♪ host: it is the washington general for the first day of 2025. happy new year opinion do you find yourself looking at it on

-- optimistically or pessimistically? you might be focused on the presidential election in november or your personal finances. perhaps you look at it from the lens of foreign affairs. call us and let us know if you take an optimistic view of the year. if you take a pessimistic view, call (202) 748-8001. and you can text us at (202) 748-8003. you can also post on x. the shington post takes a look at the lens of the presidential election this coming year. whether that might change your

view of whether you change -- view the year pessimistically or optimistically. trading dire warnings. a dystopian dictatorship of the american values constantly on the brink of collapse. the greatest threat trump poses is tower democracy. if we lose, we lose everything. if biden wins second term, amicans no longer have a country. going on to say, as long as joe biden is i the white house, american dream is dead.

the to be a leading candidate's. phenomenon experts say it is reflected ofhe pessimistic views. that is just one story. that is how you look at the year ahead. if you go to the hills website, take a look at congress specifically and that vernment funding fight. the fundg fight could play out in january. thlso look at the concept of passing the stopgap funding measure. one of the things that could happen this year, the government

coulshut down. if they failed to pass legislation in time, lawmakers agreed to extend funding for four of its bills in january. that includes funding for office and the department of agriculture that leaves congress staring down at a bigger batch to handle two weeks later. it is something that republicans have long railed against. are there congressional ways? if you are looking at the year

optimistically, call (202) 748-8000. if you are looking at it pessimistically, call (202) 748-8001. and you can text us at (202) 748-8003. a call on our pessimistic line. happy new year. go-ahead. caller: happy new year. i think you started of perfect. look at how congress is being managed. the other one is women's rights. we have slid away from what we had. it is because of a bunch of whe men. happy new year and hopefully it

will get better. i pr for our military people. they are the ones suppting this country and our fight for democracy. thank you, all of youut the in the military for fighting for us. host: sandra in virginia taking an optimistic view. good morning. caller: good morning. i am stillptimistic. i just finished listening to a conversation with craig and he was talking about calvin coolidge's biography. he talked about how he felt powerless to save his own son, even though he was president. all of a sudden, i had an epiphany. why i feel the way i do and even

though i am an outspoken person, i was powerless over my own mind it gave me a great start and i can put aside my novel that is growing by leaps and bounds, and i can write my autobiography. i am a naturally optimistic person. i feel that we will come to our senses as a democracy. we always have. we will come to our senses and fight for our rights. pecially having gotten that little piece of a nugget from susan and craig. i'm very happy and especially you, pedro. i hope you smile and be

optimistic with me. host: this will be the question for all of our three hours today. mainly, we will hear from you. we will be visited by several people but largely we will hear from you about your optimism or pessimism. give us a call during these three hours and we will get in as many as we can during our time together. we will hear from david who is optimistic. thank you for calling. go-ahead.

caller: i am optimistic and hopeful. i feel like the main reason for the flood of immigrants into the u.s. is likely due to the sanctions that was brought out when lincoln w in mexico. e present o mexico mentioned that helpg these counies would lely ea stem the flow of illega comin here. butanctio make things difficul they have no jobs and no he. they lea their country and they comhere. if we dr the sanctions, it may solve the pblem.

the adage ofove your neighr is definitely somhing they should do. help them make a better life within their country and they may stay. host: let's hear from mary in maryland. hello and thank you for calling. caller: i totally agree with the last colon he was totally on point. i pessimistic because we have a broken congress. they chose not to. we had our seniors in two wars a proxy war ukraine that was lost and that u.s. new this.

now there is a genocide in gaza and we arwatching it with our own eyes. our leaders nothing. i am just angry about this country right now. we are in trouble. we have a congress that rules by racism and a separate court that is just nasty. and then we have a criminal tried to get back into office with people during him. i do not knoabout that word, hope because it doesot have a plan and it, but we need to get busy to make sure that thing does not get back in office and that we have a country that can bring us progress.

host: she spoke about those issues overseas, putting. responng to a distress call from a vessel. u.s. cenal command said four small bos were attacking it. getting within 20 meters of the vessel. helicopters from two ships responded and issued verbal calls to the boots. they fired upon the helicopters and the service members word

returned fire. that is the report coming out this morning. en it comes to president biden himself, he did a short interview lking about his view of the year past. here is a bit ofhat interview yesterday. presiden biden my dad usedo say, your job is about a lot more than a paycheck. there factories are shipped overseas. we brought a lot of jobs back to e u.s. they have created a lot of jobs. i just feel good that the american people got up. they have been through a rough time but they are coming back.

>> so many eyes are on the big golfer tonight. what are your hopes for the new year? pres. biden: my hope is that everyone has a happy, safe new year we are in a position to lead the world and we are coming back, and it is about time. dr. biden: be positive, be optimistic and be kind to one another. host: are you optimistic or pessimistic for the year ahead? this is w jers. caller: i am extremely optimistic. i'm sick of hearing about the line about american caage.

i remember a lot worse times. you wa riots in the -- in e street? ere we riotsn the street. he want a bad onomy? i staed working on the flr of the arican ock exchange. you want inflation? the inflation ra was 20% and now, it is nothing compared to that. i thk we are startg off from a stronglace. we came on the ship at they called the mayflower. we come in and we sing an americ tune. host: from steve in california. hello. caller: i am pretty optimistic.

inly have 12 more months and then ts guy is out of there. but personallyi would like to see -- the only one in the senate that knows the issues. i have seen him a few times talking about global warming. and a w other things. a pleasant change to see something change, bui do not think that will happen i'm still optimistic for the reasons said before. host: the editorial takes a look at four things to be optistic about. one of the categories is the candidates for botharties. they are entitled to ask.

president joe biden and donald trump are egregiously flad candidates and should not be allowed near power. indisputably helping his son take money from foreign adversaries. if that is not corruption, wha is? many oer points to be made. if youant toheck it out, you can filter those things inith your view of being optimistic or pessimistic. allen in florida, heo. caller: thank youor having me on. i love washingn journal. i am neither optimisc or pessimistic.

i was a little disappointed that wh he heard the list of your guests, they were announced as being conrvative or ogressive. none of th gsts listed wer considered moderate. the rest of us are moderates. i think it is important to ok at the middle of the country and our mindset. we are moderates and we know how to getlong but the extremes at one endnd the other a caing a raft. thank u. host: what does it mean to be a moderate? caller: to have policies about aborti, the border crises, which is ssible. i' tell you one that i talk about l the time. peoplealkbout pple cing

over the borde we need lor. i'm getting older. everyone gets older. if yound up in a nursing home, you need someone to be your caregiver. i talked to one general contractor in florida and he tolde the average e of a plumber is 59 years old. we need people to do this work and come to thisountry and rk in this country. host: ok. duke in maine has a pessimistic point of view. caller: good morning, everybody. i am very pessimistic. i am sick and tired of how congress is acting down there in washgton. they are acting worse than a bunch of three-year-olds. one way to get this straightened

down so that they act like grown-ups is to tell them that until they get their fingers out of their rear ends, the pay and benefits stop right now, as of right now. if you did that and really meant it, you would see them bringing bills on the floor within two days, i guarantee it. and we are paying these people to act like a bunch of kids because they have no desire to do anything for us. they are self-serving or they want to be in their calling each other names. grow up and act like a bunch of human beings and adults. host: on our linef fire optimistic, hello.

caller: i hope this year will be peaceful. i hope it is a peaceful yearly. i hope there are more peaceful years to come as well. host: calling us internationally, giving us a view of either optimistic or pessimistic. we will focus on you. if you want to call us and give us your thoughts about why you're positive or pessimistic. you can also post on our social media site as well. during the course of the mornin we will get our guest's

take on where they think this will go. first to join us, a talkshow host. thank you for your time. guest: thank you for the opportunity to be back on again. host: how would you describe your audience? guest: i have been a radio talkshow host for years. my background is as a reporter. to me, i focus less on individuals. we focus more on the issues and less on individuals. focus on the issues. that is the way it should be. host: if you take that kind of

view, looking at the year ahead, what do you think the main issues are? what will the issues be about? guest: 2020 was a wild year. 2024 could be boring. if you get trump versus biden -- is going to become boring and mundane. you may see a merge a little bit more. but the economy on our show, there is always -- to we go into a mild recession? unfortunately, it will be the same old same old. we will be to defensible.

host: you talked about the economy and we saw some improvement from retail sales. do you think that carries over into 2024 and people may change their perspective on how they view the economy? guest: retail sales always do better in the fourth quarter. sometimes it is the consumer sentiment. the questions are very interesting. over the next month. look at the surveys. the majority -- if you look at the numbers, it is unfortunate that a good amount of jobs that were created were government jobs.

a lot of people are just trying to make ends meet. we will see if this translates into the new year or if the later part of 2024 will be stronger. host: you are talking about well-known floridians in this race. en it comes to the campaign to date, how effective do you think they have been? >> i think a lot of people like the policies. you cannot avoid personality. we forget about the issues though. we will see how well desantis does, but let's be honest, i think they are going to see what

happens. they will see what happens about whether or not they are found guilty in georgia. they will be waiting in the wings to see what happens. they will be looking at the sidebar. host: in the tweet that you wrote, joe biden had low approval nbers. same load job numbers. we lost in 2018 but we act like those elections never existed. guest: it is amazing. we had higher numbers. this should have been a golden

year. it is supposed to be biblical proportions. the senate should have been won. but it killed the chance for the republican party. we ignored 2018's. we act like it did not happen. this is not the election year that happened last year. i think the republican party was supposed to have this gop analysis autopsy of what happened. we just ignored it. biden had garbage numbers and he still won in 2022. it could still translate for a biden victory. host: locally, what are people

concerned about in jacksonville? what are the local issues they are concerned about? guest: the statues that were taken down for confederate monuments will be an issue. the economy is an issue. ron desantis has done a good job. state-controlled versus local control. the fed versus the state. butf you do not like a tax policy, should they come in and overrule that? if a local government could get it to go out, do we need more tallahassee involvement? host: optimistic or pessimistic when you're looking at the year

ahead? guest: it depends on the issue. we have seen it happen before. i think with a lot of voters, it will be more pessimistic. it will be a divide. i think it becomes more pessimistic if it is. it is the flagship station. go to wob.com. host: thank you for your time and happy new year to you. guest: happy new year. it has been a pleasure. host: varying political stripes and our guests this morning. if you have a pessimistic view ca (202) 748-8001.

