obama's pastor, and how they were saying he was really just off the deep end -- >> jeremiah wright. >> jeremiah wright. ..

>> they got through speaking. and when bill talked i found him to be a very sensitive, intelligent, not at all like his southern baptist roots preaching and so when i feel like i can't watch -- i don't have pbs. i can't watch the pbs thanks. one of the things that i like about pbs news is at the end of their broadcast the show the pictures of the military personnel have been killed so as to remind us that there is still a warrant. we don't see that really on fox, cnn, or even abc and cbs.

>> i do think, though, there are many terrific and highly professional journalists in this business, some and a high position and some in smaller venues or markets. i think the problem is that people don't want to watch. the more flamboyant advocacy journalist types are getting more attention. goes back to what i mentioned earlier about this being some kind of an attraction in incivility that we have to get to the bottom of, that we have to face up to. the advocacy journalist types, the people who are very flamboyant are getting a large audience. the audience is so large that those are a lot of very intelligent and educated people. the sheer size of those ratings. so there is something there. i don't know that is the solution for american journalism. i think that there is as much

imagination needed to figure out the alternative to the seller flamboyant advocacy type journalism that very much widens the face of the old, one side and of the other side call, civilize journalism that may be fun up until the 1980's. as i mentioned to -- and i do think american journalism is in kind of a crisis about what it is, what is supposed to be, what its role is and the whole configuration of to the credit institutions. would be very interesting to watch. hopefully we can find at least the kind of news source as journalism and blockers and writers to at least, you know, teach us something, enable us to be better citizens. but your points are very well taken. they keep.

>> i think that is said. thanks so much for having me. >> for more affirmation about the book, visit the publisher's web site at temple that the du / t em press. search "rude democracy." >> next to texas governor rick perry talks about the power of the federal government and offers that many of the problems currently being managed by washington would be better handled by individual states. governor kerrey presents his arguments at the heritage foundation in washington d.c. >> good morning. welcome to the heritage foundation. i'm pleased to welcome you to our auditorium. for those in the house we would appreciate the last check that so far as a been turned off as a courtesy to our speaker. hosting our event is becky norton dunlop. first vice president for external relations here at

heritage. prior to that she served as the cabinet officer for governor george allen as well as director of personnel and government of cabinet affairs for former president ronald reagan as well as service for ed meese and in the department of justice and don cadel of the department of the interior. please join me in welcoming my colleague, becky norton dunlop. thank you. [applauding] >> thank you very much. let me add my words of welcome to each of you here. as of us who are watching on television, what a great opporunity we have here this morning to hear from one of the best governors in the entire country. adjust delighted to welcome him to heritage. well, rick perry is the lone star state's 47th governor. he has defended texas conservative values, fought for possible solutions to tough challenges and work to implement a clear vision for better schools and more jobs and a brighter future. it sounds like our kind of

governor. as a result texas is consistently ranked as the nation's best place to do business and create jobs. i'm sure some of you here know that texas has led the nation in job creation with more jobs gained than any other state in 2010 and over the past ten years texans are safer because governor perry has pursued an aggressive border security strategy that is putting more boots on the ground, more helicopters and the sky, and more resources into the hands of texas peace officers standing between texas and be exploited drug-related violence across the border. he has refused to raise taxes. the $10 billion budget shortfall in 2003. instead he was the first texas governor since world war ii to sign a budget that lowered the

state's spending and has now done it twice. as governor rick perry has used his line-item veto to cut over $3 billion. he led the battle to pass the country's most sweeping lawsuit reforms, closing the door on junk lawsuits that had been making trial lawyers rich while driving countless doctors either out of the state or out of the profession altogether. since texas voters approve these reforms malpractice claims and premiums have fallen and access to health care is increasing across the state as doctors have applied in droves to practice in texas. i'm sure that makes him more concerned than most governors today about the recent passage of the supposed health care reforms here. in 2005 pulver. finds that the historic

