is going on in the democratic primary in fact if you want to attract centrists and some republicans which is the coalition you need to win the certainly in the white house and in some districts with more republicans were equal numbers you need that coalition you can't be embracing the most positions and probably naturally you wouldn't be because you are running in a district. ..chrissy: but then something section right now. jennifer: and divided government, any hope

of getting anything done. going to do things, you're not a real democrat. i watch these moderates not only did they want to hold my feet but that's the only way you're going to keep that house and that tension never seem to fully become result. from what i could see did that of course the backbone of a lot of those races is what that is. chrissy: in my particular district, that vast majority is in the county and chester county has been read for more than 160 years. in my community is 40 percent democrat and 40 percent replica republican and 20 percent independent and we are a very simple place. i think i'm one of those people that you're mentioning in terms of the race that i was able to be is the house speaker and really flip. really being one of those

pragmatic places. something that i hope that women bring to the table and veterans as well. as a understanding that you are all part of the same team. and honestly, across the aisle, we are all part of the team. were all part of the solution. whether we are red or blue or purple, i think it is very important that we recognize that work representing hundred thousand folks are so that are in our community. and hopefully you are right there because we represent those people. i might not be the same person as alexandria is, or somebody was from red district that i am not from that is okay because it is her job. were there to find a common ground and to come together. one of the things i explained in my mind, it's of this linear spectrum of brendan blood, it's a circle. the blue and the red and the hard brendan hard blue together at the very top of that this and you see interesting coalitions pretty near some ways the more similar than they know they are

then down in the purple area you have some synergies going on for delay in this congress we have a lot of purple areas. the flip seats. a lot of strong reds and strong blues. we might have the opportunity to have real conversation because were representing our communities and because we come from different places. so i think it is really cool. jennifer: how we define what is moderate liberal has changed so much printed now as an anthem not to support medicare for all. many people don't in the preferred a public option and is now become that probation for democrats. but ten years ago that was considered very far left. we don't think it's a public option now. we don't think it's a policy conflict at all. that was ten years ago, not 30 years ago british i think how we

define people to, we could complicate that. chrissy: living topics, i like how you included the orientation because it sounded to be kind of frustrating experience during freshman orientation we literally had classes for democrats and republicans. we spent a lot of time focused on things that were very hrh which you'd expect an orientation but very little on things that what is mtr reply should we care about it. very little about how you get something through appropriations. this largely because i think of the class of people who needed to have that background i would've thought that would've been helpful but you have been here for a while. and we probably seen a couple of things that i have not seen printed what you think of the weirdest thing is about congress. when you go out of the beltway. i talk about the mcr. i think that is the weirdest thing. jennifer: in some ways, i think what

continues to strike me, a lot of people who come to compress them carbon in commerce for long time. and i wasn't a washington reporter pretty sore in some ways i was a freshman. i saw things very new for me. what struck me then and i enjoyed watching, numbers interact with, really one of the resort physical nature of the capital. and how you go about things. i can't tell you how many conversations i've had with women about the need to buy new shoes. in the way that the footwear issue. it's huge. the amount of walking that goes on, finding little antiquated things. as a rotary phone as you probably noticed in the elevator predict and thank the members are still called to vote with these buzzers doesn't have to know that. and there was a time when back when when sins are sinners, even

the process would be eating oysters and drinking champagne. and their aides would have to come by and tell them it was time to vote. so some of those things are gone. in the rotunda. [laughter]. but in some ways, it is a very formal place. people, you must know that right before he came to congress, it was a national live debate about whether women could expose shoulders in the house for. so there's some things sort of funny antiquated, formal, perhaps needless but then, and lisa. in trying to get into network space. and i would be curious if that was your experience. chrissy: what i share my home, i sometimes teach classes and the kind of an high school and grade school kids about what the day in the life of a congressperson is pretty when i do all day. in one of the sites that i show them is not my tidbit for my

phone. i'm bringing it with me everywhere pretty unknown but is based on between six and 8 miles a day. this just a typical day. on the most days i'm only in my office maybe ten or 15 minutes a day. because largely what i am doing is all over the congress in one of the things that i found enlightening is knowing that ironically right here on c-span to talk about it. i never understood why nobody ever seen to be at work in progress. because i would be watching the television and i would take it where is everybody. and what i discovered is they're all on three or four different communities and six or seven subcommittees and are all happening at the very same time. so as an outsider looking in and looking at the same deceits, but i am not recognizing is that member is walking around the 8 miles of the day. just in their chair for the five minutes of conversations. and to represent our communities and largely what they are doing is bringing back information to

their teams and staff to be able to work on legislative items or agendas. that was a real eye-opener for me. i really did generally think why is everybody not at work. speech of the grea. chrissy: i think the other person can maybe have these different kinds of parks. they are not lazy. these are hard-working people and when they go home first recess, that is not a recess, they're wanting from one for each club meeting to a constituent. and i think that david just told me that sometimes she has people come to our house on sunday she cannot get to them. so that is a lot of work. and people just really don't get about that about congress. jennifer: one of my classmates, he brings a six pack and knocks on somebody's door pretty he just

sits down and has a bear with them. that's kind of what he does sometimes on the weekends. and you're right, also in our community at home, here and impure, congress is in recess. and i hate that expression. because you know that everybody is back home in their communities working really hard to be present at home. they are not here in washington dc. and what do you think with all of this visual cues or whether you are there or not there. what is the biggest difference between what you see in the media and what is actually happening here on the ground. jennifer: two things and they're kind of contradictory. one of the things i think it's important for people to understand. people come down to the floor and some of it is performative but some of it is extremely heartfelt and very personal and second stances. women have rented to the table. really making policy very

personal. in talking with their own experiences. annoy people feel about legislation. in his heart felt and meaningful. but there is no question. what people don't understand is how much people basically belong. and you get in the member elevator and you go into the escalator you watch people, the republicans and democrats, they are talking. in their post ideologically. withstand off of the house for and watch people and who talks to him. it's amazing to see democrats and republicans of massive policy differences, the wrapping it up and talking about something they are working on something together our restaurant they both like. and you have these conversations. and again in his informative and genuine but it does not extend to the personal relationship. and that fact, of the conclusions that i make in the book is if you look at the

entire nature of the discourse in her country. congress might be one of the few places that their personalities do mix everyday. and at each other, pretty regularly. chrissy: i actually have that in that part of the book, have a note on it. i am seeking that. i am a freshman so i am seeking friendships that are across the aisle and am seeking friendships that are ideology blake not my own and that doesn't mean that it has to be across the aisle. two-point, it can be to my left or to my far right. and what i have been struck by and would love to have some help on it from you is, i would like it if our debates were of more substance. on the floor. so i agree with you that i see that behind the scenes. i see that enclosed fo doors pry classified briefings, and have

the opportunity just to listen to the information and ask the questions that aren't necessarily waiting the five minutes, youtube opportunity. and so i would really love to see more substance in it debate where people actually have to sit and listen as opposed to spending their time with the five minutes of time. or three minutes of talking about what happened at last administration or ten years ago or 30 years ago. and i hope that maybe you are saying something different. but i was really struck by that conversation in the book and that i had more hope. because of what you wrote in the book you need to look harder for that. jennifer: i think the rules, that is a fun thing to watch and heavy very animated and there down in the weeds with that too. and impeachment hearings. so it definitely it does happen. but i guess get to my second point there, a bit contradictory when just is kind of reminding

me of when i covered hurricane katrina pretty and i would go from one and the internet was knocked out and i would go from one town and i would get in the next town 20 miles away and had no idea what was going on 20 miles down the road because they were looking to the media with what was happening. and sometimes the republicans and democrats are see that. you might go to the republicans and say hey, will democrats were going to do something with this legislation and they have no clue what is happening. and you are the reporter, you should not know more about what the committee is doing. back to your point on the buses and the orientation. there is so little it seems to be fixing of the parties to actually know what they are thinking and doing. and part of it, just have those kinds of conversations. part of it may be structural.

jennifer: there is a new kind of temporary group that is called the modernization of congress and some of the ideas that it they are putting forward our about this kind of issues we just i think it is an example that it would be nice the those committee hearings and it happened all of at the same time. so i wouldn't be committed to seven subcommittee meetings and within three hours of one another. and said, along high school, i have three girls, my kids are grown but when they were in high school and this block schedule situation we cannot combine classes because they had to happen at different times. so i would like to see the kind of modernization what we are obliged to be in our committee and to be able to hear the conversation that is going back and forth because when i am able to sit in my committee hearings on up to hear everybody's conversation, i benefit from their knowledge free to benefit from it is important to them and unable to bring it back. some looking for that. islam also looking for can we not set left and right. can you literally sit in a

popcorn way we were sitting next to people. i'm lucky because of my freshman and sign probably the most generic on cases person on some of my committees and maybe i'm not necessarily i get to sit side-by-side with republicans and some of the committees printed but it would be full if we had the opportunity to stay where we are for longer periods of time. and have to mixing up a little bit. i think that would be helpful to pretty. chrissy: mind next question is you talk a lot in your book about the representation. it is the first time that i think i have seen that semaphores put together. i am an engineer so for me it's been around. i just don't know it. can you tell us a little bit about what that is pretty. jennifer: i learned to. so definitely you should feel embarrassed about that rena certainly did not printed descriptive representation means they are person who represents

literally a specific group. it tends to be racial and ethnic groups printed but as a veterans, you're in a community representing a lot of wrote veterans. you are representing that professional group or that particular group of people. we tend to think about it more in racial terms and it has been originating mostly to describe the teen out lawmakers but it's kind of interesting because i think that we think of this as being something sort of important and of itself and that it is nice and that is probably true. i think you're starting to see and i like to hear your opinion in terms of whether it actually makes a difference and i don't know the social interactions. be very curious. i think you do see it in passing legislation. and think it is very important and imagining with the women really truly help for them to

see american woman in office. then you also see those women working on the lot of really intense trouble issues not only get more fuel with them with when they go to talk about those issues they can have those conversations with us the tribal laws and specific things that other people on the committee may not know about. because it's been literally their whole life. so it has substance impact. chrissy: i completely agree and we have members who have served in cia or other places. and many of us serve honor foreign affairs or homeland security or veterans affair. and i think we have unique experiences personal experiences that we are able to bring forward and for me as an example, i am a veteran and i am

kind of pre- 911 veterans and i am one of the our only member of this class that certain before 911. and also of course a woman so one of the things that i was able to do early on this failed this service women and it would seem like would already have a group of people who are thinking about women of service women veterans as a caucus but there has not been one. and so the snow has 50 or so bipartisan and in women and people observed in people have not served. for now kind of going around this issue of women who served. and why this is relevant, is we are about 20 percent of the veterans population, women are and the member population and increasingly more more, probably anymore percent by the decade, and we are 51 percent of the total population and so we certainly had to be thinking

about women who serve in their entire trajectory and how were they recruited because they were probably recruited to differently and more printed and active the issues of family. i'm probably because i didn't have access to childcare i cannot figure a way my way out of the problem and was a separate when you're a reservist or a veterans themselves, the kind of healthcare issues to the have and that is just an example. and think not only does this help the women of service and their families but also helps us because of our ready this and separation and make sure that we are ready to fight and we do start boat with taking sure that we have enough people and we not looking to the women in our community and then came on us and i think that having that perspective is interesting and sad and almost a way that it's took until 202010 somebody said, wait a minute we need service women in the caucus. in his office started with women

in science technology engineering and math and specifically also i wanted to add the arts into the professions and again this is one of the things about white kind of it . we should be talking about this. women in underserved and underrepresented communities being in those professions but had not yet happened before at this time. so similar to your story and the diversity of our class in terms of more native americans and native american women, everybody is thinking about but you need somebody in the body to be able to say, it is not being rep. and that is a real challenge to figure out and bring more diversity not just in gender but of all kinds of experiences to washington. jennifer: the professional issues are interesting and i think about the mentoring group and

obviously you know that other decisions together out in the washington post advocating and incredibly pivotal. the colleagues who are are not veterans. whenever those women talk about this in their national security experience that was impactful to me souvenir bringing in those experiences whether it is being of the racial or ethnic group or any other kind of sensitive cultures, and definitely brings credibility fuel to those issues inside of the chamber. chrissy: is there anything that you feel hopeful to help field that divided i guess and i have shared this many times as i consider myself to be start of an er. kind of a half-empty type type of person some hustling looking

for the tickers the world to tell me that the glass is half-full. so when i look at this and a particularly about women, it's largely democrats that when that happens and sadly we lost a lot of republican women and we are losing this more this time around as well. back to the fight you'd, why are sweet celebrating. had fleet really made any progress pretty you see help and what we are saying in this congress and that is different than some of their time. chrissy: you should probably know that quarter wasn't tickers. but were just trying to guess that the most. it may not be considerable to party but i do know that in terms of the talking about gender balance, the republican woman, there's a huge effort to recruit women. and in the primaries, that's where women particularly in republicans, they ran into trouble with the primaries. that thinking cabazon with that

group. you may see more women in that party. and you may see more women in general. i think, and this is fresh because of elisabeth warren, is the most at the top some ice. the country has to see someone elected in those top-tier positions and its intestate you would not think so. if you look at hillary clinton secretary of state printed you would think that people have to wonder. and i'm not advocating specifically, she had her own enormous set of issues going into that race. and it is harder i think for a down ballot. it would be enormously helpful. if with having said that, within congress, i think that is funny.

at some .1 of the more senior woman said to me, the matter started to crumble. were getting sick of hearing about all of these women. and it's complicated because they were made to understand that they were there to celebrate and at the same time, they were coming to struggle with some of their power move. that's probably going to take a generation of men to sort of embrace these changes and to encourage more women to run. i would imagine where things may change a bit. jennifer: paul i am speaking about things that i can report that some of my freshman colleagues, not wanting them by name but really hard this meant that you are looking for. they are involved in working hard to change the face permanently of all not just congress but business and all of this other places. in one of my colleagues in particular, we joke because whenever we sent in hearings, we

look across at the folks who are testifying and largely when you look across the aisle, is largely white men. and so i had started in my early days, this is my turn asking the questioning pretty gentlemen, what is your outlook look like. what is behind you. what is wrong with his picture played and havoc it can we make it so the next time i sit in front of you all, it looks a little different. and some of my colleagues now, they have started to take that question on behalf of me. and will text each other and i will say it is your turn to ask that question. and i think it helps that it does not come from a woman all of the time. so we are working collectively. essentially part of that veteran group that we are working on having this conversation more collaboratively. it.

chrissy: the term allies and look at this again, in the younger generation of men, and a lot of them are reading in different ways and interrupting differently. i think about the trigger a thought membrane about the way we turn and i see so many men, on generation x70 milliman just taken for granted not only can they do that but they should do that. i remember there was milk colleague, nick i was too busy at work printed if you don't take your paternity leave in your single, you're not leading by example. and he really took that on. he took his leave. i think that when you mentioned corporate workplace the broader culture that will be reflected probably i would think in the congress as well. jennifer: to talk about that a lot in my spirit animals, when my heroes is sally and she is famous for having said, you can't be what you can't see.

