♪♪ ♪♪ one of the best internet providers we are just getting started building 100,000 miles of new infrastructure to reach those need it most. >> charter communications support sees him as a public service along with these other television providers front row seat to democracy. >> friday december 1, watch he stands 2024 campaign trail the teaspoons campaign coverage to discover whether candidates are traveling across the country and what they are think the voters along with accounts from political reporters, fundraising

data and campaign ads. watch he spent 2024 campaign trail starting friday december 17:00 o'clock eastern on c-span, online@c-span.org or download the podcast on c-span live, free mobile app or wherever you get your podcast. c-span, unfiltered view of politics. >> circling and now, we are talking about the american dream, the country can work hard, you can get ahead. this is the headline from a recent survey about the american dream. voters see the american dream of reaching here is the top line number. it asked for the the american dream holds true 36 thing if you work hard you can get ahead of its country. that compares to a second ago to

53% of americans whoan answered yes to the question whether the american dream still exists. thel latest and american economically tragic living standards amid signs of economic and social workers. the american dream seems most promote two women in the survey and the ideal of advancement for artwork holdsk true. only about 28% of those under the age of 50. people in both parties reported disaffection. a few of your comments from social media already this

morning, this is stephen brody the wrightson on facebook on the way it was originally meant middle-class is dying in this country and anyone who says no to this question is saying so because they haven't tried. redistribute wealth to hampel and it doesn't exist but this. supply chain headed into the holidays and for americans and the holiday season.om

>> is americans gather around their own misgiving dinner, is our goal to get breathing room together we made progress. the cost went down. the cheapest on record. i want you to know that. [applause] will settle. thanksgiving two years ago 100 container ships were waiting, they were lined up hundreds long out in the ocean. this year there were less than ten.

shows are docked. 9% cheaper than three years ago. savings matter to so many families especially this time of year. >> president biden the white house and the comet the.data records feel about the economy biden voters are gloomy still

apply? that's our question starting this morning on the "washington journal". if only for democrat, republican and independent as usual. independent, go ahead. >> i believe it's a life of the two-party system. i do believe capitalism is the way to go. this is all about i can say. >> the concept of the americann dream, one of the other questions if you work hard in the country, can you still get ahead? you think live in america is better or worse than 50 years ago in this country? me being 5,

it's worse. it's worse. host: why do you say that? caller: it just is. things have changed. i remember minimum wage was three don't 50 cent. everything was good -- $3.50. whenever the minimum wage goes up, everything else goes up. rent, food, everything else goes up. capitalism is not good. i don't like it. host: what is the system we should go to? caller: we need to get together and try to figure that one out. i can't do that by myself. the people need to do that. host: james in pittsburgh. asking you if the american dream still exists in this country. democrats, (202) 748-8000. republicans, (202) 748-8001. independents, (202) 748-8002.

we are basing this off a wall street journal story poll that came out asking for question if the american dream still holds true. here are the responses. 36% of americans saying it does still hold true. 18% of americans saying it never held true. the idea that if you work hard you can get ahead in the country. 45% of those who responded saying it once held true but not anymore. we want to know when that changed. phone lines for democrats, republicans and independents. johnny in albany, georgia. democrat. caller: hello? i'm calling about the american dream. it is a trick and a lie. host: why do you say that? caller: because i'm looking at

it. host: what do you mean? caller: i see it every day. host: how do you see it every day? caller: by looking around. host: tell me what you are seeing when you look around there, johnny. caller: [indiscernible] it ain't nothing but a trick and a lie. host: did it ever exist, johnny? caller: no, it never existed. it's a made up situation. to bring people here or keep them here or whatever to make money from it. it's about what they can make money from. host: this is morris out of asheville, north carolina. republican. does the american dream still exist? caller: yes, absolutely. i believe that this country --

the history tells us we have had ups and downs. we have gone through tougher times than this. the people and what the country stands for is the reason we are resilient. things like the other caller mentioned that have gotten worse, increases in minimum wage for example causing the increase in the cost of other things. the fact is that this is a country of moral minded people, unlike anywhere else. i think we have to get through this but it will take a lot of patriotism, a lot of love. people through history have generally supported each other, loved each other. even through all kinds of conflicts. religious conflicts, racial conflicts. my granddad and dead never -- dad never expected a handout.