$15 billion property-tax cut for homeowners and businesses that also included new taxpayer protections against appraisal increases. in 2009 governor parry secured a tax cut for approximately 40,000 small businesses in texas and protected the rainy day fund for future challenges. governor perry is a fifth generation texan. he grew up the sun of tenant farmers and the tiny west texas town of ping creek. he was one of the first of his family to go to college earning a degree in animal science at texas a&m where he was also a member of the corps of cadets and a year later. he has the science right, the business right, and he knows how to lead is personally. between 1972 and 1977 governor perry served in the united states air force flying sea-130

tactical aircraft in europe and the middle eastern part of our world. he is a lifetime member of both the national rifle association and the american beech. he also served as the commissioner of agriculture in texas and served in the texas house of representatives. he married his childhood sweetheart, and they have two children to mcgriff and in sydney. we are delighted to once again welcome governor rick perry to the heritage foundation. we are delighted to hear from him today to book about his ideas about how to improve america and his new book fed up which we will have copies available for you in which he has indicated a willingness to sign if we have time today. without further ado let's welcome to our podium governor rick perry from texas. [applauding]

>> thank you very much. it is, indeed, an honor to be here today. back at the heritage foundation. this foundation has been a singular standard bearer of conservative thought for some time. again, i just want to say thank you for what you want done. today is almost a week know since the american voters sent a bold and simple message to our nation's political establishment it was complex. it was pretty short and sweet actually. they said, we are fed up. we are ready to take our country back. americans are obviously fed up with the democratic party that long ago set aside their interest in favor of expanding government, raising taxes, doing the bidding of labor unions and

personal injury trial bar, activist judges. americans are fed up with the repeated incursions into their liberty. however, their distain for washington does not just stop at the party line. americans are fed up with democrats and republicans who have embraced bailouts, champion so-called stimulus programs and supported big government to voice. voters understand the true threat posed by in this mountain of debt and are increasingly perplexed by bankrupt federal programs like social security and they are deeply frustrated by federal officials who do nothing to address these serious problems. the american people are fed up with bureaucrats telling them how to live their lives, calling

the shots of health care insurance. they say they must buy. what kind of food, what kind of lead balls they use in their homes. they are also fed up with elected judges telling them when and where they can pray, how we can display the ten commandments this simmering frustration erupted into an overwhelming landslide for republicans on election night. in looking at the historic gains in both the house of representatives and the united states senate some commentators call that a republican tsunami. i refer to actions with the positive. echo what center-elect marco rubio simply said, he said that this was for conservatives in washington the second chance.

offers a second chance to republicans and democrats in washington to set aside to the accepted way of doing business inside the beltway, devote themselves to getting it right starting with the essential constitutional limits on government. i wholeheartedly believe that the tenth amendment to the united states constitution cast a very narrow path, a very narrow road for government conveyed in our founding fathers understanding that the government closest to the people cheerlead governs best. the know, the key phrase that reads the power is not delegated to the united states by the constitution nor prohibited to it by the state's or reserved for the states respectively or to the people. in my view the federal

government is shameful disregard of the tenth amendment pushes us backwards down a very slippery slope. down that slope the precepts of the bill of rights and up compromised. the essence of our republic can be lost forever along with those god-given freedoms. the words of the tenth amendment are timeless. they are also a rallying cry for such a time as this. reminding citizens of their rights and elected officials of their responsibilities. that includes those officials who wrote that wave of dissatisfaction and to statehouses across the nation. i believe some of 19 legislatures switch to republican control that night,

including two north carolina and alabama which will be experiencing republican for the first time since the 1870's that is a long time to wait. it is a long time to wait. we must ensure that it is worth the wait. at the state level my fellow governors and i need to work with legislators to approve the wisdom of our founding fathers. when they limited the power of that federal government and entrusted the challenges of day today governance to leaders at the state and local level and federalist 45, james madison wrote, the powers delegated by the proposed constitution to the federal government are few and defined. those which are to remain in the state governments are numerous and indefinite.

