text:
Skip to main content
Search the history of over 279 billion
web pages
on the Internet.
Search the Wayback Machine
All Texts
This Just In
Smithsonian Libraries
Lincoln Collection
Additional Collections
eBooks & Texts
American Libraries
Canadian Libraries
Universal Library
Community Texts
Shareware CD-ROMs
Project Gutenberg
Biodiversity Heritage Library
Open Library
Children's Library
Library of the Printed Web
All Video
This Just In
Prelinger Archives
Democracy Now!
Occupy Wall Street
TV NSA Clip Library
TV News
Animation & Cartoons
Arts & Music
Community Video
Computers & Technology
Cultural & Academic Films
Ephemeral Films
Understanding 9/11
News & Public Affairs
Spirituality & Religion
Sports Videos
Videogame Videos
Youth Media
All Audio
This Just In
Grateful Dead
Old Time Radio
78 RPMs and Cylinder Recordings
Live Music Archive
Audio Books & Poetry
Community Audio
Computers & Technology
Music, Arts & Culture
News & Public Affairs
Non-English Audio
Librivox Free Audiobook
Radio Programs
Spirituality & Religion
All Software
This Just In
Old School Emulation
MS-DOS Games
Historical Software
Classic PC Games
Software Library
Internet Arcade
Community Software
Software Sites
Tucows Software Library
Vintage Software
Console Living Room
Atari 2600
Magnavox Odyssey 2
Bally Astrocade
ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum Library: Games
Sega Genesis
Sega Game Gear
All Image
This Just In
Flickr Commons
Occupy Wall Street Flickr
Cover Art
USGS Maps
Metropolitan Museum
NASA Images
Solar System Collection
Ames Research Center
Brooklyn Museum
Toggle navigation
8:00 pm
nobody speaks about the intelligence blunder the republicans did that put us in a war with raq, law 2000 american soldiers, and their answer was they had poor intelligence. secondly, my question is, why should anybody believe that governor romney would be good at creating jobs what he was 48 in job guest: well, i'll take the question first. governor romney in the middle oh f a tough economy created almost 50,000 new jobs in massachusetts. let's remember. >> on "washington journal" tomorrow morning we'll look at virge. >> now we'll go to jacksonville florida where mitt romney is to speak shortly.
8:01 pm
he is with jeb bush. >> you ready to take back the white house? i thought you might be. how did you enjoy five for fighting? he's a really good guy. did you enjoy his song "freedom never cries"? this is an important election. this an election about what the future of america is going to be. is our future going to be more debt and more regulation and more taxes? sor our future going to be in less taxes, less regulations and. nibble mitt romney.
8:02 pm
he's the right candidate at the right time to be the president of the united states. [applause] you know in the state of florida we have 820,000 people out of work, people who will looking for work, people who have given up looking for work. we need someone who understands how jobs are created. that individuals create jobs not government that creates jobs. [applause] . when mitt romney is president he is going to need another united states senator republican nites senator from florida. [applause] how many here have already voted? [applause] and for those of you who vant
8:03 pm
weak up tomorrow morning and go vote. after you vote for mitt romney go down the ballot a little more and vote for connie mack. can you do that? there are dig differences between senator nelson and myself. he was the deciding vote for obamacare. i voted against obamacare. [applause] senator nelson has voted for higher taxes 272 times. i voted to cut taxes. [applause] senator nelson voted to gut our military. i voted to strengthen our 34il8 tear. military [applause] . a couple of things happen when i beat senator nelson.
8:04 pm
the second thing that happens is harry reid will no longer control the agenda. [applause] so florida, we're counting on you, we're counting on you to get out there and vote for mitt romney. i'm counting on you to go out and vote for me. together we'll make sure that mitt romney is the next president, that i'm the next senator, we'll get this country moving again. we'll go in the right direction. we'll put people first over government any day of the week, right? [applause] i have the honor tonight to introduce stwoun you that you know very well. someone who has been a great
8:05 pm
leader for the state of florida as governor of the state of florida. [applause] and he continues to be a great leader for america. ladies and gentlemen, jeb bush [applause] >> thank you. thank you very much. thank you so much. connie mack is going to be a great united states senator just like his dad was. work hard for him the next six days. i know in jacksonville you have the suvechure effect which
8:06 pm
means hurricanes never come here. but you love this state and you're from florida and you recall how we suffered through eight hurricanes and four tropical storms. and we came together and depended on the american red cross and churches all around the country and world, people came to florida in our time of 23450ed. we had over a million homes that were completely destroyed. we had people that were one paycheck away from having a problem before the storms and then got into serious problems. and guess what? the american spirit was alive and well. people helped take care of their families and friends and came from all over and provided support. now it's our turn to show the genre osty of the american spirit. it's time to pay back those who
8:07 pm
live in new york and new jersey and connecticut and all across the northeast. and by the way, the next time you see a first responder that we take for granted, a firearm, a police officer, someone who has been working in emergency response in one of the counties around here. give them a big hug and say thank you because without them we'd be in much worse shape. so now on to the main event. i am so excited to be here in support of mitt romney. who will be a person of great integrity, great courage. a conservative that will get things done instead of the yapping that goes on in washington d.c. right now. [applause] our country has huge problems, strukechurel problems that require people that actually want to solve problems rather
8:08 pm
than just talk about it or excuse the way why it is that things are working. you know, president obama was dealt a tough hand. we hear this everyday if you watch tv. and of course it's my brother's fault for everything that goes on. it's almost as though the dog ate my homework is the reason we're going through tough times. but let me tell you mitt romney from day one, job one will be to restore the american economy so people can purr shoe their dreams as they see fit by limited government and build capacity so people don't have to get in line and be dependent upon government. no one wants to do that. we want a society where the next generation has more opportunities than what we have. and the american dream is what this election is about. are we going to reverse the
8:09 pm
track we're on which is a false sense of economic security where we get in line and have the government solve our problems for us? as if that's ever worked in american history. or are we going to restore american greatness the way we know it works best to create jobs in a strategic way with a guy as president that will work to build solutions rather than just talking about things? i was governor of this state for eight years and i had to work with a lot of democrats but i had to work with a lot of republicans as well because they were in the majority the whole time. imagen what it would be like to be a governor of a state where 85% of the legislature was in a different party. it would require leadership that had hume illty at the
8:10 pm
start that would focus on ways to solve problems. that's what we need in our country right now. a guy who has been about finding common ground and solutions, not abandoning principle. imagen a country that began to solve it's problems. we need a president who is willing to roll up his sleeves to begin to solve these problems and american greatness will surge immediately. here is the deal. just about everybody raced their hand saying they've already voted. but i bet you know ten people who haven't. find four in your case, everybody else find ten people that haven't voted and convince them to make sure they vote early or vote on election day. and if you get them really jazzed up convince them to find
8:11 pm
ten people. if you do that we will have florida in the winning column for mitt romney and mitt romney will be the next president of the united states. [applause] . so with that i hope you give our next speaker a spectacular welcome, ladies and gentlemen the next president of the united states mitt romney. [applause] ♪
8:12 pm
>> thank you. thaug thank you. you know with help like that -- [applause] you know with energy like that, i think we're going to win florida, don't you? [applause] now i want to thank governor jeb bush. what a great leader you have in
8:13 pm
governor bush. i want to thank congressman connie mack for getting into this race and he's going to surprise a lot of people and win next tuesday night. thank you john for entertaining and supporting and for helping so many people come together to make contributions to the red cross. i know senator john thrasher is here somewhere. he's somewhere. and congressman crenshaw is here. thank you -- there they are down in the corner. thank you. they are good men and appreciate their help tonight. [applause] we're excited tonight because we know that we're getting
8:14 pm
closer to a big change in this country, a real change. [applause] we also have full hearts because we know our fellow americans are struggling through some real tough times with the hurricane that hit the atlantic coast and i want to underscore if you have the ability to help out, please provide some resources there and give calls to your loved ones and keep them in your thoughts and prayers. we help each other as americans and that help is needed now. so thank you florida for your help. [applause] now i think people are coming together in another way right now and that is people recognize this is an extraordinary opportunity for america that we face great challenges but there are great
8:15 pm
opportunities as well. and i think you are going to find the american people voting for real change on november 6. [applause] and you know we talk about the challenges but i hope you understand just how real they are because there are 23 million americans tonight, 23 million americans that are struggling to find a good job. there are one out of six americans living in poverty, 47 million americans are on food stamps. we have 50% of college garage watts, think of this in america 50% of kids coming out of college can't find college level work. these are real challenges here. we face challention from china. i have to tell you good things are going to happen in america.
8:16 pm
i understand what it takes to get this country going again. [applause] you see i actually have a plan for getting america back and to strengthen our foundation and my plan creates some 12 mm jobs and that by the way creates more take home pay which people badly need. you know what it's been like. i just had a telephone call with a lot of people in nevada. we were talking about challenges there and their home values are down and people are having a hard time making ends meet. the median income in america has dropped over $4,000 in the last four years. they are earning less than four years ago. the same time cost of gasoline has gone up $2,000 a family,
8:17 pm
health insurance premiums are up, groceries are up. these are tough times for america. so my plan to create 12 million jobs is needed and needed now. it has five parts which number one we're going to take full advantage of our energy, our oil, our coal, our gas. [applause] . and that creates a lot of jobs. not just in the energy sector but in places that use energy, manufacturing for instance uses a lot of energy in many cases and by having low cost energy and we have it and will continue to have it if we take advantage of these resources. you're going to see manufacturing come back to this country. this is big for our country. that's number one. number two, it's a very helpful
8:18 pm
thing if a nation has the most productivty in the world and we do. i used to here the word productivty. they look at everything a country makes, all the services they sell add it up and divide it by the number of people in the work force. that's out put per person. and we are the most productive major nation in the world. and because we're so productive, tread helps us. as we open up doors for tread we can sell goods and services to other places in the world. and i want to open up trade with latin america where we have a real advantage. i want to make sure people we trade with follow the rules. china hasn't always fold the rules. i'll stop them if they participate in unfair trade
8:19 pm
practices. so number one energy, and number two trade. number three is making sure the people have the skills they need and that our schools are giving our kids the skills they need for the jobs of tomorrow. now your governor here knows something about that. he's the national leader in education and he did some things i've caller:ed in my plan for the nation. number one he makes sure schools are evaluated so you know how well a school is doing. they get graded. he makes sure the parents are able to send a child to a school of their choice. i'm going to take federal dollars and instead of giving them to the schools i'm going to have them follow the student
8:20 pm
so parents can choose the school. number four doesn't sound to a lot of people like it has a lot to do with jobs but it does. it relates to debt and deficits which and that is if you're an sbe preneurothinking of risking your live ever life savings to start a business or build a factry, if you think america is on the road to greece or italy or spain, you're less likely to invest in america. and right now we spend a trillion more than we take in. it's bad for the economy. . i think it's immoral for us to pass on debt like that to our kids and i will get america on track to a balanced budget. [applause] and number five, is to be a champion of small business, help small business grow and
8:21 pm
thrive. by the way, i didn't study small business alone. i've lived small business. i know how business works and i want to use that experience and that skill to help small businesses across the country. and there are a lot of ways to do that. let me mention just a couple. one relates to our taxes. do you realize that the taxes paid by a small business in america can be as high as 35%, that's the income tax and then if you add other taxes t payroll tax, the state income tax if you have one, real estate tax, sales tax, well you can find small businesses spending as much as 50% of what they earn on government, on taxes. and as a result of that you have a lot of people saying why would i start a business if i'm lucky enough to have it successful the government is going to take half of what i
8:22 pm
make back. canada has lowered their corporate tax rate to 15%. ours is 35. they've lowered to 15, why? not because they want less money. they know if businesses grow and thrive there they will get more money. so that's how it works. so i want to bring our tax rates down to help small businesses and make it easier for people to start them. i want to make sure we understand how to make regulations work for small business. by the way some neem our party say we want to deregulate. that's an overstatement. we want to get rid of excessive regulation. we know you have to have some to make our economy work. but sometimes regulators look at businesses like they're the
8:23 pm
enemy. and i have small businesses tell me i feellike government is battling me. i like small business. i want to make sure we help them grow and make it easier for them to expand. [applause] by the way, to create those 12 million jobs and get us on track to a balanced budget, those are words i offer easily, that's going to take some real work. to get that decun going to require something in washington that's spoken about but not done and i have to do it. i have to reach across the aisle and get good democrats and good republicans to work together. [applause] good democrats love america just like good republicans love america. i happen to be in a state that
8:24 pm
has a few democrats, massachusetts. i legislature was about 85% democrat. and to get anything done at all and have my veto upheld i had to have people across the aisle i could work with. when i came in office we had a multibillion budget gap, we actual sat down every week, got to know each other. every week we net one of our offices and talked about the challenges we faced and looked for common graund. we often count come together but often we found common ground. we found a way to slow down the rate of growth in our state and cut spending in our state. we cut taxes 19 times and made our state more business friendly and by the end of four years instead of a $3 billion budget gap we had a $2 billion
8:25 pm
fund. it's got to happen. i want you to know that i'm optimistic. i'm convinced that the future is brighter than the past. i don't believe our kids are going to have tougher times than we did. i believe they're going to have brighter times. i believe kids coming out of college are going to find work again. i believe someone in their 40's or fifties ought to have a chance to put money away. our seniors ought to be confident their retirement is secure and healthcare is secure. these things will happen again. and i'm convinced of that because i've seen the heart of the american people over my lifetime. we're invatetive and optimistic and hardworking. i also see a willingness to
8:26 pm
live for something bigger than ourself. i was a leader in the boy scouts of america some years ago. and i was at a court of honor, that's where the boy scouts get their eagle scout awards or other awards and there was a table at the front of the room and i was seated at the end of the table next to the american flag. and the person that was speaking was the scout master from colorado. and he said the boys wanted to have a special flag. so they bought one. they sent it to be flown above the capital. then when it came home the boys said let's have it go on the space shuttle. that will make it more special. they contacted nasa and nasa agreed. they said the boys were so proud as they watched the challenger go up in the sky and they saw it explode before
8:27 pm
their eyes. the scout master called nasa and said have you found any remnant of our flag and they hadn't. he called week after week and move after month and still nothing. and one day he was reading an article in the paper about some of the debris that had been found from the challenger disaster. and in that article there was a mention of a flag. so he called nasa and said have you found something you can give to us. and they said we'd like to make a [ation to your boys. so nasa came together with colorado and prepresented the boys with a plastic container and they opened it up and there was their flag in perfect condition. [applause] and he said that's the flag on the flag pole here next to mr.
8:28 pm
romney. ained reached over and grabbed the flag and pulled it out and the was as if electricity was running through my arm because i thought about the people who lost their lives and they walked in danger's way for learning, for something bigger than themselves, for us. i think of our men and women in uniform and their willing tons walk in harm's way for us, for freedom. [applause] i have a favorite verse in one of our 2345rb8 hems, america the beautiful. in that hem him we talk about the mountains majesty and all the characters of our land but there is a verse that touches me more deeply that says heroes
8:29 pm
proved in liberating strife who more than self-their country love and mercy more than life. what our veterans and members of the armed forces raise your hand so we can recognize you? [applause] thank you. it is part of the american national character to live for things bigger than yourself. some do that in extraordinary ways, invisible ways, other do it in meaningful ways in their lives and family's life. my sister is a hero to me. my sister lynn has eight children, 7 of them are married with children of their own t. 8th child was born down
8:30 pm
syndrome. lynn is in her 70's and jeff i have down syndrome man now is 43 years old. and lynn has devoted her life since her husband has been passed away and before to caring for jeffrey. she's a hero to me as are so many moms and dads who devote themselves to their kids. [applause] i think of all the single moms across the country in tough economic times like right there who are scrimping and saving in many cases to be able to put a good meal on the table at the end of the day for their children. think of the moms and dads who are working one night shift and one day shift and hardly get
8:31 pm
any time together but are doing it to be able to buy the kids the clothes the other kids have at school so they don't stand out. how about all the moms and dads who agreed not to exchange gifts with each other because they want to have a better christmas for their kids. we're a generous people. this is a time when the people of america are going to come together. i'm convinced november 7 will be a time we have leadership that will bring us together once again. [applause] i saw a tv show some years ago with a fictional football team in the show it's called friday night lights. you may have seen it. and in the show the football team would leave the locker
8:32 pm
room typically facing long odds from a team ranked higher than they. and they'd leave the locker room and there was assign that said clear eyes, fall hearts can't lose. i'm confident the people of florida have very clear eyes. you understand what is at stake in this election. i know you have full hearts and on november 6 we can't lose. we're going to get america back . this is our time, this is your time. let's take back america and keep it the hope of the earth. thank you so very much. you guys are grate. [applause] . ♪ ♪ ♪
8:33 pm
8:34 pm
8:35 pm
>> with six days until the election mitt romney in jacksonville florida, a state with -- what do you want to hear in the final days leading up to november 6? give us a call t. numbers are on your screen and those on c-span radio are welcome to call. our first call is from an obama supporter from georgia. caller: how you doing? host: good. caller: thanks for accepting my call. i caught the mitt romney rally in florida and i just noticed
8:36 pm
that he misspoke when he said heed like to thank the governor jeb bush. so it just pointed out to me again, he's flip flopping, he don't know what he's saying. and i'm retired from the army, i did 20 years in the military and when i told my soldiers that something was going to happen, i had to live up to that. and i wasn't able to change because missions had to be completed. and i've been following the campaign ever since a year ago with the republican primaries and i've heard all the things that all the republican candidates have said. and it just amazes me how mitt romney can think that he can change in midstream just to apiece the audience that he's speaking to. and this goes to get me to
8:37 pm
believe that if you don't stand for something, you'll stand for anything. host: i want to remind you to lower the sound on your television so we can hear you clearly. the next call is fromened indiana on the others line. go ahead. caller: yes. when romney talks, i don't think most people can really trust what he says because he says one thing and then he is for something else, he says one thing, he is for something else. and even he says we are going to change america. i don't think he can change america when you have
8:38 pm
republican congress. and even when you have the minority leader in the senate that says their main job is to make obama a one-term president. not the help the american people come out from the hole that the republicans from eight years of bush has put us in. so when you see romney talking, he doesn't come out genuine. he's saying things that are going to get -- that he wants people to hear so they will elect him. i don't think he comes out genuine. host: you called in on the others line. who do you plan on voting for? caller: i plan to vote for obama because looking at what just happened with this, he is still campaigning instead of saying let me stop campaigning to see how are the hardships of
8:39 pm
the american people on the east coast. he just wants to campaign. he says let's pray for them and co-do stuff but i don't think he's a very genuine person. that's my personal feeling. he doesn't come out genuine. host: another call on the romney line. caller: i just wanted to say i'm a registered democrat and i support everything that romney is planning to do. obama has had nearly four years and we don't need four more years of the same. romney needs a chance to turn the u.s. around and i believe he is genuine. thank you. host: the next caller from new york on the democratic line. caller: thanks for taking my call. that last call was interesting to me because it seems romney's
8:40 pm
solution is a big huge tax cut for the wealthy in this country. president obama came in with the bush recession and he's put the stimulus in place and he has put in many other policies that have helped this country stabilize and created 5 million jobs. and what will mitt romney do? cut taxes. that's not a solution. mitt romney has no credibility on domestic policy or international policy. if you're solution for everything that ails us is tax cuts, that's not going to work. look at the bush tax cuts from 04. in the debate, he agreed with president obama on 95% of everything and when he tried to get president obama on libya, he failed. he has no credibility. he will say anything to win and
8:41 pm
i think that's why president obama will prevail on november 7 because he deserves reelection. he's a great president. host: we can see mitt romney talking to supporters there in jacksonville florida. we'll also have mitt romney campaigning at 2: 15 eastern in virge which is is in the central part of the state. and also after observing some of the damage on the new jersey coast tomorrow president obama will speak at a rally in colorado. that will be here on c-span at 9:00 eastern tomorrow night. we have paul from oklahoma city calling on the others line. caller: yeah i am calling from the lowest unemployment city in the united states dominated by two -- actually four large oil companies.