if you are optimistic call (202) 748-8000. caller: thank you for taking my call. i am normally a very sanguine personality. however, now in my neiborhood, twice in the past week, i have had people egg me on to a fight because they think i am a democrat. i am just a guy who opposes this guy trump. this type trump is a monster. i have never seen anyone like him in my life. he generates this outrageous january 6 insurrection. one of our san diego ladies got

shot. she is dead. but that guy donald trump is a monster and he has upset some many. a lot of churchgoing folks around me. they all havideas that donald is the savior of the u.s. but i not think so. i think you will be the end of this country. i just hope he does not win the next election. we have a mixed variety. chris christie is really down on trump right now. but now he has figured the guy ou host: while your support be for the coming -- incoming president? caller: i would rather vote f

joe rather than dond, if is the candidate. but will vote. i did register democrat. i normally call on the democrat line. host: le's hear from roie. hell ller: hlo, paygo and happy new year to everybody. i amptimisc. you can look at thi beautiful dain the new year and our attitude and how we feel about things is how we are. if we are negative about things, things are going to be done. so we need tcome together and be glad that we are americans and that we have freed. just share with people and come together.

at is l i wanted to say. happy new year, everybody. host: from mylandsomeone who views the yeaas pessimistically. hello. caller: [indiscernible] i believe that donald trump is very divisive. people have really entrenched themselves whether you like him or do not like him. people are just not willing to negotiate or come to ty of agreement. people are so entrenched in thr beliefs. they see the oppositn as being evil and they caot really compromise. so unftunate, i think people

-- this will be one of those thin. whateverhe outcome, it is not going to be accepted and we are going to see a more aggressive form then we saw befe. host: baltimore, maryland. was bore the end of is ar that ey talked about the year ahead when it comes this coming election, describing it as the presidential election nobody is really jazzed about. no one is excited about a rematch of the 2020 election between biden and trump. more republicans wou be satisfieto have trump as their nonee, but emma kratz would have biden as thr standardarer. the lpable apathy from voters comes as both gentmen are facing few obstacles in thei

path. bin has amassed broad support from officials. . trump's grip oprimar vote shows no sign of loose needed -- of lsening. just a week away from theowa caucus followed by therimary and new hampshire. stay tuned tc-span for botof those. there y be other facrs as well. anything that falls under that umbrella. ifou view the yr optimistically, call (202) 748-8000.

if y view pessimistical ca (202)48-8001. and can also text us at (202) 748-8003. caller: hel. i am optimistic with joe den in the white house. i have been involved in politics for over 30 years. show me any president who has not stumbled getting off of air force one. they all do it. people who want to magnify the stumbles, a man who has seen many years in congress, many years of how things can work. i can put my confidence behind him. he has had lot of successes and i think we should look at those successes as something that shows us what is coming in our future. host: you have probably seen low polling numbers despite the successes you are talking about.

caller: it is about what is covered and not covered, what is emphasized. the problem is one-on-one, people go to the grocery store and they see those highrices and the price of gas is coming down. i'm hopeful thaas we go through the year, prices will stabilize and people will see thei lives turning to a more normal standard. host: mark in michigan calling to express his optism. jan anfloridis on the line for those who are pessimistic abouthe year ahead. caer: what i am looking at is natorsnd representatives need -- when they do not pass a

bill on timethere s to be consequences. both sides see to enjoy callin ea other names ove thiand i am done with the names. the needs to be csequences. they passed billwhen they feel like it and if the hapn to be inession thk you for lisning. i appreciate it. host: some of you expressing your thougon social media. the other seems hell-bent on holding up the worst ideas. joseph from facebook saying that trump would win. mark ldgren saying he is optimistic. doing everytng possible to

destroy america and others saying the west is a civization in decline. trump is obviously a symptom of this, i am a pessimist. you can reach out to us on various sites. if you want to text us, that is (202) 748-8003 let usnow whether you view the coming year as optimisticall or ssimistically. various guests join us along the way. in nebraska, this is mary. go ahead. caller: i'm optimistic because people tend to forget but in our heart, we are all americans. we canet throu anything. we have done itefore and we will do it again.

america is notoing anywhere. you have to keep a positive stock. put your hand over your heart and pledge of allegiance. this is amera. you need to be positive and know that we are not going anywhere. if htory repeats itself, we will be over. host: sandy in michigan, on the line for those who are pessimistic. caller: i am 78 years old. for those of you who have been around that long, the viet union told john f. kennedy in the 1960's and all the drugs coming in from china and south amica and everything, there are people my age who have been hooked on these ugs.

i'm not saying you have to close down the border completely, but something -- politicians whether democrat or republican have known about this for years and have done absolutely nothing about it. congress is gridlocked and the middle-class are getting sick and tired of carrying this country. host: what would turn your pessimism into oimism? caller: [laughter] that is a very good question. i would not vote for donald trumand i have a hard time voting for joe biden. congress has been a complete gridlock. host: joining us for michigan on the phone this morning. many have you have been calling in. numbers toatch and 2024, particularly in the world of politics.

ain, that caucus is cong up in a few weeks. eight years ago marco rubio made second place. now he is dominang ts block. that is according to a recent foxbusiness pole. she will need to improve on a gender gap as the strongest woman candidate. a poll this month showed nikki haley at 30% overall. only six points behind the former president. a whopping 25% quite shy. number three, the president's

nameill not be on the ballot in the first of the nation primary thanks to efforts to put south carolina fit in the lineup. it has launched a campaign in an effort to represent phillips. the move is not without risks. it couldall sht of expectations. another one to share, the apoval rating significantly below. mr. biden's approval rating -- here are numbers to watch. you can find it on politico's website. this is hn. hello. caller good morning. i am optimistic. host: why is that? caller: 200 yrs ago

slaveowners oke up families and forbade literacy. the same tng is going on today. i am optimistic that trump will continue to fight against that. thank you. host: marvin in texas. hello. caller: good morning. i am pessimistic about our future for this next year, even though i am normally an optimist. so many people today do not understand. i do not think they understand life as it is. in the bible, jesus said we are supposed to love our neighbors as ourselves. i do not see how people today can even call themselves

christians, even though we are in a christian nation. if a lady loved everybody as herself, she would never have an abortion because she would love that clds much as she loved herself. our country wouldn't -- would be a better place if we loved our neighbors as ourselves because there would be laughs -- less theft and murder. we cannot continue in the direction that we are going. i'm not sure who should be the next presidentecause nobody seems to care about other people. it is take care of me first and then we will worry about you someday when we have time. host: marvin, there in texas. let's hear from you about if you

are optimistic or pessimistic. if you are optimistic, call in at (202) 748-8000. if you are pessimistic, you can call (202) 748-8001. or you could text us at (202) 748-8003. be joined by various guests to talk about various issues. susan is the editor and chief. happy new year to you. guest: happy new year. host: who do you write for and who do you reach out to? guest: we are a nonprofit location. we are focused on policy and how it affects people. host: youocused a lot on your own ste.

a big year for them. can you highlight that? guest: the democratic governor won reelection which was not necessarily a surprise. what was a surprise is that democrat took control of our state legislature for the first time since ronald reagan was in office. about 40 years of pent up priorities. needle to say, it was a very busy year. we saw a lot of legislation for abortion right, for lgbtqia rights, gun control and clean energy. that, in addition to many other issues like transparency for lawmakers disclosing conflicts

ofnterest, financial disclosure, down to other issues like restoring the prevailing wage. host: if that was a large year, as far as accomplishment, what is the year ahead look like? guest: 2024 is an election year. that will play a role, no doubt. in addition, we will have a u.s. senate seat that is open. so, we have election-year politics and an addition, we have complications right now we ve resignations and the house is deadlocked. we do not expect a lot of

movement. probably will be quiet the first part of the year but then democrats will continue to go down their list of priorities. they are still hopefulo do more on the abortion-rights front. we also have our presidential primary in february. no doubt that will dominy a lot of the conversation, even though you pointed t that both concepts do not see partilarly intesting the moment. st: t supreme court and what they decide to do about donald trump. what do you think about what they decided about tmp? guest: the michigan supreme court ruled that donaldrump

could not be remov from the ballot because of the 14th amdment. the argument is that our constitution and electoral laws are diffent than colorado because there supreme court came to a differentonclusion. they say they will fight on what they are calling a narrow ruling. i expect we will see one more haram on that -- hurrah on that front. host: michigan now being considered in autocracy when it comes to the election. what do you think? guest: i think that is largely in part beuse biden's members have not been good here or anywhere. but there seems to be a great deal of denial with voters that

this will be a biden and trump rematch. i'm curious to see that once the contest seems a little more formed, how numbers show up in michigan. our governor, gretchen, who was considered a strong presidential candidate for 20 28 -- democrats overall have favorable rating, which might help the president. he will get a boost because he lked theicket line for the automaker strength. labor is still a huge issue in michigan, so that will ultimately be one thg that helps them. host: do you think it plays ou larger for president biden? guest: i do think it is a help for him. it is not a guarantee.

the biggest issue the democrats have gng for them is that biggest issue that they had in 2022, which is abortion-rits. the supreme court deciding to overturn roe v. wade had a huge impact on voters, especially female voters. even in states where abortion rights are guaranteed, like they are in michigan. st: there have been stories stemming from the events beeen israel and hamas about the handling of this by the president. dcd stories? do you share these concerns? guest: there have been a number of pro-rallies. certainly, this has been an issue that some younger voters

feel very passionately about. ey are very critical of biden for his handling of that. in michigan, the arab-american though is pre-small. in 2022, there was a huge sling because there was a lot of concern about lgbtqooks in the school sysm. those are t popular issues with that block. they did not like the iraq wars. they did not care for the anti-immigrant policies of trump. these are socially conservative voters and they line up more with republicans on that. there ara lot of different things going on.

host: optimistic or pessimistic. how would you describe yourself? guest: i am a pessimist, overall. i have two children who are making their way in the world. they are optimistic about their future. i do believe in the concept of america and what we stand for. the general population has fought for democracy. we are at michigan advanced.com. there is no pay wall. we are a nonprofit. we have very excited to discuss

what is going on thi year. host: happy new year to you. this isirginiand maryland. go ahead, viinia. you e on. caller: i am timist. i have cfidencin the american public. from what i am listening to today, it seems like we ar stepping up and we are going to remove the politicians that want to dfisticuffs and senate hearings. i have faith in us, that we will come togetr and basically ake up the government. host: l on our line for those who are pessimistic. caller: i am pessimistic because i believe we are living in an era of american where we now

have perverse incentives throughout are entitled -- entire political system. policians now put party ahead of country and i think they have been doing that since they started in the 1980's and now it has become a majority of politicians putting party ahead of country. i think that to be a really good suggestions by other callers this morning, one was the man who said let's start giving more of a platform to moderates. what we can do every day is to get more questions asked for moderates. that man gave a good suggestion

and defined moderate as being reasonable, listening to reasonable solutions as the immigrantituation, recognizing the need we have for immigrant labor. there will be consequences for the politicians, where they maneuvered themselves in these positions where they care more about party and country. you can see examples of that. or when there is evidence that they are voting against their country and for theirarty. but it be financial, chaianships or even memberships. there needs to be consequences. host: let's hear from julie in

wisconsin. guest: good morning. i think i am a little bit of both. i do not think we are a christian nation. i believe that the premise that we were founded on -- we could choose whatever we -- whatever religion we wanted to. we could worship any a god and worship however we wanteto. i was surprised the other day when people were calling on the news stories and nobody mentioned the roe v. wade. believe that we have the right to do what we want to do with our bodies. host: what do you be that on? caller: optimism?

