host: you can read her work at las vegas soun.com. we will have coverage of president obama at his town hall meeting at 1:30 p.m.. we also will have coverage of cpac. details are coming up shortly. we want to leave you with this story from the associated press about former secretary of state and presidential adviser alexander haig. it is reported he has been admitted to johns hopkins hospital in baltimore. a spokesman says he could not provide details about his condition. that will do it for this morning's "washington journal," we will see you tomorrow morning. have a great day. . .

>> this morning session features minnesota gov. tim pawlenty and indiana congressman mike pence. you can see live coverage right now on c-span2. and at noon eastern, live cpac coverage moves here to c-span. you'll hear from attorney- general john ashcroft and ed mercy of hotair.com. the dalai lama brought up a visit to washington this week. he will be honored by the

national endowment for democracy. we will have live coverage in about half an hour here on c- span. >> this weekend on c-span, first lady michelle obama on preventing childhood obesity and secretary arne duncan on education policy, part of our color -- coverage on this year's annual meeting on the national governors association. livecopter of the weekend. >> sometimes i think history is a series of accidents, like a pileup of cars in a snowstorm. >> how did the u.s. and up in vietnam? sunday, pulitzer prize-winning author ted mark -- ted morgan on the valley of death and the battle that ended french colonial rule in indochina, sunday night on q&a, c-span. [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

[captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> the white house plans to hold a health care summit next week inviting republicans to take part. the associated group -- a sensitive press shows a new study out today that show premiums for prescription drug coverage has gone up an average of 14% last year. president obama is in las vegas today to unveil a $100 million plan to help some home mortgages. las vegas has the worst foreclosure crisis in the country. c-span is covering events there live on c-span.org. and toyota's president has agreed to testify before a congressional hearing next week, set up to look at the cars investigated by the state department. american prospect," executive editor.

you have an article in the january/february publication that talks about the machinery in progress and looking at the president, focusing solely on the president. more broadly -- after a year of a new president and congress, how things look to you? guest: i think it is not quite what a little -- some of us a little more liberal or progressive expected. one of the points i made in that article is there is a tendency to put it all on obama. we come to this great drama of the individual. of course, he is a fascinating individual. but i think it is important to look at all of the institutions that go into making any kind of change possible, which is congress, obviously things that happen and some of the congressional committees, and also whether we have been able to organize citizens well enough to really demand the kind of change.

host: do you think things work out the way progressive had hoped a year ago? guest: not at all. but at the same time deacon say that is one big thing, health reform. i think health reform is essential giving people economic opportunity in this country. i listened to the last half hour of your callers, obviously a central issue. if you have not achieved that, you have not achieved what has been the central aim of progressives since truman at least in that sense it has not worked out at all. and there are issues like financial regulation and things like that. host: what the think of the voices, conservative political action conference, those who say it is not going right for other reasons? guest: that argument is they are pushing things through too fast. we did not elect a conservative president. i think we elected a president

who wanted to transform the political process fundamental -- in fundamental ways. i did not think we necessarily elected ai] wall liberal president, either. i think his failure at really transforming the political process as well as the failure on health care, kind of two things that have fallen short. i think republicans and conservatives are largely responsible for that failure of transforming the political process. host: mark schmitt is with us until 8:30 a.m. eastern. in your article and you write about progresses and using them as he did in the campaign. you write just as in the campaign, built on organizing, on-line activists and civic engagement --

it appears politically the president is more to the center and allç of his moves. what are you calling for here? i]çguest: building up a set of organizations, whether think tanks and so forth, that don't belong to barack obama. the organization that was called obama for america, turned into organizing for america, but fundamentally belongs to the democratic national committee in the white house. i would like to see more things like our magazine, the center for american progress, organizing groups like democracy for america, that are developing ideas. a lot of what happened with health care is a lot of work went into developing basic

outlines of that program, that is essentially what was put in place. we need more things like that. for example, figuring out how we should in financial regulation. there are not a lot of people really thinking about that. there really is not an agenda so if you. --i] are a citizen and say i wat to do something about this, somebody can say here of the five things you should call your congressman about. that sort of thing. and it has to be independent of obama. host: on health care, what is your hope for this televised contact next week with the blair house? guest: i think it could get two things back on track. this is my pie in the sky hope, right? one is to adis would get health reform on track. one of the most essential thing you can do. and obama's effort to change the process back on track. to me what obama wanted to do is really say, when you get

everyone around the table and you get them talking about a problem, things change. that is his experience as a community organizer and what should happen. at the republicans have been saying, we know that is true and that is why we don't really wanted roundtable because we are worried about that happening. host: we have callers waiting for you. louisiana what are democrats line. good morning. -- louisiana, on our democrats line. caller: if john mccain would have won the president -- what difference -- what would been different than what the president has already done? the tax cuts the president a small businesses, the tax cut on payroll taxes, when you look at the money he pushed out through the recovery act that people need to really realize the difference between tarp and recovery act. the recovery act was to really keep the economy from going over the cliff. the thing is, what i am looking

at, if the democrats in the office and the senate and congress does not get out there and support the president's agenda, everything he tries not going to work because the president will not support anything he is doing. i watched some of the cpac, a digital color a klan rally -- host: said it was a klanç rall? i]caller: did you see one black person(aod audit? -- in the audience present not like i'm trying to make it racist thing. the audience? guest: an interesting question, what would be different if john mccain was president? i think it is unlikely we would have done the economic stimulus anything close to the level we did, and the consequences of not doing that probably would have

been enormous in terms of the economy. take it from there. host: you wrote about this in december in changing the tone. there is an aggrieved minority in the country, maybe 15% to 18% of the population, that will not go away -- guest: that is -- i had a number of conversations with people about that. rep. i want to make sure what i wrote is understood. it is not some about racism, but the set of people who have taken for granted the leverage they have in american politics. the white south has had a huge amount of control if you go back to the 1940's, 1950's, 1960's --

when it was democrat, and all the committee chairs were white southerners. the only democratic president between kennedy and obamaç were seveners. there is a leverage the white south has had that i think they feel like has lifted away, has gone away for the first time. host: has any group -- new group emerged that has the leverage? guest: i don't think it is quite the same. i don't think it is the make or break leverage. i don't think the obama coalition is still coming together. maybe the new democratic coalition, kind of rearranging of the map that the reporter who was on earlier was talking about. that is still kind of coming together. we don't know what is going to remain as part of the coalition --ççi] 2010, 2012, for going forward. what i always tried to do in this column is try to take as long a view as possible.

mother bird be hayes -- host: he does not it -- he does not give mention that often. cleveland, ohio. david. çcaller: i keep hearing about these jobs, jobs, jobs programs and the differences between the democrat and republican party. the problem is the only a two types of jobs -- you have the public sector and the private sector, which my family is diversified, we are half and half. with my wife in civil service, she could retire after 25 years, and believe me, she will. and my father was in civil service, he worked 26 years and he got a buyout, 31-year pension. that is -- you cannot hire all

of these young people. we have healthy young people but you cannot get them into the private sector because they don't offer a good retirement. there was a proposal from dennis kucinich when he wanted to lower the social security age from 62 down to 60, because most of the people i work with in manufacturing, they can't wait -- if i had an opportunity to, you could hire millions of these young people to do the jobs. but the way it stands, you can't do it. host: thanks for the input. okguest: i think there are two dimensions of things that changed in the labor market that lead to huge economic insecurity. one is health care and increasing number of employers providing either no health care or inadequate health care, and the other is pensions. it it is one of -- it is one of

the topics you cannot hear much about. a world of difference between someone going in manufacturing job 30 or 40 years ago with a defined benefit -- benikç$tt -- a defined benefit and where we are now with a mix of 401k and others. host: he talked about efforts with dennis kucinich. are those likely to get any traction? guest: that would require a restructuring of the social security in order to bring the eligibility age down. i just saw the other numbers today, people who are because of a lack of pension are taking it early. you get a lot less money per month when you take it early. i think that is a real sign of

the economic pressures and absence of pension that people are not able to hold out until 65 and get the full value of their work and their contribution. host: next up is naples, florida, republican collar. i punched up the wrong line. let's go to elizabeth in naples, florida. caller: obama has been pulling the wool over our eyes for a long time because in the beginning when he was campaigning he said he was going to take public funds and then at the last minute he changed it to private funds. this is what he has been doing all along. if he would stay to his agenda and do what he is saying, the

problems would not be so put out right now. i think everything he has been doing, and right now, if he starts really focusing on the health care bill, he should also put the health care bill over state lines because if he cut a deal with the insurance companies -- and being in florida, there are always at least three major insurance companies -- they are going to get even more wealth here and the costs will not be contained. a couple of interesting points. i will pick up on one, and i think this will be part of the republican response to health care, selling policies across state lines. clearly, that is the alternative out there. i think it is pretty clear that if we did that, some states provide a lot of protection for

people, some provide very little. those who provide the very little can start providing in other states. whatever state has the least regulation potentially dominates the market. it is like your credit card coming from south dakota, because that is a state that has no limits on interest rates, so they can charge whatever they want. if you like that system, fine. it sounds appealing, but it has huge implications. host: your most recent column looks at the citizens united case and the supreme court decision. you write --

so you are not as concerned as the court decision? guest: i am not quite as alarmist as some. i think a lot of imports has been attached to it. the controversy within the court -- the decision itself went quite far, but the immediate consequences will not be as significant as some have said because there is so much room for corporations to influence the election, and they do.

