government. there is no congress, no one to consult. the cabinet in those days were very small. you had five men. two of them were not cabinet members, postmaster general and the attorney general and the attorney general and the chief law enforcement officer. he was simply a legal adviser to the president that he had no law enforcement powers. pardon? >> just one follow up. usurp us a strong word. isn't the president in many cases usurping the power of congress? >> this makes for endless discussions. should president obama have allowed congress to shut down the government? i don't think so. i think he should've declared a state of emergency instead of letting millions of americans suffer. to me he was as cruel to the american people as governor

christie was to the people in fort lee new jersey. you are very welcome. thank you very much and i will be glad to sign books for you. [applause] [applause] >> thank you very much. welcome to the arid it sounded to him. it is my pleasure to introduce our good friend con coughlin a

world-renowned expert on the middle east. he is the critically acclaimed several books including the next times bestseller saddam his rise and fall. he appears regular on television rating united states and great britain has been a frequent political commentator on "fox news" cnn and nbc as well as the bbc and sky news. con coughlin is a better informed correspondent and his latest book is a gripping account of sir winston churchill's first military campaign as a young calvary lieutenant fighting affront her war against pashtun tribesmen on the northwest frontier. the great grandfathers and the taliban and try the insurgents in afghanistan. as he writes this is a story of high adventure and to endeavor which in contains important lessons for today. it's fitting that our event on churchill is hosted by the margaret thatcher center for

freedom. throughout her career lady thatcher chu inspiration from church's leadership especially moments when she faced huge challenges. key moments in history that called for ironclad resolve. she also drew comfort from the fact that churchill had on numerous occasions found himself alone on the political stage scorned even by many in his own party but nevertheless stood by his principles and beliefs. determination to confront radical regimes and reject the temptations of appeasement were influenced by her admiration for churchill's courage. to quote the iron lady everything about churchill was heroic. he was a leader, a man among men. as she recalled in a speech in london george's birthplace -- churches birthplace for me and so many others the idea is a fisa dollar ship and dollar are idea of britain herself having formed by churchill's words.

please join me in welcoming con coughlin historian journalist and -- [applause] >> thank you very much for that warm introductintroduct ion. it's a great pleasure to be back here at the heritage. the book churchill's first war is a story about what i think is the making of winston churchill. one talks about courage his ability to prevail in adversity, this fascinating book -- period in churchill's earlier life shows almost lays the foundation for the manned churchill became in later life. when i approached this subject probably like most people when i thought of young winston i thought if his exploits during

the war and his escape from captivity and all that. in fact when i was -- i had another look at the film and the only reference to church church -- churchill in afghanistan is where you have the picture of young winston on a gray horse and the general was saying to one of his young officers who is that bloody fool on the great? someone who wants to get noticed i suppose said the young officer. he will get his lead he had blown off. and indeed the reason young winston went up to the northwest frontier and the british empire what today forms part of pakistan is he did want to get himself noticed. he was 22 years old. his family background