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as a state issue. e maritalld th status be for those who married the two weeks before the policy was put in place? democrats can call at (202) 737-0001. it republicans at (202) 737-0002 . independents at (202) 628-0205. on can catch up with us twitter, facebook, or e-mail us. good tuesday morning to you. we want to start by showing you some headlines from utah papers this morning. "the spectrum." same-sex marriages put on hold. the headline from "the herald. i will read you a bit from the salt lake tribune this morning. that story by brooke adams. u.s. supreme court on monday put same-sex marriages in utah on hold. banning such marriages are unconstitutional. the state say application was mayor.with justice sota clerks in utah will no longer be able to issue marriage license to same-sex couples. it is not immediately clear what the order means for couples who have already been married. that is the story from "the salt lake tribune." today.alking with you comments are coming in on our facebook pages. april rights and that she does not care that the government should play no role in marriage. leave it up to the states. something thatis mportant. that in porto we will be checking back there and on twitter as well this morning. our phone lines are open. .emocrats (202) 737-0001 republicans (202) 737-0002. ts (202) 628-0205. some questions about what will happen. it is not clear what will happen to those couples if the case is overturned. another unanswered question, what happens to couples who received marriage licenses but have not yet married? those are some of the questions being posed by "usa today." the argument put forth by the state of utah, the articles from the washington times this morning talks about the arguments in that case. gary herbert thanked the supreme court for what he called "the correct decision." "i firmly believe this is a state rights issue, and i will work to defend the position of the people and our state constitution." that story also noted that about 1000 same-sex marriages were performed in utah since the december 20 ruling and it was not immediately clear what will happen to those couples. limbo.e now in a legal that is the lead story in several of the papers today. it is the subject that we will be talking about for the first 45 minutes or so here on "the washington journal." phone lines are open. alex is in minneapolis, minnesota. good morning to you. hi there. it is discrimination all the way. we all know it. gay people pay taxes like everyone else. this is just purely bigotry and prejudice. nothing more, nothing less. gay -- this is nothing more. this is pure hatred of gay and lesbians. this is about money. host: what do you think happens were marrieds who since december 20 in utah? legallythey are married and the states and the federation has an obligation to respect that marriage and make sure that they get all the benefits. this is going to be all over the country soon. there is no doubt about it. the supreme court is eventually going to have to weigh in. this is a yo-yo. it is going back and forth. it is ridiculous. , but itople got married is not valid? come on. it is really ridiculous. what has happened to us? look at this country. several comments already coming in on our twitter page. benefits butual leave the marriage title to a union between a man and a woman. sam writes in that they have the right to be as miserable as the rest of you. we're talking about gay marriage , specifically the supreme court's action yesterday. phone lines are open for viewers. james is waiting on our line for democrats. host: good morning. caller: good morning. because back this -- sooner orys, later, all hell is going to break loose because there is no such thing as where a man should marry a man or a woman should marry a woman. he made man and then created a woman from man for that purpose. you are calling in for our -- on our line for democrats. you obviously disagree with the majority of the democrats on this issue. absolutely disagree. it is an abomination. host: you are a democrat? caller: i am a democrat. host: who do you think is leading the fight on this issue? caller: hopefully it is not our president. i don't know. even if it is him, he is wrong and he should wait. --body should be able to the washington post today has a map of the united states with a chart of same-sex marriage status across the united states. there allowtates same-sex marriage. the lighter states limits marriage to couples. we're talking about utah and the decision yesterday by the stop same-sexto marriage in utah. we are getting your thoughts and comments this morning via twitter and facebook. gregg is waiting in chattanooga, tennessee. caller: first time caller. thatncern about it is marriage is considered some type and if a man and woman enter it knowing that the procreation and creating a child is the situation, it can't be considered the same as a gay marriage could be. that's greg from chattanooga, tennessee. --e background on wire these where these marriages came from. the washington post story on this. the rush for marriage license oner robert shelby ruled december 20 that utah's ban on same-sex unions violated constitutional legalities protecting due process. marriage saying that is between a man and a woman. that is in the washington post. the story also notes some background on judge shelby. he was appointed by president obama and endorsed by utah's to conservative republican senators. first federal judge to rule that the courts reasoning means that a case state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage cannot stand. to supreme court's decision strike down dom a was based on the liberty of individuals to form enter me -- intimate relationships without being demeaned. richard is waiting in massachusetts on our line for independents. i am totally against same-sex marriage. if these people have to be sick. it is not a constitutional right for a man to marry a man. that is garbage. it should be eliminated. it put these people out on an island and let them do what they want. sickness and these people should be taken out and put on an island and let them do what they want. thank you. colorado onl is in our line for independents. it is all getting on aed up in homophobia personal level. they wrap it into religion so they can have a legal challenge to it. i think it is basically homophobia and bigotry. they try to wrap their religion we have a separation of church and state. it should be more of a libertarian issue. you can sign a contract with anyone you want at any time. host: what do you think happens now to the 900 couples who are married since december 20 out in utah? caller: i think it will probably be like california where you have previous couples that were married before the injunction. i have no idea. thing legal up in the air . the new york times article on the story, precedents from california both ways on the question of what is to be done when later developments cast a shadow on same-sex marriages. in 2004, the california supreme court declared void thousands of licenses issued. it upheld proposition eight. we will read more from that. the debate that we are hearing this morning also playing out among members by congress -- of congress. here is jackie speer, a democrat out of california. utah law demeans the dignity of same-sex couples for no rational reason. er.t is jackie spei pageites in on his twitter that the supreme court halts "lawless" utah gay marriages. that thean alan writes lgbt community of utah deserves marriage equality now. virginia on our line for democrats. i am a democrat. i have been a democrat my entire life. it my little brother is gay. i believe this is a distraction from a lot of the other things that are going on in our country at the moment. we need to focus our energy on things that are going to make this country better instead of tearing people apart. this is one leading example of how people are opposed to each other instead of working together. host: do you think this is going to become a bigger issue heading into the 2014 congressional ?lections question caller: i hope not. there are bigger issues that we are facing, especially a lot of the ways that we are missing money right now. there is a true opportunity for us to change things. we need to focus on the things that are going to make a true impact and not worry about what other people are doing in their home lives. brian calling them from -- calling in from ashburn, virginia. heather from ohio. good morning. i wanted to just say that i believe this issue it is obviously a political issue -- i think it is more of a psychological situation. there are dynamics of the relationship where i don't see a man and woman who are even married mentally. marriage was not created by the state of ohio. it was not created by our government. it was created by this book called the bible. it is a religious situation. the stages recognizes it. for people to get involved in that and not even have that true bond that the bible talks about and still be married on top of that and get away with it, that is sad. whether it is a man and a man or woman and a man. -- felt like a man in a relationship and a woman. i am the woman. that is all i have to say. host: that is heather calling in from ohio this morning. our phone lines are open. we have about half an hour or so issue. about this it is playing out on our twitter page as well. http://twitter.com/cspanwj if you want to follow us on witter. againstrica have laws sinning? isn't sending a human right? right tryhe political to regulate our bedrooms and our families while claiming to be for personal liberty question mar? discrimination against sexual perverts is honorable. that is our subject for our first half hour. this news yesterday of the supreme court halting utah gay marriage. we will get to your phone calls on that subject in a second. we want to point out a little but of other news from around the country. voted to, the senate confirm janet yellen to be the first chairwoman of the federal reserve. here's the story from "the wall street journal." ms. yellen is currently the vice chairwoman of the board of governors. she will become the first woman to lead the central bank and its hundred year history. 11 republicans joined 45 democrats to support janet yellen. she's expected to assume office on february 1. one other story that is leading several of the papers around the country is the ongoing violence in iraq and al qaeda's efforts in iraq. it is a subject that we will be in our lastt segment. we will spend 45 minutes on that subject as an expert on foreign-policy issues from the corporation. here are some headlines from papers around the country. "u.s. walks tightrope by handing arms to iraq." we will talk more about that. here's the story from reuters. about thes iraq insurgent attacks. joe spoke with iraq he prime iraqier -- spoke with the prime minister. it a message he repeated in wither call on monday speaker of the iraqi council of representatives. veterans feel the staying -- the sting. it for david, seeing the images qaeda flags flying over buildings in recent days has been devastating. a silver star for heroism on his 29th birthday fighting as an army staff 2000ant on november 10, four. the article goes on to interview other u.s. service members who fox in that area -- who fought in that area. we are talking about the supreme court halting gay marriage in utah. phone lines are open. the conversation is also going on on twitter and facebook. anna is in maryland. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you. my question is, i do not understand it. i am not against lesbian or gay marriage, but what i'm looking at, if they things asve the same a man and a woman, which one of them can carry a baby for nine months and have the same benefits? that is my question. can't they carry a woman for nine months like a woman carries her child for nine months instead of going to the opposite sex? that's why i think they should stop it. you think of straight families who can't have a child? caller: they go through a process and adopt them because they are man and woman. something is wrong there. host: do you think gay and lesbian couples should be able to adopt? caller: yes. but go through the same process. not just go and have a baby with it,pposite sex -- you adopte but you don't want a man or woman in your life. with couples, they have to go through the process that they cannot have a baby. host: the washington times story on this issue talks about what could happen next at the supreme court after this move yesterday. the court's order makes it almost certain that the question of state power barring same-sex marriages will not be before the justices in the current term. a case issue would have to be granted this month to be reviewed before the court is expected to finish its term in late june. that timeline probably won't be met. so, some issues on the timing, whether or when the supreme court would take up this issue further. pennsylvania. in morning. -- good morning. think the ignorance and intolerance in this country needs to be liberated. people are just angry. these people deserve rights and they have rights like everybody else. it is just a diversion from the facts of what goes on in washington. that is my opinion. we cover nonfiction. we might as well over and on santa claus and the easter bunny. on our line for independents. good morning. caller: i have a couple comments. -- if you fact that are a polygamist in utah, what if a guy says, i have to have more than one wife? i work for company right now where if you are gay and you have a gay lover and they live with you, our insurance company will cover that gay person. but if you are living with your government, you're not. i have a problem with that. when you are gay, you made a choice to be gay. they will say that they did not, but i think they did. whether you are white or hispanic or handicap, you had no choice at all. god made you that way. but we are going to have to address some other issues before we address the gay marriage thing. host: what do you think should utahn to those folks in who actually got married in utah since december 20 before the supreme court's move yesterday? because of point of law, they should be married. i don't know if i'm for gay marriage or not, but by the law, upholding it is the way it works. we will have to live with it. the supreme court makes the rules and they ruled that it was should bey grandfathered in. that is the way to go. after the supreme court ruling, the rest of the people that are not married will have to see where it goes. will probably rule in utah that it is unconstitutional to do that. writes, "last year, the supreme court issued two landmark rulings in favor of same-sex marriage, but sidestepped a larger question about whether bans on marriage equality were inherently unconstitutional. if lower courts offer conflicting or murky opinions on the matter, the supreme court will have an impetus to step in and clear things up a bit. on twitter, or read tweets in, "i think there is too much focus on marriage. it distracts from the poor economy." surely is in louisiana on our line for democrats. caller: good morning. i'm a first-time caller. i am totally disgusted with the subject. we have gone too far into peoples'personal lives. i'm not for or against gay marriage, but i totally feel that our government can't sin.ate you have all kinds of sin. so why do they pick just one particular so-called "sin" that they need t want to regulate questio? it is just a subject to keep us apart and separated. the supreme court -- god almighty runs the supreme court. nine people regulating sin is just not right. we're putting too much focus on this. there's too much going on in this country to be focusing on the bedroom and gay people. god created everything, so why can't gay people be born? role ofu talk about the the supreme court and what you think it should be. what about the argument from the governor that this is a states rights issue and that individual states should be allowed to decide the definition of marriage? caller: the definition of marriage -- if people look up the history of marriage, it is a piece of paper. it was not started by the government. so why is it regulated by the government and the state? started before the state. .t is a total distraction too farrnment is going into the privacy of our homes and our lives. if you're going to call this then, let's make a ban on every sin. shirley is in louisiana. a few other stories we want to point out to you this morning. said onte republican monday that he will not be running for a second term in congress. that opens up a possible democratic pickup opportunity in southeast pennsylvania. that announcement coming yesterday. ron johnson is suing to take away subsidies from lawmakers. exceed turks should not those of citizens regarding health care contributions. ron johnson suit monday to take away his fellow lawmakers' subsidies saying that staff must enter the obamacare marketplace and should not get financial perks that regular americans cannot obtain. 's notes that senator johnson lawsuit drew fire from both parties. he called it an unfortunate political stunt. committed tos repealing obamacare, but the employer contribution is nothing more than a standard benefit that most private and all federal employees receive, including the president. he added that the proposal would encourage good congressional staffers to quit their jobs. that is the story in the washington times. we want to note that the national journal released it's a race rankings. at the house seats most likely to flip in 2014. -- toy setting the field analysis by scott bland is in the national journal. the top five congressional districts most likely to flip 4 where jim matheson is retiring. 31, florida 13, iowa 3 and new jersey 3. mostis the top five seats likely to flip according to the national journal. you can see their full rankings tionaljournal.com. your reaction to the supreme court halting utah gay marriage. good morning. i have a comment. marriage,t is, gay the issue, everybody saying that it is something that is being set up to disguise the real issue, but the gays are the ones pushing the issue. that is the problem there. the second problem is, gay is just a nice term for what used to be called queer. queer is something that is different or abnormal. is an acty or queer against nature. it has nothing to do with religion or ethics or morals. is act against nature. -- it is an act against nature. host: what you think should happen to those 900 couples that were married in utah in december before the supreme court stepped in here? hostcaller: i think those marris should be abolished. mark is in ashburn, virginia on our line for independents. i would say that polygamy and homosexuals have been around for all time. if you allow polygamy, and lesbian marriages to take place, then you need to allow polygamy. the government stepping into your bedroom, as soon as you allow all these marriages to take place, then the government has to treat them. homosexual, polygamy, gay marriage -- i consider myself a bisexual polygamist. those 900 marriages should be annulled. it should be like they did not even take place. scott wrightson on twitter that people who think gay people are broken believe they can make a choice to be gay. when did they decide to be heterosexual? ,nother tweet this morning "this whole issue is all about republicans getting elected. nothing more, nothing less. ." things for calling. is thatmy opinion marriages should be upheld -- the marriages should be upheld. i'm a 52-year-old black male married to a white woman. before i married my wife in 1967, it would've been against the law in virginia for us to be married. we have come a long way. we need to let people live their own lives and stop trying to be .n everybody's bedrooms let these people enjoy their lives while they are here. host: donald in michigan this morning. here's the front page of the chicago tribune. talking about the bone chilling cold around the country. workers managed to keep warm and carry on. here's the front page of the boston globe this morning. walsh at of martin boston college 's for him. .arked by tradition "i will listen. i will learn. i will lead." a story we've been following is the sales of recreational marijuana in colorado. demand for colorado cannabis outstrips supply. people looking to buy marijuana in colorado are facing steep price rises and long queues as demand for recreational sales outstrips the supply. estimates are that recreational cannabis is selling for an average of $400 an ounce in colorado. twice the $200 charge on average for an ounce of medical marijuana. in the financial times. we have a few minutes left in this segment of the washington journal. you're taking your calls on the news yesterday of the supreme court stepping in to halt gay marriage in utah. mike is in virginia beach. good morning. caller: good morning. part of the first show, so i hope i'm not repeating something that anybody else said. from the colors that you had previously come it sounds like somebody is missing the point that the original case that the supreme court heard, that new york case, was against the dissent of marriage act. it was a federal law and they found that the federal government could not tell new york how to regulate marriage. they found that it was legal for homosexual marriage in the state of new york and it was not allowed to tell the states how to regulate that. the state had not delegated authority over marriage regulation. in the utah case, what we would see is, again, it is up to the state to regulate how they see fit. some sort ofind interpretation in the house --tion regulating marriage the constitution regulating marriage, i don't see any place where the federal government regulates marriage. they would have to leave it up to the state. they did in the new york case. host: we are talking about legal issues here. what do you think legally should happen to those couples who were married at over the past couple caller?estio caller: it would be up to the states. if the state upholds them, they are upheld. at the state the size they are not legitimate, just like any other legal contract, they would not be held legitimate. that would be a state issue. host: at the state supreme court? caller: the state has the ultimate authority there. kyle, thanks for calling in. your thoughts on these actions yesterday. are doingsuppose they what they think they have to do. isy will probably say it legal. i hope that is what they do. as far as polygamy in utah, a week before this happened, they pretty much legalized cohabitation between people in utah. this is a different thing and gay marriage because you have children involved here. 's maidentheir mother names. as far as the people who are calling and talking about god and religion, that has nothing to do with marriage. this is a contract between two people. i've been married to my wife for 30 years and it has nothing to do with religion. that is what people have to get off of this. everybody should have the chance to either have a marriage or get divorced or do what they're going to do. about theseupset bigots that are calling in -- i don't understand, i have lived in utah my whole life and been an outsider. i have a lot of gay friends here. they were shunned from their family. you know anybody who is married in the last couple weeks questio? caller: i don't know. we are held up here. this is really exciting for us. if they do make illegal, there'll be a lot of people in the streets here. make it legal, there'll be a lot of people in the streets here. host: one other opinion on this from the election blog by rick. he writes that recognizing a constitutional right for same-sex marriage is a big deal which requires thought, consideration, and preparation in the public if this is going to happen through the courts. in utah, one of the most conservative states in the union, we would all of a sudden -- night leonard is up next and savannah, georgia. good morning. caller: i am a democrat. i'm a democrat that feels that marriage is a religious right, not a civil right. of moral decay that is doing things like -- that is just the beginning of the moral decay of the nation. i don't think that the government should establish a religious right on the constitution. i believe that civil rights and civil unions would be appropriate in this matter. in order for them to rule and ,ay that gays can get married it is the establishment of religion. host: last on the subject, we go ert in pennsylvania. good morning. caller: i was just going to speak about -- a lot of people iteht hate rhetoric -- wr hate rhetoric. they say it is a sin to be gay. is, whether or not you are gay or heterosexual or anything of that nature, the big was withonsistency this issue, they claim that it is to keep out of the bedroom, yet they keep it in the bedroom. that is their right. but they also have a big situation where they talk about if you are a polygamist and you can be a polygamist, they don't believe that people should be a polygamist, yet they are gay. yet, they oppose other people's viewpoints. separation of church and state. was decided by god. it was not the state. issue --is dividing allow everyone to have a civil union. drop marriage off the table. make that a religious ceremony. make everybody happy civil union, whether you are married eterosexual.l or homosexu let you decide where you're going to give your rights to. when you die, who gets what you own and health care through your health insurance. let you make the decisions, not the states or anybody else. that is basically my viewpoint. caller: that is robert in pennsylvania this morning. that is going to do it for the first segment today. up next, we'll talk about the state of social conservatism with the american principles project. he joins us to talk about federal funding to bring technologies and climate change issues. we will be right back. ♪ >> c-span, we bring public affairs of bands from washington directly to you, putting you in the room at congressional hearings, white house events, briefings and conferences, and offering complete gavel-to-gavel coverage of the u.s. house. all as a public service of private industry. tv cabley the peopl industry -- created by the tv cable industry. identify theto singular most important challenge to overcome, it would be that. -- the reason we are here today is because of the which i read somewhere is not only a historical but anti-historical. hundreds of years of diversity subscribe to the idea that we have to follow its edicts. . very limited sh of time. those who speak for us is a seventh century reality. we are americans. >> being muslim in america. part of book tv this weekend on c-span 2. and join the conversation. go to book tv.org. >> "washington journal" continues. having aare conversation about the social conservative agenda and 2014. a political article yesterday referred to your group as the advanced guard of big money by the religious right to push back on the establishment efforts to minimize divisive issues like abortion rights and gay marriage. is that how you would define your group? caller: that would not be my self definition -- would not be my self