health care when the different right now if we did not have this influence. the way we have approached campaign finance reform, by trying to limit this, closing that loophole, the court is not interested in that approach. it is time to get to public financing so that small donors can become a part of the system. host: what is your take in general? guest: there was a real reminder from justice roberts, in his confirmation, that they are just a on buyers, they have nothing to do with the designing of -- umpires, they have nothing to do with the designing of rules, but this opinion showed us what kind of outcome they wanted to reach.

they had to stretch way beyond the limits atof the case at hand. whether or not they are looking at the original intentions of the constitution, i think that is a little bit blown out of the water. host: sandy from california. caller: good morning. i am wondering what you think the congress, what part the congress plays in the overall perception of americans, with how our government functions. most people had a difficult time focusing on the minutia,

the sausage-making that takes place in congress. i am looking at a majority democrat congress that seems only unable to get its act together. as a progressive, this has been frustrating to watch. as a progressive, what do we need to be doing to push our congress, to push the people we elected to tackle all of these huge issues that the country faces in the direction that is most beneficial to the most citizens? let me give you an example. it is common wisdom that the public option is favored

overwhelmingly, republicans, democrats, independents. americans are not stupid. we understand we are being ripped off by intracompany and most people would like to have the ability to govern their insurance company. most people, if you ask them, they understand there should not be any profit margin in taking care of people's health. it should be about providing care so that people can live healthy lives, but we have the congress -- the blue dog democrats -- who have decided they are going to be republicans. they are going to block any progress. host: thank you. we are going to hear from mark schmitt. guest: and that perception of

congress is a huge amount. i worked on capitol hill for years. i worked for senator bill bradley of new jersey. there was a time not long ago when there was more bipartisan cooperation. there was more crossover in ideology between parties. we are in a different situation now. it is interesting to look back on that era. back then, there were even more democrats that were very conservative. some have become republicans now. the real problem is with the senate. the house does its work, it is tough, but they produce bills that are basically solid. when you get to the senate, we are in a situation where you are

just on the margin to avoid a filibuster. so republicans say we are giving nothing. so the effect of that is your take the democrat that is on the farthest bench from center, he may be conservative like joe lieberman, or he could be like a hack k that person is almost like the co-president. they're able to say, need this person from my state and they have this life and death power as a result of what you need to do to get that 60th vote. now is really the time to start talking about changing that filibuster rule in the senate.

not so much so that a party can do something because we become dependent on that power at the 60th vote. even when you have a huge majority of ready. host: following up to your comments on chiefñi justice roberts and the supreme court, a tweet here. he helped stop the recount for who was awarded the chief justice job, and ask alito, too. but they could not pass the president's request to get this debt panel done on the hill, the proposal by senators conrad and grade. yesterday, the president announced this bipartisan panel. what is your take on this effort? guest: i think that as we look into the long term, it is not about this year's deficit or next year's deficit or the year

after that. as we look into the long term, we have a huge fiscal problem headed our way. some people want to call it an entitlement problem, social security, medicare, medicaid. i think when you dig into it is a problem driven by health care costs. we have to get it under control. and we do not have good revenues coming into the government because of the tax cuts. the republicans, a large number of whom have been urging this panel, voted against a legislative version of that panel because of the chance that maybe they would talk about revenues, that is, taxes. that cannot even be on the table. when you have that refusal to even put those issues on the table, it is going to be very difficult to get to a resolution of that long-term fiscal issue. but i think to have a panel that -- we have to begin to think about those things.

not act abruptly because it will stop the recovery,ñr but get a plan in place for how we will deal with the long-term fiscal ñrand i think that is the best u can do. the leaders of the panel are good leaders. host: do you think the stimulus was big enoughçó when they passd it, $787 billion? çóguest: i am not an economist. i know a lot of economists who say that if the stimulus had beenñiñi bigger by a few hundred million dollars, the unemployment would be a percentage point or so lower now. i think it should have been bigger at that time. i think we're going back in for another jobs package. we are at the point where every bit of money -- we are still at the point where every bit of money we can get into the economy is going to help us. the alternate past where we did not have a stimulus of that size

i think would have been disastrous. host: the next call is david in attleboro, massachusetts. caller: it is more of a comment than a question. it one of your previous caller talked about the cpac rally. i happen to watch that. if people of it -- people have a problem about minorities and want to make it a racial, but maybe they should ask obama. my wife and i are both members of the party. we have seen the numbers of people that are christofpissed t the american congress is -- of what the american congress is doing rightçó now. there is no segregation in this country anymore. it is the way it is. and for congress, well, if they

cannot figure it out and cannot listen, scott brown was one message that we sent to massachusetts and they will get another bigger message, reelection in 2010. host: david, thanks for the call. guest: i will largely let up, and stand. there is a tendency within the two-party or cpac movement -- in the tea party or cpac movement to gain a lot of energy. their energy and enthusiasm equates to this is however one in the country feels. i think that is a large part of what obama needs to do, what the c-span does and we need other things to do, is to make sure we are hearing each other up the same time and not just during their own voices. host: you do hear a lot of a nger, though. are there areas of common

grievance? guest: i think there -- i do not think that there are that many areas of common grievance when you take it quite seriously. if someone is agreed that we have not done anything with health care and someone is aggrieved that their taxes might go up, they are sort of different situations. you hear this in your callers, there are a lot of people that are frustrated with everything you are feeling in the world. people do not block it off and say this is my frustration about taxes or health care, my frustration about jobs or pension. it is kind of in general. the tea party activism is out there as an attractive, appealing way to express that anger. in the bush years, maybe people were attracted to things like moveon.org as a way to express their frustration.

i do not think people fall into ideological boxes. i think there is some crossover in terms of where people are coming from. a lot of lines of conversation ought to be opened up with people opewho are entrusted to e two-party or other venues. host: here is just in parkersburg, west virginia. -- jeff in parkersburg, west virginia. caller: i have three questions concerning the medical plan and the medical bill. i am amazed at how when people watch tv like "60 minutes," and pardon me for sanger competition there, but when they bring up the hospitals and the elderly having to make up more money than what the government is paying them because they are losing money on their care from the government spending money on them. everybody else pays for it.

the other question i have is, president obama, i have to give the man credit. he is trying. and i am a republican, but he ran on one thing that everybody swore up and down was going to ruin the country, and that was reform. companies going south and leaving the united states. everybody said it was going to drop our gas prices up high or something. a really think he needs to go back and that would address the problem of getting charles back in this country. and this is on a personal note. i am tired of people listening to special interest groups, congress, every time they want to get something done, they either use the race card or --

this country is above that. this is 2010. this country was ready for a black president. this country was ready for a woman president. that is really all i have to say. i would like to hear the gentleman dancers. guest: -- the gentleman's answers. guest: i think the first two go together. when you talk about health care, the point is, we are really paying a huge amount for people who do not have health insurance in the form of uncompensated care that is added to your hospital bill and so forth. we just need a way to structure that better so that we get people in the system. that is the best economic program you can have. you know, something that allows people to be self employed and lift some costs from companies that right now are incredibly unpredictable, especially small business.

and i do not think it has been talked about enough as an economic program. people sometimes say that obama needs to get away from health care and start talking about jobs. they are not very different. but we also need the investment in job creation. host: you had a and all -- an article in february called "the return of childish things." is this addressing something we talked about -- we talked about anger moments ago. guest: this article came out right after the state of the union address and it is one of the things i wrote in a few hours after the state of the union address. the point of was trying to make, the term chávez things refers to an of -- refers to a phrase that obama use in his inaugural address that -- the term childish things refers to a phrase that obama used in his

inaugural address that refers to able -- refers to a biblical statement. basically, our view was, need something really big. you need to do health care in a big way. you need big ideas. senator robb, why work for who ran for president in the senate, but -- senator bradley, who i worked for in the senate, we talked about these big ideas during the clinton administration. obama came out of the box that way with the health care, a cap and trade, etc. and it has gone pulled back. we have to now find the smaller pieces that ultimately over the course of four years or eight years actually do add up to get in this country back on track. but it is no longer the grand gesture. i think we are kind of away from that. and i do not think that responds to the anger, but the way our

government works and the limits of the congressional process. host: next up is columbus, mississippi, and this is bonnie. caller: my first comment about the congress, they do not need one republican. they have enough democrats to pass anything. mr. obama ran on transparency, hope, and change. the stimulus package should have gone for jobs, first off. and the money that is coming back in, what are they doing with that? only one-third of that money has been spent and people are still without jobs. now, the health care thing, he turned that over to congress. he is not participating. and i mean, i'm glad to hear the

gentleman say he is a progressive because not too many say that. i am a constitutional democrat. our constitution has been torn apart piece by piece. that is what the country wants. as you know, i am from mississippi, and there are a lot of blacks here that do not even -- progressive democrats that do not like what is going on with the president. he is not doing what he promised in his campaign. host: bonnie, did you vote for him? caller: yes, i did, and i will not again. because he has lied and he stands up there and i watch when he comes on. he is not honest. host: what are you hearing in her comments? guest: in her comments and a lot of other comments i hear -- a

lot of people expected a lot of different things from president obama and they are feeling disappointed in different ways. i think an interesting point she makes is about obama turning over to much to the congress. i think that will be in many ways a big verdict on the year. i think there were a lot of lessons that people thought they learned from the health reform experience of 1993 and 1994 with the clinton and administration, and one of those was do not give congress a detailed plan. let them work it out. and obviously, the detailed plan did not work. >> we will go live now to the library of congress here in washington. the dalai lama is visiting the nation's capital this week. he met with president obama yesterday, even as china expressed it would strain relations with the u.s. and now, the national endowment for democracy presented dalai lama with the democracies

service medal. again, live at the library of congress, here on c-span. [applause] >> your holiness, mr. gershman, friends all, library of congress is very pleased and honored to welcome here for the national endowment for the humanities special tribute program and presentation of the democracy service medal to his holiness, the dalai lama. his holiness is no stranger to the library, having been received here previously twice by my predecessor, dr. daniel boorstin, and it is therefore a very special honor to welcome him on his return today to the library of congress.

with collections numbering more than $147 million representing over 470 languages, the library sustains the world's largest and most wide-ranging collection of human knowledge and creativity for the benefit of current and future generations, particularly of lawmakers and their constituents, but really, of all people everywhere. congress of the united states has been the greatest patron of the library in human history by creating and sustaining this library for 210 years, the oldest federal cultural institution. and it represents the democratic belief that truly representative government has to be based on knowledge and freedom to use it. the library statin collection, which his holiness has seen and revisited some of its treasures,

reflects a lot -- a wide spectrum of tibetan culture, history, art, folklore and foreign affairs and represents cultural awareness and understanding and also preserves tibetan heritage. there are affiliations with its spiritual traditions, includingr the hand painted religious scroll on cloth, which was presented to william would fail rockville, the former u.s. minister to china and a tibetan scholar himself. he donated his entire collection of tibetan books acquired in tibet and mongolia between 1888 and 8092. -- 1892.

the presentation of these guests to iraq killed by the 13th, has been this -- to rockhill friday 13th lama has been described as a historic. we feel especially honored to welcome his point is here today, and your presence highlights -- welcome his holiness here today, and your presence highlights the historic legacy of the tibetan experience. your holiness, thank you for maintaining your friendship with this library, for your witness to freedom of speech and access to knowledge, on which all libraries depend, and for the great culture that you

represent, the freedom of worship that has sustained culture and all cultures and your own inspirational presence in a troubled world. and now special thanks to all of our guests that have gathered here for this important ink -- important occasion. it is my honor to turn the program over to the national endowment for democracy, to honor and thank him for his enduring witness to human rights and democratic values, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the distinguished vice chair of the endowment, judy shelton. [applause] >> thank you, james billington, our distinguished library of congress, for those warm words of welcome. what a marvelous privilege it is to be here this morning in the

world's largest library, our nation's oldest cultural institution, and institution dedicated to preserving a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations. it is my pleasure as vice chair of the board of directors of the national endowment for democracy to likewise welcome you all for this very special presentation today. our chairman, richard gephardt, was unable to be here, to his great regret, as he would have loved to greet our guest of honor to -- a guest of honor, with whom he's had several occasions to meet previously. chairman gephardt has long been a powerful voice for fairness, justice, tolerance, and he is committed to the belief that basic human rights are not a mere cultural preference, but rather, the reflection of universal aspirations. the national endowment for democracy was founded in 1983

and since then, the endowment has supported the work of democrats throughout the world. that is with a small "d" for the endowment is truly bipartisan. our funding comes from the american citizenry and is provided to us through the u.s. congress, for which we are most grateful. our grant program today supports over 1200 projects annually, covering a full range of activities related to democratic development and the assumption of democratic institutions. i am proud to report that n.e.d., the acronym by which we are known, has supported the operations of the tibetan people for over 20 years. our projects have been related to billing democratic awareness in institutions and on the part of those in exile, and to increaseñi meaningful interactin

between the tibetans and chinese. in short, is n.e.d.'s mission worldwide to help people embrace democratic and values, who are peaceful advocates for democratic rights and who share a common desire to live in a world that is free and democratic. the democracy service medal was created by the board of directors of the national endowment for democracy to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the progress of democracy around the world. it was first presented in april of 1999 at the roundtable agreement that led to poland's peaceful transition to democracy. the medallion is made of cast bronze. the engraving on it is -- read simply, "in the service for the cause of democracy. , it was awarded to the founder of the solidarity trade union

movement who became president of poland. and to the afl-cio president who was also the principal founder of the national endowment for democracy. the metal has since been awarded to a very select few of exemplary individuals here and abroad who have dennis -- who have demonstrated their dedication to the advancement of freedom and human rights and to the expansion of democratic institutions, such as freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, honest and open elections, rule of law. and now, before proceeding to the presentation of the metal to our honored guest, i would like to take a few moments to recognize some people in the audience today, and to express our deep thanks to the hereford foundation for sponsoring this event. we're honored to have with us

the foundation's president, robert miller, who was also a member of n.e.d.'s board of directors and an officer, and we would like to say thank you to jane hersman, who serves on the hereford foundations board. will both of you stand and be recognized? [applause] i would also like to work -- to ñirecognize will taft, the chairman of the board of directorsçó of freedom house. if he would please stand? [applause] will taft is a man who has been at the center of u.s. decision making. he is a principled advocate for freedom. for the past two days, freedom house has been cosponsoring a human rights summit together with the organization human rights first, chaired by williams able -- ablesable.

are you here, sir? [applause] we also have jennifer windsor, the executive director of freedom house. [applause] and alyssa macimino, the president of human rights first. [applause] we offer a warm welcome to the human rights defenders from around the world who have gathered to the summit and honor us with their presence today. [applause] i would also like to recognize alan winds dean -- allen weinstein, the distinguished former archiver for the united states. if he will stand, please? [applause]

allen weinstein has done so much to ensure free and fair elections in the philippines and central america and throughout the world. helping the striving democracies to meet the standard of the electoral integrity, and he played an importantñi role in te founding of n.e.d. paula dobrionski, a remarkable woman, please stand. [applause] she was the under secretary of state in democracy in global toçó to thousand nine, during which time she was also special coordinator to tibet. paula is a recipient of the state department's highest honor, the secretary's distinguished service medal, and we are proud to note that she served as vice chair of the n.e.d. board. thank you so much. i would like to mention, too,

that will taft's late wife, julia, was well known for her work related to refugees and disaster relief. she served as u.s. special coordinator to to bed and she was a valued member of n.e.d.'s board of directors and 1994 to 1998. finally, ladies and gentleman, i would like to recognize someone who isñi instantly recognizableo millions, the esteemed actor, richard gere. [applause] he also happens to be one of the most loyal and influential activists dedicated to the well- being of the tibetan people. richard gere chairs the international campaign for tibet, an organization that works tirelessly to promote human rights and democratic freedoms for the people of

tibet. a well-known humanitarians, richard gere is a poignant speaker on behalfñr of human rights, cultural preservation, and helping disadvantaged communities worldwide. it is wonderful to have you here with us today and we appreciate working closely with our good friends at that ict in organizing these events. -- this event. there are many distinguished guests in our audience today. it is an embarrassment of riches, and i hope you will forgive me for not been able to ñrproperly acknowledge your presence, but we have a very special purpose before us today. we now proceedñi to the presentation of the democracy service medal to our most honored guests, his holiness the dalaiçó lama, who has very kindy consented to take written questions after the awarding of the metal, and following his initial comments.

the president of the national endowment for democracy, carl gershman, will offer the democracy tribute for the ceremony, and it is very fitting that he do so. for under curls leadership, n.e.d. has grown to the premier of democracy organization in the world. carl gershman is the epitome of grass-roots democracy activist on a global scale, quite literally. he is one of the founders of the world movement for democracy, and is himself a past recipient of the light of truth awards presented by the international campaign for tibet. and in accepting the award five years ago, carl made this observation, "there has sometimes been a tendency to rñifundamentally a moral locatin -- but aiding democracyñi is fundamentally immoral location,

and our connection to the is wholly llama -- his holiness the dalai lama, helps remind us who we are, what we are all about and why we do what we do." anyone who knows curled gershman knows that he does what he does out of deep compassion, steadfast commitment, and an innate sense of justice. carl, if you would please come to the podium now to make the award. [applause] >> thank you so much, judy. it is a very great honor for me to read n.e.d.

's tribute -- the n.e.d.'s trivia to the dalai lama, after which judy and i will have the distinct pleasure of placing people medal of around his neck, just as he has placed the traditional scarf are run the next of so many people throughout the world. we are gathered here today to honor the contribution of the dalai lama to the principles, values, and cause of democracy. this contribution is neater well understood, nor by the recognized -- is neither well understood, nor widely recognized. the leadership of the tibetans to preserve their culture is world renowned. and he is honored as a man of peace. but his contribution to democracy has not received it --

the attention it deserves. our purpose today is to shed light on this dimension of his beliefs and purposes, one that makes the dalai lama especially relevant to the future of the world in which we live. even as a very young man, years before he fled tibet in 1959, the dalai lama sought to implement significant democratic reforms in tibet's system of government. not only did he seek justice for the tibetan people, but he also saw -- sought such reforms in the areas of taxation and land idling as a way to mobilize the tibetan people against the chinese attempted to approve the

tibetan society through forced collectivization, a program that was already under way in the early 1950's under the orwellian rubric of democratic reform. for reasons beyond his control, the dalai lama was unable to implement these reforms in tibet. but once in exile, he proceeded almostç?$rssq"iately to developa democratic system for the tibetans living in india. the first elections among tibetan refugees were held in the summer of 1960 in india. just months after his holiness arrived in the arm saw -- a darmstadt -- dharamsala. today, the tibetan community in exile is overseen by an

independent judiciary. a charter adopted by the assembly in 1991 transferred from the dalai lama to that body the power to elect the cabinet', including a prime minister vested with day-to-day powers. while a charter is modeled on the constitutions of established democracies, it reflects the unique nature of tibetan culture by placing special emphasis on protecting freedom of religion, upholding the principles of nonviolence and emphasizing the moral and material welfare of the tibetan people. in 1992, the dalai lama announced new guidelines for tibet's future policy the pending in negotiated summit with the chinese government give them major responsibility for determining tibet's future

governance to the tibetans living in tibet. that responsibility, in his view, should include even the power to determine if the institution of the dalai lama should continue to exist. the dalai lama's commitment to develop a democratic polity for tibet is based on his belief enunciated in a lecture is sponsored by n.e.d. in 1998 that the old system was "outdated and ill-equipped to face the challenges of the contemporary world." this commitment to democratic reform and modernization, important as is, is but one çódimension of the dalai lama's contribution to democracy. . .

without which, they cannot exercise the right of self- government or realize the promise of democracy. this commitment to impart knowledge as the foundation of democracy is at the court at

we meet today. it is also inspired -- it has inspired the children's village and the our rate of other tibetan educational institutions established throughout india, including the dalai lama institute for higher education, inaugurated a year ago this week. another dimension of the dalai lama's contribution has been his forthright defense of democracy as a universal idea. in response to those asian leaders who have claimed that it is a western concept that undermines so-called asian values of order, duty, and stability. speaking as a buddhist monk, he has argued that buddhism is

compatible with democracy in that both are "rooted in a common understanding in the potential of. every of" he has attached great importance to the factç that democracy is now well established in india and other non-western countries, and is the cherished goal of brave activists in burma, china, and elsewhere around the globe. the institutions that thrive from democratic values, he has said, are nothing less than the necessary conditions of a civilized society. in addition to defending democracy, his holiness has given us all but a model of how to pursue democracy and with according to its values.

are refusing to relinquish the principle of nonviolence despite the terrible violence that has been inflicted on the tibetan people, he has preserved the moral integrity of the tibetan struggle and the possibility for an eventual reconciliation with çchina. by demonstrating moral courage and selfxd assurance in the face of perked force and abuse of insult -- in the face of bçrute çforce, he is given hope to his own people and to all oppressed people everywhere. by showing a deep concern for all human beings in keeping with his belief in universal responsibility, he has awakened the spirit of human and international solidarity that animates all those around the world who are struggling for

democracy and human rights, not least, he has been aç consistet voice of solidarity for democratic dissidents. his holiness has called himself the unluckiest dalai lama because he has spent more time as a refugee living outside his country than he has living in tibet. t(but with characteristic optimism, he has said his exile has been rewarding and that it has given him the opportunity to live in the democracy of india, suggesting he now has a greater capacity to bring the gift of democracy back to tibet. whether he will have that

chance depends in no small measure on the fate of chinese democrats like the imprisoned, who have supported his call for dialogue as will as his beliefs that in negotiated settlements, granting full autonomy to the tibetan people will enhance the china possibility, unity, and its standing on the world. thus, the circumstances that have made the dalai lama and exile have also linked his struggle to the survival of tibet, to the future of çdemocracy int( the world's lat country. his holiness has also said that his exile has enabled him "to

learn about the world in a way that we tibetans have never been able to do before. it has given the world an opportunity to learn about the dalai lama and the people of tibet in a way that might not otherwise have been possible." to have become in rich in the process. -- to have becomeç enriched in the process. he has transformed exile into a platform from which to defend his people and to teach moral and democratic values to the world, and an achievement that inspires people of goodwill everywhere and helps us all look to the future with hope. çxdçççqw3qñrfor its contribr

çadvancing the institutions, values, and purposes of democracy, for giving us all -- for giving us all a model on how to practice democracy as a way of life, and for defending the survival of the people and culture ofç tibet in a way that has also contributed to world peace and human understanding the national endowment for democracy is proud to present its democracy service medal to his holiness, the dalai lama. [applause] xd çqççççw3çççç>> i thi.

i don't know how to handle this formally. brothers, sisters, and those people who have given me this, thank you. thank you very much. [laughter] i feel getting this kind of a thing is the recognition for my small contribution for betterment of 6 million human

beings. in this case, mainly i tried to promote democracy. democracy, i did not learn the value of democracy through education, but through experience. i want to share with you that. firstly, when i was a young buddhist monk, a rather stupid young monk, i never paid attention to study. just only for play. one example -- i was 42 --

seven, up my age. i received, i think, a very important letter and gift from president roosevelt'. so as to that time, my only interest was the gift of the watch, not the letter. [laughter] at that time, i have no thoughts about the letter. then i do not know where the letter went. but after 68 years, just yesterday president obama gave me a copy of that letter.

[laughter] [applause] so then i --t(q so actually at t time, the container -- no, container of the letter. very beautiful. so that's -- i remember i played with that for a few weeks. [laughter] i remember like that. so, so at that time, my nature, i was in close touch with ordinary people.

they were treating me like that. like an equal. so that's reallyç was a sourcef the cheerfulness. ceremony i said on throwne. but in real dilly of life, i mixed with these people. -- in daily life, and mixed with these people. there was justice in society. these leaders, regions. so the fact -- there were complaints from his ordinary, poor people.

this has to stop. oh, so bad. not as bad as a chinese saying. but you say a lot nv injustice or drawbacks. zvthen, eventually in 1954, i wt to china and pickeiking for the chinese parliament, as a parliament member. so there there was a long speech from authority. many parliament members, they often sleep.

w3there were showing no interes. after a long session, but some small group of officials and other members of parliaments had some discussion. i remember very clearly, there was one chinese gentleman stood. i do not understand at thatw3 time. i watch him talk. his appearance, expression, he was complaining about something. that i know. and he said, shot ut up. [laughter] that ended the experience.

1956, i came to india for the celebration. i visited and have the opportunity to visit the indian parliament. very noisy. [laughter] at that time, the prime minister and vice prime minister, these two from india had some business with the indian government. they urged me that i shall return. and the prime minister informed mesto postpone this six years. çeven after six years, it can e further possible.

this was a personal message from the chairman. so on one occasion, i told him that i found big differences in indian parliament and our own parliament. in our own parliament, it -- thdbe is complete silence. indian parliament, too much noise. he tell me, since you left, much change already happened. he mentioned that. [laughter] so big differences in the system in the open society. after a 1959, april -- no.

in 1959, we decided to raise the tibetan issue at the un. initially we discussed with the indian prime minister. and he told me it is not much useful to raise the issue of the un. better not raise. with some help, including the united states, we had found sponsors, responses and identified that. after that, my meeting with the

promised her -- my meeting with the prime minister. i was hesitant. what is his reaction? we did follow his advice. and then i met him. no sign of that. so then i felt, this is a democracy. every person, every people have the right to express their feelings and to carry worked and their own beliefs. in the meantime, some of our close supporters, close friends

-- whenever i met him, of course he was a staunch supporter of tibetan independence. whenever we met, he always criticized prime minister nirero. in the parliament, he always criticized the government's of the prime minister. the criticism. but, all right. peaceful. so these -- there is an occasion to learn. what is democracy? then my own sort of vision of

the mind, not very clear. as i mentioned earlier, i recognize or realize the system. therefore i think around 1952 the perform committee settled a lot of reforms. but then the further progress that, but the chinese officials said they wanted their own form of reform. if our own reform, if it goes, that may become a hindrance.

so it becomes a last stop, an obstacle. then, as you mentioned, they start the city at one city work for democratizationq and a step- by-step and as early as 1969 an official public statement, i mentioned the very institution should continue to the people. i mentioned. at that time, some of the media people were showing interest. i told them, in case the judgment of people face, this -- i think and least a few centuries old institution would

cease. then ayatollah -- then i tell them this fortune teller, not the best, but not the worst. [laughter] çso this century-old institutin seees. it is much better. so like that. then 2001. then finally we have elected leadership. we meet together, meetings of people. i always introduced him as the my boss.

i am his boss. [laughter] even yesterday, my meeting with the present, i mentioned to that. of course, the interest of commitment as a simple buddhist monk, number one. promotion of human rights. i had mentioned to the president we are part of 60 billion human beings, no differences. from topçó, the president, kingr queen or begger. of the same human beings. -- we are the same human beings and we all have the same rights.

the right to live happy. happy life. so, in order to live happy life, the material facilities are important. no question. but alternate source, achieving the cheerfulness, peace is dependent on our mind. so everybody has a happy life. expecting journalist comes from outside. it is wrong. o ultimate source -- we must realize fat. we must pay more attention to that. that is my number one commitment. mainly through that.

as a human being. i promote this harmony. these things are a lifeline commitment to my death. not since 2001, my position is the same. so when i met the people concerning tibet issue and mainly the point made by the leadership, of course, like that. so that is the way of how learned the fight of democracy and then implemented it.

so then i am very happy indeed a very honored, a great honor to receive this metadal. [unintelligible] human rights defenders. i want to share you my deep appreciation what you're doing. usually human rights protection of human rights is not just individual sort of right. but i know it is tick flows organizations and those who are working for human rights and it takes those.

the area or country where those people who have the ability to think about the future, to have the ability, create a vision, that these people usually are critical about this system, the rolling system. so then they express their point of view. then usually these people suffer. these people are first casualties. so the country, any country, the real sort of a change must come through people, through individual creativity.

the totalitarian system, without the freedom, that opportunity to utilize individual creativity stops. so therefore the projection of individual human rights is actually protection of the whole society or government progress of the whole country. so your work like that. as i mentioned, every human being -- [unintelligible] some people -- [unintelligible]

of course, everybody cannot be president. [laughter] through election, shoes by people for the people. that gives the people some power to control change. that also gives them some kind of sense of responsibility and involvement. so this system is wonderful. however, the education, in order to utilize it, education is the key answer. so those countries where

education is higher, those areas, education is still lacking, sometimes the more pressing -- it happens like that. so we very much emphasize education. as soon as we become like that, our first obstacle is education for younger people. in 1960, will never pay attention -- britain, monastery. i think the last few years, the tibetan, i think they almost

never spent money for the construction of this monstrous or institutions. but all of our energy, all of our resources spent on education. schools, like that. so we quiet -- the achievement in the outfield. looking back, wilçw3ú=7k[:goie successful in the community. "fççç[.+ññm3di]tibetan peopls our real cause. we have to act.

so more than 50 years, i think tibetan from inside tibet when it comes to india and also here in the united states. and they saw the situation of tibetan community and the facility of education, including buddhist study. the expressed their much appreciation. this is an important part of tibetan culture, tibetan buddhist culture. buddhist culture, but as with a think is an important part, the mental quality, not just the declaration. it is mental. it is a true study, true learning. so we very much emphasize the

study of learning of buddhism and buddhism here and used to make three parts. portis science remains in the science -- buddhist science, philosophy, like things are interdependent. and a lot of causality. these are very similar to darwinian a theory. sometimes these concepts are a sign carried -- buddhist practitioner. but the science and concept is in the universe. therefore, not more than 20 years, more and more people from the scientific community

are showing interest, learning, explanation or a different to look at the human brain, human emotion and how to tell these things. so -- so we carry every single effort to the preservation and richest of tibetan buddhist culture. time for question period [laughter] [applause]

>> your holiness, we thank you so much for your wonderful and in a lightning comments. we're grateful you chose to be here with us this morning. we thank you for your willingness to take questions from our audience. if you'll permit, i will read the first one and ask for your response, please. "qçxdw3okin what sense is demoy dqñrçb(ácvçóçf - violence so importantv:w3zv? ççç" mentioned. meaningç -- as i mentioned i]earlier, e

shouldok participate, how to govern themselves. so that means respect. equality. that is very important. buddhist tradition also. buddhist monk. the monastic kind of system.7xì+ there areçççxi]çó 100 differf acts. all these acts must carry by a group of picture of a monk. no single mom, no right. has the authority. -- no single moni, k, no right. every act, when we carry

closely, we have to ask whether you except this sort of task or not. then after he says yes, i am willing, then you have to mention and answer. this person accepted the task. now the group are in unanimous agreement or not. two times, then t hreçjreew3çe times. then that person carries the act. authority. but he never sort of gives w3authorityçko to a single budt monk.

that is kind ofq the democratic system. t(and then no sort of respect, o concern about different class. even chairman mao, 1955, on one occasion he told me, he considered one revolutionary , theç exis system in indiaçç put it agait that. so he start. chairman mao,ym i say, ancient revolution. so, like that. next question. democracy naturally, you have to listen, those of you. even different views.

you must respect. so any agreement or different review, eliminate that as of violence. listen to other views and respect different views or opposite views. you must respect. we have to find the common ground. through understanding. so that means dialogue. that is the basis of nonviolence. non-violence does not mean indifference. nonviolence means problem. your heavily engaged. but without using force. this is very much predictive. >> "when did you first realize that tibet have to take the path of democracy and modernization

and is not threaten traditional tibetan values?" >> i think, as i mentioned, i çthinkç the main source of knowledgeçç democracy after we come to india. there is noç danger. , i think the principalçd8çóçn i]çalso the knowledge and =sz"n skeptical and carried the investigation through

investigation through experiments and it will become clear. as he mentioned, all my followers should not exit out of faith, out of devotion, but rather one experiment an investigation. this is scientific. ñrqthen i have to mention tibetn tradition, sometimes the position can become like social status. through that way, some corruption. to theç roots in the tradition. i often, when i give some teaching, i often refer the text by those authentic great

masters. so now if we go, we go back to the source. i think is very scientific, a very democracy principle. no contradiction. >> "which country will allow greater influence in the world in the years ahead? democratic india or commonness china?" [laughter] >> i think the united states. [applause] repeat, repeat. [laughter] repeat that question. what do you mean? china and india.

oh. [laughter] between these two. then of course, recently, indian prime minister -- sometimes i describe him as the same the prime minister. very nice. very clean. his face looks like a saint. so he expressed in india -- democracy. transparent. and free information, open society. çlogistics. so these arefá lacking in the

people's republic of china. unfortunately. so the hard liner communist leadership, but they do not see the whole picture. in order to bring a have. society, deconstructions are not the answer. ñin orderç toç be, money important.orderç toç be, no question. at the same time, other things such as individual freedom, the freeçççdç information -- he united states, my close f 5ì(lc+

president clinton -- there was a problem. çsoçç it is illegal. even president. what time the indian prime minister -- one time the indian prime minister said he passed to go to court. $ñççand china. the leader -- [unintelligible] the army. but name, very beautiful. people's army. people's government. people's republic. [laughter] and when we were in tapeking,

one official -- one tibetan official, he expressed to me where most of the official list, he said peoples order. but action, no people, no republic. only officials. only party members. [laughter] and then in early 1950's , i was in peking and i taught. in six months, then in many few months, i taught in a different part. different part of china. çat that time, those party membersçu!çokç really dedicae

çpeople. çççthere was comfort. with full belief, faked. ssákoç?;xzvideology. very strong. believe. there is a vision to reach the society of communism. that doesn't work justç for one country but a worldwide movement. so beautiful because of the vision. so much attention. at that time, i also expressed i want to join the party. i believe as the social economy, i consider myself a there.

sometimes i feel my brain more çthat those chinese leaders. w3they do not care about that. çi]money, money, money. so like that. so therefore. now today, those new party recruits, no such a fate, no suchsoy determination. simply tryç to get the opportunity about money like that. so today's communist in china are corrupted. i think the people -- i think very few support that. so you mentioned --

and also affeci think high party position. so they express the illusion -- the dissolution. so sometimes i express. now now time comes. communist party. retire with grace. it is much better. [applause] if you use the chinese officials about that, i have plenty of reason. no popular support. no salt ideology.

-- no solid ideology. it is wonderful. [laughter] i met one noble gloria. i cannot mention his name. -- i met 1 noble laureate. çrecently i met and asked him w china socialist and without hesitation he said, no, not socialist. xdso, in world history and particularly in the century, people betterç education and me different values. how can it remain in the system? knowledge.

any political party. impossible. to remain in power forever. so therefore, the chinese communist partyç, at the same time,xd they also made a lot of qcontributions for a stronger china. so now with thatt(ç, i will gracefully retire. [laughter] with some high peasantry. ç-- some high pageantry. >> this one asks,i] your holine, do you ever have a bad day?

[laughter] >> bad day. ç>> i think, as iç mentioned -- [unintelligible] the consummate dislike one stupid students -- they considered me just liked one stupid student. the reincarnation. this accepted the reality of a young studenti]. at that time, my image as a brother of myself, bothok monk

carries together. my tutorç keptç twçoçç wees qqthe whole student. if thatç yellowç holy is usedi do not think -- [unintelligible] thereforeç -- w3if that yellow is used, -- out of fear, i carried thisok study. at that time, and sometimes play too much and forget to learn. then very much afraidçç. my tutor may use that.

things are much more sort of difficult. in the meantime, my common sense also growsç and i think it is a buddhist practiceççw3. look everything for long xdxdcausality andç alsoç there interconnected. so that concept is very helpful to develop holistic play. q-- to develop holistic pokxdal. if you look polis th holistically,ok then there's the advice.

things are difficult. analyzed the situation. you do not need to worry. make effort. if there is no possibility to work on that, no use, too much çvery realistic. very scientific. ñrso, whenever there are some problems, a look from the holistic view. some things, it overcome. i findç my best. something impossible, do that. ok. as one strong conceptç. z be done. ok. ñr[applause] >> i very much regret to say that his holiness has a tight

travel -- >> sorry. i want to share with my american friends. sometimes are too much excitement. something positive happens. to over excited. if something goes wrong, too much. do not do that. [laughter] [applause] w3ç of course, we must know rigt and wrong and good and bad. something happenedçw3çó at a dr level. you must try to keeping calm. difficult things. realize that and make the

effort. çit shouldxd not reach deeply n the emotion. we all have -- stand up. -- we have this same potential. only thing to rely on the external funding. too much of sensitive. if you look in the values, energy sources, you become more. particularly here, compassion. infinite compassion is very helpful. part of my own practice in many tibetans -- i cannot say i am a good practitioner. i am a practitioner. so therefore, you know,

dedicated your own body, and mind for well-being of infinite, including your enemy. qhave a practical letter. you cannot solve the problem. like that. u!everybody comes from mother's womb. everybody survived with a mother's milk. we have this same potential to gather this inner strength based on human compassion. >> thank you so much for being so generous with your time here. çit hasç been such an amazing

privilege. i remember your wonderfulç boo the art of happiness. i never dreamed that i would get to see you in per -- in person. love and compassion and a sense of universal responsibility are the sources of peace and happiness. you have given us a great deal of happiness here today and we thank you so much. >> thank you. [applause] çç>> ladies and gentlemen, we

request that you would keep your seats until the party has left. thank you. [applause] >> thank you. [applause] ç >> ladies and gentlemen, we ae going to let the entourage to exit first. if you could please stay in your seats and as a special gift to each one of you, ourok partnerst the international campaign for

tibet have arranged to give all of those present today a beautiful calendar with explicit photographs -- with explicitç ç t(equisite photographs. the library has a range to display some of its extraordinaryi] collection and down the hall. you'll have the opportunity to view those treasures on your way out. good afternoon. ç[applause] ç ççqhalç>> coming out like s

afternoon, president obama will be unveiling $1.5 billion in housing help in las vegas. this is a boost that is time to his appearance in the city. you can see that a parent at c- span2 beginning at 1:00. >> the cpac conference continues

today here in washington. it is an annual conference attended by a activists and elected officials. we'll have live coverage shortly here on c-span. tomorrow, newt gingrich will speak to cpac. we'll have live coverage of that period that starts at 2:00. a little bit later in the day, fox news channel going back will be talking to cpac tomorrow evening at -- glenn beck will be talking to cpac. >> this weekend, on c-span, michelle obama on preventing childhood obesity. live, throughout the weekend, on c-span. >> are companies, whether it is the providers of a video or

those who actually invest to create content, are working overtime to figure out how to give consumers all of the content they want on every platform they want as quickly as possible. >> this weekend, head of the national cable and tele- communications association, on what is next for the cable industry. saturday on c-span. >> again, the conservative political action conference is continuing their meeting and we will have live coverage here on c-span. until then, it looked at this morning's "washington journal." people or throw people out of the marketplace? w3host:okko is health insurance becoming unaffordable? ça quick bit of theç article n "the new york times." ç

what is your thought on this? çmemphis, delores on the democrats' line. caller: the insurance companies are increasing premiums when people are out of work. how can a person afford the premiums when you lost your job? they are just out for the money. they don't care about the people. theç republicans to not care about them. they are in the insurance pockets. some democrats to. host:xdç north, virginia, this mark. ç-- norfolk, virginia.

caller: insurance prices are off the record set -- director scale. i'm married withç children andy premiums skyrocketed, 1600 to $1,700 a month. host: you get itq through employer? w3caller: find it individually because i'm self-employed. to the callers, what we really need to think about it sometimes we can't emotionally get involved and get politically charged and we canç vote and argued against our self interest. but the idea that health coverage should cost the way it costs now, it is unbearable, unthinkable. the idea that we could not open up medicare and medicare -- medicaid, that we know works. we know medicare works, even though it can be more efficient.

i would suggest we take a young girl pull of healthy individuals, may be the age of 18 to 30, allow them to buy in at unbelievable rates because of their age and health and try to balance some of the current heaviness on the system. host: thanks for your thoughts this morning. a comment from twitter that says -- s caller: is really very difficult because this year, i cannot wait to see what blue cross blue shield of florida is going to do to us. there has to be some sort of legislation in place that prohibits people like myself in their mid fifties from going

financially bankrupt because of health care. i have to have health care. otherwise it i go to the hospital, i would be bankrupt. ymhost: you are calling on our republican line. what do you want to hear from republican leaders on health care and health insurance? caller: first and foremost to be able to have policies to go across state lines and be able to purchase. i would like to see cost-cutting methods by the insurance companies. i don't think they have to advertise every sporting event and spend millions of dollars on sporting events when your policyholders are actually seeing such fine not -- phenomenal increases. host: "roll call" reported this meeting about republican leader staffers meeting.

augusta, georgia. democratic collar. --@@@@@@@ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @b caller: i have a daughter in college. as a federal employee, i use blue cross blue shield. i would recommend to the legislatorst( that a private auction be put on the table because if i had more choice on how much money is spent, when i need toç go to the doctor or wn my daughter needs to go, the money is already there. host: you said a private auction. do you mean a public option? caller: i stand corrected. host: thank you for your call.

here is nevadai] -- george on te republican line. caller: i think they should scrap that bill and start over again. host: if they start over again, what you start with? çcaller: host: let's hear from wisconsin. caller:. can you hear me? i am a small business owner. we run incentive programs for corporations and we have obviously had a couple of tough years here. i do not pay myself much at all.

i and the lowest paid employee in my company and i am looking at literally cutting myself entirely this year so i can continue to provide health coverage for my employees. iç think that every american should be coveredok by health insurance, so i feel very strongly about that. host: how many employees do you have? caller: iç have five that i covered. -- i have five that i coder. it is very difficult. people make very difficult choices so that they can have health coverage and i think it is a shame. i used to work for an insurance company and i know about insurance companies and there is certainly room to pass that savings on to the participants of those programs. as a small business, i would like to see some kind of national option or i can buy into a national health plan. host: weç have about another hf hour of calls. looking at health insurance.

is the cost of health insurance becoming too unaffordable? here is the report in the washington times this morningç -- caller: i think it is obvious that health care is too expensive. just look at the overall american view that the percentageç of gross domestic çpe?#uct. qthis country spends a lot highr percentage person than other industrialized advanced countries. it is outrageous. çñrobviously, the right wing hs been spending it terribly even though -- the government is not evil. mr. obama is a great

inspiration. he is an intelligent refreshing breath of fresh air after this idiot bush who embarrassed the state of texas and embarrassed the nation. i am a vietnam veteran and wasç a captain in vietnam. i saw dick cheney doing the conservative talk-show. it makes me sick to my stomach. caller: good morning. the problem is reform with the health-care industry. what happens is the way medicine is delivered right now is from lawsuits as opposed to actually practicing medicine nowadays. most of the expense when you walk in is basically taken up by a testing just to cover the doctor in case he is drawn into court. there are so many people out

there trying to get supported by the doctor for life or this or that. until we have some sort of reform, we're not going to see any lower rates in the country right now. host: let me get your reaction as to what the insurance companies are saying. they say the weak economy and the relenting rise and the cost of medicare make it increasingly difficult for companies to avoid substantial rate increases, even at those increases provide fresh fodder for democrats seeking to pass the now stalled health care legislation in congress. if they are losing money, they need to raise prices. their reasoning here is that it is costing them more. caller: what happens is that medicare and medicaid does not it is not pay the amounts that covers the cost of the procedure and there is more and more of them that are necessary to avoid a situation. we have to have a situation where shifting it goes on to the

private sector because the public sector does not pay the true cost of delivery of care. you are forced to go into the pockets of the people who actually pay for those services, pay cash or actually pay for insurance. çhost: how much -- best case scenario, how much will that say? save? caller: if they do not have to run a complete battery of tests, you are probably going to save maybe 25% on the cost of medicine in this country. it host: this is for meyers in florida. caller: first of all, i need to say thatç i had a brain injury. i may not be able to express

myself as quickly as you guys have been doing. eç are accustomed s country to getting our medical [(p)e. when we go inside a hospital, we have all of these services available to us and everything. we get a semiprivate room. we get a little basin to wash our teeth with. there is a lot of cost that can be limited in the delivery of health care. we do not need all of these accessories, for example. we need to go back to decreasing the cost of hospital services. for example, i had an x-ray down of myç elbow and that extraçt afoul month -- $1,000. çthat machine has already been çw1çlpyçi]paid for.çt(

