And i, steve asked me to give a quick overview of my life so well be here for three days. No, this will just to be about a few minutes. I political journey and briefly some thoughts about the Publican Party. I love to engage with you all. I grew up in Washington State and developed an interest in politics at a very early age. We gathered in the Cascade Mountains on the east side of the state and i remember the kids and my parents to our cabin. We went every weekend and talk about Public Policy and listen to the news of the top of the hour. I was the question oscar so i would ask my dad the israelis in the arab world, why dont they get along . What about nixon . So those issues really fascinated me along with sports and when i got to high school, i got into debates with my social studies teachers. They were liberal, i was conservative not because of political theory but my parents were conservative. It was always a passion. I went to the university of washington and my undergrad was political science. Big deal to me, it was critical to my career. I was an intern at the Washington State center where i was a junior. Worked for a state senator and in olympia and then came out to d. C. When i was a senior inversion university of washington. That was one of the big breaks that i got. I assumed i would return to seattle and didnt know what i was going to do. I guess i assumed i was going to go to law school even though i didnt want to be a lawyer. But i did have an interest in getting involved in politics. I used to go to the library, it was a beautiful campus in seattle. I would listen to john f. Kennedy speeches on my own time. I actually memorized them for credit and of course, just because i listened to them so often. I really fell in love with language, the power of words. I thought those words were very powerful when i read biographies, autobiographies and in the various administrations. It would be great to work in the white house someday. I ended up making my way to an internship at csi. I was in the think tank world, i was a young bucket and policy center. Eventually hired as a speechwriter who is the secretary for ronald ragan of the time. I was intimidated when i went over. Amber calling my colleagues the day i got there and said if i crash and burn with you, take me back. I felt like i was dropped in the deep end and i didnt know how to swim but it worked out. I developed a relationship with bill and worked in the george h. W. Bush administration as a speechwriter for bill. In the 90s, i was policy director think tank on power. A very large figure in the conservative movement in the 80s and 90s. Jack tragically died years ago. Bill where the founders and i was there through the 90s. Then hired as a speechwriter. For george w. Bush when he became president after the florida recount was taking care of michael carson, speechwriter, one of my closest friends. He hired me and i did that job for two years. As an anecdote on a speechwriting side of things. Mike would normally go to the senior Staff Meetings which were held in the roosevelt room but when he was not there, i would go in and i remember the morning of september 11, being struck, this was one of the most uneventful days with the bush presidency. The big topic of the conversation was there were supposed to be congressional barbecue on the south lawn at the white house. The tuesday Late Afternoon of the 11th. So when i got back to my office, i did when i always did, i wrote him an email summarizing what had happened in the senior staff meeting and first line invite email was nothing much is going on today. I was sent five minutes before the first tower was hit. Mike had been at home working on a communities character speech because we had gotten a number of our main initiatives taxes and education passed by that time and we were thinking through what is going to look like for the white house. Mike was winking on his speech for that. The plane hit the first tower and like most people, we thought it was a tragic accident. I went down to get coffee and came back to my office. Then the second plane hit. Then we knew Something Else was going on and we were under attack so i called mike and he was in 395 in the d. C. Area and he said its like a parking lot, im stuck in traffic. He commented on how well a plane had flown, the plane that hit the pentagon. In a moment like that, you find out where you rank on the totem pole of importance in the white house so if youre important significant figure, you were evacuated because they were getting all these reports about the attacks coming in. So if you were important, they would take you to a bunker, a secret number bunker. If you are me, you ended up on a corner alone looking up at the sky, wondering whats going on. I remember distinctly having this feeling, is a beautiful day. Crystal blue sky. I looked up and thought i feel like im in a movie except in a movie, it has a script and you know how it ends. I thought this one doesnt have a script so i dont know how its going to end. I was there and as you can imagine, is event eventful times as a speechwriter. I went on after a couple of years, josh who became chief of staff recommended me to become director. That job really was perfectly aligned for my interests and skill sets. I was involved in policy politics communications, and inhouse think tank. I had influence in the white house at the time, it wasnt because of the office, it was based on the relationships with people in the white house and other officers but i get along well with everybody, it was a good experience. I was there until 2007, august 2007. Theres a think tank here in washington. My world now is writing for the New York Times and the atlantic and i do commentary on television and so forth. When i got involved in politics, i wasnt cynical about it and im still not. I think im naive about politics. I