themselves what bebe can do with livni, and then once they finish negotiations, come here, boy, we know it's hard for you and you don't want to do that. you are, start smear campaign and the blame game and so on like they did to me in camp david, and you know what they did to me in camp david. ..

just * israel a potentially transformed. is he a new judgment willing and able to make the kind of choices necessary, forget concluding the peace agreemen agreement about t advancing that process to its next phase. a year ago i got a letter from a man that said stop smearing me. i'm going to do it. speak but as for one to 67. you can say these numbers and i don't know if anyone has heard

him say one step or two steps in 1967 to have him utter these numbers when he was speaking to the conference and then i see him saying they are going to be a part of israel. he has to made up his mind. i'm not going to get into the name game. they are going through a transformation and i know that they have taken so much. i'i am not comparing this conflt with any other conflict. this is about history, religion, failure, and with enough honestly it is difficult for me and then but at the end of today

it's time for decisions, not negotiations. i want to live with a two state solution. they start preparing his people for peaceto say i recognize palestine. to stand tall and to address their neighbor. speak to them, prepare them and then speak to him on the two state with this. every day i hope that he brings the students to say i am on board to meet with the two state

solution. >> final question. >> i asked this question the last time you were here. israel is and palestinians have become masters. they've become masters of the blame game. so my question is borrowing the line from one of michael jackson's better songs man in the mirror and i'm paraphrasing. i'm not going to sing it. he said he wanted make a change in your life, you really want to make a change, then the place to start is by looking in the mirror. i really do be believe that. we have all taken looks at what we have done right and wrong. so if i were to ask you if you were to look in the mirror as a palestinian, how would you critique your own approach to

these negotiations? what responsibility -- and i know that you are the weakest party in the negotiation and if there's any symmetry of power i know all this. i don't feel it to the way that you do that if you could detach your self for a moment, what is it that you would have changed? have palestinians made no mistakes during the course of these negotiations? >> if i'm going to counter palestinian mistakes it's going to be a long list of things. look we are a very young authority. i am a colleague and mistakes happen. it's not like i wake up and say i'm going to make this mistake one, two, three, four.

it's 150 years or so and we make mistakes. there are missions and they make mistakes. my situation i'm in the process of restitution building. i cannot leave my hometown without the permission of the commander. if my president wants to go to armenia he has to seek permission. [inaudible] i'm not excusing myself, but are we learning from our mistakes? yes we are. are we admitting that we are making mistakes? yes we are. we woke up in the morning and thought we were perfect and we are not perfect. we are just like you and the israelis and the nigerians and argentinians. we are good people.

we have good people, that the people, the u.s., we turn out to be not perfect. so stop looking at me and expecting me to be perfect because that is the irony that israelis and americans, when they speak to me they have that expectation. you're perfect. why did he do this? i am not perfect, but we have come a long way and we are coming a long way and i know that palestine will come back on the map. we will not compromise on the human rights, transparency, the women's rights and that is what palestine will be about great mistakes will be committed. that will not stop, but i can assure you you are going to hear about it in palestine. >> you have been very patient.

questions? i think i see her hand up. >> i want to see as a mother of four i know that perfection is not an option for my children however, my grandchildren are perfect. >> i agree. [laughter] >> thank you. and yours are, too. wonderful conversation, but nobody mentioned a word that is how hamas. most people are free to state solution but not a three state solution. what are the plans to reconcile whatever the right word is to annex, that is a russian word for today, or some other way to make hamas a part of the palestinian negotiation quick >> hamas is a political party and defeated my party in the year 2006.

and i know that it's my obligation to west bank and the strip would be the m. with one authority. this is on me. we are exerting every possible effort to have the reconciliation that there is only one way to do that. when the political parties differ, there are the ballot boxes and they must understand this. we result to ballots and not bullets. for the dark day in history when they made a coup d'état.

hamas must understand that we have an obligation, one authority, the rule of law and an obligation as far as the two state solution, and we are moving. i'm not saying it's done. i was elected in 2,006 to represent the legislative council and my luck for the first time in 40 years we are the minority so i was asked to respond to the submission of the government i remember that today i told him today you are not the prime minister of hamas, you are my premaster, the palestinian

people. please act as such. separate between the bowl in -- between the role in hamas. but he connected to all obligations in the country. so do the governments that came out and be democracies. i was sincere in telling him you are the prime minister of all palestinians, separate and he tried to tell me since we won the election there have to be more agreements. i said that democracy worked and hamas hailed. i hope that they will accept our logic that when we differ we go back to the people and this is

the only way to have the reconciliation. >> i've only known you for 23 years. it's good to see you. >> you knew me when i was 13-years-old. [laughter] >> explained to us big deal about calling israel a jewish state. it seems to me if that is the only price you still have to pay to get the state that it's implicit in all the things that the palestinians have accepted in the years. >> now we have the question about hamas and the jewish state business. number one, how they defined

themselves. even the states have their own committees in th the constitutis that defined themselves in any way they want. i will never interfere in israel's basic law, constitution. that's for them to do. that's number one. number two, i agree that we have a range of issues like borders of elements and missions with neighbors and no one can bring the items of the negotiations. why? as individuals we have birth certificates. when i was born my mom or dad went to the ministry of health and said my name.

when missions are worn they also have a birth certificate in the state of israel. we would like to exchange letters of recognition september 13, 1993. i want to be very honest with you. i recognize i cannot read lips or what they were thinking and israelis cannot deny the fact i have my own religion and my own story. i am not asking them to be leaving this. to say we must stand up and believe the narrative. this town was built 10,000 years ago. they were there thousands of years before russia came.

i'm not asking them to come and sign into the role of the hometown became a company. i believe this. ideally if the story. don't ask me to change. when they asked me to organize the judicial state what they are doing is asking you to change. now it is a jewish land. is that the case? it's not my story but am i going to interfere in the books and the constitutions and so on then what would it say on the nationalities.

