that's because he demanded high standards, he rewarded effective teaching and he achieved better schools. he faced down the unions and lifted up the children. he established the most powerful school choice reforms in american history not because it was easy, but because it was right and that's the jeb bush story. and that can be america's story. >> we who know him the best, we who love him the best, we now have a story to tell america about this inspiring leader who made us proud to be republicans. this bold reformer who made us

proud to be conservatives, this great governor who made us proud to be floridians, and soon this president -- president jeb bush who will make us proud again to be americans. [ cheering and applause ] >> i'm proud of what we accomplished in florida. proud we were able to make a difference. to change lives. we grew our economy and led the nation in job growth. defended life and protected women from domestic violence. eliminated waste and balanced the budgets. reformed schools and gave every child an opportunity.

we led. we reformed. we got results. that is what is missing from washington. the washington crowd talks about what is wrong with america. they talk about problems. i talk about solutions. i see people ready to rise. children ready to learn. entrepreneurs ready to start and immigrants ready to contribute and america's bravest ready to defend. i see america on the edge of the greatest century and i'm ready to lead. >> ladies and gentlemen -- ladies and gentlemen, may i present to you the next president of the united states of america, jeb bush.

[ cheering and applause ] >> thank you, all. thank you all. wow! [ cheering and applause ]

thank you so much. thank you. mom, can you ask them to sit down, please. thank you all very much. you know, i always feel welcome at mmd -- miami-dade college. this is a place that welcomes everyone with their hearts set on the future. a place where hope leads to achievement and striving leads to success. [ applause ] >> for all of us it is just the place to be in the campaign that begins today. [ applause ] >> thank you.

thank you. we're 17 months from the time for choosing. the stakes for america's future are about as great as they come. our prosperity and our security are in the balance. so is opportunity in this nation where every life matters and everyone has the right to rise. already the choice is taking shape. the party now in the white house is planning a no-suspense primary for a no-change election, to hold on to power, to slog on with the same agenda under another name. that is our opponent's call to action this time around. that is all they've got left.

[ applause ] >> and you and i know that america deserves better. they've offered a progressive agenda that includes everything but progress. they are responsible for the slowest economic recovery ever. the biggest debt increases ever. a massive tax increase on the middle class. relentless build up of the regulatory state and the drawdown of a military that was generations in the making. i, for one am not eager to see what another four years would look like under that kind of leadership. the presidency should not be passed on from one liberal to

the next. so here is what it comes down to. our country is on a very bad course. and the question is what are we going to do about it? the question for me -- the question for me is, what am i going to do about it? and i've decided i'm a candidate for president of the united states of america. [ cheering and applause ] >> woo. [ chanting ]

>> we will take command of our future once again in this country. we'll lift our sights again. make opportunity common again. get events in the world moving our way again. we'll take washington, the static capital of this dynamic country, and turn it out of the business of causing problems and get it back on the right side of free enterprise and freedom for all americans. [ applause ] >> i know we can fix this. because i've done it. here, in this great and diverse

state that looks so much like america, so many challenges could be overcome if we could just get this economy growing at full strength. there is not a reason in the world why we can't grow at a rate of 4% a year and that will be my goal as president. 4% growth and the 19 million new jobs that comes with it. economic growth that makes a difference for hard-working men and women who don't need a reminding that the economy is more than the stock market. growth that lifts up the kmafld-- the middle class, the families that haven't had a raise in 15 years. growth is possible. it can be done.

we made florida number one in job creation and number one in small business creation. 1.3 million new jobs, 4.4% growth, higher family income. 8 balanced budgeted and tax cuts eight year in a row that saved our people and businesses $19 billion. [ applause ] >> all this, plus a bond upgrade to triple-a compared to the sorry downgrade of america's credit in these years. that is the commitment and the record that turned this state around. i also you'd e used my veto power to protect taxpayers from needless spending and if i'm elected president i'll show congress how that's to protect taxpayers

from needless spending and if i'm elected president i'll show congress how that's done. [ applause ] [ chanting ] >> thank you. thank you. >> leaders have to think big and we have a tax code filled with small-time thinking and self-interested politics.

what swarms of lobbyists have done we can undo with a vastly simpler system, and reducing for the few and for the all. with the irs the epa and the entire bureaucracy have done with overregulation we can undue by act of congress and by order of the president. federal regulation has gone far past the consent of the government. it is time to start making rules for the rule-makers. when we get serious about limited government we can pursue the great and worthy goals that america has gone too long without. we can build our future on solvency instead of borrowed money. we can honor our commitments on

the strength of fiscal integrity and with north american resources and american ingenuity we can achieve energy security for this nation and with presidential leadership we can make it happen within five years. [ applause ] >> if we do all of this. if we do it relentlessly and if we do it right, we will make the united states of america an economic super-power like no

other. we will also challenge the culture that has made lobbying the premier growth industry in our nation's capitol. the rest of the country struggles under big government while comfortable complacent interest groups in washington have been thriving on it. a self-serving attitude can take hold in any capitol just like it did in tallahassee. i was the governor who refused to accept that as the normal or right way of conducting the people's business and i will not accept it as the standard in washington either. we don't need another president who holds the top spot among the pampered elite among washington, we need someone to challenge and disrupt the culture in washington and i will be that

president. [ applause ] >> because i was a reforming governor, not just north member of the club. there is no passing off responsibility when you are a governor. no blending into the legislative cloud or filing an amendment and calling it success. as our whole nation has learned since 2008. executive experience is another term por preparation and there is no substitute for that. we're not going to clean up the mess in washington by electing the people who helped create it or proven incapable of fixing

it. in government, if we get a few big things right, we can make life better for millions of people, especially for kids in public schools. think of what we all watched not long ago in baltimore where so many young adults are walking around with no vigs beyond the life of the life they know. it is a tragedy played out over and over and over again. after we reformed education in florida, low income student achievement approved here more than any other state. we stopped processing kids along as if we didn't care. because we do care. and you don't show that by counting out anyone's child. you give them all a chance. here is what i believe.

when a school is just another dead end, every parent should have the right to send their child to a better school. public, private or charter. every school should have high expand ards an the federal government should have nothing to do with setting them. nationwide, if i'm president, we will take the power of choice away from the unions and bureau crates and give it back to parents.

