economically and militarily through the next entry. he says that americans have a boomerang spirit that will overcome all the doom and gloom being expressed about the country today. he spoke in alabama at an event hosted by the wetumpka tea par party. >> good day, wetumpka. [cheers and applause] spent to you guys know how to throw a party or do you guys know how to throw a party? it's great to be back in alabama. it is good to be back. boy, is it good to be back in alabama. thank you so much. please everyone have a seat. thank you so much. i want to thank becky for having me here today. and i want to thank each and every single one of you for coming here. it's great to be in a room so

full of patriots. [cheers and applause] >> we are here at a crucial time in american history. because the truth is that we are in the fight of our lives. >> america today is weaker than it has ever been. and as a result, the world is a much more dangerous place. individualism, patriotism, liberty, the unique properties of american life and culture are all at diminished levels. for the first time any of us can remember, america appears to be becoming irrelevant in world affairs. but this is america. it's time to stop the pity

parties and start -- [applause] >> it's time to fight back. it's time to save america. it's time to believe in breakthroughs and turnarounds and miracles. ladies and gentlemen, for as long as i can remember, i've wanted to change the world. one hard at a time. i want to change history. i want to leave a lasting legacy. i want to keep america number one. i want to see an american renaissance. but i can't do it myself. i need your help to do it. this is still the country people cross oceans to get to. still the place that sees people empty their life savings to be a part of. still the nation that has people

self-assured on their back just a few the american wins of freedom and opportunity. still the country of the dreamer. america the great, america the beautiful. [applause] some people are born burning for america. arnold schwarzenegger was one of them. i was the same way. god planted a dream in my heart to minister to americans. to be a modern-day paul revere, another alexis de tocqueville, to warn americans about the perils of the future and to expand to americans what makes them exceptional. and for the last four years over

a dozen trips traveling from the other side of the world, i have miraculously carried out what i believe i was put on earth to do. and with god's hands firmly on my american ministry and our righteous cause we have achieved the on all expectations. [applause] done things that no one thought were possible. but in america, anything is possible. [applause] i must tell you, my american credentials were solid from the start. the first word i ever uttered, my mother tells me, rather sheepishly, was coke, as in coca-cola, the great iconic

american brands. that was my first word, and i've had some trouble shutting me up ever since. and with a father who looks strikingly alike to archie bunker from all in the family, and shares most of his views as well, i suppose it was a fait accompli. and if that weren't enough, when my mother, who is german, first that my father in europe and heard them speaking in english, well, i guess one accent was as good as the other, and so she asked him if he was an american. at the age of eight i told my parents, and anybody who would listen, that i was going to go to america and speak to people. they thought i was nuts. by the time i reached 10, i have revised my plants and boldly declared i'm going to go to america and become famous. they still thought i was nuts. not much has changed.

and i remember very clearly one cold, late afternoon in january 2000 standing on westminster bridge in london with my parents. i was 15. to give you some context, our london leg have been the final stop in and extensive, multi-country, multi-city european tour. it had cost my parents a small fortune. it had taken us from the mountains of southern germany to the breathtaking cities of venice, florence and rome, to majestic terrace, to the likes of switzerland and to the villages of austria. i had seen everything in the leaning tower of pizza to the coliseum to the eiffel tower, -- power of pisa. it truly was the trip of a lifetime. as we stood on the bridge overlooking the magnificent

palace of westminster, home to the houses of the british parliament, my father asked me, so, nic, did you enjoy your trip? without even a moments hesitation i said yes, dad, i did, but i would want to go to america. now, i will never forget my fathers crestfallen face. how ungrateful i was, but i couldn't help it. i was captive to america somehow. excited by its flare, attracted to its opportunity, inspired by its story, captured by its who. i am often asked to explain my love for america. and it's something i struggle being able to answer. without rambling, into one day it just became clear. i love america because it is confident, competitive, courageous, faithful, idealistic, innovative, inspirational, charitable and

optimistic. [applause] >> it is everything as a nation that i wish to be as a person. in interviews i'm often challenged to offer a personal answer to what american exceptionalism means to me. hard to do when you have written extensively on it, but this is my answer. it's individualism, not collectivism. it's patriotism, not relativism. it's optimism, not pessimism. [applause]

its limited government, not many state. [applause] god, not government. [cheers and applause] its faith, not secularism. it's life, not death. it's equality of opportunity, not equality of outcome. it's goodness, not moral equivalence. it's being bold, not bland. brave, not need. it's choosing extraordinary over mediocre. that's america right there. [applause] >> i'll tell you what else i get