8:42 pm
i owned oil company stock and i don't mind paying my fair share whatever the government decides that fair share is on that stock. i cannot understand why mr. romney won't reveal his taxes. does he have something to hide? obviously he does. i get the impression that the main reason he's running is to fulfill some kind of fetish he has because his father wasn't elected, he must be elected. but i'm not fully decided yet. but unless he can do better than he's done in the past, quit lying to the public, open up his tax -- host: tell me what do you need
8:43 pm
to hear in order to make a decision on who you'll vote for? caller: what i want to hear to decide what i'm going to vote for? that's easy. i worked nearly 30 years with disabled veterans and while i was working the republican party cut my social security in half and put more regulations into the veterans administration than employees could possibly overcome. and unless romney does a better job of convincing me, he's not going to get my vote. host: next up from pennsylvania . caller: good evening. thank you for taking my call. and what i wanted to say is it's just so refreshing to hear mitt romney speak and to see
8:44 pm
him at these rallies. our country has gone downhill so bad in the last four years and i just love it when he talks about how he's going to open the pipeline, how he's going to create jobs, how we're no longer going to have to be dependent on the foreign countries for oil. he's going to put together a balanced budget. he's going to reach across the aisle and work with the democrats. how wonderful that is going to be we're not going to have to listen to that everyday about how they fight with each other and collect a big paycheck. and he's going to do away with that terrible healthcare they put in place. it's going to be a breath of fresh air tuesday and i can't wait. and this past weekend i went to the video store. my granddaughter wanted me to rent her a movie.
8:45 pm
and while i was there i noticed this movie obama's america 2016. i rented it home and watched it. and i'll tell you everybody in this country needs to see that movie. that is something to see. it's very educational. host: an obama supporter is next from massachusetts. caller: i'm not a romney supporter. i'm totally amazed at how much he continues to lie to the american people. he was totally against fema, now he's for fema. i also feel that he is very rich. and we have the new york the biggest financial capital of the whole country, of the whole world. new jersey is devastated, parts of virginia, parts of ohio and wisconsin. he's a very very very extremely
8:46 pm
rism man who pays very very very low taxes and i think he personally should be contributing several million dollars of his own money to help the people of the united states that he claims that he's trying to help. and i think the jeep chrysler ads were just outrageous. i'm disappointed. i'm a senior. i'm 70. i'm on social security. we have worked. we have a lovely little home in cape cod. we did live in new jersey. we're fortunate enough to be able to retire. but i'm really disappointed in a lot of the seniors of this country who are so afraid that they are going to misbenefits and not be taken care of. and personally i feel a lot of seniors are extremely,
8:47 pm
extremely selfish and fearful. host: let's take a call from the romney supporters line in michigan. caller: just calling a lot of simple statements i have to make. previous callers one was benjamin in regards to romney addressing jeb bush as the governor. with all due respect, people address people in former last presidents, last governors, you always address them as governor, mr. president, what have you. i have to say i'm ashamed of being 40 years old and i've never voted in my life. but i'm a firm believer president obama got elected was because all the minorities decided to vote for the first time in their lives and that's
8:48 pm
why he got elected. host: are you going to vote in this election? caller: definitely. host: what's the deminches now and before? caller: just the simple fact of not being knowledgeable enough. i thought it didn't matter if you did or not, it was all the the electoral votes and whether you voted or not, whoever was in washington they were going to elect who they wanted. so that's why i didn't. but i'm a firm believer if i go out and vote and i get ten people to vote like mr. romney said, we will get him elected. and it's refreshing to see him up there not reading a tell prompter, speaks with feeling fplgt and as far as this fema stuff, i understand what he's saying because look what happened on 9/11. in comparison it's nowhere near the same thing. they say it was a governmental issue, we had to do what twode
8:49 pm
do to take care of new york city. but look what happened in every state and city in this country. every street you drove up there was an american flag on a car, people giving money. that wasn't fema. that was everybody from their own personal residence. host: let me get another call. this one from west virginia and obama supporter. caller: i think obama should make it again this year. he's been in there four years. just because romney wants in there, all he does is lie. like the one caller said, he should donate some money. he doesn't pay no taxes. they're all out for the middle class and high class people. well, think about the low income people and the middle class. not the rich. everybody should pay their
8:50 pm
taxes like they should. host: caller from lake charles. what do you have to say? caller: thanks for taking my call. interesting discussions and thanks for c-span. i'm u.s. army retired and army gave me a chance to serve in over 60 countries. and i would like the press, specifically c-span and others who have a more factual approach to press to ask the candidates to help me make up my mind what they would specifically do simpson boles sort of line by line. since they won't reveal what they'd do. i'd like you to go through thirty points of simpson boles plan and say if you were president would you support item one, two and three and go through that. and i think it's refreshing that the country is progressive enough to vote for a
8:51 pm
non-christian like romney. and i think it's progressive for the country to vote in an african-american because he's done a good job. what i'm mising is one of my old bosses collin powell said leadership is inspiring people to do things they didn't think they could do. i'd like to hear from the president and mitt romney what they would do to actually make real progressive cuts and anything hunter thompson type journalists can do to get them say that between now and next week would help me make my decision. and lastly, this is a personal note. i wish people who have never served in the military would quit trying to pate tronies the
8:52 pm
military like mr. romney did tonight. he had five sons and none of them served. i'm 60, they're about my age so they had plenty of time to serve their country. i ask any non-veteran to quit patronizing veterans. host: our second call from oklahoma city. on the romney sporer line caller: i'm a student here in oklahoma city. i voted for obama in 2008 and he's been a big let down. he promised he would work on a bipartisan basis. he hasn't tchaun. all he's done is point the finger whenever something doesn't go his way and when it does go his way he pretends like he's the master behind the plan.
8:53 pm
everybody is saying romney doesn't pay his fair share. he's donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to charities. what more do they want from the guy? and he just -- romney has a track record of being successful so i don't know why he wouldn't be a successful president. host: thanks for all of your calls. we'll have more of your comments on "washington journal" starting at 7:00 eastern time. we have cofrpbl of two campaign events. mitt romney's wife ann will be in ohio. then at 2: 15 eastern mr. romney will be in virginia. you can see both of those events live here on c-span and on our website cspan.org. >> new jersey surfed some of
8:54 pm
the worst damage from hurricane sandy. today president obama visited the state with governor chris christie and spoke about the government's response to the disaster. this is 15 minutes. >> good afternoon, everybody. i want to thank the members that are here. i want to thank the president. we spent a significant afternoon together, surveying the damage up and down the coast line. we wanted to show the president that personally. we have the opportunity to discuss it. and over to the shelter and meet with folks and have them see the president and his concern all of us have for making sure that things get back to normal as quickly as possible. we have a lot of challenges. things we need to do to make
8:55 pm
sure we get power restored as quickly as possible, that people have clean water, hospitals are taking care of things they need to when we get kids back to school. i discussed all those issues with the president and i am pleased to report he has sprung into action immediately to give us those things while we were in a car together. i want to thank him for that. he has worked with me since before the storm. this is our sixth conversation since the weekend. it has been a great working relationship to make sure we are doing the job people asked us to do. i cannot think him enough for his personal concern and compassion for our state and the people of our state. i was able to witness it personally. we are doing what we need to do coordinating with fema. i want to thank mr. fugate.
8:56 pm
we will move on from here. what i said yesterday i really mean. there is going to be sorrow, and you see that. the president has seen that today. that is appropriate. we have suffered from loss. we have not suffered that much a loss of life and we thank god for that. we have suffered losses. this is the worst storm i have seen in my lifetime in the state but we cannot permit that sorrow to replace the resilience we have. we will get up and we will get this thing rebuilt and we'll get things back together because that is what the state is all about. for all of you who are here, and i met a bunch of you today who disregarded my admonition, at to get the hell out of here, you are forgiven this time.
8:57 pm
but not for much longer. when all of you look around and you see the destruction, all that stuff can be replaced. you look to your right and left, to your husband, your wife, those are the things that cannot be replaced. i am glad we do not have that kind of loss of life. thank you for being here today. it is my honor to introduce you to the president of the united states. >> thank you, everybody. let me make sure i acknowledge the folks who are here because they have played an important role in this. first of all, your congressional delegation, senator bob menendez, congressman frank, atlantic county executive dennis levenson, and the brigantine mayor. obviously this is a federal, state, and local efforts. the first thing i want to do is thank everybody who has been
8:58 pm
involved in the rescue and recovery process. at the top of my list, i have to say governor christie, throughout the process, has been responsive, he has been aggressive in making sure the state got out in front of this incredible storm and i think the people of new jersey recognize he has put his heart and soul in making sure the people of new jersey bounce back even stronger than before. i want to thank him for his leadership and partnership. i want to thank the congressional delegation because part of the reason we are able to respond quickly is because they help make sure fema financing was in place. we are appreciative of those efforts. i want to thank craig fugate. sometimes people think fema, not the people behind it but craig
8:59 pm
lives and breathes this stuff, making sure we're providing help. i want to thank all of the personal responders who have been involved in this process, the firefighters, the folks who are in here shuttling out people who were supposed to get the hell out and did not. you have helped save a lot of lives and property. one thing you learn in these tragedies is the first responders, i keep in mind in their homes are under water and yet they make those personal sacrifices to help other people. we appreciate that. i'm going to make a couple of comments. number one, our hearts go out to the families who have lost loved ones. it is true that because of preparation, the loss of life was kept lower than it might
9:00 pm
have been. for those individual families, obviously their world has been torn apart. we need to make sure that everybody who has lost a loved one knows they are in our thoughts and prayers. four of those like the people i had a chance to meet throughout new jersey and the region, whose lives have been up ended, my second message is, we are here for you. we will not forget, we will make sure you get all the help you need until you have rebuilt. at this point, our focus is on the states of the new jersey, which got hit harder than anybody. the state of new york, particularly lower manhattan. we are concerned about connecticut as well and we are still monitoring west virginia where there are heavy snows in
9:01 pm
inaccessible areas. for the most part, those four states are bearing the brunt of this incredible storm. what we have been able to do is stage commodities, water, power generators, ambulances in some cases, food, medical supplies, emergency supplies, and we have over 2000 fema personnel on the ground right now. their job, now that we are moving out of search and rescue is make sure they are talking to individual communities so people know exactly how they can get the help they need. we expedited our emergency declarations for the state of new jersey and local counties
9:02 pm
that have been affected. that means the people can immediately start registering for emergency assistance. one of the things i want to emphasize to the people of new jersey and the region, now that you are safe, your family is safe, you are trying to figure out where you're going to stay the next couple of days, it is important you know there is help available to you right now. for example, to find rental housing or pay for groceries. we saw a young woman who had a newborn, probably in eight-month old that needs diapers and formula. those are the kind of supplies and help we can provide. if you call 800-621-fema, or disasterasistance.gov, if you have access to the internet, you can register right now so that
9:03 pm
you can immediately start receiving help. we want to make sure everything you need. a couple of final points, obviously our biggest priority is getting power turned back on. we are pleased newark got power. jersey city is getting power today. there are still in chunks of the community, including this community right here, that do not have power. it is hard enough cleaning up debris and dealing with boats that have been upended, roads that are blocked. when people do not have power, they are disabled in all sorts of ways and it is hard to get back to normal. yesterday i had a chance to speak to the ceos of the utilities from all across the country. a lot of the states that were spare, that were not hard hit,
9:04 pm
or some as far away as california, they have pledged to start getting equipment, crews, et cetera, into new jersey. we were able to get c-17's, c- 130's, military transport planes potentially to move assets, personnel, to speed up the process of getting power up and running as soon as possible. our first priority is water filtration plants and some other critical infrastructure. for that, we have emergency generators. we have a navy ship that has helicopters that can move assets around the state as well. we are going to be working with local officials to identify those critical infrastructure
9:05 pm
and how we can get what is needed as quickly as possible. a couple of other things we are concerned about, as power starts coming back on, we want to make sure people can also get to work. a lot folks in jersey work in new york come in the city, and in other places where transportation may be hobbled. one of the things i mentioned is the possibility of us using federal assets, and military assets as well as taking inventory of the country that can be brought in so we can help people get to their work. governor christie also mentioned the importance of schools. the sooner we can get them back into school, the sooner they are in a routine, that helps the families. we are going to have a lot of work to do. i do not want anybody to feel that somehow this is going to be cleaned up over night.
9:06 pm
we want to make sure people have realistic expectations. what i can promise is the federal government will be working as closely as possible with the state and local officials and we will not quit until this is done. the directive by have given, i will repeat, i think craig and others know i mean it, we are not going to tolerate red tape, bureaucracy. i instituted a 15 minute rule. you return everybody's phone calls in 15 minutes, whether it is the mayor, county officials, if they need something, we figure out a way to say yes. as i was gathering around, i had a chance to talk to some of the young people who had been volunteering cleaning up debris. when we're at the community center, there was a restaurant
9:07 pm
owner who had been cooking meals, as his contribution to the recovery process. some of the folks were saying the food was better than what they got at home. you had a 15-year-old young man whose mother was disabled and he was making sure she was ok and taking on extraordinary responsibilities for himself but also for his mom. when you see folks like that to respond with strength and resilience, when you see neighbors helping neighbors, you are reminded about what america is all about. we go through tough times but we bounced back. the reason is because we look out for one another. we do not leave anybody behind. my commitment to the people on this block, the people in this community, and the people of this stage, is that same spirit
9:08 pm
will carry over until our work is done. thank you very much, everybody. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> president obama returns to campaign tomorrow night with an appearance at the university of colorado in boulder. you can watch it live beginning at 9:00 eastern here on c-span and c-span that board. -- c-span.org. >> the vice-president biden made two stops in florida, holding a
9:09 pm
rally in sarasota and this rally in ocala. he responded to a campaign ad that he called "and at regis lai." the latest polling average -- mitt romney holds a 1% lead in florida. this is 50 minutes. >> hello. [applause] what a classy lady -- joyce, thank you so much. as my mother would say, god love you. [applause] my name is joe biden. i am married to jill biden. she is a teacher. it is such an honor to be here. thank you so much for being here.