they got busy and got it done. host: for folks who say and have called into the program and said this before that the system is rigged, the idea that anybody can work hard and you can get ahead, it does not exist because the system is rigged against those who try to work hard. what do you say to those folks? caller: that's insane. my dad was born in huntsville, alabama in 1890. that was the height of jim crow. my mom sent five of seven children to college in the 1950's and 1960's. on the youngest of seven and i went in college -- to college. my dad had a fourth grade education. my children today have good jobs. it is about managing your money. it's about keeping a positive mental attitude. it's about not yielding to that idea that we can't get ahead.

all we have to do is look around the world. people are coming here and getting ahead. it doesn't make sense to say that. host: this is mark on the west coast out of l.a., independent. caller: good morning. i would say the american dream is still here. the problem is is a dream -- it is a dream. it is good it is a dream because people need to have goals. if we did not have a dream, people would not pursue it. in america there are three classes of people. there is the rich. they own everything. they run everything and make all the decisions. then you have your middle-class. they pay all the taxes and do all the work. they are the dreamers. then you have the poor class, the homeless. they are there to scare the middle-class and do all the jobs

and make all the production and produce all the goods. of course we have an american dream. if we did not make it a dream people would not follow it. what they are following, well, they are following somebody else's dream. host: did the american dream exist 50 years ago/ -- ago? scott out of rose hill, california. democrat. caller: good morning. so good to be in touch with you. we are car crashing the american dream right now. we are headlong into what could be a political nightmare. the most recent -- we are in deep trouble. i am very concerned. i am disabled. i had a brain aneurysm at 39. i'm 53 now. i survived it.

i kept my house. i can only hope to god i can buy one in california where i was born and raised. no. only just after world war ii where they had the housing complexes where you can come back home, raise your children and the baby boomers after the war no longer. we are looking at massive political corruption. i believe today is the day that george santos goes up on trial for massive corruption. he's hurley get back at congress and the house and saying here we sit. everything is corrupt. how can you blame me because everything is already corrupt/ everything i did -- is already corrupt?

everything i did is ok. trump is leading in the polls, if you believe the polls, where biden is doing the best he can with so much expense. we are not sitting pretty. we are kind of suffering from a cancer that is rampant in our society. is the american dream still alive? yeah, but has a terminal illness. god bless you, c-span. thank you for taking my call. host: that was scott in rose hill, california. a lot of expectations that george santos will be one of the few members of congress to be expelled from congress. jason dick will be joining us to take a look at the political legislative road ahead on capitol hill. for the first hour of the washington journal we are talking about the american dream, the idea that if you work hard in america you can get ahead. do you think that still exists? is that still attainable today?

(202) 748-8000 per democrats. -- for democrats. (202) 748-8001 for republicans. independents, it is independent -- it is (202) 748-8002. frank, democrat . caller: i heard on the news opec will be cutting the oil and maybe the gas prices are going up again. is there any chance we could get our congress to stop the gas companies from gouging us? we -- people are buying a lot of goods and raising the economy up. then they want to destroy us with gas prices. that's all i have to say. host: what are your thoughts on the american dream? caller: the american dream? yeah, i am pretty much living it. host: what do you mean?

caller: i'm retired now. thanks to the union i got a good retirement. i'm doing fine. i'm doing fine. i don't really have much worries. host: how do you think unions are doing in this country? caller: if it wasn't for the unions this country would fall apart. way back when the coal miners first started, that is when the unions got formed. you had to live in the coal miner's home, buying from the coal miners' stores. we can make a decent wage now. we would be scraping the barrel to make any money at all. host: is it say the health of the american dream depends on the health of unions? caller: partially.

