we cannot drive suv's, set our thermostats and eat as much as we would like. i guess it is true, unless we are al gore. [applause] the director of congressional budget office warned us that the economy is on an unsustainable path. we hear that a lot lately. he said "the fundamental disconnect has to be addressed to avoid serious, long-term damage to the economy and the well-being of the population." this is the head of heart nonpartisan budget office saying we are looking at serious, long- term damage to the economy and the well-being of our people. i would say that is a pretty serious prognosis. then we really have to sober up,

because what we need to do is realize that the only people with the power to change this very bad diagnosis is president obama, speaker pelosi, and harry reid. i wonder what the odds are in las vegas for that happening? we have all seen this movie before. it is not a pretty sight. we see this in germany in the 1920's. we see this in argentina in the 1940's, and we are seeing it happen right now today with greece. the end does not work out really well. . . in fantasy economic started it just doesn't work. [applause]

government spending. do we detect a democratic pattern? he wanted to keep a manageable recession and turn it into a 10- year repression. in the midst of that, the forgotten man was the poor beleaguered taxpayer who had to pick up the difference and the small businessman who sought collapse and foreclosure because of the massive spending and government intervention that never works. [applause] take a quantum leap forward to the 1960's under president johnson and his democrat majority building upon the legacy of fdr. he created the modern welfare state as you know it.

having spent every time --xd tie and then some of the receipts tht(cameñiko in fromxd social security, from medicare they have left us now holding an invoice in excess of $105 trillion in unfunded federal liabilities which obviously was not enough of a debt load for the current administration. it sounds like someone is choosing decline. [applause] that is not what the founders chose. the founders of this great nation did not choose decline. they chose us. they chose greatness for us. they were wise and they gave us a legacy on like any in the reported annals of human history. it was john quincy adams who wrote,"i]çó for the first time e

the creation of the world, was laid the foundation of the government upon the principles of human rights." if it goes upq on the screen we will see it -- 3##j% memory and do not need it. ñr"we hold these truths self evident thatñrñi all men are crd ñiequal, thatñrñi there and outh their greater with certain inalienable rights that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. to secure these rights,ñii governments are institutedñi amg men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." that is our mission statement. that is the american mission statement. it is our creed. is the answer to who we are is the people. we are creatures made by god.

god gave us rights. these are rights that government can never give to us and the beauty of that is that these are rights that government can never take away from us. [applause] there is only one reason that government exists. it exists to secure these rights and to us, to the people. government derives its power from the consent of the people. it is a beautiful story. john quincy adams went on to say that never before in the history of man has there been an example of a government directly and expressly instituted on this principle of consent by the government. what a concept " ! if 2/3 ofmy the people repudiaa

law, government might listen? yes, that is exactly what the founders wereñi thinking.4+ exactly. [applause] ñithat among theseçóñiñi, this r birthright. it is the mostx(dn personal, li, the mostñr personale1 of all our itñiça is the one that ascribes dignityxd and work to every humn ì+ other right. çorçótherefore, it is the ultime human life. and must bexdñrñr life liberty. liberty is the right to be free and ourçóñiñiñr conscience, our, free and our decision making. what does that tell you about the obama speech police? that is not what the founders intendedñi and the pursuit of çóthis is the fun inalienable right. pursuit of happiness meantçó tht

you and i have a right to our labour. we have a right to the fruits of our labour. today, we take this for granted and say that is the way it is. no, this is a radical concept in the history of man. what i produce belongs to me, not the king, not government, just us. that is our legacy. the world never knew that before. [applause] it is what drives our economy. the bondholders at chrysler only know this all too well. liberty, self-government, these are the ideals that animated the founding fathers. and a great scholar from heritage foundation wrote about america's greatness in his wonderful book. let me tell you a couple of those stores.