definition. we handle economic issues. if we try to push economics that are more centered on working people, rather than just on the business class and large corporations. host: where does your group fit in to the republican party? an article noted that social conservatives have been relegated to the sidelines. it wages a bitter and expensive struggle against the tea party soul of the republican party. the tea party is not distinct from social conservatives. are what you would call economic conservatives. that social issues can be pushed aside in the republican party is suicidal workers withine the party are in the social conservative wing of the party. it represents a large portion of the coalition that has been the conservative governing coalition. host: what are the key issues that you're going to be talking about going into the 2014 election? what do social conservatives run on this year? on the abortion issue, there are a lot of ways in which the democratic party has said it and it has become very extreme on the issue. there are common ground provisions like the bill that was passed by the house of representatives and introduced by senator graham. americans are saying that a baby at six months of when a child can feel that theyt something can support. abortions funding of -- there are arguments in which the great majority of the american people believe that the conservative position is the right position. host: you concerned about republicans who say that these issues are too divisive to run on? stickepublicans should more to fiscal issues rather than some of these social conservative issues question . guest: the idea that the republicans went on the economic issues is something that is based on the data coming out of the elections. republicans are losing on the economic issues. they are losing the very groups that they feel the need to reach out to. hispanics --ith the probably have is with the that republicans are out of step with the concerns of working people. their greatest problem is in the economic area, not in the social issue area. the groups that they want to reach out to tend to be more conservative on social issues than the american public as a whole. host: we are talking to frank cannon. he is the president of the american principles project. socialtalking about conservatives and their agenda and the 2014 election. our phone lines are open. democrats can call at (202) 737-0001. republicans at (202) 737-0002. at (202) 628-0205. if you're outside of the u.s., you are calling at (202) 628-0184. we want to get your reaction to the supreme court stepping in yesterday and blocking gay marriages in utah. guest: i think that it is important that the issue be decided democrat lee. that is, in the places where gay marriage is legal in the very states, it is in the courts that by and large the determination that the state constitution requires gay marriage. you talk about this level of social change, it is very important to allow the electorate to be able to voice its opinion, rather than have it opposed -- imposed by the court. that never work in other areas of social change. host: a map of same-sex marriage status in the u.s.. darker states where same-sex marriage is allowed and the lighter states where same-sex marriage is banned. how is this issue going to play into the 2014 midterm elections? guest: i don't think of the issue is one that republicans want to take on. to engage in a discussion about gay marriage. of republican supports traditional marriage by overwhelming numbers. the country is divided 50/50 on the issue. there are states in which it is going to play out in republican primaries. for example, as it did in .yoming the conservative base of the party wants to see this upheld. you essentially have a truce which is in fact a surrender on the issue of marriage. host: is this what a group like the american principles roger is project -- guest: we got involved in the locating was cheney on the issue of gay marriage. cheney on the issue of gay marriage. they did not want to send a republican senator to washington who was out of step with their views on marriage. how many states this plays out in depends on who the candidates are and what their positions are. involvednly would be in places in which there is a clear-cut separation between the candidates. host: you said you were involved in that adding wyoming -- ad in wyoming. how much money? an exact don't have number. they say that we are a startup out there. say that you are the group to watch in these races. have somebody to to put into the races. host: millions of dollars. he is the president of the american principles project, here to answer your questions. kevin is up first from bloomington, indiana. good morning. caller: good morning to you. i was surprised with mr. cannon's views in the opening statement. it reminded me of franklin roosevelt, being against corporatism and fascism that seems to be a rampant. i will keep an open mind on his group and be interested in what they have to say. areink that the republicans making a real good move and not being as mean and against so many things and for and inclusive to as many people as possible. i think it is a tragedy that we lost a great senator like dick luger. et these teab guest: i think one of the points making is that there is a frustration in the with the idea the be blicans don't seem to alking -- or conservatives -- don't seem to be talking to working americans. the you have a campaign and erm job creator comes up more often in your commercials than working american, you know you a slight problem in who you are speaking to. sight ofhat we've lost the fact that when we talk about notbuilt the country, it is only the industrial class, it is the working class that helped america the great country that it is and helped build the institutions, economic and jamaicit unique.ake it burrito rought up dig luger. support him? guest: i certainly like the so i don't know if there would be a set of it on with uld jump senator luger but i certainly coats from enator ndiana is a great senator and commenting on the democratic senator. host: rodney is next from los on the line of republicans. caller: thank you for having topic. i'm an african-american, gay male conservative. to say to the american hidden hat it is a agenda in the gay community and issue is not the gay rights. you notice how they will say my bedroom yet they are knocking on the door asking in your permission to essence grant something they know is religious in nature. bulk of my friends want to institutions because hey want to attack the religious institution. , the rightse rights they acquire can be obtained through sufficiently unions and phfrmethods without attacking the institution of marriage. lastly want to say when i iscuss this issue with my heterosexual family members they to feel they are discriminating against me and my religiously ugh they don't agree with it. o in the rush to progressivism they are trampling over the radition that the church has held. guest: i think there is a very point there, which is he balance point between espoused inights as the gay community and impact on religious liberty. original k at the federal court decisions from prop 8 case, the if you read the decision there's an amazeing animus by the judge religious belief. at the beliefs of various religions and they are he out in the decision and is in essence discriminatory so people braving off those beliefs and with animus people in a discriminatory fashion. so it becomes really difficult is that somebody espouse a religious in an is able to do that environment in which even as a it is looked at beyond what that is can be reasonably considered. of guaranty issue guaran gay marriage the "washin post" gave tell their worst week talking gton award about what happened in utah but also some of the other actions the country that the decision in utah came on the ruldday the federal uphill in ohio same-sex marriage state would be recognized shortly after the new legalized eme court and that is three states with huge legal rulings in favor of marriage if a few days not o mention hawaii and illinois legalized them last month. how do you respond to that worst award? washington guest: i think it is deserved. as i believe it was said in his a dissent based on the supreme in the prop 8 case and doma case that it was likely that state courts would not be uphold marriage because the same arguments that there rational basis for discriminating in the court's meant that each of the would have e courts in little room to maneuver finding a just basis for what in the federal ecision looked at as being certainly a project disagainst gay marriage. so, the rash of decisions and movement in the states has been been imposed as from without and i do think that when you are changing something unanimity is not a of opinion having it imposed by is a wrong headed course. host: do you think social issues on the local ded level or are you in favor of a central government rule top down control? guest: it depends on what you mean by social issue. if you are talking about the to life, i think that is a federal issue. the re talking about be put of a person to into the community, the most rights.f civil nd the 14th amendment makes it incumbent on congress to pass civil defend basic rights. i would think it would be a issue. is marriage issue traditionally a state issue. ut the problem is that because it is a contract that goes -- lines it anes is difficult to have a decision quarantined be there. protecting of rights who have independent views of marriage is was the intention of doma. to be a federal more a -- or is defining it toward as a basic civil right rather of ans a state regulation institute or contract. ben's take on it via e-mail. host: the next call is danville, west virginia, on the line for democrats. good morning. on with frank cannon. caller: good morning. very interesting conversation. 40-year career insurance owner and i'm in very varietiesact with all of folks and ideas. he previous caller was spot on as far as the subject and there misunderstanding that eparates believers and nonbelievers and that caller, i believe, has it right. and so is the constitution about this. -- i realize we have a cross section of states where performance actually move. i'm a firm believer that we constitution where the states do not surrender power to i will l government and wait for the comments. host: mr. cannon. guest: i believe in states the s in the sense of issues egulating all that haven't been delegated specifically to the federal government. again, i would say that abortion one t an issue in which state can allow it and another not. basic civil a rig right. the federal overnment has a role in protecting civil rights under the 14th amendment. host: back to the politics of plays out in t 2014, what is the american s take on theoject' done and oehner has republican leadership since they have taken the house? uest: it is a divided government so it is difficult an agenda enact separately. i think they have done basically very good job in bringing out the excesses of obama care and the way in ghlight powers are being by the federal government. my one recommendation it across the board when they make a case against government intrusion and growth they really need of onnect it to the lives working americans. that is, they often talk in the burden we are passing along to our children. the reality is americans are uffering stagnant wages and increasing prices. and increasing prices come printingrom government of money in order to feed an role for central government. what that means is that working are losing ground, facing because of dollar the appetite of government. t would serve them all to connect all of the arguments sequester and raising the death limit to the actual plight eople are feeling in cities around the country. host: who are the republicans targeted inng to be the primary season? is there anybody in leadership a primary upport candidate against? guest: we have not made ecisions in what races to get into. we are looking at what in idates are lining up which states. and a lot of what we are going is for candidates that are illing to fight on a unified emergency beat democratic and liberal opponents who are without somebody their defense on issues outside of economic issues. for example, there were $7 into the virginia gubernatorial race on ads that the women thing. there were 5,600 commercials talked in un that aborti abortion. the single biggest opportunity was missed was for some of hese outside groups to get attack the one for extreme issues. so the thing is not just to bad candidates within the republican party but to show winning e issues are issues in a general election and the issue of -- the social engaged rather han republicans engaging in a truce strategy. ost: we go to jim in binghamton, new york on the independent line. stpwhr i'm here. host: you are on the air. i would irst of all, like to say that i'm a very pro-life person. 56-year-old and i was by very christian, conservative parent and i would like to say that it was just a few months back that the a report that there re 18,000 children that die of starvation around the world every day and we see every day food that is thrown away here in this country. not because ously there isn't food for these children to eat. is because these children or any parents don't have currency. o what we are using is called he capitalistic free market monetary system that is used to kill these children every day. because they don't have food, it is because they don't have currency. particular outwe way to kiquit killing those children because they don't have start y, then we should discussing something like abortion. in batavia, waiting ohio, on the independent line to cannonment good morning, tom. you?er: hi, how are i want to ask a question and issue an overall especially with the republican based party. i'm not necessarily democrat but don't think republicans have actually supported any real views.ative their views are so antiquated it has put off many -- and in my 40's so i'm not a young guy. put off many members of my generation and younger they hold that such as ive values abortion. when you have -- when the formulated by mostly priests and men and not women women, this is an issue that i'm tly affects them, hard-pressed to see why the epublicans can't say how puttoffish that is. an gay marriage that is issue where it is a religious and legal issue and we have to separate the two. the legal basis, won't remember we are not asking -- the gay community is not church octor catholic per se to do marriages, to be orced to do marriages to go against religious value. but they are saying for the taxation orples for death benefits or deployment benefits that we recognize that is the same and that is how we have to separate the issues is the legal issue is infringing on the constitutional rights of another by giving them the right to marry. let frank jump in. when people say implicated or religious institutions are not marriage, the gay question becomes, if gay arriage becomes a legal standard and tax exempt rganization decides that it cannot for religious reasons will m that marriage, be infringed and there is much debate on where the line is drawn. and we are seeing where conscience rights of individuals in civil care and photographers who do not for religious reasons ant to do, for example, wedding, these y people are coming under civil are being sued. not here that line is, is completely clear and i don't buy that the catholic church or any other religious won't come under espousing a view that if it were -- well, espousing a that is antigay or seen as antigay by that community. host: one of tom's earlier who can be turned off by social conservative to s, i want your response this headline. his is from charlie cook, well respect respected congressional race analyst and nonpartisan. column was this. to nt to get your response that. this isell, number one, the most pro life generation had. we have we've really seen an uptick in sentiment among young people. social issues he re the sole problem of the republican party is not facts.ed by the people have a view when they are 18, 19 and 20 and change that view as they -- is also and something that has been belied experience of abortion. if you followed the trend became when abortion legal the prediction was that abortion couldn't be defended -- pro-life could not be defend becausee outgoing years a whole generation had rejected the idea that abortion was a woman's life. yet here we are 40 years later in that eginninged fight because the same people changed their view as they went in life. so, with all due respect to cook, i also think that thehave to look at who else issues bring in. the fact that hispanics are much be social kevin ctivist than economic conservatives as a target group. of this you lance have to look at who you might be who you might be gaining. host: the idea of picking social conservative issues to run on an of the the report republican national committee after the 2012 election they -- looked back in this growth and opportunity report they said when it comes issues the party must be inclusive and welcoming if we limit or ability to attract young people and thers including many women who agree with us but not on all issues. report.sponse to that guest: well, if they raceway mi -- replace social issues with economic issues they would be loser to hitting the prime problem. they last women and young people on hispanics primarily economic issues. and to single out the social in fact a large part of what is the base is to of blind yourself to the overall problem. has to believe in 100% of the issues to be a party.of the nobody is suggesting that they do. but the republican party has pro-life party since the reagan.ronald it has been a winning issue. it lose ore votes than s in elections. for somebody to say that, republicans have followed a strategy. the issuesttacked on and they go silent. what happens is they lose their base, they lose the people who are on the other side of the issue and people in the middle see them as saying yes, i'm because i'm not answering that attack. evidence in the report that is given that if social s that issues were tan out completely have he republicans would won the 2012 election. do that ossible to given where there were on economic issues. host: we are talking with the american of the principles project. he spent 3 years in the public arena for several organizations including the national organization for anthony amongn b. others. s here to take your questions an comments. tom is waiting in ridgeway, ennsylvania, on the line for democrats. you are on the "washington journal". caller: this debate about the care act by our president barack obama, that was a big thing in the last election and they lost. after.ot about who to go the majority of people don't like a lot of these ideas the putting n party is forward. i'm a 67-year-old marine veteran and i was a republican. i'm not any more because it talkingke all they keep about the economy and all they want to put forward is this gay rights and i'm happily married. what somebody else does in their bedroom. i don't think the federal business has any there at all. as far as that there was a big few nuns who want o sign a paper, don't take the money from us taxpayers. nobody is forced to do any contraceptives. me what to use or not. it is a nonstarter. concentrate on -- how about let's concentrate on the change? for a guest: number one, it isn't asically the republican party that is pushing these issues. of rights was not an idea the republican party and it was not an issue the republican arty pushed into the court system and had imposed on states. issues tus on social comes from the left primarily, number one. two, i think he has a good point about, again, issues.c i think that the problem is that for a 67-year-old veteran it is him what the republican party offers to him area. economic these are the social arguments but he doesn't have a clear idea republican party offers to him as an economic solution problems he has. i think that is an area that the needs to move y in. crockett,o to dave in texas, on the line for independents. organ good morning, dave. find it pretty nteresting about how the democratic party and republican party seem to be on opposite when they are both actually it seems like working corporations, and it is this gay issue thing is years ago you never heard anything about, you know. mora more or less kept in the like and it now seems they are trying to force it down the american public's throat to accept it. me, i'm not a religious person, i don't to church but i beliefs like the 10 commandments and things like just unbelievable that this is just such a big when it should be omething that shouldn't be accept accepted. people do have rights to do whatever they want but they it't have the right to force on other people. i have been a democrat in the republican, d to and now independent. and i really had no faith whatsoever in the american i believe because they go up there to serve themselves and not their people there.ut them in conservatives to me is, as far as the republican party, is the corporations richer poorer.poor the last hink that in aller you had somebody who has instinctive social conservative views. his real problem with the epublican party is he feels like it represents corporations and not people like him. a wide that there is swath of people in america who republican party doesn't represent people like them. hey believe it represents business interests and corporations. i think the republican party is speaks to the it current economic needs of people those who includes have traditional moral beliefs social issues have always been a winning issue for the party and will continue as long republican party is willing it take them on. presidentk cannon the of the american principles project. the ciate you coming on "washington journal." up next we will talk about green support for technology and the obama dministration's client change efforts with dan wise and later jones will talk about al qaeda's recent gains in iraq and response. first a news update. >> it is 8:31 eastern. the senate holds a test vote on renewing unemployment benefits month.nded last this is for the long-term jobless. democrats support the white backed measure but with offensive votes needed to advance the legislation five votes will be required. bad weather kept more than a from reaching washington yesterday this led to of the vote.ment one that was delayed was south arolina republican senator lindsey graham. the plane he was on had to make an emergency landing it south unidentified wing mechanical problems. he plane took off from the greenville spartanburg airport minutes afternded passengers reported hearing strange sounds. pilots soon the declared an emergency and it returned to the airport where it as met with first responders and fire trucks. he later sent a thank you to the irst responders and flight crew. the senate condition convenience at 10:00 a.m. eastern. c-span 2. coverage on an update on the retirement of jim gerlack. ew democratic coalition director is considering a run for the seat. in the same up congressional district tells the hill exclusively that his first he heard about the retirement announcement was that he should throw his hat in the ring. west goshen native said he as planning to talk to the new democrat fund-raising head last night to machine a run and wants and build a ground swell of support. meets this morning -- actually it afternoon at 2:00 in a pro forma session. at 6:30 the house will begin the 113th session of the congress. watch live house coverage on c-span. the latest me of headlines on c-span radio. any woman be adequately prepared for the duties of first lady? >> yes. governor orife of a if you are wife of the vice president. mother-in-law is first lady and you watched her you can.years, i think i think it is a golden .pportunity to do something i think lady bird is the one who to dot is the opportunity something good. husband alllps your the better. >> the world health organization more than 1.6 million people worldwide are with breast cancer each year. many live in countries where the disease carries stigma and shame. we haring the lessons that have learned americans can mpower more women to detect breast cancer early which today is the closest thing we've to a cure. >> as you all know chicago is truly a city of neighborhoods parks and pwfrpldz fewulevards where walking a blocks can put you into an entirely different world of experiences. you go ugh a park and from english to spanish, black to hite, puerto rican polish. cross a few streets and you go and man any homes carred lawns to abandoned buildings and dark street corners. so, the opportunities available -- growing eg pickup one neighborhood might be vastly different than one up five blocks away. nd that difference can shape their lives and their life prospects from the moment they are born. our original series first ladies influence and image returns with the five most recent first ladies. hat is monday night 9:00 eastern live on c-span and -span 3 and c-span radio and c-span.org. >> "washington journal" continues. host: we are joined by dan wise as director of climate strategy at the center for american progress. hot topic of conversation in environmental circles yesterday as a cbs "60 minutes" report from sunday that seemed to chewed the federal government had little to show for the heavy investment in green technology projects in recent years. from this story? guest: it is not outrage so much great disappointment. "60 minutes" was famed for its reportingnvestigative but they did a very shoddy job. lesley stahl the correspondent said nothing she's that many dicated jobs have been created. in fact all "60 minutes" had to department of energy website to see that the program alone has created 55,000 jobs. escaped her attention. guaranteen, the honor program that she was criticizing rate.97% success only 3% of investments wented about. blossoming. that is a far better rate than venture capital. show several people said when venture capital terms a est in companies they have nine out of 10 failure rate. we have a 97% success rate. never mentioned on the show. host: for issuers who have not we will show nt you now the opening from that and come 60 minutes" back and talk with dan wise about it. [video clip] decade ago the smart people who funded the internet turned their attention to the sector rallying tech engineers to invent ways to get fossil fuels and devise powerful solar panels, clean batteries.uture the idea got a dacatchy name, tech. silicon valley got washington excited. president bush was an early supporter. but the federal purse strings obama.ed under president hoping to create innovation and jobs, he committed north of $100 in loans, grants and tax breaks it clean tech. instead of breakthroughs it suffered a string of expensive flops.nded suddenly clean tech was a dirty word. host: dan wise is with the center for american progress. report you talk about the success rate of government investments. wrong to point out some of the high profile green s in investing in technology? there was $500 million for the panel company, center $500 fisker automotive, beacon tower, a-123, some of that have been making headlines? becauseit was not wrong in sense they have failed even though they received federal loan questions. but it was out of context to not rate.the 97% success those companies represent the 3% failure rate. the solar entry the first solar plants cale were built with the help of loan questi guarantees feel the next 10 were uilt by the private sector on their own. it is that continued of investment that fostered growth and innovation. missed that. another thing they missed, in new electricity generation came on line nearly half of it was generated by wind electricity. we brought down the cost of batteries for cars. the cost has been cut in half and it t investments will be cut by two-thirds by the end of next year. a lot of progress that was never mentioned in the story. are stubborn ts things. you can pull out a couple and an elephant seem smaller than a mouse. republican vase cha-- vase out amarcia blackburn put statement saying this report underscores the massive failure administration's green thrg programs. the obama administration spent money s of taxpayer propping up green energy agenda guise of job creation failed companies and the loan question program -- proven to be a massive has proven to be a more for chinese imulus investors. a blackburn.h guest: there is very little between her statement and facts. tennessee are her home state he nissan factory got a loan guarantee that helped them build advanced batteries that will be all electric vehicles. $6 ford motor company got billion to help retool factories efficient carsel and that created 33,000 jobs. ou just need to go to the d.o.e. website to see there's been a 97% success arithmetic len guarantee -- rate rom the len -- loan guarantees. so while the rhetoric reflects oil and coalof big companies it doesn't reflect the facts. ost: we are talking to dan white from the center of american progress to talk about the energy investments by federal government and other climate issues in his work as director of climate strategy. phone lines are open. if you are outside the u.s. 202-585-3883. report fromave this sunday on "60 minutes" they noted in the report the energy nt of insurance didn't respond to request for comment. think the obama administration is doing enough to talk about some of the this ses you pointed out morning? guest: you can always talk more bout success but what is news is scandal and failure, not success. media particularly "60 minutes" has focused on what failure eived to be when they ignore the evidence of success. department of e energy did issue a statement yesterday that included many of talking we have been about today. i can't tell you why they didn't advance. do that in host: do you think this is something the president will alk about in his state of the union address and if in the this particular report what do you green e needs to say on energy and climate change issues? guest: the president has talked investments in clean energy being critical to pollution e carbon responsible for climate change nd helping us with economic competitiveness against china, germany and other countries. one quarter about of its electricity from wind and solar power. reason we can't be doing more. the president, i believe, will about this.k he hasn't called me to ask me what should be in the state of urge him but i would to talk about some of these successes. he amount of clean electricity generated under his watch has doubled in the first four years of his administration. 