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>> julia loved her time in the white house. she said in their her memoirs it was like a bright and beautiful terrain. the most wonderful time of my life, so i think they get you some idea of how much she enjoyed eating first lady and how she felt that her husband had finally achieved the recognition he deserved.

see the federal government appropriated almost $90 billion to rebuild afghanistan. monday special inspector general for afghanistan reconstruction, john sopko delivered a report on you for spending so far show in the u.s. government spent over $7 million on a largely unused building. his remarks from the center for strategic and international studies in washington d.c. rfid the minutes. [inaudible conversations] >> good morning. thanks for coming today. my name name is robert laman and director of the program in crisis conflict and cooperation here at csis.

welcome. it is my pleasure today to be hosting john sopko who is the special inspector general for afghanistan reconstruction known by the acronym sigar. mr. sopko has been a state and federal prosecutor. he has been congressional counsel, senior federal government adviser. he has been the chief counsel for oversight and investigation for the house committee on energy and commerce and has also been on the chief oversight counsel for homeland security. and under then senator sam nunn, he was on the senate subcommittee for investigation staff. he has worked at commerce at the justice department, at the state and federal level and today he is the special inspector general for afghanistan's reconstruction we are now entering our 12th year in that conflict, and i

wish that we could report that the reconstruction is complete. unfortunately what we do know is that compared to 10 years ago there has been a great deal of progress in afghanistan society and its quality of government but i think as we are all very well aware the reconstruction program has not always gone as expected. we have military units continuing to rotate into afghanistan today. we still have thousands of troops on the ground and we have what is expected to be now a more rapid troop drawdown from afghanistan over the next two years that i think many of our military planners and construction officials had hoped

for warrant expected. mr. sopko is recently returned from a trip to afghanistan in his just published the first quarterly report of 2013. and we look forward to hearing what he has to say about funding in afghanistan and what his views are on the future of the reconstruction program in afghanistan. >> thank you very much. it's a pleasure to be here and i have to apologize to start with. for those of you who have been in afghanistan you get what is called the kabul crud and typically in winter. so i will be trying to speak through that today. it is a real honor to be here today at csis. in many ways it's a bit of a homecoming and i see some old friends of mine, judge webster

and arnold back there. i worked for over 15 years for sam nunn who is bob mentioned as the is the chairman of the csis board of trustees as well as with john hamre for quite a few years when he was working for sam nunn. and he has been a tireless leader of csis since 2000. it is a bit of a homecoming. in many ways those 15 years that i spent with sam nunn helped prepare me for my current job. because there i saw first-hand what congressional oversight, what is fair oversight can do to improve programs and policies to the united states government. this was later reinforced when i had the great opportunity to work with who i think many people have viewed as probably the father of modern congressional oversight and that is chairman john dingell who ran

the khan -- congress committee. from both of them i also learned the important role of an independent and aggressive inspector general. the statute in 1970 was to create an inspector general who basically gave chase the power but both those men's sam nunn and john dingell fully understood the role and importance of inspector general in improving the operations of the united states government. so in many ways those two men have brought me to where i am today. it has been only seven months however since i was appointed by president obama as the special and set -- inspector general for afghanistan reconstruction. since then i have traveled twice to afghanistan and spoken to the major players as well as many of our nation's top policymakers and prestigious think-tank

experts including many right here at csis. i've i have learned a lot about our government's efforts there, what we have accomplished and what we haven't as well as the many challenges that still faces in that country. i have also spent a great deal of time thinking about what my role and what my agency's role at sigar is in afghanistan. let me tell you -- take a few minutes to tell you a little bit about sigar. it's not a well-known organization. it's not something that you smokey there. the special inspector general for afghan reconstruction is the only agency in the entire united states government whose mission is reconstruction in afghanistan. nothing else. so we are unique about that. we have the unique authority to examine any project by any government agency operating in afghanistan dealing with reconstruction. we can look at the department defends, the department of

state, a.i.d. the department justice and the agency operating in afghanistan. that is unique. it the largest oversight presence on the ground in afghanistan. with the most aggressive debarment program in afghanistan comic and we have the most successful record of working with afghan law enforcement and prosecuting, arresting and prosecuting individuals and afghan courts. now we are temporary agency. we go out of existence. we sunset when reconstruction drops below $250 million in an extended funds so we have a ways to go. we are in the billions right now. accordingaccordingly, we have some very unique hiring and contract authorities come to unique to the government that allows us to get the best people as quickly as we can to what i think is the most dangerous oversight job in the united states government.

when congress created sigar in 2008, it also gave us the responsibility and the authority and the statute to leave, coordinate and recommend policies to improve the afghan reconstruction effort. accordingly, i believe it is our job to evaluate the bigger picture and offer direction is necessary and appropriate on the reconstruction efforts. that just last wednesday bob alluded to the fact that i return from afghanistan. i try to visit afghanistan every quarter. everyone there i can assure you in the embassy and in the military is intensely focused on the difficult task of transferring security responsibilities to the afghans by the end of 2014. equally interested and concerned about strengthening the afghan government's ability to manage the country's continued reconstruction efforts during this transition period and

beyond. i think it is fair to say that the success or failure of our entire investment in afghanistan is teetering on whether these two interrelated and ambitious goals can be met. i have little doubt especially from speaking to all of the major leaders on my latest trip that the men and women responsible for taking on this challenge are acutely aware of that situation. likewise, the newly installed 113th congress have the responsibility to ensure that the next stage of our nearly 100 alien dollar decade-long reconstruction effort is properly directed towards those activities and projects that will have the greatest opportunity of long-term success in light of my role as special inspector general and our unique

mission, today i want to propose to you a set of seven fundamental questions that i believe need to be asked of every ongoing and planned reconstruction project by both congress and the executive branch in order to ensure their success and the ultimate success of our mission in afghanistan. the first question is, does that project or program make a clear and identifiable contribution to our national interest or strategic objectives? the second question is, to the afghans want those programs and projects and do they need those programs and projects? the third question is have those projects or programs and than coordinate with our allies, with the afghans and internally with their own government? one question we must add is due security questions permit the effective implementation and

oversight of those projects and programs? the next question is, do those programs and projects have adequate safeguards to best deter and mitigate against corruption which is and then make in afghanistan? the sixth question we need to ask is, do the afghans have the financial resources and the technical capability and the political will to take those programs and save them in the next decade ahead? and leslie, i have for the implementing agency established meaningful, measurable metrics for determining success and are they applying them to their own programs? now to many of you in the audience the question is very simple. and in fact unfortunately what

we have found in our work and what the other inspector general's have found in their work is that they are often ignored by those designing and implementing our reconstruction programs. i would like to take some time in the rest of this speech to explain why think these questions are important and discuss what our work in the work of the other igs are doing about them and share our plans in the years to come as we look at reconstruction in afghanistan. let's look at that first question. do the projects and programs make that clear and identifiable contribution to our national interest for a strategic objectives? as you are well aware the united states primary goal in afghanistan has been to prevent afghanistan from becoming once again a safe haven for al qaeda or other terrorist groups to launch attacks against the united states and its allies. our central tenant of the u.s. campaign to achieve this goal

has been the counterinsurgency or coin strategy with three primary phases of -- however our work has found businesses in which reconstruction programs have failed to achieve this intended benefit and in some cases have actually resulted in adverse results. in april of last year for example we released an auditor report on the local governance and community development program or lgbt with the international development touted as quote unquote the flagship coin program. the primary goal of that program was to create a partnership with the afghan government a stable environment for long-term political economic and social development. however as we reported that program had not met the primary

goal of extending legitimacy of the afghan government nor had i brought the government closer to people nor had it lost its stability. in fact my auditors found that each of the eight provinces with the most activity experienced a dramatic increases in the level of violence in 2006 to 2010. violent state is a useful indicator of stability and in this data has certainly suggested that the program was not achieving its intended goals. likewise in july of last year we issued a report on the afghan infrastructure program which congress created to leverage and coordinate the department of state, department of defense and a.i.d. resources for large-scale infrastructure projects in afghanistan. we found that five of the seven fiscal year 2011 projects were

behind schedule and that some of these projects may not achieve the positive coin effect for several years if at all. we also identified some messes where the projects resulted in the adverse effect because they either created an expectation gap among the's -- populace or lack of support. sigar intends to conduct more assessments of the programs designed to support the coin strategy in the upcoming years including an audit that we will initiate soon on the stabilization in the key areas program which is 177 billion-dollar community development program. like ways to sigar intends to increase its focus in the next year on that second question -- it he asked for each construction project and this is, to to do the afghans want it and do they need it? you would be surprised how

long -- often we find that the answer to this question is no. let me give an example. a few days ago as many of you probably saw in the press we released an inspection report on the $7.3 million border police facility elting kunduz province. when our inspectors went to visit the site they found that it was sitting unused. although the facility was known for 175 troops, troopers there were only 12 afghan personnel on-site and no one was sure among them whether the site was going to be used. moreover, our inspectors could not even access most of the buildings because they were locked and the border police personnel present did not have keys. now there's a bit of good news from kunduz. as a result of our inspection those of -- combined security command under general bolger which is responsible for these

projects agreed with our recommendations to reassess its plan and determine whether construction contracts can be downsized or facilities eliminated or redesigned. i think it's a great example of how are our work can lead to tangible improvements and i'm especially pleased with the continued cooperation of general bolger and his team and attempting to improve cstc-a's record on reconstrureconstru ction. let me turn to another troubling problem and this gets to her third problem. has the program or project coordinator with other agencies with the afghan government and with other international donors? the board of police facility just mentioned is certainly an example of coordination with the afghan government but let me give an example of poor coordination within the u.s. government. in 2011, sigar conducted a thorough assessment of u.s. efforts to strengthen the financial or in afghanistan and

to safeguard u.s. funds that flowed into the afghan economy. we found that even though the department of defense and the department of homeland security were working with the same afghan banks, neither agency was aware of the other. in addition the department of homeland security had not been included in important interagency working groups designed to coordinate efforts and did -- cash flow. story reported limited interagency coordination put u.s. agencies that risk and definitely were not benefiting and leveraging existing relationships. the next question i posed is particularly important for sigar because it impacts us almost as much as it impacts the agencies implementing reconstruction. and that is whether security conditions permit the effective implementation and oversight.