understand theres downsides to it and there are people who are involved in politics were not embodiments of virtue and ability, thats true in every profession. I do think politics matters cause i think politics are finally about justice. Thats not all its about but its a key moment in American History and the life of an asian politics can have a big bearing on justice and flourishing in the human good. So it matters. Most of the peoples have come across, even people i disagree with in terms of Party Politics are generally good people and most people get involved for the right reasons. Some of it is mixed. Motivations are mixed, personal ambitions are there but thats true in every profession. Thats the nature of the human condition but most people i know want to get in politics, they have ideas and care about houses they want to pursue. My attitude is good for you. And it matters. Stay involved and keep fighting. Very quickly, ive been a lifelong republican. My earliest days, Ronald Reagan in 1980, i worked in three administrations, george but George Bush White house. I am a pretty sharp critic about trump so im not aligned with the Republican Party right now. There are a group of us who at this time sit in a phone booth so its not a large group but we are making the arguments that we can. Its obligated, i dont disagree with all of his policies but i disagree with some of them. I think the danger he poses is a whole realm of other areas and i think he is a threat to the country, to the conservative cause and Republican Party. I say that as someone whos still a conservative. Im not one of those who became so disaffected by thousand things that happened to change my political philosophy. Im a critic of the president because i am a conservative but its made life interesting. Ive made a lot of friends over my time see things very devoutly than i am. Im a christian, a person of faith and ive been associated with mostly evangelical churches my life. They are overwhelming supportive of donald trump. Theres a spectrum on how enthusiastic they are about trump but my life these days is trying to make sure relationships stay intact. Even while we have is agreements because i think friendships are more important than politics. I think its important to have relationships and friendships with people who dont see the world the same way you do politically and theologically in every other way because its part of the way we learn and its important to see other peoples perspectives even if you dont agree with them. I have a clue whats going to happen in 2020 but if you want to have a conversation about what might unfold but as for me, im a writer on contemporary affairs. Right on politics primarily, also on faith. Sometimes sports and other things. As a writer, you put these things in perspective. You call them as you see them. You have an obligation i think to tell the truth, speak the truth as well as you can. To be open to being wrong and opening your views along the way but as for me, not many jobs i can imagine. Well, one that i can do particularly well but also funds that would be satisfying for me as ive been involved with because these conversations and debates are important, its a chance to learn and talk about things that matter. So thats basically my life in eight or nine minutes and other than that, will open to you and i and you can ask anything you want in your experience, politics, theology or anything else. My name is kristen, im from the harvard extension school. I was curious, weve done some reading today on how the tea party has evacuated the Republican Party as well as a few conversations about donald trump not necessarily seeing a very conservative republican. So i was curious since youve been a lifelong republican, if you thought i dont want to say complex but challenges to the publican line if they result in a strengthening of the Republican Party down the line or is it something you feel causes too much inflection from its overall value . Ill take both of those questions. The tea party first, its a fascinating journey, the Republican Party in recent years because the Tea Party Movement, the genesis of the Tea Party Movement was a bail out of the banks after the 2008 financial crisis. I used to think it was an almost unmitigated success. Theres a really good documentary into thousand eight, the financial crisis device that it puts on, hbo, interview the protagonist during the 2008 crisis. President bush, obama and othe others, its a fascinating encounter for what happened. Long story short, it typifies what happened so what was a nasty recession and financial crisis, but the bail out of the banks caused tremendous anger. I was a completely fair question to ask but the answer is, the banks belly up so with the rest of the economy. Collateral damage in the ended up paying back the loans but that is really what catalyzed the tea party was very strongly limited government movement, populist and establishments and that really drove 2010 midterm elections which was very damaging to the republican par party. President obama had control of the senate and house and lost control after the 2010 midterms. The tea party has teetered out and whats interesting is donald trump is, in many ways, the Tea Party Movement because he himself is not limited government conservative, he was the one person in the 2016 primaries and gop field, no interest in spending, never articulate for government. He himself has certain views that i think are contrary to capitalism in government and yet hes popular in the Tea Party Movement. So that movement doesnt exist anymore but with the Tea Party Movement was this populist anger which tapped into in 2016 and has everyday since hes been president. Theres a connection between the Republican Base and trump as it speaks to the tea party. Its not policy driven, its not intellectual, i