55,000 jobs under the program oan guarantee and it is powering electricity for 15 million homes. of the new ost half electricity in the u.s. in 2012. there is a great story about how smart investments are paying off and creating new ndustries and jobs in this country. host: several folks waiting to the director of climate strategy. anthony is waiting on the line democrats. good morning. caller: good morning. how are you? host: organgood morning. caller: i'm call interesting las vegas, nevada. i'm an look transmission that these clean of energy projects. had been unemployed for about a year and a half when it job came up. electriciansof the union. this job was a god send it me ecause i was going to run out of unemployment. thank god that this job came up california.e of i was able to work on this job. a good n technology is thing. me and about 150 of my union been out of work for a very long time. we were know what going to do. we worked on the job and it basically saved our lives. green technology is a good thing. i think that our country needs investment in green technology. california has a surplus right now. lot of it is due to the green technology because when you off fossil fuels and relying on green technology, a lot for your economy. plant nthony, feels that over the california-nevada bord border? is a giant utility scale solar project that is just line.ready to come on it is right on the california ide of the california-nevada border which is what i'm guessing he is working at. a lot of jobs and will produce clean electricity of, did thousands and mes in california nevada. that is happening all over the country. palm we go to keith in bay, florida, republican lane. morning.good i appreciate all the work you do. i don't agree with a lot of what i still appreciate the work that you put in. i have two questions. wind.n the you said 90% of the new electric generation coming in was from wind. guest: no, i said 43% in 2012 of from wind.ion was caller: oh, 43%. how much from solar was brought in. is, is $100 uestion billion, which you said 97% were that is $97 billi billion. there was only 55,000 jobs made from this that on the internet where you said you could read it. ou also said ford got $6 billion for new batteries and created 33,000 jobs. guest: we're spewing out a lot of statistics. is the loan guarantee program which was $20 billion to $30 billion, that had a 97% success rate. that was in the the only program. there were other investments making federal buildings more energy efficient that way taxpayers went have to waste on energy. that is part of the $100 billion, not part of the $30 of the loan question program. $6 billion in lens to ford was a different program. hat was called the advanced technological vehicle manufacturing program that was created under president bush. ed $6 billion to ford otor company where they were retooling factories to make more fuel efficient cars. 33,000 jobs. host: is your question whether were worth it for the jobs created? caller: exactly. under president obama's program said they spent $100 billion nd you quieted that she didn't say they got any jobs for it but it was on the internet that you could read 55,000. you saying $100 billion only turned out 55,000 jobs? . to listen e carefully. the $100 billion part of that d.o.e. loan guarantee program to give loans to -- nies who couldn't ice otherwise get them. started in 2009 after the 2008 crash. get capital. the money spent on that program $20 h i believe was between billion to $30 billion -- maybe you can look it up while we take the next call -- that created 55,000 jobs. $70 billion toer created jobs at but we don't have data. federal making buildings more efficient. host: what about the concerns republican members on the energy and commerce committee pointed out whether there is the spending tens be and hundred billion dollars when has so much debt and such a large deficit, the right place to try to yet jobs. guest: absolutely it is. are part of jobs the benefit. another part of the benefit is clean electricity that we don't to import, dig up or burn. carbon l reduce the dioxide pollution. nother benefit is economic competitiveness. for example, before this program e were only building less than half of all wind turbines in it country. 75% of e building about them we use in the united states. o it helps build a manufacturing base. jobs were not the only value achieved. addition, many of these are l guarantees where they were paid back. its $465 million loan nine years ahead of schedule. money back and we will get other money become from other loans. whole picture the and not just three or four companies that didn't make it, a much more robust investment that is paying off in erms of cleaner electricity, cleaner transportation, jobs and economic competitiveness. chuck in o to nashville, tennessee, on our line for independents. wise of the th dan center for american progress. caller: good morning. thanks for taking my call. i have a question according to statements and conversation around ongresswoman block been from tennessee, the -- blackburn from tennessee, the letter, specifically two of them. about nissan.g i live here near the nissan stated that the loan went to yet they or nissan and that are retooling. guest: no, i said they are making the advanced batteries that go in the leave. host: your contention is they are making the batteries at the plant. guest: they got the slope gogh retool to make the batteries in the all electric vehicle. don't know where they are building the other components of the car. host: i can tell you that only components of that car are being made in the united states and canada. over 80% are being made in japan. o, you need to be aware of that. second, you made a comment about ford. any ford are of manufacturing plant in tennessee. guest: i didn't say tennessee. the $6 billion in loans that helped them retool 13 different factories so they efficient more fall cars like the ford focus, ford and even the sion f-150 trucks are all being made be hese factories and will made more fuel efficient which thousands he drivers f dollars and reduce car been pollution and create 33,000 jobs. host: his point about where the spent, what is eing done to ensure this money stays in the united states and doesn't fund jobs overseas? note it is important to that the american recovery and reinvestment act which provided the resources had a "buy america" clause in it make sure was built inssible the u.s. i will give you an example from the wind industry. years ago only one-quarter a wind omponents for turbine were made in the u.s. hanks to investments under the recovery act three-quarters of the components in turbines are made in the u.s. last month the siemens company which is a fortune company to have it was going the largest order ever to build $2 turbines, almost billion, to build at their plant mason, iowa. i believe that will create about 1,000 jobs. sorry, fort madison, iowa. hat is an example of where you sort of jump started the industry in 2009 when the credit markets were frozen after the horrible financial crash of 2008 capital ovided some through loan guarantees and tax breaks it companies. able to keep investing. get jobs.e able to another good example the first scale solar lity power plants were built with guarantees.oan the next 10 under construction now are solely private money. able to jump start the industry where we had none and where art manufacturing there was little. this has been a win for the why some ich is republicans don't like it. every republican in the united tates house including mrs. black burn voted against providing these resources. no wonder why they don't want to talk about the success. mama southern frosted writes throwing the tax dollar black holeeen energy most stuff. to roger waiting in on the south carolina democrat liable. caller: i have two things i would like it talk about. the solar insurancenergy. i understand congress passed a imports of thelate solar panels. of the reasons that the company field. the other is nuclear. nuclear loan guarantees. they are building two plants in south carolina and two in tennessee. hese were loan guarantees by this same program that is mention mentioned. that, please?about guest: sure, thanks, roger. will talk about the silindra failed is it didn't solar ate very cheap panels being dumped in the united states by china. people know dumping means when a country will underprice a to kill its domestic the titors and take over market. the commerce department and trade rep is working with china to try to alleviate that. nonetheless, that was the compensation that proves the rule. and a couple other companies ailed but 97% of the investments paid off under the program. remember, in the "60 minutes" in private venture capital their investments have about a 10% success rate. it comes it loan guarantee for nuclear power plants under we started the first new nuclear reactors in through loan guarantees that have been as recovery package. in that sense president obama is of the ursuing all before energy strategy and wall street investors are going crazy investing in solar energy. there was a story friday. that long on nuclear energy because of great ost concerns and overruns and what you do with spent waste and meltdown fukushima there's great concern about safety. in all street is investing solar and not nuclear. host: john is in chicago on the republicans. good morning, john. a e you are staying warm in very cold chicago. caller: yes, i am. or wind. to solar that was my kquestion. what percentage of all our power both for heat and electricity, is provided by wind or solar? lesl made it sound real bad. facts buts giving the so as that same color now that it sounds much been it is. first i would note that the "60 minutes" report included very few actual facts. lesley stahl said she had not any the hing that programs had created jobs but ll she had to do is go to the department of energy website to see that the loan guarantee rogram she was criticizing has created 55,000 jobs. you can go to that website and each project t of they funded and how many jobs are there. hen it comes to total overall electricity generation from would be gy, that about, i believe, 12% or so. been ount that has discriminated from wind, solar nd geothermal has doubled the past four years and it will continue to increase. nother big change in electricity generation has been the decline in use of coal from electricity it around 40% and rise of natural 22% to the low 30%. hat is a big change that occurred the last four years. host: john smith's question on why try to veil lanize representil when they american jobs? a billion ou invest solar you wind or will create three times more jobs than in oil production. that was based on a study from the university of massachusetts oil production is capital intensive. second of all, the problem with coal is that it is very expensive. thecosts aren't paid for by .eople who mine the coal the national academy of sciences , a most eminent body, estimates that using coal for electricity least $60 billion per year in health care costs -- premature deaths, more hospitalizations, lost productivity. coal has a huge cost to it. need to do is we need to internalize the costs so that people who are using coal for electricity are actually paying the full cost of the damage of coal, which includes health impacts. host: new regulations on coal. what is on tap for 2014? question.at june president obama gave a speech about a comprehensive climate plan. the first part was to reduce carbon pollution responsible from power plants. invest in would be to clean alternatives, such as wind or solar. the second is to make our communities more resilient from a extreme weather and climate change, like the drought we have had the southwest or the .orrible flooding let's help communities build ups of their more resistant to extreme weather. the third pieces to work with other nations to get them to reduce their pollution as well. thehe first part, president, last fall, proposed frommit carbon pollutions power plants. it is coal power plants that will be built in the future will have to be as clean as natural gas plants. they are also working on a rule that will be proposed this june that would limit carbon pollutions from existing power plants. meetings around the country to talk to citizens about this. they're drafting the rule, they will make the proposal in june. undoubtedly they will have another series of hearings all around the country about whether or not this is the most cost- effective way to reduce carbon pollution from power plants. they will finalize the rule in mid-2015. host: let's go to deal from new jersey on our line for democrats. good morning. thank you for coming on. this is a very tough crowd. i am happy you are sticking with us and giving us the real facts. i am a huge clean energy, solar guy. i'm an advocate of clean energy. i went solar about 3 years ago. i'm in south jersey and it has been an amazing difference fo roufor our electricity bills. why aren't more businesses like big malls having hundreds of panels on the roof? they are soaking in the sun every day. about hydrogennk fuel cells? is that considered clean energy? there has been a company that is doing a lot of small fuel cell different thigns ings such as transportation. question,your first the conversion to solar has been slow for two reasons. eight -- 2008 there was the huge financial crash that froze markets. committees that wanted to invest in solar panels had a difficult time raising the capital necessary to do that. that is where some of the loan guarantee programs have come and. in addition, there are some new , solar runcompanies -- you can go look at the "new york times" paper from january 3. you don't have to invest in the hardware to generate solar energy. you just pay the companies for the solar electricity and you pay a rate that is lower than you what -- then you would have been paying for conventional electricity. cell,it comes to a fuel- i'm not familiar with the technology. from what i understand, it is a green energy source depending on how you produce the hydrogen. if you use electricity from a clean source, yes. if you use a lot of coal-fired electricity to produce the it is a, then i think much closer call. i think the fuel source technology is not ready for commercialization yet. this is not my area of expertise. i don't want to speak anymore about it. we talk about the department of energy loan guarantee program, the one that funded several other programs. ron wrightson on e-mail -- e-ron writes in on mail -- guest: three percent of the defaulted on.n i don't know how much has been paid back. for advancedn toomobiles -- they got close $500 million and they paid back nine years ahead of time. let's go to brian in louisiana on our line for republicans. you're on with daniel weiss. caller: can you hear me? [indiscernible] you'reyou hear me? host: on the air, go ahead. don't care about people putting solar panels on the houses. i used to live offshore breed we cannot live -- offshore. -- we cannot live in the united states with all the gas. i lost my job because what went offshore and everything. you can keep your electric car if you want to. [indiscernible] it took us almost two days to get to dallas with an electric car. all this is bogus with climate change. people like you come up with all this garbage. a heck of ag winter. i don't see climate change. am sorry you are out of work. i hope that congress will follow president obama's lead by extending long-term uninsurance insuranceunemployment for people in your circumstances. it is important to know that under president obama we are producing more domestic oil than we have in the last 20 years and we are in -- we are importing less. office, when bush left we were importing almost 60% of our oil. now we are importing only 40%. second of all, we are producing about 12% of our electricity from her new energy sources now. remember that electric cars is a technology that is just starting out. one of the most important things we need to do is extend the range vehicles can travel. people are starting to get more interested in this. in the first half of last year, twice as many people ought to plug-in hybrid vehicles than the year before. plug-in hybrid vehicles than the year before. those people are saving thousands of dollars per year in lower gas purchases. >> do you want to address the comments about global warming? of an the subject editorial in today's "washington times" -- guest: there is a technical term for what is happening right now. some records are going to be broken, it is important to know that at the same time we are having record colds here they are having record heat in australia. november, it was the warmest november on record. be the fourth to warmest year on record. i would like to show this graph that shows you the average temperature for the last 50 years. as you can see it is steadily rising. sure there are tweaks of up-and- down. every decade has been warmer than the decade before. the zeros were warmer than the 90s and the 90s were warmer than the 80s. there's no question the earth's temperature is rising. >> where's this chart from? , theat is data from nasa people who put a man on the moon and run the space station. it is one of america's premier scientific agencies. host: let's go to david waiting in -- waiting in anchorage alaska. -- anchorage, alaska. caller: thank you for c-span. it is my favorite program. the problem is a philosophical problem. we have the government picking winners and losers versus the free market. when you talk about venture capital and return on their investment, i don't know how your return is captured in dollars. venture capitalists capital -- venture capitalists gamble with their money. the government gambles with my money. if you look at the ethanol , they are farming roads to road. there's no habitat anymore for the wild beings. they are using herbicides, pesticides, endangering the ground and water in doha -- in iowa. let's get to the wind farm in anchorage, alaska. worth was given to alaska native corporations to buy 10 men -- by 10 windmills manufactured in china. my electricity rates have gone up three percent. what is your question? do you think the cost of clean energy is worth the return? the short answer is absolutely yes. the greatest environmental threat posed to us is from climate change. in your state cold villages will because theoved tundra it is built on will follow. -- will thaw. congress of the united states, with his elected representatives, did vote for this program under the , passed into law, and president obama signed into law. that is how democracy works. the corn ethanol industry has had a very huge downside. got rid ofthat we the tax cuts a couple of years ago for foreign-based ethanol. i agree there are a lot of concerns that wind turbines and wind farms have to be built in a way that do not kill -- unnecessarily killed thousands of the eagles and other important wildlife. it has to be dealt with. where are the women? we have had all guys so far. an e-mail -- that is an excellent question. we already pick winners and losers. the nuclear energy institute, which represents the nuclear industry, did a study that found over the last 60 years that we have invested 58% of our tax subsidies and other stub cities -- and other subsidies in the oil and gas industry. removable's and 12% -- nine percent renewables and 12% in coal and nukes. in fact, big oil and gas companies get $4 billion per year in tax breaks, even though they have made record profits. the five largest oil and gas -- in 2013n the u.s. alone they are going to make -- they already made over $70 billion in profits over the past three quarters. they probably made close to $100 billion over 2013. they need those tax breaks? absolutely not. to do isre trying invest in a new clean energy technology of the future, like china, germany, and what are other economic competitors are doing. that's what our other economic others -- and what our economic competitors are doing. host: next caller. tennessee.ive in that is where the plant is building batteries for the nissan leaf. earlier you were talking about a on that would go 50 miles its batteries and then it would run on gasoline. but i trulyengineer --ieve that car could run the electric generator could be run by compressed air instead of gas. that would be h are meant to change in the way -- would be a tremendous change in the way we get around. i would like to say one other -- there are a lot of inventions and technologies that are being suppressed by coal and oil in order to keep us buying their products. i was wondering if you have ever heard of a man named joe holden. , heou search him on youtube is the man who invented the afterburner for the jet engines. he was a jet fighter pilot back in the korean war. he was the head engineer for rolls-royce jet engines. he had some inventions you do not hear about. you can see them on youtube, but this stuff is being suppressed. give dan weiss the last minute here in the segment. example of a car where you run on that or he first and then gasoline -- by the way, the average person drives 40 miles per day in the u.s.. to -- chevrolet has 30 miles on the battery. of i am not familiar with the air compression technology. problem -- as everyone listening knows we have the best engineers, the most inventive minds in the whole world here in the united states. they're coming up with all kinds of clean energy technology to run electricity longer, to use less, and pollute less. the biggest problem is getting the technology commercialized ago from the lab to the marketplace. there's is basically a market failure. particularly after the economic crash in 2008, investors were not willing to invest in new technology if they were not sure about the payoff. invest, you can't develop it for the payoff. loan guarantees helped get technologies from the lab to the marketplace. that is happening now. ,or example, with solar energy the first five utility solar plants were built with federal loan guarantees. the next 10 are being built with private capital. that is how this is working. that is how this will remain with our german and chinese competitors. clean energy technology will be invented here. we also want to make sure they will be used here. dan weiss is the director of climate strategy at the center for american progress. r,u can follow him on twitter @danjweiss. up next we will talk about the situation on the ground in iraq and the recent gains by al qaeda. we'll talk with seth jones from the rand corporation. next is an update from c-span radio. >> reports this hour that u.s. home prices barely rose in november from the previous month. the real estate eta provider, corelogic hummus says it increased 0.1% in november over october. -- prices haven risen 11.8% from a year ago. economists expect sales and prices to rise in the new year, last but more slowly than year. and the commerce department says the trade of the sid dropped almost 13% to just over $34 billion in november. almoste deficit dropped 13% to just over 34 billion dollars in november. it is a sign of economic growth. airplanes and machinery lifted exports to an all-time high. in international news, dan schapiro, the u.s. ambassador to israel, speaking earlier on israel radio says a draft of that palestinian israel peace deal is almost completed. it will be presented to both sides. the framework proposal -- the proposal framework issues borders and security issues. they have been pushing for outlines of the peace deal. those are some of the latest headlines on c-span radio. identify theto single most important challenge for muslims -- the truth of the matter is the reason we are here today is because of this , which i read somewhere is not only historical it anti-historical because denies