now although the u.s. combat role is met by december 2014 the withdrawal of u.s. troops is well underway. the u.s. and coalition forces have already pulled out at the number of locations in afghanistan leaving some of those places too dangerous for us or the implementing agencies. now some of you may have heard a term called -- this refers to the policy unique to only u.s. forces and only in afghanistan, to which in essence says that the military will only provide security in areas within an hour of a facility that will provide emergency medical care. the same zone -- safe zone or medical facilities expands as

far as a 20 minute helicoptehelicopte r ride. is. is the troops continue to withdraw the amount of territories inside afghanistan that fall outside of these bubbles will increase. accordingly, the number of u.s. funded projects and programs that can be monitored and overseen by u.s. personnel will decrease. if we can't get out to review the projects or inspect the facility's, it is highly unlikely that the agency's funding them can do it either whether it's an agency of the department of state come to the department of defense, a.i.d., the department of justice for the department of agriculture and the agencies operating in afghanistan. this means that more reconstruction projects exist with no direct u.s. oversight. now we have hardly seen the effective security limitations on the reconstruction effort as well as on our own operation and

that of our colleagues in the oversight and law enforcement community. for example we reported in 2011 that the world bank had no sites outside of kabul to monitor the activities funded by the multibillion-dollar afghanistan reconstruction trust fund because of security concerns. security restrictions are not limited to the world bank. just recently one of my inspection teams was told that a location in northern afghanistan was beyond the security bubble and therefore deemed too unsafe to visit. as a result, we are unable right now to suspend 38 facilities worth approximately $72 billion. i want to take this opportunity to personally thank the operations under the command of colonel jr bass fourth guard who was task force and has done

wonderful work supporting us in not only northern afghanistan but elsewhere in the country. but even they are limited by the security bubble. now. now even in kabul, we are finding that we cannot always get the protection we need to conduct our work. although kabul is clearly within the bubble the end of these regional security offices have -- it is becoming increasingly difficult to support all the requests for movement by u.s. personnel in the kabul area. despite these restrictions cigars committed to forging ahead even under the most severe conditions. i'm very happy to give an example. just recently i learned that two of my agents went out into the field to inspect a particularly dangerous stretch of road and part of their criminal investigation into a contractor's failure to build systems designed to prevent

insurgents from placing explosives in coverts along the road. my agents were surrounded by heavily armed u.s. military units who protected them and as the agents literally ran down the the road from colbert colbert inspecting and photographing to see if there was a protection device there and was it adequate while i was in afghanistan those agents were able to arrest with afghan participation and the afghan government is charging the contractor who is involved in this with crimes related to fraud committed by the government and negligent homicide of two u.s. personnel. now we are developing alternative ways to conduct oversight in afghanistan's evolving security environment. for example we have local nationals on our staff who are not subject to the same security restrictions that our american

employees are. in some cases we may have to rely on them. we are also exploring the use of geospatial imaging and finally we will continue to cooperate and work with our other inspector general's offices to see if we can combine our activities are come up with the best practices to do oversight. these tools are helpful but they are not perfect. the golden standard, the gold standard i should say on oversight is a u.s. government employee who is trained to do oversight going out and inspecting a site and kicking the tires. but unfortunaunfortuna tely they may not be able to do that for very much longer in afghanistan. i am particularly grateful to ambassador cunningham and general allen for their continued expressions of support for our work. both promise me during my latest visit that they would ensure that our people would be able to access the same locations that

their people can access. ultimately we will see. the question is how far will their people be able to access? how far will they be will to go outside of the kabul bubble? i hear many of our programs will be exposed to increased risk of theft and misuse, especially as we continue to use direct or on budget assistance to the afghan government and especially we do so without imposing strict preconditions on the afghan government to permit effective oversight by u.s. personnel. the next question i pose deals with a different but equally significant problem, namely corruption. are the reconstruction programs and projects developed and planned to include adequate safeguards to detect, deter and

mitigate corruption? afghanistan to reputation for corruption is deep-rooted and widespread and i don't have to devote too much time to this. a recent survey found that 50% of the afghans believe that corruption is a major problem and even more belief that it's a major problem on the international level. an example of some of the work we had dealing with corrupt shin is one that our office of special projects reported on dealing with currency counters. kabul international airport to count and track cash flows out of afghanistan. cash taken out of afghanistan in any given year are as high as $4.5 billion. however although the currency counters were purchased by the united states government and installed in 2011, we found that the afghan government -- even worse those identified by

the afghan government and its vip's were in some cases the vips allowed to bypass all controls at the afghan airport raising the risk of money laundering. now the afghan government has the knowledge that corruption is a significant problem and made commitments to curb its. in july 12012 international donors' conference in tokyo led to a set of mutually agreed principles that included incentives for the afghan government to carry out to combat corruption. unfortunately, we are concerned that not enough is being done quickly enough on these principles and particularly developing specific benchmarks. it is now almost eight months since this landmark agreement and we still have not seen any concrete benchmarks. if not now, when will we see them?

i can tell you that as a result of my latest trip to afghanistan, i will be putting the agency on notice that congress and the american taxpayer need to seek concrete steps in place to ensure afghan government's progress to combat corruption and improve governance. .. funding enturning to them through the inspection work we have identified number reduce examples in which the united states created a program or

built a facility without consideration as to whether the afghan government could sustain it. and october 2012, we reported that the afghan government will be likely be incapable of fully sustain ans deaf afghan naftion security force after 2014. we found that the ans lacked personnel with technical skills required to anticipator and maintain critical facilities and the afghan government had filled less than 40% of authorized operation and maintenance positions. like wise, in 2010, we audited reconstruction efforts in afghanistan, and we found that the afghan government was severely limited in the ability to operate and maintain u.s.-completed development project in the province.

as a result we found a many of projects destroyed. or s, in regard to the serp program. we troubled by statement that some senior officials told us. they did little more than check the box in the serp project files to indicate that the government of afghanistan agreed to fund sustainment of the programs. the on call result of such policy is a waste of u.s. taxpayer money. by building infrastructure, or developing programs that the afghans will never effectively use. my seventh and last question is this. have the implemented agencies accomplished real metrics for measuring success and are they using them? two often we found that the agencies are focused on outputs

not outcomes. for example, they are interested in how many teachers they train, how many schools they built, mom kilometers of roads they build. home culverts they built but not on what is the result. is there any result from doing that? these metrics give us a part of the picture, but they do not truly give us meaningful assessmentsing of whether programs have achieved their goals. for example, in 2011, we assessed efforts to build the capacity of the afghan min u industry of agricultural to better serve farmers and promote private sector development. unfortunately, we found that the u.s. embassy could not determine how much project had been made from the project. all they had done was measure the products of capacity building efforts such as the number of rempleg stations that had built. the number ever researches rebuilt. the number of labs that have been built.

the number of will bees rebuilt. rather than the results achieved by the construction, now as we're proceed with the audit work, we are going to be increasingly looking for ways to go beyond the stated output metrics to assess the impact president of what did a project or program actually achieve? if we can't answer that question now, eleven years in to the conflict, why did we spend the money? at the end of the day, the american taxpayer needs to know what the u.s. reconstruction effort has accomplished. not just output. what is the outcome of all that money spent in afghanistan? so in sum, those are our seven simple, but we think, critical questions. to the extent that agencies can

answer in the affirmative to them, we believe that a project or program has a better chance of achieving real success. but if, as indicates of the afghan infrastructure program, or to border police facility or to currency counters in kabul international airport, the agencies spending our reconstruction dollars find that the answer to these very basic questions is in the negative. is no. it is time for them to reavailability continued or tarting that program. i pose these question and i particularly pose the questions in the quarterly report we issued last week. because we are troubled now, because we have been told that some of the agencies operated in afghanistan may be poised to obligate as much money as they can as soon as they can before

the troop draw down takes place. if this happens without first assuring we answer the questions in the affirmative. we are likely to waste billions of taxpayers' dollars. like wise. it is incumbent upon the congress to also keep these questions in mind as they review new authorization and new appropriations. and as i mentioned, congress needs to assure itself that the almost $19 billion already appropriated but not yet obligated, not yet spent only be spend if they have evidence that the projects meet the seven requirements. now obviously we recognize that there may be projects that do not meet any or all of these seven questions. that still need to be funded.

because the potential benefit clearly outweighs the inherit risk of failure. but if that is the case, the implementing agencies and the agencies need to clearly articulate the reasons for doing so. for taking that risk. and congress needs to hold the agencies accountable to that explanation for why they took that risk. now in conclusion, we are about to embark upon a dramatic drawdown in our troop level. at the same time we are poised to turn over to the of afghan government an unprecedented amount of buildings, projects, and funds. with the hope that they can manage them effectively. this is a risky endeavor. and i believe that strong and independent oversight needs to be an essential part of such

withdrawal plans. if reconstruction activities are to succeed. at in other time in our decades-long struggle in afghanistan has reconstruction really been so critical to our ultimate success. actually, as our military role recedes, the next two years and beyond what some call the decade of transformation will really be the decade of reconstruction. therefore, congress and the executive branch need now to conduct a thorough reexamination of reconstruction issues, programs and projects. now we at cigar look forward to the challenge ahead. and i can assure you that we are also committed for -- discuss of the military draw down and closely working with the implementing agencies to ensure that we embark upon this next

critical stage in the of afghan restriction and ultimate success. thank you very much. csis, bob, and everyone else for listening. thank you. [applause] >> thank you very much. i'm sure there are a lot of questions from the audience. i would only ask those of you have a question raise your hand. wait for the microphone. we are live streaming this the event. please identify yourself and make sure you pose a brief question rather than give a speech. because we have a lot of questions and interests we would like to leave enough time for limb to answer them. so let me start. i'll ask two questions here. then i'll take two questions at the time. >> sure. >> thanks for the talk. very briefly. of those seven questions you

asked, i think it would be difficult to get an affirmative response for any of the seven for most of the project we do. however, a lot of folks that implement the projects say they are intangible benefits that don't demonstrate clear metrics. they allow for poor building or access for u.s. forces. i would ask first part: are there intangible benefits you track and not have to tie everything to the quantitative benefits even those are results-based and second part. we're switching from counter insurgety to security force and how does it affect your position? >> and doctor, please. >> [inaudible] in your first question, and in all of your talk, you refer to programs but never to plans. and one of the issues is how you make trade-off, and do you have a coherent way to move forward?