i'm not saying that's the whole thing. i would say that is a good bit of it. host: thanks for that call from pittsburgh. another reading of the american dream. axios story picking up on this wall street journal poll. the story says america's enormous wealth gap is often cited as the reason for the decline in the fate of the american dream. a 2020 analysis suggest it's less of a meritocracy than other wealthy countries. 12 inequality is high and wealth status is sticky. other scholars note americans over the generations have tended to be better off than their parents. that is another metric by which the american dream could be measured. for the wall street journal poll they ask is the idea that if you work hard in this country you can advance, that's the definition they give for the american dream.

asking you your thoughts on the back and dream. les in maryville, indiana. caller: good morning. i believe the american dream is still there but i believe to work, the game is rigged against you. i agree. the poverty income level is so high that it is unreal. it has been proven in the last strike they had with the autoworkers. the autoworkers had not been paid in 10 or 12 years. the companies had made record profits. after that, you know, they decided not to even give these people a raise. they said they would be in bad shape and would not be able to afford they would be in bad shape and wouldn't be able to afford it. fy give to all the people all the time.

this is the reason ceos keep making so much money. host: did that strike prove the strength of unions? caller: most definitely. i'm a union member that retired. i was so proud they helped out. any time you can hold out to stop the wealthy from getting so much money -- if you look at the tax -- the wealthy tax breaks compared to the poor, it is discouraging. they don't pay their fair share in taxes. i have to say that if they paid their fair share in taxes we would not have problems as far as, you know, the homelessness, the joblessness or anything. the wealthy are not paying their fair share in taxes. host: did you pay attention to the hollywood writers strike? what do you think that showed? caller: that showed if you stick

to your guns and you hold out that they will have to crumble because they need you to complete the cycle. if they don't complete their cycle, they don't make any money. at some point in time they will have to bend their knees and have to give up. host: that is lis in indiana. charles from tacoma, washington next. is the american dream still attainable? caller: yes, it is. host: why is that? caller: it is sort of a rigged economy. i noticed you talked about 50 years ago. that is when manufacturers started linking retirement to iras. the middle class started shrinking because the normal american was not working and getting the benefits or investing into for a ones --

401's. people were not taking pride in their work. we have lost that in america. it is coming back. right. we are getting that back with the way the unions have started to fight for benefits again. corporations are seeing that and bending more towards it. another thing is the corporations have too much say in what our politics to, by either donations or super pac's and other ways of financing our politicians and political parties and trying to run it so they get the tax breaks. i see under biden that has been changing. he is not going after just everybody. he's going after the ones using the system and the way they have

written the laws. things like citizens united where a corporation can start making the rules about how people are supposed to live and stuff. it is confusing but to me the economy is struggling still from the last shutdown the other guy left us with and the problems he created. we are coming out of it and coming out good compared to the rest of the world. of course there are problems in the rest of the world. biden is the leader we need and he is showing how good he is doing on the world stage with hamas and the israeli thing right now. how he has handled ukraine and other issues. he even got a big deal going with china now. they call him china joe. he's been china ambassador. he's been talking to them. we are getting stuff done in this country. they talk about border security and they say biden is not doing

enough. they have legislation that will help secure the border and republicans balk at it because they need talking points about things that are making biden look bad. host: you talked about border security. it was a topic in the u.s. senate yesterday. the debate continues about aid packages to ukraine, to israel. what the white house is pushing for versus what republicans in congress are working for. this is mitch mcconnell on the floor of the senate talking about the importance of border security and any additional aid package that gets passed. [video] >> last month's total southern border encounters marked the busiest october in decades. cpb records. the harsh reality of the biden administration's border crisis impacts millions of americans in cities across the country.