9:10 pm
where is councilman rich? good to see you. also, rod smith, chairman of the democratic party in florida. [applause] the amazing greece nelson. -- grace nelson. i have never met any woman who cares more and fights more in protecting the state of florida than grace nelson. great to be with you. [applause] this morning i was on call for several days ever since sandy hit the northeast. look, i now that for a northeastern boy to talk about hurricanes to floridians is like burning coal to newcastle, but you know what those folks are
9:11 pm
going through. every morning, the president and i have a call with all the administration officials, from fema to homeland security to the department of defense. we talk with all the governors in the affected states as well as an awful lot of the mayors. i can tell you confidently that the federal government, state government, local government, they are doing everything in their power to coordinate relief as rapidly as we can do so many people who have been devastated by this storm. [applause] as tragic as it is, my mom, god rest her soul, she said, joe, out of something bad, something good will look --, if you look hard enough. my state of delaware was hit. it is a low-lying state. the hurricane went on shore about 30 miles from rehoboth to,
9:12 pm
in new jersey. my state, where my in-laws used to live, where my brothers and sisters live, they were hit pretty badly. i have a sister in law and family who live in ocean city, new jersey. you saw how badly they were hit. it is kind of amazing -- it is kind of amazing. a call yesterday with all the governors and mayors, it warmed my heart. you had the governor of delaware, the governor of connecticut, the governor of pennsylvania, democrats and republicans, and they were hurt. the governor of maryland. all saying to new jersey and new york -- look, if you need extra resources, we will send you hours. we will send you hours. listen on the telephone, hearing the mayor of the big city, not only mayor bloomberg, who is one
9:13 pm
hell of a fine guy, mayor bloomberg of new york. mayor booker of newark, hoboken -- hear these guys talking, they are all offering each other help. offering each other help. democrats and republicans, acting like democrats and republicans are supposed to act. [applause] ladies and gentlemen. we are always, i know this sounds almost trite but it is necessary to say in these times -- we are always better off as a nation when we pull together. always. my hope is that when this election is over, that is what we have to do again, pulled together as a nation. democrats and republicans. we have too many gigantic opportunities to continue the kind of bickering that has gone on between the parties the last
9:14 pm
four years. the american people, the american people have an opportunity to make a fundamental choice in the direction they want to see this country go. quite frankly, our vision and their vision for america are totally different, and our values set is different -- they are decent people, this have a very different view of the american people and the prospect of this country. as he signed the debates, you sign the debates, i began to wonder in that last debate between governor romney and the president -- i did not know whether romney was there to endorse president obama or to debate president obama. [applause] we rahman catholics call that an epiphany. [laughter] the man had an epiphany right before my very eyes. the governor has been saying for a long time what a tragic
9:15 pm
mistake it was for us to end the war in iraq and not leave 30,000 warriors in iraq. all of a sudden, it sound like he was against the iraq war from the beginning. i thought he may have voted the same way barack did. he went from labeling russia, which he recently called the soviet union, labeling russia are most significant geopolitical foe -- let me tell you something, he also was opposed to the new start treaty which every single solitary former republican secretary of state, republican national security adviser, republican secretary of defense was for. he was against it. he said he would have never supported it. all of a sudden -- i tell you. it is amazing. we can work with russia, we can be very close with russia. [laughter]
9:16 pm
he went from harshly criticizing us to saying we will and we will turn over for responsibility to the afghan military at the end of 2014. [applause] he went from saying we should never have set a timetable, he would not do that. i had a debate, too, with ryan. [applause] in my day, he was talking about more troops in the east, more americans would be there -- we should not have set a date. then along comes romney -- my generation has gone on the wings of a snow white dove, preaching -- preaching glove. i tell you what, it was just amazing.
9:17 pm
when asked, as i asked ryan, congressman ryan, when asked, would he leave, guaranteed leave by 2014. in case you have not noticed, everything on romney-ryan pens. it depends on the hour, the audience, depends on where they are. who they are talking to. it depends on how they feel. it just depends. it depends. i cannot depend on a government -- president for whom everything depends. my grandfather's name was ambrose finnegan, he used to say -- joey, beware of the converted. woha -- these guys -- whoa,
9:18 pm
these gas, a real epiphany. on issues related to women -- [applause] by the way, joyce, i cannot tell you how impressed i am with joyce. this is a woman who feels it in her bones. this is a woman who understands it. on the issue of women, the issue of women, they could not bring themselves, they could not bring themselves to move out of the 1950's. i am being earnest here. i am being deadly earnest. think about it. all of these congressional candidates, the outrageous things the republican congressional candidates are saying. there is a senate candidate in indiana, mourdock -- here's the point. sometimes silence can be deafening.
9:19 pm
their refusal to condemn what mourdock says says more about them than it says about mour dock. and when governor romney was asked a question that joyce referenced, do you think women should get paid the same for the same work as men, what did romney talk about? he started talking about binders. binders. he found a binder full of qualified women. holy moly,. . i mean, it is amazing. i hope he kept that binder. [laughter] you know what, folks, he never did answer the question whether or not women were entitled the same pay for the same work. then again, it should not
9:20 pm
surprise you. this is the guy who spokesperson said he was against the lilly ledbetter act. ryan voted against the lilly ledbetter act. one thing he did say -- he wanted to repeal the law bill nelson help us pass that says that no longer can insurance companies charge women as they do now, 50% more for the same health insurance. [applause] he did say he wanted to repeal the law. younger women will think i'm making this up -- ask any woman who was had to try to get insurance on her own. he did say he wanted to repeal insurance -- the loss of insurance can no longer label pregnancy a pre-existing condition. people think i'm making that up. any of you women when you are pregnant trying to get insurance, you found out that was a pre-existing condition.
9:21 pm
he did say he wanted to repeal that law. ladies and gentlemen, i ask you, and i mean this sincerely, the most important decision the president makes beyond deciding whether or not to go to war or not is who he or she appoints to the supreme court. the supreme court appointment outlast any presidential term. close your eyes and just imagine -- all the women's rights you have fought for for the last 40 years are more, i imagine what kind of shape it will be in under a romney-appointed supreme court. [boos] not a joke. it may be is the most important, least spoken issue in this election, what a new supreme court would look like if it were a romney-appointed court. when it comes to women's rights, i want to be absolutely clear, and i say this in every
9:22 pm
part of the country. barack and i believe in our corwe that my daughter and his daughters and my four granddaughters deserve every single opportunity my sons have and my grandson's have. every single opportunity. no exceptions. [applause] i pointed out -- this is more than a women's issue. this is an economic issue. this is n.m. -- economic issue. ladies and gentlemen, in the final week of this campaign, not only been in a day abandoning their position on foreign policy, trying to wiggle out of their position on women. now they are running away from the bet -- very fundamental ten et upon which this new republican tea party is based. what do they say? i mean this sincerely. it is based on two things -- one, the tax structure
9:23 pm
continuing to give massive tax cuts to the very wealthy. the five dar trillion tax plan that governor romney ran on a right here in the primaries in florida, with all those republicans, that $5 trillion plan, $1.6 trillion of which goes to making a minimum of $1 million. all this sudden it is gone. as my fourth granddaughter with said, did caspar the friendly ghost steal it? where did it go? it was a center element of the organizing principle, but because outside groups pointed out that the plan would raise middle-class taxes by $2,000 a year, all of a sudden it has vanished. all of a sudden, romney says, do not worry, it will not cost
9:24 pm
anything. we will eliminate the polls for the wealthy. ladies and gentlemen, for people making over $1 million a year, there is only $54 billion of loopholes. the reason your taxes go up is because they will come out of those things that are the backbone of the middle-class. ladies and gentlemen, there is one, when asked, when i asked ryan in my debate, namely one loophole you will close -- 1. he did not name it. remember? remember, he was on fox news, the friend this network in the world to republicans. chris wallace interviewed him before the debate and said, about the $5 billion tax cat -- they said we do not have a five- star billion tax cut. even wallis was -- $5 billion
9:25 pm
tax cut. even wallace was stunned. he said explained. he said "the math is too complicated. i do not have enough time." folks, the only tax break that they said they will not fool around with is the very tax break that allows romney to pay only 14% on $2 million a year. that is the only one. remember, i am not making this up -- they asked him, governor, you only pay 14% on $20 million. somebody making $50,000 pays more than you. -- a higher percent. is that fair? the governor said, that is fair. no wonder he wants to keep that loophole. as the president said after a
9:26 pm
second debate with governor romney, he said the governor's plans are a little sketchy. i do not like to correct the president in public, but i will today. his plans are not sketchy. they are etch-a-sketchy. they told us this was coming and we got it. the only place they are sticking to their guns is on maintaining the tax cuts due to expire for the top 1%. that tax cap cost $1 trillion. of that trillion dollars, $800 billion goes to people making a minimum of $1 million. $500 billion goes to 120,000 families in america. their average income is $8
9:27 pm
million a year. i come from one of the wealthiest states in america. the first second highest per capita income. i represented it for six terms. i learned one thing -- wealthy people are just as patriotic as poor people, but they do not need that tax cut. [applause] the other central premise they are running away from now because it has been exposed as the budget policy. the ryan and budget, the reason -- remember why ryan was picked. i'm being serious. he is a bright guy. he was the intellectual leader of the new way to deal with the budget. romney said he picked him for his budget ideas. his budget already passed the united states house. blocked by the senate and bill nelson.
9:28 pm
it already passed. when it passed, let me tell you how "and york times" characterized it. they said "this is the most extreme budget plan passed by a house of congress in modern times." even newt gingrich said it is right wing social engineering. no wonder they are running away from it now. look what it does to medicare. as joyce said, it is shameless what they're saying. they say that we are hurting medicare. anybody know anybody on medicare? you are better off now than you were before we came and. no copiague, -- no copay for your annual visits. they would wipe all that out. the real secret, the real thing
9:29 pm
they are not talking about. as they did not talk about at the convention or now. the essential element of the budget. they literally eliminate medicare as a guarantee program. here is the deal. you should all be aware of this. under their plan, anyone reaching the age of 65 when they become eligible for their new medicare plan, anyone is automatically off of medicare. nobody is on it automatically. you can buy back into it with a budget will give you -- but it is designed not to keep pace with the cost of health care. that is why every outside group that has looked at this sad it
9:30 pm
would cost the nearest tens of thousands of dollars more. if you are 55 and go on it -- $60,000 more for your medicare. if you are 45 years old, but the time you qualify, $120,000 more. this is a sham. the truth of the matter is that the romney ryan budget not only decimates medicare, it knocks 19 million people off medicaid takes $500 million a year out of education. whichiminates all that healt keeps people in college, of this race pell grants, et cetera. for them, education is an afterthought. for us, it is the foundation upon which the middle-class was built and is the key to u.s. success in the 21st century. [applause]
9:31 pm
by the way, you have to ask yourself, why are they doing this? why would they do it in the first place? why are they still stuck on it? there is a simple reason -- they are not that guys. they actually believe that the way to grow this country is from the top down. they actually believe another $2 trillion of tax cuts for people making over $1 million a year will somehow stimulate the economy. ladies and gentlemen, we have seen that movie before and we know how it ends. halloween -- is a horror movie, how it ends. [applause] 9 million people losing their jobs. tens of thousands of floridians seeing the equity in their home of accure baevaporate.
9:32 pm
it ended the -- in the great recession of 2008. the american people will not go back. [applause] there is an expression and my family, and every family has a version. my mom used to say, the measure of character is not what you do when people see you and are looking, it is what you are doing when nobody is looking. [applause] you saw what mitt romney believed when he thought nobody was looking. [applause] he said what he believed. he thinks half the american people, to quote him, are unwilling to take responsibility for their own lives. where is he from?
9:33 pm
not where i raised in scranton or delaware. not here. not where we come from. the vast majority have jobs, they go out and pay their taxes. they pay property taxes, their state taxes. they pay an effective rate higher than romney pays. ladies and gentlemen, they are made up of seniors, people who have worked their whole lives, paid into social security, and now they are not paying taxes on it and they should not be paying tax on it. [applause] they are made up of the 68,000 warriors wandering through the got awful hills of afghanistan. they're getting paid but not .aying any income tax - ladies and gentlemen, the american people, this
9:34 pm
disappoints me most. this is the first time in my lifetime i can remember to candidates for the two highest offices in the land to have such a low opinion of the american people. ladies and gentlemen, look, every time something positive happens, when we created 5.3 million jobs, when we had exports increased 41%, 500,000 new jobs in manufacturing. when housing starts for the highest levels since july of 2008, the response to everything, literally everything is america is in decline. paul ryan -- here is what they talked about. did you ever think you hear a candidate running for president saying america has developed a culture of dependence? ladies and gentlemen, when we
9:35 pm
rescued the automobile industry, saving 1 million jobs, creating over 200,000 new good- paying jobs, gm is back, chrysler is the fastest-growing auto maker in the nation, what is their response? it is outrageous, their response. in the last hours of this campaign, they have become truly desperate. i came from ohio -- they are running an ad in ohio and the following -- this is the god's truth. the ad they are running says the following -- it says that barack obama bankrupting the automobile industry so that it could be sold to the italians -- i do not know they have against the italians -- sold the italians so they could offshore to china.
9:36 pm
that is what they are saying -- i am not making this up. ladies and gentlemen, here is the cynical part. just imagine, your from the upper midwest, my state is delaware, which was one of the biggest automobile producing states in the country. after all those guys and families have been through, hard-working folks working their whole lives, through no fault of the run because of the policies of the last administration in the last year before got elected, 400,000 automobile jobs lost. here is what is more important -- 400,000 people dropping out of the middle-class. 400,000, and all the folks associated with them seeing their dream shattered. my dad, when we had to move from scranton, pennsylvania, he left a year ahead of us to find a job in wilmington's of the brim us all down. my dad's refrain the rest of our
9:37 pm
lives, my sister valerie is with me -- [applause] my dad, my dad said the following -- he said joey, remember, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. it is about the dignity. it is about respect. it is about your place in the community. all these people in the upper midwest to were decimated, decimated, and finally, finally, through the efforts of the president and a lot of people and the congress, brought back the automobile industry, they are back at work, able to care for their families, they have a sense of security. guess where these guys are running those ads? they are running those very ads in toledo, in those very places where these people just got back on their feet trying to scare the living devil out of them.
9:38 pm
ladies and gentlemen, the fact of the matter is, the ads were so outrageous werepolitifact -- i know they do not think that fact checkers matters, but they called it wholly inaccurate. the "cleveland plain dealer" said it is a masterpiece in misdirection. the response in the auto companies -- i have been doing this along time, i do not remember a major corporate entity inserting themselves directly in the middle of a presidential campaign. -- they called the ad "a leap that be difficult even for a professional circus acrobat." [laughter] that is the quote. i do not think they are acrobat's -- i think these guys are contortionists. gm says a "they are operating from a parallel universe" they
9:39 pm
called it. here is the thing they got -- they call the "campaign politics at its cynical worst." that is not for another political party -- that is not for me candidate. that is not a newspaper or a blog./ it is from a spokesperson for general motors. ladies and gentlemen, and after i made this assertion, earlier today in sarasota, they rushed congressman ryan out there. seriously. congressman ryan came out and put out a statement or held a press conference. he said, the fact artifacts. by the way, the ultimate irony of this, the ultimate irony of this is, whenever the president talked about romnesia. it is contagious. congressman ryan has caught it. let me tell you the facts. congressman ryan voted with us. he voted in the congress with
9:40 pm
us. before he saw romney. he said, these are the facts. he is asserting the ad factually true. let me tell you the facts. the facts are, congressman, 1 million people are worker would not have been. 200,000 new jobs. governor romney wrote an editorial called "led detroit go bankrupt." the fact is that romney will say anything, anything to win. the "cleveland plain dealer" put it -- it does not matter how much confusion he must sow to do it. ladies and gentlemen, the role of the president is not to sow confusion, but to sow confidence. that is the role of a president. [applause] you finally heard me say before -- i will say it again.
9:41 pm
presidential elections are about one thing first and foremost, character. character. character. the character of the candidate. ladies and gentlemen, on that score it is clear that our guy has character. [applause] our guy says what he means. he means what he says. it never depends on who he is talking to. he stands by what he says. that cannot be said about governor romney. [applause] that is a harsh fact. ask yourself, all those who are listening to this, ask yourself, who do you trust? who do you trust to tell you what they mean? who do you trust to stand by you? who do you trust to stand up for the middle class? who you trust to put american
9:42 pm
interest before their own? barack obama is the man you should trust. [chanting "four more years"] ladies and gentlemen, america is not in decline. america is on the ascendancy. the 21st century will be the american century, like the 20th was. the entire journey of the history of this country has always been in one direction -- forward. that is the only direction. ladies and gentlemen, i will close by saying i have news for governor romney and congressman ryan -- it has never been a good bet to bet against the american people. ever. [applause]
9:43 pm
ladies and gentlemen, with you, we can win. we win florida, we win this election. stand with us. god bless you all, and may god protect our troops. thank you. ♪
9:44 pm
♪ >> please welcome obama for america field organizer, nathaniel lee. [applause]
9:45 pm
>> wasn't that great, everybody? let's give the vice president one more round of applause. [applause] you have all heard what is at stake here. you heard it from the vice president himself. what we need is to go vote today. there is no time to wait. we have buses waiting right at your as you exit. if you are a marion day voter, get on the bus and we will take you to the election center and will vote today and win florida and put them back into the white house. thank you. [applause] ♪
9:46 pm
9:47 pm
9:48 pm
9:49 pm
9:50 pm
9:51 pm
9:52 pm
9:53 pm
9:54 pm
9:55 pm
9:56 pm
9:57 pm
>> on tomorrow morning's "washington journal," a discussion on hurricane sandy and the national flood insurance program. our guest is john prible/ we look at virginia's role as a swing state with a guest and university of virginia. then, more on virginia politics b biran moran and virginia comstock. live at 7:00 a.m. eastern. >> at a campaign today -- a campaign event today, senator rob portman and senate candidate josh mandel courage ohioans to vote early for mitt romney. the bus tour began october 2.
9:58 pm
[applause] >> good evening we are glad to have senator portman with us, the next senator from ohio. i'm congressman mike turner and yesterday we were with mitt romney in ohio as we did a disaster relief effort for the victims of hurricane sandy. and it was great to see the energy and the excitement that mitt romney in the state brought with paul ryan as he started on saturday. i think that the momentum is with us.