>> -- i wonder why the focus on programs without looking at plans when, for example, the afghan government estimates it will be cut from $6.4 billion in 2012 to under $8 00 million in 2014. even if you get the programs right, if you don't have a plan, and similarly in your own report when you looked at the transition plan, there is no plan there simply is transition. it isn't tracked to the nsf. that's question one. the other refers to measures of effectivenesses. you refer to the lack of the measures of effectivenesses being issued. the fact is a lot of the issues were using -- we're using don't really make any sense like education that, which exnear the computer spread and the gap and dat and reality. you have gdp data in your

report. but obviously nobody checked it to see if the gdp per capita data -- [inaudible] so if we don't actually check the sources for our measures of effectivenesses, does if goo do any good to have -- measures of effectivenesses? [laughter] >> okay. where should we start? >> microphone, please. [inaudible conversations] >> okay. [inaudible] let me try to deal with the first question. i'll get to the multi-part questions. i'll try to do that. on the tangible benefits, we recognize there are some intangible benefits. excuse me. but what i was trying to say if there intangible benefits for program or policy, they should

be articulated. we should find out off the we go in the audit. i recall one instance we were doing it and the purpose was to do this and this. women, we asked you, you gave reasons for why you're doing the program to congresses for the appropriations. we took what your justification was and mid it. we were looking at ap -- aip programs. exrain the limitation on us in the community. a new policy i don't do military policy or foreign policy or tactics. we try to look at the process. if you say this is your program, this is your policy, this is the reason why you're doing it. do you meet what you articulate

for the reasons you're doing if. so i hope that answers that. we recognize intangible. we do recognize that as i said, in the presentation there may be programs that will not meet any of the questions but we should do them but articulate why. tell us, the american taxpayer. turning to the doctor, and i hope i get all of the response of the answer. i should say, yes i agree. we are looking at lanes and i apologize in my speech i short end it and spoke. we are looking at some of the planning. and i agree with you. we're having a problem. if anything the speech is goad people we hope you are doing the planning and keeping the seven

questions in mind. i was in afghanistan asking are you planning? can you show us the plans? we haven't seen them. we assume they're there. we're told they're there. we haven't demanded them. each of my sister ig are looking at the planning process, dodd is looking at the dodd side. state looking to the state, aid is lookinged at the planning process. we're going to be looking at planning process overall and the impact on reconstruction. we are looking at the planning. is the planning good? i don't know. that's why i want to highlight the one particular problem i had, and i had seen this for years. and with sam nunn i'm not surprised about this. that is a mad rush to spend money. plans be dammed. dr damned. we're going get the money out the door before the, you know, the clock strikes 12:00 and that's my fear is there no planning them. you're just pumping the money out the door. that's what we're concerned about.

now, you talk about the measure of effect i haveness and you talk about the data, and i'll be hon ohs with you. some of our dray that is probably not right. we get from the government. now i know, okay i'm from the government. what can we say? we put out one of the massive d.a. calls of any u.s. agency any quarter. i have a whole staff that does that. i have actually asked if we're not answering right d.a. data. i mentioned this why talk about the uniquenesses of sigar. we're required four times a year to do this massive data call. and if you look at the quarterly report, three quarters of the quarterly report is reporting data and trying to put. reason behind it. so you be to our quarterly

report, it should be the one source, one stop shopping for information on afghanistan reconstruction. now are there problems with that data? yes. and that's why we footnote it where we get it. and you're right. some of the data our u.s. government is using is not the same d.a. is the world a bank is using. not the same d.a. being used by our allies. and we're particularly concerned and if you look at the last three quarters, i've been there for three quarters, and the first time i i sat down and looked at the quarterly report. and doctor, you and i had a conversation about that. the data getting on the effectiveness. you had quotes and i had doubt and i told my people to start pulling that string. this is where action is useful, i mean, i hate to say this. i rely on you all in the

community here in washington, d.c., and elsewhere who study the issues. you have the expertise. we are accountants, investigators and i use the old mind in my staffing with i'm an old poor country lawyer. we know how to do oversight investigation. you are the experts. doctor, you said there was a question there, i thought there was a dpowtful question there. we have been fulling -- pulling that string. you'll see in the latest quarterly report. we raise concerns. we have raced it again and we're going actually dig in to find out what is behind those numbers. basically it looks like and again we dmoant for sure but we're going pull that string. it looks like our d.a. on the forces the afghan national security forces we're going to be relying on might be bogus. we dmoant what supports it. so we're going to be pulling that string.

we would like to make it as broad, thorough, and as deep as we can. we are only rely on it if we don't get the data i pose. i can't subpoena government agencies but send a nasty letters to the poseses say you're not helping us. we're going try to get as much data as we can. the policy makers on the hill and in academia and policy centers like csis. have the information to help us all judge and understand and improve our reconstruction in afghanistan. i hope that answers the question. i probably dodged it a little bit. you raised the question when i met with you. we followed up. >> let's take two more questions, please, starting here in the front. then we'll go on the center aisle here. >> hi. -- [coughing] >> clark snyder, international crisis group. it's a followup to the question. when you look at the milestone

grading definition for the ansf. one, they're unable to -- the department exists, but they cannot accomplish the mission. but the second one says that they cannot accomplish the mission without significant coalition assistance. and that one -- affects many of the entity within the ministry of defense and ministry of interior. i guess my question is, have you looked at the downward trends in eye safe and u.s. forces which providing the systems and whether you move forward 2014, many of more of those entities without isaf. are going to be unable to accomplish the mission and therefore provide the secure they reconstruction requires. >> a second question is over here.

[inaudible] >> please identify yourself. >> [inaudible conversations] i don't question -- [inaudible] because this is a question just based on -- [inaudible] you use terms like "result" and "bankbank account -- impact" it's not clear the different between that and and the ultimate impact on how the afghans perceive the legitimate sei of the government, i think is the ultimate goal in our activities in that country. and so without a clearly stated set of rules or however standards, i'm not sure you can ask the implementing partners to be responsible to what '02 asking. so i want to clarify. are you asking for auditing or

doing monitoring and evaluation of our ultimate impact in the intervention? >> thank you. [inaudible conversations] >> let me start with the ansf question. it's a partial answer, i think, to the second question. although we have the largest presence, i think woe have taken the lead on reconstruction, there are still other inspector generals working out there. and so that we try to coordinate our work with the dod, state, and aid inspectors generals. [coughing] >> excuse me. so the question you about ansf capability. doj is looking at nap we are look agent numbers and how we -- what is our process for rating. we are raised concerns in priority audits even before i

got there about what if the standards we're using for rating. we have basically carved on in conjunction with the other ig looking at the support for the ansf. let me back up for a second while we talk about ansf. i do reconstruction. why are you looking that the? isn't it military? the way the statute and way has been defined reconstruction includes support, the training, the bullets, the guns, the buildings, the basis, and all of that for actually the salaries of the ansf. over 50% of all reconstruction money is really going forward the ansf. it's important reconstruction and security is to reconstruction. so to answer your question, the dod, i think, is looking at that and it may be best. that's a territory they have decided to look at. we're looking at a lot of the support for the ansf, fuel,

actually doing something on the weapons. we're looking at literacy issues, looking at some of the training issues, as i said web are also , we are also looking at numbers and where do we get the numbers of ansf troops are actually there and how many been deserted or double counting and all that have. we will be looking at that more detail. it's an important area. over 50 prnltd of i are construction. if you don't have security, the question about governance, the question about reconstruction, pails in comparison if you don't have the security. let me turn to the legitimate sei of the government. that's a big question. it's one of the policy questions is the government legitimate? if the program is supposed to promote or the legitimate those are the stated goals our

government has set for the program. whether he take that stated goal and audit against it. in the case of one of the programs supposed to bring the government closer to the people, and ensure greater support for the central government, i think, i refer to one of the audit. we look tatted and said we can't make certain you did but violence went up. we are not serve you accomplished your goal. i think your question is the ultimate question. which all of our work and the work of the many ig's may answer. that is concerning legitimate sei of the government. i hope it answers the question. do you you have any final thoughts? >> i think i picked it in afghanistan. december 2014 is not the end of the world. it doesn't end.

afghanistan will be there, the afghans will be there, and we will be there. stars we can -- as far as we can sell until congress tells me differently. not only "we" meaning the u.s. government and u.s. programs. but i think s i. g. a. r. will be there. i think we will work closely as well as to ensure that after dwowrt we are successful. we think the next period is really the most important period for reconstruction. thank you. [applause] >> thank you for your words. thank you, everybody, for coming. this video will be posted on the website. go back and there check. thank you for coming today.

[inaudible conversations] on the next washington journal, democratic representative jim mcdermott of washington, a member of the ways & ways & means committee will focus on the affordable care act and medicare spending. we'll discuss federal spending with representative scott garrett, a new jersey republican. washington journal is live on c-span every day at 7:00 a.m. eastern. on tuesday, house majority leader will talk about ways congress can make life easier for the american people. expect topics include education, immigration, and health care policy. we'll be live from the american

interpraise substitute at 1:00 p.m. eastern here on c-span2. >> a single thing that cool age did we want to remember we have left office the budget was lower than what when he came in. the economy grew a lot. unemployment below 5%. the budget was balanced to due to him. how would he manage to make the budget go lower and how did it help the economy? a lot. because got the government out of the way of the economy. >> traces the life of the 30th president of the united states in "cool age." sunday night at 8:00 on c-span q & a. >> new york city mayer -- koch served three terms as city's

mayor. he died friday from conjective heart failure at the age of 88. it's twenty minutes. with the 8.4 million nighers who are grieving with you at this moment. ed, on the other hand has got to be loving the attention. i was particularly thrilled that he he picked this place. friend, family, and fellow new yorkers. everyone is here today. and i think there's no doubt that ed is beaming looking down on us assembled here, and i

think it's fitting he picked the place a few blocks from a certain east river span. before last year's state of the city speech, if you remember, we reason a video -- ran a video that included a shot of ed standing at the entrance ramp yelling to the cars that approached, welcome to my bridge. welcome to my bridge! needless to say, it brought down the house. but what most people don't know is after the cameras stopped rolling, ed stayed out there in the freezing cold for another twenty minutes "welcome to my bridge! " he loved it and we loved him. no mayor, i think, has ever embodied the spirit of new york city like he can. i don't think anyone ever will. loud, brash, full of humor, and -- puzpah. he was a consequences essential mayor. more than anyone else. ed knew that new york was more