entries of islamic theology and tradition. it subscribes to the idea that to be a muslim you just have to from a verythics limited short time. i think it has to be about refusinghe told -- islamtold by clerk's that is a seventh century reality. we are americans and muslims who islam of the 20th century. discussinge will be "the liberty amendments." read the book and join the conversation. go to booktv.org. >> "washington journal" continues. host: with reports of escalating violence in iraq, we are joined by seth jones who works as an -- associatetor director at the rand corporation. his latest reports focused on al qaeda's efforts in iraq. we have been her ring -- been hearing about escalating violence. why so much concern? guest: there are two reasons there is concern now. one is there is violence more broadly al qaeda in the region and neighboring syria. there's escalating violence by .wo al qaeda affiliates we have broadening violence. second, al qaeda has taken over control of part of several cities. they had limited control. in their ability to control some areas has caused some greater concern. this is concern over growing sectarian split in iraq between sonny's -- between asnis and what they concern their government. >> who are the -- host: who are the major players on the ground? is al the major adversary qaeda. an affiliate calls itself the islamic state of iraq and syria paid it is very similar to what we have seen in pakistan among the corps. they want to establish an islamic emirate, where it can establish sharia law. the police and security --tresses -- security forces you have outside governments in the reason -- in the region. there is a heavy mix of outside supporters internal to iraq. this geographic area is concentrated now. talk about the u.s. involvement there. this was a place that was the focus of u.s. efforts. guest: after the invasion of iraq in 2003, the chunk of the violence is in him bar -- in umbar. the u.s. military, led by organizations like the marine corps, went into falluja to try to clear them of operations. remember some of the video footage of the u.s. marines cording off the city -- u.s. marines courting off the city. the united states secretaryon sunday -- john kerry was talking to reporters about what the u.s. role in iraq should be. he said the u.s. will not be sending troops back in. yesterday the white house spokesman jay carney was asked about the u.s. role amid this escalating violence. he talked a little bit in that press conference. here's what he had to say. [video clip] collect united states maintains a strong relationship and commitment to the government of iraq. with our close contact embassy in baghdad about how we can continue to support the government's efforts to defeat al qaeda. what is known now is the islamic state of iraq, the al qaeda , is there.oup we have made a significant admit meant to helping the iraqi government in dealing with that situation. what secretary kerry's point also was -- and i think this is a point of broader conflicts in the region -- this is something for the iraqis to take the lead on and handle themselves. it does not mean we cannot a system -- cannot assist them. that was jay carney. joining us via phone for , thanktive from baghdad you for joining us. on whato get the latest the current situation is on the ground in baghdad and how close is the fighting there? [indiscernible] it sounds like everyone is busy. [indiscernible] 4s this is normal. -- for us this is normal. host: in terms of falluja itself itself, we have heard reports that al qaeda has taken over some areas. when will those efforts to take them back take place? caller: there was a deal by the to not enter the city until they try to find a solution. [indiscernible] they are trying to give room for negotiations between the .ommunity leaders and militants [indiscernible] out of the city. you for joining us from baghdad. seth jones of the rand corporation, what to do you take from her description of what is happening on the ground and what is happening with the government efforts to retain some of these areas? from the baghdad perspective, the iraq he capital, we are still -- the iraq he capital -- the iraq capital, we're are still hearing reports of car bombs. iraq we havern circlee security forces the city and are in the process of negotiating what to do next. romani looks like it has been freed of most al qaeda control. we are seeingere the majority of activity right now. we are at a temporary stop it right now. i think there were some diplomatic efforts underway. if they don't work i think we are bound to see a very significant military garage -- military garage -- military barrage. an expert on security and defense policy. our phone lines are open. waiting on our line for democrats is john, coming in from california. you are on "the washington journal." caller: thank you for taking my call. two very quick questions for seth. you support the invasion of iraq back in 2003? you justd question is made a statement that we were fighting al qaeda in the first invasion of falluja 10 years ago -- of fallujah 10 years ago. significantlyl after invasion that al qaeda had a strong presence in that process -- in that province. i would like you to speak to that. issue, mythe first personal view is that i did support the u.s. operations to unseat al qaeda and the taliban from afghanistan. guest: what is your job back then during -- host: what was your job back then during the original invasion? i taught classes at george mason university. i served operations in afghanistan. the iraq fund did not see a to the terrorism side to conduct the invasion. i did not support it in that sense. here is the basic background on the terrorism front. as r kelly was not a member of wi was not azarko member of al qaeda. camps anded training in 2004 -- a group established a group. in 2004 he became an affiliate of al qaeda and sworn allegiance to osama bin laden. -- by late 2004 we had a formal al qaeda affiliates in iraq. as we got into 2005, al qaeda othertrenched in parts of areas of iraq. their spread was largely of a result -- largely a result of the u.s. invasion. i think the presence of u.s. forces acted as a magnet for what we ended up seeing. we pointed out an article from usa today -- in this segment we want to open up a special line for iraq war call in to: and -- to and offer their thoughts about the situation in iraq. of the phone number -- the phone 3883.r is 202-585- on our go to steven independent line calling now from shelbyville, indiana. good morning. caller: good morning, how are you all doing? host: good, go ahead. caller: it is cold here in shelbyville. it is a travel problem, it always has been. have had moreuld success in afghanistan if we never invaded iraq. that is pretty much my comment. have a good day. host: thanks for calling in. leroy is waiting in new york on our line for democrats. caller: good morning. -- if it does factor basic , 100cs into his analysis feet of freefall on building seven -- host: we are going to hold off on the 9/11 conspiracy theories. you have a question on this subject? please don't try to deflect the question by discrediting that by distracting question by distracting everyone with this topic. it is the basis of our ful oreign policy. host: regarding 9/11 -- guest: regarding 9/11, it is clear the al qaeda leadership has taken credit for it. seeing in a range of areas is this organization is much more decentralized than it was on 9/11. we have seen elements of it or at least those inspired by this jihadist ideology from north africa. we have 8000 civilians killed which terrorism in 2013, is the highest number we have seen over the past five years. this is a renewed challenge. host: from e-mail -- guest: that is a good question. the way al qaeda is set up right now -- i would call it loosely organized -- is they have a central command that has limited power based out of pakistan. they then have a handful of affiliates, organizations that have sworn allegiance. they have them in yemen, somalia, north africa, syria, and iraq now. iraqaq -- what we see in is an organization swearing allegiance to the head of al qaeda in pakistan. the organization is called the syria. state of iraq and isis. it considers itself of having control of an area not just in iraq but a broader region, including syria. linked to the core and pakistan. just an inspired organization. this has a direct tie. some of thentioned civilian deaths in iraq. here is an article. this is from today's "washington post." a chart showing civilian deaths in iraq from 2008 up to 2013. you can see the dip and then the rise again in late 2012. i will ask you dino's question from twitter. -- dean's question from twitter -- guest: the cost of training security forces went into the multiple billions. i am not aware of a public number. it was in the billions of dollars. securityenge of iraq's forces is they have a fairly sizable number of iraq he -- of forces.-- of iraqi there have been efforts in particular in fallujah to recruit elements of the tribe as the u.s. and iraqis did in 2006. iraq has a broad security apparatus of nearly 500,000, including all aspects of , and structural aspects. it is a structural state that has limited control. richard rogers offers this tweet -- let's go to bob calling in from wisconsin on our line for democrats. good morning. caller: thank you for taking my call. i am not going to go into a long diatribe about our history. in 75 president nixon brought us all home. it wasn't 12 hours later that the communists took over again. in today's history, the same thing has happened. for the people of iraq, if they are not serious about the fight for their own freedoms, to they deserve it? that is my question. i will take it off the air. -- do they deserve it? that is my question. i will take it off the air. guest: thank you. i hope you're staying warm in wisconsin today. iraq withe seeing in the vast majority of the fighting, iraq these are standing up and fighting -- iraq is are standing up and fighting. the challenge is this will be a againsted insurgency the government. shshiite in general. increasingly to e direction. is not the time to insert american forces in iraq. this is iraq's fight. that is actually what we are seeing. romani was cleared by iraqi security forces that stood up, fox, and in some cases die to protect their cities. -- stood up, fox, and in some cases died to protect their cities -- stood up, fought, and, in some cases, died to protect their cities. part of it is the sectarian divide between shiite and sunni. criticisms from members of congress. here's a statement from a house armed services committee mckeon --oward that is how sent armed services mckeon.e's "buck" forces are security fairly competent compared to what we have seen in afghanistan. iraqi government needs outside assistance and the u.s. can provided. able talk about hellfire missiles -- people talk about hellfire missiles -- and i would caution that this is not just a military struggle. provide weapons, which may actually fuel the situation over the long run. we can provide intelligence, training to the civilians and security forces raided the fact the u.s. left in 2011 does make it more difficult to do the training missions, even by elite special forces or intelligent uses -- intelligent forces. there are ways to help. i do think adding u.s. conventional forces to this mix would be the plea counterproductive. -- would be deeply counterproductive. i would strongly advocate against using conventional forces. into antake this occupier direction that is not helpful. using itsan do things clandestine units. sheldon is waiting on the special line we have set up for those who have served in iraq. thank you for calling the washington journal today. caller: thank you for taking my call this morning. host: you are on with seth jones from the rand corporation. just one comment, i think this would be a good opportunity for the u.s. government to maybe employ special advisor units in iraq. ory units in iraq. host: wherein iraq did you serve? caller: i served in baghdad with the reserves and also in 2007 with the state department. sheldon's question is one i support. it is not -- it has not played a major training and assist role in iraq. as this conflict continues, especially in western iraq, it would be helpful to have a low training advise and assist effort. that is not u.s. engaged in theting but engaged in ability to provide training, some equipment, some intelligence. than anyonebetter in the world at its ability to collect and diligence from platforms -- collect intelligence from platforms. interest ine is an stemming what has become a regional problem through building the capacity of their iraqi -- of the iraq he government. ernment.e iraqi gov we are getting levels in syria and iraq where the situation is getting worse. mentioned providing equipment at the press conference yesterday. jay carney went through shipments of hellfire missiles that went over, drones, and helicopters. in terms of what could be most useful on the fight -- useful in the fight on the ground, what would it be from that list? a lot depends on the cook needs from the iraqi -- a lot depends on the equipment needs from the iraqi security forces. i'm not sure we are talking about armed drones but their ability to collect information can be really helpful in providing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance from the area and this is -- and reconnaissance from the area. if they are running out of , you need themes some places for combat. theyhat i have found is tended to things like communication equipment and radios in order to communicate -- host: the basic needs. guest: the basic needs an army and police force needed to operate. not necessarily the most lethal kind of equipment but communication gear. waiting inis kentucky on our line for republicans. you are on with seth jones, the associate director of the rand corporation's international security and policy center. me.er: thank you for having question. i have a how is al qaeda funded? that, what arab nations fund or embrace their population to become members of al qaeda? and a third thing, are there any international corporations that can be linked to al qaeda funding?orter guest: al qaeda gets funding from a range of different places. across the border in north froma -- it gets funding independent donors from places like the persian gulf. from alissaing trafficking, everything from cigarettes to gems -- from illicit trafficking, everything from cigarettes to gems. kidnapping westerners or wealthy locals and getting money for the release of those designers. they get funding from taxing areas they control. gottena in iraq has funding from some donors in the gulf and a lot of activity that happens inside of iraq. theyion of those areas control. shipments along the roadways, setting up checkpoints and taxing individuals, as well as kidnappings and other things. there is redundancy on the financing side. no states or governments provide assistance to al qaeda, at least knowingly. there are some wealthy individuals that have provided funding. on your question of corporations , there really are no major corporations that have provided assistance to al qaeda, at least meaningful assistance. some have been targeted individuals that have been targeted, individuals arrested. -- some have been targeted, individuals arrested. and use it forey both illicit purposes, funding to al qaeda and those organizations, as well as social and charity purposes. companies.ront the fbi has arrested a number of a people affiliated with them in the u.s.. interviewed any" iraq war veteran. there is the article there. we have a special line set up for those who served in iraq. on the line is jules from georgia. go ahead. caller: i think it is very arrogant for our country to think -- or really it is delusional. home,ou go inside their it could be a dirt hot, but it is clean -- dirt hut, but it is clean on the inside. they don't have any identity outside their family. theare you going to get government to tell voters -- it is a culture they have had around for hundreds of years. i think it is a bad foreign policy. i'm curious to your thoughts on that. host: when and where did you serve? 2006 as aserved in medical battalion leader. good question, thank you for your service. think in iraq, as well as several other locations where u.s. forces have fought in the past decade, the role of the state is limited. even iraq when you go to major cities, whether it is in the or in cities like fallujah , the identity is very localized among the families, clams come a potentially tribes -- clans, potentially tribes. at the state level there is a very weak sense of nationality. we have seen the loss split between the sectarian sunni-s hiite lines. point isules' appropriate, that expecting that a central government is the solution is problematic in itself. i think there has been some effort to reach out to the families and tribes against al qaeda. the sense of urgency here is al qaeda, in this particular region, has researched -- has resurged in iraq and syria. at the moment it is not planning attacks against the u.s. homeland. i think this organization needst to be pushed back. what i wouldn't argue is the u.s. should do nothing. host: what lessons are there or from -- are there from what is happening in iraq right now? snapshot of the militant picture today, as the u.s. did in 2011 when al qaeda was weekend in iraq -- was --expecting iraq that that will into new into the foreseeable future is simply not true. u.s. -- the president will likely announce in january or .ebruary some troop numbers i think the decision to leave completely would be problematic. iraq, basedeen in on weakness of the central government and other aspects, including regional effects, al qaeda has demonstrated an ability to regenerate. it happened in iraq and it certainly would be possible in afghanistan and pakistan. host: >> set jones is the associate international do it y that's going to today on "the washington journal." a.m.,ere tomorrow at 7:00 eastern, 4:00 pacific.

Transcripts For CSPAN Key Capitol Hill Hearings 20140108

pollution and create 33,000 jobs. host: his point about where the spent, what is eing done to ensure this money stays in the united states and doesn't fund jobs overseas? note it is important to that the american recovery and reinvestment act which provided the resources had a "buy america" clause in it make sure was built inssible the u.s. i will give you an example from the wind industry. years ago only one-quarter a wind omponents for turbine were made in the u.s. hanks to investments under the recovery act three-quarters of the components in turbines are made in the u.s. last month the siemens company which is a fortune company to have it was going the largest order ever to build $2 turbines, almost billion, to build at their plant mason, iowa. i believe that will create about 1,000 jobs. sorry, fort madison, iowa. hat is an example of where you sort of jump started the industry in 2009 when the credit markets were frozen after the horrible financial crash of 2008 capital ovided some through loan guarantees and tax breaks it companies. able to keep investing. get jobs.e able to another good example the first scale solar lity power plants were built with guarantees.oan the next 10 under construction now are solely private money. able to jump start the industry where we had none and where art manufacturing there was little. this has been a win for the why some ich is republicans don't like it. every republican in the united tates house including mrs. black burn voted against providing these resources. no wonder why they don't want to talk about the success. mama southern frosted writes throwing the tax dollar black holeeen energy most stuff. to roger waiting in on the south carolina democrat liable. caller: i have two things i would like it talk about. the solar insurancenergy. i understand congress passed a imports of thelate solar panels. of the reasons that the company field. the other is nuclear. nuclear loan guarantees. they are building two plants in south carolina and two in tennessee. hese were loan guarantees by this same program that is mention mentioned. that, please?about guest: sure, thanks, roger. first talk about the ing which is that one reason silindra failed is it didn't solar ate very cheap panels being dumped in the united states by china. people know dumping means when a country will underprice a to kill its domestic the titors and take over market. the commerce department and trade rep is working with china to try to alleviate that. nonetheless, that was the compensation that proves the rule. and a couple other companies ailed but 97% of the investments paid off under the program. remember, in the "60 minutes" in private venture capital their investments have about a 10% success rate. it comes it loan guarantee for nuclear power plants under we started the first new nuclear reactors in through loan guarantees that have been as recovery package. in that sense president obama is of the ursuing all before energy strategy and wall street investors are going crazy investing in solar energy. there was a story friday. that long on nuclear energy because of great ost concerns and overruns and what you do with spent waste and meltdown fukushima there's great concern about safety. in all street is investing solar and not nuclear. host: john is in chicago on the republicans. good morning, john. a e you are staying warm in very cold chicago. caller: yes, i am. or wind. to solar that was my kquestion. what percentage of all our power both for heat and electricity, is provided by wind or solar? lesl made it sound real bad. facts buts giving the so as that same color now that it sounds much been it is. first i would note that the "60 minutes" report included very few actual facts. lesley stahl said she had not any the hing that programs had created jobs but ll she had to do is go to the department of energy website to see that the loan guarantee rogram she was criticizing has created 55,000 jobs. you can go to that website and each project t of they funded and how many jobs are there. hen it comes to total overall electricity generation from would be gy, that about, i believe, 12% or so. been ount that has discriminated from wind, solar nd geothermal has doubled the past four years and it will continue to increase. nother big change in electricity generation has been the decline in use of coal from electricity it around 40% and rise of natural 22% to the low 30%. hat is a big change that occurred the last four years. host: john smith's question on why try to veil lanize representil when they american jobs? a billion ou invest solar you wind or will create three times more jobs than in oil production. that was based on a study from the university of massachusetts oil production is capital intensive. second of all, the problem with coal is that it is very expensive. thecosts aren't paid for by .eople who mine the coal the national academy of sciences , a most eminent body, estimates that using coal for electricity least $60 billion per year in health care costs -- premature deaths, more hospitalizations, lost productivity. coal has a huge cost to it. need to do is we need to internalize the costs so that people who are using coal for electricity are actually paying the full cost of the damage of coal, which includes health impacts. host: new regulations on coal. what is on tap for 2014? question.at june president obama gave a speech about a comprehensive climate plan. the first part was to reduce carbon pollution responsible from power plants. invest in would be to clean alternatives, such as wind or solar. the second is to make our communities more resilient from a extreme weather and climate change, like the drought we have had the southwest or the .orrible flooding let's help communities build ups of their more resistant to extreme weather. the third pieces to work with other nations to get them to reduce their pollution as well. thehe first part, president, last fall, proposed frommit carbon pollutions power plants. it is coal power plants that will be built in the future will have to be as clean as natural gas plants. they are also working on a rule that will be proposed this june that would limit carbon pollutions from existing power plants. meetings around the country to talk to citizens about this. they're drafting the rule, they will make the proposal in june. undoubtedly they will have another series of hearings all around the country about whether or not this is the most cost- effective way to reduce carbon pollution from power plants. they will finalize the rule in mid-2015. host: let's go to deal from new jersey on our line for democrats. good morning. thank you for coming on. this is a very tough crowd. i am happy you are sticking with us and giving us the real facts. i am a huge clean energy, solar guy. i'm an advocate of clean energy. i went solar about 3 years ago. i'm in south jersey and it has been an amazing difference fo roufor our electricity bills. why aren't more businesses like big malls having hundreds of panels on the roof? they are soaking in the sun every day. about hydrogennk fuel cells? is that considered clean energy? there has been a company that is doing a lot of small fuel cell different thigns ings such as transportation. question,your first the conversion to solar has been slow for two reasons. eight -- 2008 there was the huge financial crash that froze markets. committees that wanted to invest in solar panels had a difficult time raising the capital necessary to do that. that is where some of the loan guarantee programs have come and. in addition, there are some new , solar runcompanies -- you can go look at the "new york times" paper from january 3. you don't have to invest in the hardware to generate solar energy. you just pay the companies for the solar electricity and you pay a rate that is lower than you what -- then you would have been paying for conventional electricity. cell,it comes to a fuel- i'm not familiar with the technology. from what i understand, it is a green energy source depending on how you produce the hydrogen. if you use electricity from a clean source, yes. if you use a lot of coal-fired electricity to produce the it is a, then i think much closer call. i think the fuel source technology is not ready for commercialization yet. this is not my area of expertise. i don't want to speak anymore about it. we talk about the department of energy loan guarantee program, the one that funded several other programs. ron wrightson on e-mail -- e-ron writes in on mail -- guest: three percent of the defaulted on.n i don't know how much has been paid back. for advancedn toomobiles -- they got close $500 million and they paid back nine years ahead of time. let's go to brian in louisiana on our line for republicans. you're on with daniel weiss. caller: can you hear me? [indiscernible] you'reyou hear me? host: on the air, go ahead. don't care about people putting solar panels on the houses. i used to live offshore breed we cannot live -- offshore. -- we cannot live in the united states with all the gas. i lost my job because what went offshore and everything. you can keep your electric car if you want to. [indiscernible] it took us almost