parents' help i was able to make it through long years of medical training to become an eye surgeon, there is nothing that compares with helping someone see better. last august i was privileged to travel to guatemala on a medical mission trip. we operated on more than 200 people who were blind or nearly blind. i was grateful to be able to put my scrubs back on and focus on the task at hand. to take a surgical approach to fix a problem. a man arrived and told me i had operated on his wife the day before. his wife could see clearly for the first time in years, and she begged him to get on the bus, travel the winding roads and come back to our surgery center. he too was nearly blind. after his surgery the next day his wife sat next to me as i unveiled the patch from his eyes, it was a powerful moment for me to see them looking at

each other clearly for the first time in years. to see the face they loved again. as i saw the joy in their eyes i thought this is why i became a doctor. in that moment i also remembered my grandmother who inspired me to become an eye surgeon. she spent hours with me as a kid. we would sort through her coin collection, but as her vision began to fail i became her eyes. i went with her to have her corneas replaced. and i was with her when she received the sad news that macular degeneration had done irreversible damage to her eyes. i have been fortunate, i have been able to enjoy the american dream. i worry that the opportunity and hope are slipping away for our sons and daughters. as i watch our once great

economy collapse under mounting spending and debt i think what kind of america will our grandchildren see? it seems to me that both parties and the entire political system are to blame. [ cheers and applause ] >> big government in debt doubled under a republican administration. and it's now tripling under barack obama's watch. president obama is on course to add more debt than all of the previous presidents combined. we borrow a million dollars a minute. just vast accumulation of debt threatens not just our economy, but our security. we can wake up now and do the right thing, quit spending money we don't have.

[ cheers and applause ] >> this message of liberty is for all americans. the message of liberty, opportunity, and justice is for all americans, whether you wear a suit a uniform, or overalls whether you are white or black, rich or poor in order to restore america, one thing is for certain, though we cannot we must not dilute our message or give up on our principles. [ cheers and applause ] >> if we nominate a candidate who is simply democrat light, what is the point? why bother? [ cheers and applause ] >> we need to bold i will

proclaim our vision for america. we need to go boldly forth under the banner of liberty that clutches the construction in one hand and the bill of rights in the other. [ cheers and applause ] >> washington is horribly broken. i fear it can't be fixed from within. we the people must rise up and demand action. [ cheers and applause ] >> congress will never balance the budget unless you force them to do so. congress has an abysmal record with balancing anything. our only recourse is to force congress to balance the budget with a constitutional amendment. [ cheers and applause ]

>> i have been to washington and let me tell you, there is no monopoly on knowledge there. i ran for office because we have too many career politicians. i believe it now more than ever we limit the president to two terms, it's about time we limit the terms of congress. [ cheers and applause ] >> i want to reform washington i want common sense rules that will break the log-jamming congress. that's why i have introduced a read the bills act. [ cheers and applause ] >> the bills are a thousand

pages long and no one reads them. they are often plopped on our desk with only a few hours before a vote. so i have proposed something truly extraordinary. let's read the bills! every page! [ cheers and applause ] >> from the time i was a very young boy, i was taught to love and appreciate america, love of liberty pulses in my veins, not because we have beautiful mountains or white sand beaches, although we do. it's more visceral than that. our great nation was founded upon the extraordinary notion that government should be restrained and freedom should be maximized. [ cheers and applause ]

>> america to me is that beacon. we are unique among the nations that our country stands for freedom. freedom nurtured. when tyranny threatened the world, america lead the way to rid the world of nazis and fascist regimes, we stood decade after decade against communism. the engine of capitalism finally winning out. [ cheers and applause ] >> we won the cold war. [ cheers and applause ] >> america and freedom are so intertwined that people literally are dying to come here. the freedom we fostered in america has unleashed genius

advancement like never before. from an early age i worked. i taught swimming lessons, mowed lawns. i painted houses. i never saw work as punishment. work always gave me a sense of who i am. [ cheers and applause ] >> self-esteem can't be given. it must be earned. [ cheers and applause ] >> work is not punishment. work is the reward. [ applause ] >> two of my sons worked minimum-wage jobs while they go to college. i'm proud of them as i see them realize the value of hard work. i can see their self-esteem grow as they cash their paychecks.