while, i think we should all get involved to some extent in trying to have peace in the world and the golden rule is important. we should alsory to live in the moment, as much as we can. i have a three-year-old great-granddaughter and when i am with her, i am in the moment. host: paul is up next. hello. caller: i am cautiously optimistic. my 75 years of experience, i have learned that the only person i can reallyave any influence for changing is myself. and i have been searching high and low for a number of months and years to find something.

it is called braver angels. essentially, it is a grassroots movement that is trending themselves to show the politicians as well as any other leaders in life, how to talk respectfully and yet be able to relate to one another positively rather than reactive ways. it's extraordinary challenging. i have a background that is been in leadership in number of areas in life. i know what it is to be without food. i also know what it is to be a corporate executive.

essentially, i'm getting myself involved as an ambassador and hope to begin working with people in my community and i already have contacts around the world. i engage with them and but it's going to be a difficult process but all of the people i've heard this morning that are pessimisc and reactive to the way other people are behaving, i just remind them that we all need to realize that none of us is as bad as the worst thing we've ever done. host: he talked about the braver angels program.

we featured one of their lears on this program back in 2022 in september, talking about the effortf bridging political divide. you will find that program and others reled to it on he weite at c-span.org if you wish. over the next two hos, we will coinue as we've been doing for thisast our. we will take your calls and whether you are optimistic or pessimistic for 2024. we will be joined by our guests for short conversations long way. if you are optimistic, it is (202) 748-8000 and you can tell his wife and if you are pessimistic and you want to tell us why, (202) 748-8001. you can text us at (202) 748-8003 and post on our social media sites as well. starng off this second hour, willm in california khmer line

for those who e psimistic, go ahead. caller: hi, i was just thinking, regarding 2024 inarticular, e omy main issues at i'm most pessimistic abouts that i do not want to have a trumbiden remch in the neral ection. if the polls a anything to go byit's a foregone cclusion. if anyone was notiving back under a rock in 20, you would probab know the reasons why we would not want a trump-biden rematch. there ishat blue moon possibility but probably not at much of a new moon that nikki haley will wind up winning the p nomination but i don't

want to go into the possible ings tt trump might wind up dointo her. host: as faas a t reason to not want this rematch in 2024, what would be that reason? caller in that case, i would say the top reason partially because of how the show of the debate we saw, yorecallhat debate host the presidential debates from the 2020 cycle? caller: yeah, specifically the one between trump and biden. it was a shouting match. host: i get you, go ahead. caller: also the fact that the problem i feel between themaga vement and the democratic

parties constitution, it's very tribal if you will. either you support our policies and ideas or you are an extremist. i know people on both sides. i wanted to ask you personally whether you think that someone is going to win the nomination from trump or if people will end up supporting a third-party. host: there are several third-party candidates making their bid out there. as far as how far they will get, it will be up to the voters to determine. we leave in those hands. the pessimistic one is next, hello. caller: how are you doing?

give me a minute to get my thoughts together. what i wanted to say is as an african-american, we've been fighting for this country since its inception. it seems like more we give, the more they take, the more we give, the more they take. they give everybody everything. can you hear me? host: you have to stop listening to the television. keep going. caller: what i'm saying is pretty much i hope we've been voting for democrats for the last 50, 60 years and to be quite honest, i hope black people would let it go down the drain. america is not one time done

anything rightor african-americans or black americans. the more we do, the more you all take. the harder we work, the less we get. to be qte hones i say let it go dn the drain. host: sron in maryland on eric line for optimist, go ahead. caller: good morning and hpy new year. i am optimistic and the reason whis i have grandchildren. i have one great grandchild. we as decent adults that call on your show, they should be doing better than what they are. why would you vote for a man that tells lies and schemes and rapes and do all of these things but you are for him? if jus christ was here, and all the stuff going on in our world today could be stopped. we don't have got an our life,

don't have jesus christ in our lives. that's the way we are going. there is more people in the bible that were evil than good but god took them down. i'm trying to have tish help my family and i pray for my family. i stay in prayer. god has blessed me. my sons are t drug addicts and date work and went to college. they are doing well and they own their own homes. two of my sons own their own homes and they are getting ready to buy a home. i always pray for them when they come to my house and when they leave my house, i pray my children because i know there's so much evil and wickedness in this world, it doesn't make sense. host: that's sharon expressing her optimism and you can do the same.

textus if you wish at202) 748-8003. when issue that came up in the sund shows yesterday was that of immigration. that's about how several states are handling the immigration issue. the first perspective was the texas attorney general ken paxtonho talks about his recent stances on immigration and the measures they are taking. here's a portion of his interview from sunday. [video clip] >> explained to us the gravity of the problem and the challenge you are having to deal with in texas. it's hard to fathom how big a problethat might be. >> it's costing is billions o dollars but that's not the most significant thing. the most significant things the crime, the increase human trafficking and drug trafficking. we have literally thousands of kids dying from fentanyl that don't have to die because we have the cartels having an easy

line into texas and easy lying to get into the country. it is having significant impact and it's going to spread beyond texas and beyond the border states. it's an american problem and i think it's clearly caused by the biden administration. under trump, these things were diminishing and under the biden administration, he is struck down the policies that were. we have significant problems with all these things and they are getting worse every day which is hard to believe. you would think after three years, he would've figured out a way to make it better but stead, it'getting worse. host tt's one persptive fr the attorney neral of xas. anotheone fr the mayor of the city of chicago brandon johnso talking about the impact of movesy texaand how it affects sity in immigration. [video clip] >> what we have is clearly in international and federal crisis

that local governments are being asked to subsidize. this iunsustainable. none of our local economiesre positioned to beble to carry on such a mission. what we have attempted to do is create structure in some coordination around this humanitarian crisis. unfortunately, the governor of texas, governor abbott has determined to continue to soak seeds of chaos. last night and several nights before, number of buses continued to arrive in the city of chicago and throughout the country without any coordination and now it's taken on this very dangerous task of placing individuals on airplanes and flying them into our various cities. this is a matter of notches national security but it's a type of chaos that this governor is committed to administering. host: two perspectives on the

topic of immigration, that may be topic you will ink about whether you are optimistic pessimistic. (202) 748-8000 if you are optimistic, (202) 748-8001 if you're pessimistic joe in north carolina underlined for pessimistic viewers. go ahead. caller: good morning. happy newear to you and all the people of the united states. i'm calling in becausi'm pessimistic. because of all the wars and the rumors of wars and all the issues tt we are facing in the united states, i'm very pessimistic. i lean more that way. immigration is the big issue

that the republicans, myself being a democrat, the immigration matter has been facing us here in the united states for years and years. it's never been slain by any party or any person. no o has been able to put a handle on immigration in the united states. as far as the wars we have,, that we are facing in funding, that keeps me pessimtic because it has opened up a hotbed as they say when they talk about a wasp ne and when you hit at wasp nest, it ens up in those hornets are allver the place. i'm very pessimisticbout that.

it endangers us in the united states we lay down and go to sleep and we wonder what would happen over here, like 9/11 that happened years ago fm the obstruction over there in iq. and afghanistan and stuff like that. host: if you' othe line, stay on it d if y' calling inwe inviteou to so wh we wl takeour calls for the rest of this program today until 10:00 a.m. you canxpress your thoughts on social media as well andextus as well at http://twitter.com/cspanwj (202) 748-8002 (202) 748-8003. ben deter is with us, good morning and happy new year to you. guest: good morning and happy new year to you. host: how do you describe the

way you approach your show and your average listener in memphis? guest: listening to your program this morning, it is similar in some ways. i bet you woke up really early this morning even though it's a holiday. that' similar to a morning show like the one i he. it is caller driven. i will come in with topics of the day, kind of what i want to talk about and it follows different headlines coming out of the city of memphis. i will have some thoughts, my own opinion. it is a news talk show. then i open it up to callers. it's very similar to what i've been listening to like whole numbers and error numbers light up when i talk to the folks in memphis. host: if that's the case, if u are going into 2024, what do you think your average caller is looking for this year?

what are the big issues to watch in your mind? guest: for a lot of folks living in big cities across america, it is crime. that crime could look differently. i heard the segment on immigration out of the state of texas, that crime is lking like it's coming to our southern border. if you are in memphis and a lot of these big metropolitan areas, it is crime. people don't feel safe when they to a kroger that when they come back, their car be there. in that case scenario, they might lose some of their personal belongings. for a lot of our listeners, what they want to see, their new year's resolution this year is can we bring down those spiking crime rates? host: you have a new mayo

coming into memphis this year and upon his election,e says this divisioand memphis is to lift the cloud of darkness we've been feeng around crime and the negative things we've seen in the news. what faces the new mayor as he tries to tackle his vision? guest: we are all behind the new mayor. he put his hand on the bible and today will be sworn into office. this crime problem is multifaceted. it will probably not be one person but we know one system that is broken and that his airport system in shelby county. this is actually not that much of a political issue anymore. it might've been before but these judicial commissioners are simply looking at these violent offenders in many cases, looking at their rap sheet and sending them right back out onto the street. the new mayor, paul young says

we've got to fix the loophole in a broken system. we are all behind him. host: is that sentiment bipartis in nature for a new mayor coming into the office? is this unusual in memphis or have you seen this before? guest: he won with about 27% of the voting population. 27% of the demographic was behind paul young, that's a lot of people who were not for him but that's the voting system here in memphis. that's another issue. maybe we should we should address that going forward. this is a dark blue city. he is a democrat and would describe himself as a progressive and able to work with republicans. there is no question where he sits on the political spectrum. i think a lot of people that vote here are looking for him. i'm the host of a conservative news talk station with a little

red dot in the blue and even our listeners, which we have a diverse group of democrats and republicans were optimisti it's not good to be pessimistic on january 1. host: when it comes to the listeners, how much of the talk is about the coming election later this year? guest: it is one of the big issues for our voters. they want change. a lot of our listeners want change. with national poll income it' not just republicans that want their candidate in office. it's a lot of democrats that are frustrated with this president. it's going to be really interesting. in both political parties right nows you know, there is a lot of consternation about the way these parties are going, thate are going to see a repeat of 20 and if you check the poles of the country, they are not here for that. they wansomething else in the