asked. and i'll never forget the first time it was asked of me. it was in harrisburg, pennsylvania. hostile local television reporter was covering one of my speeches. the moment we got on camera, the ambush happened. why does in australia and care about america? what do you care? luckily, that wasn't my first rodeo. i knew the game and i knew the list. i spent eight years dealing with media bias and distortion in the australian media, while in public office. without even blinking i shot to shot back, because what is good for america is good for the world. a week american -- [applause] a week american is a we the world. a strong american is a strong world. everyone in the world should care about and work toward

american staying on top. [applause] >> well, that shut her up. [laughter] crickets. i don't think i got a christmas card that year. but ladies and gentlemen, my friends up wetumpka, it's true. the world fortunes travel with america. and i don't want to live in a world where america is not running the show. keeping america strong, saving it from a european future, to my mind that's the great moral imperative of our times. [applause] >> i want americans to understand what is at stake for them, and for people around the world if they choose to continue

to drift from the virtues and values of traditional america. and i want them to realize what allowed them to become the greatest country in the world and stay there for so long. and what changed to bring them to where they are today. i don't do this because i no america better than actual americans, i don't. i couldn't possibly, but i believe i offer a unique perspective, one that might be helpful. sometimes it takes someone on the outside to remind you what you are like. and i could be living in your future and i'm here to tell you about it and what you can expect should you proceed with a fundamental transformation of america. and i'll tell you what else i bring to the table. i offer truth. i introduced cold, factual

reality to a discussion colored by envy and driven by agendas of those who benefit from a week america. all you ever hear is that america is at fault. the default position has become american guilt, and it's absolute garbage. [applause] it's rubbish, baloney, to use an american term. the media academic corridor, my friends, have a lot to answer for. it has announced a disgrace to my professors parading as wardens, and card trading minds and having the mainstream media carry the water for the left. -- in kars a rating and minds.

-- incarcerating minds. intellectual integrity and moral courage must be returned to america's schools and newsrooms. [applause] and that's what i make a point of speaking at as many high schools and colleges as possible, because we must recapture our classroom. american exceptionalism is not an accident, nor did it happen by chance. it happened because america fostered a state that allowed its citizens the widest latitude for creativity and innovation. it reward success without government approvals and bureaucratic interference. it embraced religious faith, aspiration and risk. and for those reasons, the people of america have been the

most enterprising, market oriented, individualistic and a first to taxation and regulation to have ever walked dogs green earth -- gods green earth. [applause] >> and i'll tell you something else you won't hear, and i speak i believe for the silent international majority. america wins respect in the world when it displays who it is and not what self-appointed culture dietitians would want it to become. [applause] i do not believe for one single, solitary second that america's best days are behind her.

america decline is not inevitable. and to those that say that america should manage its decline gracefully, well, they should be told rather indelicately what they can do with their opinions. [applause] because as they say in these parts, that dog don't hunt last night. [applause] yes, america is falling behind, but only in fulfilling its own potential. take it from me, there is no other country in the world even close to america. the american model has offered and continues to offer a greater chance for dignity, hope, and

happiness are more people than any other system of government has offered its own. and if that weren't the case, you would not be getting with the illegal immigration problem you have right now. [applause] as they say about the galante american war veterans, you were wounded -- you are wounded but not conquered. [applause] you might not realize, but there are americans all around the world doing great things for america. doing so much to keep their country, to keep the improbable american experiment alive. i've been blessed to have been able to travel the world in my 29 years, and am continually struck by american works.

in december 2011 and january 2012, i spend an extended time in england and caught up with a friend from south carolina who had come to study abroad at oxford university through summit ministries. the summit oxford studies center is a study abroad program, combining the unique worldview approach of some universities with the academic strength of oxford, england. and foster scholarship for church and culture, propelling christian students forward as leaders in the disciplines and professions. it is run by kevin and angela bywater, profoundly exceptional americans. they have five beautiful young should add to live in a tiny village just outside of oxford. they are, they educate young academically successful students in a christian and pro-american worldview.

i had the remarkable privilege of sitting in on a couple of their sessions, getting to know the students and bywater family and was so deeply impressed by both the intellectual and patriotism evidence that words cannot adequately convey my sentiments. i distinctly recall leaving and thinking how many bywater's are there out there, scattered all over the world, and what other country is so forward thinking, so passionate about producing tomorrow's exceptional leaders that it is programs running in foreign countries? in june 2011, i was invited to keynote the 4-h national sport shooting championship closing ceremony in san antonio, texas. in front of me were over 1000 coaches, competitors, and parents representing almost

every state in america. i believe 4-h has almost 6 million members across the country, and i had the opportunity to meet the teams of every state, pose for photographs, and was amazed at the courtesy, confidence, inquisitiveness, and just how articulate they all were. but they never member most about that night, ladies and gentlemen, was the pledge that was recited. i pledge -- this is what the pledge said. i pledge my head to clear thinking. my heart to greater loyalty. my hands to larger service. and my health to better living. for my club, my community, my country, in my world. what a testimony to the american tradition. [applause]

