candidates who think about it and consider it, but ultimately choose not to. i came close to that decision, and decided not to do it. i am comfortable with my desession, but as i have observed this campaign going forward it is a certainly a reminder that you better be all-in when you do this, because you have to give it everything that you have got. >> south dakota senator john thune, thank you for joining us on capitol hill tonight. >> thank you, steve. >> this is washington today on c-span radio, and we will have more in a minute, but first other news today. on wall street the dow up 83 closing 12716. nasdaq up 34. s&p up 11. indiana's governor has signed a right to work bill and that state is the first rust belt state to enact a labor union law known as "right to work." the federal labor department has agreed to modify a plan intended to keep children away from the most dangerous farm jobs. there are proposals for

exemptions of children whose parents own a farm or substantial interest in a farm or partnership or corporation. farm groups said that rules would upset traditions where the children work alongside parents and relatives to learn how a farm operates. in detroit ford and chrysler reporting better sales for january although gm says that the sales fell 6% compared to a strong month a year ago. ford sales were up 7% on the strong demand for small cars and suvs and chrysler says that the january domestic sales rose 40% over a year ago. from the health and the human services department on the federal level medicare advantage enrollments have risen bigger than expected last year by 10% as the average premiums have fallen 7%. annual enrollment is 12.8 million and the average premiums have fallen over 7% to $31.54.

confirming some loose projections the medicare enrollment plans would continue the rise and average premiums would continue to fall. and finally on capitol hill, a documentary filmmaker has been arrested at a house hearing by trying to film without the required credentials. jonathan fox was charged by capitol police with unlawful entry. he conducted the documentary last year, and he talked about fracing and filmed the subcommittee's hearing, and fracing occurs when large amounts of sand and oil are put into wells to try to drill for oil. again, he was arrested today without filming with the required credentials. back in a moment on "washington today." on afterward, a conversation

with deborah skr bor scroggins going to talk about her latest book, "wanted women." and she talks about two muslim women here in the u.s. who have two distinctly different perspectives on the war on terror and fundamental islamists. one writes against islam for her writing and another educated here in the u.s. is a strong proponent of jihad. deborah scroggins discusses her book with ahmed from the brookings institutions. she is the author of "wanted women" this friday at 7:00 p.m. welcome back to "washington today" here on c-span radio, and we welcome the listeners coast to coast on xm 719.

we also have a live simulcast on c-spa c-span3. the extended tax cut is worth $1,000 for the typical worker, but it is bogged down in the negotiations of last fall and winter and it would require jobless benefits for millions bs but the question is how to do it without increasing the debt. and the house panel on the issue and the jobless measures are both core components of the president's jobs agenda, and both sides democrats and republicans signaling progress on sort of the second tier issues regarding over hauling insurance and the talks ran aground regarding the associated press to require states with unemployed people to pass drug benefits to receive benefits or the issue of getting a high school diploma and the requirement of the ged or the

high school diploma, and here is the exchange today on the capitol hill with tom reed, a republican from upstate new york and including the rochester area, and jack reed, a democrat from rhode island. >> thank you very much, chairman, and again, i listened with intrigue, and truly listened to senator reed's comments and the other comments, and one thing they hope we can set as a goal as we discuss this issue is that we are having a lot of discussion about unemployment and the benefit check itself, and i hope we can do better than that. i hope we can lead to reforms of paychecks for americans, and that is why you are seeing the proposals in the house bill sent over to the senate talking about such things as reforming unemployment insurance by a requiring people to get a ged or a high school diploma. to me, that is a common sense just country lawyer from upstate new york, a common sense initiative that we could all

agree upon, because if you arm an individual with a diploma, the likelihood of that individual my gut tells me and every study that i have ever heard tells many that the higher educational success that you achieve the better your chance of being re-employed into the marketpla marketplace. so as folks are in this unemployment status, and i empathize with those folks, why can't we come together and agree on reforms that are going to give individuals, men and women, tools such as a ged to make them more marketable, and make them more apt to be re-employed. so, i'm going to follow-up on one other point before i get into hopefully a question, senator reed, because aim i am g the follow chairman bachus'