one is about a young man who was in his early 20's in the spring of 1775. he lived near concord, mass.. the time came for the call for him on liberty. he answered the call. here he was, a young m7 took upxd his musket, he risked everything to help and fight against the greatest military power in the world. power in the world. he was brave and w ater+% as an older man, was it the oppression of the colonial policy? ñihe said he never saw any stem. ñiamps. çóit must've been your readingsn liberty. q

what made him take up his arms against the british? we always had governed ourselves, he said, and we always meant to. [applause] he said that the british did not think that they should. levi arrested on that fateful day chose liberty, suffering, self sacrifice and he chose greatness, not decline for america. vein, a young medical directorçã-- dr. was the head of the public safety committee in massachusetts. he stayed in boston.

that was the epicenter of trouble in boston. but he chose to stay there because that is where the british were headquartered. he wanted to lead the american opposition to the british. you should also know this about joseph warren, he was the father of four young children and they will work. he made the decision to send out paul revere on that fateful night toward the good people of concord that the british were coming, the british were coming. he was elected major general but he chose to fight as a volunteer private. twice, the british regulars attacked and twice the americans held their fire until the very end when the unbalancing regiments can upon the americans at close range then they decimated the british rights and forced them to pull back. the americans were short a powder. there were short of ammunition, as you know. there were short of reinforcements. the americans were overwhelmed on the third try by the british

privy the soldiers stormed. later, they found joseph warren's body below the body of his fellow countrymen. three months before this occurred, joseph warren spoke these powerful words to his friends. " our streets are filled with young man, our harbour is crowded with ships of war, but these cannot intimidate us. our liberty must be preserved. it is part dearer than light. fe. if we but for a moment entertain the thought of giving up our liberty, our country is in danger but not to be despaired up. our enemies are numerous and powerful but we have many friends determining to be free in heaven and earth will aid the resolution."

xdon you depends the portion of america. you have the important question of which rests by happiness of liberty of millions yet unborn. act worthy of yourself." joseph warrant risked everything. he laid down that final full measure of his devotion for us because he chose greatness, not a decline for the united states. [applause] and every successive generation of americans from the time of levi preston and joseph warren have had to make that decision. will they choose decline for the united states or will they choose liberty? 67 years ago last week, 902 young gi boys crossed the

atlantic ocean on a world or to transport ship. they were one of three ships and a convoy. there were 100 miles west of greenland, it was 1:00 in the morning when a periscope, out of the water. it belongs to a nazi german submarine. the periscope took aim and fired at the flank in the icy waters off the coast of greenland. it hit the starboard side of the ship. instantly, the explosion occurred. young gi's, many of them were killed in a matter of seconds below deck. the power was knocked out, the radio was knocked out. panic, chaos set in with these boys. men jumped ship into the few light boats. on deck, there stood four chaplains for it one was a catholic priest, another a jewish rabbi, two were protestants.

they were courageous. they called to the young boys. many were pleading, they were crying, they were praying, but the chaplains preached courage. they opened a storage locker. they took out the remaining life jackets. they handed them out, pricing, saying ,"courage." they handed out the life jackets until there were more men than jackets. wordlessly, the four chaplains removed their jackets and put them on the fearful, shaking bodies of the young gi's. later, witnesses reported that the four chaplains took to bear arms and gathered around one another and they held on to each

other. it took less than 20 minutes from the time the torpedo hit the ship until the ship slid into the icy waters. they held on to each other and cried out to young man, "courage, boys. hold on." they prayed for the boys. they prayed for the survivors. they prayed for those who were lost. they prayed until the chaplains were no more. of the 900 to brave american gi's on board that night, 672 died. one of the greatest acts of valor, the four chaplains demonstrated clearly what the holy scripture says to us," greater man hath no love than this but that he lay down his life for his friend." it is of this suffering and this

self sacrifice that our nation was built upon. it was this that credit us our liberty. it was this that granted us our self-government. they chose christmas for us rather than decline. that is our history. that is the american story. [applause] and so i charge you again today, let us act with great courage,

with a sacrifice, that spirit of mobility w and as warren sa ♪ >> thank you, thank you very much. what a pleasure it is to be with you. thank you for standing up to welcome me. thank you for sitting back down. [laughter]

sometimes, a standing ovation is a cover for a mass exodus started i'm glad to see you are still here and people are still coming in. let me begin by thanking you for coming to washington, d.c. it is part of the genius of america, is part of the uniqueness of this great country here, the people impose their values on government rather than have the government impose its values on the people. [applause] when you come to washington, d.c. two under line your values. it says something special. i want to thank you for doing that. in many ways, america is unique in that respect. while the kings have relaxed their according europe, they frequently are seen as a

privileged elite on the continent. here in america, we rally around the tea. we believe in lincoln that this is government of the people, by the people, and for the people and your being here makes a big difference. i want to thank you for being here. [applause] i know what you are here. i am not totally clear why i am here. i am retired from public service. i had the privilege of doing things that supported liberty and seeked extended around the world. they wanted me to help with the presentation at cpac. i was delighted but i was not sure. we have worked together through the american center for justice to reinforce the opportunities for people to be free. i was not sure why i was here.

i think it over with someone whispering that the reason that ashcroft was brought to the conference is that that cropp is the only person ever to lose his senate seat to a deceased opponent [laughter] he is here to keep the conservatives from getting overconfident too early for the 2010 election. [applause] to not get overconfident too early. keep working hard and long and we will celebrate the victory, not just the victory for conservatives or republicans, but a victory for the united states of america and for freedom at the end of this year. keep the intensity up and keep the energy up. [applause] with your permission, i would like to spend a few minutes to talk to you about the core

value, the transcendent core value of american exceptionalism. i mean that america is different. i reject the notion that america should become like the rest of the world or that we have to mimic europe or some other country or some other jurisdiction. [applause] my grandparents came to the united states to find a place that was rife with opportunities and respected human dignity and would reward innovation and productivity more profoundly than other -- other settings. i want america to be an exceptional place. i believe it is exceptional because of the respect and regard we have for this prime value of liberty in our culture. [applause] among the most profound individuals to recognize the value of liberty in the american culture was emma lazarus, the

woman who both -- wrote the poetry that graces the base of the statue of liberty. you probably learned it in the fifth grade. " give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses. send the homeless to me. i lift my lamp beside the golden door." [applause] it dawned on me that i love the poetry because i like the rhythm and the way it sounds. it dawned on me one day that she did not say "give me your american scholarship winners. she did not say that if you go to yale or columbia, you need not apply. it did not matter who came. the chemistry, if you will, of freedom is so powerful that breed in itself and its impact on humanity will change the

environment into an environment of productivity. it changes the also-ran into champions and that is the point that i want to make. freedom is an essential, a core value that transcends all other values at the heart of the american experience of being the best place for anybody no matter what your beliefs from mark is, no matter what you're back ethnic background is, this is the best place to be because it rewards human dignity and productivity and productivity. -- and creativity. we believe in liberty here. [applause] when i was the attorney general, there were serious threats and there were carried out against united3÷ states not to be understated in any way. people talk about the need to balance liberty and security. i reject the formulation of balancing liberty and security.

i do not believe that anything stands to be balanced against freedom. i don't think it needs a counterweight. when we talk about security, i think we should ask, to secure what? the purpose of security is to reinforce and enhanced freedom. when we are talking about security, we are talking about something that enhances or elevate freedom. does not something that competes with freedom or stance as a counterweight to freedom. it is, indeed, something that makes our freedom usable and valuable. it is some again as our capacity to live as free people, to be productive and that human dignity that the creator intended us to have money created boss. us. [applause] liberty is the transition to a

core value of american life. and american exceptionalism. freedom is a broader category of opportunity than it has ever been before and is under a broader and more profound attack than it has ever been before. many of us take for granted our freedom to travel or par ability to communicate, our opportunities that come with modernity. we really are free and lots of ways that people have not been at any time in history. with the rise in technology, there has also been a rise in lethality. there are greater threats than we have never before witnessed in the history of this country. some of you have read david mccullough's book, 1776."

the british thought that if the winds don't change, they would land in an hour or two. and then they will make an attack on a spread it took a nation to attack a nation then. the delivery time for lethality was rather slow. it was as if they'd said to run down to starbucks and have a cup of coffee before the attack. you can put the podium in a room like this with full of the most dangerous explosivesçó and you could set off and you would kill some people in the room. yes, the rest might be injured. today, the lethality of

modernity has imposed upon us the necessity of safeguarding against an infringement of our freedoms that could include a destructive capacity of a bomb to be detonated, placed in a container this big that would not just destroy the lives of a few people in the room. it could vaporize an entire city. the requirement for us to be careful about freedom and to be circumspect in how we treated and to safeguard, is elevated significantly. at one time, we could only threaten another nation but now we know that a very few people, releasing chemical agents or evil biology might threaten the very existence or success of a cultured. we know the threats are very substantial. we have this context of knowing and understanding the value of freedom. we know that freedoms have been expanded significantly.

we know the threats to freedom have capitalized on technology to make it very difficult to defend against it. it places before us significant challenges. i would go to my third point in that respect and that is that whenever we seek to defend freedom, we do so in a way that enlarges our freedom. if our freedom is not worth more after we engage in a policy of trying to secure it, we should end the policy. it by seeking to defend freedom, we shrink it, instead of having a greater freedom than we would otherwise have, we have lost the battle that is important to us. i would propose this, rather than trying to have a counterbalance to freedom with the idea of security, we

understand that security is to enrich freedom. i think it would be a good test anywhere in ever -- in our governmental system if we are proposing does not mean we will have better -- a better outcome for freedom with the policy that without a, we should not have the policies. freedom is the core value that means some much to the united states of america. when a white carpet wrote into dodge, he did not have to go through a night -- when wyatt earp rode in to dodge, he did not have to go through a magnetometer. i believe it is a valuable thing to have airport security. it makes my freedom worth more if i can actually exercise it in safety benefit couldn't.

i believe that is the kind of test we need to have. do we have, as a result of the things we seek to do for security, a freedom which is richard, enhanced, and worth more than a free and we might have if we didn't? i submit that there is another little refinement that we should engage in is a refinement that comes out of the technical jargon of law. when serious rights are involved, we measure things by a test we call the strict scrutiny test for it means that we taylor whatever we do in that arena as narrowly as possible. with that narrow tailoring, we make sure we have as limited an impact on the rights that we are seeking to secure. i believe that for policy reasons, that would be a good guideline that whenever we are

seeking to enlarge and and has an safeguard our freedom, we do it in such a way it is as limited as possible so that we maximize the outcome of liberty at the end of the day. let me close with a fourth point about freedom and thank you for your attention. the defense of freedom requires an intensity and vocabulary and it requires a kind of transparency in policy. i believe it is essential for our success. when defending freedom, if you refuse to call a war a war, you're unlikely to be able to defend its successfully. [applause] if the terrorist is making war on you and you refused to

confess that you are at war with the terrorist when you make a response, you might limit your response improperly so that you do not have success in preserving and protecting the liberty which we all know ought to be protected. [applause] in the arena on th-- in the arena of the war on terror, our effort to secure the american people, included in both ways are the criminal laws that the united states normally has on its north shores and we have the ability and i believe we have the duty from time to time to respond with the mechanisms and capacities of war, rather than to put our head in the sand and to think that we are not at war and to fill that we are -- and

to fail to consider that we are at work. [applause] torney general, we have the opportunity to deal with terrorists multiply in different ways. that range of opportunities should be available to every president of united states. it should be understood and vocabulary should be avoided that would prejudice -- avoid the vocabulary that prejudice is the nation against doing what it needs to do in order to protect the people of this country. [applause] one of the impact of the increasing lethality that we understand is part of modernity is that very small groups of people can have a very disastrous impact.