9:59 pm
people are excited. people are going to get the vote out. people are excited about what a president mitt romney means. we are going to end these trillion dollar deficits. [applause] that we're going to strengthen our national security. that we're going to get our economy moving to create jobs. we're going to race the image that people have of the united states around the world. no more of an apology tour. we're going to have a president that has the number one job of moving this economy for. i hope to have your support. this election unfolds, i have served in congress the past ten years and i have been fighting the same fight mitt romney wants to fight in the white house. that is to stop the out of control spending. i voted against the stimulus bill. i voted against obob care. i voted against his energy killing cap and trade which and
10:00 pm
i hope to have your vote so i can continue to have a voice in congress to create jobs and stop this out of control spending. [applause] a gentleman that we are 3r0ud of in ohio is rob portman. he has fought to make certain we reign in this out of control spending. he has fought for our men and women in uniform. we have appreciated his service in congress and the united states senate and we are proud and pleased to have him here today. rob. [applause] how are you? good. it's all about them,>> the future of our country isn't it? right there. this looks like from the romney-ryan country. this is how i look at it.
10:01 pm
six more days to avoid four more years. you agree with me? i will go along with that. we need him now. it is the fourth quarter. the score is tied. we're in the red zone. the momentum is our way and you can see from this crash -- this crowd. are we going to take mitt over the goal line? of course we are. we will leave from on the field. those of you who were at football practice in your younger days. remember that? you have to leave it on the field. these next six days will determine who the next leader of the free world is. the state of ohio could determine who the next
10:02 pm
president is going to be. everything you're going to do can make a difference in terms of determining the direction of our country. that is a pretty heavy responsibility. it is a great opportunity as a highlands -- ohioans. we have the chance to make a difference for our kids and grandkids, for our communities and our country. as i am talking to people around the state i keep hearing the same thing. you're not happy with the status quo and we have to make sure we have some change. is your job to be sure that they get out there and vote and
10:03 pm
a boat for mitt romney and paul ryan. will you do that? [applause] if everybody finds five people in the washington court house or wherever it -- you live to make sure they support mitt romney, we can make a difference. you might want to consider that. it frees you up on election day to get those five people to the polls we will try to bring a lot of folks with us to be sure that we're banking those folks. we're free to do everything we can to ensure we have the victory on november 6. when barack obama ran for president he said we will cut the deficit in half. the deficit is now $1 trillion this year. he has added 50% to our debt to the point that it has gone to
10:04 pm
$16 trillion. does that sound like it is working to you? and when he pushed to the health care bill through, he said, if you pass this legislation, we will reduce health-care costs. the reduction will be about $2,500. it actually has increased costs by about $2,500. does this sound like it is working? we are in the right place. and then the stimulus package, when he said i want a trillion dollars of your money, he took our money plus the bar a bunch from china. he said let's put a trillion dollars and see what happens. he says today unemployment would be 15% lower than it is. that is 9 million jobs short. does this sound like it's working? it is not.
10:05 pm
what is even more discouraging is looking at what he wants to do over the next four years. it is more of the same. there are some exceptions. he has protected and our jobs and ensure we have the military second to none to keep the peace. i get to work with him. thank you for that. one change we will see, is something different in terms of our military. the budget cuts in about $500 billion. then it is cut further by a sequester, something the president recommended to congress as a backup to the debt limit. that is about a trillion dollars in cut to our military. the secretary of defense had said that would be devastating. he says it is unwise.
10:06 pm
we certainly saw that in the benghazi, didn't we? what is happening in the extremist movements in the middle east, it is spreading and not receding. we do face, as americans, endangers all over the world. we have to have a military where the young men and women who are willing to risk their lives for us, each of them in uniform have the equipment and technology they need to be able to do their job. that is what we would ensure with mitt romney because he is not going to cut our military. [applause] the president has promised he will raise taxes. he just said that. he said he wants to raise it on millions of small businesses.
10:07 pm
the experts have said that will result in about 700,000 jobs being lost. jobs we cannot afford to lose. mitt romney has an alternative, which makes a lot of sense. he has said let's do tax reform, simplified the tax code and create more jobs. he did what ronald reagan did. the experts have looked at that and they have said that will create 7 million new jobs. let's talk about this as a choice. 700,000 lost or 7 million gain. which one is better? obama or romney? romney, of course. this is the choice that our fellow citizens are going to make, we are all going to make. sure people know the facts. i believe we have the enthusiasm on our side.
10:08 pm
i believe if we do our part, we will begin to turn things around. god bless you for what you are doing and for what she will do. -- what you will do. in addition to sending mike turner to washington, which i know what you are going to do, he is a guy who gets it and understands how to take fiscal responsibility seriously. he balanced the budget there. we also have the opportunity to send someone to the united states senate. i have always wanted to be the senior senator from ohio. i will admit that.
10:09 pm
this election is harry reid's and worse nightmare. he could bring a republican majority to the senate. he has done a great job. working with governor kasich, he had to go north because we had some power outages. working with the legislators on the republican side, bob peterson is here today. now he has a new role in his new district. gary is here, too. he does a good job. working together they have done what should be done in washington. joshes the treasurer. he has been upgraded whereas for the first time in our history, at the national level, our bonds were downgraded. that is because they did the right things.
10:10 pm
they got into office, they closed the gap and they did it by making government work better and reduced spending, not by raising taxes. in fact, they cut taxes to make more jobs and that is what washington should be looking at as a model. don't you think? [applause] we need him because he is a potential majority maker but he will be a great representative. two tours of duty in iraq as a marine. a great job as treasurer. he's too be in the cleveland area. i have been there with him marching in parades' and so on as his state representative. that is when he was a younger man.
10:11 pm
it was a democrat district. he used to win it handily. hard work, grassroots. that is exactly what he has done. that is why he will be our next senator. wellcome josh -- welcome josh mandell. >> thank you for being here. i know a lot of the faces i am looking at are the same people who are making phone calls, knocking on doors in the snow and rain. we are not going to win this election by spending more money than the other side. barack obama is going to have more money than our side and they will do it with negative ads. we are going to win this thing during work with you talking to your co-workers. talking to your friends and family, a family barbecues,
10:12 pm
afternoon soccer games talking to other parents. one of the things is that the people of the state of ohio are on our side. they believe in economic freedom. they believe that families and businesses know what to do with their dollars then government. when we take that message and spread it door-to-door, we win. that is one reason why we have gone from down 17 points to in a dog fight. when we started off, the general consensus was this was a david-goliath fight. i was running against someone who has been in political office since richard nixon. been in washington for two decades. around thanksgiving, we were down 15 points. around the superbowl we were down 12. about a month ago, we were down seven points.
10:13 pm
a poll came out this week that had us up two points. that does not mean we let up. it means the opposite. it means we work that much harder. we need to go pedal to the metal for these last six days, for my race, and especially for governor romney and congressmen brian. one of the reasons i am looking forward to representing you is because i look forward to working with senator portman. he is tough as nails and has compassion and he is someone who understands the values of the state of ohio and i will be proud to serve with him and i will be proud to making the senior senator from the state of ohio.
10:14 pm
congressman turner as well doing a fantastic job representing the miami valley. he has been doing it for a long time and i believe families throughout the miami valley are fortunate to have him and i believe in him as a leader and as a good person and a family man. senator brown and i are debating a variety of issues. one of the main issue was whether or not the free enterprise system works. i believe when someone decides they're going to go to a community bank for a loan to start a hardware store or go to family for investment or maybe still some property to start a restaurant and they take that business from two employees to 20, 200, we should celebrate that in america. we should advance that. we should reward that
10:15 pm
success. the barack obama's of the world are trying to demonize that success. we cannot be pro-jobs and anti-job creators. we cannot go on the front of the new york times and vilify those men and women who are signing for loans to create those jobs. that is the fundamental question he and i are having. for me, i believe in the free enterprise system. he and i are also having a public policy debate about the importance of fiscal conservatism. or right now, the lack thereof. senator portman mentioned what we have done. we earned it the highest ratings on our bonds and investments. for the first time in a decade, we earned an upgrade.
10:16 pm
our portfolio is up over $2 billion. we navigated the european debt crisis without a loss ended on that while cutting our budget two years in a row. compare that to washington. compare that to a barack obama's washington where they [applause] have not passed a budget for over three years. think about it. can any of you go three months without having a discussion around your kitchen table? or can you go three weeks without having a discussion around your conference room table? in washington, it has been over three years since they have passed the budget. i believe it will not only have
10:17 pm
to pass a budget, we must pass a balanced budget. it is one of the reasons i look forward to going to washington in order to pass the budget and bring fiscal order to our nation. [applause] thank you. we also need to repeal obamacare. i look forward to being the person to do that. in addition to that, sherrod brown and i having a discussion about the natural resources. i believe in america. we have been a coal state. i call these natural resources the win-win-win, new jobs for our state for folks right here in this county and other counties. making pipes and tubes for the industry.
10:18 pm
affordable energy. bringing down the cost of heating our homes and gas in our cars and powering factories. imagine if a company could hire more people. the third is a stronger tax base for our community. imagine if we had a new source of revenue to take care of our senior citizens without raising taxes at all. organic to our state and country. the fourth, it is national security. we produce as much energy as possible in the united states. think about what has happened over the past couple of months, libya, and our embassy over
10:19 pm
run, our ambassador killed. in egypt, the american flag brought down. in egypt, the persecution of coptic christians throughout egypt. in saudi arabia, we -- women are still treated as second-class citizens. in iran, roadside bombs against american troops. in venezuela, calling for that is correct -- destruction for our way of life. we can do that or we can depend on counties, ohio, the list goes on and on. let me leave you with this commitment. there is going to be a day when i go to washington and someone
10:20 pm
who is a powerful person puts his hand on my shoulder and says you had better vote for this legislation or i'm going to kick you off your committee or somebody said you had better vote for this or i will shut off or fund-raising or a journalist said its u.s. better vote for this or i will write a bad editorial about you. my commitment to all of you is i will look at journalist, that lobbyists, that political boss in the eye and tell them i do not work for them. my boss is the people the state of ohio and no one in washington is going to push me around. thank you very much. [applause]
10:21 pm
10:22 pm
10:23 pm
♪ ♪ ♪
10:24 pm
10:25 pm
10:26 pm
♪ ♪
10:27 pm
10:28 pm
10:29 pm
10:30 pm
10:31 pm
10:32 pm
10:33 pm
10:34 pm
through election day watch our coverage. tonight an c-span our look at the politics of npnp. mitt romney campaigns in jacksonville florida and president obama visits the storm damaged state of new jersey. we'll have road to the white house coverage tomorrow. ann romney will be on at 2:15
10:35 pm
eastern. you can watch the events live on c-span and on our website at cspan.org. >> on today east "washington journal" we looked at the politics of new hampshire and its role in the presidential campaign. this program is an hour and a half. >> for the past week and continuing this week,host: we have been taking a look at those nine swing states that hold the keys to the election and today we put the spotlight on the state of new hampshire. the small state up there in the northeast corner holding four electoralright now it's the unemployment votes. rate is 5.7% and president obama won the state into thousand eight with 9%. the executive director of the institute -- he is joining us from manchester. let's begin with tough issues for new hampshire voters.
10:36 pm
guest: before i get started, i wanted to thank c-span and congratulate them on 15 years being on the air. it has been a very valuable resource. up here in new hampshirewe are a swing states. four electoral votes. it sounds like a small number but if al gore had won the four votes, he would have become president. they are very important. this state right now is a toss up. the issues are different than it would be across the country. unlike nevada, that has a higher unemployment rate. unlike summer, it was 5.2%. it is the number one issue but it might not ring home like other issues.
10:37 pm
host: what areas are the swing area of that state have historically provided the winner with the electoral votes? right now, we are seeing that guest:the candidates are coming into, particularly the president has coming into the seacoast area. towns like rochester, cities like rochester are areas that are indicative of what may happen in the election. the other location that candidates are coming into as the city of nashua. the president was there a few days ago. it seems to be a place that is being fought over. it is along the massachusetts border. massachusetts is the state governor romney lead. it is an interesting area. many of the people from nashua work in massachusetts.
10:38 pm
host: who are the voters in these areas? guest: well, new hampshire has a libertarian streak. our model is live free or die. it is a tossup location. the voters, you know, i think they are voting for the person they think is going to lead the country for the next four years. some people will say new hampshire has a summer home of governor rodney and the state next door was massachusetts where he was governor. i think that is less of a factor. the people can see beyond that. they are voting for the person they think is best for the 50 states. host: tell us about the history of being a swing state. guest: new hampshire was republican for many years. traditionally new hampshire was solidly republican for many years. recently, it was the clinton
10:39 pm
1992 phenomenon that has changed that. he won the state twice. in 2000 it went to george w. bush, but in 2004 went to john kerry. the president had a nine-point victory in 2008. we really are a tossup state. the polls go back and forth. it is difficult to determine who is going to win this state right now. host: is their early voting? how do new hampshire residents vote on election day? guest: there are absentee ballots. you have to sign a form that says you not be available on voting day to come to the polls. traditionally, they are open from 7:00 until 7:00. some are open until 8:00 p.m. on election day. we have one of the highest voter turnout in the country. other statistical interesting
10:40 pm
statistics -- statistical facts are that we are one of the least taxed state in the nation. the least taxed state. we have no income tax, no sales tax. both the democrat and republican candidates will campaign on that issue, pledging that they will not have an income tax or sales tax. are gubernatorial candidates right now are both running on that issue, as a matter of fact. host: talk about the recount laws in the state of new hampshire. what are the rules for that? guest: we have a fine secretary of state who is quite experienced in this. he is the person who has been a keeper of the flame for the new
10:41 pm
hampshire primary. we had a famous 3 count here in the late 1970's with senator john durkin, who recently passed away. i do not see it coming down to that. we will see what happens on tuesday. other states may be more likely to have a recount then you hampshire. host: what about voter i.d. laws? do you have them? guest: there is some controversy. the legislature passed a voter law that require people to swear that they would, if they were going to vote in a certain town, that they would pay taxes and registration fees for their cars in the town. this was appealed and the state supreme court has put that on hold. right now, some of our voters are confused about those issues going into tuesday. host: neil levesque is the
10:42 pm
executive director at st. anselm college cost new hampshire institute of politics. if you would like to join the conversation, the numbers are on your screen. also, the sake tweet at twitter, @cspanwj, send us an email, email@example.com. we also have a special line set for new hampshire residents. we want to hear from you during this next hour and a half conversation on the battleground state of new hampshire. neil levesque, let's talk about election night. what will you be watching for? guest: i will be looking at the cities of nashua and areas along the border of massachusetts, but also towns such as rochester, as i
10:43 pm
mentioned. one interesting thing about election night is that governor romney has announced he will be here the day before the election. another president did that as well -- another candidate for president did, that was john f. kennedy. he came to new hampshire before coming down to cape cod to wait for returns. as we all know, they did not come through that evening in 1960. host: how is governor romney dealing with the good economy in new hampshire? 5.7% unemployment rate? guest: is tricky if your main message is the economy and new hampshire's the economy and unemployment rate is so low. it is slightly tricky. one issue the democrats have been using for the presidential election and in our
10:44 pm
gubernatorial race is the issue of abortion. and that has been something that has been highly significant -- is significant in the advertising i have seen on new hampshire television. being in a swing state, if you are watching nationwide, you turn on the television or radio, it is all advertising. if you are a local auto dealer and are trying to sell your cars, you have a hard time getting your ads in at this point. it is nonstop. you see a positive ad for the president, then a negative ad against the president. a positive ad for governor romney, then a negative ad for governor romney. it is interesting, even for somebody like me who is in the business of politics, it can get very confusing. i am sure that voters are confused at this point, to some degree. host: when you take a look at party registration in new hampshire -- republicans 32%,
10:45 pm
democrats 28%, and undeclared voters make up 40% of registered voters. how are these to candidates appealing to that 40%? guest: a few days before the general election, if you are a candidate you are looking at the undeclared voters. there are 310,000 of them in new hampshire. political scientists believe they may claim to be and declared at the local ballot but when they go to vote they traditionally lean one way or another. you are trying to talk to the is and declared and voters who are swinging back and forth. one interesting thing here with
10:46 pm
the new hampshire -- we have two congressmen, the first and second congressional district. the second congressional district leans democrat and is held by congressman bass, who is a republican. that district is something i will be watching for as the new hampshire -- we have two congressmen, the first and second congressional as i mentioned, nashua, which is in that district, is a city where candidates have been well. pouring into and surrogates. it will be a district will be watching on election night. host: let's go to brian in new hampshire -- independent caller. you are sought after by these two candidates -- how are you going to vote? do you know? caller: i am leaning towards obama. when i hear him speak, he connects better with me. when i listen to obama speak, more of my questions are answered them when i listen to romney speak. i tend to have more questions and i get confused as i listen to him. it is hard to pinpoint where he
10:47 pm
is on the issues. my question -- if the guest has studied, i am a relatively new residents to new hampshire, but if you study new residents voting as opposed to older residents, people who have been here for generations, and if you have seen any significant differences between the two that are worth talking about? guest: that is a great question. one of the fallacies in new hampshire is that people move from the state of massachusetts, which is much more government-centered state and new hampshire, moving across the border and then voting democrat. the fact is that is not true. the towns along the border with a lot of new residents, implants from massachusetts, are the solid republican towns these days.
10:48 pm
years ago, in the 1960's, the cities were the democratic cities in new hampshire and if you are a candidate all you had to do was win the towns. the towns now, particularly along the connecticut river, the border with vermont, are very strong democratic towns and very strong democratic areas now. it is almost a complete reversal. the old yankee farmer, if you will, might have switched party registration in the last 20 years. host: here is to get on twitter. how do residents in new hampshire regard mr. sununu and his remarks on president obama? guest: governor sununu is a knowledgeable former governor of new hampshire. he was chief of staff for
10:49 pm
herbert walker bush. he knows national politics and has been doing quite a bit of television on behalf of the republican party. a very smart man, very well respected. certainly, anyone in politics who is on television a lot and is commenting sometimes may or may not say something that they regret. i am not going to judge each one of his remarks, but -- host: has it had an impact on the new hampshire voter? guest: is very well-respected in new hampshire, which is maybe one reason why he has been up front for the republican party. he is among people in new hampshire would tend to listen to. the senator is very popular, and our outgoing governor, the president pass campaign used him in advertising because he
10:50 pm
is so popular. he has been on the stage with the president. they are using surrogates like that. i think that the president's campaign is very smart to use some of these people like the senator, who is more of a centrist democrat, favorable with independent voters you asked about. if you are a new hampshire voter and you are watching television, you might get confused by all these television ads and independent expenditures, but then you are popular u.s. senator or, for example, senator ayotte r. governor romney comes on television and speaks on their behalf. you may be likely to sway your vote in that direction. i think the two u.s. senators and their endorsements of the two opposite candidates have been very important here in new hampshire. host: who won in 2008 and why, and how is it looking with six
10:51 pm
days to go? guest: president obama won in new hampshire by nine points in the 2008. senator mccain has spent a lot of time here not only in his primary campaigns 2008 but previous to that in 2000. he had a over 100 town hall meetings in new hampshire in that time. he has been to a lot of different places in new hampshire. he continues to come to new hampshire on the behalf of governor romney. again, i think that new hampshire is a tossup. it is anyone's guess at this point. it is what makes politics exciting. the candidates are placing a lot of emphasis here. as i mentioned, romney is coming in. we see president clinton is coming in at the end of this week for the president. i do not have any research,
10:52 pm
necessarily, on this, but i would say that president clinton and hillary clinton are very popular in new hampshire and particularly amongst activists. he continues to be a very popular figure here. host: in the average of polls and the state of new hampshire, president obama has a slight edge, 48.8 to 46.8. you can see the specific polls that have been taken giving obama an edge in some and romney a edge in others. neill in ohio, independent caller. caller: i will not say my last name, but i will say that i already voted, i am truly independent. i must say, i found it disgusting that mid romney would stay in ohio to collect canned goods if he truly
10:53 pm
believes we should be reliant on private enterprise if there is a disaster. why doesn't he does take millions of dollars out of his own pocket and buy canned goods and send them in and continue on his way? instead, he sends coleman to ohio to talk about what he says on abortion, which is untrue. at the same point in time, he is changing his game and changing every view. we know he bashed fema. the president is doing his job. he is not doing anything but his job. host: the front page of the "boston globe" shows the impact of the storm, millions reeling. the "hartford courant" has this headline.
10:54 pm
go ahead, neil levesque. guest: it affected new hampshire as well. our fourth largest power outage. going to the caller's point -- new hampshire, we do have the opportunity to be around these candidates, particularly during the primary. i will say this -- no matter what party they are from you will find that candidates are very patriotic people. they really want to do the best they can for our country, and they are wonderful, not only with what they do in the public but also with their families. it is something voters do not get to see. it is quite sad, because these people are really tremendous, they worked very hard. more than half of everyone who put their name on a ballot loses. it takes great courage to think you can do this and try to read
10:55 pm
these candidates put their names on the ballot and run and run very well. the candidates for president -- governor romney has been running for years now. probably three years nonstop. the president is certainly tireless as well. it is one thing that we get to see here up close, and i wish they got an opportunity to see these candidates and see what they are like. host: john in new hampshire, independent caller. caller: a quick point and a question. i lived in massachusetts when romney was the governor back in 2006, what have you.
10:56 pm
overall, mr. romney, governor romney at the time -- you hear how we set up a slush fund and all these great things he did for the state which are totally untrue. i have to say, i look at -- i live in new hampshire. the campaign itself, and this is my question, i guess, the campaign where he is changing positions from the time he was governor of massachusetts to what he says today, he has totally changed his whole direction. he is -- he was pro-life back then, now he is pro-life.
10:57 pm
host: let's get that point. guest: candidates can change positions. the president, you can hold certain examples of the president's record where he changed positions. between next tuesday and inauguration day, no matter who wins you might see changing of the positions taken during the campaign. just a guess. these things well changed over time. candidates will take a step down from a harder positions they took in the campaign. is the nature of politics. host: green bay, wisconsin. democratic caller. caller: good morning. i am a graduate of the american school system, but i've question on polling in general. the polling i have heard, 90%
10:58 pm
of the african-american vote will go to obama. 80% of women voters will go for obama. and if you want, the other votes, if you are nice about it and give romney 50% of the vote, how can he be so close in the polls? guest: each poll is different. referencing real clear politics, one example of a site that is pretty good as far as bringing pulling together. the question as to how polling is these days -- how accurate polling is these days with one-third of households not having home front anymore. pew charitable trust did a study that indicated 9% of people they're reaching out to our actual responding.
10:59 pm
in new hampshire, weather is from campaigns or different parties, if you stay home tonight you will get probably on average 5 to 10 phone calls. it gets to the point where you shut your rigor off and you do not even turn on your answering machine. you could be on the phone on my with pollsters. pollsters after this election, as they always do, will boil down things and find out where the margins were, what went right, what went wrong. there are very talented people. a lot of time they are very accurate. i will say, if you are for 1 candidate or another, there is your own emotions that play into this sometimes. you'll see a poll that is not favorable to you and your party
11:00 pm
and sometimes your emotions can play into it, but on the most part, particularly with averages, they are generally accurate. host: yesterday we did a segment about polling, understanding that during this campaign season. if your interested, go to our website, c-span.org. we had the pew director of research on polling. republican caller from texas. caller: good morning. i want to now what everyone out there -- people who go to college, whether their parents paid for it or they pay for it themselves, are very proud they went to college. i cannot figure out why obama, including his wife, have hidden their records and sealed them.
11:01 pm
guest: i do not want to comment directly on that necessarily, but i will say that we all went to college and we all have our records. i am not sure that if i were candidate for president i would want that all out there, what i wrote in an essay 25 years ago. however, his record now, he has been president for four years and his record is there. i would encourage the voters to look at his record and see if they -- it is favorable to you and make your decision next tuesday as you go to the polls. host: let me end with this tweet. new hampshire has momentum -- in the primary, in the general is not that important. guest: is a few electoral votes. if it was not important the president and governor romney
11:02 pm
would not be here least once a week and surrogates. every single day we have a major surrogate in the state of new hampshire. it al gore had won the state, he would have become president of united states. this is all about the math. these skilled people in each campaign now looking at this, looking at each county, figuring out where these people need to go. very strategic as far as when you see the president in new hampshire, he is in nashua, he is there for a specific reason and not in manchester, 20 miles to the north. there is a lot of science to this. there is a lot of polling that goes into it. it is very strategic. we have had a lot of candidates here for the primary. we have had a lot of exposure to them. certainly, voters here are knowledgeable about who these people are after going through the primary.
11:03 pm
the different debates that go on. host: neil levesque, executive director of the new hampshire institute for politics, thank you. there are four electoral votes at stake in new hampshire, and it is considered a tight race. it's history of being a swing state continues as it is on our list. our conversation continues about the battle states, the battleground state of new hampshire with -- our competition continues about the battleground states of new hampshire. kathy sullivan is the chairwoman of the democratic party. she tried to us from manchester this morning. if i could begin with the "washington post" piece. republicans say that romney's team is far ahead of what senator john mccain had in place
11:04 pm
for years ago. but the extent of the organization and voter contact for the rahm the folks is miles ahead of where mccain was. there is no comparison. given there was a tough primary fight there for the republicans, that possibly they have a better ground game in place than the democrats. guest: that is not true. the democrats and president obama have been on the ground since the primary ended in february. the classic story was he drove through manchester and was locked, shut and the sides were down. the obama campaign was up and running. in knocking on doors, making phone calls. engaged in voter contacts for months and months before the obama campaign came back to new hampshire. i would say the republicans are talking of a good ground game, but the reality is the obama ground game is much better, and
11:05 pm
that will be a crucial factor when obama wins here next tuesday. host: given that obama won the state in 2008 by nine percentage points, and the economy is not that bad in new hampshire compared to other states, why is the race so close for the president? guest: new hampshire is typically a swing state. go back and look at the races in 2000 and 2004, they were very close. 2008 the president did win going away. mitt romney is someone who was governor of massachusetts. he has been keenly -- campaigning here really for six years because he ran in 2008 and lost. did not take too much time before you started appearing here again. what is really surprising is he is not been able to close the deal with the picture voters, and they're still backing president obama. if you look at the polls, on average, the president is winning. he has maintained a small but steady lead.
11:06 pm
i think this year you will see a number similar to what we had in 2004 and not so much in 2008. that was a different year. a lot of people were so upset with george bush. the president will pull out and win next tuesday. i think the numbers will be closer to what they were in 2004. host: what is your handicap for the governor's race and the two contested congressional races in the state? guest: in the governor's race, the democratic canada has maintained a small but said to lead in the polls. she has been out there campaigning and really doing a good job getting the message out. the republican, a very well- known figure in the state. this is the fourth time he is run for major office. he has not been successful in the past, despite the fact that
11:07 pm
he had much greater name recognition. he just has not been able to catch her in the polls. the polls go back and forth on each of those. it is a rematch of the congressional races we saw two years ago. the incumbent was defeated by mayor manchester. i am not sure what will happen. i believe it will be a good night for democrats overall and we will pick up both congressional states. both are very close right now. host: with the economy. well, the candidates have turned to other issues. i want to show an ad that the iran the campaign is airing in the state of new hampshire. >> it is stronger now than when
11:08 pm
i came to america. >> our navy is smaller now that any time the 1917. that is unacceptable to me. this is the highest responsibility of the presence of united states, and i will not cut the military budget by a trillion dollars, a combination of the budget cut the president has. that is making our future less certain and less secure. host: what is your reaction? guest: i am surprised irani is still talking about the navy after the president made about forces and bayonets. people know and understand president obama is devoted to the security of this country, that he made the call to send in the seals to take out osama bin laden it was such a threat to our country. president obama has made a real
11:09 pm
priority of eliminating the leadership of al qaeda. he has extricated as out of a choice -- for a choice in iraq that cause the problems in the real economy here at home and allies around the world. president obama has done a great job on national security and foreign affairs. mitt romney, you saw him in the debate on the topic of foreign policy. most of his ideas he was a neat, too, with respect to the president. -- me, too. when he had different ideas, they were reckless, so i do not think the advertisement will play well here at all. host: lets' hear from our republican voters in new hampshire. -- let's. caller: it is amazing that are all on the puck for president obama. you want to watch a balanced news station, go to fox news. that is the truth, it really is.
11:10 pm
president george bush would have been crucified if this went down in libya. for american soldiers, people that were killed. they were just sitting around. same situation. mitt romney does have a plan. he is a businessman. obama has never been run a lemonade stand. let's be honest. guest: with respect to benghazi the president is insisting on getting to the bottom. he has also said we will find those responsible and nature -- make sure they are held responsible. that is what we expect from are responsible president. with respect to the other comments, obviously with respect to fox news, i do not watch fox news, so i cannot really comment on fox other than to say it might be a good idea
11:11 pm
if our friends from kingston tried watching some other shows once in awhile to see what other folks are saying and not rely upon one source of news. when you rely only on one news source, it can be somewhat biased. i think the president is doing a good job, and i am really looking forward to another four years of president obama. host: st. charles, missouri. dale is a democrat a calller. caller: i was born and raised a republican. after voting for presidential elections for the past 30 years as a democrat makes me a democrat. the question i have, that i would like you to address is the single-issue voters that the republicans catered to, we see numerous examples of people from texas in particular that have a belief system that is not
11:12 pm
based on facts. i am curious why the democratic party has not addressed the single issue voters. i keep asking people. what did you get for the gun issues from george bush, ronald reagan, there administrations of the congress? they cannot tell me. ditto abortion issues. ditto gay rights. there does not appear to be any better relations -- legislation that the federal level but i am aware of or that they are aware of. host: we will leave it there and go to victoria, a republican. caller: my thoughts are real quick, we have the right to bear arms number-one.
11:13 pm
number two, my vote lies solely on obama care. i am 56. i am getting ready to retire. i do not want to pay for birth control. the ladies who make money can go down to planned parenthood and pay $20 for it. why should i pay for their birth control? it is against my faith. i have the freedom of religion and plan to exercise that by voting for romney. host: kathy sullivan. guest: in the first place, no one is proposing that taxpayers pay for someone's birth control. the issue is whether or not the employer has the right to discriminate against certain types of prescriptions, specifically birth control. this is a law we have had in
11:14 pm
new hampshire for several years now that employers have to cover prescription contraceptive. it has worked quite well. it has nothing to do with the tax payer. it is the expense of the employer, not the taxpayer. with respect to the health-care issue, i have to tell you something, i am the managing partner of a law firm. we have about 50 people who work there. up until couple of years ago, our health and -- health insurance premiums went up by double-digit numbers. for years. last year our health care premiums will have gone up by only 3% total for two years, which is unheard of several years ago. we kept looking at the double- digit percentage increases. i am very happy with what the
11:15 pm
president has done with respect to health care. i think it is starting to have the impact of driving down insurance premiums. we're also seeing we have more people with pre-existing conditions who will have insurance coverage. whereas under mitt romney plan someone with pre-existing conditions loses insurance temporarily in goes back will not be insured. children be able to stay on their parents' health care plan until the age of 26 so that kids coming out of college may not have a job will be able to still have health insurance. these are important factors and important issues for people in this country. i really am happy with what the president has done with health care reform. i think that is why the president is proud it is called obama care. caller: you are a very beautiful lady, and let me tell you something, we fight each other over all these issues, but we will have to face what is coming to all of us.
11:16 pm
you are totally right under your assessment of iran. -- assessment of mitt romney. cspan, one more thing, the engagement between democrats and republicans, i think that is very healthy for the united states. also, the affordable health care act is a beautiful bill. i am so happy they are willing to take care of people with pre-existing conditions it will not be able to cheat us. one thing for certain, white oak, black folk, hispanic votes, we have to go find each other now. -- white folk, black folk, hispanic folk. we need these people fighting for justice for the american people. i live in south central l.a.. i have to watch some of the most serious atrocities every
11:17 pm
day. to have good folks here. you have people not willing to given to the beast of racism. as long as we continue to fight each other, we will have these problems. but our people in new york and new jersey. i think the governor of new jersey had a beautiful statement. no, i do not believe it is used totally, but what he said the other day i am so impressed with him. -- believe in his views totally, but what he said the other day i am so impressed with him. guest: i think the fact the with the governor said yesterday with respect and to the natural disaster is great. there is too much need-jerk partisan reaction. it is great to see someone come
11:18 pm
forward and praised the president for his leadership with respect to the aftermath of hurricane sandy. we had some of that impact here in new hampshire. we still have tens of thousands of folks without power. we did not get hit as badly as people in new york and new jersey, connecticut, selfish or massachusetts. a little luckier than those, but hopefully everyone will go -- will get the help they need of the recovery will go smoothly. host: president obama will to work the state of -- tour the state of new jersey today. caller: you have to understand why president obama can delay the benghazi problem until after the election. he was very proud to show the situation room when he got a
11:19 pm
hold of bin laden, but now he does not want any faxed to come out about this one until after election. host: why do you think he is delaying it when the house is controlled by republicans? caller: because he is. you tell me he is not? host: i do not know. i was wondering what evidence you have of that. caller: any news program, he will go on better of it, the view, but will not go on any programs that will ask him the hard questions. host: we go to neal, a republican calller from pennsylvania. caller: their number one.
11:20 pm
cnn forget it. chris matthews plays the race card every tying democrats are losing. then it is the other guy. benghazi should be number-one. four americans killed. where is obama? he would not want any programs and answer anything. host: let me get your thoughts on this. guest: the president has been in a couple of debates since what happened there. the subject did come up here yet i think it is not correct to say that he has not gone anywhere where the subject has been able to be discussed. we did have nationally-
11:21 pm
televised debates. the president has been very clear, and that is we need to get to the bottom of what happened, and we will find those responsible and hold them responsible. given the president's record with respect to the leadership of al qaeda and bin laden, i think we can expect him to do exactly what he promised to do, and that is fine the responsible -- find those responsible and held them responsible. did you want to picture it is done correctly and with the correct information. that is what the president is doing, and i think that is the right way to conduct a national security. host: show the viewers the breakdown earlier. unregistered voters mix of 40%. what is internal polling showing about how many of those voters president obama could capture? >> i do not want to talk about internal polling, but let me say this, based on what i am seeing, i am very confident the
11:22 pm
president will have a good night here in new -- here on tuesday. we are working hard to make sure we have every obama supporter out there and out there to vote so we do have a victory. i think it will be closer, closer to the 2004 election when senator kerrey won. i do think president obama will pull it off, because he has such an excellent ground game, and because of these big city issues that are born to the people of new hampshire. we talk about real depth is a reduction, the specifics of his plan, unlike mitt romney to has yet to answer how he will pay for his plan. the people understand you want someone willing to talk about specifics, someone who has a record of cutting taxes for working-class and middle-class people. someone who has a record for cutting taxes for small businesses. the president has signed 18 tax
11:23 pm
cuts into law for small business people. i think the people of new hampshire, when they look at the president's record and compare that to mitt romney's record, they will say president obama has shown steady leadership when he came into office, turned things around and is continuing to make things better. when you look at his record compared to mitt romney's rhetoric, then i think the independent voters will vote for president obama and help give us a victory next week. host: kathy sullivan is the democratic committeewoman. shares serves as the new hampshire democratic chairwoman from 1999-2007. when is the difference between them? guest: as democratic party chair i was the person who basically was elected to be in charge of the democratic party for the state of new hampshire.
11:24 pm
as national committeewoman i am not as active in the day to day activities, but instead represent the state party at the national level with the national committee under the great leadership under the congresswoman deborah what torrential. -- deborah watzerman-schulz. caller: in new hampshire of the property taxes are very high compared to massachusetts for example. i know this is for the property owners and a constitutional amendment proposal to put this on the ballot banning any future imposition of state income tax or federal income tax -- sales tax by 80 in the governor of the legislature. i think it is a very bad idea. i think they should have ever won pay an income tax, rather than most of the property tax by the property owners like me.
11:25 pm
host: kathy sullivan, go ahead. guest: in new hampshire this year we have three questions on the ballot. one is the constitutional amendment to ban a statewide income tax. i personally am opposed to a statewide income tax. i think it hampshire has done very well without an income tax. we have done well through a recession without an income tax. however, i am opposed to a constitutional amendment. i do not think voters today should tie the hands of future generations. they should have their own ability to make their own decisions for how to pay for the services that government provides. our forefathers did not hide our own hands with respect to telling us how we had to pay for services, so i do not think
11:26 pm
we should do that. there are other questions on the ballot. one is to give the legislature bidault authority and the right to impose rules on the courts of ohio -- on the courts of new hampshire so the legislature can impose their own rules on our courts. i am opposed to that. recent legislature, which is controlled right now by the very radical and extreme republicans. one of the first actions they took was to allow guns into the state house, something we had not allowed in the past. i am concerned it would give the legislature the rules for the court, we may end up in the same situation in the courthouse. i am against that question as well. the third question would be to have a new hampshire constitutional convention, 400 people.
11:27 pm
i am opposed to that. i think it would be a costly and unnecessary endeavor. we do have another process to oppose amendments. i am encouraging everyone in new hampshire to vote no on all three questions on the ballot this year. host: we are talking about the battleground state of new hampshire. we wanted to update you on president obama campaign plans. he will resume -- resume campaigning with stops in about it, wisconsin on thursday. this is from "the associated press." tom democratic calller. last calller for kathy sullivan. caller: i would just like to know that romney reaches a lot about national-security. being hispanic, there's a lot of working-class people. i would like to know, has anyone in his family ever been in the military service?
11:28 pm
i mean, here he is talking national security. we send our sons to foreign wars and all these things happen with people's kids, but what about his kids? anyone in his family ever been to war? host: i am not sure you know the answer to that question, but why are military issues of the deal in new hampshire? guest: i think military issues are a big issue everywhere, but we do have been able shipyard, and we also have their force base and national guard. i think like every state in the country, we also have some defense contractors as well. security is always a big issue. for example, my parents were both world war ii vetrans. you find a lot of veterans in new hampshire. the important thing is to look
11:29 pm
at the record in comparison to record. president obama has a great record on national security and taking down the leadership of al qaeda, our enemies. people came into our country and killed 2000 of our citizens. at the same time, look at mitt romney in what he is proposing is trillions of dollars in defense spending that the military is not even asking for. he is looking at the old way of conducting military affairs. he is still talking about the ways the navy operated in 1917, as opposed to the security threats that face us today in the country in 2012, and what is the most effective way of protecting our people and our country in 2012. look at the rhetoric, as opposed to the record. if you look of the record, you will support president obama. host: kathy sullivan with the democratic national committee, thank you for your time.
11:30 pm
we will continue our conversation about the state of new hampshire with jim merrill.'first, a news update from c-span radio. if i could just begin with some of this distance about new hampshire or electoral votes. president obama won by 9%. abc news said that he did not just eek out a win, he dominated. he bested mccain by 54%-44%. given the economy is not as weak as in other states and the margin by which he won, how was the governor responding in the state of new hampshire? guest: let me make it clear, mitt romney will win next week.
11:31 pm
we have seen unemployment rise through the country as well as elsewhere, skyrocketing federal spending, government programs out of control. i think that is why you see today, especially between president obama. i think the voters of this state, what you are correct, unemployment has not been as tough. but there is anxiety. that is why they're looking at mitt romney closely. he has a plan, he has a record of success, this president does not. host: the undeclared make up 40%. how was he trying to appeal to them and what is internal polling showing how many of those voters he could get on election day? guest: from day one, we have made a concerted effort. he has done throughout town halls throughout the state, with independent voters.
11:32 pm
they came out in droves. at their largest concern our fiscal issues. they're concerned about the state of the economy and the size of our deficit. ithe has increased our debt more than any other president combined in our nation's history. these pocketbook voters are looking at the voters in seeing a record of failure. what we see is there will be a significant turnout on election day of independent voters. we have been working diligently to win them over with a strong fiscal message. we a record of balancing budgets and creating jobs and keeping spending under control. host: we just heard from kathy sullivan who noted military issues are a big one in new hampshire. she made the comment that mitt romney wants to add trillions to the pentagon spending.
11:33 pm
this echoes what you just said that said competing aspects of the political culture could tip the balance in either direction. when is the state's aversion to taxes and affection for small government. guest: it is a fair point, and while i will often correct the record of what she says, this is a critical part of the state. new hampshire has one of the highest percentage of veterans and the country per capita. we have been able shipyard and the largest manufacturing employer in new hampshire. when the president talks about military issues we're looking at a sequester right now that will mean that devastating cuts to our defense budget, military. that will have a direct impact on the shipyard and other
11:34 pm
defense contractors and men and women in the armed forces. mitt romney has called for a larger navy. smallest size since 1917. the president likened the navy to forces -- courses and bayonets. -- courses and bayonets. -- horses and bayonets. governor romney is strong on this issue and he needs to make sure that our men and women have everything need need to defend our nation. host: the other cultural dynamic is women's issues. he writes working for obama is the state's history of being in the forefront of women's issues. it was the first date to ratified the equal rights amendment. it has historically favored abortion rights. in 2010 enacted a law approving same-sex marriages. let me show you an ad president obama is running in the state and other battleground states. >> which you believe? -- do you believe? it would be my preference they
11:35 pm
reverse roe v. wade. planned parenthood, get rid of that. >> no matter what his ads say, we know what he will do. host: jim merrill, your reaction. guest: it is really from the national democratic playbook to distort and distract. what mitt romney has said very clearly is the best way we can help working men, women and everyone together is to get them a good job. a good paying jobs so they can care for themselves and care for others. under this present we have not been able to do that. the people of new hampshire or anxious. it is unfortunate the democrats choose this attack, but mitt
11:36 pm
romney would say very clearly that he is focused on making life better for everybody by getting our economy moving again in getting the government under control. host: describe your ground game in new hampshire. guest: i think we have an extraordinarily strong ground game. the obama campaign enjoys spiking the ball in the spring and early summer, while mitt romney was still running primaries around the country. as i reminded people at the time, mitt romney had just won an historic primary victory, and has been a year organizing for that. we of of really strong core of activists of leaders around the state to were working very hard for mitt romney in the republican team right now. we have nine offices around the state. we have made three times as many phone calls and six times as many doors be a knock on in 2012 than we did in 2008. we are undergoing extremely
11:37 pm
voter contact. we have made over 1 million unique boater contract -- context in new hampshire. these are all grass roots that we run. we're calling our friends and neighbors and asking for the vote. in democratic calller, you're up. >> thank you for taking my call. i've a question and comment. my comments will be i think everyone is being very unfair to the way president obama handled libya that has not been investigated fully. no one speaks about the intelligent plunder the republicans did that put us
11:38 pm
into war with iraq, lost 2000 american soldiers, and the answer was we had poor intelligence. my question is, why should anyone believe mitt romney would be good at creating jobs while he was 48 in job creation massachusetts? guest: i will take the second question first. mitt romney has created jobs. he is in the middle of a tough economy and created almost 50,000 new jobs in massachusetts. also remember he is one of the most extraordinary business leaders we've seen in our time and instrumental in creating american enterprises such as peoples and bright horizons and another a -- number of other companies.
11:39 pm
i think mitt romney has a very clear record of job creation that stands in stark contrast from the president was talked about getting unemployment down below 8% and it dips below just this past month, but for the 43 previous months those over -- it was over 8%. the policies just have not worked. with regard to libya, your comment on that, i would say obviously mayor ronnie was our president at the time. we're in a campaign against president obama. it was president obama and his administration has been nearly two weeks blaming what happened on a video, threatening to arrest the filmmaker. there will be discussions on that for how the president handled that. back to jobs, mitt romney has a very clear record of success. host: republican calller. caller: i think he may take the
11:40 pm
state of new hampshire, but i hope he wins, because we need to get lisp's scam artists out of the white house once and for all. i am sick and tired of al sharpton promoting this guy. they're both scam artists. guest: having been born in new hampshire, i grew up in pennsylvania. with regard to the president, i think it is very clear the stakes are extraordinarily high in this race. we cannot afford four more years of president obama. we cannot afford four more years of trillion dollar deficits. we cannot afford a growing debt that has gone to 16 trillion on his watch and will go to 20 trillion if we get four more years of him. we cannot afford four more years of obama care and big government takeover spirited mare romney has made it very
11:41 pm
clear what his plans are. we're making the contrast in the closing arguments in the next few days. we're making a very strong labor mitt romney will be on monday night for the very final event. host: independent calller. richard. caller: yes, i am rooting for you guys. i hope you can do the job. i know the previous person was talking about the wonders of our president and the navy. i was in the navy in the korean war. i know a thing or two about mines. you do not sweep them with aircraft carriers or submarines. that is ridiculous. as far as democrats are concerned, they take our money
11:42 pm
and does only god knows. do your job well, and thank you for the time. host: we guelph -- we will go on to carolina in tampa, florida. democratic calller. caller: we are middle-class folks, the same folks president obama is talking about and mitt romney is talking about. here is a real answer from a real person in crisis. my husband's company shipped to china and left my husband and at least 150 employees here to struggle for themselves. we almost lost our home. president obama affordability planned saved me, my husband, and my son from being homeless. i do not understand why all the
11:43 pm
negativity is against the president. he spent 15 trillion dollars, but some of that money helps to real people like me and my husband. guest: thank you for your call. i am sorry for the troubles you and your family have experience. number one, we have to get the economy moving again. we have to get tough on china. there is a clear line between what iran is proposing doing with china, cracking down, labeling them a currency manipulator and giving the company -- getting the company's strong he has a record of joy left. he has made it very clear he will get tough with china and change the nature of the relationship there. president obama has had for years to do that and really has not done that. mitt romney has done meetings here in new hampshire and around the country and talked with people just like you who are struggling in this economy.
11:44 pm
we can do better than this. i think the message for voters in this country as we can do better. this may be the best president obama can do, but not the best america can do. we are better than this. under president romney we will be. host: let me get your take on the governor's race. here is the national telegraph with their headlines. "the gender gap may favor of that cannaday." "the associated press" -- guest: we a very close races appear. -- up here. also in new hampshire is a battleground state. all down the line.
11:45 pm
i also served as senior adviser for lagamonte's race. his 26 years of leadership in the public and private and non- private sector as someone was work in business to bring people together. -- i served in lamontagne's campaign. i think he will do ok. all of these races will be competitive, but for the voters of new hampshire, they have to look of the record. we have extraordinary amount of negative third-party advertisements running from out of state interest groups right now. most of them against republicans. i would say to voters they are dependent upon your fear. we are relying on your common sense and good judgment. he will be a great governor for
11:46 pm
the state. he deserves our support. host: jackson, missouri. patty is an independent calller. military, family's and it has distressed me for years that it seems to me the democratic party [unintelligible] i remember that happening during the clinton administration, as well as obama moving through the ranks over the years. when we were stationed in illinois, it was from chicago. i do not think he loves the military. i think he likes to stand around and say things, but would push comes to shove he does not seem to like the military. what is concerning is he talked
11:47 pm
a lot about people have the right to vote, and the vote should not be suppressed. yet it seems to me a lot of the democratic campaigns have suppressed the military, but have found a way for the military stationed overseas to not have the ability to vote. guest: first, let me say we are all americans. we are all proud of our country. we all support the military. i would never say president obama supports military ever is less than it romney does. that is true on down the line. there are differences in how we conduct foreign policy. there are differences in how we handle the military and how we handle service personnel, as well as acquiring materials they needs -- they need. of this case republicans have the better of it. when president obama talks about the navy at the lowest level in
11:48 pm
nearly 100 years, it is not right to lock him for that. that is a serious discussion about our ability to project power around the world and do what america needs to do to protect its interest. with regard to military voted, i could not agree with you more. this has been a problem for years, and it is about time we got it fixed. our men and women are serving in harm's way all over the globe. every two-four years we have the issue of getting balance to them in getting back in time to be counted. i think the very least we can do to make sure those men and women are cared for in their boat is cherished. we need to do a better job of that. host: cnn reporting there are
11:49 pm
100 sarah gets that will hit the truck for mitt romney over the next six days before tuesday. any high-profile server gets coming to new hampshire? guest: mitt romney will be here monday edt in manchester to do his final event of the campaign. it all started for us here in new hampshire last june, and it will end here in new hampshire in manchester on a really high note. i do expect others to be here up of the next coming days. we of that marker rubio, christie, several of the romney sons. -- marco rubio, chris christie, several of the romney sons. caller: i basically have just a comment. a few minutes ago c-span broadcast a montage of clips of mitt romney's position on roe vs. wade. host: that was an ad put out by the president obama campaign,
11:50 pm
not a montage. caller: the basic premise of my comment is to show it wrongly talking about how he was born to do away with roe vs. wade, and you were asked to comment, and you went completely off topic. you had nothing to say about what his position is on women's right to choose. if you would like to comment on that, i would really like to hear your comment. guest: i am happy to comment on that. iran is pro-like. he is proudly pro-life. -- mitt romney is pro-life. my comment was in reaction to the democrats' national plan to not talk about the economy, not talk about the president's record because they cannot.
11:51 pm
the president's record is one of failure, one of spiralling debt and deficits. trillion dollars bid list that elderly failed. -- trillion dollars stimulus that has utterly failed. most voters do not want to see the economy. let's remember this, when president obama came to office he likes to remind us of the problems he inherited. he cannot fix it from the inside apparently. when he came to office he had a democratic house and democratic senate. in the midst of the great recession and real dramatic jobs crisis, what did he do? he did not talk about creating jobs, did not power small businesses. he ran through a trillion dollars stimulus that created very few jobs and was wasted dramatically. and he did obamacare. i see he was distracted.
11:52 pm
based on someone who has never worked in the private sector. he was not ready to talk about what we need to do to move the economy forward. mitt romney's pro-life but his focus is getting the economy moving again, getting the economy back on track and getting men and women back to work. so the king care for themselves and their families and move the country forward. host: jim merrill, senior adviser for the romney campaign. >> tomorrow morning, a conversation on hurricane sandy and the national flood insurance program. our guest is from the independent insurance agency and brokers of america. and virginia's role as a swing state with jerry. then, more on virginia politics.
11:53 pm
washington journal," live on c- span every day. >> through election day, watching our coverage of the presidential candidates, plus key governor's races from around the country. on c-span tonight, a debate between the candidates in arizona's senate race. mitt romney campaigns in jacksonville, fla., and president obama visits the storm-damaged state of new jersey. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] thatt's get though album documents the calvin coolidge family during their white house years and before. the coolidgef
11:54 pm
family papers. one box is just photographs, then several boxes of other documents, the photographs are heavy. and the album should be in the back of the box here. here it is. unfortunately, it is on black acidic paper. there is not much we can do about that because we did not what to change the artifact nature of the album itself. it is starting to crack. some of these pages are separating. this is a photograph of calvin coolidge the day before he became president. he was in plymouth, vt., visiting his father, doing some chores. this is a press photograph. he had the press with him. they took one photograph of him with his suit jacket, then another of him.
11:55 pm
>> more from the vermont historical society this weekend as ""book tv," "american history tv," and others looked at for mont's state capital, not appeal year. -- montepelier. now to the year -- now to the errors and the u.s. senate debate between jeff like and dr. rich carmona. they're running for the open seat of retiring republican senator jon kyl. this comes from yuma, arizona. >> hello, i'm lou. on behalf of kawc, welcome to
11:56 pm
the role issues debate here in yuma, arizona. today we will hear from the democratic and republican candidates for the united states, dr. richard carmona, and congressmen jeff flake. we will take questions from a panel of local journalists. each candidate will have 90 seconds to respond to each question, 30 seconds of rebuttal time. candidates will also have 90 seconds for rate -- for closing statements. should a panelist wish to extend a follow up, they can do so if they choose to. on our panel today is anna chalk, joyce loback, and michelle foust. joining us are over 300
11:57 pm
residents from southwestern arizona. they have agreed to respect the candidates and listened silently during the debate with the exception of right now. ladies and gentlemen, please help me welcome congressman jeff like and richard carmona -- jeff flake and richard carmona, candidates for the u.s. senate. [applause] gentlemen, thank you both for coming to yuma this debate. let's destroy it with opening statements. going first is dr. carmen up. it is a pleasure to be with you today. thank you for the opportunity to be with you and welcoming us. i am not a politician, nor do i aspire to become a chronic politician.