we tried really hard job in my office to try to make sure that you can see all of the different things even seek not just as a woman but as a veteran or as an engineer or educator. i'll tell you a quick story when i was on that job in the freshman orientation, it tells you up a little bit about our device class. i was sitting with another woman, another veteran and ahead of us were two men, also freshman and they were sharing stories about that time of their infants and models in nursing and the two of us were just amazed at the conversation but it was so cool that we the women were not having that conversation, it was the newly elected man who have the conversation about their families. it was really full. and we are making progress about getting home from the districts are being here and not being home for the kids. and that is really nice. chrissy: you need the workplace to validate that pretty that is a

positive. that's obviously a huge piece of it pretty. jennifer: i will say that speaking to the diversity of the class and the experiences that we ring and spoke about, native american representation. another example i can bring out his current congress, i put forward some legislation on elements. because i'm really interested in the supply chain of those elements and what we need to make our cell phones in silence work and national security depends on whether we know where these elements are coming from and we know who has women who does not have them and then putting forward that legislation we were able to find some money and by selling off some tungsten which is one of those rare elements. and that was able to be able to be combined to help begin to pay for paid family leave. into begin to begin to pay for paid family leave in a defense department environment you are able to bring the progressive targets along, the folks who are a little bit more left than we.

and we ought to be interested in paid parental leave or paid family leave. but they were brought on as a coalition and supporters of the deity and legislation. and then when that moved forward into the senate, the senate understandably in some ways was not as interested in paid family leave coming up in the dod. out of that budget even though it was federal authority. but what was interesting is the internet being a bit of honey for a bunker trump in the administration because they had brought on in support paid parental leave and so again this very strange coalition, focuses on the rare earth element interest in a home parental leave. the end up with for the first time ever 2.1 million federal employees having access to paid 12 weeks of paid parental leave.

this meant decades in the making on the backs of a lot of people including congresswoman and chairman mr. smith. but this can happen when you have weirdness in the air. i could swear element printed. jennifer: like something is so bizarre but also fascinating. about how this all comes together that is something that people don't see the background of all of the time. chrissy: i have like one more question and then will open up for you the questions that ventura did not ask. who should read this book and why. jennifer: anybody is interested in having an is watching primary and and is interested in the outcome of the election. i think because i do think that your class was a bit of a for all of this in terms of how the parties interacting and intraparty was having with the

republican party and the democratic party. in our coming together as a country. it was the real conflicts are. is an interesting book for young women. so they can see different paths food the different women from of the different backgrounds they have. a native american, and do you this and you feel overwhelming like you feel like you're representing this group of people and she said yes in the way. if i think about it and she said you know i have just as many people come into my office to say, i go to community college and you went to community college printed so there inspired that way. so there's so many paths for so many people. i think some of those paths whether you are a veteran, or you had an entire career and you're in an age where some people retiring. in your freshman can congress pretty your garden young and old, you're partly rich or middle class.

to block the white or whatever. and you're coming from, there is a past for you are path for you. in these paths are explained their printed so i hope, anybody was sort of interested in history. there is lot in the chapter of how women item began being part of congress pretty i think it fascinating. it was for me to learn. chrissy: i enjoyed very much the experience in some ways of reading of what is happened to me in the last year and happen to my classmates and i would encourage other people to read as well. i am understanding that we are out of time so you don't get to have the opportunity for young questions but i really appreciate being able to have the tables turned and to be able to ask questions of you and if you know, three times you try to get me to answer. [laughter]. but it is nice to be with you.

this program is available as a podcast printed up towards can be viewed on the website apple tv .org. the cspan online store has going to be products pretty good c-span store .org check them out. see all of the book tv and cspan products available. here's a look at some books being published this week printed in the system, former labor secretary argues their political and economic system is rigged. so it is only the super wealthy. an american rubble, explores the childhood friendships between john hancock, john adams and abigail smith adams in their hometown of massachusetts. and eric, reports on the construction of the los angeles dodgers led to the displacement

of the mexican american in the 1950s in stealing home. also being published this weekend this is chance, new york times magazine contributor, 1964 alaska earthquake, the largest in north american history. and then they argue that protecting humanity's future is the biggest challenge of our time. and that look for these titles in bookstores in these coming weeks. i want for these authors on "c-span2". >> the seat spent city stewart this is going the american story pretty china's the third weekend of each month as we take boutique in american history to be on the road. to watch videos from any of the places we have been, go cspan.org/city stuart printed follow us on twitter, as he spent cities writing up next, the mayor of san antonio provides insight into the city's history and rich