the path that they have traveled defines the nationality as israeli. now you want me to come and say jewish, christian, muslim? but sometimes people sit and what will we have to say no? to have that is what they did to me. the second story they come to me and tell me in the valley my constituents. we must stay there for i don't know how many years. you have a border with jordan

north and south of jericho that's 510 kilometers and it will come from jordan or the north or south. why is it that they must insinuate threats? let us come fine ourselves to reach an agreement and that is what we should do. whatever they want to say i'm not going to interfere in that. >> what do they understand in the two state solution or are they 100% against two state solution? >> i know that in the

governments one by their own election there was a region in the program saying that the political negotiation is under the jurisdiction and once an agreement is reached i if must e confirmed, and they say we accept they have their own vocabulary and terminology and as i told you i am under obligation when the set of palestine is born this is my obligation. and i believe once an agreement is reached it is a fair demand

and we are going to do that and i think it is with a huge majority. >> please identify yourself. >> i'm a palestinian journalist. at the pace that you cited i think the congress should visit you very soon followed by a settlement. having said this i want to ask you about the ongoing negotiation that basically there is no document, there is no proposal, there is nothing within the conversation. the past several months have been a sort of conversation and how this has really -- how is it different than how we negotiated with mr. miller years ago? >> we don't have an official document yet. i mean, to ask any official when

we have a discussion i'm not saying that they are meaningless. from the document you're going to have good discussion and that is what we are talking very seriously and very in-depth and as i told you, no one, no one may want to be leave me but i believe this as a negotiator. no one benefits more from this than palestinians and you and i and no one loses more than us. that's the truth. so we hope and we are doing everything humanly possible to ensure in our conversations that they succeed. and the subject of the settlement was yesterday.

president obama showed him the extent of what happens since we began in july. it's a very ugly map. fobefore that, the government introduced settlements with four times the growth of new york city and the seven months that is a very difficult situation. we need to keep it alive. that's the most important element. and i hope that we can continue working so that we can achieve. and i hope before that. but now i think we are going to have to talk about another day

which is march 29. march 29 we paid for this. i personally made the deal with mr. kerry july 19. we committed not to go to the agencies that to exchange and he agreed to give us. i hope that he will honor this because what i am hearing is it is not encouraging. and the question to any palestinian would be he cannot deliver an agreement. do you expect us to believe they would deliver the settlements? so it's a very crucial that the government honor its commitment

which is separate from the negotiation. the price, we agreed not to go to the agency. and when they came under attack from the colleagues about this idea that the chance is worth it. and people in politics have the choice. this will take the conflict of the position. it may be whatever but i don't think it will make a difference in the societies. i hope that march 29 will be a day of honor and obligation by the israelis.

>> third row. >> defense university in the pentagon. i believe in the past you said you felt like american negotiators cooked up a deal and then brought it to you. do you feel like that has changed now or do you think that is still somewhat the case? >> i feel a difference at this time. i think president obama is someone who is genuinely trying to achieve historic change and he does realize that it begins with a solution. and they know. like what these people used to

do when they would come to us. [inaudible] and today the difference is there. but i hope it will reflect america because that is the key to success of what is needed. what's required. what's fair. and i told mr. kerry relationships between fathers and sons, if we list the term no election can be sustained

without the fairness. so what we need from this president and the secretary of that has done more than anyone else, since march 6, 2013 to march 17, yesterday, 2014, he had 46 meetings with the president about 27 meetings with me and his team and more than 100 meetings with the commitment and telling us they have their full backing. we want them to succeed and this means fairness. >> thank you so much for being

here today. i am a student at georgetown university. you mentioned earlier that he genuinely believes that peaceful resolutions between the israelis and palestinians will lead to changes in the middle east and my question to you is do you also be leave that and if so, what the peaceful relations with egypt and jordan ultimately also lead to changes in the middle east were with people not take that as seriously? >> i answer this question from three dimensions. number one, it can be whatever people want to say that in the past three years, the treaty with israel stuck. whatever happened to the middle east, the peace treaty with

israel also was sustained. there were changes of thinking in egypt and the muslim brotherhood who accepted the credentials. so the second dimension is that for them to understand that the bilateralism works and unilateralism fails because they keep telling me things did not work in the bilateral agreement of time and we went down with you. number three, i believe that a

fair peace agreement will change the course of the culture in the middle east because there is a document called the peace initiative which in my opinion is the most advanced strategic document since 1948 and they would have all relations with israel and the document was offered and that is the most important element on this and tells the full backing. >> i think that we have time for one additional question. >> i think the elephant in the room hasn't been mentioned in the turn because when you mentioned the idea about the jewish state, both palestinians and the arab league have tied it

with positions that every palestinian in the world, many descendents of the refugees come back into the state of israel and one of the reasons it is being rejected is that you don't give up the returned. from the israeli perspective, this is what makes it so important and i am curious to see what you would respond to this concern. >> i think it is a core issue and we have an agreement with the israelis all the time. nothing is agreed and then have not developed the technique yet to force them to sign on anything that is going to serve their interest. so i didn't speak about jerusalem today were about security. i did not speak about borders. i did not speak any of the core

issues not to say in these closed doors but when he gets angry, he really gets angry and i don't want to do that. and it is a subject that is being negotiated. so while we are talking about the issue of the refugees inside and i know that we cannot sign an agreement without israel agreeing and palestinians for that matter that they would sign on all core issues that they will not even look at the document. if i was a negotiator ali with a target two points, and of conflict and end of claims. and the palestinians have their own but at the end of the day, no you are wrong.

in the negotiations is at the heart of the issues of the negotiations. and i'm not expecting them to sign anything they don't agree on. there are differences. but this isn't for public diplomacy or putting in the corner or blaming me or anything and i don't want to be part of defining your nature. i don't want to do that. i define my own mistakes and transformations into difficulties i'm going through. >> i think that we have reached the end of the time. let me thank you for coming. perhaps the next time well you will get an invitation to come back and be as candid as you've been here today. and i want to thank all of you.

[applause] [inaudible conversations]

the so-called millennial generation who are having trouble getting started in life because they can't age in the hostile economy pay money into a system to support a level of benefits for today's retirees that they have no realistic chance when they retire so there needs to be a rebalancing of the social compact. it's a very important challenge in the difficult challenge for the country politically because not only is social security and medicare half of the budget, but by far it is the biggest thing we do. but it is symbolically the purest statement of public policy that as a country we are a community all in this together. these are programs that affect everybody come and the old math of the programs doesn't work.