if he were here today i have to wonder if mr. madison with look at today's leaders in washington d.c. and say, did i mumble? i believe he and his peers were incredibly clear, and our nation success was proof of their wisdom for a long, long time. in short, three people -- a free people work harder. they live better and take better care of one another than those who are being crushed under the weight of an oppressive government. that freedom helped america grow into the greatest nation that the world has ever known, bar none. unfortunately that greatness is threatened because we have allowed washington to expand at the expense of liberty.

maybe it was the siren song of the earmarks for local projects, but we have allowed for the creation of a monster. the federal government's current role directly contradicts the principles of limited constitutional government. our founders established this to protect this. my frustration with this skewed balance of power that subjugates states' rights to federal dominance led me to write that book. it led me to write "fed up!." our fight to save america from washington. the federal government's expansion really kicked into gear during the progressive era as it is sometimes called with the adoption of the 16th amendment that gave the better

government access to our wallets the taxation. i know a lot of people think the world of roosevelt's new deal. i grew up in rural texas. the fact of the matter is it is the legacy of a plot to. a glut of federal probes including a social security program that is not only bankrupt but also had very little to do with america's emergence from the great depression. i congratulate scholars for popping the balloon of adoration that surrounded these flawed programs. unfortunately the new deal has essentially become the third rail of american politics that indiscriminately kills the

political careers of any leader who would be courageous enough to criticize them publicly. you know, you combine the new deal with president johnson's great society and its associated medicare and medicaid costs. you end up with $106 trillion of unfunded liability and approximately $0 set aside to pay for. that is not the sort of thing that we do in texas. i consider taxes a prime example of how responsive and effective government can be when it is closer to the people. for example, texas has long led the nation in job creation, as becky share with you. half of the jobs created in the country this year were created in texas. since 2005 until present for out

of five jobs, 80% of all the private-sector jobs created in the devastates are created in texas. the jobs that were created by texas, it was by people who risk their capital, got up every day and went to work. they worked long hours. a fiscally conservative environment. there are four simple principles that we get here to in texas. first, you don't spend all the money. we left upwards of $8 billion in a rainy day fund. second, we have defended a predictable and stable regulatory climate so that employers know what to expect and can take the risk that the particular point in time when they know what those costs are going to be. we reform our legal system so that we would cut down

substantially on that plague of junk lawsuits. employers and doctors were tied up at the courthouse instead of creating wealth and doing good. fourth, we put into place accountable public schools. it says the clear message that a skilled work force will be available if you expand or if you want to move from another state like many from california are doing today. 153 california businesses have relocated from california to texas. you know, my fellow republican governors including bob macdonald and chris christie, there are doing the same thing that we are doing in texas. they did it. now, that is not to say that each state is problem three

nirvana. the challenges are still real. whether they wrestle with pension fund issues or debt problems states have their work cut out for them. however, the difference compared to the federal government is rather drastic. for example, texans face about $520 per capita in debt. per capita debt at the federal level is around $42,600 growing as we speak. at the same time the average texan pays $1,691 local taxes, $1,750 in state taxes, but a whopping $8,916 in federal taxes you know, even if you take away the 25% for national defense, and we gladly do, the federal

tax burden is about twice the local and state tax combined. trust me, our citizens can do the math. they see the difference in value between the state and the federal government. they are wheely ready to regain that constitutional balance. last tuesday's vote totals pretty much reaffirms that for me. on november the second 2010 people pushed back. they pushed back against the washington establishment that is spending too much and borrowing too much, that is ignoring the constitution. i might add the views of our citizens. the elections affirms the power of individual americans and it actually in a powerful way it repudiates an overly controlling central government. we need to keep the dialogue rolling on how limited government sat closest to the

people will maximize our liberty. our citizens have elected leaders willing to fight for our beliefs. it is time to hold these leaders accountable. for example, repealing and defunding the nationalized health care in its entirety is vitally important because you can't go through that kind of legislation piecemeal and parse every element of it. instead they need to start from the press that the state's can handle these questions better. look to them to support that process. they need to support the state's, not punish them. the new leaders in washington, those who profess to be conservatives should vote to handcuff the big spenders, simplify our tax system amending

the constitution to restrict the federal spending. a balanced budget amendment would be the perfect tool for that, and it would protect future generations from this new a administration to run rampant. like my fellow voters went to my fellow conservatives in this room, i don't see storm clouds and sadness on the horizon. i happen to see some of our greatest days ahead of us. i see a bright, bright future, the future is contingent upon a return to our recent took constitutional values and individual freedom. restoring a constitutional limited government will take a massive effort, but our people are more than equal to the task. surely the people who were willing to die on foreign

battlefields in the defense of freedom for others and sheltered complete strangers in the aftermath of storms like katrina and ike have the hearts and the compassion to tackle this. with the continued influence of conservative groups like the heritage foundation and board leaders from our elected class everywhere we can surely recaptured what is great about america. restore this nation to pre-eminence in the world as a beacon of individual liberty and economic prosperity. there is no greater cost in our time than that. thank you all for coming. [applauding] we're going to take some questions. >> i will be happy to attempt to

answer any of your questions, and then. >> good. let's make sure that when you stand up with the question you get a microphone before you speak, identify yourself if you are with an organization. please let us know what organization that is. all right. we have a start over here and in all this let you. >> i write for the pakistan. it was very refreshing to hear you a couple of days ago. my question is, do you feel any backlash from the republican party by not sending together and thrashing a slump? you get very positive feedback as we are all american and have to work together. >> i think i used the example of my friend.

well, not only a very dear personal friend, but also a businessman of some note in texas. i am sure there are a lot of ladies in the audience that know his products. he is a great businessman. we were talking about the issue of graeme zero. he said, i know how to take care of the spirit rebuild the synagogue, a mosque, and a church. we have a great muslim community in texas. businessmen and women who are difference and supporters, a substantial number, weather is the indian house in houston, the very large pakistan a population that we have across the state of texas. i mean, and working together to build our state. i think it is very important, whether your a democrat or

republican, independent, or don't want to be associated with any political party. the future of our country clearly lies in finding the things that bring us together and not separating ourselves by culture, religion, or what have you. recognizing clearly those that would use the religion in the wrong way, those radical islamists who would use that and that they are -- they are the enemy of all. yes ma'am. [inaudible] >> the tea party has been, you know, some have credit -- credited the two-party for the republican tsunami. i am just wondering how you see the movement going from here and now they have some citizen how

do you think they're going to be working with the republican party, the relationship between the two blocks of? >> i give the tea party great credit for a number of things. one is, there have been more people that have read the notice to its constitution in the last 18 months than maybe the last 50 years. i absolutely give that credit to the two-party. if for no other reason their engagement has been a very positive packed and our country. politically i saw the two-party the momentum many events, focused on fiscal conservatism and small government. that was the mantra day after day. a very diverse group of people from all across the political spectrum, i will suggest to you.

so i suspect that their engagement will be still positive. i hope there will stay engaged for a number of reasons, the least of which is to really hold the feet of these elected officials to the fire when it comes to the constitution respecting the tenth amendment and allowing the states to become the laboratory of innovation to compete against each other. i'll share with you one little anecdotal story that i think crystallizes it very well. cnbc does a yearly ranking of the states. they have a matrix of which they measure and then ranked the states for business climate, the best state in america to do business. well, in august it came out texas was number one, and rightfully so. but number two was virginia. the first so-called got was from

bob macdonald. bob was very upbeat and gracious. he said, i just want to tell you congratulations on being ranked number one in that cnbc paul. enjoy it because we're coming after you. and that is the type -- that is exactly the type of competition and this. that should happen in all 50 states. not having washington d.c. mandating from on high this one-size-fits-all whether it is health care or education or transportation policy, those can best be addressed at the state level. frankly, they can be done more efficiently, more effectively, and we can help save washington substantial amounts of money in the process as well. yes, sir.

in the back. >> thai. them with the huffington post. george w. bush is doing a lot of media tours for his book. of wondering if you could reflect a little bit on the menu was your predecessor in the governor's office and also head of the republican party for years. talk about the need for republicans to reclaim the loss the prejudice of the past. to that extent to the steps in the bush administration? >> i want you to read the book, first off. i'm going to refer you to that. republicans are not unscathed. democrats, republicans, the supreme court of get on my radar screen. you know, the purpose of been launched. they hit those targets. look. there is nobody perfect in this. nobody walks away unscathed. inappropriately so. there has not been anybody that

has done a perfect yet. >> what about issues like the medicare prescription drug program to back. >> read the book. >> okay. we will go back over here. >> hi, governor. i'm a texan and more importantly of fighting texas aggie. welcome to dc. proud to have you here. >> it's wonderful to be right to the top 25 in both polls. >> wonderful football game saturday night. i wanted to ask you about the health care bill. of course we are hoping that soon-to-be speaker better believe the effort to repeal and replace. but to see so many agees' going to court over the bill. is that going to happen overnight. what can you and your like-minded governors to in the meantime to help slow and defer the implementation and the burdens that have been put on you by the federal legislation? >> one of the real aspects of this book is to talk about how

the state's can be engaged in a conversation. as i said in my remarks there have been a lot of political figures totally and absolutely afraid to talk about the social security is a ponzi scheme. my eldest child is 27. my baby is 24. they know. they know that social security is not going to be there for them. let's talk about it. what are some of the options? that is one of the great roles that the governors complained in leading that conversation. the fact is that many of us would like to be in charge of those pension programs. medicaid is a good example of just last week right after the elections our texas house had a

study group on how to better deliver those health care costs. we think we can save the federal government over the next six years $40 billion in health care delivery costs if they will let us do it in the state. frankly, we will have more people covered and be able to deliver the health care better. we feel very comfortable that we can do that. saturday night speaker elect -- presumptive speaker elect had a meeting. we spent a couple of hours together talking about how the governors can be more engaged with this process. i mean, the message from john baer is very clear. he was listening tuesday night. finding the solutions to the challenges that face us as a country emanate from the states and not from washington d.c. there is going to be a real

partnership there like we have not seen possibly in decades. yes sir. >> good morning, governor. my name is james reed. of a freshman at georgia washington university. to speedily one of the most politically active campuses in the country. many and my friends have aspirations of entering politics. what advice would you give to back. >> i would suggest that you find some campaigns to work in. go actively involve yourself in public policy. find out if it is really what you think it's going to be. find a campaign to work in as well as an office somewhere, whether you are in turning -- find those places where your passion. i tell young people on a regular

basis to give back. this is a great country. we are different from any other country in the world because people who came before us to back. it doesn't matter whether you joined the peace corps or the marine corps. givebacks to our state, our country, our communities. in that you will find your place . this there. >> this is going to have to be the last question. >> my name is callebs end of from massachusetts. eminem entered. president bush proposed reforming social security to try and say that he could not get a hearing even in his own congress. >> he got hung out. >> right. how do you think republicans can propose reforms for entitlement programs without scaring the people who can't invest a lot of time in looking into it? >> good point.

standing get and basically telling the truth about the and not being afraid, you know, i tell people. he needed a reason. exhibit add that i'm not running for the presidency, i wrote this book. i love this country. i love texas. i wanted to be a powerful and a great place to live for my children. for it to be that way we have to address these issues and not be afraid and tell the truth and pushed back on those who would do nothing more than the fear mongers from the standpoint of their going to take your security 08. they don't have to tell that to my children. they already know that. there will be no social security for them if we don't stand up as a people end address this issue. so that is the powerful message, i think. the twentysomething and the

young 30-year-old what a country that is economically sound and on could powerful, solid foundation to do that washington has to stop spending money that we don't have on probst the we don't want. god bless you all and take you for coming and being with us today. >> for more information about governor rick perry visit governor downstate dot texas that u.s. >> we are here at the national press club talking about your new book poisoning the press. >> the title comes from the fact that during the nixon white house they actually plotted to poison the journalists. investigative reporters named jack anderson. nobody under the age of 60 remember suzie was or knows who he was.

the most famous and feared investigative reporter in the country. he drove richard nixon crazy. the white house has all these attempts to get anderson to ultimately, it in an actual plot to poison them. >> to you know if anyone else had previously written about this particular aspect of the knicks in history? >> no. nobody had. it was really surprising to me. i was an investigative reporter myself. i went to grant school. so this intersection between history and journalism, a lot of great beard in the past to be found if you know where to look and how to look an interview the right people. there are amazing tales that i found in my book. scandals and love letters and blackmail and burglary and bribery. fortunately all of this stuff in history, specific text books leave out. >> what are the more surprising things that you found in writing this book?

>> and not sure i can see them on the air. one of them was the late j. edgar hoover. that has been known. i got a hold of the transcripts and memos that describe actually what hoover distributed to the press and all over washington of what king supposedly said. stories of him chasing prostitutes. they were made the allegations. so that was pretty startling to me. another was an allegation i came across from president ford when he was still in congress. involved in the carb -- call girl ring that a lobbyist's supplied. details are all in my book. you know, that kind of scandal. and the fbi actually did dog his hotel suite in washington and supposedly blackmailed him. you know, those are the kind of scandals that have been broken at the time would have completely ended the career in

washington. in this day and age i don't think something like that once a secret. back then he did not write about >> did you find it difficult to sift through and determine what was true and what was simply made up? >> yes. was. you know, if i had actual corroboration in the form of documentation. i have the source that went on the record. that task mustard with the just my own, but with the publisher and the legal vetting the date. >> thank you very much for your now, time. >> david axe has cover severalaa deferred wards. in fact, he was a free lancer-st who work for c-span in iraq and, afghanistan. david axe, or else that you were? >> guest: lebanon, chad, somalia, cargo, of the somali coast chasing pirates. forg i might be forgetting a few.

nicaragua. here in there.t doesn't sound >> that doesn't sound boring. >> right. s e e' the title is meant to be onic somewhat ironic. not entirely.perien more of the modern experience oa war. a lot of sitting around.ng and 99 percent weighting and tedium and boredom punctuated by 1% ofo sheer terror.ce of th i think that describes thes the experience of a typical soldiere but is the same for reporterstad between the red tape and theu ho logistics' in the distance he have to travel, the logistics of being a reporter, raising interviews and negotiating d languages and cultural differences. spend a lot of time and needling and maneuvering for the golden nugget's of excitement or the tiny little gems of the kids a story. >> host: this is done much as a comic book in this sense. and nonfiction comic book. the right here that i love how l

war make you appreciate the little things.hings. he said coming home was like popping ecstasy. what do you mean? th >> i've never done ecstasy, but i imagine it feels emphatic. you spend enough time roaming around a place like chad or somalia and it puts into perspective, i don't know, what don't we have h kere in the united states and what we call problems one reason i enjoyed my job as a freelance war correspondent for -- and joy is not the right word. one of the reasons i find it thi filling is that it contextualize is the rest of my life. i think i have come away from me work as appreciating being ane i american-more than before i did. this kind of thing.book, >> when you read your book does not sound like you can stay in the state's very long before you had to gohe back.irony. >> guest: that is the irony.

iu need that contrast between e home life and life in someap conflict zone in order toyou ha appreciate the home life. you have to keep going back to d the conflicts of in order to keep and maintain that contraste i don't know. is the only way i can find peace and a satisfaction, to move between these two extremes. the one made the other makes sense. >> host: david axe, would work if he done for c-span?ne >> guest: shot video and the voice-over in studio interviews from and about the iraq war andn the afghanistan war, piracy, the ntral conflict ain central africa or conflicts in central africa. that might be all. i think so.d? yes. >> host: p t s t. >> guest: myself? not formally diagnosed. i had a rather hairy experience in sat in the summer of 2008 ane like came home feeling not quite like toself. i managed to come through thefrd

help of family and good friends and a lot of beer , write myself.he i don't think that the trauma is have experienced compares to what an american soldier who spends 15 months on deployment in afghanistan or iraq. my experience compared to that., sure. h i havead had some stress.oing >> host: we are going to pute se the numbers upen on the screen e case you would like to talk with david axe about covering war,how how journalists cover war. these are pictures here.f these are drawings of when david axe went home to detroit. what i noted on these is that wu slept in quiet late everylou morning.bly he did not look like you were terribly thrilled about anythin. >> you mentioned pt st. the worst i have had it besides chemicals and chad in 2008. somi prior to that i was in somalia o

and also a very difficult plasterwork. that, i don't i came away from that with a bleak outlook and crashed i i guess you could say. so i needed t some time. i took that by moving back home. a 30 year-old man.id the fed did nothing for as longt as i could stand it. think had i not done that things woult have been a lot worse.ept yeah. i slept in. >>ay video games. >> what were some of the worst experiences you've had?i was >> i was briefly kidnappedot coe twice. actually not covered in theed ae book. hinted at theen very end. i s in somalia i spent some time in a refugee camp with -- surrounded by one of the world's worst humanitarian crisis. fr i made friends with somali reporters, some of whom have sic since then seriously hurt or be. killed. it's been very trying.

iraq and afghanistan, there iss always extreme violence thatviot revels in. i think he's in the balanced han somalia andmost dficult chad had been the mostver. difficult places to cover personally and professionally in >> host: how did you get started in this line of work?4 d >> guest: in 2004 and 2005i re was a full-time politicalna, fo reporter in columbia, south carolina for the local newspapee if war is boring in the piece is worse. it was driving me nuts sitting in kanaan county council meetings and things like zoning ordinances. i had an opportunity to in bed withhe with the south carolina national guard. i didn't realize i'm not onlycoi enjoyed it, but to do it. and i quit my job and beganlict freelancing from conflict zones. the. >> host: 202-585-385 on east and central time zones.n the

585-3886 for those of you in the mountains and pacific time zoney where was the last policy have m been? >> guest: i just got back from t condo. is the artist are going to are collaborate on a graphic novel about the conflict.>> host:ovel? it is non-fiction.ction, they call them graphic novels. and nonfictionbo graphic novel. >>uest: the worst war that most americans don't know anything about.thing no one is exactly sure about thn numbers. in the past 15 years as the in 700,000 people have died in several overlapping complex. the gigantic country and onerea that really matters to the hum developed world. leaving aside humanitarian issues, cargo is the source of much of the world's rare earth minerals, your cell phone and es other high-tech devices have little bits of kong go inside. a

without cargo we would not have this high tech society that we have. lot so conflict and cargo ships matter more than it does. afghant to draw attention. >> host: in iraq andis afghanistan were you embedded mi with the military? what was your experience to back.>> >> host: i have had good and bad experiences.had a u.s. military is a vast u.s. y organization. vast everything turns over every three years. three every three years it is afferent different cast of characters. i once i ever knew the reported od a secret technology in iraq andd was detained and then booted out of of the country by a very irate u.s. army. that was probably the low point. there have been high points as well.witnessed i have with this incredibleand a bravery and sacrifice even on my half b behalf by soldiers in a rock and afghanistan.ind that >> host: how did you find thest secreton technology? >> guest: i was on patrol working as a freelancer for wired.at the i noticed a gizmo attached to ao

and b. i said what's that? and he sai he said, oh, it's block. i said that's interesting. tell me more.esting te okay. so i'm taking notes on this bit of technology. lo and behold it was classified. i didn't know that. the apparently the lieutenant didw t not know that., it got bad fast.uest, >> host: david axe is our the guest. "war is boring" is the book.ickv frederiksberg virginia, you are on the air. mr. axe. >> hello. you commented on it just a moment ago. the what are you with us? calle >> caller: i'm here. host: y, go you comment.h you i wish she could expand on it. e i have always been interested in how the unique military cultures of the marines, the army and tha special operating forces, what difference is you may have seenr in the fact that there are three bridges that are doing this kind >> g of work. experience >> guest: i don't have any h direct experience with specialce