i am thankful that senator langford and kotten have been working diligently on this legislation to address this crisis had on. senate republicans have been laser focused on actually fixing our broken asylum process, not just pouring money into a system that is simply not working. our democratic colleagues would do well to take these efforts seriously. the bottom line is simple. we don't have the luxury of a budget -- of addressing glaring threats to our national security one at a time. crises don't solve themselves just because washington cannot muster the political will to address them. unfortunately senate democrats have already suggested they want to condition urgent resources for one of our top security priorities on not addressing another one. apparently our colleagues are

considering putting support for israel on the chopping block unless we promise not to fix a border crisis they helped create. madam president, this sort of cynical, shortsighted politics has denied the american people real border security many times. host: mitch mcconnell yesterday from the senate floor. we will talk more about those supplemental bills and are 8:00 a.m. eastern our. the senate -- hour. the senate is back today at 10:00 a.m. the house is back at noon eastern for morning hour and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. you can watch the house on c-span and the senate on c-span2. back to the american dream. is the american dream, the idea that if you work hard you can get ahead, is that still attainable? a few of your comments from social media on that topic in

the first half hour this morning. abby saying i think people need to start exploring more unpopular or less traditional ways of getting there. set society norms to the side and set the best path f themselves. diane nkey american dream needs to be redefined. it is not t same as it was in the 1950's or 1960's when it was climbing up the corporate ladder and buying a house. perhaps we need to reevaluate our values and lean into enjoying the smaller, yet important things in life. you can back to the 1700s. look for more equality, justice, individual liberty and the hope for a better tomorrow for all. catherine saying yes, the macon dream is attainable. however, if republicans and trump win just kiss it goodbye. see what trump says about obamacare. name one policy republicans have passed that helps the middle class and the poor. elvis says the macon dream is over and the masses are waking up to the lies of capitalism. this is kathy in new york,

republican. is the american dream still attainable? caller: of course it is. i think we are going in the rock -- wrong direction. when i was young i was cynical because a group in the 1960's and the 1970's in college. we had lots of crime in new york city. injustice. all the things that are going on now. we have the war in vietnam, lots of the people, lots of protests. you can go back as far as you want. when i was cynical my best friend was born in egypt. he got kicked out because he was there at the wrong time when the suez canal war was going on. he was just a two-year-old kid. they had to go to france. it took him until he was 12 years old to get here. he used to say it's a great

country, america. at 1.i said to him are you joking? he looked at me so sadly. he said you don't know what you don't know. you don't know what it's like around the world. everyone has the best chance here. my friend made a great in this country. the other friends made it successfully here. my grandfather was born in 1900 with a fourth-grade education made a great here. you can pick people from any period. host: is it easier or harder today to make it great here than the experiences of your friends? it is the latter harder to climb today? caller: i think it is about the same. it was not easy then. interest rates were 11%. it was not easier, i don't think. i think it matters the everyone has to decide, if you're going to be negative,

some go where you want. >> thank you for talking about the american dream. it's about 730 on the east coast. taking her calls by political party. independent and border, good morning. >> i am shocked to hear this is a topic this morning. i recommend to everybody that they get past the swearing, hook up on youtube, george , the american dream. four and a half minute comedy routine for his special in 2005, it is so prophetic, it is unbelievable. he talks about the reason they call it an american dream is

because you have to be asleep to believe it. he talksks about corporate greed and politicians, corporate greed and only the politicians and lobbying and worse and worse paying jobs, the pensions not there. we don't even have pensions anymore thanks to george bush senior. this country went downhill when reagan came in because of the movie wall street showed the characterr gordon, i believe the character name choate, greed was good and that's when hippies became yuppies and it became all about corporate process. what happened was in the 40s and 50s, people born in the 40s and 50s grope where ceos did not make 3000 times of the average employee makes.

... that now goes for $1 million for 1950s house. it's ridiculous. when reagan came into office in thee 1980s there started being an emphasis not on your community, not in giving back to your fellow people and help bring them up but how much money can iti put in my bank account. that's when all these different investments started being developed, derivatives and all this crazycr stuff that took a step into the crash in 2007-2008. all this started with reagan and the people who followed reagan and the people who followed reagan and the people who voted for reagan. >> host: what do you say to kids graduating college today

and starting out in a career field, or kid you don't go to college and are starting out in the career field? is there any hope? >> caller: i say that the gen z i think is on the right track. i really do. i think they're going to turn -- i think they're going to turn this country into more of what the nordic countries are, which is a mix between capitalism and social welfare. i think that's what this country needs. and i think i mean some of them are going fartheran than that ad are into marxism not supportive of that, company do believe in democratic socialism where you haveav a basic safety net for everyone. you don't have homeless people, unhoused people. that started again with reagan. i've never seen an unhoused person ini my life until the second reagan administration, and i was wow, there somebody who doesn't have a house to go