two days to get to dallas with an electric car. all this is bogus with climate change. people like you come up with all this garbage. a heck of ag winter. i don't see climate change. am sorry you are out of work. i hope that congress will follow president obama's lead by extending long-term uninsurance insuranceunemployment for people in your circumstances. it is important to know that under president obama we are producing more domestic oil than we have in the last 20 years and we are in -- we are importing less. office, when bush left we were importing almost 60% of our oil. now we are importing only 40%. second of all, we are producing about 12% of our electricity from her new energy sources now. remember that electric cars is a technology that is just starting out. one of the most important things we need to do is extend the range vehicles can travel. people are starting to get more interested in this. in the first half of last year, twice as many people ought to plug-in hybrid vehicles than the year before. plug-in hybrid vehicles than the year before. those people are saving thousands of dollars per year in lower gas purchases. >> do you want to address the comments about global warming? of an the subject editorial in today's "washington times" -- guest: there is a technical term for what is happening right now. some records are going to be broken, it is important to know that at the same time we are having record colds here they are having record heat in australia. november, it was the warmest november on record. be the fourth to warmest year on record. i would like to show this graph that shows you the average temperature for the last 50 years. as you can see it is steadily rising. sure there are tweaks of up-and- down. every decade has been warmer than the decade before. the zeros were warmer than the 90s and the 90s were warmer than the 80s. there's no question the earth's temperature is rising. >> where's this chart from? , theat is data from nasa people who put a man on the moon and run the space station. it is one of america's premier scientific agencies. host: let's go to david waiting in -- waiting in anchorage alaska. -- anchorage, alaska. caller: thank you for c-span. it is my favorite program. the problem is a philosophical problem. we have the government picking winners and losers versus the free market. when you talk about venture capital and return on their investment, i don't know how your return is captured in dollars. venture capitalists capital -- venture capitalists gamble with their money. the government gambles with my money. if you look at the ethanol , they are farming roads to road. there's no habitat anymore for the wild beings. they are using herbicides, pesticides, endangering the ground and water in doha -- in iowa. let's get to the wind farm in anchorage, alaska. worth was given to alaska native corporations to buy 10 men -- by 10 windmills manufactured in china. my electricity rates have gone up three percent. what is your question? do you think the cost of clean energy is worth the return? the short answer is absolutely yes. the greatest environmental threat posed to us is from climate change. in your state cold villages will because theoved tundra it is built on will follow. -- will thaw. congress of the united states, with his elected representatives, did vote for this program under the , passed into law, and president obama signed into law. that is how democracy works. the corn ethanol industry has had a very huge downside. got rid ofthat we the tax cuts a couple of years ago for foreign-based ethanol. i agree there are a lot of concerns that wind turbines and wind farms have to be built in a way that do not kill -- unnecessarily killed thousands of the eagles and other important wildlife. it has to be dealt with. where are the women? we have had all guys so far. an e-mail -- that is an excellent question. we already pick winners and losers. the nuclear energy institute, which represents the nuclear industry, did a study that found over the last 60 years that we have invested 58% of our tax subsidies and other stub cities -- and other subsidies in the oil and gas industry. removable's and 12% -- nine percent renewables and 12% in coal and nukes. in fact, big oil and gas companies get $4 billion per year in tax breaks, even though they have made record profits. the five largest oil and gas -- in 2013n the u.s. alone they are going to make -- they already made over $70 billion in profits over the past three quarters. they probably made close to $100 billion over 2013. they need those tax breaks? absolutely not. to do isre trying invest in a new clean energy technology of the future, like china, germany, and what are other economic competitors are doing. that's what our other economic others -- and what our economic competitors are doing. host: next caller. tennessee.ive in that is where the plant is building batteries for the nissan leaf. earlier you were talking about a on that would go 50 miles its batteries and then it would run on gasoline. but i trulyengineer --ieve that car could run the electric generator could be run by compressed air instead of gas. that would be h are meant to change in the way -- would be a tremendous change in the way we get around. i would like to say one other -- there are a lot of inventions and technologies that are being suppressed by coal and oil in order to keep us buying their products. i was wondering if you have ever heard of a man named joe holden. , heou search him on youtube is the man who invented the afterburner for the jet engines. he was a jet fighter pilot back in the korean war. he was the head engineer for rolls-royce jet engines. he had some inventions you do not hear about. you can see them on youtube, but this stuff is being suppressed. give dan weiss the last minute here in the segment. example of a car where you run on that or he first and then gasoline -- by the way, the average person drives 40 miles per day in the u.s.. to -- chevrolet has 30 miles on the battery. of i am not familiar with the air compression technology. problem -- as everyone listening knows we have the best engineers, the most inventive minds in the whole world here in the united states. they're coming up with all kinds of clean energy technology to run electricity longer, to use less, and pollute less. the biggest problem is getting the technology commercialized ago from the lab to the marketplace. there's is basically a market failure. particularly after the economic crash in 2008, investors were not willing to invest in new technology if they were not sure about the payoff. invest, you can't develop it for the payoff. loan guarantees helped get technologies from the lab to the marketplace. that is happening now. ,or example, with solar energy the first five utility solar plants were built with federal loan guarantees. the next 10 are being built with private capital. that is how this is working. that is how this will remain with our german and chinese competitors. clean energy technology will be invented here. we also want to make sure they will be used here. dan weiss is the director of climate strategy at the center for american progress. you can follow him on twitter >> coming up next, a look at congressional action on the extension of unemployment benefits. democratic leaders after the vote to move the legislation forward. then mitch mcconnell voices opposition to the bill. president obama urges the house of representatives to take up the bill. wednesday morning, tom donohue gives his annual state of american business speech. you can see it live on c-span three. release of a report on states and health care costs by the university of irvine -- university of virginia. >> if i were to identify the single most important challenge to overcome, it would be that. the reason why we are here today is because of this inclination. it is anti-historical because it denies centuries of islamic theology and traditions. hundreds of years of diversity and subscribes to the idea that to be muslim, it you have to follow it from the seventh century. abouturney has to be by clerics be told that islam is the seventh century reality. whore americans and muslims need an islam of the 21st century. >> sunday night at 9:00, part of book tv this weekend. online, we will be discussing the liberty amendments. read the book and join the conversation. >> chuck schumer describes the votes to advance unemployment insurance benefits as a glimmer of hope. he spoke with reporters after this and it advanced the $6.4 billion plan. just a few weeks ago there were colleagues who were talking about unemployment insurance as a disservice to the american worker. today we are talking about the vital nature of this program and the need to extend it and now we are also talking about should it be paid for in the long term? are there other changes that could be made? we made several changes in 2012. so we are moving forward. we have to collaborate. we have to be constructive. but today i think we have given a bit of hope to millions of americans who are struggling in a difficult economy to find jobs, who are struggling to provide sustenance to their families, to pay their heat bill, put some gas in the car, and to keep looking for work. we also understand that this is just providing sort of the immediate assistance people need. the longer term is to create the jobs. to build the economy where this these programs are not as necessary as they are today. i certainly -- this was a work of great effort that was collaborative and i'm pleased to be with my colleagues who paid such a critical role, senator schumer, senator a even. without them this would not have happened. let me call on senator shaheen from new hampshire. >> thank you, senator reed, and thank you for your leadership on this. you and senator heller made this a bipartisan vote. it was very good news to see 60 votes to move forward. it's good not just for the 1.3 million families who will benefit, but it's also going to be good for the economy of the united states. the congressional budget office and numerous economists, including mark zandi, have indicated this is one of the best things we have can do to help keep the money in the economy, keep it stimulated. it's a good way to spend public dollars to encourage private sector response. this is good for families, but it's also going to be good for our economy as we know that people who get unemployment insurance are going to spend those dollars. they are not going to put them in the bank. as senator reed said, how do we create jobs? this is one of the challenges we have. making sure that people can still go out and look for work, those dollars can be used to buy gasoline, pay for groceries, pay people's rent is important because it keeps a lot of other people working in the economy. it's very good news. serious negotiation vs. to start as we think -- negotiations have to start as we think about how we get this bill passed. >> before i introduce senator brown, i have to personally thank senator dean heller of nevada. he stood up, responding to his constituents and to what he was seeing in his home state, but across the country, and he provided great leadership. he did it with thoughtful persistent advocacy, and we are here today because in large part of his efforts and all of my colleagues on my democratic colleagues, but also my republican colleagues who stepped forward and said let's put it the rhetoric aside for a moment and try to help people. then do it in a constructive, cooperative way. with that let me recognize sherrod brown. >> it's 8 degrees below zero in cleveland today. it seems like it's almost that cold here and i think this vote today, this bipartisan vote, particularly thanks to senator reed and senator heller, on this bipartisan vote will help those people who have lost jobs. will heat their homes, help them go to the grocery store and buy food. will help them fix their car at the local -- with the local car mechanic so they can drive and look for work. this is all about social insurance. it's unemployment insurance. people pay into this when they are working and when they have lost their jobs. it's important they get those benefits. and no one gets these benefits without looking for jobs day after day after day. that's why this is so important. it's also important that we got a strong bipartisan vote out of the senate. i think that means good news for a minimum wage increase down the road. sooner rather than later. the last time we did minimum wage was 2007. strong bipartisan vote in both houses. signed by president bush. signed by the president of the united states. we hope to replicate that effort in 2014. it's also good news on manufacturing job growth issues we are working on bipartisanly. just came from a meeting with the manufacturing caucus, a group of members of the senate from both parties who care about job creation and care about manufacturing. last point i'd like to briefly make is senator shaheen just mentioned about how this is good for the economy. 100 years ago this week henry ford announced that he was going to pay his workers $5 a day. that was the person sweeping the floor and building the model t. what henry ford understood is what 60 members of the senate understood today and that is when you put money in people's pockets, they spend it and it grows the economy. maybe to buy a model t in his day, 100 years ago, but today in means they spend that money locally in grocery stores and car mechanic at the hardware store, buying clothes for their kids. keeping them going, keeping them alive. when it means for the 52,000 people in ohio that saw their unemployment expire at the end of last year and means to our economy as a whole. >> on december 28, 18,000 families in oregon got a lump of coal in their stockings when we failed to re-authorize the emergency unemployment program. of course this coming year we are going to see another 58,000 oregon families affected. then we have the broader economy in oregon, that's the thought this action would eliminate about 4,000 jobs. i can tell you that the citizens in oregon want to see us create jobs not destroy jobs. and so in this case we have a win-win for the families themselves, a stronger foundation, or a stronger bridge to the next job in areas of high unemployment and something that is helping the broader economy at the same time. this was a bipartisan program developed under president bush. today, this morning, we had a bipartisan vote to debate the bill. and now we have to make sure we have a bipartisan support to actually re-authorize this program and take those lumps of coal out of the stockings. this weekend i was doing town halls in oregon, and four were in rural areas. there's higher unemployment in rural areas across america. the average unemployment in oregon is now about 7.3%. but in three counties it's almost 12%. so the time it takes to get another job is much longer. that's true in high unemployment states and that's true across the country. so huge logic and huge impact on families. but let's understand there's a fundamental viewpoint here. when families are down, are they going to get a helping hand in the bridge to the next job? are they going to get kicked while they are down? i think the helping hand, bipartisan helping hand is what we have to develop and get re- authorized with due speed. thank you. >> thank you. i want to thank my colleagues, senator reed and senator heller for their leadership, and my colleague, senator shaheen brown and merkley, for working so hard on this issue. today brought us a glimmer of hope. it's good news in two ways. the first is it doesn't close the door on actually getting this bill passed. it allows us to sit down and negotiate. i'll talk more about that in a sec. the second is it shows that the big plates, tech tonic plates in our politics are moving. the issues that dominated the first five years of the president's term, the deficit and obamacare, are becoming less important than helping the average american people get by as job growth isn't as robust as we'd like it, and as middle class incomes this decade have declined for the first time in american history. our republican colleagues realize that. that's why they didn't shut the door on things because they saw as this chart shows the kind of unemployment we face, much higher now. much higher. and had they -- if our colleagues -- second point. we hope that this is a good faith negotiation. the offer that senator mcconnell made to the senate is obviously a nonstarter. i hope, we hope, some of us fear, that our republican colleagues, while they know the power of this issue, do not want to pass it and will put some obstacles in the way that will prevent the bill from passing. clearly the amendment posed by senator mcconnell was not going to -- was not going to pass. we don't want a mexican standoff, or we put in our pay- for and they put in their pay- for. coy think of one that makes more sense and more relevant than senator mcconnell's. take away the tax break for companies that ship jobs overseas. that would reduce unemployment and eventually lower the cost of unemployment insurance. i think we would have every democrat vote for that. but i suppose that would be a nonstarter for republican colleagues in the senate and house. the fundamental question is, are they going through a charade to show they really, really want a bill but they just can't come to an agreement and there are two different versions? or can we have serious negotiations and get something done? and we hope it's the latter. we hope it's the latter. if our republican colleagues continue to play games with this, they'll show how far out of the mainstream they are. as was mentioned by senator merkley, the original framework here was passed by george bush, a conservative republican president, when unemployment was 5.6%. it's now 7%. are republicans so far out of the mainstream that they reject even that? even unemployment benefits for people who have worked 10, 20, 30 years at one job, lost their job, and then they are spending every day going online or knocking on doors and trying to find a job and they can't? certainly we didn't hear the theory of the hard right or what rand paul said that unemployment benefits are a disservice to our workers. this idea people don't want to work. is fundamentally misleading the american character. americans do want to work. and there's satisfaction in job well-done for c.e.o.'s and people who make sure the floors are really spotlessly clean late at night in the hospital. so we hope that the vote today indicates that your republican colleagues will negotiate in good faith. we are open to such negotiations. we believe it would be, i believe, i think most of my colleagues believe it would be better to pass unpaid for, if we can't come to an agreement or even if we could because it stimulates the economy. we want to get this bill passed. it's too important, too important for the average american family not to. questions? >> the negotiate that these negotiations are going to be offsetting -- >> i would prefer to pass this 90-day extension so that we could assure millions of americans they are going to get their benefits without disruption. my preference, frankly, and i think senator schumer said the same thing, because we want to also grow jobs as well as take care of unemployed that typically this is emergency spending which is not offset. last year, the beginning of 2013, we passed with overwhelming republican support a one-year extension of unemployment benefits that were not paid for. this notion of selectively saying the key issues must be paid for, must be paid for, that's not the case. most times we have paid for these benefits. i think we are going through these negotiations saying, you know, our reference is clearly we want to get this thing done quickly. this 90-day extension. for a year-long extension, if you have thoughtful ways to deal with it, and senator schumer suggested one, there are many others, we understand. we have to have a -- another bipartisan effort to get this measure finally passed. but from strictly the economic sense, strictly from history, the last number of times we have done this, in fact most recently in 2013, january, 2013, these benefits weren't paid for. best choice, pass it, no strings attached, get it done, get it done quickly. second best choice, finding a reasonable pay-for that can work on both sides of the aisle. i would caution people that's a lot easier said than done. again as i said i'm worried that we may be being somewhat walked into cul de sac by our colleagues who don't have an intention of doing that. that's a possibility. worst choice, you just have competing pay-fors and we don't get this done. it hurts our economy and workers. it >> can you give us the an example of what's a reasonable pay-for? >> senator schumer suggested some of these tax provisions that actually not only deprive the government of revenue, but also help deploy jobs overseas when we need jobs here. but there are a whole list of tax loopholes, and other things we could consider. i want to foreclose discussions. i think at this point, particularly, having secured a very positive bipartisan vote, getting us on to the measure, that we want to go forward in good faith and good spirit. and not include, exclude, etc., but just simply say we are willing to listen. as senator schumer cautioned, we have to have something that makes sense for the economy, makes sense for the people. and something that we can generally support. i hope my republican colleagues approach it the same way. anyone else? >> surprised by the vote today? >> it was in the balance until the very last moment. i was hopeful, but i guess being irish i'm always expecting the worst. yeah, i was surprised. that might be more a cultural than political. >> i think we are all -- not being irish, i think we all are a bit surprised. i think pope francis exorted his parish priests to go out and smell like the flock. i think that on a vote like this i think members of the senate are increasingly hearing from their constituents. a number of our colleagues did events during the holidays in the last two weeks, and if they were out in public, they were hearing from people whose unemployment benefits expired. there's 50,000 in my state, a large state, not the largest. it was thousands everywhere in this country. i think that not only is that good news for the unemployment insurance vote, i think that's good news for engage, good news for manufacturing, for really focusing on jobs. i think more and more of my colleagues are hearing that. >> thank you. >> how did the senate managed to get the 60 votes needed to move forward with the bill? a little bit of a surprise. democrats were worried they would be a vote or two short. did vote along with all of the democrats to advance this. it still has a long way to go. at least two more senate votes. some of the republicans said they would need offsetting spending cuts to pay for the extension. before they would vote for final passage. >> in terms of this bipartisan where will his allegiances fault when the vote -- allegiances fall when the vote comes later this week? senator heller? for.is bill is unpaid he was the first republican to get on board on a three-month .xtension the unemployment rate in nevada is still very high. to get through the senate and the house, speaker boehner has said that it needs to be paid for. bey are probably going to entering into negotiations over what kind of cuts to make elsewhere that would pay for this bill. the democrats want to extend it for a full year. the three-month extension was meant to buy time. stays in thef it window or if they try to broaden it out. >> is it possible this bill could be attached to something bigger? >> it is possible. in the past, unemployment insurance extensions have been attached to other bills. they are working to finish up the farm bill. there has been some talk of using the savings from the farm for the unemployment benefits. that money matches up pretty well. that is a possibility. the other bill that you mentioned is a vehicle that will move forward is in the next few weeks is the omni bus spending bill. it could be attached to one or the other. >> the article that you helped write, you wrote about the democrats hoping to change the conversation and 2014 away from discussion on the health care reform law. how might they try to do that? to focus on the topic of the moment, which is income inequality. the president has been talking about this since his reelection in various forms. liberal democrats have been focusing on this. the push to extend unemployment insurance and to raise the minimum wage is all part of that. you can expect to see the president talking about other issues, a push to increase the minimum wage, which is an uphill battle with republicans controlling the house. they have long been opposed to raising the minimum wage, saying that it would hurt job creation. it is going to be a tough battle for democrats. everything has a political and electoral connotation. read more at the hill.com. thank you for the update. came to theonnell floor to discuss the unemployment benefits extension bill. he indicated that since the white house is willing to look at ways to pay for the legislation, there may be a way to move the deal forward . his remarks are 10 minutes. past over the past several days we've seen a number of stories about how democrats plan to spend the year gearing up for november elections by making an issue out of economic hardships faced by americans. in other words, instead of working on reforms that would actually help people overcome the challenges so many of them face they were trying to exploit those folks for political gain. it is amazing when you think about it. we're now in the sixth year -- sixth year of the obama administration. we all know the stock market's been doing great, so the richest among us are doing just fine. but what about the poor? what about working class folks? what about folks that work in industries that liberals don't approve of, like coal? how many of these americans have been doing well during the obama economy? record numbers of them are having a perfectly terrible time. one indicator is the growth of the food stamp program. consider this. since the president took office, the number of americans who signed up for food stamp -ps has literally skyrocketed. corroboratinged. it is up -- skyrocketed. it is up almost half. nearly four out of ten americans are literally trapped in long term unemployment. what's worse, the poorest americans are the ones who have had a hard time recovering in this economy. yes, the president took office in the midst of an economic crisis. no one disputes that. but for many americans, a terrible situation seems to have only gotten worse over the course of this administration. so for the president to turn around and try to blame his political opponents for the suffering we've seen out there, that takes a pretty good amount of nerve. it also sends a collective case of national amnesia. it would take a collective case of national amnesia to reach those conclusions. because remember, these are the same folks who gave us the stimulus, who gave us tax increases, who gave us obamacare. all of it was done in the name of helping the little guy. in the name