>> we made sure of something else in florida. that children with developmental challenges got schooling and caring attention, just like every other girl and boy. we didn't leave them last in line. we put them first in line. because they're not a problem. their a priority. that is always our first and best instinct in this nation filled of charitable hearts. yet these have been rough years for religious charities an the right of conscious and the leading democrat candidate hinted of more to come. secretary clinton insists when the progressive agenda encounters religious beliefs to the contrary, those beliefs quote, have to be changed.

that is what she said. that is what she said. and i guess we should at least thank her for the warning. [ applause ] >> the most galling example is the shabby treatment of the little sisters of the poor a christian charity that dared to voice objections to obama care. the next president needs to make it clear that great charity like the little stirs of the poor need no federal instruction in doing the right thing. [ applause ] it comes down to a choice between the little sisters and big brother. and i'm going with the sisters. [ applause ]

it's still a mystery to me why, in these violent times, the president, a few months ago, thought it relevant at a prayer breakfast to bring up the crusades. americans don't need lectures on the middle ages when we're dealing with common horrors committed by fanatics. from the beginning, our president and his foreign policy team have been so eager to be the history-makers that they failed to be the peace-makers. with their phone it in foreign

policy the obama-clinton-kerry team is leading a legacy of crises uncontained, violence unopposed, enemies unnamed and alliances unraveling. this supposedly risk adverse administration is also running us straight in the direction of the greatest risk of all, militaryin fiery ortity. it will go on automatically until a president steps in to rebuild our armed forces and take care of our troops and our veterans. and they have my word i will do it. [ applause ]

>> we keep dependable friends in this world by being dependable ourselves. i will rebuild our vital friendships and that starts by standing with the brave democratic state of israel. [ applause ] >> american-led alliances need rebuilding too and better judgment is called for in relations far and near. 90 miles to the south there is a talk about a state visit by our outgoing president, but we don't

need a glorified tourist to go to havana in support of a failed cuba -- [ applause ] >> -- we need an american president to go to havana in solidarity with a free cuban people and i'm ready to be that president. great things like that can really happen. and in this country of ours, the most improbable things can happen as well. take that from a guy who met his first president on the day he

was born. and his second on the day he was brought home from the hospital. the person who handled both introductions is here today. she is watching what i say. and frankly with all of these reporters around i'm watching what she says too. please say hello to my mom barbara bush. [ applause ]

>> by the way -- [ chanting ] >> by the way, just so that our friends know, the next president of the united states will pass meaningful immigration reform so that will be solved not by executive order. [ cheering and applause ]

>> so back to my family, just for a second. [ chanting ] >> look i think i was talking about my mom. i kind of lost my train of thought here. long before the world knew my patients' names, i knew i was blessed to be their son. and they didn't mind it at all when i found my own path.

it led from texas to miami by way of mexico. in 1971, eight years before then candidate ronald reagan said that we should stop thinking of our neighbors as foreigners i was ahead of my time in cross-border outreach. across the plaza i saw a girl. she spoke only a little english. my spanish was okay, but really not that good. with sominenceive study we got that barrier out of the way in a hurry. in the short version it has been a gracious walk through the years with the former colombua

ganyiquedegallu. >> whatever else i have going for me, i have the joy of saying that the best wife he has. and together we've had the not so skiet joy of raising three children. george noel and jeb. the boys have also brought us more bushes. their wives mandy and sandra and our grandchildren the near perfect georgiaa, prescott, vivian and jack. campaigns aren't easy and they're not supposed to be. and i know there are a lot of good people running for president. quite a few, in fact.

and not one of us deserves the job by right of resume, party senior, family or family narrative. it's nobody's turn. it everybody's test. and it is wide open. exactly as the contest for president should be. [ applause ] the outcome is entirely up to you, the voter. it is entirely up to me toern the nomination of my party to take our case across this great and diverse nation. as a candidate ien tend to let everyone hear my message, including the many who can express their love of country in a different language. [ speaking in a foreign

language ] >> in any language, my message will be an optimistic one because i'm certain we can make the decades just ahead the

greatest time ever to be alive in this world. that chance, that hope requires the best that is in us and i will give it my all. i will campaign as i would serve. going everywhere. speaking to everyone. keeping my word. facing the issues without flinching, and staying true to what i believe. he will take nothing and no one for granted. i will run with heart and i will run to win. >> it begins here and now, and

i'm asking for your vote. thank you and god bless you all. i love you. [ cheering and applause ] ♪

♪

♪ ♪

>> and jeb bush, miami-dade college, near his south florida home. introducing his family, his ideas. we're going to take your phone calls and let us know what you think about his announcement. republicans call -- >> as we watch him greeting supporters and a couple of protesters that we heard from introductions of his mom barbara

bush. cj is a republican. >> thanks for having me. one of the biggest things that surprised me is while jeb bush while he didn't run away from his brother or his father or his name but presented his own vision and he really spoke what jeb was. he made the point that he is his own man. i think that was something he desperately did need to make today and he believe i -- i believe he changed a few months. >> and what do you think about his slogan. just the first name. a lot of tweeting that it doesn't say "bush." >> and if you look at him right now, he wants to run independent that cares about what he is caring about and he is not george and he's not 41 and he is himself. >> are you going to vote for him. >> i can't vote for him since

i'm 12. >> you're 12 years old. >> yes, i am. >> well thank you for calling us in and let us -- letting us know what you think. >> and our next caller. >> hello. i'm glad i'm following him. i have a better one. all i can think is daddy bush and his brother and now no child left behind jeb, the three stooges. i don't know what else to say. >> all right. william thanks for the call in california. >> you're welcome. at least i was polite. >> tim you have the floor. >> good afternoon. c.j. was very impressive there for a 12-year-old. of course he's on the wrong side of the tracks but maybe in time he'll change and join us. >> and what do you think about the jeb announcement. >> to me jeb bush is trying to have his cake and eat it too.

