obamacare/) “Did you see the one who challenged me to a duel?” Collins asked. “I know,” Reed said. “Trust me. Do you know why he challenged you to a duel? ‘Cause you could beat the s–t out of him.” “Well, he’s huge,” Collins replied. “And he — I don’t mean to be unkind, but he’s so unattractive it’s unbelievable.” “Did you see the picture of him in his pajamas next to this Playboy bunny?” she continued, referring to the picture of Farenthold that can be seen below. > [](https://twitter.com/MissBeaE/status/889879120863272961) The mic went dead shortly after, according to the _Post._ In a statement to TIME, Sen. Collins said that “Neither weapons nor inappropriate words are the right way to resolve legislative disputes. I received a handwritten apology from Rep. Farenthold late this morning. I accept his apology, and I offer him mine.” ## Transcript [00:00] Secretary Tom Price is also here. Today Dr. Price [00:04] still lives [ UNKNOWN ] helping to keep millions of [00:05] Americans strong and healthy as our Secretary of [00:05] Health and Human Services and he's doing a great job. [00:16] And hopefully, he's going to get the votes tomorrow to [00:20] start our path Toward killing this horrible [00:24] thing known as Obama Care that's really hurting us. [00:27] [ APPLAUSE ] By the way, you're gonna get the votes? [00:30] They better get them, they better get them. I [00:35] bet, otherwise I'll say Tom, you're fired. I'll get [00:38] somebody. [ APPLAUSE ] [ SOUND ] The scouts believe [00:43] in putting America first. [ APPLAUSE ] [00:54] You know I go to Washington and I see all these [00:57] politicians, and I see the swamp And [01:02] it's not a good place. In fact today I said we ought to [01:04] change it from the word swamp to the word cess pool [01:09] or perhaps to the word sewer, but it's not good. Boys [01:12] scout values are American values, and great boys [01:16] scouts become great, great, Americans. As [01:21] the Scout Law says, a scout is [01:26] trustworthy, loyal. 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