think its much more compound effective than its psychological and cultural and the connection on the level in this politics. So i dont think the tea party is a force in the Publican Party right now since being a conservative and whether it will strengthen or weaken moroccan party. I think it depends on what area you are talking about if youre talking about the judiciary, the regulation prolife policies, the tax bill that was passed in 2017. Those fall generally under the canopy of the Republican Party, traditional parties, conservative policies but in a lot of ways, hes not a conservative. Hes basically america first, instincts are not conservative at least not as its been understood in the modern era. Protectionist. As long as ive been alive, conservatism stood for free trade in the issue of limited government. Trump, i dont think understood as a conservative and has to be understood as a populist. I dont think hes anything other than narcissist but [laughter] i think he tapped into this populist movement. Will strengthen or weaken the revoking party . I dont know so i dont know how it will play out. Im worried because the publicans during the nomination when trump was running and since hes become president he would redefine it in his own image. And he has. I had plenty of conversations with those who know better and have views that are similar to mine. I think its a mistake but understand their position and its easier for me than it is for them. I really dont know. I think from morgan party right now i would say its in a fairly precarious position and one of the reasons i say that is that trajectory is just not good. Trump is toxic with our rising number of voters. People of color, younger voters, women and i think if you look at the results of the 2018th midterms can see the coming catastrophe longerterm. I live in virginia, are representative of house number was comstock. In 2016, this was slightly democratic and Hillary Clinton won by about four or five points and barbara was recently comfortably in 2016. In 2018, she got obliterated. She lost by 12 points. Thats a classic suburb republican leaning suburb and if you look at what happened in 2020, every republican got mowed down. I think thats going to happen but whether trump leaves in 2021 or 2025 or somewhere in between, there will be a big fight in the future. My question is referring back to your anecdote on the date of the unfortunate event september 11. Since that day, did you see the evolution of nationalism and politics and specifically in the Republican Party . If so, do you think is Getting Better or worse in the coming election . I certainly didnt see it in the aftermath of 9 11. The Republican Party was up very dramatically different party. The country was generally united after 9 11. When i began to see the changes within the Republican Party and how its changing toward ethnic nationalist flavor, probably right around the mid to thousands we were pushing a comprehensive Immigration Reform bill. We ended up after the reelection president bush stood, forced into thousand five, our initiative was effort to reform Social Security which went nowhere. We tried Immigration Reform later in 2006 and almost got Immigration Reform bill through but it ended up failing. We missed the sequencing. In retrospect, we should have led with immigration rather than Social Security but for the purposes of your question, you could see this rise of antiimmigrant feelings, some sense of possibility cultural displacement. It was beginning to build in the party. That just didnt exist in the 90s or early 2000s. I was never able to locate exactly what catalyzed that. There was no event like if an undocumented worker had st. Paul or something that emotionally catalyzed the response, i would understand that but there were factors going on that i didnt fully understand. Honestly president bush understood what was beginning to happen within the base of the Publican Party because i remember talking to others in the conversations and he would talk about protectionism and isolation in fees things that were beginning to rise. Another thing which was interesting was the conservative talk radio so if you listen to 1988, most of his career, the binary choices was conservatism and liberalism. Near the end of the 2000s, he began to see the shift in him and others from the liberalism to advice out of establishment. By the 2010 and 11, you are almost likely to your criticism of Mitch Mcconnell as you were of barack obama. There was this feeling of anger toward the establishment and things were not as they wanted. If you were tuned in, you could tell there were these elements forcing through the country and the Republican Party which now has manifested in people like carlson and theres an ethnic nationalist movement, caused by various names. It is not just specific to america, you see it across most of the western europe as well. It is interesting, the race in june 2015, my first comment was july 15. The headline was present trump . , just say no. So this was three weeks after he got in. I later learned right editor, it was hard to get the piece published because people of the times. Why is he writing about on trump . It will result in a matter of weeks. Hes not a threat. I knew he was, i didnt think he was in the presidency but i knew enough about the conservative movement that i knew he was tapping into something which i thought was precious others were happy with it. Then think he should be underestimated. Im from miamidade college. I would like to know if you had any experience, talent or a decision that you made in the political world. Heart decision or challenge as a christian in the political world, thats a good question. For the most part, ive not found myself in a position where i felt my christian beliefs were in conflict with life and politics. Unfortunate because the peop