forces. the cot you know, i guess it is a cliche ki now.stly wor honestly working withng the b marines is the best experience.n they have a kind of culture ofay accountability and sacrifice cor that is not present in the other branches and i guess amplified. but this being small enough for able to hold that in a betterr y way than with a vast a organization like the u.s. armyv the marines have always taken a, really good care of me.ateful fr i'm grateful for that. >> host: virginia, you are on di with david axe. >> caller: how're you doing? gof my question was, basically being a war correspondent to you have to go through any specialized trading at all to be in conflict so asli to back.f e >> guest: no, i didn't. in the beginning of the of them rockport the pentagon rounded ut reporters and put them through n boot camp in anticipation of thd invasion and having imbedded reporters. once the program had sort of

found its footing because iarly didn't in bed until early 2005.g by then they were doing astary phuket's. i found that the miylitary was e that pointxp experience enough e handling reporters that they were able to adjust to t accommodate mehe in the conflicp zone and point out what i should and should not do without putting me through a formalforml training program. >> host: who is of mud and afghanistan? >> guest: one of myta fixers.ng as a reporter working in the conflict zone you utterly rely on your local fixes to drive you around, keep you safe,my interpret it.tter afghan he was one of my better afghan fixers.ths there are good was a bad ones. was as easy for cash and the bid was will save your life. do youd >> host: how do you find them to back. >> guest: networking. these check of these people. ratherreference.

>> host: a homophonic joke.[lau] >> guest: that is afghan culture.basically, a >> host: he came back with a low-grade anger. >> guest: the first time in the summer of 2007. by then i have been covering primarily american-led wars for nearly three years. was frustrating to come home to a society that didn't seem to realize it was a war.es, certainly soldiers and airmen dd and marines deployed overseaspor know their war.nflict, reporters to cover the conflicte know we're a work. our elected leaders probably sense that we are war.feeling it is easy to get the feeling of ama lot of americans don't seem affected by these conflicts. i'm not sure who is to blame foe that, but it is not healthy.eal. >> host: "war is boring" is the book. david axe is the author.

cold spring, texas. texa please go ahead. >> caller: yes. i personally experienced post-traumatic stress and the.rr after my husband was district attorney in east texas. could i felt that i could not sleep ms for months and months andas just months. i was just wondering since heo refers to having posttraumatic stress syndrome, did he have in some there?nso that is mymn queiastion... thank you very much. >> guest: i am a pretty healthy sleeper. i did have a time in the first you're so that i covered iraq when i would wake up in the middle of the night when i was back home. i would wake up at home and have no idea where i was. that is probably the most terrifying thing, the psychological effect that i have

suffered. coming out of bed at three in the morning in other darkness at home in columbia, south carolina and begin sprinting around my apartment because i had no idea where i was. i think my brain has adapted to doing this kind of work, and i don't suffer this doesn't things thin and more. >> host: you know they havehey some really good pasta inlly goi mogadishu. and then the expression on your parents base is rather priceless. why did you include that? t >> guest: i came home from somalia in late 2007 and crashee as i described before. i moved in with my parents. to undk they adverse struggle to understand what it waes that is was dealing with. the memories, the experiences, disillusionment, being broke and feeling underappreciated an. justiciar psychological effect ofch covering war. so there were a few tens banners

as they tried to tease out of out me what was troubling me.. and it was always pretty. >> host: war is boring by david xe axe. theamerican library is publisher. where the gun next? >> host: i have not decided.ed every time i come home from allm wars and i have announced that i f.tired i give me six weeks and i will emerge from retirement. >> host: take you for being on book tv in miami. >> every weekend book tv brings to 48 hours of history, biography, and public affairs. here is a portion of one of our programs. >> why when we hear the president and others talking about the fact that we must make government efficient the people did our founding fathers actually designed the government to be inefficient? esters of that question.

this is a model for inefficiency it was done deliberately. why? because in order to have basic liberties you have to have the cover of its with very little power. the more efficient the government is the more liberties the individual has to give up to give to them. they cannot do their job efficiently unless they have the power to tell you what to do. barry interesting. and yet our society today generally believes that we have to have an efficient government because we have been told time after time after time we must make the government efficient. that is of road to a loss of freedom.