of greater equality. so what they've given us, it's given us this mess that we have in our country? record numbers of long-term unemployed. record numbers on food stamp -ps, people losing their health care plans, others seeing premiums shoot up when they can least afford it. and now another call, one more call for a government fix. washington democrats have shown almost no interest for five years in working together on ways to create the kind of good, stable, high-paying jobs that people really want and need. this is a real disservice. first and foremost to those who are struggling the most out there, from the college graduate who suddenly finds herself wondering why she's got huge student loan debts but no prospects of work to the 50-year-old dad who's worked his whole adult life and suddenly can't find a job that meets either his needs or his potential. and yet, this administration's proposed solution is just to slap another band-aid from washington on it and call it a day. yes, we should work on solutions to support those who are out of work through no fault of their own. but there's literally no excuse to pass unemployment insurance legislation without also finding ways to create good, stable, high-paying jobs and also trying to find the money to pay for it. what i'm saying is let's support meaningful job creation measures and let's find a way to pay for these u.i. benefits so we're not adding to an already completely unsustainable debt. unfortunately, the administration seems almost totally disinterested in solutions that don't put government in the lead, and it seems nearly incapable of working with those who don't share that belief. and that in many ways is precisely why we're in the situation we're in. because it's only when you believe government is the answer to all of your problems that you talk about unemployment insurance instead of job creation. and the minimum wage instead of helping people reach their maximum potential. so it's time to get away from -- quote -- "temporary government programs" and give the american people the tools they need to drive an economy that truly works for them and for their families. we could start with one of the real bright spots in our economy, and that's energy. a field that's poised to help our economy create literally millions of jobs if only the if only the administration would only get out of the way. another area where we should be able to work together is health care. any metric, affordability, accessibility, and even the ratio of cancellations to enrollment, this law has imposed more pain and more distress than many had ever thought possible. --trist, modernist moderates, conservatives, any sensible person outside of democratic leadership here in washington has understood this. even the left is starting to come to grips with the obvious at phelan -- law in love with cannot work. last week, one of the great blue balls -- i don't agree with this man on much else including his broader ideas on health care but it is good to hear the someone admit this is not working. hadpresident's amen chorus ample opportunity to speak the truth when it mattered. most chose to remain solid. apologists have let the american people pay the price. fromg review in letter jennifer bell, a constituent of mine in hopkinsville. i have less coverage than i did before. i did not get to keep my policy that i was happy with. every dollar i have to pay more is a dollar taken from my family . i never thought that in america we would be forced to purchase something we cannot afford. we worked hard to get where we are. now we are being forced to pay more in order to pay for somebody else's insurance. how is that fair? i hear you, jennifer. everyone on the side of the aisle hears those concerns. here's something else -- many kentuckians are finding that obama cares more about the and higher premiums. it is also about a lack of access to doctors and hospitals. left-wing papers in my state recently ran a big story about how many obamacare networks excluded so many of the hospitals my constituents want to use. a few weeks ago, the majority of -- amounted to jokes. you might to think this is all some sort of joke where did the constituency has been writing me about the consequences of this failed law do not see it that way. heavily on must wait our democratic colleagues. i know they cannot see so many americans hurting because of decisions they made and feel absolutely nothing. the me say this to our colleagues on the other side of the aisle -- it is a new year and a time for new beginnings. get ready to work with us. we are here. together, we can start over on health care. together we can give the american people the health reform they really reserved. --ormed and lower costs in and improve the quality of care. dislike with solving the problems of joblessness and unemployment -- just like solving the problems of joblessness and unemployment is something we can only do together. >> president obama urged congress to keep moving forward on the bills that would extend unemployment benefits. the president called today's senate vote a very important and called on lawmakers to pass it without obstruction and delay. his remark should 20 minutes. -- remarks are 20 minutes. >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states accompanied by ms. catherine hackett. [applause] >> thank you. good morning. my name is catherine hackett and i'm from connecticut. i'm very grateful that president obama invited me here today in response to a letter i wrote to him about the discontinuation of federal unemployment insurance. i am unemployed and i will be significantly affected by the decision. job loss is devastating and i'm working very hard every day to look for a position. in the interim, unemployment benefits have been absolutely essential to cover my bare necessities. i have cut expenses everywhere possible and i'm not just sitting home enjoying the good life. my cuts include heating my house to 58 degrees, wearing a hat and a coat to stay warm because oil is expensive, i have lost weight is food is expensive. as a single mother, i have worked many different jobs and never asked for a handout while i raise two wonderful boys. both of my sons are serving in the u.s. military. it was very hard for me to let one of my boys serve a year in afghanistan, but i did and he \was proud to serve his country. i hope our leaders in washington can find a solution to help families like mine. at this time, it is my great honor to introduce the president of the united states, president barack obama. [applause] >> everybody, have a seat. happy new year, everybody. i hope you are keeping warm. a few weeks ago, i said 2014 could be a breakthrough year for america. think about it. five years ago, this month, our economy was shedding 800,000 jobs in one month. as americans buckled down and sacrificed, we began to come back. our businesses have created 8 million new jobs. our auto industry has gone from bust to boom, the stock markets are restoring retirement accounts. the promise of energy independence is in sight. health care costs eat up less of our economy. costs have grown at the slowest rate on record. we have cut our deficits by more than half since i took office. america is getting stronger and we have made progress trade the -- and the economy is growing and we have to do more to make sure all americans share in that. we have to help as this is create more jobs and make sure those jobs offer the wages and benefits that let families rebuild a little security. in other words, we had to make sure this recovery leaves nobody behind. we have a lot of work to do on that front. the good news is i am optimistic we can do it if we do it together. before the holidays, both parties compromised on a budget that lists some of the drags that has been on the economy from these indiscriminate cuts we call sequester. , we may seeence more stability when it comes to economic growth. i'm not alone in saying we are all grateful in the new year that we won't have another paritsan shutdown hopefully going forward. [applause] that was a good sign. we should build on that progress with what i said should be the first order of business in 2014. that was extending uninsured -- extending insurance for the unemployed. [applause] the good news is this morning, the senate took a very important step in the right direction. millions like them who were laid off in the recession through no fault of their own, unemployment insurance has been a vital economic lifeline. for a lot of people, the support while they look for a new job, these are not folks who are not just sitting back waiting for things to happen, they are out there actively looking for work. they desperately want work. although the economy has been growing and we have been adding new jobs, the truth of the matter is the financial crisis was so devastating that there is still a lot of people who are struggling. if we don't provide unemployment insurance, it makes it harder to find a job. you heard catherine's story. she's far more eloquent than i could ever be. she wrote me last month to say please let those who think i'm sitting at home enjoying being unemployed knows i would much rather be working and i had a chance to talk to catherine and i think it's pretty clear that is the case. catherine went on to say i have applied to everything for which i am possibly qualified to no avail. i work hard all my life, paid taxes, voted, engaged in political discussion, and made the ultimate sacrifice -- my two sons serve in the u.s. military. job loss is devastating and if i could fix it myself, i would. i challenge any lawmaker to live without an income. that's what she says. [applause] it's hard. so, when we've got the mom of two of our troops who is working hard out there but is having to wear a coat inside the house, we have a problem. and it's one that can be fixed. catherine is not alone. devlin smith, watching from california, wrote me about her hunt for a new job. since she was laid off 13 months ago, she sent out hundreds of resumes, she's volunteered, seasonal work. she doesn't want to be sitting around the house. she's taking online courses to learn new skills. without unemployment insurance, she won't be able to pay for her car or cell phone, which makes the job hunt that much harder. and she wrote to me and said, i've wanted nothing more than to find a new full-time job and i dedicated every day to that mission. i'm asking you to advocate for me and the millions like me who need our extended unemployment benefits to make ends meet. i just want everybody to understand, this is not an abstraction, these are not statistics. these are your neighbors, friends, family members. it could at some point be any of us. that's why we set up a system of unemployment insurance. the notion was everybody is making a contribution because you don't know when the business cycle or an economic crisis might make any of us vulnerable. and this insurance helps keep food on the table while dad is sending out resumes. it helps mom pay the rent while she's learning new skills to earn that new job. that provides that extra set of security so that losing your job doesn't mean you have to lose your house. where everybody you worked so hard to build for years. we make this promise to our fellow americans who are working hard to get back on their feet because when times get tough, we are not a people who say you're on your own. we are people who believe that we are all in it together. we know there but the grace of god go i. [applause] so that's the values case for this. that's the moral case for this. but, there's an economic case for it as well. independent economists have shown extending emergency unemployment insurance actually helps the economy. actually creates new jobs. when folks like catherine have a little more to spend, to turn up the heat in her house or buy a few extra groceries, that means more spending at businesses in their local community, which in turn may inspire that business to hire one more person. maybe kathy. that's why in the past both parties have repeatedly put partisanship and ideology aside to offer some security for job seekers with no strings attached. it's been done regardless whether democrats or republicans were in the white house. it's been done regardless of whether democrats or republicans controlled congress. and by the way, it's done -- it's been done multiple times when the unemployment rate was significantly lower than it is today. what's important to keep in mind also is that the recovery in a big country like the united states is going to be somewhat uneven. so there are some states that have a 2.5 unemployment rate, and there are some places that may still have a 7%, 8%, 9% unemployment rate. people living in those respective states may be working equally hard to find a job, but it's going to be harder in some places than others. now, two weeks ago congress went home for the holidays and let this lifeline expire for 1.3 million americans. if this doesn't get fixed it will hurt about 14 million americans over the course of this year. five million workers, along with nine million of their family members, their spouses, their kids. now, i have heard the argument that says extending unemployment insurance will somehow hurt the unemployed because it zaps their motivation to get a new job. i really want to -- i want to go at this for a second. [applause] that really sells the american people short. i meet a lot of people as president of the united states and as candidate for president of the united states and as a u.s. senator and state senator. i meet a lot of people. and i can't name a time or met an american who would rather have an unemployment check than the pride of having a job. [applause] the long-term unemployed are not lazy. they are not lacking in motivation. they are coping with the aftermath of the worst economic crisis in generations. in some cases they may have a skills mismatch. they may have been doing a certain job for 20 years, suddenly they lose that job, they may be an older worker, may have to get retrained. it's hard. sometimes employers will discriminate if you have been out of work for a while. they decide, well, we are not sure we want to hire you. we would rather hire somebody who is still working right now. it's hard out there. there are a lot of friends, a lot of our neighbors who have lost their jobs and they are working their tails off every single day trying to find a new job. as the job market keeps getting better, more and more of these folks will find work. but in the meantime, the insurance keeps them from falling off a cliff. it makes sure they can pay their car note to go to that interview. it makes sure they can pay their cell phone bills so that if somebody calls back for an interview they can answer it. and catherine explained this. catherine in the letter she wrote to me said, that the folks really think that cutting this benefit will make someone hire me? that's not how employers are thinking. so letting unemployment insurance expire for millions of americans is wrong. congress should make things right. i'm very appreciative they are on their way to doing just that thanks to the bipartisan work of two senators. a democrat from rhode island, senator reid, and conservative republican from nevada, senator heller. despite their political differences they worked together on a plan fix. unemployment insurance for at least three months temporarily while we figure out a longer term solution. this morning a bipartisan majority of senators agreed to allow this commonsense provision to at least move forward in the process. the senate's a complicated place so just because they agreed on this vote, all they have agreed to so far is we are going to be able to have a vote on it. they haven't actually passed it. so we've got to get this across the finish line without obstruction or delay, and we need the house of representatives to be able to vote for it as well. [applause] that's the bottom line. voting for unemployment insurance helps people and creates jobs. and voting against it does not. congress should pass this bipartisan plan right away and i will sign it right away. and more than one million americans throughout the country will feel a little hope right away. and hope is contagious. [applause] when catherine has a bit more confidence about her situation, when she finds a job, she's going to be able to help somebody down the line, maybe who is also down on their luck. when congress passes a bipartisan effort starting here, right at the beginning of the new year, who knows, we might actually get some things done this year. after all the hard work and sacrifice of the past five years to recover and rebuild from the crisis, i think the american people are really looking forward to 2014 as just a little bit of stability. let's just do the commonsense thing, let's do what's right. we are going to have to see action on the part of congress. and i'll be willing to work with them every step of the way. action to help our businesses create more of the good jobs that a growing middle class requires. action to restore economic mobility, action to open more doors of opportunity for everybody who is willing to work hard and walk through those doors. when i was listening to catherine i was just so struck by her strength and dignity and i think people when they bump into some tough times like catherine, they are not looking for pity, they just want a shot. and they just want to feel as if -- [applause] they just want to feel as if, you know what, as a part of this country, as a part of their communities, when misfortune shows, all the things that they have done in the past, all the hard work they have done raising children and paying taxes and working hard, that counts for something. that folks aren't suddenly just going to dismiss their concerns, but they are going to rally behind them. that's not too much to ask. that's who we are as americans. that's what built this country. [applause] that's what i want the most. thank you very much, everybody. let's get to work. let's get this done. i appreciate it. [applause] on c-span, senator lisa murkowski called for an end to the decades-old ban on domestic crude oil exports. later, a look at federal investments in green energy technology. >> coming up on the next washington journal, representative barbara lee from california ways to reduce inequality. after that, luke messer of indiana with the republican take on the issue. the spotlight on magazines features the christian science monitor on her piece about democrats' plan to highlight income inequality in 2014. "washington journal" is live every morning it c-span. >> wednesday morning, thomas donohue gives his annual state of american business speech. you can see it live starting at 9:30 a.m. on c-span three. later, the receipt -- release of university ofe virginia. that is also on c-span three. >> if i were to identify -- identify the single most important challenge to overcome muslims, it would be the notion that -- is just as available. i read somewhere that it is no -- not only a historical but anti-historical. hundreds of years of diversity. it subscribes to be i give it to be a muslim you just have to first its edicts from the , seventh century and the very lifted short. of time. i think our journey as american muslims has to be about refusing being told by clerics who speak and itshat islam, ideals, is a seventh century reality. muslims whocans and need an islam of the 21st century. >> being muslim in america. onday night at 9:00 "afterwards." we will be discussing "the liberty amendment." read the book and join the conversation. go to book tv.org and click on book club to enter the chat room. >> senate energy and natural committee resources member lisa murkowski called for an end to the decades-old ban on domestic crude oil exports. senator murkowski spoke at the brookings institution about domestic energy policy. this is just under one hour. >> welcome to brookings. i am the managing director here. we are delighted that we are joined today by senator murkowski. one of my favorite johnny cash songs growing up was called springtime in alaska. the chorus he sings, when it's springtime in alaska, it's 40 below. by that standard, it is downright balmy in washington dc. we are delighted that senator murkowski is here today. we dialed up some summer weather for her. i'm sure she is wondering what the big deal is all about. the senator is the top republican on the senate energy committee. from the largest state in the nation, nearly as big a territory west of the mississippi, she thinks an large terms about issues like energy. and she has a big track record on this issue. we are here to discuss the implications on the domestic economy on our national security and energy security. and with the polar vortex being all the rage, we almost forgot about the polarization that chills washington. in that sense, senator murkowski is a particularly important voice because of her ability to walk across party lines. she is a republican senator from a west coast state and one of the three senators elected to a write-in ballot. she speaks to a groundswell of support for pragmatism. she has exhibited the presence of mind that we hope makes her feel warm at brookings today on a cold day. she has been a consistent supporter of pragmatic energy policy. that means taking a stand on subsidies for oil and also the right kind of investment and infrastructure policies that connect us to the wider world. she understands the wider world of energy and economy. increasingly natural gas and renewable production across the country. she has been a supporter of oil production in alaska and also the outer continental gas leasing. she understands it borders canada to the east and as sarah palin reminded us, russia to the west. she is focused on the role exports can play on economic benefits and the impact on energy prices, reduction, and production,n, -- and the broader economy back at home. these issues are all worth re- examining. we are really delighted that senator murkowski is here to have a conversation with us about these topics today. as americans consume less oil but produce more of it, it is a good time to revisit energy policy. it is also about what happens when we use it and the environmental consequences. in that sense, senator murkowski is a terrific guest for us. on a day when many of us are wishing for a little bit more climate change and warming around here, we also look ahead to a coming january weekend where temperatures are predicted to be back in the 60s. understanding the science is real but also emerging and evolving, the senator has supported energy efficiency legislation and a greater understanding of the need to adapt to a warmer world. talking about the fact that one of her favorite ski resorts near anchorage is starting to lose its base at the bottom. at the same time, she is focused on making sure it does not burden middle-class families unduly. she has been firm asking other countries to take a similar stand when dealing with carbon emissions. we look forward to hearing from senator murkowski on how our country will answer these important questions about the changing global energy landscape. with that, we are delighted to have senator murkowski. [applause] >> thank you for the introduction. those of you that might be standing in the back, these are seats up front. it is not like church. i am pleased to see so many of you here this morning, very grateful for the brookings institution for the opportunity to be here today on a good brisk washington morning. i'm not going to comment on the weather other to say we will take that polar vortex back. we like it cold and we want to keep it that way. if you don't like it, send it back north where it belongs. i would like to go straight to the heart of the matter that i wish to discuss with you today. and this is where we are as a nation when it comes to our energy production. according to the energy information administration, last july saw energy production reach over seven quadrillion btu. this is the highest monthly total on record. let me repeat that. we are producing more energy today than ever before in this country. and this dramatic increase in production from all sources of energy has resulted in a dramatic sea change in our nation's energy trade. in the process, we are creating jobs and lowering prices. think about where we are right now. we are selling coal to the netherlands, morocco, and germany. fuel to france, chile, and argentina. gasoline to columbia, brazil, and panama. jet fuel to britain, israel, and nigeria. natural gas to canada and mexico. and natural gas liquids to honduras and aruba. i know that you probably know these facts well and i did not come here today to simply recite facts. as good as this story is, these developments have transpired in spite of the federal government, not because of it as the president seems to imply. the rules of engagement on energy trade were written long ago for a now bygone world in which scarcity, not abundance, where the prevailing mindset. a hodgepodge of regulations has accumulated over the better part of a century. kind of like barnacles on the hull of the ship. let me briefly sketch out the maze we are dealing with here. the state department reviews cross-border oil pipelines such as keystone xl, but petroleum products like crude oil and the energy department grants export licenses. but the commerce department permits exports of natural gas liquid. and the federal energy regulatory commission regulates cross-border natural gas pipelines. coal and renewable energy products flow with ease while nuclear exports are tightly regulated as they should be. even many professionals and the energy sector are unaware the role that agencies play in this area. the export bank that overseas private investment corporation and the trade and development agency, other entities all advance the u.s. energy trade. in legal terms, what we are talking about are laws such as the natural gas act of 1938. the atomic energy act of 1954. the energy policy and conservation act of 1975 and executive orders that stretch all the way back to the eisenhower administration. at a recent workshop at the center for strategic international studies, they encouraged participants to think about the regulation of energy exports in terms of the underlying chemistry. the chemical formulation for methane is ch four. you have one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms. this natural gas can be sold to canada and mexico through pipelines without much of a regulatory hurdle. but if you want to build a facility that liquefies gas for seaborne transport to japan, then you need a license from the energy department to export it and another approval to build your facility. that process can take years. if you are determined to build a facility, you are in luck. go to australia and get involved with one of the liquefaction projects that our government is helping finance over there. on the other hand, if you take a methane molecule and you attach four more hydrogen atoms, giving you c3h8, known as propane, they will grant you a next or license license without much of a delay at all. but don't fiddle with the formula too much or you might end up with a barrel of crude oil, the export of which is