recommendatioreck m mendation of opening up a dialogue through questions, but when you treat this as emergency spending and not pay for it, and if i heard you correctly, i would have to say i disagree with that. as member of the freshman class that came in 2010, i'm very concerned about the size of the national debt, and the attitude of washington that i think that historically has been on display of, well, it is an emergency, and too tough to pay for it, so we will kick et down the road and we will pay for it later. i have to say that i'm here to disagree with that sentiment, and that attitude has to change in washington and my constituents back at home when i was back this weekend again told me, we have to start paying for what we are doing out of washington. again, that is a common sense comments that i offer for everyone, and hopefully we can change that attitude and be an

example of this, of that changed attitude through this conference committee. but i want to defer back to you, senator reed, if i could, and if you could just please explain to me why you think that not obtaining a ged while you are in an unemployed status would be an obstacle or hindrance or burden on an individual that is not something that we should support together to try to give them the tools to rearm to be re-employed? >> well, as i understand the proposal, it is not something that you should encourage people to get as much education as possible, but it is a condition to collect and a condition that never has existed before on the program is going i think to miss the point of the program which is to provide support, financial support for people who have work worked many years, who thought that their employers were contributing to the system that they would xwaquality based tha

they have lost their job through no fault of their own and now we have imposed another condition that never existed before, and then some practical points. this provision would disproportionately affect older workers. it is estimated by 35% of the beneficiaries that without a high school education are over the age of 50. so, you would have a significant number of people who have worked for 30 years and maybe have more skills and even technical certificates and company training awards than anyone e e else, and then to ask them to go get a ged before they could collect on their unemployment, i think it is going to put a huge burden, and another issue and practical issue, because being the mayor of a community like you r aare, and so thoughtful at how this is work. well, the reality is that in most communities there's a long,

long waiting list to get into the ged program. so it would be terribly ironic, and i think that 50 states have reported that they have growing lists of people trying to qualify for a ged training or other types of training. so it would be really ironic to force someone who has worked 30 years, who's fully expects that this is the only benefit to keep them home and keep them in their home and even though they can get a ged, but they don't quali qualify. that is one of the programs. now, as we are proposing to come up with the resources which would i would say substantial in supporting the state training and ged programs so that we can guarantee that they can walk right out of the unemployment office, sign up for a ged and start working for the ged is something else, but don't see

that in the proposal. i just see this requirement to go get a ged even though it might be completely impractical to get one, and another point that i would make, too, as you go back really to what is causing this lack of employment, particularly for people who do not have, you know, college, post college, whatever. and it is this lack of demand. that is the conclusion of the most recent report by the san francisco fed. you know, that people are not hiring because it is not demand. i would suspect for people who without high school or post high school training, you know, what is going to get them back into the workforce, and they want to work i'm convinced is not that it is the two or three years to take them to get the ged, because, again, that is not something that you can, and some people turn around in two weeks to turn around to get the ged, because it could take several years, but what is it going to take to get them back the job is

the fact that companies are hiring again, because people want to buy their product. >> and senator jack reed is a democrat from rhode island and congressman tom reed a republican from upstate new york, and both are part of the house senate conference committee looking at the payroll tax issue, and specifically one of a series of debates they took up today in the open session, and one proposal by republicans to require all of those unemployed, receiving benefits to get a ged, high school diploma and/or to make sure they are drug tested. that is just some of the debate going on. of course, the larger issue is extending the payroll tax through the end of the year which on average could save a worker about $1,000 in the paychecks every other week. you are listening to washington today on c-span radio. alabama senator jeff sessions joined by the colleague in the house, martha robeby putting into plan accounting plan to stop gimmicks in the budget.

it has been in the senate language sips last year, and today, the two encouraged the cop gresh nal house republicans to take up the lead. they say that america deserves a government which shoots straight, and the bills from the proposals from the senate and the house republicans would accommodate different rules in the house and the senate, but they target the same accounting techniques that have been used by both parties over to the years to make the federal budget appear less costly. the legislation has been applauded by a number of budget watchdog organizations. here is more on this issue as it came back up again with the congresswoman martha robeby of alabama. >> what a tremendous honor to be standing here with these distinguished members of congress in support of the honest budget act. on behalf of the american people, i am pleased to introduce the house companion bill to senator sessions' senate bill. i also want to thank all of the freshmen colleagues and let me mention representative huizenga, and i appreciate your support on

this. 13 months ago our freshman came to washington with different states an different backgrounds and certainly with a common purpose. we came here to cut spending. we came here to limit federal power, and we came here to restore integrity to the federal government. we have seen firsthand the tricks of the trade and the g e gametics used to hide new spending. with e lea we learned through precedent or bad habit the game miti gimmick institutionalized by both parties exploiting them. i am convinced along with everyone standing with me today we can do much better. i believe that america deserves a government that shoots straight and that tells the truth. whereas we are all keenly aware that the number one issue facing america right now is job, and that this federal government is doing all we can to create legislation to help foster an

environment where the private sector can do just that, create jobs. but we cannot overlook the reality that we are spending money that we do not have. this reckless spending spree that has happened here in washington has no doubt significantly contributed to the downward economy, and this bill directly and specifically addresses the exact gimmicks in the current budgeting process that has led and continuing to lead deficits. americans deserve an honest accountable, predictable budget process, and this bill goes through nine specific gimmicks that are most commonly used. the bill offered by senator sessions and senator snow is geared toward senate procedure, and our legislation in the house expands this approach where revenue inappropriation bills are first considered. we desire and are pushing for a process that instills integrity to the budget process. integrity is the highest human

value we have. we must change the way that washington works. we must require a budget process that is accountable, predictable and truthful, and this honest budget act is a step in the right direction. i want to thank you all for being here today. that was martha roby discussing the honest budget act which would make it harder for congress the pass appropriations bill before it is d dopted. it. >> uld wo make it would make it budget spending in less than one year, and prevent congress from spending ovrnlg ing overages th elsewhere.

it would stop the sidestepping of programs over five years and count transfers from the general fund to the highway trust fund as extra costs and not something that is considered to be neutral. again, more on that if you want some of the details available online at al.com which is in alabama website that focuses on stories dealing with alabama legislators and you were hearing the comments of representative martha roby, a republican from alabama. this is washington today on c-span radio. oregon has a new representative susan bonamecci, and she replaces david woo who resigned in a sex scandal after it was announce had he was having a relationship with an 18-year-old. she is a former state senator and defeated a republican candidate who ran a year ago with with most of the votes counted, and the representative-elect led with 50% compared to 40% for rob

cornelus, and this sound is courtesy of kgw tv in portland. >> thank you to all of the candidates who ran in the primary and also thank you to rob cornelus, and there were a lot of differences between us as candidates, but the one thing that i want to take from this election is to move past destructionist party politics. that took a small r republican idea of representative government. in a small d democratic idea of serving the common good. this country and the district deserve nothing less. in the end, that is what this election was about. giving the people of northwest oregon effective legislation and allowing the voters to choose

priorities that matter to them most. now, the election results this evening show that voters are eager to have someone representing them who cares deeply about middle-class families who struggling to make ends meet. >> amen! >> who are worried about keeping a job. give tharg children the quality education and finding a way to afford it. and who know are concerned about the access to and cost of health care, a nd most of all they wan someone to san diego stand up to powerful interests and serve the people back home who can't afford their own high-priced lobbyists but who deserve to have their voices heard. [ applause ] our nation's unmatched creativity and prosperity over the last century can be traced to this promise, if you work hard and play by the rules, you can succeed in america.

that's the america my grandparents crossed an ocean for, and that's the america that too many people believe slippin away. now, our economy and our nation's confidence are both in need of rebuilding. and i intend to be an advocate for getting back to the basics of fairness and accountability and i look forward to getting to work. helping our businesses get the support they need to help us grow out of this recession. putting people back to work. rebuilding our roads, our bridges, our electrical grid. improving our system of public education, pre-k through higher education. revitalizing the house market and assuring that we have strong and balanced consumer protection laws so that we can get out of this financial crisis and not get back into another one.

the first congressional district is full of potential. from the vineyards and farms in yamhill county to the port of astoria, the great family communities in columbia county to the anyones of industry in my home, washington county. to the arts and culture and business districts in portland. it's a critical and dynamic part of the state. i am truly honored to represent such an important and diverse district. and in that representation, i will always put people before politics. >> from kgw-tv in portland, oregon, she was elected to replace representative david woo after winning in a special election, winning with about 54%

of the vote. she's 57 years old. she believes the election reflects her priorities and the way the district is aligned. this is "washington today" on c-span radio on capitol hill. a former girl scout, senator barbara mikulski, along with other members of the senate delegation who served in the girl scouts over the years, as the girl scouts celebrated a centennial. there's also troop capitol hill which makes up former girl scouts serving in the house and the senate. here are some of the comments of senator barbara mikulski here in washington earlier today. >> we have a troop that's honorary troop 1. i wore my uniform today and i've got my girl scout badge on. i wear that badge not only on my jacket, but in my heart, in my day-to-day activity. because what did girl scouts mean? from all of us across generations. one, girl scouts taught us about