he wants to run as his own man and be independent of his brother and dad but he is part of the political dynastic and he wants the advantages that come with being part of the political dynastic. i don't think he has any charisma and that is needed to be elected the president of the united states it. was a good standard speech. he didn't do anything to differentiate himself from the other ten people vying for the same job. >> uh-huh. >> it was a good solid speech. nothing spectacular. he didn't propose anything new or ino vative. and i think he needs to do that. if he wants to reach out and get away from the shadow of his brother, more so his brother than his dad, because his brother was the worst president in my lifetime, that is my perm opinion, and to get away from the stigma of his brother he needs to come across in a way in which he excites people, it just

seems to me the republican run out the same people over and over and over again expecting a new result. now i do think he will be able to tap into the hispanic vote because of the connection with his wife and a lot of the things that he did in the state of florida where we probably have a greater percentage of immigrants than any other state but he has his work cut out for him. because he is in a top tier, no question about that, with scott walker and marco rubio. >> all right. joe is on the line in omaha, nebraska, independent. >> i thought it was one of the most outstanding exciting presentations given for a long time. someone said they didn't -- he excited people. i've never seen more excitement in a group and some were college students and they were excited. but i'm 86 years old and i got excited. so i certainly am going to be pushing for jeb bush. thank you. >> thanks for the call in

nebraska. scarcesdale, new york ruth is on the line, republicans. >> hi. i'm so glad i got a chance to speak to you. and i am. and i have voted for jeb bush. he was the greatest governor of florida. you cannot believe the things that he's done. i personally have met him and known him. that man is what he said he is. we don't go by seeing his brother or his father, he was brought up properly. we've had a debacle in the white house. we had a debatched president who used the white house for all sexual things, that is not coming out of a republican. that is not coming out of a bush. thank you. >> all right ruth. and just let you know, we are taking your calls and you can join us on facebook. at facebook.com/c-span. a couple of comments.

from dan, he said if he wins the republican nomination, just crown hillary because conservatives won't come out for this guy. and matthew said i would like someone other than clinton and bush. we fought a war to be free of dynasty rule. and we have robert on the line, west war war, rhode island. hi, robert. >> i was thrilled of his announcement. i noticed he didn't read any notes. did he it right from his heart and touched on all of the things that i think are important in the upcoming election. and i just -- i think he has enough charisma, unlike some of them said, enough charisma to turn around the election because he has to distance himself enough from his brother to be his own person. >> and what do you think about his experience as a governor and another governor on the republican side, which is rick

perry. >> well i think his experience as a governor, he's had all kinds of diversity in his state. just like everybody else. and he's been very successful and he's very well-liked. so when you put those things together, part of being president you have to be liked but you have to be able to govern and not have controversy. >> sorry to cut you off. christian, new britain, connecticut. >> thank you for taking my call. i think it was a well crafted, well delivered speech. i will say that as a hispanic. even though i'm unaffiliated, i'm in my city running for city council on the republican ticket. and it is good to see there is a candidate there that is saying, you know what, i'm glad that there are young hispanic people interested in our party but i'm going to address some of the issues that are vital and important to you in the future and having a wife who is

hispanic and a son also -- they are hispanic and they speak the language i think it is important in broadening the base of their party. and like senator rand paul went into african-american neighbors and trying to bring in more people in the republican party and so i see that in this election they see how vital it is to cut into the democrats' image of having a majority of minority voters. so i think jeb bush is one of the few candidates that has that ability to attract the hispanic voting block and i think that will provide a tremendous support in the general election if he gets the nomination. so i thought it was well delivered, well presented and especially with all of the hispanic people presenting in the event. >> and someone from florida. this is port richey, florida

luciano is on the line. >> hi. thank you for taking my call. the thing about the conservatives and the republicans run for president is the fact that the biggest thing they are preaching is religious freedom but they fail to tell everyone that we only want to give you religious freedom if you believe in god. what about muslims and the other religions. they don't want them to have religious freedom. only if you believe in god. and they want equality they fail on women, transgender rights and they are a party of white men and they want to say anything to get people's votes. >> and who are you looking at in terms of voting for president? >> i'm in between with clinton and sanders. i've been a clinton fan for years to be honest. but sanders has some amazing views but the socialist part is upsetting. >> and not worried you might see

another bush-clinton match-up? >> i am. i am very very worried about that but i think clinton would take it in the bag against another bush. >> thank you for the call in florida. abby is on the line -- i think we might have lost you there. all right. let's go on and get one more call and look at facebook again an see some comments online. here is john in jabba maryland independent. >> hey, how are you? >> very good thanks. >> i respect the fact that he brought his mother into it. i've never seen -- have you ever seen obama do that? i've kind of really been upset about the republicans and the democrats going at each other. i think we need to get our country in check and do the right thing and i think he's honest. and for him to bring his mother, it shows morals. it brings integrity the person that he is. personally i would probably vote for him, personally.

but i really don't know. i'm all others, i'm not republican or democrat. but i really respect the fact of what he said. auto and he's bringing his mother first and that shows morals and that is what our country needs and he even mentioned christianity. and these isis things, they scare me. and christianity we love each other and we do the best thing we can and we take care of each other. and we put ourselves last. so i really respect the fact of what he had to say. >> john. thanks for the call in maryland. let's take a look at some facebook comments. one from mark who writes about this increasing size of the republican nominating field. that clown car is getting full. expecting to see maybe as many as 20 candidates in the field.

fernando said he was a good governor and will be an excellent president. he has my vote. and abby in escondido, california. democrats line. >> yes. i'm a registered democrat for the last 40 years but i haven't voted democratic in the last 35 and i'm impressed with jeb and i think i would vote for him. >> and why is that, abby? >> well because i liked what he represents, i like what he says. a strong military -- i hope he's pro-life. and i just like everything he says. and so i'll probably vote for him. >> all right. south pasadena california. samuel on the line for republicans. >> hello. >> hi, samuel. go ahead. you're on the air. >> yes i like jeb bush because he comes from a good family and he's have good to the people in

florida and he's done great for florida. and he's very honest. and i think he would be a good president. i see another reagan there. i see anothersee. i see another round reagan in the making there. he'll make this country great again. and do the military the way it should be. and make everyone in this country very proud of this country. not like president obama, what he's doing to this country. cutting down the military. getting rid of it making our country very weak. i think he'll be great for this country. i'm voting for jeb bush. thank you very much. >> on to indiana, ethan's on the line. republican. hi ethan. go ahead. >> caller: hi, i'm a republican and i'm also 18 years old. i heard jarod talking. and something that's very rare these days, but when it comes to jeb bush, i like him but i

disagree, i think he could be be second in presidential candidates. rubio is really running for vice president. i think scott walker is the front-runner. i think the only thing that jeb bush can do is reach out to our generation. if he can reach out to the junker generation, i think he has a very good chance. i think that's where hillary is going to beat him down with the younger voters. >> thanks for the call, ethan. happy voting. let's take a look at the article from fivethirtyeight. money isn't the only thing and certainly isn't the only thing in presidential campaigns still as former florida governor, jeb bush officially entered the presidential campaign today. there's going to be a lot of talk of whether his super pac

can hit a $100,000 fund-raising by the end of the month. money matters. clearly has plenty of cash. pay more attention to whether gop official governors, senators and house members in particular, are backing bush. here's a call from hazelwood, missouri. democrats' line, kim. hi, kim. >> caller: hi. how are you? >> very good, thanks. >> caller: good. i liked what he had to say and about the military that and treating our veterans with the respect that they need. i like the fact that he doesn't side had-step his family. that would insult our intelligence, plus he comes from a great family. and that should be nothing but a plus that he has that backing and that experience that he can recall on when he needs to. and i'm not going to say that i'm ready to vote for him right now but he has that interest as a democrat and i'm going to be

following him pretty closely. >> you've got a pretty open mind in terms of a democrat in that you're think of voting for him? >> caller: absolutely. i am a card-carrying democrat however, the party itself is jacksonville just something we've kind ofnherited. i love the fact that he's standing with israel. i think that's a great thing. and his foreign policy. >> and got a lot of applause for him as well. glennwalk, new jersey, on the line, independent. >> caller: hi i'm an ex-republican, after 40 years as a party remember. i have to say, after listening to bush -- all candidates make great speeches but i have to say to re-elect if he should go on to become president. i think the former governor who is also the member of the bush

family will leading us down into gulf war number three. i think we need to wake up in this country and see that all of these people in his he-these high-ranking positions all focus on the same things. what they say during the campaigns and in their speeches like today. what's the reality? and the big question is what is he going to do when he's sworn in? >> good questions, ralph. thanks for calling. one last call, we're going to take joey he's in the bronx, new york. democrats' line. >> caller: yes i just want to say that i think jeb bush said nothing remarkable. and i think that the media is trying to ignore a real upsurge in the democratic area with bernie sanders. because i really just have noticed that, jeb bush is saying -- his mother said it best barbara, when she said,

you won't need anymore. i think she did, don't you? i think she said it best because i mean, if people remember, you know the years there were a number of them, i don't know if you all have forgotten or if they haven't. but i do know that there's sort of a disconnect or something that somebody said it and it sounds nice, but if you get too informational, we're all out. but i do think that bernie sanders say nonestablishment candidate who would approve his track record. and just hear in the media all the time, and people praising jeb bush here the way they're praising him i'm absolutely in shock. this is a standard speech. there's nothing that was said here. and i just -- i really -- i really would not endorse him at all. and the policy that they're leading us on are just the same

policy that you're going to see from even the democratic side perhaps, if we put the wrong primary candidate in. >> all right, jay thanks for the call from new york. let's take a look back and see what it was that jeb bush did have to say during his campaign rally here. i want to let you know, also, too, we could see another candidate get into the run for president in 2016. we're going to hear from trump tomorrow. that will be at 11:00 a.m. eastern time. donald trump campaigning from new york city. we'll have that on our companion -- on c-span3. and then also you can watch jeb bush's campaign announcement we'll have that point 8:30 p.m. eastern on c-span 2. but let's take a look back right now at what jeb bush had to say. here's his announcement and the rally. [ cheers and applause ]

[ applause ] >> thank you all! thank you all! wow. [ cheers and applause ] >> thank you so much. thank you. mom, can you ask them to sit

down, please? thank you all very much. you know i always feel welcome at miami-dade college. this is a place that welcomes everyone with their heart set on the future. a place where hope leads to achievement and striving leads to success. [ applause ] for all of us it is just the place to be in the campaign that begins today. [ cheers ] >> thank you. thank you.

we're 17 months from the time for choosing. the stakes for america's future are as great as they come. our prosperity and our security are in the balance. so is opportunity in this nation where every life matters and everyone has the right to rise. [ cheers and applause ] already the choice is taking shape. the party now in the white house is planning a no-suspense primary for a no-change election. to hold on to power to slog on with the same agenda under another name. that's our opponent's call to action this time around. that's all they've got left. and you and i know that america deserves better.

they've offered a progressive agenda that includes everything but progress. they're responsible for the slowest economic recovery ever. the biggest debt increases ever. a massive tax increase on the middle class. the relentless buildup of the regulatory state. and the swift mindless drawdown of the military that was generation information the making. i for one are not eager to see what another four years would look like under that kind of leadership. the presidency should not be passed on from one liberal to the next. so, here's what it comes down to -- our country's on a very bad course.

and the question is, what are we going to do about it? the question for me -- the question for me is what am i going to do about it? and i've decided i'm a candidate for president of the united states of america.

>> we will take command of our future once again in this country. we will lift our sights again. make opportunity common again. get events in the world moving our way again. we will take washington, the static capital of this dynamic country and then turn it out of the business of causing problems, and we'll get it back on the right side of free enterprise and freedom for all americans. i know we can fix this. because i've done it. here in this great and diverse state that looks so much like america, so many challenges could be overcome if we could just get this economy growing at

full strength. there's not a reason in the world why we cannot grow at a rate of 4% a year. and that will be my goal as president. 4% growth and the 19 million new jobs that comes with it. economic growth that makes a difference for hard working men and women who don't need a reminding that the economy's more than the stock market. growth that lifts up the middle class. all the families who haven't had a raise in 15 years. growth that makes a difference for everyone. it's possible. it can be done. we made florida number one in

job creation and number one in small business creation. 1.3 million new jobs. 4.4% growth. higher family income. eight balanced budgets and tax cuts eight years in a row that saved our people and businesses $19 billion. all this plus a bond upgrade to aaa. compared to the sorry downgrade of america's credit in these years. that was the commitment and that is the record that turned this state around. i also used my veto power to protect our taxpayers from needless spending. and if i'm elected president, i'll show congress how that's done.

[ chanting ] >> thank you. thank you. leaders have to think big, and we've got a tax code filled with small-time thinking and self-interested politics. what swarms of lobbyists have done, we can undo with a vastly simpler system. clearing out special favors for

the few, reducing rates for all. what the irs epa and the entire bureaucracy have done with overregulation, we can undo by act of congress and order of the president. federal regulation has gone far past the consent of the governed. it is time to start making rules for the rule makers. when we get serious about limited government, we can pursue the great and worthy goals that america has gone too long without. we can build our future on solve solvency solvency, instead of borrowed money. we can strength our resources

with north americanle resources and energy we can strengthen this and with presidential leadership, we can make it happen within five years. [ chanting ] >> if we do all of this, if we do it relentlessly and if we do it right we will make the united states of america an economic superpower like no other. we will also challenge the culture that has made lobbying

the premier growth industry in our nation's capital. look, the rest of the country struggles under big government while comfortable complacent interest groups in washington have been thriving on it. a solve serving attitude can take hold in any capital just like it once did in tallahassee. i was a governor who refused to accept that as the normal or right way of conducting people's business. i will not accept it as the standard in washington either. we don't need another president who merely holds the top spot among the pampered elites of washington. we need a president willing to challenge and disrupt the whole culture in our nation's capital. and i will be that president.

because i was a reforming governor, not just another member of the club there's no passing off responsibility when you're a governor. no blending into the legislative crowd or filing an amendment and calling that success. as our whole nation has learned since 2008 executive experience is another term for preparation and there is no substitute for that. we're not going to clean up the mess in washington by electing the people who either helped create it or have proven incapable of fixing it. in government if we get a few

big things right, we can make life better for millions of people, especially for kids in public schools. think of what we all watched not long ago in baltimore. where so many young adults are walking around with no vision of the life beyond the life they know. it's a tragedy played out over and over and over again. after we reformed education in florida, low-income student achievement approved here more than any other state. we stopped processing kids along as if we didn't care because we do care. and you don't show that by counting out anyone's child. you give them all a chance. here's what i believe. when a school is just another dead end every parent should have the right to send their

child to a better school, public, private or charter. every school should have high standards. and the federal government should have nothing to do with setting them. nationwide, if i'm president, we will take the power of choice away from the unions and bureaucrats and give it back to parents. we made sure of something else

in florida. that children with developmental challenges got schooling and caring attention, just like every other girl and boy. we didn't leave them last in line. we put them first in line. because they're not a problem. they're a priority. that is always our first and best instinct, a nation filled with charitable hearts. yet, these have been rough years for religious charities and their rite of conscience. and the leading democratic candidate recently handed more trouble to come. secretary clinton insists that when the progressive agenda encounters religious beliefs to the contrary those believes quote, have to be changed. that's what she said. that's what she said. and i guess we should at least

thank her for the warning. the most gulling example is the shabby treatment of the little sisters of the poor. a christian charity that dared to voice objections of conscience to obamacare. the next president needs to make it clear that great charities like the little sisters of the poor need no federal instruction in doing the right thing. it comes down to a choice between the little sisters and big brother. and i'm going with the sisters.

it's still a mystery to me, why in these violent times the president a few months ago felt it relevant in a prayer breakfast to bring up the crusades. americans don't need lectures in the middle ages when we're dealing abroad with modern horrors admitted by fanatics. from the beginning, our president and his foreign policy team have been so eager to be the historymakers, that they failed to be the peacemakers. with their phone-in foreign policy, the obama/clinton/kerry team is leading a legacy of

crisis uncontained. violence unopposed. enemies unnamed, friends undefended and alliances unraveling. this supposedly risky adverse administration is also running it straight into the direction of the greatest risk of all. military inferiority. it will go on automatically, until the president steps in to rebuild our armed forces and take care of our troops and our veterans. and they have my word, i will do it. [ chanting ]

we keep dependable friends in this world by being dependable ourselves. i will rebuild our vital friendships. and that starts by standing with the brave democratic state of israel. american-led alliances need rebuilding, too. and better judgment is called for in relations far and near. 90 miles to ourselves there's a talk of the state visit by our outgoing president. but we -- but we don't need a glorified tourist to go to havana and support the failed cuba.

we need -- we need an american president to go to havana in solidarity with a free cuban people. and i'm ready to be that president. great things like that can really happen. and in this country of our, the most improbable things can happen as well. take that from a guy who met his first president on the day he was born and his second on the day he was brought home from the hospital.

the person who handled both introductions is here today. she's watching what i say and frankly, with all of these reporters around, i'm watching what she says, too. please say hello to mom, barbara bush. [ cheers and applause ]

by the way -- [ chanting ] by the way, just so that our friends know the next president of the united states will pass meaningful immigration reform so that will be solved not by executive order.

so, back to my family for just a second -- [ chanting ] look, i think i was talking about my mom. i kind of lost my train of thought here. long before the world knew my parents' names i knew i was blessed to be their son. and they didn't mind it at all when i found my own path. it led from texas to miami by way of mexico. in 1971 eight years before then

ronald -- candidate ronald reagan said that we should stop thinking of our neighbors as foreigners, i was ahead of my time in cross-border outreach. across the plaza, i saw a girl. she spoke only a little english. my spanish was okay but really not that good. with some intensive study, we got that barrier out of the way in a hurry. in the short version it's been a gracious walk through the years with the former -- whatever else -- whatever else i might or might not have going for me i've got the quiet joy

of a man who can say the most wonderful friend he has in the whole world is his own wife. palumba, i love you. and together we've had the not so quiet joy of raising three children who have brought us nothing but happiness and pride. george, noelle and jeb. the boys, they've also brought us more bushes. their wives mandi and sandra. and our grandchildren the near perfect, georgia, prescott vivian and jack. campaigns aren't easy, and they're not supposed to be. and i know that there are a lot of good people running for president. quite a few, in fact. and not one of us deserves the job by rite of resume. party. seniority, family or family

narrative. it's nobody's turn. it's everybody's test. and it's wide open. exactly as the contest for president should be. the outcome is entirely up to you. the voters. it's entirely up to me to earn the nomination of my party. and then to take our case all across this great and diverse nation. as a candidate i intend to let everyone hear my message, including the many who can express their love of country in a different language. [ speaking in a foreign language ]

[ speaking in a foreign language ] in any language, in any language, my message would be an optimistic one, because i am certain that we can make the decades just ahead the greatest time ever to be alive in this world. that chance, that hope, requires

the best that is in us. and i will give it my all. i will campaign as i would serve. going everywhere. speaking to everyone. keeping my word, facing the issues without flinching. and staying true to what i believe. i will take nothing and no one for granted. i will run with heart. and i will run to win. it begins here and now and i'm ask for your vote. thank you and god bless you all. ♪

♪ ♪ by the riverside ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ and just a reminder that if you missed any of today's presidential announcement by jeb bush, we'll reair it tonight at 8:30 p.m. eastern on c span2. after it's over, we'll get your reaction with comments, faish comments and tweets. tonight on the communicator communicators, austin meyer. nutrition expert and hank johnson talk about technology issue it's and patent legislation before congress. >> 97% of the people that are

sued by patent trials have to sue because they don't have the $3 million to defend themselves. 97% settle. they pay an average of $300,000 to the patent suing them. when they pay the $300,000 settlement they're locked into an nda, a nondisclosure agreement. they're not allowed to tell anybody what happened to them. >> so far, everybody seems excited to have the legislation on top. we'll seek to as many as possible to discuss the issues to figure out what is the best way for entrepreneurs to defend their products but more importantly, run their business. any of these commanddemand letters that currently exist. >> much that we're concerned with apparently has to do with closing the courthouse door to those who create and making it more difficult for them to

actually use the courts to enforce their property rights. and, so, that's the big define, for something that's unheard of that we will have to overcome. >> tonight at 8:00 eastern, on the communicators on c span 2. tomorrow, on "washington journal" congressman bill pascrell discusses trade policy and other issues. and then republic mo brooks on the strategy of isis and moving of heavy weaponry to eastern europe. plus your phone calls facebook comments and tweets. "washington journal" is live tuesday, 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. left week veterans health administration officials testified before a house veterans affairs subcommittee on oversight and investigations about concerns over heavy

reliance on medication. and a possible tie to suicide. this san hour and 45 minutes. good morning this hearing will come to order. i want to welcome everyone to today's hearing titled "prescription mismanagement and the risk of veteran suicide." before we begin, i'd like to ask unanimous consent that a statement from the american legion be entered into the hearing record. hearing no objection so ordered. this hearing will examine the relationship between veterans prescribed medications as a result of their mental health. and the increased suicide rate among veterans. and the report issued in november 2014, which included in

part, evidence uncovered by the o & i subcommittee. gao examined d.a.'s data on veterans with major depressive disorder. including the extent to which they were prescribed medications. the extent to which they received proper care and whether va monitored that care. and the information va requires vamcs to collect on veteran suicides. it is now clear that va is not even aware of the population of veteranses with major depressive disorder due to inappropriate coding by va physicians. as a result va cannot determine if veterans are receiving care consistent with the clinical practice guidelines. these guidelines are crucial to

the treatment of mental disorders, as they are designed to provide the maximum relief from the debilitating symptoms associated with mental health. it is imperative that our veterans receive the proper care and follow-up when receiving mental health care. especially when they are being prescribed various medications. what has also become clear is that va is receiving and reporting an accurate and inconsistent data regarding veteran suicides. this severely impacts and limits the department's ability to accurately evaluate its suicide prevention efforts and identify trends in veteran suicide. not only did the committee conduct a hearing in 2010 on

this same issue, but since then, there have been countless media stories of veterans being overhead indicated or experiencing adverse drug reactions and not receiving the proper care. the proper follow-up or the proper monitoring. and the all-too common result of suicide. once they're told of a veteran who went into a hospital seeking care, but after being quote/unquote lost in the system, ended up dying by suicide, right in the facility. we will also hear other similarly tragic stories today that highlight the tremendous problems occurring within va for years and continuing today, with regard to treatment of veterans with mental health. there's mental health concerns adequate oversight treatment programs and, more importantly

the actions taken to ensure veterans who are prescribed countless medications, receive proper follow-up. currently, va has approximately ten different programs dealing with prescription medication. and suicide prevention issues. but it does not appear that any of these programs interact with one another. no one is talking to anyone else. how can we ensure that the veterans are getting the proper care, the proper follow-up, and the proper advice if the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing? i think it is more appropriate to say, based on the statistics from the gao report and the numerous media story sies is throwing out a bunch of different ideas and programs

hoping one of them can stick. and they can claim they'll solve the problem. this is unacceptable. we need to know exactly what va is doing to change this pattern and what is it doing to improve the protection of veterans? what is the real way forward? who will be held accountable for mistakes that have already been made and have cost veterans their lives? who will stand upake responsibility for making a change. it is time for answers. it's time for change with that, i now yield to ranking member custer for any opening remarks she may have. >> thank you, mr. chairman. and good morning to our panel thank you for being with us. this morning, we are addressing a complex health care policy issue affecting veterans and

over 100 million american adults. the statistic its on veterans experiencing chronic pain are staggering. over 50% of all veterans enrolled and receiving care at va melt facilities experience chronic pain. with over 500,000 veterans managing pain with prescribed opioids. as a nation and certainly in my district and out there the northeast, we face what can only be described as an opioid abuse epidemic. the centers for disease control and prevention have turned into opioid abuse the worst drug addiction in the country's history killing more people than heroin and in fact, cocaine. in addition to the issue of pain management and the problems of addiction, we must remember that many veterans who experience chronic pain also suffer from mental health disorders such as posttraumatic stress and traumatic brain injury.

therefore, it's vital that the va has in place the proper oversight mechanisms to monitor the safe use of opioids for managing veterans' pain. i'm particularly concerned about veterans at risk of self-medication and addiction of veterans being prescribed opioids for pain management. we know from inspector general and va reports that the va has struggled to properly monitor prescribed opioids and medications. and are concerned that a potentially deadly mix of opioid use, mental health and lack of oversight is contributing to our high rate of veterans suicide. the newest agency regulations that require veterans to see a clinician monthly for a refill of opioid medication provides a difficulty for accessing care. leave something veterans to

suffer from ex premium pain and experience opioid withdrawal symptoms when they're unable to reschedule an appointment to refill. this hearing provides us with an opportunity to begin to seriously examine whether the benefits of managing veterans' pain with opioids is outweighed by the risks and side effects experienced by vat rens. and the va's ability to properly monitor opioid use. during this hearing, i'd like to hear from our witnesses how we can better address safe and effective treatment of veterans, while ensuring that care management is not forgotten. i'd like to discuss whether a higher level of informed consent is needed to ensure veterans and their families understand the risks and side effects before choosing to manage pain with opioids. and whether the va is properly coordinating mental health and suicide prevention programs with va melt facilities and clinicians responsible for

monitoring patient opioid use. i'm also interested in alternative pain management and whether, as i get to my comments later, i'll talk about what's happening at the white river junction va in bringing down the rate of opioid prescriptions and how we can help get ourselves out of this problem, out of this cycle. and address the veterans to serve their needs without putting them and their families at risk. and finally, i'd like to discuss what is being done to reduce long-term opioid use and treat the underlying conditions causing chronic pains so that veterans are abe to live a better quality of life. thank you, mr. chairman. and i yield back the balance of my time. >> i thank you ranking member kuster. i will introduce our witnesses in just one moment. but i ask that the witnesses stand and raise their right hand.