polling suggestshat we will be right back in 20. host: former present trump won the at with more than 50% the last time around. what does it look like this me around? guest: he's got it. tennessee is dark red. everyone -- almost all of our delegation in the state of nnessee are congress held. they have come out and endorsed him in both senators were the first senators to come out before anybody else was coming out to put their hand up to endorse the former president. they were the first to lead the charge. host: as far as your viewers who call in or the listeners who call in, what do they think about the other entrance in the republican side like governor desantis or nikki haley? is it pretty much support for the former president and they

fall f behind that? guest: i think right now, a lot of those listeners that call in every single day would be open to a r desantis and some of them to nikki haley. what they see right now is an looking thugh their perspective that they shared on the show. they think the system is not fair to the former president so let's write that wrong. once that has been written correctly in the dish in the annals of history, you can come and have your time. for desantis, i think this was a big timing flop, he should have waited and he's not doing well right now. a lot of our listeners are still team trump and i think they will be with him to the very end. host: how can people find your show? guest: they can go to mighty 990 on facebook and the website qm

radio.com. host: thank you for joining us on this new year's day. happy new year to u. guest: thank you. host: we are hearing from guests through the course of the morning but we are here mainly for you. you call in and tell us about your level of degree or optimism or pessimism for the year ahead onhis first day of 2024. let's go to maryland onur line for pessimists. thank you for waiting, go ahead. caller: i am pessimistic and i' pessimistic because as anything goes, we have people when they lose, they have to denigrate the winner and not accept what is true. they are spreading falsehoods

and they are passing laws that ar against any living person. i'm terribly pessimistic. there is no order in the system now, in the government or otherwise. host: north carolina for those optimistic people out there. go ahead, you are on. caller: good morning. i am very much optimistic. i'm 73 years old, african-american and born and raised in arkansas. my dad was born in jim crow alabama and he was the son of a slave. i can go back day after day smile about the conversation i've had with my dad who was 60

years old when i was born in 1950. he talked about my granddad's experience as a slave. it wasn't a pessimistic experience. for whatever reason, my granddad was in slavery and being involved in that civil war with the slave masters on the rebel side, he was optimistic. my dad was the most optimistic person i ever t. even my mom sent five of their seven children to college in the 50's and 60's. i'm the youngest and i went to college and i had everything a kid could ask for. my mom and dad were optimistic, honest people. what disappoints me as i hear people talk about god and being church folks and they talk about the pessimistic side of things in this country. i read somewhere the other day for example that one out of every 100 families are

millionaires. in the african-american community. we hear every day about the success of black businessmen and women and all they have and all they've achieved. when we tally it, there is enough number -- there is enough money in the african-american community to take care of the problems that money can ta a already. we don't need to ask the federal government to spenmore money. what people fail to realize is this is not donald trump's money. this is not bidens money. this is money up or -- outpour, hard-working people, the people pay taxes. we keep talking about more money, reparations, the mayor of chicago said the other day that he believes he could stop crime or reduce crime if the federal government would pay reparations

to the chicago citizens. this is nonsense. host: let's hear from brian in minnesota on our line for pessimists. caller: good morning. i'm very pessimistic. everhing is upside down. we've got illegal immigrants coming in left and right. congress is hamstrung, they can't do anything, they spent way too much money on their wish list. this economy is getting ready to crack and drop. what's going to happen when the money runs out? thank you. host: those are two perspectives on the year ahead from two different points of view, one comes from a democratic strategist taking a look at presidden in the year ahead for hing that first,

president biden cap to central promise that he would lead the nation to the other side of covid and the pandemic has receded and the economic recovery is better th other in the nation. also the strength of the present record is only matched by the strength of his party. seven of the past eightn presidential elections, ing no party has done in while the democrats keep winning, central wisdom continues to overly dcount former presidentrump's historical baggagend his electoral faures. that's sim rosenberg there and anothepecte from the washington examiner's jim ansel who writes --

yocan find those online, two perspectives you mayant to read yourself as far as your view othe year ahead on this first day of theear, whether you view it optimiicallyr pessimistically. joe in ktucky, viewing it optimistically, ahead. caller: i think the president has done a good job. we've g an infrastructure bill

at's improving roads. i think inflation is coming down. the unployme rate is almost at a historilow. i don't know why people are so depressed. it doesn't seem to me that the economy is at all bad. in fact, it's ther good. it's histically good. host: that's personay what you're a seeing in louisville? call: yes. host: howo? caller: most people i know are at work and they are not having a lot of unemployment in kentucky based on history. i think we are doi well. we got some new instriesn kentucky. there ishe battery plants and so forth.

i just don't see the big depression everyone seems to have either locally or naonally. host:oe there in kentucky. it's here from pete in pennsylvania on our line for pessimis. caller: thanks for having me. happy new yea and on that note, i'm extrely pessimistic. i think both parties as we know arso dysfunctionaln our system is so broke but i think the republicans in particular are more out of touch and troubled than the demoats and i'm noeven saying that if -- as the democrats are doing well. ybe they are not as bad. if that's what were judging by, that'not too good. host: when you make that kd of

comparison, wh do you base that on? as far as em bei out o touch, to the degree any party is touch? caller: i think you can go by theast 3 five days when republicans do nothing and they passed nothing. they have cuure wars. there is little -- there is no legislation at all so that's a goodarometer there. and the way they have been able trump when we know how they talk about him behind closed doors. ey don't have the backbone. he is going fan things and i think 2024 will be a bumpy ride and i think there's no way around that unless he dropsut but evewith the convictions and the trials, it still going to be bumpy. host: do you think that bumping

is goefor prent biden as he mounted his reelection campaign? caller: i think so because of his age. i think it's unfortunate the ba is so low between both to be host with you. i think there's far more qualified younger people, people with new ias. not relitigating thingsf the past, yeah i think we should do better. i'm not sure if the third-party thing will turn erythininto chaos either. i'm not a big rfk and we don't know what no labels will do. one rson i would le to see -- le to see not run i soone like jill stein. she cabe a spoiler rht ere. host: ok. caller: thabeing said, i have

reservations about bidenut on the whole, i think is aecent person. on the others, tnk, i don't even want too into that. host: in jamca, new york, is is michael and our line for optimists. caller: good morning, ihink president biden is done a great job and more experienced than president trum i believe the big elephant in the room is i biden gets sick or passes away kamala harris will b president and ion't ink this cotry is ready f a female black presidentt this time. host: why is that? caller: because of the races and where the countries at today. host: we elected an african-american president twic does that factor into

whethea female african-american president could be elected? caer: with the experience biden has come i d'think she has the experience that wld make her a greatreside. think the country sees that and that the elephant in the room. host:et's hear from eddie in massachusetts on theine for pessimists. caer: the budget could be as much is $2 trillion deficit. a man called up a moment ago that said biden has done such a good job in infrastrucre. that was done years ago. they added on a huge welfare bill and that would never of past donald trump's desk. that's why there's such a huge deficit. how can people live like that. the interest rate will be as $1 trillion per year.

ople say we don't teach civics. the problem is, wdon't teac ecomics. you t to live within your means. you've got to rai taxes by 5%, you' got to cut gornment by 5%. that's all theris to . host: that's eddie in massachusetts. if you are on e line, stay o the line and if u are calling in, continue to do so unl 10:00 and we wiltake your calls on your level of optimis oressimism for 2024. (202) 748-8000 if you describe yourself as an oimist, (202) 748-8001 if yodescribe yourself as a pessimist. you catext u at (202) 7480033 . our guests are joining us to talk about issues. the opinion and community engagement editor from the columbia dispatch is with us. happy new year. guest: good morning. host: how do you describe your

job, particular community engagement? guest: it's a mixture as the paper reflts community because they are voices that can be heard in the newspaper and that's what i tried to do with the number of engagement and interactions with the public. what are the issues that you wanto engage with the public with or the public wants to engage in? guest: we had a crazy year in ohio last year with the ongoing election starting in august with the referendum we had over help we can get constitutional amendments on the ballot. after that, it was abortion and with marijuana. those issues will carry over into next year. it will also be over districting change reforms initiatives on the ballot.

there may be minimum wage some other things that will get folks energized to vote. host: you talked about the issues like abortion and marijuana and other issues. what does that suggest about how your state is changing when it comes to how they put apoach these issues? guest: i feel like the statehouse is probably out of touch wi what people want. some were surprised by how wide the margin was on abortion and mariana even though the poll suggested that would happe 57% approval for both of those issues. the state senate tried to make some significant changes to marijuana and the people took great offense to that because we had just voted to allow legal marijuana under the rules that were set up in the bil

, i'm sorry and the amendment. they found that many people went for marijuana. host: governor dewine's recent decision when it comes to the bill on transgender care, we hear about it but what dihe decided what will make that decision? guest: i wasn't surprised that he vetoed the legislation. a lot of people dump tickly like his policies. i don't like all of them myself but i feel he is a person who cares about children and tt's a key pnt of his administration that he wants to leave a legacy wary impres the life of ohio children. transgender children have been made the scapegoat aund the nation. governor dewine talked to alth professionals and families and talk to transgenr people who

said the care saved their lives. this comes from fathers and mothers and transgender people is that the care saved the them from a destiny nobody wants for their child. host: when you talk about the engagement side of it, what do you do to make sureoth sides of an issue are reflected if it comes down to that? guest: it's hard to do a lot of times because people have -- people go by the media. they really want perspective on the news pages and websites. it's a hard thing to do but we try to solicit colns from both sides and talk to people from both sides. we did that with marijna and abortion. we will continue to do that because the more you talk to people, the more you understand the world around you. governor dewine was pretty

interesting when he explained why he vetoed the transgender athletesill and the other part was about gender affirmg care. people from both sides are acti in the best interest of ohio children. if you start from the point of view were most people don't have nefarious intent, you n try to understand. host: ohiwill be one of the states that will be closely watched in 2024. when it come to the two candidates who will probay be at the lead of that, what do you think about thedea of another matchup for your state as people watch it? guest: i assume you're talking abt trump and biden. i think it's clear that ohio will go for donald trump. he won in the state by eight points last year. the primary is march 17 and i think, march 19 and people of

made their minds up about that. that might greatly impact what happens with sherrod brown. jared brown has been in office since 2006 any's very popular but at the same time, biden was the first president who did not win the state of ohio since kennedy. it will be a hard road ahead r sherrod brown. host: if you look at the year ahead, do you view it optimistically or pessimiscally which is what we been asking the audience. guest: over the years, i become a realist. i believe people will do the right thing at the end of the day. we will see what happens if that makes sense. host: how can people find your community engagement at the