you understandçç what i am sa? host: did you break it? caller: i have a tendency of falling because i have a brain injury. the point is, why is that so expensive? the hospitals need to be able to get money so as to be able to offer the other little services that they do when a person is hospitalized. i think that we have to scale down. there was a time when the words were used -- wards were used. i do not think we should be attacking doctors because when you put in comparison somebody who works in the automotive or somebody who is a plumber, they

can charge $100 for just coming to your house. the automotive services, the pa(le that are building cars, their average salaries is $75 per hour. it is not so much the doctors. it is the whole entire industry. i am very suspicious when the major health care delivery system insurance companies are in favorok of this democratic plan. host: a comet here. -- a twitter comment here -- kathleen sebelius released a report on the cost of health insurance, focusing on the case in california. ok>> while we do not want

companies to be insolvent becausei] no clients get paid ad there is always a balance between making sure that there is enough money to pay claims and there areç theççç abiliy claims, insurance companies in theç health insurance market he made 250w3% of profits over the last several years. 2009 alone, at a time where we saw a huge economic downturn with the gdp posted a-,çó we had insurance, these top five insurers, who had $12.2 billion in profit. to suggest this is entirely in line with even health care costs, which clearly are still exceeding typical of inflation costs, these profits are wildly excessive, way over anybody's

estimate. there are also companies where the top executives are paid up to $24 million each, huge overhead costs, lots of advertising budgets. so i think the ability to say what percentage of what you are collecting it is actually spent on health payments, providers, hospitals, medicines, and what percentage is either profit for administrative overhead is something that a light should be shined on and that is really part of what this transparency would be about. host:@@@@@@@@@ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ caller: democrats to pass the senate bill through reconciliation with the public

option because you are never going to get republicans because their plan is to just say no. that is their plant of a strategy to win back power. -- that is their plan of strategy to win back power. host: how many lives does the public option have? one of the unexpected twists of this whole saga, reforms near- death experience after the massachusetts race has brought the public option back to life again. progresses' are pushing the democrats to include a public option as part of that package. back to sarasota, fla., republican caller. çcaller: thank you for this opportunity. i was rather upset when i heard

that the health care reform bill should have been scrapped. most people are not aware of this, but federal employees are under the office of personnel management whichç controls a their federally insured medical program. i think that if they knew -- one of my father's prescriptions was $1,000 for one month. his co-pilot was a lousy $5.25. my jaw dropped. i started looking at their medicare and then i started noticing the fraud going in. i wrote the white house and said look, your federal employees, all of yourç senators,xd should have been looked at in terms of what they have as coverage. it is outstanding. çxdi do notç see why we cannoe the basically theç same medicae and medicaid coverage. i also think that the president shouldç hire a department to go back intoçç the federal emplos

medicaid programs and take a look at nursing homes. my mother was billed for a private room. that was a lie. i put a walkie-talkie under her bed. host: why did you do that? caller: because the cna came in and gave herç her milkshake and said drink this. çshe was supposed to standñr te and give her her medication. çw3when we had a hurricane comn in aççt(ç 2004, they kept sa, we're going to move your mother out into the hallway. they're supposed to be a hurricane. they did not move her away from the sliding glass doors. her oxygen was off, etc. ççççççwithxd the federal

host: thank you for that call. this is the front page of the baltimore sun looking at the orioles as they head into spring training. this is the front page of the it boston globe. also, this morning, mary talking aboutxd medicaid. ççmedicaid feels pincho! the economy. t(okcapew3 cod,t( mass., indepet line. caller: good morning. t(going along with this health care, too much moneyw3 for healh care, too expensive, there is nothingçó wrongç with the healh care.ç i am happy with my doctor. i am upset about the prices that are charged for pharmaceuticals. their way out of line.

host: our previous caller said she was spending 1300 about -- $1,300 a month on medication. does that sound reasonable? caller: that sounds reasonable. host: what are you spending a month? caller: that is up and down because of a problem i have. i have to spend money for a nebulizei]çxd sirççççi]r. those runabout $45 a pop. you can run through them once or twice a month, at least that. caller:ççççç i think insurs unaffordable. i think it falls down to -- when

i go to the doctor, and i had open heart surgery, i have to go to the doctor at least twice a year. i have other health problems. i have diabetes. every time i see my doctor, if i did not have insurance, -- they want to put mew3ç -- i cannot afford them. i really think the medical profession has gotten greedy. they just want money. they want to refer you to another doctor. if you make a suggestion about going to a different doctor, they say, this one is better. to me, i went to the doctor last month and that was supposedç to see cardiologists. i went over there and she chargedi] me -- the prices were

outrageous. they charge me for something i did not do. host: what kind of insurance do you have? caller: i have blue cross blue shield. host: here is a tweet -- front page this morning of the los angeles times, they have a picture from austin, texas and that plane crash yesterday. obama to take rains on health proposal. the president will outline specific ideas before the televised congressional talks planned next week. that story, also on line at their website bridge in that store, they write that the president obama will be -- he

will oppose specific proposals for a comprehensive plan on the internet by monday, according to the white house. çflorida, republicanç caller,s is an. caller: good morning. çqçkathleenç sebelius needs o realize that it is not just the administrative costs. is the bottle that they used. our help savings account has gone down $300 every quarter. i am also married to say at the plumber -- sam the palmer. we have the cross blue shield here in florida and it is a p p l plan. -- ppo plan.

we learn to shop for health care. when i started shoppingççççt they use models basedok on medicare and medicaid computer models that rankedok certain çt(+w3xdq[çñooçw3vççi]çs that ifç we opened up the bords in the united states and let everybody compete, probably those models will have to be changed. çcáthe lady that was talkingt qtheçw3yóoçq cost that she hr and the other gentleman from florida wasu! talking aboutç hw expensive it is here in florida, the cross blue shield of florida is one of the biggest carriers. they're not competing. when the cost goes down because of competition and the borders are open up, you are going to see that drop. she is not stepping out and saying, we are going to take this health care bill and we are going to offer it for everybody in the southern states to

compete. you do not have competition in health care and that is why the doctors are so frustrated, too. they realize that they have to charge this much because of this model. it is not the doctor's fault. tht now and it is obviously a fault of people who are in power. thank you. host: this is the headline from the guardian -- il1çççqthis is the wall stree. they're right in this story that china had expressed repeated objections in the meeting. the chinese foreign spokesman said in a statement later that it grossly violated the norms governing international relations. you will see him later on this

network, 10:30. later on today, we will resume our coverage from the conservative political action conference. it is here in washington. live coverage later this afternoon. headline of the washington times this morning, t party activist changed dynamic at cpac. the opening day of the biggest ever conservative action conference, the tenuous relationship among conservatives was also repeatedly on display. maryland, jeffrey is on our democrats line. caller:ç i don'tç know what is going on,ok it looks -- i don't

want to say conspiracy but it sure looks funny. you definitely need a public option and being able to go across state lines. i don't know who the blue dog democrat -- when they have the majority, they seem to be republicans in disguise. these tea party people, they report they learned so much from the race in massachusetts and all of this, but really they have a racist dominant air about them, like they are really, really rich. the last point i want to make is, i went to the doctor and i got a cat scan, two pictures, they charged the $1,800. i have health insurance.

they charge me $1,800 for two pictures. host: how much did the health insurance co. picked up? caller: i had to pay co-pay >> we're going to go to live coverage of the cpac conference here in washington. right now, the introduction. >> that afternoon. it is my pleasure to introduce crest -- chris, president of the club for growth. his credentials began when he attended and graduated from hillsdale college in michigan. [applause] he is a native of michigan and he then went on to law school and went to work for cdtb worked

his way up and became bthe ceo n 1994. after his retirement, he ran in the indiana congressional district and served for two terms as their congressman. while in congress, he distinguished himself as a one of congress's leading advocates -- advocates for a limited government, calls -- often casting a very lonely votes for the taxpayers. he supported pro-growth tax cuts, a decrease government spending, political free-speech and less government regulation. today, the club for growth are returning congress to principles conservatism, not pragmatism. welcome. [applause] ♪

>> good afternoon. thank you for that very generous introduction. i want to say thank you for the opportunity to spend a little time with you today. i am honored to say couple of words. i want to say thank you to all of you who made the effort to come to washington and participate in this really great gathering. i have to confess, i kind of wished that cpac were somewhere else this year. i kind of wish it was not in washington. it is not because of the snow and cold. if history is any guide, the more time conservative spent in washington, the last act like conservatives. let me give you a real -- a little sign of hope. and that a guy a few years ago, i am convinced that he will always understand that individuals spend their money much more wisely than the

federal government does. he found me. when i served in the house, my office was in the building and i had a little row house that was as a block away. i worked late to a lot of nights and walked home. one night, i turned a corner and out of nowhere, and masked gunmen appeared and said, give me your money. i was a little bit surprised and shocked and i did not know what to do. i blurted out, do you realize that you are trying to rob a member of the united states house of representatives? he said, and that his client did be by money. -- in that case, give me my money. [laughter] they say that they understand that you spend your money well and they want to spend it anyway. you are going to hear a lot of things this year. you'll hear a lot of things at this conference. it is really shaping up to be historic for conservatives.