character, about honesty, about integrity, about neighbor helping neighbor. we also learned competency and working on our badges. and then third, we also learned about the camaraderie of being with other girls and working on projects together. we learned about education, we learned about empowerment. through working on our badges we learned about our community, we learned about our country, we learned about the planet. and that we were stewards and responsibility for it all. now, we in the united states senate, we women also work on our badges. we have come together as a group of women across party lines. we don't always disagree on line items or bottom lines but what we do agree is that we work on certain badges. one of the things the badge that the work worked on was the badge of civility. that we would come together no

matter what and even where we disagreed, we would be civil. thanks to the leadership of working with senator day willie hutchison and indeed a treasured friend, we come together once a month like the girls do once a week in friendship and fellowship. we work on a badge called women's health. since we've done that, we have increased breast cancer research 900%. the help that we gave to the nih that resulted in the famous hormone study has reduced breast cancer mortality by 15%. so we want the girl scouts to keep on being the girl scouts. that is, we worked on our badges, you work on those badges. and let me say a word about the cookies. first of all, i love the cookies. i never met a calorie i didn't like or a hand i didn't want to

shake. but also, it was there that we learned about entrepreneurship. about business plans. about marketing. and most of all, we learned about, if you buy it, you own it, and you got to sell it. but i think what we also learned really when we look back on those years, we would talk about two things. one, the friendship with other girls. and i would encourage you through your life to keep on doing that. and the other was the girl scout promise and the girl scout law. let me conclude by saying this. when i came to the congress, there were only senator casa bell and myself. we all worked together and some of the women have tried to work together. but the politics has gotten prickly. and i carry the girl scout law with me. because i think what is the girl scout law for young girls should be the kind of code of conduct

for us all. so i carry it in my wallet. i read it sometimes in speeches. and i'll just say this today. for girls everywhere, but most of all to my colleagues, we need to be honest and fair. we need to be friendly and helpful. how about being considerate and caring. and let's be courageous and strong. responsible for what we say and what we do. respect myself and others. respect authority. use our resources wisely. make the world a better place. and for all those of us a girl scout, be a sister to every girl scout, no matter what age or what stage. god bless you, god bless the girl scouts. >> senator barbara mikulski is a democrat from maryland, a former member of the house and a long-time u.s. senator. one of the longest-serving by the way in the u.s. senate, and a former girl scout. happy birthday to the girl scouts, marking its centennial anniversary. you're listening to "washington today" on c-span radio.

on february 28th, the u.s. supreme court hears the oral argument in mohammad v.rajoob, a case about whether the torture victim lawsuit act allows lawsuits by torture victims against organizations as well as against individuals. you'll hear a case argued saturday. from 2004, the consolidated case jose sosa and the united states, petitioners, versus up berta alvarez mashea and others, respondents. >> the arrest of the convicted killer in the cia shootings. this is an individual who's arrested by fbi agents in pakistan, in 1997. under the ninth circuit's approach, obviously, this individual could not be arrested by fbi agents as a categorical matter. but under the approach of respondent, the federal courts would have to inquire into the circumstances surrounding the

arrest and to inquire specifically into whether the government of pakistan consented to the arrest by fbi agents in pakistan in 1997. >> what the government and petitioner sosa can the court to believe is that having gone to the trouble of expressing to the world, to the people, in terms of the -- that we would as a nation enforce the law of fwhagss, that then the congress just didn't do it. because basically, congress didn't do anything else to enforce the torts and violation of the law of nations clause of the judiciary act of 1789. >> sosa and the u.s. versus alvarez mashane et al. >> c-span radio washington, around the country, find us on xm satellite radio channel 119, also on the web, streamed at cspanradio.org. and "washington today" continues.

my friends across the aisle, come to the house floor and say, what we want these american taxpayers to do is to not get a pay raise themselves but to pay for a pay increase for federal workers who already make 16% more than they do. >> the fact of the matter is we ought to put a bill on this floor and freeze our salaries. flar employees have already contributed $60 billion of benefits to which they otherwise would have been entitled. >> the debate on capitol hill between congressman steny hoyer, who represents an area of maryland that includes a large number of federal work, and congressman sean duffy, republican of wisconsin, as congressional lawmakers deal with a plan that could freeze the pay or the salary of federal employees and members of congress, their salaries frozen for at least another year if the bill passes the house of representatives. we