columbia dispatch? our guest is the editor for that opinion and community engagement section, emilirobinson, thank you for your time this morning and happy new year to you. guest: happy new year toou as well. host: we wi hear from philip d minnota hor line for timist, thank you for waiting, go ahead. caller: good morning anhay new year, ank you for c-an. 'm 73 yearsld myself in a previous caller came into said his grandparents were the sons of slave owners. i age with him completely. people need to quit oking for the government for full support and we had to ta care ourselves. i lieve need a balance betwn capitalism a soalism. people havo not listen to the

gaage dold tru has been reading. the country has a lot of problems but i think we can solve them tether. we need to nobuy in the divisiness ohat trump is doing. the countries facing a bri blotter prlems now. we havto movforward. i think democrats overached sometimes. the republican leadership is content with the statuquo. a coury, weave to move forward. we are a capitistic, socialist and nation we have to have balance. 'importt so i'm optimistic. i thinkers- i thk people are starting to wake up and realize thatrump is not good for this untry. i think people need to listen to c-span and look within themselves. most people will do the ght thing. tha's what i hope for 2024. host: dale city, california honor line for pessimists. caller: good morning and happy

new year. i am optimistic because of the -- i am pessimistic because of the two wars goingn. i see none them really care about these wars in t parti. if we don'try to stop them, we will have terrorists. one senator one morning said that by sending mey to isrl and ukraine, we kp our people down. house said. we are all talking aboutho has the best equipment for war, please, l's have peace for 2024. we want to be optimistic for all the people around. it's sad to see kids getting killed literally thank you and happy neyear.

let's promote peace not w. host: let's code-2 margon indiana on our optimism line. caller: goomornin happy new year to everyone. i was just calling to say that the dems will continue to win and keep on winning because the republican party has dissolved in lieu of our former president. we have come to the time where there is no place t up. any a party willisten to a presidentell them that he loves the uneducated and you hear applause, there is no place but . st: what do you think about thlow rating numbers for the current president? caller: no one caed me for pole? my poleas biden uall the wa there is no other rection this

countrcan go. after you go so low, it's boom/bust in everything, the econy and e stupidity an all of that. it's time for everybody to get smart and like i said, the republican party is not, john mccain and all that, that's dissolved. the dems wl bring them back and maybe now they wi take some government classes and learn about government and learn what words likimpeacent means and all the other things theyre trying to institute th a preside who's only trying to drive this country forward. host: clewater,loridaonor li foressimis. my ne is mio. i'm heing clewater for seven years but i lived in this country r 22 years.

the economy is not that because i came here th $20n my pocket i goty own use now. i have two automobiles. i don't spend monelike crazy. myocial security is only700 a month but i have home paid in full. ve you money and invesin a home. on you he a home, y have no problemhe resof you life. you don'you -- you should not expect the president to solve your pblem, you need to solve th yourselves. 'm aemocrat now in our president has been doing a good job but it'timeo move out

now. i ho he don't run. we need aew president. they need to bring in ideas. he's been helping a lot of people and we apprecia that. st:t was a discussion that tooklace on fox ne yesterday,he whi house counsel of chk economic advirsjared bernsteinalk about e statef economy and the concerns of 2024. here is part of at [video clip] [video clip] conversation from yesterday. >> what about the debt? $33 trillion and growing is not sustainable. [inaudible] that's a fair point and a big issue for the coming year when we >> and a couple of months. that will show continued deficit reduction under thisresident.

he has a proposal to duce the deficit by $2.5 trillion over 10 years. we cannot do that ourselves. we need congress to work with us. we do that by returning some fairness to the tax code. nobody under $400,000 should pay a time -- a dime more in taxes but those at the top of been evading hundreds of williams of dollars of taxes. we know republicans are trying to cut back the irs funding that would help to reduce that tax evasion and close the tax gap. our ideas to lower the cost, not just height and tax increase but to lower the cost of health care spending and prescription drugs, the cost of insulin and health care coverage. the opposition wants to repeal the measures that's going the wrong way and raises the budget deficit, we saw the this year in some of their proposals. it raises costs for middle-class

family in a raises the cost for senis. that's nowhat you will sein r budget. host:et's hear from gerald in ohio honorine for thoseho e pessistic. you are next callerood moing,ow are you ing? host: i'm fine, go ahead. i think biden is the dumbest president we've had in the long time. inflations high. he's got e rents high and he's letting these people over here from these -- he's got the people over here from -- mexicans and all these pple comingver herscattered all overhe place. he should ve sent them all

back he's not doing nothing about it. host: ok, cbs beforthe stt the new yr took a poll taki a look at the onion of what is to come in 2024. some of the results --

there is more to that pole and will show you that and others as we continue throh the course of the morning. tom in winter haven, frida, our line for optists, you are next. caller: i am oimistibut it's only if we can stop th trend of losi their identity. tha's th regard to whatur undersntended area this word democracy gets thrown around so willy-nilly. we are in fact a constitutional republic. when one of your callers mentioned the fla, it's not to the report -- it's not to the democracy but to the republic but there is a concerted effort by many in the strategy is that that will become a truth. the one democratic debate i've

watched, biden was selected. we are a democracy and simply not true is what he said. what our founders intended, this was a country founded on judeo-christian values. when you work in a court of law, you raise your rightand and put your hand on the bible and then you swear to tell the truth. host: how does all that relate to your sense of optimism? caller: i'm optimistic because i believe this is the greatest country. if we can stop this deliberate intention to change what the foders intended in this country, change is constant but we are not talking about switching from carburetors t fuel injection. were talking about something really big which ishat the founders intended. we' got to stop this

manipulation of trng to change th constitutional republic and turn it into a democracy. host: another one of those poles to show you from maris asking people about optimism or pessimism in the year ahead. you can check out that marist poll. we are asking you to whether

you're optimistic or pessimistic for the year ahead. (202) 748-8000 for those of you who are optimistic and (202) 748-8001 if you say you are pessimistic and then you can text or post on social media sites. virginia on outline for optimists, hello. caller: good morning. i am eternally optimistic. there isbsolutely no dou that right now we are in a time ofnprecedented change. i don't think this country has ever been in the place it is now . we are almost at the point of i uld call i a civil warere particularly the republican side is driven into a world view that's anti-change. like the calr before said change is the only constant. like the grong pains this

country went through at its founding and after the end o slavery, i believe this is a similar period of history we are going through. ifou look at it in the context of history empes rise a fall, nations rise and fall but ultimately, god is in control. we just ha to hold onto the faith that things will get better like they always ha. as someone almost 70, i'veeen tremendous changesappen just in my litime. i ju believe that we definily will go through a difficult period. don't really kno what the future holds but i am eternay optimistic because i know o holds the future host: bristol, virginiaonor line for pessists. caller: yes, i am pessimistic

and i listen to a lot of this stuff and i listen to different sides there fr what i've seen, i'm not sure which way people are goin but'm optimistic too when i think aut h many replican presidents have beenlected. another thing hear pple saying is it stupi t swap courses in midstream. all of us w are been listening and nobody knows when to go behind that curve -- behind that curtain to vote. that makme a ltle optimistic. host: james inalifornialso

underlined for optimists. caller: thank y for taking my call i'm externallyptimistic beuse alstatesn the union will be taking voting for different positions within their governments whether it's state or otherwise. i'm also optimistic because many states have purge their voting records, over 100,000 individuals of been removed from the voting records oa few states. i would like all states to do that. number two, i would like to see the treasury, the government reduced by one million employees for the federal government. the treasury department to start with, 100,000, epa to be done away with, department of education to be done away with, the department of justice to be reduced by 50,000 increasing the border patrol by 50% not

administrative personnel but border patrol officers. there are at least 10,000 individuals here illegally and i would like to create a city on federal property that would be called awaiting judicial hearings for those folks were here illegally and who have gotten into our country because we couldn't capture them or sees them. i would like to see the coast guard increase its members by 3500. i would like the states to reduce their roles. host: we got the point. let's hear from michelle in alabama on the pessimistic line. caller hi, i'm optimistic and pessimistic. i'm pessimistic because we got one more year lying joe biden. you see how much damage he can do to the country between now and an election.

i am optimistic because i can't wait for trump to get reelected. host: sandy from columbus, ohio honor line for optimists. caller: i am optimistic because i am very happy that the truth is going to come out and especially here in ohio. between january 1 in ohio, becan january 1 and t fourth, when th get t taxes, stateme for their homes, ey will find out that the 25 ohio signatures in the ohio assembly a ate grass, 67 republicans and only 35 democrats. -- and eight democrats, 60 sev republicans and only 35 democrats. the truth is coming out and the republics by tm running this ate. so yes, asar as joe biden goes, keetellinthe truth.

is gog to ce out,ecause the truth wi win. host sandy they arfinishg out the seconhour wh your calls, 2024 if you are optimistic or pessimistic about what is ahead this year, call and let us go. keep doing so. 202-748-80 if you are optimistic. guest: @cspanwj ♪ ♪ 202-748-01 if you say you are pessimistic. i guest joining for our final hour, a short visit come out of charlottesville, virginia, a talkshow host, mr. thomas, welcome back to the program. happy new year to you. guest: thank you for inviting me ba. i was born on friday the 13th, and i've been an optimist ever since. host: what is driving your optimism this year, do you think? guest: that our rights don't

come from government, and we should remember that. there are people on this planet that have god-given rights, but they don't have the blessings of a government that have reconstituted under the idea that they are supposed to protect that above all other things. we see this cycle before, liberty and prosperity, and apathy and tierney, and the cycle repeated over and over again. hopefully we can stop it. host are there specific infringemes you would see that you would say this is happening and people don't see it? guest: what i see more frequently as people misunderstanding. charlottesville has been a hotbed of this for at least 500 years, but you know what, when jefferson and madison both hail from here, we take it personally. there's a right to speak.