than a place. it's a state of mind and attitude and attitude that he displayed to the world every day. and we had such respect for him because of the personality and that it was matched by his integrity, his intelligence, and his independence. i was lucky enough to get ed's endorsement in my first run of mayor. he was one of the few crazy enough to back me. i was new to politics and didn't know about it. i remember the advice he gave me. be yourself, say what you believe, and don't worry about what people think. and god knows he didn't worry about it. he was as genuine a politician as america has ever seen. he understood that if you take the stuff stances and give it to the people straight, the they'll respect you for being honest even when they don't grow with you. it scares the hell out of press

sector. the average citizens re-- admired that. he was a devoted student of government policy. he had a huge app appetite for information and the colorful candor overshadowed the fact that the opinions were informed by tireless study of the issues. over the years, many people turned to ed for advice -- including me. no one understood the job like he did. and no one more eager to talk about it. he was always available, always direct, always wise. for example, i remember the time we're talking about how to tackle obesity and he said limit the size of sugar drinks. nobody will notice. [laughter] and then there was the time he told me, being mayors for three terms, it's great. go for it. what could i do? [laughter] actually, shortly after ed was

first inaugurated he said, quote, i'm going to act like a one-term mayor and as a result i'll be a three-term mayor. he knew from the beginning that the key success lay-in throwing political caution to the wind and it's easy to forget how badly the city needed new york mayor. it's almost unimaginable day. gray feety filled subways, miles of abandoned buildings, filthy street unsafe to walk in daylight much less at night and government broken and stopped functioning. the south bronx and other neighborhooded look like like they had been comed out. new york was in a state of despair and decay. and for the first time in our long history, the whole city seemed to be in terminal decline. new yorkers always been a magnet for people. a place of growth and progress. as ed once said, the place

where, quote, the future comes to audition. but in the 1970s. that had seized to be -- ceased to be true. then came koch. he held up his hands and shouted enough. we will not accept this. our best days are still ahead. ed convinced us that we could be great again. and he reminded us of why we love new york and inspired us to fight for it. he understood how tough our problems were, because he had the confidence and courage believe that the problems could be cured, he not only arrested our decline and showed the unruly city was governorble, he was not only restoring the city's fiscal health and made us once again the nation's economic engine. he was not only building aid fordable housing where fires had raged and made new york city once again a national leader in equal rights and arts and culture. he did something even more

important. he rear toed -- restored the arc of our city's history. a decade before ed became mayor. we lost our ways. and thanks to him, we became great again. and let me tell you, that was not inevitable. ed made it so. it is fair to say that the city we know today would not exist without him. everything that david dickens and ruddy giuliani and i has been built on the foundation that ed lay. it's strong and unshakable as ed's faith in new york and god. i've been doing my biblical research. i think it's fitting that this is about moas -- ned his own way was our moses. just with the hair. he led us out of darkness and

gave us hope. while he may not have parted red sea. he broke the subway strike. and just as moses died before he reached the promise land. head i dies -- ed dies hours before before film. no one enjoyed the theater of politics more than ed. no one was ever better at it. as much fun as it was to watch ed as mayor. the show began when he left public office. lawyer, author, professor, television judge, movie critic, restaurant reviewer, political commentarier, reform organizer, twitter user, and radio host. the press and politicians never stopped asking his opinions and so far be it from him to stop offering them. sometimes even unsolicited.

he remained as sharp and irrelevant as ever. awe owe know, ed will be buried at trinity cemetery in upper manhattan. think about it. a polish jew in an graveyard in a largely dominican neighborhood. what could be more new york or even more ed koch? and admired in all face and deeply proud of his own. on his stomach -- described with the words that david daniel said. my father is jewish, my mother is jewish, i am jewish. has there ever been a simpler more el eloquent it was deeply moving to many of us when we

realized ed died on the anniversary of david's murder. a few years ago we were making a video about the tough times the city has been been there through and we asked him would you ever live anywhere else? he smiledded and looked straight in the camera and said, the only place i would accept is heaven. nothing else would take the place. it's not hard to picture ed getting up to heaven, meeting god, and saying with a big smile, how'd i do? and there is no doubt, cardinal, you're not going happy about this. i'm telling you. i've talked to god. i know, what is happening. god said with so many people around the city and the country and all over the world have been saying over the last few days. ed, you did great. you really did great. so god bless, you ed koch. and god bless the city you love so much and that you served so well.

[applause] the mayors, the governors, the senators, the other dignitaries that are here. yesterday i flew home from japan after spending eight hours there. it was ed koch's last gift to me. because, you know, you pick up a whole day when you come back from japan and every day counts.

[laughter] so, thanks, mayor. i come here to speak for myself and also for hilary, who loved him very much and was grateful for his endorsement in every race she ran, and most greetful for a typically ed koch-deal. after she became a senator, he said, you know, i was for you, and new yorkers we come from everywhere and not everybody can be lucky like me and just be 100% new york, but you got get better at this. so every holiday season for years, he organized the following lunch. ed koch, hillary clinton, and allen keiswetter. i have yet to receive a full

report on any of those lunches. but it was so typically ed. you know, we were told not speak long. this is is not my speech. these are just the letters i got from ed when i was president. [laughter] i thought i'd tell you about them. he really weighed in when i was trying to pass the crime bill in 1995. he supported more police on the street, the limitation on the size of ammunition clips, the ban on assault weapons, and governor, you would be -- he would be proud of you today. but it was a little another section of the bill which provided more funds for young people in troubled neighborhoods

to engage in positive activities and things for kids to say yes to. and then he wrote me a bunch of letters over a period of three years basically saying i hadn't done enough on that. one letter coauthored with distinguished african-american professor, charles, another and al sharpton and ed koch saying that it was imperative we give young people who had gotten in trouble a second chance. they should be given a chance to serve in america or do something else, and then if they got their ged and stayed off drugs, their records to be saled -- seals and the convictions purged if ever they were asked again life if d they have a criminal conviction, they can honestly say no. you have to give people a second chance. then there was a letter about

the holocaust rememorial and the opening and his unfailing support of israel. there was a fascinating letter about the importance of not giving up on missile defense research and not making the russians mad. he said, just do it -- the scientist need work and we'll -- [inaudible] there were some of them that were funny. he was very proud of the mayor for the ain't smoking initiative, and he hated cigarettes. and he loved the fact that senator mccain joined in democrats and we made some progress in trying to roll back the tide of cigarette use especially among young people. but late in my tenure, mccain tried another bill and it didn't

pass. i couldn't pass it. he was mad and said we have to do something to convince these young people to quit smoking. and there's just been a new study saying that it impacts -- and he said this viagra is a big deal. this letter is hilarious. he said, politicians don't like to talk about this. but young people are way more sophisticated than older people. they get this. it doesn't work to tell people they're going get cancer or respiratory diseases. go after the argument. [laughter] then in 2000, when he became concerned about the turn of the election, he sent mae column he had written. he sent me all of them. this one was really great, with the ten-point plan for victory with the democrats in 2000. he wanted campaign finance

reform, universal health care, prescription drug benefits for seniors, he wanted no tax cuts until the debt was paid down. so, mr. mayor, it's not just new york that -- [inaudible] and had a lot of other interesting things. he still wanted to give young people a second chance. he used to say he was a liberal but he was sane. which was another saying of i believe in government you have to look at the impact of this. i don't think i ever debated to discuss agreed with, anybody in this line of work who had a better feel for the impact of what people in government did on the real life of people. he could imagine what life was

like. one of his great second chance ideas was that there ought to be a universal scouting program for america. for really young people and i had been out in montana and meeting with people in had 4-h and i said if every kid was in america was in 4-rbgs h we would half the letter. e said we would have far less than half. you should get behind the scouting proposal. we reconnect to the mainstream of life by giving him something positive to be a part of it. he wrote a ton of books. ..

instead he asked about how hillary felt instead. he had eight a brain, but he had an even bigger heart. he asked how she is doing. we are all doing fine, but we miss you. we miss you so much because we all know we are doing a lot better. because we have lived and served your. [applause]

>> coming up tonight on c-span2, a program with chris kyle, who was killed saturday in texas. then, the prime ministers of italy or ireland, and the netherlands discussed europe's future. that is followed by the inspector general on u.s. spending in the country up afghanistan during reconstruction. on tuesday, congressional budget officer leases the 2013 budget and economic outlook we will be live at 2:00 p.m. eastern here on c-span2. also, a bipartisan group of house members unveiled gun trafficking legislation. much that life on our companion network, c-span3. >> you're watching a thank you, weekdays featuring live coverage of the u.s. senate. on weeknights, keep up with

policy events and every weekend at the latest nonfiction authors and books on booktv. you can see past programs and get our schedules at our website. conjoin on the conversation on social media sites. >> next, it an interview with chris kyle he was killed by a young marine believed to be suffering from ptsd. this program is an hour. >> host: chris kyle, why did you decide to join the navy? >> guest: i grew up thinking the marines were the against on the block. i always wanted to be one. so i went and tried to become ao marine.nd marine recruiter was out tothene lunch.p mall all o then, all of a sudden you have r the army recruiters, navyrecrui, recruiters are all trying to

pick you off think it should come to them. i talked to each one of them. the navy recruiter sold me on beingon a navy s.e.a.l. be a >> host: at the moment that moment you knew you wanted to be a navy s.e.a.l. reign.ourse >> guest: everything he was tellingre me, which, of course, the recruiter built it up wherey it was a born type thing.eat he was telling me that the navy s.e.a.l.s do things that you never hear about. all of these great adventures and you'll be the mostra highly trained person out there and you will be able to have all ofhando these skills shooting and i, thought, all right, if they ares the best, i want to bet. the beo >> host: what was your trainingy right? yo >> guest: it felt like seven months long, the initialrt training, standing there with cked in your feet shoulder width apart, getting kicked in the junk.me it was wet and sandy everyday.