>> just exceptional, exceptional to the bone. america might be in a lot of trouble, but it's important not to overlook its treasure. there are still tens of millions of americans that are being faithful to the america we know and we love. [applause] the current season in america is confusion, and it's time to think seriously, deeply and searchingly. it's our job to inform for an informed citizenry is the bulwark of democracy. i believe there is a first -- a thirst for mourning in america, and it has to be a belief in american exceptionalism. [applause]

and the only people that can deliver it our patriotic forces with traditional values. [applause] how do we win this fight? how do we vanquish the forces that make us weak? how do we restore american glory? what does america have to do to come back? here's my 15-point plan for an american renaissance. [laughter] one, exercise fidelity to the constitution, declaration of independence and founding ideals. [applause] >> 2, return to american self belief as a force of nature. as any leader knows, you can expect those to believe in you if you don't believe in

yourself. [applause] three, i we engagement with all too institutions. it is time for conservatives to give people control of the cultural institutions that for the past four decades have been the seed beds of the left. [applause] from hollywood the popular music to teaching to journalism, the days of the cultural elites playing unopposed, they are numbered. we are coming to get you. [cheers and applause] number 30, ending the culture of complaint and entitlement. [applause] we need to put out -- we need to

put out of business the professional offense take her. [applause] they are designed to intimidate us, to remove our confidence, to make us afraid to even look at somebody the wrong way. to make all our visceral convictions suspect. the days of promoting grievance and envy, they are over. [applause] point number four, standing up to the bullies. america cannot allow itself to continue to be bullied by the anti-bullying crusade. it's time to punch the bully in the nose. [cheers and applause] number five, and embrace of rugged individualism.

rugged individualism is not an exercise in political nostalgia. my friends, it is a genuine solution for the married problems facing the u.s. in the 21st century. american national character must be understood in that it is a self-made society. the world needs america to be a country of self-reliant warriors, not pussycats. [applause] number six, every commitment to success. if you ain't first, you're last. [applause] work harder, be the best. that's america. there is no virtue in striving for mediocrity. no american kid grows up wanting to be the vice president, and that's the way it's got to stay.

[applause] desire upward mobility. upward mobility can never be replaced by a downward stability. if america does that, it shrugs its way all the way to belgium. taking a risk is virtuous. the next point, support israel, always. [cheers and applause] defend israel to your last breath. it's a providential nation, and america's success and purpose is linked to israel. supporting israel is an american

value. [applause] limit government. nothing, nothing, my friends of attempted, will distinguish -- extinguish liberty quicker than an activist government. it's goal is to turn adults and infants, and everyone into victims. [applause] there is nothing more odious or obnoxious than a government whose attitude is don't worry, we know what's best for you. [applause] limited government is an american theme. keep it that way. we need to be in peace through strength. the uncommon valor america has

shown against the sordid tyranny must continue. weakness is provocative. conviction is the mother of success. the united states military is the greatest vehicle against evil ever, and the noblest fighting force this world has ever seen. [cheers and applause] >> u.s.a. usa! >> usa! >> usa! >> the u.s. military must continue to be stronger than the rest of the world's militaries combined. america doesn't have to attend

every art and its invited to but it does have a special role to play in the world as the keeper of civilization. smashing political correctness. [applause] political correctness empowers radical islam, terror and socialism. advocates of the pc again are as dangerous to america as the men that offered september 11. [applause] british prime minister margaret thatcher said it best when she said the world had never ceased to be dangerous, but that the west had ceased to be vigilant. america needs to restore character. while it may be substantially less than other places, america

does have a character problem that must be arrested. it was dwight d. eisenhower that said, the spirit of man is more important than mere physical strength. and the spiritual fiber of the nation then it's well. and always remember alexis de tocqueville's famous line, america is great because america is good. if she ceases to be good, she will cease to be great. [applause] and on the subject of character, i urge americans to understand and defend the sanctity of human life from conception and tell natural death. [cheers and applause]

guard your christianity closely. it is behind everything great about america. whether it's neighborliness, charitable works or optimism. the more christianity eroded in europe, the poor, less powerful, weaker and less influential it became. john adams wasn't joking when he said that the constitution was designed for our religious and moral people, and was wholly inadequate for any other. [applause] on matters of the economy, america must remain economically massive and nimble. capital and imagination must continue to combine more quickly in america than anywhere else in the world.