to every night? >> host: what else do you type into that safety net? housing, healthcare? what else? >> caller: higher education, if one wanted, for sure. i mean, the same thing the nordic countries do, daycare. you've got to help your population transcend whatever if they're born into a a lower socioeconomic status. if they are born s poor, if they are born working-class and they have the ambition and want to become an educated person or a professional person, a doctor, lawyer come something, you have to help themhe move there. you can't keep them poor because they weret born four. that's what the wealthy of this country do. the politicians support the wealthy who support the corporations who say you know what, you were born poor, a well, too bad for you, no family well for you, no housing, only housing which is how you build wealth in this country. no.

it'sn ridiculous. there's no american dream anymore. >> host: we will stay in florida with michael next, life for democrats. what's your opinion about the american dream today? >> caller: i think it's coming back at a think the reason it's coming back is the president we have an office right now. he realizes that the union's built this country in the '50s and 40s. and i believe that he's bringing it back. he's going to give us, the union's are getting stronger. the wages are going up. these kids will have another option besideses college. they go through apprenticeship programs. if they don't what to go to college they can make good money going through the union's. the lady that you spoke, just spoke to about the reagan times, people don't realize, he was the downfall of this country. everybody praises this guy. he was not good.

in 1983 he signed the bill that republicans put in to tax social security. one of the nets to help people and he taxed it. he did it, republicans did. they don'tle care about working people, the never have. they care about corporate america and that's all they care about. the people with this election coming uphi better realize thats what they want. they do not want you to make an american, have an americanan dream. they don't want to give workers a chance. they don't care about the workers. the workers have got to unite. >> host: michael cohen you say this president is the reason the american dream is coming back. i don't know how much you pay attention to poll or believe in polls, but this is a headline from a front-page story today in the "new york times." even biden voters are gloomy about the economy, despite the data. taking a look at biden 2020 supporters in swing states. the number of those who say that

the economy is excellent or good, if they make up $50,000, only 30% say the economy is excellent orco good. these are biden voters. if they make over $100,000, biden voters, only 42% say they con is excellent or good. 57% say it is for only fair and it breaks on down the line. can't people just 11% of biden voters saying the economy is excellent or good. 62% of biden voters, 65 and older saying the economy is good. if the polls are correct what art even biden voters seen it? >> caller: the polls are not correct. i don't go by polls. i go by people that are talked to, people that it taught you everyday. i don't listen to polls. i listen people. these bowls they can run the polls all they want but he's going in the right direction. he taking the country where they need to go. and what did he inherit from the

guy that left? 7 trillion, eight $20 in debt, corporate debt? everybody said he did so great. they said they're going to abolish obamacare. they didn't have a plan to get people healthcare. the union's have planned to give you healthcare. they give people healthcare. we are not a liability on the society. the union's, and as far as defined defined-benefit plans there down to 13%. during the reagan years they wanted people, you manage your own money. do you know why? because corporate america didn't want the liability of the defined-benefit plan. we have to get up from under it so we give it to the people, let them worry aboutbo the retireme. that's a problem you up-to-date with people retiring. the 401(k) thick and dip into and take the money out before retirement and a lot of them are not going have retirement. no. what is happened is they convinced the people inle this country all, it's good, you manage your own, you don't need unions. you don't need them. you do need them.

you need them badly. >> host: michael thanks for the call from florida. we will head to the buckeye state grove city ohio. this is ten republican line. does he american dream still exist? >> caller: yes, i believe the american dream is still attainable as long as there's an america there will always be an american dream. however, the whole concept has been perverted. the american dream i grew up with sticky notes to the grind stone work hard, sharp to work to a good job and jewel rewards will come has been pretty much replaced with this is america, you are a fool if you go to work everyday. if you don't have to work you can live in moms basement, sell drugs, sue somebody, going well for any d other thing. a lot of your calls this morning have talked about welfare and stuff. that's what it's come reagan taught do this stuff on your own come you can take care of yourself. people still do. you can become a millionaire by posting something stupid online.

