There is not domestic you. Thank you so much. Right behind you. I noticed mr. Ornsteins pantheon of views that are still in congress favor mr. Lugar will be in a few. It seems once they are on their way out or out the door, they say all the right things. When they are continuing to run, Olympia Snowe is another great example. What would you suggest we do as a public for others do to encourage politicians in office to the right thing because the right thing to do . Tom, you can start. Im curious because he done so much work and then whatever you want to say before. And then i guess, are we closer pass the time . I usually go over. We have many fascinating questions pending, most of which havent been answered. Let me try to run through a couple of them. The conservative wayne is now the party. Its been embraced by the party. Its agenda has been embraced by the leadership. The chairman of the Budget Committee, paul ryan, very able member is the archetype of that agenda, which should make every tea party are very happy. So its indistinguishable and date in no way to provide cover for all those moderate who want to do the right being. I dont think said people exist in the Republican Party. Listen, the answer is Grover Norquist no new tax pledge. That alone would free the Republican Party to engage in good faith, sensitive negotiations. Everybody knows that our taxes are now at an historic low in the contemporary era and theyre going to go out sort of naturally. And with the aging of the population, i guarantee you will be somewhere around 22 gdp. Wouldnt it be nice if we could acknowledge that and say whats the most bowl, efficient way to structure a tax system, probably progressive consumption tax direct it in ways to accomplish a whole host of object is. As long as you have that pledge to which members signed, its hopeless. The Republican Party cannot be a player in any constructive resolution of the problems confronting the country. There is no political space for a thirdparty to occupy. Its based on a presumption. We have two extreme parties and theres this great center to mobilize and im deeply skeptical that theres room for such a party and would really play a constructive role. Is it going to get worse than it is now instead of just looking worse . And are we en route to the status of greece . Not at all. The simple truth is we are almost close to a position with the status quo would solve our problems. That is to say the expiration of the tax cuts pretty much take care of our intermediate deficit problem and implementation of the cost saving measures strengthened over time in the aca will deal with their longterm health care problem. So we are not that far away and we have other tremendous strengths in our country that would allow us to make the kind of investment to transform the economy, to do with the reality of stagnant wages and a sense of diminished opportunities. We have strengths. We can do it. We need the public to rain and behavior thats destructive and we need political leaders to act forcefully. Given enough to Bipartisan Commissions and searched enough for bipartisan consensus. For sensible hard all politics along these lines. Norm, i particularly cutie take the money question. A couple political had a great shared that showed that Party Polarization in congress was directly correlated with increasing concentrations of wealth from increasing equality went together artisan polarization. And the money question you can handle so many different ways. Im really concerned about it posed Citizens United system with a federal Election Commission thats completely out of control and with other agencies unable to do anything about it. A lot of money coming in in ways that intimidate political actors until the policy process in a very bad way and the way that will only enhance the quality. One example from North Carolina riva Group Ventures who want to influence the state legislature on a bill prepared a bunch of model commercials that destroyed members of the legislature. When a gc comment had nothing to do a type of culture. It basically defined in this Child Molesting aliens out to destroy the fabric of america and show them the commercials and said if we dont get what we want millions of dollars could be spent on commercials just like this. They got what they wanted to give him money. The idea this is not correct team from Anthony Kennedy was on a different planet in a different universe than the real world of what we face. So theres all of that to do with the marketing model legislation written basically by a signature is biggest plugged right in. Its the gilded age brought up to the 21st century and nothing that we want. I was psyched to find places where i can take issue with tom. So i want to address the question, even if this question. I actually dont believe the rightwing represents the Republican Party. We have survey after survey that shows a range of issues self identified republicans do not take the same positions. The tea party consists of older voters who have no clue what the right budget would do on an Entitlement Program they dont want test for themselves, just for others. So its not clear to me to supplant necessarily the the way they want and they believe they are problem solvers still in congress. They are completely intimidated for being a little played out old. He still had a few who have taken not to do so. Mike crapo comments xp chambliss and tom coburn and the turbine on the other side actually step out on a limb here and it will tell you where we are in tribal politics that when barack obama praised mccain and six, and need to see a Republican Senate immediately sent an email to politico saying that kills