do you solemnly swear under penalty of perjury that the testimony you're about to troy is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? please be seated. i'd like to recognize the honor only chairman miller who has joined us. welcome. >> thank you mr. chairman, ranking member and the good work that this subcommittee has been doing over the last several years, if i might instead of giving a typical opening statement, i want to ask, miss clancy, a couple questions, because i need to move on to another appointment. and i believe dr. clancy, that you have been made aware that i am going to be asking a couple of questions, be it a little bit out of order. and i want to talk specifically about bradley stone. that we know that he was seen by

his va psychiatrist a week prior to his commission of multimurders and subsequently dying of suicide. he was on many, many prescription drugs. and had alerted va as i understand it, to mental health and physical difficulties in the weeks leading up to the incident. but it appears that va said he showed no signs of suicidal or homicidal ideations. and i'd like to know, how did va come to it that conclusion when the veteran was okay? and i say that in quotes. when he was reporting all of these feelings prior to the incident?

>> in general, people would come to that conclusion by asking the veteran a series of questions about were they having thoughts of hurting themselves and so forth to get some assessment of suicide risk. so my conclusion, if the clinician said would be that the veteran answered -- gave negative responses to that. >> okay. on the 24th of april of this year, i asked the department if it would confirm whether or not that they had provided the full committee with all of the files related to bradley stone. to date, i have not received a response. so, again i ask you has va provided this committee with all of the files on bradley stone? >> i have been told that va had provided the committee with the files, with some redactions. and had also provided -- offered an in camera review. and the redactions were about

social security numbers. and some information that was absence tiff details about the living family members of bradley stone. and, again offered to discuss that with the committee in camera. >> and again, as i have stated in every single letter that i have sent to the department requesting information an in camera review is not acceptable. that may be what you want to provide us but that is not at all acceptable. and, so, you know, the staff has informed you and the department that i was going to ask particular questions. again, i ask you, has all of the information -- and i would go back to i sent the secretary a letter on april 24th, where i referred to miss diana reubens director of the regional office on april 22nd saying that the philadelphia regional office

had provided everything related to mr. stone's file. her response was unequivocally yes. and so i'm taking again from your comment, again, everything that she provided to the central office, the central office has now provided to this committee. >> since i'm under oath i'm going to be very careful. i can't speak for what diana reubens is telling you. i have been informed directly by our lawyers that we have provided this committee with all of the records with the redactions that i mentioned before. again, social security numbers and some sensitive details about the living family members of mr. stone. >> okay. i want to for the record, mr. chairman and dr. clancy, i know for a fact that va has withheld hundreds of pages related to the bradley stone file.

and, so with that, i would say that we have requested all of the documents everywhere you know how. so, i'll ask you one more time can i expect the department to deliver the complete records by the end of this week? >> i will take that back and i will verify what i've been told that we have given this committee everything accept for redactions as i noted earlier. >> okay. i can assure you, it's not redacted. it is missing. completely missing. >> i will bring that up. >> we also expect you to deliver the behavorial health autopsy unredacted by the end of the week. and i've told va and i will reiterate it again, an in camera review is not acceptable. and i ask, will you commit that all of the documents that i've requested will be provided by the end of this week? >> the behavorial health autopsy is an unique feature of what we do at va health care for

veterans. rather than having a private limited to the people at the facility analysis of what does happen when a veterans does take his or her own life. this is something we have centralized to learn across the system. what kind of factors would have precipitated the suicide. what could we have done differently or better. and it also involves a conversation with the family member with that veteran, none of of whom would be told that we would be thoughtfully sharing their details with members of the community. and we think it would have a chilling effect on family members sharing the details. and very uncomfortable in sharing the behavorial health autopsy. >> thank you very much for that educational opportunity. i'll refer to you again, the fact that we're the legislative branch. you're the executive branch. we have complete and

constitutional oversight over the department. unredacted information, anything that's done within your department that you choose to withhold, we'll subpoena if necessary. can i expect to have this information delivered by friday? >> i will take that back, mr. chairman. >> thank you very much. and also i would also like to adding, on a positive note, i was in cincinnati yesterday. i was in dayton the day before. thank you for the good job that we see being done at the facilities there. there's been a great change in dayton in specifics. and i enjoyed the opportunity to spend a couple hours with the people in cincinnati. we do focus on a lot of the negative. and the res likes to focus on that as well. but i want to commend you on some of the great things. and i would hope some of the good things specifically at cincinnati would be shared

throughout vha, and the rest of the department. thank you very much. >> if i might, for one second mr. chairman. first, thank you very much for that. i know how hard those people work. cincinnati is actually the hub of expertise and extensive care for our system. so they actually provide remote assistance -- >> i had a chance to view it. >> did you? it's great. it really it. >> thank you very much. >> just one point, dr. clancy the va has turned over behavorial health autopsies to this committee. before. and, so, ranking member kuster? >> yeah, i just wanted to say for the record as a health care attorney who's worked in this area for quite a long period of time in the realm of quality assurance and what the purpose of this type of quality assurance is about when you go back and look, it's intended for

physician and the medical team to grow and learn from these experiences. and i just want to -- i'm concerned at the impression that might be left with veterans and their families particularly the family members, that have been through the trauma of a suicide. that this information would be treated confidentially. because these hearings as we know are televised. it's a very public setting. and i think we should get to the bottom. but i don't want to do anything that would have a chilling effect on families that are sharing the most personal aspects. we already had such a strong stigma around mental health. and about people seeking treatment. and i would be extremely concerned if we let the impression today, that we are in some way digging into private affairs. if there's information about living family mens that is not relevant, it could be extremely personal. and i guess i just don't understand why we couldn't do that in a -- in a private

setting. nor a redacted way. why this committee would be trying to determine, and i'm not speaking if you believe there are documents that separate matter. but, i know that under our statutes in the state confidential information in this quality assurance process is confidential. and it's not to be shared. and the purpose of that is so that people will come forward. so that's my only comment. >> thank you very much. i appreciate the expertise that you bring to this committee, and to this subcommittee. and you can rest assured and i think you know that what we are trying to do is to hold people accountable. we are not trying to release any information that is personally identifiable. this is also a murder situation, it's a suicide, which is very

difficult, but a murder/suicide. and so i believe that while the d.a. is going through and doing this, and attempting to find out where things may have broken down, the fact is, have gotten this information before from other incidents. this one is particularly grievous because of the murders that took place. and i remind you that we are a federal body not a state body. we're bound by the united states constitution of which we are given oversight of the executive branch. and we are not bound by many of the laws, the hipaa laws and other information to receive that information for us to be able to do our oversight in this. and it's not political. we are trying to get to the bottom of a very tragic event.

and we're trying to partner with the v.a., as well. and right now they are not being as open as they should be. there are documents that are clearly missing from the file. documents that i believe are damning documents. that would put v.a. in a negative light. i understand that. but you can't remove those documents from the file just because it makes you look bad. and that's what we're trying to get at at this point. but again i thank every member of this subcommittee for the job that you have been doing. and look forward to continuing the good works. thank you. >> all right mr. chairman, i ask that all other members waive their opening remarks as per the committee's custom. hearing no objection, so ordered. with that i would now like to introduce our panel. on the panel we have dr. carolyn clancy.

interim undersecretary for health for the department of veterans affairs. mr. michael valentino chief consultant pharmacy benefits management service veterans health administration. dr. harold kudler chief consultant veterans health administration. mr. randall williamson, director of jao's health care team, and dr. jacqueline -- let's see, maffucci. research director for the iraq and afghanistan veterans of america dr. clancy you are now recognized for five minutes. >> good morning chairman kaufmann ranking member cuss ter, members of the committee thank you for the opportunity to discuss the overuse of medication and the provision of mental health care to veterans particularly those at risk of suicide. one of our most important

priorities at v.a. is to keep our patients free from harm at all times. i'm deeply saddened by the tragic outcome involving a veteran, so to families here today, or watching this hearing who've lost a loved one, i want to express my sorrow and regret for your loss. i appreciate your sharing your experiences with us, and we will honor your loved ones by learning from those experiences, and improving care for veterans in the future. we acknowledge up front that we have more work to do to reduce opioid use meet the increasing demands for mental health care and prevent suicides and we've taken significant actions to improve these areas in order to better serve veterans. as ranking member custer said chronic pain is a national public health problem. it affects about a third of the nation's adult population, and about half of veterans from recent conflicts. as a result a number of veterans and americans rely on opioids for pain control. and they can be effective for

awhile. until the side effects become quite worrisome, and often mixed with other drugs they can have additional adverse unintended effects. as you noted mr. chairman we've adopted a number of initiatives and tools to advance our goal of safe and effective pain management. making data about rates and doses of opioids as well as other medications a veteran is taking visible at the network facility and most recently at the individual clinician level. starting this july 1, we will be expanding on a very successful pilot, an approach called academic detailing. which essentially consists of one-on-one coaching for every single clinician prescriber in our system. in addition to information about effective use of medications, it

also this approach also works with clinicians to have the difficult conversations with veterans to help them try other alternatives for pain management and so forth. i think it's important to note that many of the veterans we serve come to us as they're transitioning from military service on opioids and other medications. and abrupt discontinuation is not possible or actually practical. but we have to continue to taper these doses we've seen some successes, and as you might expect, those with the least amount of problems have tended to do better than those who are experiencing more severe pain. suicide among veterans is very complex and tragic. those of us who have lost a loved one to suicide know the deep and lasting pain. we've worked diligently with our scientific partners to understand suicides among those veterans receiving v.a. care and among all veterans across the nation.

we know that treatment works. we've identified many positive outcomes for veterans who are receiving our care. for example, the rate of repeat attempts at suicide among veterans who have attempted to take their own lives has declined quite a bit for veterans enrolled in our system. between 1999 and 2010 the suicide rate among middle-age male veterans who use our system fell by 31%. at the same time that the suicide rate for middle-aged men who are not veterans or who are veterans who don't use our system actually rose during that time period. the rate of suicide among women veterans is higher than other women in the general public, but women veterans who use our system actually are less likely to die from suicide when compared to other women veterans. as you know, our research has allowed us to estimate that

about 22 veterans die by suicide every day. what's less well known is that 17 of those 22 do not receive treatment for care within the v.a. system. i worry that some of the 17 are seen in the system and fearful of raising mental health concerns because of concerns about stigma or privacy. suicide prevention efforts have to extend to veterans who may not seek assistance. and any veteran who needs help can come to any point of entry of care in our system and will be seen that day. we have increased targeted outreach efforts to veterans in communities throughout the country and made it easier for anyone to call the veterans crisis line. and in response to many suggestions from stakeholders in the very near future you'll be able to do that when you call one of our facilities directly you don't have to hang up and call the line. you can just hit a number on the

phone and that will directly transfer you. i want to express appreciation to the congress for the clay hunt act, and its passage which will expand our capabilities to help veterans so thank you for that. the importance of mental health treatments, i don't think, can be overstated. about 20 years ago in this country we did not recognize how important a challenge mental health care is for all-americans. at v.a. we have embraced the problems that veterans from returning conflict brought to us whether that is various mental health problems, post traumatic stress, traumatic brain injuries and so forth. and in doing so we have had to blaze some trails. we have had to go ahead of what is going on in the rest of u.s. health care where utilization of mental health has been pretty dramatically curtailed, utilization controlled over the years. that meant we have had to work with public and private science

partners to build the basic science, the data, and the population health expertise. we have learned a lot, made significant gains, and seen the successes of treating mental health problems. but we have so much to do to dispel the stigma of mental health issues. it wasn't that long ago that cancer inspired that whispering and people didn't talk about it out loud. because of fears and misinformation. frankly, we hope with your help and the help of many partners that soon we'll be able to eliminate that fear and misinformation associated with seeking mental health care. and in the mean time we're focusing on creating an atmosphere of trust and privacy. i want to just close by saying that we're committed to improving our existing programs. taking every available action to create new opportunities. and most importantly, improving the quality of life for veterans.