>> we take you live to the east room of the white house where president bush is awarding the medal of honor. >> the service members to be awarded the medal of honor since the second world war. and with several of these soldiers recognized for their valor during the war o or the ceremony is 70 years in the making. as one family member has said

this is long overdue. i've had a chance to meet all of them present here today to be a debate knowing the stories of heroism for decades. still, they were pretty surprised when we called them to break the news about the medal of honor. some thought it was a prank. [laughter] some of them thought it was a scam and a few of them thought it might be a trick to get their credit card number. [laughter] when i called melvin morris, who we will recognize in a moment for his actions an idiot not com,his first reaction was my gd what have i done. [laughter] when i told him it was all good and a medal of honor i could hear through the phone he almost

passed out. [laughter] for the gallantry under fire each of the soldiers was long ago recognized with the armies second highest award, the distinguished service cross. but ask their fellow veterans and families and they will tell you that they had the highest recognition. and today we have the chance to set the record straight. this ceremony reminds us of one of the qualities that makes america great, that makes us exceptional. no nation is perfect. we confront imperfections and faced a sometimes painful past including the truth some of the soldiers fought and died for a country that did not always see them as equal.

so we keep striving to live up to our ideals and freedom in the quality and recognize the dignity and patriotism of every person, no matter who they are or what they look like or how they pray. that's why more than a decade ago the congress mandated a review to make sure that the heroism of our veterans wasn't overlooked because of prejudice or discrimination. our military reviewed thousands of records. they teamed up with veterans groups and museums to get this right. it was painstaking work made even harder because sometimes our service members felt as if they needed to change their last names to fit and. that tells a story about our past. but ultimately after years of review, these two dozen soldiers among them hispanic and african-american and jewish veterans were identified as having earned the medal of honor.

this is the link to which america will go to make sure everyone who serves under our proud flag receives the things that they deserve. so, this is going to be a long ceremony. we are going to read all 24 citations, because everyone is a story of bravery that deserves to be told. first i want to take a few minutes to describe the americans behind these actions, the men in these families know, the brilliant lives behind the smiling faces in those old photographs and how they reflected all the beauty and diversity of the country that they served. they were americans by birth and americans by choice. immigrants including one who was not even yet a citizen. they grew up in big-city neighborhoods lika big cityneig, while communities like nebraska, small towns like puerto rico.

they loved to fish, play baseball, they were sons who made their parents proud, brothers who their siblings looked up to. they were so young many of them in their early 20s and when their country went to the war, they answered the call and put on the uniform and hugged their families goodbye. some of them hugged the wives and children that they would never see again. they thought in the hills of italy, the bloodstained beaches of france, the freezing mountains of korea, the jungles of the vietnam. their coverage almost defies imagination. when you read the records of these individual, it is unimaginable what they display. running into bullets, charging machine guns and climbing aboard tanks and taking them out.

covering the comrades so they could make it to safety. holding back enemy as wave after wave even when the combat was hand in hand manning their posts some to the very last breath so that their comrades might live. of those we honor today, ten of them never came home. one of them, corporal joe still missing and we need to keep the service members a full accounting of their loved ones. through their grief o the famils were following some of the strength to carry on. why is this hard ache for their husbands and sons and daughters that grew up without their dad tdad,nieces and nephews and

grandchildren and these families join us here today, and they know more than most but because others lay down their lives for us we have been able to live our lives in freedom to pursue our dreams. so there is a legacy here board of sacrifice that includes a soldier's nephew, a kid from new york who grew up to become one of the great rock stars of all time and we honor his uncle here today and that includes soldiers who came home and took different paths and some continue to serve in uniform and some beginning new careers and getting married and raising their kids and serving their communities, taking care of their fellow veterans. these veterans lived out their lives in the country they helped to defend doing what they loved. like william leonard who passed

away in his backyard setting and a chair listening to his beloved yankees play on the radio. and that's where the story might have ended. but mitchell on a friend of one of the soldiers again and armies of himself set out on a mission. he and his wife spent years writing letters and working with congress and military to get this done and so we thank all of those that worked so hard for so long to bring us to this moment, especially maryland and mitchell now 83-years-old, who i was asked to stanwouldask to stand d all say thank you. [applause] finally, these 24 soldiers,

three remain with us and have joined us here today. then who remind us that sometimes the heroes we seek are right in front of us, literally right next were. most days you can find jose rodela at his san antonio held. 76-year-old retiree who enjoys watching baseball on tv and working on his 1975 chevy pickup and mowing the grass for his neighbors. joe is such a miguel armando nando vera josé is such a humble guy that he didn't even mention the ceremony to his neighbors that would be shocked to turn on the news tonight. [laughter] and see that the guy that cut their lawn is getting a medal of honor. [laughter] today we remember how the 32-year-old sergeant first class

jose rodela fought for his wounds in vietnam and rallied his men during 18 hours of constant combat. most days you can find melvin morris at home in port st. johns florida, 72-years-old, retired salesman and a great-grandfath great-grandfather. you will find him working on his boat, going fishing, reading the bible, spending time with his beautiful wife mary, married 53 years this month. you're going to have to give me some tips. [laughter] we are not that far along yet. today we remember how 27-year-old staff sergeant morris, one of the first green berets, think about that. i mean, that's legendary how staff sergeant morris took out

several enemy bunkers and kept going even after he was shot three times. and on those days you can find santiago erevia at home in san antonio. he is a 68-year-old retired postal worker. he's fixing of his house, tending to the garden, going on walks with his wife were doing push-ups to stay in shape. [laughter] today we remember how 23-year-old specialist santiago erevia under bullets in vietnam gave first aid to his comrades and single-handedly destroyed for enemy bunkers. these were extraordinary americans. they are exemplary soldiers. and so i want to begin by

welcoming santiago erevia to the stage further reading of the citation. >> specialist santiago erevia united states army president of the united states of america authorized by act of congress march 3, 1863 has awarded in the name of congress the medal of honor to specialist santiago erevia united states army for conspicuous gallantry at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. the specialist santiago erevia distinguished himself by acts of gallantry above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a radio telephone operator and the

company first battalion airmobile 501st infantry 101st airborne division air mobile during the search mission near the public of vietnam on may 21, 1969. after reaching an insurgent perimeter, the specialist was designated by his platoon leader to render first aid to several casualties and the rest of the team moved forward. as he was doing so he came under hostile fire from the bunkers to the left front. although he could have taken cover with the rest of the elements he chose a retaliatory course of action. with heavy enemy fire directed at him, he moved into full view of the hostile gunners as he proceeded to crawl from one wounded man to another gathering ammunition. armed with two m-16 rifles and several hand grenades come he charged toward the enemy positioned behind the suppressive fire of their rifles. under very intense fighter he continued to advance until he was near the first bunker disregarding the fire he pulled

the pin from a hand grenade and advanced leveling suppressive fire until he could drop the grenade into the bunker mortally wounding him and destroying the fortification. without hesitation he employed identical tactics as he proceeded to eliminate the next physicians. with a description of the third bunker, the specialist santiago erevia exhausted his supply of hand grenades still under fire from the fourth position, hecome courageously charged forward behind the fire from the end 16 rivals. arriving at the edge of the bunker he silenced the occupant in the fortification at point-blank range. through his hero at action, the lives of the wounded were saved and the members of th the compay commander post were relieved from a precarious situation. his exemplary performance in the face of overwhelming danger was an inspiration to the entire company and contributed immeasurably to the success of the mission. specialist erevia juan negron conspicuous gallantry,

extraordinary heroism at the risk of his own life above and beyond the call of duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the united states army. [applause]

>> sergeant first class of melvin morris. >> sergeant first class melvin morris distinguished himself by acts of gallantry above and beyond the call of duty while serving as commander of a strike force drawn from company d. fifth special forces group airborne, first special forces during combat operations against an armed enemy in the vicinity of the republic of vietnam on september 17, 1969. on the afternoon, staff sergeant morris affiliated companies encountered an extensiv extensiy minefield and were subsequently engaged by a hostile force. staff sergeant morris learned by radio that a team member had been killed near a bunker and immediately reorganized his men into an effective assault poster

before advancing forward splitting off with two men to recover the team members body. observing the maneuver to force had fire on staff sergeant morris' element in successfully wounded both men accompanying him. after assisting the two wounded back to the force winds, staff sergeant morris charged forward into the withering enemy fire with only his men's suppressive fire cover. while enemy machine gun and placement continued against him, staff sergeant morris destroyed the position with hand grenades and continued his assault alternately eliminating four bunkers. the staff sergeant morris repulsed the enemy, retrieved his comrade and began the arduous track back to friendly lines. he was wounded three times as he struggled but ultimately succeeded in returning the fallen comrade to be friendly physician.

staff sergeant morris' heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty or in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflected great credit upon himself, his unit and the united states army. [applause] >> sergeant first class jose rodela

>> master sergeant's pe was an distinguished himself by acts of gallantry above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a company commander detachment b. 36 company a fifth special forces airborne, first special forces during combat operations against an armed enemy in the republic of vietnam on september 1, 1969. that afternoon at the sergeant's pe within juan negron battalion came under mortar, rocket and machine gun fire ignoring the withering enemy fire to master sergeant rodela began placing his men into defensive positions to prevent the enemy from overrunning the entire battalion. repeatedly exposing himself to enemy fire, the master sergeant rodela moved from position to

position providing fire in assisting the wounded and was himself wounded in the back and the head by the rocket while recovering a wounded comrade. comrade. a loan to master sergeant rodela assaulted and mapped out of the rocket position before successfully returning to the battalion's perimeter. master sergeant rodela's and extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the united states army. [applause]

>> i just wanted to ask sandy so and melvin to return to the stage. this is a remarkable moment and i just want to recall as they take their positions i would like to recall the words of the poet though much is taken much abides that we are not now that strength for what in old days moved earth and heaven, that which we are er. one = birth of your leg parts made weak by time i and face of strong and will to strive to seek, to find and not to yield.

santiago erevia, melvin morris comest pe levin for your comrades and/or country and on behalf of a grateful nation, we all want to thank you for inspiring us then and now for your strength, your will and your hearts. please give them a big round of applause. [applause]

gentleman please take your seats and we will proceed with the rest of the ceremony. accepting on behalf of leonard alvarado.

specialist leonard alvarado distinguished himself by act of daventry above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifleman with the company second battalion 12th calvary first calvary division during combat operations against an armed enemy in the republic of vietnam on august 12, 1969. on that day the specialist leonard alvarado and a small reaction force boot through the jungles towards a friendly platoon or the specialist leonard alvarado detected enemy movement and opened fire. despite this quick reaction to specialist leonard alvarado and his comrades were soon pinned down by the hostile force that walked the path to the trapped platoon. specialist leonard alvarado quickly moved forward to the hostile machine gun fire to engage the enemy troops. suddenly, an enemy grenade

exploded behind wounding and stunning him. retaliating immediately, he told just as another enemy barrage wounded him again. specialist leonard alvarado crawled forward through to pull several comrades back within the perimeter realizing his elements needed to break away from the hostile force to specialist leonard alvarado began maneuvering forward alone. of the repeatedly thrown to the ground by excluding charges, he continued advancing and firing silencing several including one machine gun position. from the danger position he persistently late fire on the hostile forces and after the enemy troops had broken contract his comrades discovered that he had succumbed to his wounds. specialist leonard alvarado juan negron selflessness at the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect credit upon himself, his unit and the united states army.

.. distinguished himself by ax of gallantry the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an acting platoon leader in companied the first battalion 505th infantry regiment third brigade a second airborne division during combat operations against an armed emory -- armed enemy in their public of vietnam on april 4th

1969. lot entering a heavily wooded section first class falcone and his company encountered an extensive in a bunker complex later identified as a battalion command post. following tactical artillery and air strikes in the heavily secured enemy position sergeant first class was selected to assault and clear the bunker fortification. moving out ahead of his platoon he charged the first bunker heaving grenades as he went. as a hostile fire increase to crawl through the blind side of the entrenchment position, jumped to the roof and tossed a grenade into the bunker aperture. without hesitating he proceeded to two additional bunkers both of which she destroyed in the same manner as the first. rejoining his platoon sergeant first class advanced about 100 meters through the trees before coming under intense hostile fire selecting three meant to accompany him maneuvering toward the enemy flag position.

carrying a machine gun he single-handedly gasol to the nearest fortification killing the enemy inside before running at an ammunition. after returning to the three men with his empty weapon and taking up an m-16 rifle he concentrated on the next bunker. within 10 meters of physical sergeant first class a fell, was shot by an unseen assailant. he a stir in -- the extraordinary heroism and selflessness of the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty and keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army . [applause]

>> cheryl jean coke was excepting on behalf of her father specialist for. >> distinguished itself backs of gallantry and interbedded the above and beyond the call of duty well serving as a machine gunner in company c first battalion mechanized infantry regiment 25th infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy near cambodia on may may 12th 1970. that morning specialist for company was suddenly attacked by a large hostile force firing

recoilless rifles and rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons. as he began returning fire his armored car was struck by an enemy recoilless around rocking -- knocking into the grand injuring four american soldiers. ignoring his own loans the specialist quickly remounted the burning vehicle and commenced firing his machine gun at the belligerence. braving the hostile fire directed at them and the possible that nation of the mortar rounds inside the track he maintained a heavy volume of suppressive fire volleys of fire among the and the search until it was mortally wounded when another enemy round it is a vehicle. the safe evacuation of the comments.

above and beyond the call of duty in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself is yet in the united states army. [speaking in native tongue] [applause] [applause]

>> accepting on behalf of her father specialist for a cease case distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and interbedded the above and beyond the call of duty will serving as an acting and 60 machine gunner in company the second battalion fifth cavalry first cavalry division airmobile during combat operations against an armed enemy in the republic of vietnam on april 10th 1969. that afternoon the reconnaissance boats and was moved into an elaborate in a bunker complex when the lead elements began ticking concentrated damage fire from members side. the command post was in imminent danger of being overrun.

when an m-60 machine gun blazing from his hips specialist for breast ford and assumed the defensive position. as hostile forces stormed four specialist for in a cloud of dust raised by impacting rounds directing toward him with devastating streams a machine gun fire. learning that to seriously wounded troopers lay helpless the pen down under harassing fire specialist for a salted the suppressive and the positions firing deadly bursts on the run. mounting a lot you fired directly into the enemy's foxholes' eliminating four and cutting down several others as they fled. then continued to pour effective fire on the disorganized and fleeing enemy. the extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty and keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army

. [applause] >> command sergeant major michael weston excepting on behalf of sudden, the larvae of garcia. sergeant , lori and bessie had distinguished itself backs of gallantry and in japan and the above and beyond the call of duty was serving as an acting team leader for company beat first battalion second infantry first brigade first infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in the republic of vietnam

on december 8th 1968. on that day while conducting reconnaissance sergeant garcia and his platoon discovered communication wire and other signs of an enemy base camp leading into a densely vegetative area as the main advance they came under intense fire. several men were hit and trapped . ignoring a hail of hostile bullets sergeant garcia crawl to within 10 meters of a machine gun bunker and ran directly at the fortification firing his rifle as a charge. surging garcia jammed to hand grenades into the gunport and place the muzzle of his weapon inside killing all four occupants. continuing to expose himself to intense enemy fire surgeon scarce year raced 15 meters to another bunker and killed its three defenders with hand grenades and rifle fire. after again braving the enemy barack in order to rescue two casualties he joined his company in an assault which overran the

remaining in the positions. surging garcia's extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions and reflects great credit upon himself, as unit, and the united states army. [applause] >> charles ball the not know. accepting on behalf of his brother corporal show our ball the not know. corporal joe r. ball the not a distinguished and sell backs of gallantry and injured but the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an acting machine gunner and third squad's

second platoon company be 1,807th airborne infantry regiment during combat operations against an armed enemy in korea on november november 251950. on that morning the enemy launched a strong attack in an effort to seize the hill occupied by corporal ball the not know and his company. the platoon had a ended most of its ammunition in repelling the enemy attack. the platoon leader decided to commit his third squad with the supply of ammunition in a defensive action. said there was no time to dig in because of the proximity of the enemy who had advanced to within 25 yards of the putsch imposition corporal ball cannot help placed his weapon in an exposed position and delivered a withering stream of fire on the advancing enemy causing them to fall back in the sort. the enemy then concentrated all their fire and attempted to knock it out by rushing the position in small groups and hurling hand grenades. several times grenades exploded extremely close but fail to interrupt his continuous firing.

the hostile troops made repeated attempts to storm his position and were driven back each time with appalling casualties. the enemy finally withdrew after making a final assault on the position during which a grenade landed near his gun killing him instantly. the extraordinary heroism and selflessness of the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army . [applause] [applause] >> tyrone espinoza.

accepting on behalf of his father corporal victor h. espinoza. corporal victor h. asman as a distinguished itself by acts of gallantry and injured pitted the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an acting rifleman in company a 203rd infantry regiment's second infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in. on august 11952. on that day corporal espinoza and his unit were responsible for securing and holding of vital in a meal. as the friendly unit neared its objective it was subjected to a devastated volume of any fire slowing its progress. corporal espinoza unhesitatingly and being fully aware of the hazards involved left his place of comparative safety in a deliberate one-man assault on the enemy with his rifle and grenades destroying the machine gun and killing the crew.

corporal asman as a continue to cross the fire swept terrain to an exposed vantage point where he attacked an enemy mortar position into bunkers with grenades and rifle fire knocking out the enemy mortar position and destroying both bonkers and killing their occupants. upon reaching the crest and after running of rifle ammunition he called for more grenades. a comrade it was behind in through some chinese grenades to him. immediately upon catching and people depends and hurled them into the occupy trenches killing and wounding more of the enemy with their own weapons. continuing on through a tunnel corporal espinoza made a daring charge inflecting at least seven more casualties upon the enemy who were fast retreating into the tunnel. corporal as the nose and was quickly in pursuit of the hostile fire from the opening preventing a from overtaking the retreating enemy. as a result corporal espinoza destroyed the town with tnt, call for more grenades from his company and hurled them at the enemy troops until there were of reach.

corporal as the nose is incredible display of valor secured the vital strong point and took a heavy toll on the enemy resulting in at least 14 dead and 11 wounded. corporal as the nose is extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army . [applause] >> pete carrillo accepting on behalf of his uncle's sergeant eduardo sigell mess.