there were times that i thoughtt about k quitting. i but i don't know if it was just that i was too lazy to get up and find the bell to ring it,n i but somehow i managed to make in through. >> host: when did you serve? >> guest: i went out in february got of 1999 and got out in february of 2009.3-week >> guest: here is the cover of d his book. a "ameican sniper", the autobiography of the most letha sniper and american history. he is our guest the next hour here on c-span2. th we are ge oing to put the numbes on the screen if you'd like to talk with him.a 202 is thus a bunch in area called. mountain zones, 737-0002 for those of yhe 202 is the error code. area code.

dial the numbers at the bottom of your screen, and you can send an e-mail to us at booktv@c-span.org or send a tweet to twitter.com/booktv. no chris kyle, in your bookt youst write that you were not the best shot at all in your class or before you went in as a navy sn. s.e.a.l. >> guest: no, sir, i was middle of the pack. i almost failed out of snipert e school. it's just that everyone tends to think that when you get theseha number of kills that all there sudden you are this great sniper and that is not the measure of l sniper. the measure of the true greatness of a sniper is to rola everythingl in one. everything. the observation, everything. that is why in my mind, i thinkk

it's 93 confirmed kills. i think he is the greatest sniper in history or in not jus in america, but in the world. he is the guy that would go in my himself and sneak in and takt a shot with a lot less, you know, capable weapons of we have today and optics. but he would take that shot and then sneak back down undetecteds i think that is the true measur, of a sniper. t. people again, take the shot and get out. >> host: we have an e-mail sent in to you. how many unconfirmed kills do y you estimate that you have?u did you ever trained with and 2 white leather rifle? >> guest: well, there's no poin. in keeping track of what could have been or what might'vee beeo and your whole thing is out there trying to take these bad

stets and guys off the smatreets to make o safer for your guys and allow ho for more of your guys make iteag home. the ideal thing, if i knew theeh number of lives that iat would saved -- that is the ideal thing. but you can't calculate that. >> host: what is your reactiony' to a kill?mostf the >> guest: you're not looking at them as people.ng, it's very hard. your most of the time they are actively engaging, trying to kill your guys. so you are trying to see yourself as a guardian angel to yourect the guys who are in danger. you have to dehumanize and remove yourself from it.know tha otherwise, you don't want to hae think about what have they donet and your mind you this kind of e thing that i want this guy to be able to go home. i want mlyy guy to be able to go

home. so i'm going to take out this th target to allow him to do that.e >> host: where did you serve? >> guest: i served in iraq. i was over for the invasion in 2003. in went back in 2004. the i was then attached to the marine corps for the battle ofd falluja. i was sent back to baghdad andon then was sent on for thein the elections and then went back in 2006, spent all of that time ata the battlett over money and then went back again in 2008 where i west.ecure th there was a call for snipersy. come in and serve in baghdad. extrem >> host: why did you leave the yeals in 2009? extremel >> guest: it is extremely tought

on her marriage. 95% divorce rate. my wife and i constantly struggle trying to keep the marriage afloat. home, y even when you are not deployed, when your coming home, you are still training. so you're never really coming home.d the poin t it caused stress on the marriage is itnally got to where i needed to the tide, is it goingg to beoi god, country, family?seo or is it going to be god,quit >> hos and youy? so i gave everything back to my >>t: geoow. >> host: and your wife's name is taya? >> guest: yes. >> host: and you have children? >> guest: yes. >> host: did your chewers have an impact on your family, and am what did the military do to alleviate this is the next was d

inestion. >> guest: at the time we were fr not getting the coverage over there. we were not being able to watch it as far as we felt that us.ica is against but then towards the end of the deployment, you know, we were able to get a few more channels and see a lot more of the actual coverage that was going on and all the support, so it definitely helped it out. but then when i came home, it was difficult because you leave from a war zone one day, and then you're home the very next day. they just fly you straight home. and it takes you a little bit. you know, i would always -- you have about a month off to where you just reacclimate yourself, and i'd always spend about a week at home and just hang out with the family, try to get to know 'em again and hope that my kids weren't afraid of me and

they remembered that i was daddy. but, you know, especially the first time i was a little upset coming home, and i saw everybody doing their day-to-day, normal lives and was thinking y'all don't even know there's a war going on. there's people dying. but as i continued doing this, it came to the realization that that is why we're doing it. we're over there fighting so everybody can lead their normal, day-to-day lives. that's what it's all about. >> host: chris kyle, what was your first confirmed kill? >> guest: we were in the city ahead of the marines, and we were just trying to soften up some of the locations for 'em. we weren't going to make it safe, but just try to make it, you know, as little as possible, add something to it. and while in the city, the marines started to approach, the people came out to show that they were supportive of the military, they weren't going to fight, and at that time there

was a woman that came out, and she had something in her hands. i was watching her. i was relaying back to my chief everything that she had, and what she was doing. he informed me that it was a chinese grenade and told me i had to take the shot because she started approaching the marines. at this point i'd never killed anyone, so it was definitely made me pause, but also the fact that it's not a man, it was difficult. so we tried to radio the marines to let them handle it. i didn't want to have to be the one to take the woman's life. we couldn't raise them on the radio, so i ended up having to take the shot. but in my mind she, she was dead anyway. she was either going to kill herself by the grenade being a suicide bomber, or she was going to die by my bullet. and i would rather shoot her than to sit there and watch her blow up the marines. >> host: chris kyle writes: as

the americans organized, the woman took something from beneath her clothes and yanked at it. she'd set a grenade. i didn't realize it at first. looks yellow, i told the chief, describing what i saw as he watched himself. it's yellow, the body -- >> host: first call for chris kyle comes from arthur in norfolk, virginia. go ahead, arthur. >> caller: hey -- thank you for your service, everybody's service in iraq and afghanistan.

my question is, if you could speak to the gold star mothers and wives on behalf of their sons and daughters who died over there, what would you tell them about, about the war and about why their sons and daughters died? >> guest: well, i mean, i appreciate their sacrifice and, in fact, i'm very close with some of them because some of those sons that did die were my guys. and i remain close with those families. as far as telling them their sons or daughters' sacrifice and was it, was it worth it, you know what? any war no matter where it is, not a single american life is worth it. but for the overall cause to be able to make a place safer in the world, i mean, these guys and girls are out there putting

their lives on the line, and they are true heroes. there's no pause. they're out there because their country sends you out there. and you don't have to believe in the war, you don't get to choose where you go, it's just you have that sense of honor that you are going to serve this country no matter where the congress tells you or the president tells you that you're going to go, you just go. you do your duty, and you're fighting for the guy or the girl on the right and left of you. you know, when we're out there, i wasn't really fighting for iraq. and i hate to say it, but i wasn't really fighting for america. i was fighting for my guys. i wanted to make sure every one of those guys came home. >> host: chris kyl writes: the reminder of what we were fighting for caused tears as well as blood and sweat to run freely from all of us.

>> host: and then, mr. kyle, in a different chapter you write: >> host: they >> host: glenn in freeland, michigan. you are on with chris kyle, "american sniper." >> caller: thank you, gentlemen. my question for mr. kyle is in the wake of the trayvon martin case and, um, the shooting at the college in oakland last week, i think it was, and a zillion other cases like that, virginia tech and those kind of cases what does he think of this kind of hypergun culture we have

in america where, basically, anyone who wants a gun can get one and use it if they like and, specifically, what's his opinion on gun control? thank you very much. >> host: mr. kyle? is -- >> guest: i am 100% behind the second amendment, the right to own and bear arms. i mean, i'm here in texas, and that is a big part of the culture here. it's my right to be able to have it. but it's also everybody's responsibility to learn the safeties and learn everything about those weapons. there are certain people that don't deserve the weapons. the people who are going to go out and actually act stupid. now, as far as the trayvon martin thing, i haven't kept up with that, so i can't tell you everything that's going on in there. i haven't heard all the facts, and for the most part, i've heard one of side of the story, so i can't comment on that one. all these school shootings, yeah, especially out in california i know it's difficult

to be able to carry a gun, only a few people are legally going to be able to do that. so i don't know why this guy was doing that, but apparently, gun control though itself, the only thing it's going to do is take the guns out of the law-abiding citizens. the criminals are still going to have 'em. >> host: carl from murray, kentucky, e-mails in to you, mr. kyle: what inspires you to write the autobiography? >> guest: actually, i was dead set against it. it is something that i felt like these guys who got out and did this kind of thing, they were selling out. and i did not want to be a sellout. it's, basically, taking my try dent and -- tridepartment and cashing it in for some publicity. i was completely against it. but then as i found out there were two other authors who were actively seeking my story. they were going to write the book. and if book was going to be written, i wanted to make sure

it was done the right way. i didn't know someone else writing a book about me and it being another chest-beating story of, hey, look at me, look at what i've done. when i wrote it, it gives the credit to the proper people, the guys around me that were the true heroes, and the only reason i even look good is because of those guys and their heroics. so this story gives credit to those, whether it was the seals, the soldiers or the marines. those guys that fought around me, beside me, they were awesome, and i owe them everything. so i am calling them out and putting them up on a pedestal, letting everybody know, hey, this is what goes on overseas. because this -- the stories in my book, they're not just unique to me, a seal, they are unique to every combat vet. these are the hardships that they face. they may not have gone through the exact same story as i did, but very similar. so this is just raising the awareness of, hey, look what your troops are going through

over there. but then the same time you hear my wife, and she's telling the hardships of the family back home. because when someone deploys and goes overseas to fight a war, it's not just them that's in this fight now. it's the entire family that's left behind. so i just, this whole, the whole point behind this is to kind of knock myself down because, you know, i don't even care about the numbers, i don't want the hype, but i will stand up, and i will be an activist for the vets to make sure that they get the proper thank you. and, you know, today there's a lot of lip service, and i'm not saying people don't mean it when they say it, but going up in an airport saying thank you definitely means a lot to the guys, but why can't we take it a step further and show our thanks? you know, random acts of kindness. you don't even have to give money, but mow their yard, cook them a meal, baby sit so they can take a nap or go on a date. just little random acts of

kindness to actually show your thanks, and that's going to blow 'em away. >> host: chris kyle, this week is very much written in the vernacular and a lot of swearing in this book. >> guest: yes, sir. and in the military there is a lot of cussing. that is part of the military culture. it is a rough, gruff type of society, and we're not politically correct, so it's -- i don't talk like that on a daily basis, especially now here in the civilian world, but there in that time it's, it's also kind of a way of stress reliever. you're constantly in hectic situations, and this is a way of, you know, just voicing it and getting it out and then moving on. >> host: you write about how your wife, tea, heard one of your fire fights. >> guest: yes, sir. it was definitely something that i never intended. i didn't realize that the phone wasn't turned off, but i also thought i was calling at a good time, usually at night we're not

attacked, and it just so happened this night we were. unfortunately, she was still on the line. >> host: and what was her reaction? >> guest: well, definitely upsetting. i mean, there were several times to where when i would call home and when she would answer the phone realize it was my voice on the other line that she would cry. there was a couple times, too, where in a helicopter crash i would always come back and tell her in case you see it on the news, because the media calls seals special forces. special forces are what everyone calls the green berets. special operations or spec-op s, that includes everybody, seals, rangers. so i would always come back and say, hey, i was in a helicopter crash, in case you hear about it, we're fine, no big deal. and another time i wasn't able to call her back, and i wasn't in the helicopter crash this

time, it was actually sf guys, and it went down, killed everybody onboard. and same thing, when i called, she broke down. >> host: how many helicopter crashes were you in? >> guest: two. >> host: how many times were you injured? >> guest: several. i don't exactly know how many times. >> host: were you ever shot? >> guest: i was shot twice. >> host: where? >> guest: i was shot in the -- well, i took a round across the top of the helmet, took one in the book and then one in the side. >> host: how long did that put you out of service? >> guest: well, fortunately for me it was, you know, either superficial wounds, but the one in the back especially was, you know, hit the body armor which slowed it down just enough to where it was just, basically, just barely punctured my back. it was no big deal. so no time, it was just get it cleaned up, and you're right back in the fight. >> host: mark in virginia beach, you're on with author chris kyle, former navy seal.

>> guest: hey, chris, how you doing? hey, listen, i just appreciate so much your work that you've done as active duty, and you talked about, you know, not wanting to cash in on your trident and all that other stuff, but what do you think about people who leave active duty and then continue their work as a contractor? i mean, what's your thoughts on that? and what's next for you in your life after the book? thanks a lot for your time. >> guest: thank you, sir. as far as the contractors, i mean, you've got these guys that this is what we're trained to do, and some of the guys have degrees, some of the guys don't, but this is what we know, and it's what we love. and then you go in to be a contractor, and you're -- one of the biggest things you miss when you leave are the guys. you hate to give that up. so if you go be a contractor, you're surrounded by those guys again, and then you can kind of do some of the same style of

work. it's mainly protection, but at least you're getting paid extremely well, and you're spending time back overseas with your guys again. you know, i respect that. the job's going to get done, so why not be the one to make the money doing it? i mean, not all these contractors out there are these wild cowboys that are just shooting everybody up. there's only been a few incidents or some incidences to where someone's gone off the reservation and done something stupid, but for the most part these guys are out there every day trying to help out still, and you never hear about it because they're not messing up. and as far as me, i'm kraft international which it does have a contracting side, but i am the training side. we train the military trying to give back to 'em, help them prepare before they deploy, but also law enforcement. helping those guys. they are going to, they are the first responders here, and i want to give back to my

community and make sure these guys are prepared. not that i am a one-stop shop. it's, you know, you come here and now you know everything, but at least i have another tool for you to put in your tool box that, hopefully, it comes in handy and helps somebody out. and then we also have the civilian side to where the corporate retreats or take you out to be marksmanship training to where we have all these machine guns. you can go out and things that you can't own the company does own, and we can bring them out, and you can shoot belt-fed machine guns and have fun. >> host: chris kyle, you have a photo of charlie platoon of seal team three, and several of the faces are blacked out. why is that, and did this book have to go through official vetting? >> guest: yes. those faces are blacked out. you know, some of the faces blacked out the guys are out, but out of respect for them i wanted to protect their identity, but also the guys that are still active. i mean, we do try to conceal our

identities. we're not out there saying, hey, look at me, i'm a navy seal. and as far as going through channels, yes. when the book was written, it was heavily involved with some of my buddies helped me with the different stories because i couldn't remember all of 'em. so they were relaying some of the stories back, and then all of a sudden it jogs your memory. but then i had to turn it into the dod, department of defense did their check over it. it did go to all the seal teams, and everybody you've worked for gets their chop on it to make sure you didn't say anything that was classified or anything that, you know, you're gonna -- more or less you don't want to hurt a bunch of feelings if you don't have to. >> host: was anything taken out of the book, the original manuscript? >> guest: there were a few things taken out, yes, sir. >> host: lisa, burlington, north carolina. you're on booktv with chris kyle. >> caller: hello? >> host: lisa, please go ahead with your question or comment.

>> caller: hello? >> host: lisa, we're going to move on. kay in omaha, nebraska. good afternoon. >> caller: hi there. i just wanted to thank you. i never call on the phone and that, and i was just getting ready to hang up, but i just wanted to know that my dad was post commander of the american legion, and on memorial day we all marched out to out of town in that and went up to the cemetery and paid our respects, and the guys shot off the guns and that, and is it was just so awe-inspiring for me as a kid to see this. and my grandmother was post commander of the american legion for the women. and i just wanted to say that it's coming up now, and i'm going out there and march by myself in that. thank you very much. >> guest: well, thank you, ma'am. and thank your family for

everything they have done and are doing. i really appreciate it. that's one thing that we do as a family on memorial day, there's a national cemetery out here, and we take the entire family out there, and we'll find a tombstone and lay a rose on it. and it's to show the kids that we are honoring these guys who have come before us and paid the ultimate sacrifice, and i want them to understand it and be supportive of the military. you don't have to support the wars, i don't care about that, but the men and women wearing that uniform are true heroes. like i said before, they don't decide where they go, but they're willing to do whatever their country asks. >> host: chris kyle is joining us from dallas. and daryl in freemo, this -- fremont, california, you're on booktv talking with chris kyle of "american sniper." >> caller: hey, how you doing. >> host: please go ahead. >> caller: can you hear me?

>> host: we're listening. >> caller: all right. i just want to let you know that i do appreciate all that you're doing for our country and other countries because it's very important to have someone like you available, and i know that all you guys risk every bit of your lives just to do this. and i just want to, you know, just cry out for you that when some come up missing, i do have worries in heart because, um, it takes you to help keep it straightened out and to a level that we appreciate every bit of your skills. because that is the most important, key factor to winning the wars, and i just want to the let you know you're my hero, and you will always be my hero. my dad fought from 1941 to 1944 in the war, and he's my hero today.

you know? and i wish they would open up doors better for you guys to receive compensation for what you do because, you know, it's gallant. and my dad today, he's lived to see on may 4th 90 years of surviving that. so i just want to let you know, you are appreciated. >> guest: well, thank you, sir. i really appreciate that, and i really respect your father for everything he's done. and i to longer wear the uniform, so my heroes are all those men and women wearing it. and the men and women that have come before us. they have definitely set the bar high, and those are some high standards to try to live up to. >> host: chris kyle, are there any female snipers? >> guest: not that i know of. as far as i know, being a sniper is still being on the front

line, and the last that i was told any, anyone in combat the closest they could get to being on the front lines as a woman was to be a pilot. >> host: next call for chris kyle comes from from dave in ida bell, oklahoma, on our iran -- sorry, iraq/afghan vets' line. go ahead, dave. >> caller: good morning. i'm a seven-year veteran, been deployed -- 12-year veteran, been deployed seven times, i was a force scout marine and a navy corpsman. i understand everything you're saying, i'm right there with you. thank you for showing me the way, because i failed out of seal school, but i graduated marine force school. i was right there with you, brother, fallujah and baghdad, sadr city from 2002 to 2009. >> guest: well, thank you for all your service. and, you know, failing out of seal school that's -- you know,

just because i made it through seal school doesn't make me any better than anybody else. it was just different strokes for different folks, and there are definitely some outstanding people in all the other branches, even just regular grunts. i mean, there are some true fighters and warriors there, and, you know, i just respect the hell out of everyone wearing that uniform. >> host: this e-mail from john of san francisco: mr. kyle, have you read "jarhead" by anthony swaf ord? if so, what did you think of this book? >> guest: honestly, i haven't. most of the books -- well, i've read carlos halfcock's because, you know, i idolized the man, but other than that most of the books i've read were all fiction. it was usually reading about mitch wrath and all his duties that he was doing out there. but, in fact, i wasn't even a big reader.

>> host: what about marcus luttrell's book? >> guest: i did read that. marcus is a good friend of mine, and i definitely wanted to support him, so bought the book. i definitely read it and, you know, it's a tough one to read, but i appreciate his story. and, again, in that book he's not saying, hey, look at me, he's trying to highlight the friends that he lost and show the true heroes that they were. >> host: next call for chris kyle, "american sniper," comes from julio in chicago. good morning -- or good afternoon. >> caller: good morning. um, mr. kyle, i saw you on your previous publicity tour on "the o'reilly factor", and you had mentioned you had punched governor jesse ventura. now, i saw an interview where governor ventura said that incident did not take place at the bar in california. now, it's obvious someone is lying. it's either you or governor ventura, so was it -- what was going on here?

did this incident happen? if not, why would you call out a navy seal, someone who is well respected and a big public figure like governor ventura? >> guest: my intention was never to call him out. it was -- happened on the opie and anthony show. a caller called in and said, well, tell 'em this story about this. because there were other people that know this that were there, but as far as anything else, i'm not even going to talk about it at this time. >> host: and you do write about jesse ventura in your book, and he -- did he not sue you? >> guest: oh, he is. >> host: and that is unsettled at this point? >> guest: yes, sir. >> host: venture or rah, california, ralph, you're on the line with chris kyle. >> caller: yeah. kyle -- i'm a marine '68-'70, so i know who you're talking about when it comes to vietnam.

my question for you, though, was talk a little bit about honor. civilians don't seem to understand what it means in the military, especially the seals, marines, special ops forces, what honor really is. thank you. >> guest: well, thank you for your service, sir. and i apologize for the reaction you got when you came home. as far as the honor, it's, you know, when you -- that flag is flying and the national anthem is playing, i feel chills. and sometimes i get a little choked up. it's everything that flag stands for. there are guys who have died to be able to -- to allow me to be at that sporting event or wherever i may be and hear that song and see that flag. it's, i mean, you are willing to put everything on the line, you're willing to die for your country whether you believe in the cause or not just because your country says we need this.