11:58 pm
i was asked to run by my fellow doctors, soldiers, and those i work with. my first response was, sure, i will run. i know how broken washington is and how dysfunctional that is, having been there as surgeon general of the united states. when i realized that is really the reason that i need to step up and running again, because of my grandmother, my mother, they would be disappointed if they were still alive if i did not accept the responsibility. this is my first campaign, my first series of debates. i'm running because i have benefited from this american infrastructure of opportunity. starting as a poor hispanic kid of immigrant parents, i experienced hunger, homelessness, dropped out of high-school, and the only thing in front of me was uncertainty. but i became a u.s. army special forces soldier, got ag deeds -- ged, lucky enough to get into junior college with open iv combat veterans. used my gi bill to become a
11:59 pm
doctor, and one generation become surgeon general of the united states. i'm running to ensure that all kids can attain the american dream just as i did. >> thank you, congressman flake? >> i think all of you. i thank all of the committee here at western college. i appreciate this opportunity. just two weeks ago, my wife and i received a wonderful call, our oldest son and forming as we are grandparents for the first time. aiden jeffrey flake was born into a wonderful country in the greatest country of the world, but he was also born into $50,000 debt, his share of the 16 trillion dollars federal debt that all of us collectively hold. that is a transcendent issue of our time. that is generational theft to put that kind of burden on kids and grandkids.
12:00 am
we need some before the senate was willing to stand up to either party, whatever is in charge, against overspending. that has been my record in the we are here today debating arizona issues. that is important, because this seat is currently held by center kyl. -- senator kyl. all of these things are important. we need to make sure that whoever has this seat understands them and will advocate for them. thank you for having me here. >> cuts began the questions portion of the debate. -- let's begin the questions portion of the debate. the first question is to congressman flake. >> thank you for being here. we are going to begin with water
12:01 am
allocation. water allocation has not been legislated by the federal government in more than 50 years. since that time populations of states sharing rights to the colorado river have changed drastically. arizona uses 99% of its allocation and have promised more water to two reservations in the northern part of the state. what do you plan to do to ensure the water rights are protected while minimizing the environmental effect? what's that is an important question for the state. senator kyl has been the one that has negotiated a lot of the allocation that we have. the allocation is always going to be an issue. that is why it is important to have people i did read the senate who understand the issue and are willing to advocate for the state. sitting to our west as california with a 53-member delegation.
12:02 am
you have to fight hard and make sure that our water does not go there. also, here in yuma there are concerns it will be allocated in the state. urban areas will get water that is intended here. i promised to you and to everybody here is to ensure that we make sure allocation funds here and elsewhere and that when there are changes -- allocation comes here and elsewhere. water is the lifeblood of arizona. we have to make sure it remains and we have allocations' reflected by both population and also agriculture and some of the traditional uses in arizona. >> that is a great question to start on because congressman flake and i do agree on issues, like water, we want to make sure we do not seize water to anyone
12:03 am
else and somebody stands up to fight for the water supply. we do agree -- the potential for contaminating water and putting 23 million people at risk to use the water every day. there is no monetary benefit to the state when we do that because of the laws of mining, we will not be able to get anything there. i am surprised he would risk putting 25 million people at risk by potentially contaminating their water. we know this is true. i am concerned he would jeopardize 25 million people and the water here by really aggressively trying to move legislation to allow iranian -- uranium mining. it is not just me. the arizona republic, the arizona daily star, the sun set
12:04 am
your actions were shameless and irresponsible. i think that is something you need to deal with. >> i am concerned that my opponent does not seem to understand arizona geography. we are talking about mining and enter the arizonas drip, not the grand canyon. i am trying to protect the bipartisan agreement called the arizona wilderness act that was negotiated by barry goldwater on one side, the sierra club on one side, the chamber of commerce on the other, that protected the grand canyon and also recognize we would need economic activity in the arizona strip. that is what i am trying to protect. >> i do understand the geography. apparently, there is a difference of opinion. we are talking about they offer. the watershed area that extends far beyond the canyon. it will contaminate the offer
12:05 am
that brings water down. i was very careful to say, this is grand canyon watershed risk. 25 million people rely on it and the watershed to provide water for the area as well as california and other areas. >> we are going to get a quick look at a lot of topics now. the next question. >> you yuma county has the highest in the nation month after month with 25% or 30% of its work force looking for jobs. what ideas do you have for improving the economy and creating jobs, in particular for rural areas? would this be a top priority for you? >> it is a top priority for me. first and foremost, we have to do something about reforming the
12:06 am
tax structure. small businesses are taxed at 35%. that is not sustainable in this environment today. we have to change the loopholes at the top. big companies like ge and others pay no taxes and small companies pay up to 35%. we need to make it fair to everybody. first and foremost, we have to create an environment that our small businesses can thrive. when we look at the uniqueness on the border that is different and the tax reform or the nation, we need immigration reform. as i travel the border and i meet with agricultural people, we have a work force problem because the immigration system and the visa system is broken. these problems trade an impediment to congress. we have to be able to provide a work force but can move back and forth easily. we are not able to do that because of the impediments that are there by not having an effective comprehensive
12:07 am
immigration policy. that becomes an economic issue as well. the workers here who want to work, there is not enough of them. the workers who come across the border to take care of the ranches and agricultural industry, they can i get back and forth like a one-two. the rangers are telling us every day, we desperately need immigration solve because it is and economic problem. thank you. >> you pose a great question here. unemployment a run the country is at an unacceptable level of around 8%. it has remained so for about 43 months until a row with this administration and the democratically controlled senate. in yamada, it is 25% or 30%. we have to have certainty on tax rates moving ahead. it is the certainty of regulation that is really stifling.
12:08 am
we have a federal agencies whether environmental, health care regulation, labor regulation, financial regulation, it is all consuming. then one of the biggest job killers out there is the health care plan. i just spoke to a small business this morning from yuma. he has 44 employees. he is planning on hiring for more and that is all. the you know why? if he gets to 50 employees, then he starts getting fined for not providing health care insurance that the president and others think he ought to provide. that means fewer jobs. he said, i will simply pay overtime and make them work saturdays. i cannot hit 50. you have seen the same thing happening with small businesses and franchisees. they are moving people from full-time to part-time because they do not want to hit the threshold. that is a huge job killer. we have to repeal it.
12:09 am
that is a commitment i will make you. when i get to the senate, i will vote to repeal the health care plan. my opponent will not. >> first and foremost, i think you can see the partisanship by which congressman flake comes to the issue. as always blaming the other side. that is the problem we have with congress. congress is not working because it is full of people that cannot have a rational discussion. we are spending 18% of our gdp on health care. when i look at the health care plan before us, i have been critical of it as well. the congressman's plan is to resend it and we still have 50 million people without insurance. we will have more people coming into the market. it will be transferred to all of you. he will pick up the cost for people who do not have insurance. that is not a plan. the public will be shouldering the burden and the doctors and hospitals will pick up more uncompensated care.
12:10 am
>> we have to repeal the president of's health care plan. the president promised when this was past that it would lower premiums by $2,500 per family. it has raised premiums by about $2,500 per family. what is in the future, not just for those who pay premiums but also the taxpayers at the state level, the problems our state has had with the budget will be multiplied. we cannot go in that direction. we desperately need health care reform. we cannot go the direction of the health care's -- we cannot go the direction of the president to oppose the health care plan. >> should you be elected, would you be willing to put the weight of your office behind finding out what the causes are and the solutions to the high unemployment in here in yuma county. >> i want to finish the issue of
12:11 am
health care because it plays into unemployment as well. congressman flake's is not really a plan. whether it is a voucher, we the people are still going to shoulder the burden. hospitals and doctors will get more uncompensated care. both parties have gotten it wrong. they're not addressing the cost of care. the cost of care comes from 75 cents of every dollar spent on chronic diseases, most of which are preventable. >> some question to you, would you be willing to put the weight of your office behind finding the causes and solutions to unemployment here in yuma countyl the word traditional has been applied. it is not a compliment. >> some of the issues has to deal with the issue raised here with regard to being near the border.
12:12 am
being susceptible to national trends when it comes to unemployment and the economy. we need some things desperately here like a commuter plane that will make it easier for labor to come across and enter the daytime and back at night. that is not allowed easily in our system. one thing we have to avoid is a sequestration that is living at the end of the year. that will hurt our military readiness. for an area like yuma that relies on the defense industry, it would be devastating. we have to make sure reluctant that issue. -- we have to make sure we look at that issue. with the health care plan, that means fewer jobs, not more. that is what we have to look at. the uncertainty on taxes and the certainty of regulation. >> let's move on to our next question that comes from michelle.
12:13 am
>> access to healthcare in rural arizona can be difficult. many problems include a lack of health care providers, state and federal funding cuts, access, and the loss of facilities when patience cannot pay, there is further financial loss to the institution. our local hospital lost $40 million this year alone from unpaid treatments that contributed to the layoffs of 135 employees. do you have a plan to help improve the health services available to patience in rural arizona? >> i grew up in snowflake. i know the issues. i know the difficulty my parents had at times to find doctors willing to treat them on medicare. that is going to become exacerbated as we go forward with the president's health care
12:14 am
plan as well. let me take another issue you mentioned. you really feel the uncompensated care here on the border. i know the issues that are faced with federal rules where you are required to treat anybody that comes, that means unless the federal government reimburses, the hospital has to do it and the taxpayers here. that is not fair. that is why we in the congress have worked hard to make sure hospital funding, reimbursements are there. it is something yuma cannot control. the bird and is a federal responsibility -- the bird and -- burden is a federal responsibility. we need a plan to deal with that, but it has to start with the federal government doing what it has to do if they impose mandates. the mandates need to be funded.
12:15 am
with the federal health-care plan, it will exacerbate the problem we have access to doctors in rural areas. >> the congressman said he has come down to the border and visited a hospital. i have worked here for over one quarter of a century. i have been a police officer on the border working with the border patrol. i have been a registered nurse. my whole life has been about caring for others. these are issues i do not have to visit, i have lived them every single day of my life right up to the cabinet level in dealing with this. i know the issues along the border and the -- how difficult they are. this is not about getting more doctors, we have to revamp the health-care system. the congressman is stuck on a sound bite from his party that you have to rescind the affordable health care act. gov. romney himself said, there is some good stuff in here.
12:16 am
kids covered 226, that is good. if your kids are like mine, you want them covered to 26. we look at our seniors and the doughnut hole. even gov. romney said, we should retain these. the aca has good things in it, but it needs a better business plan. we have to recognize it is not all about doctors. this is a multidisciplinary team that needs to be put into the community to deal with doctors, nurses. we have to reform the system to one that promotes optical care. simply doing what the congressman wants to rescind aca, we will incur a whole lot of dead and more problems because people will continue to get sick. >> -- we will have a whole lot more debt and more problems.
12:17 am
>> i have worked with him. i am proud to have his support. if i was not down here working the issues, i would not have his support. with regard to the hospital again and patient care and access to doctors, whether we like it or not, the president of's health care plan is an impediment to better access. -- president's health care plan is an impediment to better access. >> the congressman thinks by rescinding the plan this will correct the problem. both parties have gotten it wrong. they are not addressing the issues that are germane to the rising costs of health care. is killing small businesses and making it difficult for people to get insurance. we need a new system. we need to address the variables that contribute to the cost of health care. rescinding this does not do it. the congressman mentions he has
12:18 am
endorsements. i am a police officer half of my life. most of the police associations as well as the national association of police organizations which i was chosen as a national top cop, they have endorsed me as well. that is not what we are talking about. we're talking about solving problems. >> the amount of money the state spends on each student in arizona is around $1,300. that is the second lowest. nearly half of all students who attend rural schools live in poverty. the -- funding for schools is tied to property-tax is which means schools in rural areas will continually get less money. how do you plan to legislate the education budget to ensure students in low income areas are
12:19 am
funded more fairly? >> a product of a community college. i could not get into college because i was a high-school dropout coming back from combat. somebody had the wisdom to say, let's give these kids an opportunity. i had a gi bill to give me some money so i could get educated. i know the value of community colleges. i know what they bring to the community. we have to restructure how we invest at enter our communities. we have so many problems with unemployment, small business is struggling. we need an economic base that can allow the schools to thrive. comprehensive tax reform is the way we have to start. we have to create incentives within the communities of people that are innovators want to come here. this is a beautiful state. when people want to hire people that generates the higher tax base, they ask, how about your school system? it is not doing so well.
12:20 am
how about the health care system? how about the arts, theatre, extracurricular? we need to build an infrastructure of opportunity that makes this the most attractive place in the nation tuesday. we could be the solar capital of the world. right now we need a call. coal is 30% of where the energy is coming from. we can actually do a lot of things. all of the solar panels we have out here. this is where we are going in the long run. >> thank you. k-12 education is a function of state government and the federal government, ungratefully. the federal government provides a% of the funding that goes into local schools. with that 8% comes 70% of the
12:21 am
mandates and stipulations and paperwork that tied the hands of local schools, teachers, administrators. with regards to what the federal government should do, your question is very relevant with low risk pools. rural schools are having the problem, what is the future like the navajo training station or the coronado power plant which the epa is trying to shut down. if you want to affect local schools, and allow the epa to move ahead and impose restrictions that will force the power plants to shut down. it is devastation in a local community. we have seen that happen in my home town of snowflake. we have a paper mill that shutdown that would still be up and running and helping us manage the forest, but it cannot anymore because the epa has taken us out completely. that devastates the community.
12:22 am
we have to make sure economic development can come. there is a large impediment right now with some of the federal agencies. arizona is 85% publicly owned it. it is -- it matters. >> congressman flake and i agree on some things. i do not agree as he does that we should abolish the department of education, nor that we should abolish the epa. who does not want clean water and air? congress regulates those agencies. he has been there a in office for a dozen years. the only have the authorities bestowed on them by congress. arizona is different. we cannot regulate dust, this is arizona. it is congress that has the ability to hold them accountable. >> you are right, that is
12:23 am
congress's role. for the past three and a half years, we have been unable to exercise that role. the senate under harry reid at's control has not passed a budget. we do not go through regular order passing appropriations bills one by one. when you do go through regular order, it allows me to work with democrats to actually ran the agency's and. when the senate will not pass a budget, we cannot do that here we lose our power. that is why the senate needs to change leadership. >> the next question for congressman flake. >> both of you have touched on the subject of my next question, but i would like to go into it in more depth. they have stressed the need for a more rigid in yuma county, farmers have advocated for a
12:24 am
worker gets program that would allow people who live in mexico to cross the border each morning fields andyuma's return home at night. is fixing the guest worker program something you support, and what features to you consider critical? >> we do need to revamp it. we need a better h2a program, but let's stick to agricultural programs now. do not have a program robust enough to take care of the needs we have now. otherwise, we will be shipping jobs to mexico or elsewhere. here and in the imperial valley in calif., they are saying we do not have the work force, and i believe them. here in yuma, the h2a program is ill suited because a lot of people living in mexico can come
12:25 am
and work and then return home. the program requires housing and transportation be required by the employer. that does not make sense. we need a computer program that allows people to come here and move back. that is why the farm bureau has not supported the agate worker bill that is a pretty good fix for the h2a but does not address the commuter program. my commitment is to work on the issues in a way that will give access to labor that we need to keep the jobs here in america and not ship them elsewhere. >> again, congressman flake and i agree a lot of the policies and procedures are antiquated. this question once it's up to one of my earlier answers. we need comprehensive immigration reform. the border needs to be secure, there is no question about it. we cannot let it be an impediment to progress since so
12:26 am
many jobs require it. we are in agreement on those issues. again, the congressman has been there one dozen years. whether it is the epa and blaming the democrats on the other side because they did not regulate appropriately and only the republicans will have the right answer does not make sense. the system is broken. both sides are getting it wrong because each side digs their heels and and we do not get anything done. whether immigration reform, or specifics of a visa moving across the border, we have to start solving problems. that is why people are fed up. that is why congress's ratings are as low as they have ever been. people want the problems solved. that is not happening. >> outlining the problem is correct, but i can tell you my record in congress has been one to reach across the aisle. i have worked on a comprehensive
12:27 am
immigration reform. i have worked with senator kennedy. we try to get comprehensive reform through. unfortunately, we cannot give the trust level until we have a secure border. on other issues as well, i have been able to pass more floor amendments than any of my democrat or republican colleagues over the past four years because i work with the other side. that is what we need a center of the senate. >> the congressman talks about his bipartisanship. the fact is, that is not true. he votes with his party more than michele bachman does. his words were, congressman flake abandon me on immigration. when it was convenient to was with me, when he wanted to be a center, he left. i think it is disingenuous. to be a congressman, you have to show up at work. if you look at 12 years of his attendance in committees and
12:28 am
subcommittees, it got 1300 that are listed, he has missed 800 of them. if any of us had missed two- thirds of our work, we would be fired. >> my opponent has brought this up before and it is simply not true. it is completely not true in terms of the attendance record, i think he is trying to cover for something that we pointed out. dr. carmona did not vote in the 2010 elections in the general or the primary. if you are going to ask for people's votes, it helps to have a voted in the last election. that is not true. i can tell you, i do work across the aisle. when the president proposed immigration reform, he will not propose a temporary or guest worker plan. it is not comprehensive anymore for the president. >> the next question is for dr. carmona. >> the border between arizona
12:29 am
and mexico is host to six ports of entry. officers are charged with preventing the movement of prohibit commercial products, pets, illegal migrants, drugs, weapons, and potential threats to national security. all of these things they must do without slowing legitimate traffic, including more than $20 billion of imports and exports each year. that is in arizona alone. what can the government do to help small border communities plan and execute improvements to the infrastructure leading to and improving ports of entry? what will if any does the government have in expediting -- expediting on the mexican side of the border? >> i think clearly we have to and partnership with our counterparts in mexico have that discussion so we can actually be able to integrate our resources. when i was surgeon general, i
12:30 am
spent a lot of time working internationally on our international prepared as planned. it really is about striking a balance between both. the border becomes an issue because of national security, but is also a thoroughfare to commerce that you point out. if we look at the blue and green uniforms, we have to find a balance. this is a portal for commerce as well as keeping ourselves healthy and safe and secure. as we look at the amount of people coming across, which is the net decrease in this state, including the vitriolic expressions of some people who had alienated people who do not want to come here anymore, we need more help on the border. we need to use technology more so we can move trucks and people back and forth. it is a federal opportunity. the border is a federal responsibility. we cannot go along the in this
12:31 am
piecemeal, and a fashion with a broken immigration program and not have comprehensive reform. comprehensive reform is about economics, making the border more secure, it is about facilitating the goods and people on a regular basis so they can work here and go home. we all profit from that. the federal government has an important role. >> we have great filly better infrastructure over the past couple of years. the mayor opposed the port of entry -- mariposa port of entry. we are having trouble getting appropriate staffing for the ports. that has been stressful for those of us and congress. we have not been able to get a staffing model to tell us how much money we need to authorize and appropriate for the sports. in the last go around, i passed
12:32 am
an amendment in the house to aopt the secretary's office token amount to come up with a staffing model because we have been begging them to tell us what we need to appropriate to appropriately staffed the ports. it is about $7 million that comes to our state from people crossing from mexico in spending money just a in retail shops. the produce industry is about a $20 billion industry that comes mostly through nogalis. it is important for the state that we do not just have enough and green uniforms, but the blue uniforms to make sure the ports are adequately staffed. >> congressman flake and i are in agreement on staffing. i feel that we have to enhance our use of higher technology so
12:33 am
we can increase the movement back and forth. i want to go back to comprehensive immigration reform. part of the burden we have on the side is the apprehension and incarceration of people who did not get deported. without comprehensive immigration reform, we're still going to have an economic burden. we will have impeachment's going back and forth across the border. this is about stopping the problem that has been perpetuated by congress failing to act. >> we have to make sure we get these appropriately staffed. comprehensive immigration reform is desperately needed. first, we have to ensure the tucson sector looks more like the yuma sector. there has been wonderful cooperation with local law enforcement and the federal government in making this border here, the 88 miles of this sector secure. we have to do the same in
12:34 am
tucson. and we can move on to all of the thorny issues that are needed there including guest worker plants and making sure we have access to labor. >> i appreciate you both sticking to the clock closely. we only have three questions to go. >> proposition 120 calls to change the constitution and declares state sovereignty. if proposition 120 does pass and federal and state courts upheld the constitutionality, what do you plan to do to ensure the state is reaping the financial benefits of acquiring the land without, perhaps -- without compromising the environment? what's i have not studied this carefully or this proposal, but i am skeptical about the outlook. other states have talked about doing this kind of thing to having more influence over the federal lands. i think it is require more than a proposition at the state level.
12:35 am
we need better corporation between the state and the federal government to manage the federal lands that we have. right now we have wonderful national parks and intrastate, but we have a backlog in terms of maintenance. we have the largest pondarosa stand in the world, but it will not keep happening if we keep having -- it will not if we keep having these fires. we have to make sure we have a rational policy with regard to mining interests as well. we do not have that now. we do not have the federal government allowing us to do a simple land transfer to allow resolution copper to expand and to create more than 3000 jobs. these kinds of things need cooperation between the federal government and the state. we have not had that.
12:36 am
>> we are talking proposition 120, but it does have implications for the management of public lands. but let's not forget, we are the united states of america. it is silly to talk about partially seceding from the union. that does not make any sense to drop out because you disagree with somebody. our strength is the elbow operation of 50 states. commerce, but we have to keep them in check. we're not going to regulate dust, obviously. the things the congressman brought up is important. we need cooperation, but that is the problem we have of congress today. there is no cooperation. all we do is bicker and fight and point fingers at each other. it is is about time that the public speaks up. again, i will go back to the fact that 90% of the public is disheartened by how they have
12:37 am
been represented. we have to start solving these problems. the challenge is really to get congress to cooperate and stop the bickering on both sides. >> thank you. part of reining in federal agencies and working with the federal government cooperatively has to start with the senate passing a budget. i cannot over emphasize the importance of that. most people look at the fiscal aspects. those are important. the real effect is without a senate budget, the house and senate do not go through regular order and we are not able to work -- we are able to cooperate across the aisle. when we pass amendments, we know that the senate will not pick them up because they have not passed a bennett and will just the one bill at the end of the year with everything from an. that has to stop. >> i will go back to what i said. congress is the inherent problem here.
12:38 am
the congressman went the other side as if all good solutions only come from one party. both sides got it wrong whether in health-care or anything else. the congressman chooses to blame the other side. there is much more akin to cooperatively. the congressman has taken positions that are ideologically driven and attached himself to congressman aiken. he has been a proponent of redefining rape as legitimate rate. these are things we need to be talking about. health care for women, our veterans, and our seniors. >> i think the congressman to get a chance to respond for that -- respond to that. >> i am willing to work with the other side and i challenge my own party when needed. when we had the earmarked problem for years, i went to the house floor and challenged my own party more than anybody because my own party was in
12:39 am
charge. it or not doing the right thing. i was removed from one of my committees for punishment for what they called bad behavior. that was standing up to my own party on these issues. i do work with the other side. the other side has to be willing to pass a budget. that is the problem. we in the house are passing budgets and the senate is not. >> the farm bill sets conservation and forest tree policy. the last farm bill expired in september. while food stamps, commodity support will continue to receive funding, there is no support for the lower profile programs that drive innovation, create jobs, and support the next generation of farmers critical to rural areas such as yuma county. if elected, would you consider a
12:40 am
new farm bill a priority? what changes to the legislation would elected advocate? >> when i am elected, it will most likely be a priority for me. i realize how antiquated the farm bill is. i recognize how it is a broken congress. they forget we have a big agricultural community here that desperately needs to support to be able to do its job. having the supports in place, having an updated farm bill that addresses the issue but also a farm bill that addresses health. the farm bill is tied to health as well. sometimes, we are the ones contributing to the problem because of a policy. we have to look did that very critically and said, how do we ensure there is an infrastructure of opportunity here for the agricultural community?
12:41 am
how do we ensure trade and trade balances are dealt with? >> we need to redo the farm bill and with that will give certainty ahead. it needs to be changed and revamped considerably. for a community like this that farms mostly fresh vegetables, you get very little from the farm bill. let me tell you how out of whack it is right now, when the last farm bill was authorized, some said the we are subsidizing cotton is wrong. we cannot do that. the brazilians will sue us. they will win. they can impose tariffs and everything else. guess what? they did it. now instead of changing the way
12:42 am
we subsidized cotton farmers, we are paying $150 million a year to brazil to subsidize their, and so we will not have to change the way we provide subsidies here. that is wrong. that is out of whack. so is a program of direct subsidies and direct payment where we give farmers money whether they grow crops or not. that is out of whack, and a great filly that seems to be changing. i am proud to have worked for years to try to get rid of the ethanol subsidies that we have. $6 billion of a tax credit for something that is not working and is actually a detriment to the environment as well. that has gone now, and that is a good thing. >> as i said in my remarks and the congressman expanded, i think we are in agreement that much is to be done with reforming the farm bill and ensuring it is contemporary and thought and nature and how it supports the farmers in our
12:43 am
area. the challenge is, we have a broken congress. why was this not done? we have been kicking the can down the road for years. each party blames the other person. this is not that difficult to deal with. we know the issues, we know the issues about tariffs and subsidies, we have to have reasonable people sit down and solve the problems. that is the politics killing us now. party politics is not letting us of the problems. >> congress is certainly dysfunctional. the figures say not only 90 -- 90% said congress is not only during a good job, i would like to meet the 10% who think congress is doing a good job. i have a thing to tell them. a senate that has not passed a budget in 1200 days is dysfunctional. it has to change. it is not enough to say that we need to work together. we do, but you have to have
12:44 am
specifics. you have to have knowledge of how the programs work in order to sit down with the other side and actually come to a rational agreement. >> we have reached the final question. it will be directed to congressman flake. >> we have covered several issues that are relevant to rural areas in arizona. if you are elected to the senate, which of the issues would you be able to tell rural. zonians that you championed for them if he were to run for reelection and 2013? >> first, i mentioned our problem with forest health. we have worked over the past several years on what is called theforfry initiative. this allows us to have industry and entered the forest on a
12:45 am
commercial basis that helps us then the forest where needed that will save the forests from environmental disaster when another fire comes. we just let out the first contract. a group called pioneer will move deeper into the forest, not just to run the communities. that is something that is desperately needed that we have done. if the epa is successful, if the obama administration is successful at shutting down the navajo generating station, that will be devastating for the state. that is something we are fighting. the epa said the other day they are not just looking at njf, they are looking at coronado and apache as well. i had a letter and had every member sign it to tell the epa to slow down. let's have some public comment and some more hearings. we are working on those issues,
12:46 am
and we have to continue to. you have to be able to work with the other side on the issues. >> would you repeat the question? >> several issues are relevant to rural arizonans. if you are to win the election, which would you say that you have championed for them if you run for reelection? >> first and foremost, jobs and the economy. we are desperate here. we have a 30% unemployment rate. there is a lot can do that we have mentioned already. create an environment that is conducive to attracting business here. it includes tax reform. closing the loopholes of the top. helping small businesses and keeping taxes low for arizona families. it also includes the immigration reform. this is an economic issue as well. well below that the border as an economic issue as well and
12:47 am
national security, we have to enhance, we improve security. we have to be able to inspire small and large businesses to come here because it is a wonderful place to live. we have to create an environment through tax credits and the people of -- opportunities to come here. there are plenty of people who would a capital at risk if they felt this was a secure environment, if they felt the schools were better than they are. it is about moving a family here. i think that is most important to arizona. we get our fiscal house in order. we have jobs for everybody. we change the climate we have. you cannot do that without comprehensive tax reform and comprehensive changes along the border that includes securing the border and being much more innovative with visas, permits, pathways to citizenship, and the
12:48 am
dreamers. >> with regard to jobs and the economy, what we need is a change from the current course that this administration and this senate has put us on. it is a course that has higher taxes, more regulation. assuming we can redistribute the same pie we have rather than growing the pie. we need a change, particularly in the rural arizona. we are disproportionately affected when the federal government over regulates, in particular with public lands. we have to have somebody willing to go back to washington and advocate and stand firm on these issues. that is what i plan to do. >> the question of overregulation is one we have heard several times today, and clearly the epa and enter try to regulate dust does not make sense. what we have learned is one size does not fit all. arizona has unique needs and
12:49 am
regulatory opportunities. as back to congress. congress gives the authority to the epa to regulate. failing -- blaming the epa because congress failed is disingenuous to me. the epa cannot work without authorization from the federal government. we have to put that in check so it does not impede the economy whether call or anything else let us they are trying to regulate. >> we have gone through all the questions. we have reached the closing statement. you have 90 seconds. >> thank you. i appreciate the opportunity to be here today. i was to the obvious. i am not a politician. i am not running to keep a party in power are looking for a new career. i know the collective future depends on a reasonable republicans and democrats to act as a statesman in great civility and solve our problems. we have not seen compromise for a while. i am running to restore trust in government to the american
12:50 am
people. to ensure every kid can obtain their american dream as i did. i went to thank you for the opportunity to be here today. i ask for your support and but so i can have the privilege to represent as the next senator from arizona. >> i was glad to talk about arizona issues here today. i am a fifth generation arizona and, raised in rural arizona. i know what communities struggle with when the federal government is overbearing. that has to change. the course that we are on right now, we need to work together desperately. the problem is, the congress cannot unless we have a senate that functions. when the senate does not pass the budget again, it is not letting the congress regulate the epa to tell them what they can and cannot regulate. we have to have a change in course. it is not enough to say you
12:51 am
agree with your opponent, you have to have a position on the issues and advocate for them. go to washington standing for something. if you do not stand for something, you will fall for anything that harry reid puts on your lap. that is what we have had lately in washington. a budget is not passed, both sides cannot work together. my history has been reaching across the aisle, fighting my own party when needed. making sure that we compromise when it is needed. barry goldwater once said politics is nothing more than public business. sometimes you make the best of a mixed bargain. we know that is needed. we have to have people with the temperament and ability to do so. i ask for your vote. i will value it, and i will never forget where i came from. >> that wraps up the rural issues debate from the campus here in yuma, arizona.
12:52 am
thank you for being so respectful. that wraps it up. have a good day. >> indiana has made incredible progress in the last eight years. have balanced budgets during all of the years appeared to have become the fiscal envy of the country. we have the largest budget surplus that we have ever had in our history. it will make it possible for us to strengthen our reserves, and i believe we can cut taxes for cuthoosier. -- cut taxes for every hoosier. indiana ran deficits. when mitch daniels came into power a couple of years later on but is that you helped write, indiana was $700 million of the internet and had a deficit of $820 million. facts are stubborn things. i would like to know from my colleagues on stage how we are going to make sure to preserve the fiscal integrity of the state of indiana.
12:53 am
>> if you has been the last years of indiana rather than congress, you know our balance has to be passed in indiana according to the constitution. i have passed bipartisan balanced budgets. they were supported by david longed in our lieutenant governor. i find it almost laughable that the united states congressman would lecture anybody about this responsibility. you voted not once, twice, but five times -- the results increased the deficit by $200 billion. >> find a key house, senate, and gov. races across the country on c-span, as his band radio, and c-span.org/campaign2012. >> debate coverage continues tomorrow night with rhode island oppose the first
12:54 am
district. -- rhode island's first district. it begins at 7:30 eastern on c- span. host: we are highlighting them all. today we put the spotlight on colorado. it looks like it is a close race for the presidential election. you can see the state of colorado there with its four corridors. the battleground 2012 state of colorado has nine electoral votes. the unemployment rate right now is 8%. president obama won the state in 2008 by a nine percentage advantage. joining us from denver is curtis hubbard. what is the top issue for colorado voters? guest: it would not surprise you
12:55 am
when i sit the top issue is the economy and jobs. energy is a big issue. education is another big issue. among the latino population and especially democrats, immigration reform is a big issue. host: what is the demographic of the voters in colorado? guest: 52% women, 48% men. over the years, we have increased the number of people voting by mail. already, 800,000 people have cast ballots in the state. the state is equally divided. one-third is republicans, one- third is democrats, and the other one-third are unaffiliated voters. everybody is playing for that group of unaffiliated voters. you try to figure out which way it will break. you will hear a lot of talk about appealing to women and latinos.
12:56 am
we have heard a lot about the bennett strategy, that refers to the strategy michael bennett used in running against the tide and enter 2010 where by appealing to women and latinos he was able to eke out a victory in a year that was not favorable to democrats. host: where are the traditionally democratic areas of the state versus the republican areas of the state? guest: denver is ground zero for democrats. boulder would be another one. they have large registration and arapahoe county. for a lot of people who follow politics, the fifth biggest county is el paso county, home to colorado springs. that is typically viewed as a republican stronghold. it is, but is also a big vote a bank for democrats. increasingly we have seen the ski areas that have started to
12:57 am
trended democrat. the southwest corner of the state are two other ski resort communities that tented a democrat. host: a lot of focus on early voting in this contest. does colorado have it? what is it looking like? guest: we do, we have mailed ballots and early voting. we have already had more people vote overseas this year than all of 2008. but as a, we had a hundred thousand ballots returned. the republicans had a 20,000 ballot advantage. nobody knows how the unaffiliated voters are breaking. about 2 million people voted early are absentee and enter the 2008 election. that is expected to grow to 2.5 million this election cycle. keep in mind colorado has 2.8 active voters, more when you look at inactive voters.
12:58 am
about three-quarters of the vote should be conducted in colorado, maybe a little more prior to november 6. host: on election day, what is the voting system like? guest: we have optical scanners. we have the digital machines that are just touch screen machines. there are also hand counted paper ballots. host: could there be post- election litigation in colorado? we are hearing about that in other states. guest: there could. the clubs and the secretary of state office is prepared for that possibility. in colorado, there is a mandatory recount of the challenger finishes within half of a percent of the top vote- getter. host: we are talking with curtis hubbard of "the denver post." he was the politics editor from
12:59 am
2007 until 2011. he has been covering many of the races in that state. part of our battleground series. if we could go to the denver post endorsement, who did you endorse and why? guest: we endorsed president obama. we felt romney looked at the tea that canada's side-by-side, -- we felt when we look at the tea that canada's side by side, the president was a little more realistic. we also like his more balanced approach to energy. we are in favor of obamacare. the editorial board was in favor of a public option. did not go far enough for us. on social issues from immigration reform to women pose a health rights to birth control issues, the editorial
TV News
Search inside
Search only quotes
Search only political ads
Date - Most Recent
Date - Oldest
Capitol Hill Hearings
CSPAN October 31, 2012 8:00pm-1:00am EDT
New Hampshire
United States
New York
Kathy Sullivan
Scanned in
San Francisco, CA, USA
Comcast Cable
Channel 91 (627 MHz)
Video Codec
Audio Cocec
Pixel width
Pixel height
Internet Archive
sound, color
Borrow a DVD of this show
Stream Only
In Collection
In Collection
Television Archive
In Collection
Television Archive News Search Service
Uploaded by
TV Archive
on 11/1/2012