sergeant eduardo see gomez distinguished himself backs of gallantry and interest to the above and beyond the call of duty while serving with company i eighth cavalry regiment first cavalry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in. on september 31950. that afternoon while conducting combat patrol sergeant gomez company was ruthlessly attacked by hostile forces which moved within 75 yards of the command post before it was immobilized by rocket fire. however, an enemy tank in multiple enemy machine guns continue to rate the company perimeter with devastating fire. realizing that tank posed a serious threat to the entire perimeter sergeant, is voluntarily called 30 yards across an open rice field vulnerable to enemy observation and fire aboard the tank, pried open one of the hatches on the turf and drought and activate a grenade into the of killing the crew. wounded in the left side of returning to his position but

sergeant thomas refused evacuation. observing that the tripod of the 30 caliber machine gun was rendered inoperable by enemy fire he cradled the weapon in his arms, returned to the four defensive positions and swept the assaulting force. although his weapon of read and burned his hand the painful wounds still glad and sergeant , has maintained his stand. upon orders to withdraw in the face of overwhelming in the superiority remained to provide protective fire. sergeant thomas continued to pour accurate fire into the enemy ranks exacting a heavy toll in casualties and retarding their advance. he would not consent to leave his post for medical attention until the company established new defensive positions. sergeant , as extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest tradition and military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause]

>> lori wagner excepting on behalf of her uncle private first class letter a.m. crampons . private first class leonard n. kravitz distinguished himself backs of gallantry and in trippet the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an assistant machine gunner with company and fifth infantry regiment 24th infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in yankee on korea on march 6th and 7th 1951. after friendly elements have

repulsed to probing attacks the enemy launched a fanatical banzai charge with heavy supporting fire and despite staggering losses press the gasol with recent -- ruthless determination. when the machine gunner was wounded in the initial phase of the action private first class immediately seized the weapon and poor devastating fire into the ranks of the onrushing assailants. the enemy affected and exploded a region the left flank rendering the position untenable upon order to withdraw a private first class voluntarily remained to provide protective fire for the retiring elements. detecting enemy troops moving toward friendly positions private first class kravitz swept the hostile soldiers with deadly accurate fire killing the entire group. his destructive retaliation cause the enemy to concentrate vicious fire on his position and enable the friendly elements' to withdraw. later after friendly troops had returned private first class kravitz was found dead behind the gun he had so heroically

mansion surrounded by numerous enemy dead. private first class kravitz extraordinary heroism and selflessness at the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause] [applause] >> iris lebron excepting on behalf of her father sergeant 1e lebron.

distinguished himself backs of gallantry and interpreted the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a member of company el 605th infantry regiment third infantry division during, and operations against an armed enemy in caria on april april 281951. that afternoon he took up the most vulnerable position on his company's exposed right flank after an enemy force had overrun a section of the line. when notified that elements of this company were withdrawing the surgeon refused to leave his exposed position instead delivering withering fire at hostile troops to have broken through block. when the hostile troops approached his position sergeant lebron accurately hurled hand grenades at short range elton their attack. he held the position throughout the night while friendly forces organized and launched a counterattack. the next morning after the enemy had been repulsed friendly forces relieve the sergeant and found the bodies of 15 enemy

soldiers surrounding his position. his extra neri heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause] >> michael david opinion accepting on behalf of his father master sergeant mike c. penney. master sergeant mike seeping in distinguish itself by acts of

gallantry and injured but the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a member of company f. fifth cavalry regiment first cavalry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in the way one korea on september 4th 1950. that evening under cover of darkness and the jury missed an enemy battalion moved to within a few yards of master sergeant in his platoon. recognizing the enemies approach he and his men opened fire. the enemies sudden emergence and accurate point blank fire forced the friendly troops to withdraw. he rapidly reorganized his men and led them in a counterattack which succeeded in regaining the position they had just lost. he and his men quickly established a defensive perimeter and laid down devastating fire. enemy troops continue to hurl themselves at the defense of an overwhelming numbers realizing the scarce amount of ammunition was in a position untenable your's is now in the fall back and man and machine gun to cover

their withdrawal. he single-handedly held back the enemy until the early hours of the following morning when his position was overrun. the extraordinary heroism and selflessness at the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause]

>> sergeant ashley randall accepting on behalf of grandfather private rivera. prior career distinguished itself by acts of gallantry and injured pitted the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an automatic rifle and was second platoon company ge seventh infantry regiment third infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy on may 231951. earlier that morning a large hostile force emerged from a dense fog and viciously attacked private rivera and his comrades. immediately responded by firing deadly accuracy into his weapon jammed. without hesitating he threw his rifle down and began to engage the enemy with his pistol in grenades. at one. private rivera fearlessly crawl

from is emplacement to engage in infiltrating enemy soldier in fierce hand-to-hand combat. with only the sound of footsteps and obscure shadows to guide is aimed private rivera held his position against tremendous odds inflecting numerous casualties on the enemy until you found itself without ammunition of any kind except one grenade. displaying a peerless fighting spirit and an utterly selfless devotion to duty he pulled the pen for his last grenade and, you waited for is and me to reach the position. as enemy troops leaked inside the bunker private rivera activated the grenade with the full knowledge that it meant is almost certain death. when the debris from the explosion cleared friendly forces recovered a severely wounded private rivera and discovered the bodies of four debt are dying enemy soldiers surrounding. private reverses' extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause]

>> joe rodriguez excepting on behalf of his uncle private miguel a vedda. distinguished himself banks of gallantry and interpreted the above and beyond the call of duty well serving as an automatic rifle and the company after 38 infantry regiment's second infantry division in

korea on september 211952. that morning despite suffering from wounds inflicted in a previous battle private vero voluntarily left the eighth station to join his comrades in an attack against well fortified enemy positions on a hell of great importance. when the resulting elements have moved within 20 yards of the enemy position they were suddenly trapped by heavy volume of mortar, artillery, and small arms fire. the company prepared to make a limited withdrawal. volunteering to remain behind to provide covering fire. his company's move to safety. he remained steadfast in his position directing accurate fire against a hostile position despite the intense volume of fire. later in the morning when a friendly force returned it discovered private rivera in the same position facing the enemy. his noble enter pity and self sacrifice saved many of his comrades lives. his extraordinary heroism and selflessness at the cost of his

own life above and beyond the call of duty in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself, his unit, and the united states army .

>> nancy weinstein accepting on behalf of her husband sergeant jack weinstein. sergeant jack weinstein distinguished themselves by acts of gallantry and injured pitted the above and beyond the call of duty while leading first platoon company g. 21st infantry regiment 24th infantry division in korea on october 19th 1951. that afternoon 30 enemy troops counterattacked sergeant weinstein as platoon. most of the platoon members had been wounded in the previous section and withdrew under heavy fire. sgt weinstein remained in his position and continue to fight the onrushing enemy killing at least six with his m-1 rifle before running of ammunition. under extremely heavy enemy fire surgeon weinstein refused to

withdraw and continued fighting by throwing in the hand grenades found lying near his position. he again halted the enemy progress in in which numerous casualties. alone and an adl the ground with his platoon had fought tenaciously to take and held out against overwhelming odds until another platoon was able to relieve him and drive back the enemy. his leg had been broken by an enemy grenade, an old wound suffered in previous battles. he refused to withdraw and successfully bought time for his wounded comrades to reach friendly lines. his extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army . [applause]

>> is demanding a press. accepting on behalf of her father private pedro,. distinguished himself lacks of gallantry in interbedded the above and beyond the call of duty while serving with companies seek eight infantry regiment fourth infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in germany on december 2nd and 3rd 1944. on the afternoon of the second american lost an attack against german emplacements but were repulsed by enemy machine-gun fire. armed with a rocket launcher private coddled crawled through a densely mined area under heavy enemy fire and successfully

reached a point within 10 yards of the nearest emplacements. he quickly fired a rocket into the position killing the two gunners and five supporting rifleman. without hesitating he fired into a second position killing two more gunners and proceeded to assault the position with hand grenades killing several others in dispersing the rest. then when an adjacent company encountered heavy fire private, crosses company front, crept to within 50 yards of the nearest enemy emplacement and killed the two machine gunners with the rocket. with another round killed two more and destroy a second gun. on the following day his company renewed the attack and again encountered heavy machine-gun fire. armed with his rocket launcher he again moved across the fire swept terrain and destroyed three enemy machine guns in succession killing the six gunners. above and beyond the call of duty in keeping with the highest traditions of military service

center for extra credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause] >> mary m. adams accepting on behalf of her on "private joke in there. private joe been very distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and injured but the above and beyond the call of duty while serving with company the second battalion 507th parachute infantry regiment 17th airborne division during combat operations against an armed enemy on june 91944.

on that day the tasman came under devastating enemy fire from a strong german force voluntarily advanced alone toward the end reposition firing his machine gun from his said bessie move forward destroying three hostile machine guns before you was fatally wounded. his extraordinary heroism and selflessness that the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause] [applause] >> alfonso laura accepting on behalf of his brother private

first class salvador jail our private first class salvador distinguished themselves by acts of gallantry and interpreted the above and beyond the call of duty of serving as a squad leader of a rifle squad the second platoon company l180 infantry 45th infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in italy on may 27 and 281944. on the afternoon of the 27 private first class aggressively led his rifle squad in neutralizing any strong points and inflicting large numbers of casualties and the enemy. having taken his initial objective he noticed that they unit to is rifle was meeting stiff resistance. private first class quickly gathered three men and attacked a wide section of the enemy

position killing for forcing 15 others to surrender and causing to enemy mortar crews to abandon their weapons. his fearless and efficient performance enabled both is unneeded and the unit to his right to continue to their objective. the next morning as his company resumed the attack private first class sustained a severe leg wound but did not stop to receive first-aid. his company suffered heavy casualties as a result of weather and machine-gun fire coming from an enemy strong point on the right flank. after requesting position to destroy the enemy machine-gun armed only with a browning automatic rifle private first class crawl alone toward the nearest machine gun. despite his painful wound in the extreme danger of the task he rose and fearlessly charged the nest killing the crew members. another machine and opened fire on them but he quickly neutralized this weapon with accurate fire from is browning killing three more of the enemy. his aggressive attack forced to other machine and crews to flee their weapons.

after rejoining his company private first class continued his exemplary performance and chilly captured his objective. his extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty during keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army [applause] >> patricia kennedy patricia kennedy accepting on behalf of

her father private first class william f. leonard. private first class william f. leonard distinguished itself by an act of gallantry and intricate the above and beyond the call of duty of serving as a squad leader in company c 30th infantry regiment third infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy near st.-france on november 7th 1944. private first class was reduced to eight men as a result of blistering artillery, mortars, machine gun, and rifle fire. he led the survivors and an assault over a hill covered by trees and shrubs which the enemy continuously swept with automatic weapons fire. ignoring bullets which pierced his pack private first class lynyrd killed two snipers and ranges of 50 and 75 yards and engaged in destroyed a machine gun nest with grenades killing its 2-man crew. the momentarily stunned by an exploding bazooka shell private

first class lynyrd relentlessly advanced ultimately knocking at the second machine gun nest and capturing their roadblock objective. private first class leonard extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty is in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause] >> alice mendoza accepting on behalf of her husband's staff sergeant and while the mendoza. staff sergeant manuela the mendoza distinguished themselves lax of gallantry and interbedded the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a platoon sergeant with company be 350th infantry 88 infantry division

during combat operations against an armed enemy on october 4th 1944. that afternoon the enemy launched a violent counterattack preceded by having more brush. staff sergeant mendoza already wounded in the arm and leg grab a thompson submachine gun and ran to the crest of the hill where he saw approximately 200 enemy troops charging up the slopes implying flame throwers, machine pistols, rifles, and andreas. staff sergeant mendoza and really began to engage the enemy firing five clips and killington enemy soldiers. after exhausting his ammunition he picked up a car been and indeed his magazine. by this time an enemy soldier with the front door had almost reached the crest but was quickly eliminated as staff sgt mendoza drew his pistol and fired. seeing that the enemy force continued to advance staff sgt mendoza and jumped into a machine gun emplacement that had just been abandoned and opened fire. unable to engage the entire

enemy force he picked up the machine gun and moved forward firing from his hip and spraying a withering hail of bullets into the oncoming enemy causing them to break into confusion. he then set the machine gun on the ground and continued to fire until the gun jammed. without hesitating staff sgt mendoza began throwing hand grenades at the enemy causing them to flee. staff sgt mendoza's dallas and resulted in three german soldiers killed and successful defense of the help of the staff's judgment does is extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on himself, his unit, and the united states army. [applause]