you don't have a right to be listened to. that is on you. i was interviewing dee snider come of all folks, who has a book out with his battles of censorship, tipper gore, back in the y, and he uses one of the phrases th drives me crazy, the expression, you don't have the right to yell fire in a crowded theater, well, you do if there is a fire in a crowded theater. i've had my youtube channel taken down. i've had social media aounts, spotify will not distribute my poast, because i talk about things like ivermectin, i talk to dr. paul meretz, and we were not even saying there was fire in a crowded theater, we were asking the question, "does anybody else smell smoke?" there's a real battle between what is your right and what is

your responsibility. we tk about this lot on my show. every right comes with a counterbalancing responsibility. you have a rig to use freely, but you don't ve a right to lie about people, and that is wherwe've come off the line. i connect get back to when we stopped displaying that original book of 10 rules, the commandments, thou shallot bear fal witness against thy neighbor, for example. host: your thoughts of democrats being a control of the general assembly. what is the impact going to be this year? guest: i think it will be interesting. we will see if governor youngkin is the dealmaker that he said he was when he was campaigning from his days in the investment bankinworld, but it is going to be a battle, because right now, the leadership of the democratic party wants to deny governor youngn anything. governor youngkin could walk in and saying here we have a cure for cancer from the university of virginia, and they would oppose it under the idea of what about althe researchers you

are going to put out of work. so there's going to be, if governor youngkin wants it, they are going to oppose it. his challenge this year is to get things on his agenda passed without necessarily claiming credit for them. i think that's going to be h he's going to have to govern this year, if he wants to get anything done. we just lost a ballot over a future tax cut, a permanent tax cut for virginia, and we announced a deal to build an arena with all this other redevelopment in the commonwealth, and everyone is backslapping over that. hold on, those were our ta cuts. those were hard-working virginians' dollars. there's got to be some infrastructure development here and there, but gosh, the capital one center is not that old, and it does not look like it needs to be replaced right now.

host: in your mind, what do you think the governor will do to strike those balances and make those deals to get thing accomplished? guest: well, for example, senator mark pete has a bill that will shorten our elections. we start voting for president january 19 in the commonwealth because we have a 45-day election window. so, you know, nobody gets a break in this. with 35 days of early absentee voting in virginia, it becomes a real onerous thing. you're turning around, and people are voting again. it is crazy. so they are trying to shrink back to 21 days. i'd like to see a shrunk to seven, but right now, the compromise seems to be 21 days. those are theinds of things you will seehis year. host: moving to the house of representatives, mr. thomas,

virginia house of representatives, now tapped the head of the house fedom caucus. what you think that means for speaker johnson? guest: well, i think speaker johnson has already had some contentious meetings with the freedom caucus. it will be bob's challenge, it has increased in numbers every year, and that is going to be good for him -- key for him, to continue to grow membership in the freedom caucus. he is facing a primary challenger, john maguire's challenging him on the idea that his worship will in this leakers battle cost the virginia republans the house and senate. i'm not one whlikes to point fingers, but these days, we are trying to get lots of parents into the seats in the general assembly raises, and they're pointing the fingers at bob

good, and the vacated the chair event is drivingepublicans out of the party. donald trump got more to vote for him in 2020 van glenn youngkin in 2021, just the votes were different. i don't know where the virginia republicans ar i know the ones i talked to all one feet policies back, better opportunities for more jobs, the peace in the middle east, the trade deals that where the abraham aords, they want those back. and i thin if presidentrump articulates those things, he will win, but he nee to articulate those things, and he has not been to virginia a lot. he's been obviously hitng some of the early battleground states in the primary a lot. that's what we need to hear from him, that he remembers the forgotten name that he campaigns to in 2016. and if he does that, he will win in 202 and we will probably

see some coattails for republicans in the house and senate. host: we seen several states trying to keep the former president off via the 14th amendment. do you know if there's anything similar in the works in the commonwealth of virginia? guest: actually just on friday, a federal judge smacked down an attempt for lack of standing, i thk was the actual reasoning, t the judge, an appointee in the eastern district of virginia, there were two fellows from the hampton roads area that had filed the same kind of paperwork, the same kind of suit that said we wanted to keep donald trump off the ballot because of the 14th amendment, and they said there was no standing. so he will stay on the ballot here, starting january 19. host: you talk about the former president, but when it comes to the current president, joe biden, given that he probably holds struggles in the north and

richmond and may even the coastal cities, what you think his chances are given the polling numbersuest: didn't he just announced a 5% raise for federal employees? that is most of northern virginia, as if he needed their votes anyway. what i'm seeing, though, is a very interesting case, and i will jump off of joe biden and talk about robert f. kendy, jr becse i'm seeinpolling numbers, and especially a lot of these battleground states, he achieved ballot access in utah, and that is going to be a big grassrootsampaign builder. i've seepolls where he is polling as high as 20%, and that is a real wild card in this. if he gets o the debate stage with presidents trump and biden, that could really throw a monkeywrench. jeerson in charlottesville stard a third political party in 1800, because the rulin parties were losing touch with virginians, the alien and

sedition acts, and things like that maybe someone will have the gravitas of kennedy, just like it took someone th the gravitas of jefferson, to shake up, we like to refer to it a republicans and democrats like to thinkhey are the fourth and fifth branches of government, part of this ballot access, so that will be an interesting thing in the 2024 president to election cycle. host: joe thomas, helping people find your ? guest: we are on every morning at wchv.com, but we have a free smartphone app. download it from the itunes store, you canisten anywhere. that listeners in oklahoma, alabama, all over the place. if i had video, i would challenge you, but you got the video over me. st: joe tmas, thank youo much f your time, and happy new ar. guest:appy.

host: about 50 minutes to go. keep calling in. judy in the rest of who considers herself optistic, thank you for waiting. go ahead, please. judy, you are on. caller: yeah. i think president biden is doing a pretty good job. he has a lot on his plate right now with the war erseas, but he's trying to be diplomatic about ending that crisis. mr. trump, elieve, wants to just go in there and blow everybody up and start world war iii. as far as the economy goes,'ve

also seen improveme, i kn that here in nebraska, over the past few months, gas prices have dropped more than one dollar a gallon, and i've seen some grocery items lowering. i see the stock market doing well, and the fact that interes rates willrobably be cut in the upcoming year. and as far as spending goes, mr. trump spent more money in four years than any other president ever. he lef a he defit for mr. biden, and i think he's trying to do that. host: ok, mhael joins us from

honolulu on our line for optimists. hello, michael. caller: hi. how are you doing? host: fine, going to come up please. caller: i'm very oimistic tha trump can fix up the borders and allow our fabulous country to do better. i think our country has been led astray by the government and the media. i am optimistic he will fix the prlems, and our country will be a strong, happy place. the world will spect us. i ally believe that trump knows -- it is impossible for it to go any other way. it is aming to me that people continue toote the way they

do. thank you. st: ste in delaware, on our line for those w consir themselves pessimists. hello. caer: i'm concerned about the inability of our politicians to co together to resolve problems in a number of diffent issues, social security, the national debt, which is causing this massive inflation, and, you know, everyone has to come together to resolve these things, get away from the name-calling and everything. host: what do you think are the main drivers of legislators and politicians not working together on these issues? caller: i think it is selfishness, their own selfishns. i think that, you know, they need to be held responsible by the media, but the media is so divided, and they are not holding people responsible.

i think we need to get back to the days of wear just the facts were told and let people come to their own conclusions rather than having talking heads with just, you know, soundbites. people listen to those soundbites and take a shot. host: steve in delaware. we will hear next from ron in missouri on our line for optimists. hello. caller: man, this is going to be a good year, because i believe donald j trump is probably going to be right down the street from me in leavenwoh. host: ok, mark in pennsylvania on our line fo festivus. pessimists. hello. caller: happy new year. host: happy new year. caller: we are duplicating history, aren't we?

we have not learned from covid yet. it is not over. what happened in the 1920's? what happened in the 1930' that's all i'm going to say. thank you. ho: wait a minute. can you elaborate on that? caller: 191 the flu, what happened after the flu? why did america do? whatappened to thearkets? how did trade change? all that changed for us, but it did no change. we are just duplicating the same result of whatook place in the 1920's. host: how so? caller: the roaring 20's re a party time. what are we doing now? e way to orcome pression is to pay. that is at we are doing now. host: how does that relat to the year ahead? caller: we have not learned from covid-19, thfallout from covid. we are still goi to go through tuoil.

trade still ha not taken place, not all items are on the shelves yet. we don't have access to all product. reurces e thin. we are going to monkeyround with it for the next 10 years. host: thais mark the in pennsylvania. again,f you are his thoughts or maybeave opsing thoughts when it comes to your level of optimism or pessism in the unit state especially in this year ahead, 202-748-8000, for those of you who consider yourselves optimists in this year, for e redhead. 202-748-01, if you say you a more pessimistic. our social media and texting sites, too. one issue that came up with south carolin senator lindsey graham concerning the coming election analso the sue of former esident trump anif you wilbe held liable

for issuesnvolving january 6. here is part of the conversation from yesterday. [video clip] >> you said that in 2021, after the senate impeachme trial, you said of donald trump, the "president's conduct is subject to law of the land if you believe he committed a crime, he could still be prosecutedfter his out of office." do you stand by that statement that mr.rump could be prosecuted a criminal reliable? sen. graham: yeah. it depends on what the conduct is. on january 6, if he were still president, trying to find out what was on thup and up, the immunity claim, i don't know if it will bear out, but i think it is a legitimate claim. january 6, he did not break into the capital he gave a fiery speech, but he is not t first guy to ever do that. at the end of the day, this case

will not go to trial before the election. there are more legal issues ound this than you can even imagine, what can a president do as president? what are the limitations of being president? >> to be clear, you do not believe a present should be immune from prosecution if he committed a feny? sen. graham: well, right. body is immune from the law we do have presidential immunity to do your job. i have immunity to do my job. he got acquitted. january 6 is baked into the cake. i think that jack smithases i not changing the pitical outcome. we will see what the court does. host: that convsation from yesterday. here is louise inassachusetts on our line for those who consider themselves pessimists. hello. caller: h i'm st so distressed that so many people are in favor of

trump. i think that biden is a brillian man he has a sech imdimentfor heaven sak, and he has overcome that. he is a brillian man, and he has done a wonderfulob. even all of the republicans, they follow trump a if they are rrifieof him and if wins, it is really all over for us, and i'm just horrifi that people want to te for him, and people w want to get r of the government. [indistinct conversations] [laughs] of course people are already so poly eduted, tt is t reason they are in favor of trump. they just don't know anyetter.

host: what do y think is the possibility of president biden not winning this yr? ller: that's wh i am worried about! i'm so worried that he won't win. i want him to win, of course, and of course i hope he wins, but i'm just depress horriy to thinkf if he doesn't win, we are stuck with this awful, awful man. i remember hitler. rememr what happene and trump wantso get rid of the alliancen europe. he wants to eliminate that, get americout of that, a that will destroy their aiance. and the only time they've ever used i was 911, and europe was comingo ourefense.

people just don't -- theare very ignant. that is thwhole reason they are voting for trump. the republicans wa to keep them ignorant, sthey will keep vong for republicans. st:rom back in pennsylvania come on our line for optimists. hello. you e next up. caller: i have question for maga republicans. what is going to happen when this guys a dictator? are you going to be safe from the dictator? for people who say joe biden hasn't done anything, cck your 401(k)'s. check interest rates. yeah. they a high, but they are going down. host: wally on our line for optimists, from new mexico, hello. caller: hello. can you hear me? host: you are on.