this is america. however, it can be everything done for your. >> host: so tim, if the american dream is defined as if you work hard you can get ahead, what you're saying is if people lose the first clause of that, but if you work hard clause? >> caller: exactly. work hard and take pride in your work. there's not much of that left today. >> host: you can stillll get ahead if you actually do that? is it easy today to get ahead that was in the past or is it harder to get ahead for those people who -- >> caller: you can get ahead of the think a lot of people misunderstand the want to become that ceo. not everybody can be a ceo, that anybody is in order. it takes time to get to that. you have to work hard to get to that. that's part of the american dream. it's harder to do, but you can still maintain -- i support a family and racee three kids. i own a house.

i never got rich but it worked hard and it shook for work and they did a good job. and here him, what kind of work do you do? >> caller: i was a restaurant manager for 35 years. >> host: and what do you say to your kids, kim? >> caller: i tell them the same thing. i taught them what was taught to me. they are not the same, they are not successful. they did go to college, one did graduate but they are not, they work hard. they havee obtained, they have houses, that maintain themselves. we don't depend on other things or have to go sue somebody live in moms and dads basement. they don't live here. >> host: sedating head doesn't listen to me be the ceo but it means having a stable life? >> caller: yes. well, it's nice to be a a ceot would be good, but at the end of the day you are not, as long as

you provided provide ir family, to me you lived the american dream. >> host: out of ohio to the mountaineer state. clarksburg west virginia, ed, independent. >> caller: yes, , sir. thank you for preceding my call. i'm 88. i'm blind. also i can't walk with the aid of a walker. in 1953, i i made 75 cents ano hour. i worked for the same company until 1972. in 1972 i was making less than two dollars an hour. i was promised by my small business owner that eventually i was in a trade where my trade, other places, would've paid higher summer probably would've paid $300 a week. there is no american dream. it's percentages, unions for

outlandish wages, corporations ask for outlandish prices, and the poor guy at the bottom, they holler because he's getting food stamps. he gets a little bit of food stamps and they think he's all right, he can live now. now, unions and corporations are killing us. president kennedy was elected, i was making 75 cents an hour. he brought up to one buck. there was a union president, he was the head of the pipefitters steamfitters union. they was making three bucks an hour. he brought it up a dollar an hour three years and it will, six hour. i had friends in those unions. a dollar an hour in six years,

they got nine dollars an hour. i was making $1.25. we little guys out here ain't got no dream. we just try to exist. i just want you to know that. >> host: thanks for the call from clarksburg. about 15 minutes left in the segment. taking your calls. asking simply does he americanim dream still exist in this country? is a still attainable? ruthven in virginia, democrat, good morning. you are next. >> caller: yes good morning. i have made it from the working poor to the middle class because of a pay scale bargained the government union, a sge. >> when did that happen for you, ruthanne, and what did it mean for you? >> caller: i started working -- for the government in 1970 -- 9070 and work my way up for 40

years with the government union, afge. made a lot of difference because i was under age and gender discrimination suit when i hit 62 right before i retired. so the union helped me find that, and i won. >> host: how do you think unions are doing in this country today, ruthanne? >> caller: they are building up again. starbucks has got a union. i think there's another teamsters union. so they're starting to build up and they're going to need it because of the ceos are making soso much money off of workers. they call it private, quiet i guess it is quiet firing now. they don't have any communication, no transparency. the workers do not have that. >> host: thanks for thatst call. this is john out in california, republican. good morning. >> caller: good morning, john.

good to see you on again. anyway, the american dream still exists. the problem with obtaining the americanth dream is if you're doing anything at all and you are making any kind of money at all you are partners with the government, state, local and you're given a third about what you make, in some cases more than that toso the government to institute these programs that really accomplish very little. most of our welfare programs create more people on welfare than it does getting more people off d welfare. -- >> the u. s. senate is returning after their party lunches for a couple more votes on nominations including on whether tos advane president biden's -- t second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll.