As national debate surges around the “Green New Deal,” climate-change legislation, and those who support either or both, California Senator Dianne Feinstein has become the unexpected star of a heated viral exchange. A 15-minute confrontation between Feinstein and student members of the Sunrise Movement—young advocates for climate-change resolution—appears to feature the senator brusquely dismissing their concerns.

“I’ve been doing this for 30 years. I know what I’m doing,” Feinstein says in the extended clip, before alluding to a “million-vote plurality” that won her midterm election. “You come in here and you say, ‘It has to be my way or the highway.’ I don’t respond to that.” Another moment features a young girl from the group identifying her age as 16, to which Feinstein replies, “Well, you didn’t vote for me.”

The Sunrise Movement’s representatives featured approximately a dozen members of middle-school and high-school age, along with several chaperones, who in the clip present Feinstein with a handwritten letter asking her to vote “yes” on the Green New Deal or equivalent climate-change action. In response, Feinstein is heard saying “There’s reasons why I can’t, because there’s no way to pay for it,” adding, “I don’t agree with what that resolution says. That’s part of it.” When one student questions the U.S. Government instead funding military programs—a frequent talking point of congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, proponent of Green New Deal legislation—Feinstein replies “you can’t just go in and say, ‘O.K., we’re going to take hundreds of millions from here, or hundreds of millions from there.’ It just doesn’t work that way.”

Additionally, Feinstein notes that few prominent Republicans have offered support for the Green New Deal, and “the key to good legislation is to tailor something that you write so that it can pass, and you can get a step ahead.”

As the clip continues, Feinstein suggests to one young woman, “I think one day you should run for the Senate, and then you do it your way. But in the meantime, I just won a big election.” Once the majority of children are seen to leave the office, a 16-year-old girl remains to discuss their intent with Feinstein, and even inquire about internship opportunities. You can watch the full, unedited meeting below.

After the Sunrise Movement posted a version of the encounter that went viral, Feinstein’s office tweeted a response Friday night. “Unfortunately, it was a brief meeting but I want the children to know they were heard loud and clear. I have been and remain committed to doing everything I can to enact real, meaningful climate change legislation,” Feinstein said.

“We had a spirited discussion and I presented the group with my draft resolution that provides specific responses to the climate change crisis, which I plan to introduce soon.”