go ahead. caller: the idea of people waking up during a time of turmoil, it progresses into good, because people begin to wake up. althoughducation is not the forte of many people, they are starting to become educated, becong aware of who is controlling what and where all this control is coming from and how democracy is not a reality in the way we are living right now. hold on. i can't hear. host: so how does tha specifically lead to you becoming optimistic? caller: well, i'm looking for people to wake up and stop calling eachther names, become brothers andisters like we really are, and take control of the lifestyle and making things more, you know, renewable, for

instance. and just disregarding allhese politicians, the lawyers, ese people who are just misguidg everybody, the media, the mainstream media, all this stuff is nonsense. when people become aware and educated, all they have to do is understand the root of the causes of things. you push money aside, and you make things,, yeah. host: with the coming of the new year, a new set of state laws, highlighted that "the new york times" thimorning, including guns, minimum-ge, and gender transition care. perhaps the most significant chge programs bans diversity, equity, and inclusion at public universities in texas. republicans he targeted these initiatives, known as di, because they say they use

taxpayer money to push liberal agenda on campuses. a similar one that florida enacted in may to prohibit blic colleges and universities fr spending funds on di initiatives. additional workplace and health-care productions come about three dozen states enacted new laws on voting in 2023 but the most practical effects will not be felt until the primary and general elections in 2024. many of these anges starting toda and igoes through a host of cagories, if yo're intested itaking look at those specifi catories the new la that me inteffect as o tod, on this first day of024. we are asking you, when you look at your head, how do you descri yourself? perhaps you are more optimistic in nature. perhaps you are a pessimist at heart. how do you desibe yoself, partularlyhen yoook at the your head? joey in virgia on our line for optimists.

hello. caller: hello. how are you doing? can you hear me? host: you aren. go ahead. caller: if trump will be president again, you heard in my video, he's going to pardon all those people that were in jail. the people that don't mo forward, are they going to send them to jail? what's going to happen to nancy pelosi and the people who do not move forward with their life? what's going to happen? are you going to have people running up and down the streets? you do anything about it, you're goingo lose your job, right? host: in virginia on our line for optimists, hello. caller: hello. hello, pedro, how is your day going? host: fine, thanks. go ahead.

are you on speakerphone? caller: am. host: is there a y for you not to be on speakerphone? caller: let'see, how is that? host: great. go ahead. caller: first day of th year, this is thfirst time'veeen able to ca into it almos evy show, iant to call in on ery topic, and thi one, it i not theemocraor republican and others, you know, so ts one is eier for me to pick. and'm totally optimistic aut 2024. things are looking up, if people would actuly look at the factl iormation thayou don't have to pay for and wch e senate and house as well as "washingn journal." hey, and republica -- i'm a registered republican. i voted democrat in the last eltion.

i did vote for trump in 2015, so i do apologize for that. certainly buyers remorse. host: what would you be that optimism on? give me a specific reason why. ller: i'm optimistic that as far as the transition from older generation in charge, past baby boomers to jenna to the newer ones, io think it is time for our generation xafter watching this fantastic country, have been here for about 50 years, our country has been here for, what, 250ish. we have se this slide before. we haveatched somebody with

charisma or chutzh or rizz, dending on what u use, toe elected up. becauswhen you have a reality star when 90% of the discourse is like a television show, tha's what pele wan as far as govement goes, they d't re about policy. they will believe anything, th wi sak, poticianwill speak under thdebate plot. the eech a debat plot is riculous, because reprentatives willo out on the floor, and they do go out on the oor and say the most ridilous, sane stuff, sane things that are hapning, and they hadhose trigger points, and that engages the sred,

people that are fearing. host: ok, got the point. thanks, caller. we've got one half hour to go, are you pessimistic or optimistic? continue calling in. 202-748-8000, if you consider yourself a optimist. 202-748-8001, perhaps, if you are a pessimist. and check us out osocial media if you wish. we've been joined by various people of opinion during the course of this moment, and finishing off the roster is mike root out in madison, wisconsin, a talkshow host out there. ank you for coming back on the progm. guest: thanks for having me, pedro. host: for those who d't know the program, talk about your perspective and who your audience is. guest: we are called the dils advocate radio show.

my cohost happens to be my coege roommate. we've been doing this for about 13 years, and we are in originating out of wisconsin, so boston, th is the center of political malfeasance in the nation, the origination, any number of that issues that have come down the pike here in the last decade. wisconsin is always the eye of the hurricane. host: one of those topics, the eye, so to speak, was redistricting, the wisconsin supreme court. tell me about what happened, and what do you expect to happen from there? guest: and we could go, the wisconsin supreme court, who had a wly panel justice who is liberal, janet, justice janet joined the court in august, and one day later, a lawsuit was filed on behalf a primarily

democratic plaintiffs seeking to change the republican favored maps in wisconsin. a week ago, the wisconsin supreme court ruled that new maps for 2024, and we have got a very accelerated timeline going on, but that gives us, a few of your optimistic callers, that gives me great of ms. been the new year that wisconsin will get backo small d democracy and representative government here. host: what is the likelihood that can all be settled out before election day? guest: the republicans in charge here are threatening to take into the wisconsin supreme court. if it is on a specific cause additional issue, that lacked contiguous districts, and tt is firmly implanted in the wisconsin constitution.

so it is my impression that it is not a federal court issue. this should remain, it should uphold here on the state level, but of course republicans do not want these. they have nearly a two-thirds legislative majority, despite the fact they hardly win state elections anymore. host: you can elaborate on an efrt by wisconsin brewer, he made an attempt to keep the president off the ballot using the 14th amendment. where did that go? guest: so far it has been shut down by the wisconsin elections commission to they have effectivy said they do not decide who goes on the ballot, and that was always the and dissipation. this is my understanding,nd i certainly admire the effort he's

on every lawsuit. but i don't know that this is not bound for the courts. the brewing company super pac once this in the court, and i think there should be opportuny in the state of wisconsin. i wonder if there is a br master, is t right for this lawsuit. host: your audience is progressive, i would think. wendy think about other candidates on the democratic side, your or no we, robert f. kennedy, jr., marianne williamson, trying to make a challenge to president biden? guest: ihink it's allery

distracting. we met marianne williamson in 2020 to it we met some of these mocratic candidates when there were 20 or so presidential candidates. this is not the time for that. i met cornel west in d.c. the night that donald trump got elected, literally. raises the wire of theear, certainly that is not the right answer, and while progressive may find joe biden y not their ideal candidate, and was not mydeal candidate, but ceainly w is the time to rally around, because now is not the time for chaos. host:o you think theresident needs to rally, particularly in wisconsin? guest: he was in milwaukee in

august we've got kamala harris comingo wisconsin in the short run, i believe in january come on the reproductive freedom to work it certainly this is one of the few states that matter. there will be three to five seats nationally that termine the election outcome, and wisconsin is about a 25,000 rgin vote, when trump won the state in 2016 and, the blue column in 2020, we've had mains of less than 6000 differential. i mean, it's alys here in wisconsin. host to what degree then do you pay attention to poland? -- two polling? to what degree do you think that is a factor right now? guest:raig polling in the state of wisconsin fails to

reflect the sentiment created by the overturning of roe v. wade. this new liberal that has joined the court, she won by 11 points in the state of wisconsin. that is an ovehelming victory we do not seek often. maybe senator tammy baldwin, but no one else wins by those margins here in the state of wisconsin. so i am usually optimistic that that is not really refleed properly in the polling. there's way the polling can show that when they ask, do you prefer trump or biden? what they are not reflecting is the sentiment, especially of women and thoswho love women here in the state of wisconsin where, dipping on who you ask, abortion is legal. women are not satisfied with that. they want toalk their own bodi. i think that is not reflected in

the polling. host: before we let you go, i don't know to the degree you knew him, but if you have any oughts on the passing of herb kohl? guest: well, herb kohl was a venerable senator in the state of wisconsin, beloved as much for his ownership of the ms. milwaukee bucks franchise in his efforts to keep that wisconsin and keep wisconsin a major-league state, keep milwaue a major-league city. i had an opportunity to meet with senator kohl, once literally in his milwaukee bucks box, and from a fan's perspective, he was a huge fan of the milwaukee bucks, and that will be as much part of his legacy in the ste as his service as a u.s. senator. host: how can people find your

show and listen to it? guest: the devils advocate, each weekday, 4:00 to 6:00 central time. hopefully you can go directly to our website. host: that is mike crutehost of the program and the network. thank you for your time here at happy new year. guest: happy new year to you, pedro. things having me. -- thanks for having me. host: you thinking calling and until the top of the hour. rory in california on our line for those who consider themselves pessimists. go ahead. you are next. caller: yes. good morning. i think we are looking at a year of violence. they are throwing out veterans from homeless places to put aliens they. and now you get the homeless and

the aliens are starting to get into battle with each other because of this cold climate. pretty sn, the aliens will not get any food, money, or shelter, and they will riot. americans have about three guns for every american citizen. i suspect they will write and try to take away people's food for break into people's home. the best thing this country can do is take the 25th amendment and have biden removed from office. harris is one person that keeps doing nothing, and if she continues to do nothing for the usa, then we might have a chance. it is time to get republicans and progressis, that's for the birds. we don'want i goodbye. host: joy fm south carolina,

our line for pessimists. hello. you are next. caller: yes. happy new year, first of all. the guy before me, i totally agree with him. i'm a hard worker, middle-class, and i know that my taxes is takeout of my pay every time i get pay and taking care of these illegals that den ha fled to protect our country. we have open borders. they've not done nothing about it. won't even admitt. he don't even know he's president, so something has got to change. i know the american people want trump back. they. . cannot te him f the ballot. it's we theeople o get to vote and wwant as oureader, annobody wan biden except the crazy pele. ho: joyce in south carolina. spking of president biden come on his twitter feed, he posted

at 8:00 this morning, folks happy new year, is when he posted on x. aspeaker mike johnson posted late last night, 11:44, "house republicans look forward to the important work ahead of us in 2024. weish you and your family a sa and bssed new year." speaker mi johnson with his post on x. t's hear fm wilma in new york on our ne forptimists. llo. caller: good morning. in hpy new year to you, sir. host: thank y. caller: i'm optimistic that donald tmp wil nev be presidt again. he' crazy. he's uneducated, and i hope he will be prosecuted and p to jail for all the crimes that he has committed. people who voted, want trump to go back in office, are very cry. they are the craziest, not the

democrats. the republican people are crazy and uneducated, and they are a fool, in my perspective. host: that's wilma in new york. also a text, this is john in virginia saying i'm pessimisti as long as these idiots on the left continue, biden i particular, to make ever effort to destroy this constitutional republic." republicans are not against change, but when change seeks to enacalism, and that is what democrats are all about. another viewer, this is corinne out of pennsylvania saying i'm optimistic for 2024. president biden is doing an cellent job. holiores are packed, gas prices are lower. donald trump would be a disaster for this country. donald trump is under indictment, 91 event. it is unbelievable that people still support this man.