generally prohibited unless you can process it through a refinery, in which case you can export it as diesel. you can also ship the crude to canada where apparently the laws of chemistry don't apply. the regulatory edifice that governs the export of american - made energy is antiquated and at times, i would suggest even absurd. while there is no perfection under the sun, we surely can do better than this. today, i am releasing a white paper. this is the second i have released, a signal to the world. renovating the architecture of u.s. energy exports. it follows on the energy 2020 blueprint and the paper i released last year that was about this time last year that i had the opportunity to release energy 2020. we have since done one white paper. it there will be a third coming out soon. i have two goals with this particular paper. the first is to highlight the facts. consensus about the fax is the basis for productive dialogue. my second goal is to help frame a conversation about the state of u.s. energy exports. the architecture of the energy trade. and although certain aspects of the energy export stories have been in the public eye for quite some time now, i am not aware of another report that shows the full picture through a single lens. and i am releasing reports from the nonpartisan congressional research service, some of which is not generally available about various aspects of the u.s. energy trade. the facts tell me that we must modernize the regulations that govern energy exports, demonstrating to the world that we are committed to leading on issues of energy, the environment, and trade. i am not proposing comprehensive energy export legislation. i believe the executive branch has the statutory authority to implement most of these ideas on its own. and if the president does need help from the legislative branch, the targeted bills to move the ball forward as needed. i wanted to address several key principles here. assessing the architecture that we are talking about here, particularly where we have seen exports banned. the second principle is really to do no harm where the regulations that we have in place are working. and the third principle is to look to efficiencies within our regulatory framework and see if we can't work to do better. first, there are parts of this antiquated architecture where exports are effectively banned. i think we should think carefully about the conditions in which those bands were put into effect and consider whether or not they still serve the public interest, if they ever did. two energy sources in this area come to mind. that is crude oil and condensate. i raised the prospect of crude oil exports this past summer at the annual conference. and at the time, i said that the debate could come sooner than expected. here we are today. the basics are pretty simple. the shale plays in the balkans are yielding l.t.o., light tight oil. a refining capacity is concentrated in the gulf coast and is geared primarily toward heavier grades of crude. at ihs global and elsewhere, various mechanisms exist for moving it out into the market. it can be shipped to lighter- grade refineries on the east coast or blend with heavier grades, it can be shipped to canada. refineries can also be modified to accommodate lighter grays. -- lighter grades. with minimal exceptions. the export of crude oil is prohibited by law. it is my understanding that we are exporting about 65,000 barrels a day to canada. that is essentially it. there will come a time, however, when we will have an unsustainable glut of light crude. it may be next year. it might be sooner than that. the free market works wonders, but it can't work magic here. condensate is a byproduct of oil and gas production. these hydrocarbons come out of plays like the eagle furred. they can be refined and exported as natural gas liquids, but otherwise, trade is prohibited. most commentators assume that congress and the administration will be slow to address this issue. opponents of oil exports will raise the specter of rising gasoline prices, i think to scare off elected officials. as many of you here in this room, i have spent at least a good several months thinking about this export issue. the point of deliberation is eventually to arrive at an answer. hung juries may be the default in washington but they don't sell well in alaska. i am calling for ending the prohibition on crude oil and condensate exports. the current system is inefficient and may lead to supply disruptions that we can ill afford. lifting the ban will send a strong signal to the energy markets that as a nation, we are serious. we are serious of the emerging role as an emerging hydrocarbon producer. i believe the administration retains enough statutory authority to help lift the ban on its own. the president has the authority to declare it in the national interest to lift the ban, and another path is for the department of commerce to approve an application for crude oil or condensate under a provision in the law permitting the application. if it can be demonstrated that those fuels cannot reasonably be marketed here in the united states. a mismatch in our nation's refining capacity has already emerged and common sense suggests that the mismatch should meet these qualifications. if the administration is unwilling to act on its own or if that statutory authority needs further modification, i am prepared to introduce legislation to modernize the laws. opponents of trade will be quick to assert too often without citing evidence that exports of crude oil will raise gasoline prices for american consumers. this claim is wrong and must be dealt with immediately and head on. i have said repeatedly and i firmly mean it that the goal must be to make energy more affordable. if we want to bring down gasoline prices, then we should be opening up federal land to energy production, not closing them off. i can think of a few places in alaska that could be opened up immediately for new oil production that would help to lower gasoline prices. small but rising amounts of crude are already being exported to canada. it is permitted by statute. but we have seen no crisis in gasoline prices here at home as a consequence of that. modernizing the export architecture would reduce volatility by making them more efficient. we don't see a looming run on the crude oil bank out there. lifting the prohibition on crude oil exports will serve to increase to mastic oil -- domestic oil production, and the entry of this oil onto the global markets will put downward pressure on international prices. all things equal, this combination will help the american consumer. i want to be abundantly clear this morning. the status quo, in my view, is not beneficial to the american people. i believe that we need to act before the crude oil export ban causes problems in the u.s. oil production which will raise prices and therefore hurt american jobs. the second principle that i mentioned is doing no harm. it is important that we do no harm. these are the areas where regulatory review is already effectively streamlined. exports appear to be keeping pace in world markets and although efforts to forestall this expansion must be opposed, i also see no problem with the regulatory structures surrounding renewables. the commerce department already covers those and i believe is doing a commendable job. the third principle is we should be looking for efficiencies in areas where existing regulation could be more effectively implemented. so whether the state department is the appropriate agency in which to vest authority for cross-border oil pipelines is certainly a fair question to ask. the course of the review of the keystone xl has been counterproductive and i think it is unduly straining our relationship with canada. the department of energy's slow walking is another area that i think is worthy of examination. the secretary appears to have quickened the pace of approvals which i appreciate, but the queue is still quite full. licenses still take far too long to review, especially when, as appropriate, the project still must go through a rigorous safety review. the u.s. has long been a leader in the nuclear technology trade. i am particularly excited about modular reactors that have received a great deal of attention in terms of research and development. current designs will provide strong nuclear safeguards and maintain our commitment to international security. renovating our export architecture, it will strengthen our global posture and send a strong signal to the world that must be heard. already, you have policymakers. in tokyo and new delhi, they watch. in budapest and moscow, they wonder about the potential. it is hard to put a price on that. inaction also has a cost. failing to renovate the crude oil export architecture could very well lead to disruptions in supply and production. ultimately, we can only have this conversation because of our energy research and an opportunity born of technological prowess and true american grit. american-made energy is the safest and most environmentally responsible energy on earth. and if any nation is exporting energy to the world, wringing -- bringing electricity to those without power, heat to those in the cold, the united states should be that leader. with that, i thank you for the opportunity to present our thoughts with you and share my new white paper on the energy architecture. i am happy to take questions about where we may go from here. [applause] >> that was a terrific and provocative set of questions and comments. the white paper is quite an important piece of work that covers a wide range of sectors, as did your remarks. i want to introduce charles, the senior fellow at brookings and head of our energy security initiative. charlie will ask a question and i will give one myself. then we will turn it over to the audience. >> thank you for one of the most important speeches i have heard in washington in a long time. the complex regulatory process you outlined is probably not known to everyone in this room and certainly not to all your fellow members on capitol hill. i think you have done a great service by doing this and i would like to recognize your staff members that coordinated with my own staff putting this event together. a lot of hard work went into making this happen. let me begin by asking an unfair question. each energy source is different and probably requires different regulatory processes. would you see any merit in the gambit of federal regulations governing the approval of various export projects for putting a reasonable timeframe on the regulatory process by which the federal agencies would have to come up with a yes or no answer rather than this great limbo we sometimes see? >> i think it is one of those areas that we can look to for a possible solution to the delay, the impasse, the lack of certainty that you have within the industry. one of the things that we recognize in washington dc is when we don't have certainty within our policies. it costs dollars, jobs, and it costs us when it comes to competitiveness. and we think about ways we can improve the regulatory process, a reasonable timeline to me is one area we can and should be looking to. you have to recognize that there may be situations where you have to extend it out. that you have to do a bypass, if you will. for instance, within the approval process for the export license, there is no certainty whatsoever out there. it could be one month, two months, two years. it could be never. and in the meantime, you have investors that are waiting. you have those seeking these jobs, those that are looking for the products to purchase, but no certainty within our process. i think it is one of those areas we should look to to provide a little bit more certainty. >> i was struck in your remarks that you took a step back from calling for comprehensive legislation, and really calling for executive action in some of these regards. it makes me wonder how you see the broader political landscape, a sense of caution and not high expectations for what can get accomplished 18 blocks east of here. >> let me remind you that on tuesday, the first workday back in january of 2014, shall i tell you, let the races begin. we are already in the full campaign season in terms of the 113th congress. and when that happened, it is just more difficult to advance legislation. and not only move it through one body, but through both and get it signed by the president. i am trying to be practical about where we are. and as we have looked at this issue, i have suggested in my comments that we are prepared to introduce legislation if necessary. i am not certain it is absolutely necessary. i do believe that the authority currently resides with the executive branch, that they can make these actions and the national best interest and within the department of commerce. it takes initiative by the executive to do just that. if they need encouragement, i am happy to provide that. i think it is also fair to recognize some of the acts have been around since the 30s, the 50s, the mid 70's. in fairness, it is appropriate to review these to see if they are as current as they need to be. my suggestion is that they are not. maybe we approach on two fronts. maybe we advance legislation that will allow for modernization while encouraging the administration to act on its own with the authority that they currently have. >> ladies and gentlemen, the floor is open and we ask that you identify yourself when you ask a question and please ask a question. we will go here. and please speak up because this room has terrible acoustics. >> in the natural gas export discussion, there has been a balance between natural gas and the benefits of using more natural gas. i am wondering, what are your views exporting more crude and perhaps increasing fighting in united states, taking more advantage of capacity to -- >> i think we can do more to increase the refining capacity. we have seen those adjustments, if you will, the reconfiguration within many of our refineries to accommodate that light type of oil. i think we get to a point where it is this mismatch i have talked about where we are not able to gain alignment because we cannot continue with the retrofit of those refineries. we've got to be honest in terms of our ability to bring new refineries online. last time we had a refinery built in this country was decades ago. i think we've got to be cognizant of that. in terms of doing more to build out the value added products for export, we have certainly seen that in this country. and it got the attention of many in this country who did not understand how much we actually export in terms of those value added products. >> so when i'm talking about the ability to export our crude, i think it's important to recognize when we are talking about an all of the above energy policy, i would like to see it relate to all forms of our energy products, whether it comes from crude oil, from natural gas, from renewables, the are fined products that we are able to do. let's allow for a level of trade that is full and across the board. can we be doing more to create jobs here in this country capacity r refining and advancing value added products? yes. but will we be able to do even more as we increase production domestically, increase the opportunity for jobs, work to addresou

Transcripts For CSPAN Key Capitol Hill Hearings 20140108

Transcripts For CNNW CNN Newsroom With Victor Blackwell And Christi Paul 20160618

he looks like he's taking the republican party with him. >> good morning to you, i'm victor blackwell live in orlando. >> good morning, victor, i'm christi paul here in atlanta. and also ahead for you this hour, the fight to kick isis out of fallujah. the iraqi city that's witnessed so much bloodshed since saddam hussein has ousted. our ben wedeman has been to the center of the city within the last couple of hours to see the war of terror firsthand. >> i can hear the thump of artillery, incoming artillery rounds within the city itself. and we're also hearing the occasional crackle of small arms fire. so even though iraqi officials are very eager to announce that the city is nearly liberated, it does appear there are battles ongoing. >> . we'll take you back to that in a moment. the first of several funerals today for the victims of sunday's shooting massacre is happening right now. at this moment family, friends and i'm sure a few strangers who just want to show their support for 21-year-old cory james connell. they're being walked down to the facility to begin to say their final good-byes. cory was a student at valencia community college. he wanted to be a firefighter. he was one of 49 people gunned down overnight sunday in a terrorist attack on pulse nightclub. now the tragedy is sparking an outpouring of support for the lgbt community here in orlando. exactly what that shooter probably did not want to happen is happening now. bringing the city closer together. and joining me now, patty sheehan, central florida's first openly gay commissioner here in orlando. and we have blue star who worked at pulse nightclub for six years. you, too, have hugged four or five times just stance standing here. >> this is the first time we've seen even other since this happened. we live in different places, and we're good friends. >> had you several friends who were there. >> yes. >> that night. likely lost some friends. >> yes. >> what are you hearing, what are you feeling a block from the club. >> i sit here two days ago and i have to tell you standing here two days later, it gives me the same feeling. i walked away from this site two days ago, with maybe the heaviest heart i've ever had in my entire life. i have concern for my friends, i have concern for the city. i have concern for our patrons. i have concern once all of this is said and done, and we start to try to act as a community again, how it's going to affect people. because the effect is -- is really strong. even standing here with you right now. >> but i think it's up to us, victor and blue, i think it's up to us and orlando to say that we are not going to allow this hatred and discrimination that created this young monster, that did this horrible crime, to permeate our community and to have a lasting effect. because i think that is the best way for us to heal as a community. i keep saying it. i understand this was horrible. and you know, people say how could you still have faith during this horrible, horrible time this is the time when you have to have faith. you have to come together and you have to say -- i love. >> does it last? because unfortunately i've stood in this position doing a similar show in different cities across the country, and five days later, six days later -- this is what we hear. five or six months, does this last? >> they ticked off gait community. we were the ones who put a face to aids and fought discrimination in people that were dying and got federal funding put in place over tremendous odds. we are the people who have fought for our jobs, we fought discrimination for so many years. they unloaded on the wrong, they unloaded their guns on the wrong community. >> let me ask you, you've been hosting fundraisers, putting together care packages. how are you? how is this community? give us some of the specifics to beginning the healing process. >> i was thinking today where everybody was in the healing process and how last night we had an event and everybody danced as a part of healing and how amazing that was for five minutes just to not think about the outside world. and when i got done with that moment, i thought about these victims and families that were still in the hospital and when that time of the healing process was going to start for them and how the variation of where we're all going to be as time goes by is going to shift and change so much. as how do we connect and we do that because of the community support that we've already gotten. and i keep telling everybody, this is a marathon, not a race. when you tell me that you want to be a volunteer, i'm going to call you in three months, i'm going to call you in six months, i'm going to call you a year from now and i expect you to stand up the same way that you did this past week. >> you worked at the club, so you know the owner, you know the owner very well, commissioner sheehan. will pulse reopen? >> there's been, i've heard people and they've been critical of that. and i understand barbara's commitment to reopen it. she wanted to do it for her brother who died of aids. she wanted people to have a nice place to go. and now she says that it's going to be the pulse of not just one, but 49 additional people. a pulse of 50. and i respect that. and i think that this community will support her as she rebuilds. and i think as the business district will support her as she rebuilds. i do not think that there's going to be, there will be critics, there's critics on everything. there have been critics of -- i got criticized because i didn't say magazine instead of clip. i said 49 people are dead -- that's the stupid stuff you're focusing on? there's going to be critics, but there's people lined up downtown to buy one orlando shirts. >> the decal is all over the mall. in every restaurant, every convenience store you go to. something that i'm hearing now, maybe it's uniquely southern or something that is happening after this tragedy. when you say good-bye people say have a good day. be safe. >> and they add that on the end. you talk about the healing, both of you, part of it going to be financial support. there's the one orlando fund that's gained nearly $8 million from individuals and corporations. >> something they've realized through this process that we never had before, a lot of these young men and women were the primary breadwinners for their families, they were sending money home to their families from other countries. these are the first funerals, people have gone to funerals in other places, puerto rico, guatemala. there's so many countries that these young people -- >> that support will be important as we move forward. >> we've got to figure out a way to get this to these parents who were supported by these kids. they were good kids, they were sending money home to their families. >> it's not just friends and family, it's the colleagues and the people you had dinner with. and -- people around the community. this is a community that's real and blue star, commissioner sheehan, thank you so much for being here this morning. >> thank you so much for supporting the community. as family and friends gather in orlando this is the scene we've seen on air with these two and in quiet moments across the city, they may not say it out loud, but you know why it's happening. authorities are still on the scene trying to piece together the killer's motive. i want to bring in paolo sandoval, who has been following the investigation. some things we've learned make it clear that this was a man setting up a few elements, preparing to die. >> victor, in order for investigators to track down and find that motive that you mentioned, they have to retrace some of the steps of the killer and that includes taking a closer look at some acts that could be considered suspicious. for example, the suspect, at least investigators believe he gave his wife access to his bank account in the days leading up to the shooting. they also believe that he added her name to the insurance policy that he held. and the things we learned, that he attempted to purchase large amounts of ammunition, he tried to purchase body armor and then also the facebook messages that not only show him going on a rant. but also even threatening an attack. all of that now has to be evidence to be weighed by investigators. and finally you have the surveillance video. law enforcement video telling my colleague pamela brown, that investigators have obtained the surveillance video from the inside of the pulse nightclub, which will obviously be very disturbing, but nonetheless, it will provide a crucial window into what happened in there. investigators will able to see with their own eyes which, where the killer went. who he targeted specifically. so again, or if he targeted anybody specifically. again this is all the evidence that continues to surface now. victor, seven days into the investigation as the community continues to heal. and as you just learned from that conversation from with the two incredible individuals, healing will happen. it's going to take time. >> all right, polo sandoval reporting this morning, thank you so much. christi will continue our coverage now as the funerals continue here. and i understand they'll continue throughout the week. and into next weekend. we'll be back here live in orlando. back to you in atlanta. victor, thank you so much. we appreciate it. meanwhile, we're learning that isis is losing ground in iraq. the iraqi prime minister saying fallujah is nearly free of isis militants. cnn takes you to the scene of this fierce fighting where we have been witnessing the war on terror firsthand. viagra single packs... so guys with ed can... take viagra when they need it. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain or adempas® for pulmonary hypertension. your blood pressure could drop to an unsafe level. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate 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your doctor of new or worsening problems, including headaches, seizures, confusion and vision problems these may be signs of a rare, potentially fatal brain condition. some serious allergic reactions can occur. do not take stelara® if you are allergic to stelara® or any of its ingredients. most people using stelara® saw 75% clearer skin and the majority were rated as cleared or minimal at 12 weeks. be the you who talks to your dermatologist about stelara®. effective at a cellular level. improve joint comfort. cosamin. for joint health, it's time to start believing again. it is a major blow to isis control in iraq. for the first time in two years the iraqi flag is flying over fallujah this morning. the prime minister saying the city is nearly free of isis control. the country's military now patrolling the streets. fighting back the small pockets of isis militants who have still there. our ben wedeman is live on the outskirts of fallujah, ben, you went into the city center just a few hours ago. what did you see? >> well we're back in baghdad. what we saw is that if they are pockets, there are lots of pockets. and those pockets are pretty deep. we were on one of the main streets in downtown fallujah and what we heard was essentially a big battle to the left of us. a large exchange of gunfire just up the street from us. and to the right, there was also an intense exchange of gunfire. so certainly there is still quite a lot of resistance by isis within the city. and there's no question about that. and in fact, when we left fallujah and stopped on the outside of the city, we saw two incoming mortar rounds exploding just about 300 meters or yards away from us. so definitely we saw a lot of iraqi troops, federal police and army within the city. moving around in humvees, but they still seem to be running into a fair bit of resistance. what we did not see, christine, was a single civilian. they seem to have fled the city. or some of them may have been, may have pulled back with isis. more important to keep in mind, they may have been forced to pull back with isis. we know that isis has been using civilians as human shields. and there have been quite a few civilian casualties in recent days, as a result of them being caught in the crossfire as this battle rages on. >> when we hear about the fact that fallujah is now essentially almost in iraqi hands, i know there are real concerns. you talked about earlier, regarding ieds and car bombs that may be left behind. so the city is far from secure, so to speak, would that be correct? >> that would be very correct, christine. it's not secure. certainly it will be weeks if not months before civilians can move back. for one thing, there's a fair amount of destruction from all the bombardment that went on before iraqi forces went into the city. and of course, since the fighting has raged in the streets. so yes, there's ieds, there's car bombs still in the city according to iraqi officials. and what we've seen in other cities, like ramadi and other city in anbar province, not far from fallujah, there's a big gap between when isis is essentially defeated in a city, and months before civilians can actually move back, if they can move back at all. because many of them, their homes are utterly destroyed. the possessions oftentimes looted. so it's one thing to actually crush isis in a city like fallujah. it's a completely other thing before people can actually move back. >> very good point, thank you for giving us the sense of what's really happening there. ben wedeman. do stay safe to you and your crew there, thank you. meanwhile i know you've been watching the story all week, the family whose little boy was killed by an alligator at disney world. we learned that the family is back in nebraska and near talking, bryan gingras following that story. the wall street disney world company is making progress, making the beaches safer. we'll have the latest on that. mobility is very important to me. that's 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strength and energy to do what you love. new ensure enlive. always be you. well the family of that little boy who was killed by a gaiter in orlando has released a statement this morning. they're thanking everyone for their support. they're asking for privacy as you can imagine. as they take on the difficult task of burying their 2-year-old son, lane graves, who you see here. bryan gingras is following the story from orlando. good morning, bryan. >> christi, good morning to you. can you imagine how overwhelming of an experience of emotions this family is feeling at this point. that's right. they did ask for privacy while they are sort of grieving through this process. and they have received a lot of support. even when they returned home to nebraska, their house, there were blue bows on it from their neighbors, in that statement they wanted to thank the people who have lent that emotional support to them. it's melissa and matt graves. the statement in part read, melissa and i continue to deal with the loss our beloved boy, lane and are overwhelmed with the support and love we have received from family and friends in our community as well as from around the country. so certainly they are grateful. but they have a long road ahead. meanwhile, here at walt disney world, the employees are making progress and trying to make this area safer for not only its employees, but also of course, their guests, so an incident like this does not happen again. and they are putting up signs that we have seen, cnn crews gotten video of and many of them, four different messages, danger, alligators and snakes in the area, stay away from the water. do not feed the wildlife. these are sort of the signages and fences that we're seeing be put up across some of the properties here. also we're told employees are telling their guests, their employees, instructing them about the dangers that do exist on the properties and to be a little bit more aware. christi. >> we know a lot of people have been saying, if you're from florida, you're aware of the dangers. but let's face it disney world is a place that people from around the world a people come to visit. so not everybody is cognizant of that. i'm wondering how expansive are these signs? are they going to be around all of the water, the water places? the ponds? the lakes in disney? >> it's a great point, christi. i'm from connecticut, i just think of alligators in swamps, you don't think of them necessarily being in manmade lakes. disney responsibility for that, putting up more signage. we're told by a spokesperson, they've been able to hit nine of their waterfront and beach properties, there's about two dozen they would like to get to. they're making progress on this. but it is a process. and it is continuing at this point in the morning. >> all right. brynn gingras, thank you so much. now as the push for gun control gross louder after the orlando attack, a constitutional law professor says it's time to repeal the second amendment. he's sharing his thoughts with us next. among paints was such a jewel that you had to seek it out. nope, even easier than that. more like taking a left on that street where you usually take a right that wasn't so hard. and if finding that paint made you and your walls beam with pride, is it still paint? benjamin moore. paint like no other. find one of our 5,000 authorized retailers near you. be the you who doesn't cover your moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. be the you who shows up in that dress. who hugs a friend. who is done with treatments that don't give you clearer skin. be the you who controls your psoriasis with stelara® just 4 doses a year after 2 starter doses. stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections and cancer. some serious infections require hospitalization. before treatment, get tested for tuberculosis. before starting stelara® tell your doctor if you think you have an infection or have symptoms such as: fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. always tell your doctor if you have any signs of infection, have had cancer, if you develop any new skin growths or if anyone in your house needs or has recently received a vaccine. alert your doctor of new or worsening problems, including headaches, seizures, confusion and vision problems these may be signs of a rare, potentially fatal brain condition. some serious allergic reactions can occur. do not take stelara® if you are allergic to stelara® or any of its ingredients. most people using stelara® saw 75% clearer skin and the majority were rated as cleared or minimal at 12 weeks. be the you who talks to your dermatologist about stelara®. the possibility of a flare was almost always on my mind. thinking about what to avoid, where to go... and how to deal with my uc. to me, that was normal. until i talked to my doctor. she told me that humira helps people like me get uc under control and keep it under control when certain medications haven't worked well enough. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. raise your expectations. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, control is possible. welcome back. i'm victor blackwell live in orlando. and the first of several funerals today for the victims of sunday's shooting massacre is happening right now. family and friends of 21-year-old cory james connell, saying their final good-byes, cory was a student at valencia community college. we understand that he wanted to be a firefighter. he was one of 49 people gunned down overnight sunday in a terrorist attack at pulse nightclub. the tragedy sparked an outpouring of support for the lgbt community here in orlando. and is bringing the city, we see little vignettes of this every day, closer together. well this morning president obama is using his weekly address to reflect on the massacre here in orlando. after comforting the families of victims of another mass shooting this week, president obama is sharpening his rhetoric, calling for action on gun control legislation. >> so this past week i've also thought a lot about dads and moms around the country who have had to explain to their children what happened in orlando. time and again, we've observed moments of silence for victims of terror. and gun violence. too often those moments have been followed by months of silence. by inaction, that is simply inexcusable. if we're going to raise our kids in a safer, more loving world, we need to speak up for it. we need our kids to hear us speak up about the risks guns pose to our communities. >> their vote scheduled monday in the senate on four gun control measures, but successful passage of any of them right now appears unlikely. now on the campaign trail, donald trump has accused hillary clinton of wanting to repeal the second amendment. now she has never said that. but this morning i have with me someone who is saying just that. david cohen, a constitutional law professor at drexel university. professor, good morning to you. >> good morning. >> so you wrote in "rolling stone," let's put it up on the screen, the second amendment needs to be repealed because it is outdated. a threat to liberty and a suicide pact. now you laid out the argument that the constitution has been updated several times. you've said that in the past that the founding fathers have made mistakes. let me ask you this. even some of the most ardent supporters of gun control measures don't go as far as you go. they don't go beyond the background checks and banning specific types of semiautomatic rifles. why do you go to the repeal of the sond amendment? >> when something is written into the constitution as a right, we elevate it in our society as something beyond the democratic process. if we talk about it as a constitutional right, it's better than everything else. and i think it should be taken out of the constitution and made just like every other consumer good. that doesn't mean i think they should be banned everywhere. it just should be subject to votes. and democracy. and when we have a constitutional right, that takes it off the table. >> okay, so in this post second amendment america who then, from your perspective has the right to own a weapon? and is it every weapon? or just specific types of weapons? >> well that's the thing. taking it out of the constitution doesn't answer that question. it just says let's talk about it now, just like we talk about cars, like we talk about -- [ inaudible ] [ inaudible ] and think about the benefits and the risks. and sometimes that means maybe in nebraska, we're going to have a different rule than in new york. or we might have a federal rule. but we're going to subject it to democracy. now to be honest, if it were up to me, i would be on the side of banning almost all guns. but i'm willing to take that to the democratic process. but not against a constitutional right. when it's a constitutional right, it takes it out of the hands of democracy, and says this is off the table. and it's the only consumer good that we have that is listed in the constitution. i think it has to go. >> which also opponents of your position means that it needs to be protected. but let me say this -- that the supreme court has already spoken here through heller and mcdonald v. the city of chicago. so that's been spoken on by the judicial branch. i want to hear from a former navy s.e.a.l. on behalf of the nra, on this. this was posted to their youtube channel just after the shooting here in orlando. he speaks about the ar-15 specifically. >> i guarantee if the founding fathers had known this gun would have been invent, they wouldn't have rewritten the second amendment. they would have fortified it in stone because they knew the only way for us to stay free, was by having whatever guns the bad guys have. this firearm gives average people the advantage they so desperately need and deserve. so protect their life, liberty and happiness. >> well you say that the founding fathers likely made a mistake. they could not have known about these types of weapons. the former navy s.e.a.l. says they would have fortified that right. what's your response to his saying this is the only way that people stay free? >> i mean, there's a cost/benefit analysis here. some people think that guns make them safer. but i think the evidence that we've seen over the past several years, with mass shootings, seemingly every week, of children, of churchgoers, of people out at a nightclub having fun and expressing themselves -- to me that cost is too high. and i don't think the faunding fathers had any conception of what society would be like today. and at this point in time, maybe they were right in 1791, i can't say about that. i wasn't there. but i can say that in 2016 that evaluation is wrong. and it needs to go. they had no sense of what societies today would be like. and the constitution allows for it to be changed. it's time to change it. >> the constitution allow force the repeal of amendments, we saw it with the 18th and several other elements of the constitution being changed. over the past several centuries. but let me ask you this, do you believe, and i want to know if we're having a theoretical conversation, or if you actually believe that the second amendment can and will be repealed. because after sandy hook, i mean if the white house and those who support gun control measures couldn't get background checks, universal background checks passed after that, do you really expect that this conversation will lead to some type of repeal sm some movement to repeal the second amendment? or is this just a theoretical conversation? >> i think it can. i mean look, if there weren't another mass shooting, ever again in our history, no i don't think anything would happen. but unfortunately what we're seeing is that this happens time and time again with victims that just are being slaughtered. and i think that there's a majority of people in the country who feel that they're fed up. who are being silenced by the nra. who are being silenced by those who take to the air waves and threaten violence about guns. and i think there's a majority who believe this. don't get me wrong, this is difficult. the constitutional system to amend the constitution, it takes two-thirds vote in each house of the congress and three-quarters of the states, that's difficult. but i think with enough people speaking up, enough people saying that this part of the constitution is outdated, it's a threat to us, as we saw last weekend. and it's wrong. >> yeah. well professor, 80% to 90% and in some surveys more of americans polled say that they support universal background checks. and those haven't gone anywhere in the past several years. we'll see what the, the chances for, for a repeal of the second amendment. but you've started this conversation, we thank you for being with us here in news room. professor david cohen, thanks so much. and christi, i'll send it back to you in atlanta. >> hey, victor, thank you very much. a man charged with murdering a popular british politician has made his first court appearance this morning. he gave this chilling answer when asked his name. we're going to take you there live. tell you what happened, stay close. 39 minutes past the hour now. disturbing words from a man accused of murdering jo cox. 52-year-old tommy mayer, he appeared in court a few hours ago, when asked for his name in court, he replied quote, my name is death to traitors freedom for britain. >> what have you heard this morning about what happened? >> it took place in london. win minister magistrate's court. the very earliest stages, christi of the proceedings. the first time that 52-year-old tommy mayer had appeared in court since he was charged with murder. causing grievous bodily harm and a variety of other offenses, those charges were laid against him overnight. was then taken to the capital and he appeared in court, those words that he said, britain, death to traitors for the british, they, we can't take too much understanding as to whether this was the deep longstanding political involvement. whether it was right-wing extremism. but it's certainly given the police, a direction if you like of motive. for what was the most dreadful murder of jo cox. and it has clarified other evidence that has been seen. and other facts. for instance, his subscription to right-wing publications. fascist publications, the paraphernalia that's been found in his house, all of these sort of pieces of jigsaws, we had wondered, christi. we had wondered what the motive and what his intention and what his thoughts were. when he appeared in court this morning. we were left in little doubt. >> i know that this has shaken the community there. and when we talk about gun violence here in america, it's very different there in england where you don't see gun violence nearly as often. help us understand what people are, are absorbing there and how they're reacting to this. and any more information as to how he acquired that gun. >> that's one of the acquisition of the gun is one of the things the police has announced yesterday, they're looking into. it was an illegal weapon. it was also apparently a home-made or some form of old weapon. but that's an aside. i don't want to spend too much time talking about mair, we have seen the best and the worst in some cases today. you saw what was happening in the court proceedings. but behind me, this is the memorial, the makeshift memorial. in the last two hours we have seen the family of jo cox who came here, the sister paid respects. publicly saying she was perfect. she was a human being who wanted to help people. saying that no person should ever have to go through what she had to, which was to identify the the body of her slain sister. and then the remarkable part. because at that point the family didn't just disappear off back into homes and houses. they stayed here. they made it quite clear. they were going to stay for a good 15, 20 minutes. because there is a sense of community in this part of england. and in this small west yorkshire town. and for 20 minutes in front of us, they met, friends, relatives, people in the community. that was something quite remarkable and moving on the same day that the man who is alleged to have murdered their daughter appeared in court. >> richard, you put it so beautifully. we hope that that family is feeling a little bit of comfort today as they see all of those people coming out for them. richard quest, live in england, thank you so much. >> money projects have been stalking the olympic games in rio. knick paton walsh is there. >> they've declared a financial calamity here. more after the break. 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>> well it means they're coming to a city with yet another crisis bubbling up to the surface. now this is basically the state government of rio area, where the city of rio de janeiro is located. saying that they need emergency measures. a state of emergency, a financial calamity was the phrase used, we know they've been close to bankruptcy, heavily in debt, $5 billion for quite some time now. that's impacted the hospitals, the olympic tourists may end up using. it has impacted the police's ability to provide security here. we didn't know it was quite that bad, they would suddenly late yesterday, say we need an emergency amount of funding. now local media suggesting there may be something close to $1 billion that may come their way. this may be brinkmanship. it may be local officials trying to get money out of the federal government they know they're in a crisis here in terms of local public services. it brings a real sense of concern about what we may see around olympics themselves. those police and health services and transportation. things that tourists are going to be relying upon and all probably sour the backdrop potentially if things aren't up to scratch. and of course we don't really know exactly what's going on beneath the surface, with olympic finances and the preparation for infrastructure for the olympic games. a subway supposed to go from here behind me to the park itself to take tourists for the games, that's only going to be ready four days before the games actually begins. there are lots of question marks here. when you suddenly get an announcement like this, which i think frankly took many people by surprise, it adds to the climate of uncertainty and unpredictability here. which is the last thing that anyone wants if you're going to spend a lot of money and see athletes compete in what should be a seamlessly organized competition. christi? >> nick paton walsh, thank you so much. don't look for the russian track and field team to compete under the russian flag at the olympics. their ban from international competition has been extended now due to persistent widespread allegations of doping. iaaf say russian track and field athletes may compete in rio as neutral athletes if they can prove they're clean. russian president vladimir putin was kd about alleged doping by fareed zakaria. >> i'm not sure i understand what it it meant. the program made a change in the samples taken for the doping tests. if the samples are taken, they always move to the international organizations and we cannot affect them in any way, they are never stored in the territory of the russian federation, they're going to lausanne or some other city, i don't know. they can be reopened or rechecked by experts. the doping problem is not only related to russia. it is the problem that is relevant for the whole sports world. and if someone is trying to politicize this area, it is a big mistake. let me emphasize, that we've never supported any violations in sports. we have never supported that at the state level. and we will never support this. we will never support any dopings or any other violations in this area and we are going to cooperate with all the international organizations in this regard. >> and you can be sure to watch fareed zakaria's gps special tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. eastern here on cnn. first, though, we want to you meet another of this year's top ten cnn heroes. this is a mom of a child with down's syndrome. helping other people with the condition reach their full potenti potential. >> our kids wear their diagnosis on their face. they're judged from the minute they wake up in the morning, anywhere they go, whatever they do. we do have a lot to prove. we have to show that we can and we will learn to do everything everybody else does, it might just take us a limb bit longer. but we're going to do it and you need to believe in us. >> you can hear the passion in nancy gianni there. how she's changing lives of people with downs syndrome. see more at cnnheroes.com. nominate someone you think should be a 2016 cnn hero. can you vote once a day. and we'll be right back. not to be focusingo finaon my moderatepe. to severe chronic plaque psoriasis. so i made a decision to talk to my dermatologist about humira. humira works inside my body to target and help block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to my symptoms. in clinical trials, most adults taking humira were clear or almost clear, and many saw 75% and even 90% clearance in just 4 months. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask about humira, the #1 prescribed biologic by dermatologists. clearer skin is possible. the horrific story developing in pennsylvania this morning. a man facing a list of charges, including sexual assault after police say he fathered two children with a teenager. and here's the thing -- that teenager was allegedly given to this man as a gift by her parents. even more disturbing was that police found 11 other girls living inside had man's home. they had no birth certificates, they weren't in school. joe holden of our affiliate kyw has more. >> jen betts tells ussis when she saw a stone's throw away from her home that prompted her to call pennsylvania's child line. >> you notice these little girls, only little girls, they would be outside, very sporadically, very rarely you would see one or two. >> this mother's complaint has uncovered a deeply disturbing case. police on thursday removed 12 girls, including an infant they say were living in this house in the 400 block of old street road. they had no birth certificates, weren't enrold in any school. it's alleged this man, lee caplan was gifted the oldest of the girls by her own parents who live in pennsylvania's amish country. today she is 18. they say kaplan began a sexual relationship with her starting when she was 14. police say she gave birth to two of kaplan's children. >> mr. kaplan had her living there as some kind of repayment for a financial situation. >> news of the charges and allegations sent shock waves through this community. >> just amazed. could go go on right under our noses. >> i thought they were part of his family. >> 12 children? >> i never saw that. >> police have charged the couple believed to be the biological mother and father to ten of the girls. arrest papers revealed david and selva stoltsfus, knew their daughter, starting a the 14 years old was engaged in a sexual relationship with kaplan. neighbors tell us they were often curious about living arrange mgts inside the home. >> sometimes there are kids looking at me. i said how many kids he have. >> someone would call jen betts the hero of this story. she says it was just her motherly instinct. >> i just made the call. i just, i don't know. just an instinct. i felt like i wasn't going through another summer where everybody should be outside kind of thing and not see those little girls again. >> listen to your gut. for sure. joe holden with our affiliate kyw there. all three adults are being held on $1 million bail each. a 5-year-old boy is recovering in a denver hospital after he was attacked by a mountain lion. it happened last night near aspen, colorado. the local sheriff's office says the boy was playing outside with his older brother, when the lion attack. the boy's mother ran outside the house and pulled him away from the animal. this is video of the type of mountain lion we're talking about. the one involved in this attack was hunted down by authorities and killed. and we know the boy is in fair condition now. and his mother was treated for minor injuries and released. yes, moms -- will fight whatever we have to for our kids, won't we? thank you so much for watching our coverage of the terror attacks in orlando. our continuing, we're going to turn it over to our colleague, fredricka witfield, who is there in orlando. fred, good morning to you. >> thanks so much christi. it is indeed a very heavy, tough day, because yet again, many people will be laid to rest. we are live from orlando. i'm fredricka witfield, newsroom starts right now. funerals are being held for five more of the victims killed in the attack at the pulse nightclub earlier. a week ago now. cory james connell, stan aly almadoval, tony devon brown. yoel penlaga and luis vilma will be laid to rest and the fbi is scrutinizing new surveillance video from inside the club at the time of the shooting. investigators have questioned an official at the mosque where the gunman prayed. cnn's polo sandoval is following the investigation. so polo, while they have this new surveillance video, investigators are also still trying to figure out the shooter. omar mateen. >>

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