you'll hear a lot about waste, spending, arrogance, incompetence. i think it is safe to say that all those things are true. the fact that we are having this discussion, the fact that we're talking about wasteful spending, democrat-controlled congress and an arrogant and incompetent democrat administration, i think it is in large part the responsibility of the national republican party. let me be clear. the trouble that we are in have been made possible by the national republican party and their actions over the last 10 years. they made the 2006 and 2008 elections not only possible, but i think inevitable. even so, the polls show that the

republicans have a real opportunity, especially in the house, to regain the majority in november and make great strides in the senate. i think that we have to ask the question, i think the conservatives have to ask the question, can republicans be trusted with a renewed majority? we have to ask the question, would be really shrink the size of government? would they really resent -- with a claw back the top money and reduce the debt? with the repeal any help caretaker's better still possible? would they really tackle responsible entitlement reforms? i hate to admit it, but standing here today, i have to say that i simply do not know. i feel little better after

listening to my fellow hoosier. i am not convinced because i am not convinced that they have learned the lessons of the elections. it to their credit, republicans have stood united against the worst aspects of the obama agenda. at the same time, they endorsed -- as we speak, they are spending big money to try to protect a big spending senator and utah who has a very viable and attractive conservative challengers. i do not think we will ever forget that they endorsed arlen specter in pennsylvania. the question remains, how can republicans regain our trust? the answer lies in the fact that the democrat failures of the last year or so have created a huge a void in the center of american politics today.

what the republicans need to do is to return to their conservative roots and fill that void with their best ideas. they also need to realize that the democrat failures are not as presenting a political opportunity, but they are really presenting a policy opportunity where we can offer concrete agenda for real conservative reforms. if the republicans simply run as not being democrats, i think that we will miss an historic opportunity. republicans may still win in november, but we will still lose. something has been made clear this year. something has been made clear by ordinary citizens that have aligned themselves with the tea party movement. but others that have just shown up at a tea cart -- at a town hall meeting. conservative values are american

values. [applause] this is evidenced by the last two times the democrats controlled washington. republicans won huge victories, but we cannot forget that those victories were not just based on politics. there are based on policy as well. when the democrats are in control of washington, they reveal the dangerous -- the dangers of unchecked liberalism. americans responded to the positive reforms of the reagan in 1980. in both cases, they turned expected gains into unexpected landslides. i think in 2010, all americans deserve a similar agenda. we deserve an agenda of deficit and debt reduction, no more bailouts, no more earmarks, and competition in health care, energy, and education.

[applause] if republicans produce such an agenda, based on serious ideas from serious leaders, the republicans will not only win, they will absolutely deserve to win. an agenda based on limited government, economic freedom, and individual liberty, will change the 2010 midterm elections from referendum to a substantive choice between his failed policies and our founding principles. let me finish by saying once again that i really wish that cpac was the other -- somewhere other than washington. every year, conservatives come

back to washington bridge every year, conservatives come back to the republican party. i think that this year it is high time that the republicans come back to conservatism. [applause] ♪ ♪ [applause]

>> i am there in spirit. i am pleased to announce that said morrissey is this year's blocker of the gear. when i do my show prep, i make it a point to catch his post. his thoughtful analysis on the news of the day proves that citizen journalists and can be far superior to and -- then that of the drive by media. he first began blogging in 2003 where he annoyed people. let's just say that we should all be glad that he is on our side. join me now in congratulating ed morrissey, blubber of the year.

-- blogger of the year. [applause] ♪ >> thank you. all my goodness. -- oh my goodness. i cannot think of -- i cannot think of a greater honor than to be introduced by rush limbaugh. i have to tell you, i only dream of the day that i can introduce a rush limbaugh. i am so honored by this award and his kind words. i want to thank everybody here at cpac. i could be up here all day thinking people. -- thinking -- thanking people.

i know that we have been in the news lately. michelle has been successful in launching hotair and is reaping the rewards of that success. there has it not been a better person, a more caring and thoughtful mentor to me that michelle. i just give her all sorts of appreciation. thank you for being here. the next speaker up here is somebody you are really going to want to hear from. i am from the state of minnesota. [applause] the great state of minnesota. it the state bird is the balloon -- the state bird is the loon.

we've got things that we need to apologize for, al franken being a chief among them. we have some things that we take great pride in minnesota. my representative from minnesota is a staunch conservative and we are proud to keep sending him back to congress. of course, the person you want to hear from today is from minnesota's sixth congressional district or the voters have been smart enough to send michelle back to congress. they are going to do that a third time. michelle was a tea party

activist before a the tea arrived. she has been on the side of the people since she first got into politics. she is a mother of five and has made room in her family for 23 foster children. [applause] that is commitment. that is commitment that goes beyond politics. that is a commitment that goes to life values. do not tell me that you have -- do not tell me that you do not have conservatism that does not have a heart. you cannot tell me that when you see her. the next speaker here at cpac. please welcome her. [applause] ♪

be >> hello everybody. thank you, senator arlen specter. it i want to say greetings to the majority in the waiting. how does it feel? [applause] we are in the middle of a political bull market. it doesn't feel wonderful? thank you so much to the blogger of the year. minnesota may be the land of 10,000 liberals, but we have some pretty hot bloggers coming

out of minnesota. to the first produced the power line blocked that exposed dan rather. those were our guys. the are just so thrilled and so honored that we have these wonderful, talented, gifted loggers out of minnesota. we really have a great sense of humor in minnesota. we are very good humored people. if you could put the first slide up for me, if you would. i am lucky enough -- [applause] do you like that? i do, too. i am lucky enough to be the representative for these very creative and innovative business people who put this wonderful billboard together. let me tell you, they got their advertising dollars worth out of this bill board.

[applause] and encourage you, use your creativity, use or innovation, you have no idea what you will do to take back washington. they are doing that in my district. at christmas time, my husband and i were sitting at home with their oldest son. he is just finishing medical school and he revealed to us that he had a goal when he went to medical school. his goal was to persuade one liberal to become a conservative. pretty good goal. as fate would have it, his roommate was a san francisco liberal. i am not making this up. it is absolutely true. this conservative kid from minnesota worked his powers of persuasion day after day, week after week, in between exams, and he has now been so successful that he text did meet last night and said, mom, his roommate named -- he just e-mail

me a pat buchanan column. i would say that is a success. [applause] we are seeing so many great things. i challenge everyone in this room to do what our son did. if he can persuade a san francisco liberal to flip and be a pat buchanan leading conservative, you can do it, too. think of all those relatives that you sit with during thanksgiving and christmas. there is somebody there. you know who i'm talking about. that person sitting across from you in your office, this is what it is about. these elections will not be -- even be close if we take one person and make it our priority to utilize what we know is true. the power of persuasion, to persuade one person at a time, we will take back washington

d.c. i'm excited. are you? i also want to give you another success story. one week ago today, there was a very brave republican party chair in north dakota. his name is gary. he worked together with a local radio guy and they cooked up an idea that was pretty good. it was pretty brave. they decided to reverse the tables on the politicians and had a town hall where the people spoke at the town hall and the politicians had to listen. pretty good idea. they had a listening post, including the very brave governor of the state of north dakota. this is a lot for a politician. to think that people are going to go to a microphone and they do not know what they're going to hear, but the people went and they were so sophisticated and they were so on top of their information. it was a fabulous event.

in a state of 620,000 people in north dakota, they had between 1015 hundred people showed up last week. this is amazing to take back washington d.c. i was lucky enough to be there and give a keynote speech. this is a state where water% of their federal delegation is democrats. -- where 100% of their federal delegation is democrat. it is now -- the state rep also is democrat and a poll was done in north dakota that showed that the state rep in north dakota is losing by 9% to other on the ballot. i am not making this up. it is take back washington time.

we've got the fever. we're ready for this change. thank you so much. i am so excited. in the next few moments that we had together, i want to discuss a topic that has been on my heart a lot lately and perhaps on yours, too. some words about that was mentioned this morning. he talked about a decline in america. the concept that has been coming to me over the last few weeks is that the joy of being an american is that we get to choose. we get to choose our destiny. whether it is declined or greatness, it is in our hands to make the choice. there was a pivotal vote -- pivotal article that was written lastw3 october. you love him, too. it was published in the weekly standard in october.

it is called, decline is a choice. he made a very precious point. decline is not a condition for america, it is not our inevitable trajectory. it is a choice. there's a difference. he is right. to the current liberal ascendancy in the united states controlling the executive in both houses of congress, dominating the media and cultural elite, has set us on a course for declined. president obama was asked about american exceptional is and his answer, i believe in american exceptional is them just as i suspect the breadth of believe in british exceptional is some and the greeks believed in a great exception allows them. -- exceptionalism.

if everyone is exceptional, nobody is exceptional. the president went on to indict america for divisiveness toward europe, for maltreatment of natives, for torture, for guantanamo bay, former unilateralism and for insufficient respect for the muslim world. i think we are all going to need a self-esteem course or two after that let me and we cannot blame anyone for feeling despondent in the midst of all of that. the decline can happen quickly. even to a great nation. it is a sobering thought. i want to take you to july of 2009. an economist from arizona state university wrote in an article on the front page of the washington times newspaper. since the inception of bail out