the land. If he is for it, work instead. This is less about ideology now than tribalism. So thats the challenge we have and its not encouraging moderates are providing space. Its intimidating them. Getting into the question of every time i get people who live congress, look at republicans in the psyche been inside a tent we are breathing a gas and suddenly youre outside and say how could i have done not . How could i have acted that way . Whenever ideas is to create a Shadow Congress that consists of former members who span the spectrum, to start a common set of facts and have them debate not in the way congress used to because congress is never a great debating society, the genuine debates and discussions that are going to have huge audiences but can provide a model for how voters who yearn to have a discussion about options are. You conservative notion that there is something to Climate Change and have a great debate whether you do anything, a law, with a carbon tax or a capandtrade program or through some other mechanism that can actually give people a sense of what our tech choices are instead of having people say maybe scientists have something in an act or not unceremoniously. Small steps to provide us with opportunities to change the dialogue. We at usa today gallup poll that came back on monday. A third of republicans, not a nurse when they asked their ideology call themselves moderates or liberals. A third of the party. In this particular poll for the first time, republicans lost enthusiasm advantage in the president ial race in the reason was because declining enthusiasm. So theres not a republican in washington who describe themselves as a moderate or liberal, but the third of republicans in the country do. Just to allays this point, rahm emanuel i say the Republican Party steeply provided to turn this small Government Land and no Government Land. There is a truth that not far. I am told we are now at our time. I want mickey to come back with a few closing comments. A part of this but that hasnt gotten as much attention in season mention that i like the bromides we should ignore chapter, which i would reach of the political system will collect no, no. Third party to the, no. Budget amendment say no. Term limits they say no and Public Financing of elections no. But then i have a whole bunch of things they say yes to and i propose we have an election between the Shadow Congress and the Current Congress and then we can see who wins. So let me invite everybody to do closing comments. Just going down a couple of these. Does this represent the Republican Party as a whole. As citizens just said no, but it does represent is who vote in primaries. So its a matter of you cant he on the ballot. Every state in the United States has a sore looser law from which means if you cluster primary come you cant appear on the ballot in november. Those need to go. So its the primary voters who are represented in the party. Secondly in terms of what can we do about it, i dont know how many of you are your friends show up at a town meeting, show up for your member of the house or senate is present, participate in the elections, college the radio tv show. In other words, we need to get citizens engaged. Citizens are crazy. 42 of American People are registered as independent. They are fleeing from the party, but they need to be at this meeting can confront and be confrontational with their representatives and senators in favor not going to vote for you if you behave this way. The final question about canopy, repressive . You know, i got to testify on behalf of the American Bar Association to a committee in the house for the previous president announced thursday reassigning statements that he would decide for himself whether or not he had to obey the law. Republicans saw nothing wrong with that. Democracy is not about policy. Its not about policy outcomes. Its about process and i think as long as we continue to focus and do whatever we need to do to get the policy outcome i want, tell us process in constitution. Is that all repressive . How do you defy repressive . How about wiretapping without a warrant . Is that repressive . I do think we mourn a slippery slope than some people would want to admit. Season. Is briefly seen what an achievement it is to write a policy book about washington soldout on amazon. So congratulations to her two others. I want to thank my colleagues, mickey and season and e. J. Of course. We are really with you. Its a negative sounding title, but we to agree with you that there are things we can do, building up small things that can haul produce a lurcher and more informed collect during, changes we can make that would allow the Public Officials accountable in a way thats very difficult to do now that in the end clear signals from the public and responsible institutional changes, especially within the Senate Conservative political leaders willing to lay it out and not just say we all have to come together, but listen, this is how we must begin and be forceful. There is a Bright Future for the country im optimistic. I would just say finally, first, please buy the book. Second, please buy e. J. Spoke and please buy mickeys the. And please season, write a book. [laughter] [applause] [inaudible conversations] you dont always find many newspaper editors in many era and facing investigative reporting. Its not Just Economics. Its the discomfort that investigative reporting causes in a newsroom because its troublesome. Its not more than economics. If the ruffle the feathers of somebody powerful, that gets people to complain to the publisher and their stories about those kinds of things happening. We were fortunate to the 70s and almost all