you can reach out via text if you want, 202-748-8002, is how you do that. again, we have divided the lines, optimistic and pessimistic when it comes to the year ahead. 202-748-8000, if you're optimistic. 202-748-8001, if you're pessimisti let's hear from beth on the lines that consider themselves a pessimist. hello. caller: well, i'm pessimistic and less people decide to do something. going to keep this local. i want to give the new york public library, the perfming arts last week, and it was real shocking to show up in new york a see that they have gated lincoln center, the ouide plaza, until it opens at 9:00. i get on a bus and i walked up

there, and i could not get on the plaza. they have cut back the libry urs. both alibrarand th rirside lrary, u know th' got grds. th are paying for guards to walk the grounds, t they have cut ck the public library hos. when i went into get ready to rehearse, i was not alwed to sit on the ground and the public library. they are paying for cameras in the plic library, and as a danc, i was told i could go two levels up and wait to get into my versatile. they are putting in all of this money to pay for guards, k-9uards, lincoln center,nd to close the hours of the public libry. how can you fath that? that is the most ridiculous logic on the planet, to be doing

something like that. i was ve polite. i waited outside lincolnenter for two hours before i can go in, in the cold. and i actually wento the first liary, the riverside library, i got a library card, but the coept that,ou kno the public libraries do not ha any moy comebout idlknow h the lincoln centeis funded, but there was moy for guards, guard dogs. host: let's he from rry in masshusetts on our line for optimists. hello. caller: hello. i'm optimistic, but i like to say as much as i like c-span, bo c-span and donald tru show me what a dark underbelly of uneducad people that exists -- evil that exists out there. for instance take e border and the deficits that republicans ca about when they

e not in office, when they are not control, becae, you know, otherwise, what do they do? so i'm opmistic anywa as long as i think that biden can keep the presidency, and i hope the democrats can take the house, because we certainly don't need another 1930's germany, which is what the repuican side seems to want. and they just don't understand th history repeats itself. but only when a couple of generations goes by and dissolves, then the next generation will pick another dictator. host: how exactly do you think it is going to repeat itself? caller well, looat how -- ll, fit of all, i think that biden will win, but if he doe't, donald trump isust the first inany -- mean, look at the publican party. they areot conrvatives, they

are fascists now. they don't care about the constitution. th've been just using that as a ploy all alo, and they take their own versions of what the constitution and what the republic mea or democracy. you even hear them talk aut how "we are not a democracy th' terrible thin they use "liberalism" as a pejorati. e red ates a so woefully ignorant and uneducated, and the republican politicians tak full advantage of that. thespeopleote agnst themselves to ve taxreaks the rich. host le's ar fro colette in oreg, again, this idea whether you are optimistic or pessimisc in this new year ahead. go ahead. you arnext. let me punch the line, see if it works. it is line 2.

can we punch that? thank you. hello. caller: hello. for the fellow who said there is no help for the veterans, there is. for homeless veterans, the number is 877-424-3838. i'm very optimistic, because we have a gre country, and i'm sure that -- i agree with the lastuy. i'm sure our citizens will come around and vote for what is in the best interest of our country. thank you. host: one of the things that came out of the sunday shows, one of the interviews was on nbc's "meet the press" program, dedicated to mental health, and pennsylvania senator john fetterman talked about his own efforts to treat clinical depression. here's a portion of that interview. ♪ >> can you talk about what it was like the first few days of being in treatment?

sen. fetterman: just meeting with people they are a meeting with oth people that were there as well. my family would visit, my brothers would visit, and i really wasn't really -- i did not like to have a lot of conversations. i just wanted to be kind of left alone and stay in bed. >> whe the ever moments when you were there, seeking treatment, wn you started to lose hope? sen. fetterman: ye. every day that ended with y, you know, like, it's a good depression joke. everyday. i felt like there was not any hope sometimes and, like, what do i have left? and feeling like there was no

hope is what kind of drove me to the place. . and that's why i want people to know no matter how it may look right now, i'm begging you, it's not that bad. it's not that bad. and even if you think that's true, hold on. just, you've got to hold on. you can't imagine how much better can get, if you make the investment and the commitment to just hold that line and work to get better on that. host: that ole inrview is on nbc. onof the other interviews that me out yesterday, a news story that came out yesterday was the passing of former u.s. representative edward g' joson -- eddie bernice johnson. she dd on sday. she was 8years d. president biden and many other leaders posted statements about her ath after her son posted about her on facebook.

president biden cauldron icon and mentor to generations of public servants to whom her legacy and resilience will endure. let's hear from cor in new hampiren our ne for those who are pessimistic about the gehead ahead. go ahead. caller: happy new year, pedro i guess i'm pessimistic, because when you have a congress that ts paid and is t doing what theyrelectedo do, i'm pessimistic because of the lack of intelligence of the general public as to how our government isupposeto function. i'm pessimistic becse i s trump as a moderday hitler. has told us what he's gog to do, and it's exactly what hitler did in german

attacked the presstake ay rights, so i do't ow howere going turnround the trumpers, to realize what it would be likeo livender a dictatorship. i don't understand w they stiladvoca for ts man so i guess tt'why i'm pessimistic. we aretill divided. we are sposed to pull together here, d we sm to bpullin apt. so thais all have. host w will hear from james xt come in maschusetts, on our line for those who conside themselves optimists heo. caller: happy new year. yes, i'm optimistic as hell. i listen to these peoe. they are afraid of donald trump. already had four years of

donald trump. with hisconomic know-how, water pocies, his ergy policies, his promises to drain incribly dangerous swamp, elected and unelected. what i'm hoping is the fbi and the cia and the justice department regained their credibility. i'm just blown away all these democrats. i have a daughter who is a democrat. she won't sit and talk since with me. they leave t room. they scream and yell about donald trump. well, i already lived four years of donald trump, and he was awesome for me! i'm a 67ear-old retired gentlema i was self-employed. i owned a little grocy store, a market, and he was such a breath of fresh air for

self-emplod, hard-working people, no giveawa. i think everybody who is anti-trump ought to ke a deep breath and watched different news stations. it's so obvious. host: let's hear from caie in new york on our line for those who coider themselves pessimists. rr, good morning. sayuricaller: good mning. my name is carrie, and iive in new york. i'm pessimistic because it ses ashough trump haslike, some kind of hypnotic thing on these pele. even in the church, it's like a ng, king david, hhad a lot of wives, he's entitled to that. mea it's really,eally strae, but wiswe had anotr candidate other than biden. but the minorities have to rally around biden and the rest of the

less, because we may not have anothechoice, ok? so, yeah. pessimistic, a little bit of hurt, a hope. thank you. host: eugene from highnd, new york on ourine for those who are optimists. hello. caller: ah. happy new ye to everybody today. it seems like a lot of peoe have trumped arrangement syndrome. let's step down, where the previous governor like cuomo who gave himselfmmunity, and 50,000 people died, when present trump sd -- he deny people, basicalldenied them access to medical services. so people remember tha

and never let that man ever come ne a blot and hopefuy take his name off the bridge also, because that is despicable. happnew god bless america. host one me call. this will be from de. he iin illois on our lin foessimis. heo. , right? let's try one mo call. ller, ahead caller: hi. how are y doing? myame is dorn rogers. 'm from maryland, a registered democrat. just onehing aut regding pessimtic veus optistic for the year. host: you are on. go ahead. ♪ >>-span now is aree mobile p feating yo unfilred view owhat ihappeng in washinon, li and oemand. keepp with the da's ggest even with ve strms of flooproceengs ofearing fr u.s. congresswhite house eventscampaigns, andore from the world of politics, all at ur finrtips. you can alsotay current with the latestpisodeof "washington journal" and schedule information for span's tvetworkand c-span radio, ps a variety of compelling podcasts. c-sp now is available in t app store and google play. download it r freeoday. c-span now, your fro row seat st accntabily to democry. was wahing an episodwhere they were talking abt whats the mostrospers yearithin our ion, a quiteranklys

black amecan, oside o renstruction, when acks we able to obtain tir equal counterparts, i feel like were tchingeople use the rule of law come and weeed to take accountability of our loc, federal, and state democracy and innocence make su ware mindfuabout w we ed to involved in oudemocrat procedures, especial in all ementsf govnment, because in essence, i believe people are starng to see it is not just the two-partyystem t it is being builtn the peop itself, whicht was framed to do. host: ok. will leave ithere. thank you, for all of you who participated in this program today, making it the best program of the year, this being the first day of 2020 forget also thank you to the production crew, all those who keep c-span operational. you don't see them, you don't hear them, but they work very hard to bring you this program, and we thank you from the bottom -- i thank you for sharing the time today. that is a for the program today

could another edition of "washington journal" comes your way at 7:00 tomorrow morning. we will see you then. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2024] [captioning performed by the national captioning stitute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪ ♪c-span's >> "washington journal", our live for involving you to discusthe latest issues and government, politics and public policy. from washington to across the country. coming up tuesday morning, cbs news congressional correspondent scott mcfarland talks about former president trump's legal challenges. then, university of virginia center for politics director larry savage tell on campaign 2024 and other political news of the day. c-span's "washington journal."

joining the conversation live at 7:00 eastern tuesday morning on c-span, c-span now or on my not c-span.org - or online at c-span.org. ♪ >> c-span now is a free mile app featuring your unfiltered view of what ihappening in washington. live and on-demand. keep up with the day's biggest events from live streams of floor proceedings and hearings from the u.s. congress, white house events, the courts, campaigns and more from the world of polits all at your fingertips. you can stay curre with the latest episodes of "washington journal" and find scheduling informion for c-span's tv networks and c-span radio, plus a variety of compelling podcasts. c-span now is available at the apple store and google play. scan the qr code to download it for free today or visit c-span.org/c-span now. c-span now, your front row seat to washington. anytime, anywhere. ♪

>> c-span is your unfiltered view of government. we are funded by these television companies and more, including charter communications ♪ >> charter is proud to be recognized aone of the best internet providers. we are just getting started. building 100,000 miles of new infrastructure to reach those who need it most. ♪ >> charter communications supports-spaas a public service. along with these other television providers. giving you a front row seat to democracy. ♪ ♪ host: it is the washington general for the first day of 2025. happy new year opinion do you find yourself oking at it on -- optimistically or pessimistically? you might be focus o