>> robert nestle accepting on behalf of his first cousin sergeant alfred binet so. sgt alfred b. nestle distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and interpreted the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as the section leader for company h. 16th infantry regiment first infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in high stern germany on november 18th, 1944. that afternoon sergeant nestle fought tenaciously to repel a vicious enemy against as yet. sutton nestle employed accurate and intense fire from his

machine gun and successfully slowed docile advance. however, the overwhelming any force continued to press forward . realizing he desperately needed reinforcements sergeant vessel ordered the three remaining members of his squad to return to the company command post and secure aid. he immediately turned his attention to covering the movement. after extending his machine and ammunition and began firing his rifle until he was killed by the explosion of an enemy grenade. his extraordinary heroism and selflessness at the cost of his own life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the united states army's. [applause]

>> dr. terry schwab excepting on behalf of his father first lt. donald k. schwab. first lieutenant donald case what distinguishes himself lacks of gallantry and in japan to the above and beyond the call of duty while serving as the commander of company e. 15th

infantry regiment third infantry division during combat operations against an armed enemy in france on september september 17th 1944. that afternoon as first lieutenants will let his company across 400 yards of exposed ground and intense grazing bursts of machine guns and machine pistol fire sprung forth without warning from of rancho both directly in front of the american force. first and a shrug quickly -- quickly extricated his men from the attempted ambush led them back to a desolate position. soon after he was ordered to over whelm the enemy lines. he rapidly organized his men into a skirmish line and with indomitable courage again led them ford into legal in the fire . when all to the second time first lieutenant rob move from man-to-man to supervise the election of the wounded and organizes company's withdrawal. he rallied his decimated force for a third charge in austin strong point and successfully worked his way to within

50 yards of the germans before ordering his men to hit the dirt while automatic weapons fire blazed around me rushed forward alone firing his car been at the german phone calls -- fox holes in it for the vital and machine-gun pistol nest which is part of german resistance and caused heavy casualties among his men silhouetted through the mist and rain by enemy flares to charge the german emplacement chloroplast cover up also firing pet, struck the german gunner on the head with his carbine but and directed the germans back trail fired a friendly lines. first lieutenant schwab's actions so disorganized hostile enemy resistance the dna forces withdrew abandoning the formidable offensive line. extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty is in keeping with a highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and yet is its army. [applause]

[applause] first. >> ladies and gentlemen it is very rare where we have the opportunity to reflect on the

extraordinary courage and patriotism of such a remarkable collection system of man. we are so grateful to them. we are so grateful to their families. it makes us proud, and it makes us inspired. and so before we conclude the program i would ask all those who have witnessed this extraordinary day to please rise and give these latest recipients the medal of honor. [applause]

[applause] [applause] >> give us the benedictus. >> let us pray. you have surrounded us with a great cloud of witnesses who encouraged by their good example and persevere and complete the mission set before us with a legacy of the ballot twenty-four's unflinching courage and honor, dignity, and devotion to inspire our service and strengthen our spirit that we work for a true and lasting peace. this we ask your holy name. >> thank you so much, everybody.

this concludes our program. please enjoy the white house. we are so grateful that all of you had a chance to come. god bless you. god bless america. [applause] [applause] [inaudible conversations]

[inaudible conversations] [applause] [applause]

[inaudible conversations] >> to congressional campaign events to tell you about. later today starting at 6:25 p.m. on c-span2 the chairman of the republican national committee meets with reporters of the christian science monitor. later representative dan b. wasserman shultz will be at the national press club which starts just before 7:30 p.m. both spoke about the upcoming fall campaign in the house. we have to clips to show you. chairman previous and reaction from white house press secretary jay carney. [applause] >> i think that we are in for a tsunami type election in 2014. my belief is that it is going to be a very big win, especially at the u.s. senate level.

i think we may even add some seats in the congressional races but i need to and we need to at the rnc make sure that we can capture the positives and the benefits that we have been able to provide in 2014 and build on that to have success in 2016 which is a very different type of election with different issues that move the electorate uplight. and i am just very mindful of the differences between the two. >> you say you see signs of a tsunami tight election. one of the one or two things that of the best clues that there is that kind of election? >> to look at the san diego mayor's race, florida 13, these are races where granted they did a nice job of offering a positive vision which i think it really did and they really did

do a decent job at that. but you have the nationalization of barack obama and obamacare in both of those places. and as i said before, it is a poisonous issue for democrats. just like there were national issues that really hurt us, just assembly races losing across the country. because of national issues that is what is happening across america and it is going to happen in 2014. and the question is whether or not we can build on that to get to 2016, put a candidate on the ballot the people want to sit down and have a beer with and be a party that can speak to people's hopes and aspirations and how they feel and what they like and relate to the people, to the person that we have on the ballot in 2016. >> a political question. earlier today the chairman of the republican party predicted a

republican tsunami this fall. was wondering if the political forecast this year at the white house. >> interesting choice of words. i think that the president is focused on and democrats are focused on a message supports the policy and priorities that we have which consists of steps we can take to expand opportunity and reward hard work and responsibility in this country and that policy approach is supported by a substantial percentage of americans across the country. you know, that's the way we approach this election cycle because elections in the and are about who makes the decisions

going forward in congress in this case when it comes to policy. and you know we are always engaged in a debate about what the proper policies are when it comes to how we grow our economy, expand opportunity, reward our work. what to me does not seem like a particularly substantive arguments is that we are against everything therefore and givebacks you about what we're for. it certainly does leave the opening for those who might make a counter argument that there for the policies that helped precipitate the worst recession since the great depression, that's not a great place to be. >> do you agree with your predecessor and the likelihood of the republican taking over the senate? >> i don't think it's likely of

all. the reasons i just described. >> voters in illinois are going to the polls today casting ballots in a number of races. from today's washington journal here is an interview on those races including the republican election of a nominee for governor and some of the key congressional races in the state . >> the front page of today's chicago sun-times politics early and often. it is the home stretch, primary day in illinois. joining us on the phone, washington bureau chief for the sun-times. analysts we appreciate you being with us. >> in good morning from chicago. >> let me ask you first about governor clinton. to willie likely face in the november elections? >> well, 4-republican primary today. the polls showing that a businessman by the name of bruce while there has poured millions of his own money into the

campaign. host: there was a lot of -- has bill daley pledged his support for governor quinn? guest: he has not taken a role in the primary. once he dropped out, the point quinn had the best luck because not only did bill daley lisa decided not to run. s, who both come --m big political families they decided not to run. host: as you look at this