our career to work for people who were strong in that great in that area that the chips fall where they may. Now on booktv commercials and 70 annual festival in austin, texas, robert draer discusses his book titled dont ask what good we do inside the u. S. House of representatives. This is about 45 minutes. Afternoon. I have added smith, ceo and editorinchief of the texas tribune. Im pleased to be here at the old buddy, robert draper, magazine writer whose latest book is dont ask what good we do inside the u. S. House of representatives. Robert is a familiar face around the spurs, having spent the early part of his career as one of texas but my snarky writers. Be happy together is like dean martin and jerry lewis back on stage. Hes currently contribute letter to the New York Times magazine and National Geographic and correspondent for gq. Previous books include desert, biography of george w. Bush, comprehensive history ruins the magazine and a novel. Robert is a native of houston attended university of texas at austin. Please join me in welcoming robert draper. [applause] nice to see you. I thought we might start broad. Are we better off than they were two years ago . [laughter] i really have to answer that question. It really needs answering quite it does. Unit of measurement the democrats would use for Congress Performance are different from that which the republicans use. As Speaker John Boehner has said over and over, the second pass a record low number of those pixel of the congress that were not imposing regulations and not increasing taxes. Thats way one of looking on it. The way most people look at it attested to by record low popularity Approval Rating is that this is a congress that has been defined by dysfunction of the law, a congress in which has never been writer than none and where compromise is really seem to be a foreignpolicy, a policy foreign to the roast great deliberative body. To think of people who ran in 2010 and got elected with the people who ran before it ended now ascended to of leadership leave no with a solution or they were elected to not do things as opposed to do things . Again, from the class of 2010 and now i refer to the 87 freshman, the socalled Tea Party Class of the 112 congress, their belief is they are doing precisely what the people who elected them wish to do, which is rollback obama initiatives to cut spending. A lot of them thought the debt ceiling should not be increased under any circumstances and to that degree feel like i was. They basically believe their job is to obstruct barack obama and once there is a republican president in place from the two pass this initiative secreted Better Business climate, more and more Deregulation Committee funding of programs that have never quite been near and dear to them. Of course to Flash Forward a day, i suspect well talk about the debt ceiling fiasco of 2011. After that summer undertaken to the brink of a fiscal cliff, the thinking on the House Republican leader ship is maybe a tea party freshmen will go homehome, get yelled at by constituents and realize maybe compromise is not such a bad thing. They went home and the people who put at town halls tend to be that this is their party and those people tend to be tea party and they said why did video . You said you would not under any circumstances raise the debt ceiling. At best theres mixed messages and a great likelihood it will be a while before we see moderation. Is this for the leadership looks at the freshman, many of them second term members of congress and think if only we could control them. Isnt the case for leadership as it is out of sync or is the leadership secretly happy that freshmen are getting the blame or credit for doing the dirty work they probably politically would not be what to do as leaders of the house . Been the leadership is happy. They are happy that they are empowered. I suspect they wake up screaming because they dont have control. They leadership are referred to Speaker John Boehner, majority leader eric cantor, maturity with kevin mccarthy. Its not for this class of 87 freshman, class of 2010 he would be minority leader boehner. These guys came and not beholden by any means to leadership and made it clear from the outset that they were not going to be told to fall into line. The real problem for this Republican Leadership, but to prove to be the case if ever the democrats regain power is the enforcement tools of yesteryear arent needed of yesteryear, since earmarks have now been banned, since if the blogosphere you can turn someone into an instant martyr by stripping them of their committee assignments. Its very, very hard to use a stick in addition to a kerry. Theres a point in my book i refer to after the debt ceiling fiasco of the summer of 2011 when they come back in another resolution to fund the carpet because the Obama Administration hadnt passed a budget was coming up. The Republican Leadership of the ticket and easy vote and in fact the members voted against it. The appropriations committee, which designs continue dissolutions and others running those mysterious and insisted on a meeting with the leadership and said punish these members. Were doing everything he wants to do, cutting spending to record those in the schedule over it. They need to fall in line and boehner said we cant do that anymore. Dont make martyrs out of them. Son understood the debt ceiling or anything else. Is interesting that whole books have been devoted to the debt ceiling and specifically magazines to receive a grand bargain between honor and obama that fell apart. From a standpoint this wind and sails with all due respect to the authors of those stories and books because the bottom line is