i have a vision for america where everyone who wants to work will have a job. [ cheers and applause ] >> many americans, though are being left behind. the reward of work seems beyond their grasp. under the watch of both parties, the poor seem to get poorer and the rich get richer. trillion dollar stimulus packages have widened the income gap. poor families across america continue to suffer. i have a different vision an ambitious vision. a vision that will suffer opportunity to all americans especially those who have been left behind. my plan includes economic freedom zones to allow impoverished areas like detroit,

eastern kentucky to prosper by leaving more money in the -- >> we have just had an interruption in the signal as senator rand paul is announcing his decision to run for president of the united states speaking about the themes he has been talking about since he has been in office. if we get the signal restored we will return to him. but right now let's talk to our panelist -- oh he's back. okay. thank you. >> in my vision for america, we'll bring back manufacturing jobs that pay well. how? we'll dramatically lower the tax on american companies that wish to bring their profits home. [ cheers and applause ] >> more than $2 trillion in american profit currently sits

overseas. in my vision for america, new highways and bridges will be built across the country, not by raising your taxes, but by lowering the tax to bring this american profit home. [ cheers and applause ] >> even in this polarized congress we have a chance of passing this. i say let's bring $2 trillion home to america. let's bring it home now. [ cheers and applause ] >> liberal policies have failed our inner cities. let's just get the facts straight. they have failed our inner cities. [ cheers and applause ] >> our schools are not equal, and the poverty gap continues to widen. martin luther king spoke of two americas. he described them as two starkly

different american experiences that exist side by side. in one america, people experience the opportunity of life liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. in the other america, people experience a daily ugliness that dashes hope and leaves only the fatigue of despair. although i was born into the america that experiences and believes this opportunity, my trips to detroit, to appalachia to chicago, have revealed what i call an undercurrent of unease. it's time for a new way, a way predicated on justice, opportunity and freedom. [ cheers and applause ] >> those of us who have enjoyed the american dream must break down the wall that separates us from the other america.

i want all of our children to have the same opportunities that i had. we need to stop limiting kids in poor neighbors to failing public schools and offer them school choice. [ cheers and applause ] >> it won't happen though unless we realize that we weren't borrow our way to prosperity. currently some $3 trillion comes into the u.s. treasury. couldn't the country just survive on $3 trillion? [ laughter ] >> i propose we do something extraordinary, let's just spend what comes in. [ cheers and applause ] >> in my vision for america, freedom and prosperity at home can only be achieved if we defend against enemies who are

dead set on attacking us. [ applause ] >> without question we must defend ourselves, and american interest from our enemies, but until we name the enemy, we can't win the war. [ cheers and applause ] >> the enemy is radical islam. you can't get around it. [ applause ] >> and not only will i name the enemy, i will do whatever it takes to defend america from these haters of man kind. [ cheers and applause ] >> we need a national defense, robust enough to defend against all attack modern enough to

deter all enemies, and nimble enough to defend our vital interests, but we also need a foreign policy that protects american interests, and encouraging stability, not chaos. [ cheers and applause ] >> at home conservatives understand the government is the problem, not the solution. conservatives should not succumb, though to the notion that a government inept at home will somehow succeed in building nations abroad. [ cheers and applause ] >> i envision a american with a national defense unparalleled undefeated and unencumbered by overseas nation building. [ cheers and applause ]

>> i envision a national defense that promotes as reagan put it peace through strength. [ applause ] >> i believe in applying reagan's approach to foreign policy to the iran issue, successful negotiations with untrustworthy adversaries are only achieved through strength. now we must stay strong. that's why i cosponsored legislation that ensures that any deal between the u.s. and iran must be approved by congress. [ cheers and applause ] >> not, not only is that good policy it's the law.

[ applause ] >> it concerns me that the iranians have a different interpretation of the agreement. they are putting out statements that say completely opposite of what we're saying. it concerns me that we may attempt, or the president may attempt to unilaterally and prematurely halt sanctions. i will oppose any deal that does not end iran's nuclear visions, and have strong verification measures. [ cheers and applause ] >> and i will insist that the final version be brought before congress. the difference between president obama and myself he seems to think you can negotiate from a position of weakness. yet everyone needs to realize that negotiations are not

inheritantly bad, and that our goal always should be and always is peace, not war. [ cheers and applause ] >> we must realize, though that we do not project strength by borrowing money from china to send it to pakistan. [ cheers and applause ] >> let's quit building bridges in foreign countries, and use that money to build some bridges here at home. [ cheers and applause ] >> it angers me to see mobs burning our flag and chanting death to america in countries that receive millions of dollars

in our foreign aid. [ cheers and applause ] >> i say it must end, i say not one penny more to these haters of america! [ cheers and applause ] >> to defend our country, we do need to gather intelligence on the enemy. but when the intelligence director is not punished for lying under oath how are we to trust our government agencies? [ cheers and applause ] >> warrant less searches are un-american and a threat to our civil liberties. [ cheers and applause ]

>> i say that your phone records are yours. i say the phone records of law-abiding citizens are none of their damn business. [ cheers and applause ] >> is there where we light up the phones? [ laughter ] >> the president created this vast dragnet by executive order, and as president on day one i will immediately end this unconstitutional surveillance. [ cheers and applause ] >> i believe we can have liberty and security and i will not compromise your liberty for a false sense of security not now, not ever. [ cheers and applause ]

>> we must defend ourselves, but we must never give up who we are as a people. we must never diminish the bill of rights as we fight this long war against evil. we must believe in our founding documents. we must protect economic and personal liberty again, america has much greatness left in her, we are still exceptional and a beacon for the world. we will thrive when we believe in ourselves again. i see an america strong enough to deter foreign aggression yet wise enough to avoid unnecessary intervention. [ cheers and applause ] >> i see an america where criminal justice is applied equally, and any law that

disproportionately incarcerates people of color is repealed. [ cheers and applause ] >> i see an america with a restrained irs that cannot target cannot harass american citizens for their political or religious beliefs. [ cheers and applause ] >> i see our big cities once again shining and beckoning with creativity and enagain newty, with american companies offering american jobs. with your help this message will ring from coast-to-coast, a message of liberty, justice, and personal responsibility. today begins the journey to take america back. [ cheers and applause ]

>> to rescue a great country now adrift join me as together we seek a new vision for america. today i announce with god's help with the help of liberty lovers everywhere that i am putting myself forward as a candidate for president of the united states of america. [ cheers and applause ] >> you have just heard senator rand paul announce he is running for the presidency of the united states running for the republican party nomination to run for president of the united states. joining me now is al jazeera's david shuster, and republican

strategist brian murray. quite an interesting speech. >> yeah and i'm not sure it's necessarily done. i think he may have a few final words, so let's keep an eye on that. but he is a libertarian, he is a darling of the tea party, and you saw why, he talked a lot about liberty, protecting the constitution, the big issue that a lot of people on the far right have involves the deficit and the debt. he hit that and he talked about foreign policy he is the less interventionist of the republican field. he believes we should draw down both in terms of money and military support all around the world. that could hurt him, but it certainly will get him some appeal among those who feel the u.s. military is too involved and stretched too thin. >> and at the same time he wasn't totally conservative he put something in there about repealing laws that

disproportionately targeted people of color. that is an interesting thing for him to say. >> and he talked about inner cities. i think it was really a main stream message he was trying to get across. it was a general election message. it wasn't even specifically geared towards republicans. there was red meat in there. >> do you think his announcement at this particular point early as it were he is number 2 after ted cruz is this going to help him? >> usually you wait in making an announcement if you are doing really well in your fund-raising. rand paul the great advantage he has is he is perhaps the best well organized candidate in the republican field. he won't be able to raise the most amount of money. but there is a strategic advantage for him now saying okay. i'm finished with my pac let

activate all of the organizers. he is organized in all 50 states. and now his activists can get busy putting together his presidential campaign. and doing the kind of outreach that you saw, reaching out to younger voters african american voters reaching out to a number of people who are deeply skeptical of the federal government. >> it is money, and there are millions of dollars waiting in the wings for the right republican candidate. will rand paul get any of the -- should we say the cult money. >> the large donors are waiting to see what happens. right now as david mentions is the 50 states he has got now. it's now the beginning of april. it's a brand new quarter. he has three months before he has to report his fund-raising

and gives him a lot of time to ramp up. >> ron paul had, what three runs for presidency. >> his father was the second-largest fund raiser last time around. so i think right now he'll be able to tap into that without blinking an eye. in new york city he turned out thousands of younger people. you saw the excitement in the audience today. i think the red meat he through them, they are going to grab run, and grab their checks. >> i think you'll see his dad play a quiet role but there is an entire network that ron paul has established that is out there. >> hilary has got to answer for bill clinton and president obama.

it reminds me about the region comment about age. >> we'll have to stop it there for now. thank you very much for joining us brian murray and my good friend and colleague, david shuster. we'll pick up on this later. the news continues next live from london. remember for the latest headlines go to aljazeera.com. ♪

>> the u.s. frees up weapons supplies to the anti-coalition in yemen. the u.s. warns of catastrophic attacks in aden. more than 500 have been killed in two weeks of fighting in yemen. hello, you're watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up the u.n. demands access to a palestinian refugee camp in syria, a week after it was attacked by i.s.i.l. plus...