you're going to do something for the greater good. and that was one of the big things i had a problem with when i ended up getting out of the military is my whole job, it was all for the greater good. it was for everybody in the country. and now that i'm a civilian, it's for my own good. so it definitely caused some problems, and i don't know, i mean, i grew up extremely patriotic. i love this country, i love the troops even before, you know, i enlisted. but i don't want really know how to explain -- i don't know really how to explain it. it's just a burning sensation inside you that you love this country no matter who's in charge, if you're democrat, republican or what or how bad you think things might be here. this is still the greatest nation in the world. i mean, there's no other place i'd rather be. so it's just that love of this country, and you're willing to do whatever the country asks of you. >> host: where did you grow up, and what were you doing before

you joined the navy? >> guest: born and raised here in texas, i was born in odessa but then moved when i was young. my dad worked for the phone company, so we kind of moved around all over texas. when i graduated school, i ended up going to college at this -- it was a smaller college at the time, and it was down in stevenville, texas. and when i was down there, i was working on ranches. i decided that i was going to, you know, i had two dreams in the life. one was to be a cowboy, and the other was to be in the military. so i was down there doing some rodeos and working on the ranches and figured why do i need to be in school? so i did, i get college and just kept working as a cowboy for a living traveling around texas on different ranches and new mexico, colorado until eventually i figured out, all right, well, i've done this long

enough. i have one other dream, so now it's time to go do it. >> host: who are scott mckind and jim defeliz? >> guest: scott is a lawyer in san diego. he's a man that i met through another former team guy that, you know, being around and hearing some of the stories from some of the guys and talking with me he's the one that approached me and said you need to write a book, and i want to help you do it. so he got me in touch with harpercollins who ended up wanting to publish this book, and then jim defeliz is the actual author. he's the man that i spent the time with, extended periods of time sitting down relaying all my stories back to him, and he would record it, take notes and then writing it back into a story format that, you know, would try to grab the reader and get my points across. >> host: edward in houston, please, go ahead with your

question or comment for chris kyle. >> caller: yes. what i, what it was was i'm watching your program right now, and i wanted to find out if there was any information on the company that he mentioned earlier that he can send me through the mail? my computer's not exactly active, so i'm trying to find out as much information as i can on the company that he mentioned about. >> host: why is that, edward? >> caller: well, it's something that i've been curious about for a while, and i never really had to do with it raising a family or anything like that. now that i'm older, i'm thinking about it, but i don't know if i'll be able to follow through, and i'm just curious about it. and i wanted to find out if there was anything he could send me or any information he could give me. >> host: chris kyle. >> guest: well, i think you're talking about kraft international, the company i mentioned earlier. the training side that's,

basically, the military outsources a lot of its training. it's awarded to dod contractors that they'll send different units to places all around the united states. there are several training companies, and we just happen to be based in the texas. we have facilities elsewhere throughout the united states, but we're training these guys not only this sniping, but offroad driving, tactical driving, hand-to-hand, anything that deals with weapons, all the different tactics we are teaching the military and the law enforcement. and for the military we're, we have hired -- it's not just seals, you know? i'm, i am or was a seal, but, and there's a few more working with us, but i have a lot of, you know, special forces, marines, army. because when i have other units coming in, i don't want just a seal being up there and people

think, ah, he's a seal, he has an ego, whatever, he thinks he's better than me. now i have a team of guys from all these different branches that were all coming together and saying, look, here's something that can help. and then sometimes army and marines you might have a little different lingo. so now at least you have that guy there that can speak your speak. and we do the same thing with law enforcement. we have the cops involved, heavily involved. we still have some military instructors in there because i do feel some of the stuff the military does that it can help, it'll benefit the police. and the same, vice versa. some of the stuff the police do, it'll help the military. and just trying to get a little more synergy going between everybody and get everyone to talking and try to come out with the best possible solution for everyone. >> host: chris kyle, what's the web site? >> guest: it is thecraft.com or

craftintl.com. >> host: next call for chris kyle comes from jeff in aiken, south carolina, a navy vet. go ahead, jeff. >> caller: hey, chris. i just want to say i appreciate everything you've done. i served from 2000 to 2006 in iraq -- well, not the whole time in iraq, but i did two deployments there. i also did small boat swift teams, not sure you know what they are. and then i got out, and i discovered the same thing that you do, that the caliber of people just isn't quite the same that you deal with. became an flt officer, i did that for a few years. you know, i really -- [inaudible] and a lot of people maybe don't understand what's going on in your life and as an individual. if you could just kind of go into that for people and explain to them that, you know, you're not a cold-blooded killer as much as you're doing a job. thanks, man. >> guest: and thank you for your service.

yeah, as far as being a sniper, like i was saying before, i'm not out there trying to rack up kills and get these huge numbers. i don't care about the numbers. and i would love to be known by the number of people i was actually able to save. but i'm out there to insure the safety of everyone on the streets. i want every one of those guys and girls that go over there with me to be able to come home. and it's not just those guys that i'm protecting. i'm also out there to protect the civilians in that location where i'm at. some of these open-air markets we were there -- excuse me -- we were there to be able to provide that security so they could come back out and actually sell their goods without having to worry about someone snatching them off the street or blowing 'em up. i mean, they were out there ruling in fear by cutting heads off and torturing people. so we're just trying to make it safe. and you can't think of the person that you're shooting as

an actual person. i mean, otherwise it's going to tear you apart. you can't think of their family or anything. you're just, you're there to provide safety for your guys and the civilians that are out there. and like you said, it is -- it's a job. it's a difficult job, and, you know, some people -- i've seen the comments where they've called me a coward for hiding in a location where no one can see me and shooting a guy from a mile away. well, there's a reason i'm shooting the guy from a mile away, because i wasn't close enough, and there was someone who was close enough that he was fixing to kill. so i, wherever i can reach out and get you, to be able to provide that security i will do it. or did. so it's unfortunate, but war is hell, and we're not going over there to hand out flowers and cookies. we're being called in because it's hit the fan, and we're there to make it stop.

>> host: rachel reuben tweets in to you, mr. kyle: on becoming a sniper, is there some kind of aptitude test for that? just have good eye? how does one get assigned as a sniper? >> guest: well, as far as being assigned to sniper, we weren't allowed at that time to be a new guy, a brand new guy that's never deployed to be a sniper. you had to show that you were responsible and mature enough to be able to conduct yourself and possibly pass through the course, and then my chief nominated me to be able to go when i got back from my first deployment. when you go as far as the aptitude test, honestly, i think that's something that they've all been trying to figure out, what kind of person does it take. honestly? i don't know. i'm not a very patient man, so patience, i don't think, is a requirement of being a sniper. it's professional -- it's just,

it's your professional discipline of doing the right thing at the right time and knowing when you have to pay attention to detail and just take your time, slow down. maybe you have to, we called it reveg, to put the vegetation back on your gilley suit, or you're coming into a new environment, and it's not the same vegetation that you have on you, so you have to stop, take the time to take that old stuff off and put the new stuff on. it's kind of like integrity, doing the right thing at the right time. and then being able to concentrate on the weapon and shoot and actually be able to learn all the different things that are involved with the actual shooting portion. there's, actually, a lot of math involved, especially the farther out in distance you go. >> host: you're watching booktv on c-span2, and our guest is chris kyle, author of the best-selling book "american sniper: the autobiography of the

most lethal sniper in u.s. military history." we have about 15 minutes left with our guest, and robert is active duty in salt lake city. robert, you're on booktv with chris kyle. >> caller: yes, mr. kyle, i just wanted to say thank you for all of your service. um, i joined in 1985, and i'm still currently in. um, i just -- i was away on tdy last week, and i seen your book, and i picked it up, and i want to tell ya it's a fantastic book. i haven't been able to put it down, and i think i have, like, 20 pages left. thank you again for everything. >> guest: well, thank you, sir. and thank you for everything you have done and everything you continue to do for us. you are the reason this book is out there, to draw awareness to your sacrifices. and, hopefully, the public will then lift you up and say thank you and show you thanks. in fact, you know, the book, all

of my portion of the proceeds are going back to the two families of the guys i lost. mark lee and ryan job. and then the other third of that money is going back to charities to help vets. so i am out here promoting this book and, you know, unfortunately this is not a happy-go-lucky book. that was some of the best moments of the life, but it was also some of the worst. and every time i do this book tour and talk about this, you relive it. and then you get stressed, and, you know, especially the first time i was talking with the author, you feel like you just got run over by a mack truck. but, you know, i'm doing this for these guys because i am highlighting them, and i'm not going to sit here and give you lip service. so i'm going to show you, too, by i'm giving this money back to these guys. >> host: what was the book tour like for you? >> guest: it was fun, but at the same time it was stressful.

you're worried because there's always going to be haters out there, and you're wondering when's that hater going to come up and confront you? and are they going to throw something at you, are they going to spit on you? fortunately, i have yet to see that, but it's emotional at times. i've had some of the family members standing in line and wait to be able to get up there and sign a book with me. and i love seeing these people. they come up, and they're nervous because they want me to sign their book, and i keep telling 'em, you're not as nervous as i am. i am not super comfortable in front of big groups of people and one-on-one. it's difficult for me. but i do enjoy it, and i do love seeing these guys in uniform standing there in line. in fact, you know, the first one i did was here in dallas, and it was a rainy night, and it was the night of the national championship between alabama and lsu. i thought, you know, i was mad,

actually, because i wanted to watch the game, but my publicist scheduled it. but i thought, that's all right, hardly anyone will show up, and i'll go catch it. well, 1200 people later and the game was over, so it was an awesome, awesome be -- turnout, and all these people are now coming out and saying, thank you, you've opened by eyes. i had a woman write me a letter saying i was not only against the wars, i was against the military because she was raised in a military family, and she hated 'em. well, then after reading my book she goes, i understand. and she said it made her cry and opened her eyes to where now she supports the troops. i just find it amazing that this book is reaching out and actually touching people and opening some eyes. and when i'm doing these book signings, all these people are standing in line to meet me which it blows my mind.

but if they're going to stand there in line to meet me, then i'm going to stand there. i'm not going to sit behind the desk and just sign a book, i'm going to stand up. as long as you're standing, i'm going to stand. and then i sign everybody's book, i try to talk to you a little bit. so i want it to be personal. i want you to know that i'm a real person. i'm your average, everyday guy, and if you want, i'll come around the table, and i'll take a picture with you. and i love meeting the kids. they bring me pictures and drawings that they've done. it's nice. >> host: language alert, here's a little bit from chris kyle's "american sniper." this is the subchapter, "don't tell my mom."