taxes must always be low, and government should be out of the way. [cheers and applause] >> don't spend money you don't have. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, that's my 15-point plan to read the american and get it online again. [cheers and applause] to me, america is the hope that banishes hopelessness. i want to share with you my testimony. when i was 16 months old, i was

diagnosed with stage four -- a form of childhood cancer. it's an extraordinarily difficult cancer to diagnose, and most children, when diagnosed, already in an advanced stage where the tumor has metastasized. when a child is diagnosed with stage four, they have a 5% chance of survival. only one in 20 children survive. they were the odds that were given to my parents. but we serve a great god. [cheers and applause] and he helped me fight the strongest adversary and win. [applause] we've already won the lottery once, i overheard my dad tell my

mom recently. when i was sick, his voice a fighter, my german grandfather would say. he's got too much alive in him. look at him. he's not going down. and throughout my life i've allowed myself to be strengthened and to be inspired by the opportunity of life. and it has given me a special-purpose. but let me share with you the true miracle. let me share with you how i was diagnosed. my parents took me to doctor after doctor, pediatrician after pediatrician, but no one could determine what was wrong. until one night, christmas eve 1985, i was particularly sick and my parents had no alternative but to bring me to the emergency ward at the children's hospital. being christmas eve, the ward was next to empty. there was just one overnight

doctor. and he said to my parents, i'm not sure but i think your son has cancer, and it's in an advanced stage. and you need to get in to test first thing tomorrow morning. and sure enough, on christmas day 1985, my parents worst fears were conceived. the doctor's hunch was right. that doctor was a young american fresh out of college, just getting the australian experience. so i know american exceptionalism. i've lived it. i am alive because of it. and i'm here to tell my story. i'm here to leave a lasting legacy. i'm here to help. in a few weeks i had to south korea for a speaking to her. they are i will attempt to plant the seed of american appreciation in the hearts of south koreans. and ask them to consider america

to be the model to which their nation should aspire. our mission is clear. we need to rescue america for consistency, dedication and faithfulness, so going back to the beginning. by keeping the traditional family unit as you greatest treasure, i standing for liberty. by standing for the constitution. by having a victory mentality, not a victim mentality. [applause] we want an america where the wiki becomes a strong and the strong become great. where you can still rise above the circumstances of their birth and to achieve whatever it is that you want to achieve. after freedom, inspiration is america's next greatest export. anything is possible. spread the word to your friends, neighbors and acquaintances, and

let what's torture in wetumpka spread common spread across families, towns, counties and states. let a steady trickle turned into a stream and then a waterfall and then into an ocean. [applause] let there be unpatriotic flood that washes the pollutants and contaminants away. my friends of wetumpka, they say that life is defined by moments, that our wealth is in our memories. and i'll never forget this night until the glorious day i get a phone call from god. your nation inspires me. you inspire me. you give me a reason to live. you're everything i thought you would be and more. it is my great privilege to serve you.

i believe it's better to die on your feet than live on your knees. [applause] and i invite you to join me in this battle. help me help you, and let's preside over the strongest, proudest come and most prosperous america yet. we can do it. we must do. we will do it. thank you ladies and gentlemen. god bless you and may god continue to bless these united states of america. [cheers and applause] thank you very much. thank you so much. i bless you. thank you so much. thank you. my pleasure, thank you. >> good to see you again.

>> my pleasure. >> booktv is on facebook. like us to interact with booktv guests and viewers to watch videos and get up-to-date information on events. facebook.com/booktv. >> the point in writing this book as a scientist is that given these realities, the impact that drugs have on social policy, on race, on our culture is often times distorted by lack of evidence-based thinking, that instead people rely on anecdotes or on fears rather than on the facts. so is that the heart and soul of this book at? >> that is the heart and soul of the book. drugs have been used as scapegoats. whenever there are social problems and so forth, will use

of drugs as scapegoats. the problem for me is that people who look like me are often scapegoated more so than other folks, and as a scientist who knows the facts about drugs, that's very disturbing. >> host: i would think as a black person it would be very disturbing. >> guest: that's exactly what i mean. >> host: let's stop for a second and try to understand something that is race related in this regard, which you say is just an outrage, which is the fact that when you look at something like the 1980s and the crack cocaine use, you say, people identify this as a black committee problem but, in fact, more whites used crack and blacks. and similarly more blacks went to jail, arrested for crack use and waste and even though more whites were using the drug. how do you explain that?