Dan Patrick: The world better get used to Trump as president

This is a rush transcript from "Your World," January 26, 2017. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST:  I want to go to Dan Patrick right now, the lieutenant governor of the fine state of Texas, joining us out of Houston, I believe.

Governor, good to have you.

LT. GOV. DAN PATRICK, R-TEXAS:  Good to be back.

CAVUTO:  What do you think of these fast-moving developments, particularly what could be a 20 percent tax to pay for this wall on goods coming into this country from Mexico?

PATRICK:  Well, first of all, Neil, the world better get used to Donald Trump as president.

He's a businessman.  He's bold.  This is what America elected him to do, was to get our country back in order and to create jobs and improve our economy, and make us the leader in the world again that, quite frankly, Neil, as you know, many of us believe for the last eight years we have been weaker under Obama.

And so, in this particular instance -- and this news just broke as I was sitting here listening to maybe the next Margaret Thatcher -- I don't know-- but she sure sounds like she fits in perfectly with a new day in America, as well as potentially in England.

But, look, they're our third largest trading partner.  They're a trading partner to Texas.  They need us.  And, quite frankly, they're very good for America.  We do have about a $58 billion to $60 billion deficit.

And this is just the first foray, Neil, I believe.  This is the way Donald Trump will go about conducting business.  He's going to be strong.  He's going to be bold.  He's going to be first.  And he's going to put the other side on defense.

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO:  I understand.  There are a lot of alternatives how he could pay for this.  But he's insisting that the Mexicans pay for this one way or the other.

But if there's a tax on Mexican goods that come into this country, don't we essentially pay that?

PATRICK:  Essentially, you said in your opening consumers could pay for that.  But I don't think that's what it's going to come down to.

Again, I think this is the first shot across the bow.  Donald is not going to -- the president -- I'm sorry -- President Trump is not going to ever be on defense.  You didn't see him on defense throughout the entire campaign. He will always be on offense.

And that's how you get the best deal.  And, by the way, we need the wall. I hear some people say that -- so, I'm not too concerned.  It will work itself out.  And he will be sure that they end up paying for it.  I believe that.  And maybe it won't be so obvious as a 20 percent surcharge, but they will end up paying for it.

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO:  But there are other options here.  There are options here.

PATRICK:  Sure.  There are other options.

CAVUTO:  The Mexicans, as you have indicated, they're not going to do this, they're not going to pay for this wall.

Do you worry, though, that, however justified you might feel this is and that the Mexicans pay for it, that it could have a chilling effect on Americans who want to go to Mexico and Mexicans who want to come here, that be careful what you wish for, this could set in motion some dicey stuff?

PATRICK:  Again, it's very important to Texas.  Mexico is a great trading partner, a great partner to us and very important to us.

And it will work itself out.  We just have to get used to a president who is actually bold in putting us first.  But, Neil, we need the wall.  And it will get built.

Let me tell you one reason why we need the wall.  And I hear this talk, well, we don't need it.  What has the president said?  He wants to deport our criminal illegal aliens in this country.  There's thousands of them on the streets and thousands of them in our jails.

If you don't have a secure border and a secure wall, they will be right back.  That's been the problem.  How many times have we deported a criminal who is here illegally and they come back and kill someone, rape someone, commit a heinous crime?

So, you have to have the wall, so that when you deport these hardened criminals, these gang members, these drug cartel operatives, that they don't get back into this country easily, Neil.  So, we need the wall.  It's very important.

CAVUTO:  All right.

PATRICK:  I'm not worried about, again, the relationships between Mexico and Texas and America.

We are friends with Mexico.  They are friends with us.  We're good trading partners with them, and they're good trading partners with us.  However, the president of Mexico needs to understand, part of the problem we have on our border is because they're not doing their job.  And Americans are paying the price in many ways.  And so they do have a responsibility to protect...

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO:  To your point, things are changing, Governor.

I want to thank you.  We have fast-moving developments here.

PATRICK:  Yes.

END

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