>> host: next call is sean in oak choke, florida. you're on with chris kyle. >> caller: hey, chris, i was an army scout in iraq and kuwait.

being down here in florida, i did have the honor the last muster down in florida where they dedicated the udtc memorial, and that was very touching, very moving, and it was great to be able to see a lot of the seal guys that get out and do it every day. your comment on seeing the flag and seeing, you know, the national anthem, "star-spangled banner," we were at a toby keith concert, and when he played "american soldier," that just -- every hair on my body stood up. my wife looked over, and i had a tear in my eye. they just don't get it unless you've been there, done that. i've got a 17, 18-year-old kid, and what's your advice to the next generation of kids that want to join the military and train in special op combatants or, you know, maybe not even special op combatant, but just

join the military and support their country? thanks. >> host: chris kyle. >> guest: well, thank you for your service. i appreciate it. as far as the kids, you know, i've got two kids myself, and i'm never going to push 'em towards the military, and i'm never going to push 'em away because one great thing, the military, it is a volunteer force. and if you're going to be there, i want it to be because you want it. and you're going to understand that honor that goes into serving your country. as far as preparing them, i mean, they need to know that when you sign up to go into the military, there's a very high likelihood -- especially now -- you're going to go to war. so just prepare yourself that you may be called upon by your country to put your life on the line and possibly give your life for everybody else's safety here. and a lot of people are saying, well, they don't understand why they're fighting over there, and that's fine. just -- you don't even listen to

the people who are coming out against the war because what they need to be doing is protesting congress. or protest the president. all these politicians. but leave the military guys alone. they're out there doing a job. it's an extremely honorable job. and you're going to have some of the best moments of your life, you're going to have a brotherhood, and you'll never lose contact with those people. they will be your family. but you're going to have some of the worst moments of your life. it's going to be your extreme ups and your extreme lows. so just be prepared. >> host: matt, yakima, washington. go ahead with your question or comment. >> caller: hi, chris. thank you so much for taking so much time and talking with us and speaking today. thanks for your service, thanks for your sacrifice, time away from your family and everything you've done. for the story, i can't wait to read your book. and for your advice that you're

giving just with what we can do for really our neighbors, our family members that are coming back not just a is simple, hey, thanks for the service, but, you know, what can we do for you. can you go more into that? and did you see "act of valor"? did you like that? >> guest: i did see "act of valor." i do like it. i watched it one time, it was a -- i don't know what they called it, but they gave us a special showing of it, and it was all us military guys in there. and it was definitely emotional. a lot of those different things. i was involved with because each of those missions were true missions. but it definitely hurt to watch it, and the next time i watch it, it will be in my own home with no one else around. as far as giving back to the guys and showing your thanks,

it's simple little things, you know? if they own their house or, you know, if they have a house that has a yard or something, go mow their yard for 'em. cook 'em something whether it's a meal or cookies, you know, come over and ask if, hey, do you need this chore done or that chore, whatever. it's just simple little things, and it will take some of your time, you know, depending on what you want to do, it could take five minutes or all day long. it depends on how much you want to do. but these guys are out this willing to die for you. i feel like now it's our duty to give back to them and to make sure that they know that we appreciate everything that they're doing. because i don't think most of the public fully understands and grasps what these men and women are willing to do for our safety and security. they're willing to the die for us. people that they don't even know and people they'll never meet, but they're willing to die for us. so the least we can do is take some time out of our days. and everybody's day, i know, is

extremely busy. but it's not going to do anything but make you feel better inside because now we've been doing these retreats for these guys, taking 'em out hunting, fishing, doing doesn't things with them just to get them out and say, look, i love you, thank you, this is what i'm going to do for you. so let's go do this. and there's other organizations out there. you know, one of them i've been involved with is called fitco. fitco cares hero project. when i got out, i started drinking a lot, and then i got way out of shape, i refused to work out, and i was depressed. so i started working out again finally, started getting back into shape, and when i did that, my head cleared up. so when i did that, i went to this guy, and i said, hey, this helped me. do you have some old equipment or something cheap that i can buy to help put in these vets ooh homes? because these vets, if they were like me, when you're out of shape, you don't want to go to a

gym and then people look at you and go, oh, you used to be that? whatever. and then you feel bad about yourself or these guys that are coming back injured, they don't want to go to a gym and people stare at 'em. so this guy turned this thing into a huge organization, a nonprofit now to where we're taking brand new, expensive equipment and putting it in these guys' and girls' homes so they can feel better within. but then it's also, has private trainers if you want it. it has therapists if you need it. we're not only just trying to get the body back, we're trying to help you in everything. because ptsd is nothing to be frowned on. these guys, they're still a part of the society. they gave to us. they can still be trusted. i mean, it's nothing to be looked down on. we need to help them. we owe it to 'em. >> host: chris kyle writes:

>> host: debbie in denver, you're on with "american sniper" chris kyle. >> caller: hi, chris. first of all, thank you for serving, and i just want to say that i come from a long line of military family as well, and i remember my dad and my brother both served in vietnam at the same time. and my mother was a tough cookie, boy, she just was real tough and thick skinned. and i remember as a child that we weren't allowed to ask or question either of them about the combat or the kills or anything like that. so now my son is a combat

veteran, and he served -- he was in iraq in the second year of the war. but when he came home, he was torn and suffered a lot, and he was injured, and i remembered that old, you know, that old thing that you don't question, you don't talk about it. so what's your thought on that? because i really wanted to reach out to my son, but i just was instilled with that boundary of you just don't cross. >> host: chris kyle. >> guest: well, as far as the not talking to him about it, you know, i think a lot of these guys that are having problems, you know, i think ptsd is something that no matter how much you talk about it, i don't think ptsd is going to go away. it's something that you're going to have to learn to live with and work around, but it is definitely something controllable and something that could be put to the back of your mind. ..

have a hard time talking about. the only thing you do is be there for them. if they want to talk. let them talk. let them tell you whatever. and no matter how bad or shocking it may be, i'm here for you. give them your undying support and let them know i'm here forte you. no matter what you have seen or done, i'm here for you. sve because you served for me, and now i'm going serve you. and as far as the a rest of youa family, thank you sonk much for everything your family has done and i'm really sorry that your son has gone through and made ad such sacrifices here's the book. select the 12, the autobiography

of the most lethal flight carrying u.s. military history. we have been talking with the soming up next here on c-span2. the prime minister of italy, ireland, denmark, and the netherlands discuss europe's future. followed by afghanistan reconstruction on u.s. spending in the country. and on the next washington journal, democratic representative jim mcdermott of washington a member of the ways & means committee will focus on the affordable care act and medicare spending. we'll discuss federal spending with representative scott garrett a new jersey republican

and member of the financial services committee. and executive director of the nine media institute looking at role of journalists in afghanistan. washington journal is live on c-span every day at 7:00 a.m. eastern. on tuesday the house judiciary committee hears immigration reform testimony. they will exam the current system and how it's being enforced. live coverage on 10:15 a.m. eastern on c-span3. julia loved her time in the white house. she said in the memoir, it was like a bright, beautiful dream. the most wonderful time of my life. i think it gives you some idea how much she enjoyed being first lady and she felt her husband had finally achieved the recognition he deserved. >> historian edith on julia

graham who married her brother's roommate u grant. the influence on the president produced with the white house historical association. it begins president's day at 9:00 p.m. on c-span, c-span radio, and c-span.org. at this year's world economic forum in switzerland the african-american discuss -- financial crisis. financial times editor line lionel basher hosessed this one-hour discussion. >> if you could take your seats. [inaudible conversations] my name is lionel barber, i'm the editor of the "financial times." i'm here to chair this

discussion. we have four distinguished political leaders from europe, who will be talking about resilient dynamism in europe, european economy, and the eurozone. i'm going to start with prime minister mario monty. if you look at the panel, we have a real rich tapestry. we have big countries, we have smaller countries. i did not say small. we have debted countries and credited countries. we have countries in the eurozone and outside the eurozone. so that they'll talk about their own distinct national perspective in the european economy. so prime minister monty, i think it was the "financial times" that a year ago said that two people needed to save europe and the eurozone. they both were called mario.

do tell us last year we felt as though europe and the eurozone on the edge. this year some confidence has come back, the big story is where is the growth going to come from? so it will be interesting to hear your perspective on how you see what you have accomplished over the last year as prime minister, and what you see in the year ahead including those elections. >> yes, there are elections i understand in at least two large european countries this year. well, what are we doing to achieve growth? i think each of us has to do things domestically and concerning italy what we have been doing inspite or maybe helped by the pressure of financial emergency has been to begin injecting more competition

and openness in the markets. this is something that is totally in line with the e.u. inspiration of social market economy, and we are lead by, first of all securing the sustainability of public finances in the long-term, including a pension reform, and also looking at the de facto for growth. infrastructures, long delayed in italy, we have simplified the process of building infrastructures and injected in acceleration on those. then the functioning of the markets and that we have introduced more competition for example, in the leader of professions, like to call themselves -- but many pressures

to become liberal. and in the separation between gas production and gas distribution, to give you another example. all in the shopping hours and the commerce sector. also a lot of significant indication concerning -- of course this needs to be continued and one issue about the italian elections in which i will not go unless -- here today is which political configuration is more in line with the need to sustain these structures. but i believe that -- not even the largest countries can really keep a momento for growth or resume a momento for growth unless the e.u. policies are

more oriented toward dwrowt. and much of the time and energy in this year of italian government has been devoted precisely to that. and we have been among the pushing facto at the table of the european counsel including adoption for the fact for growth, and also with the daily insistence on the single market being taken more seriously. we all know that europe is based on the single market, but we also know, as prime minister cameron, i heard just say there isn't really single market for energy for many of the services for the digital services in europe. and finally, we insist with some success in the recent european counsel to have a