it is important that you consider them very carefully. i believe that prevention must continue to be our priority, especially when those who would seek to harm us plan to destroy themselves in the perpetration of the event. it is important that we not have a vocabulary that excludes treating acts of war as acts of war. we consider the potential of using the capacities of war when we are at war so as to limit the kinds of jeopardy in which we find the citizens of this great country. [applause] let me quickly close. in the middle ages, there were a group of folks call the alchemists. i don't know why the seventh grade is ingrained in my mind.

these were guys who were battling around with base metals, copper, bronze, lead, things like that and i thought it they could mix them together right or sprinkle pixie dust on them that they could change base metal into gold. do you remember that? that was their whole idea. they will be rich as soon as they do that. in the ninth grade, we get to the periodic table which was all the stuff about the fundamental elements of the universe. we learned that you cannot do that. i submit to you that there is an alchemy in human existence. there is a special substance, there is a pixie dust, if you will, that changes the ordinary into the extraordinary, that changes the also rans in two world leaders. it changed -- changes the base

into the elite. the chemistry that is involved is the chemistry of liberty. i am back to the first point i made. liberty is the core value of american exceptionalism. we must seek to safeguard it at every turn and whenever we operate in a universe to try and save guarded, we have to make sure we do so as carefully as possible and never do anything that does not expand and enhance the liberty would otherwise have. when we do that, we reinforce this concept that there is an alchemy in human existence. ordinary people become extraordinary and do extraordinary things in the environment and the presence of liberty and freedom. that is what the purpose of self-government in america is about, to safeguard that liberty, to put the self- interest of every individual, to have to operate in the universal

governance. there are folks in governor -- there are folks in government who would impose their will on the people and should be awakened maybe by an election in massachusetts, maybe even a special election, which would bring the belt and say this country is not a place where those in washington imposed on the people what they do not desire. this is a place where the people of the united states come together to tell their leaders of what they do desire and to enshrine the freedom that has made this nation great. thank you very thank you very te -- thank you very much and god bless you. ♪

>> thank you very much. thank you. [applause] thank you. thank you, thank you. thank you. thank you. fñit sounds to me like the revolution is alive and well. [applause] çóñiçówonderful. it is great to see such a nice crowd. 10,000 people all interested in 10,000 people all interested in promoting good limited

i would said that this is a grand opportunity for all of us because something is brewing. i am optimistic enough to believe that a lot of good is going to come out of what is happening in this country today, whether it is the c pack meeting or that tea party movements or the recent retreat in the election. believe me, by the end of this year, i think this country is going to be a lot better off. [applause] [applause] the one thing that brings many of us together has been the,k÷ idea of change. as a matter of fact, someone won an election using that slogan, change. but there is a change we want that we have not gotten yet, and i think that is what we are here to talk about, what and of

change we really want. and we agree on, so we're not talking about different things. it is very important we understand what conservatives and means. to me, it means conserving the good parts of america and our constitution. [applause] i first got involved in politics in 1976, because i was very concerned about the financial situation, the gold standard being cast aside, ushering in the age of big government. and that came in under a nixon administration. and since that time, we have been struggling. struggling with the conservative message, and we have had bits and pieces of this coming together but have not really had a fall through. we got a revolution of sorts in

1980 with ronald reagan, but -- then, of course, we had 1994, very good, designed to limit government. it kept growing. the year 2000 how the more remarkable event, something that happened where there was a republican congress, house, and senate, but we did not get the revolution. there was a lot of desire, saying that is limited government, balanced budget, and our liberties back. [applause] and içó think what happened,ñiñn philosophical terms, not in partisan terms, i think what

çóhappenedñi takes me back toñie teens of the lastñr centuryxdñrn woodrow wilson was presidentñiç. [booing] [booing] those are just think of what woodrow wilson stood for. he believed in world government. he wanted an early lead of nations. but it were the conservative republicans who stood up against him. how many people are saying that it is the conservative position to not even belong to the united nations?

1913 was not a very good year. 1913 gave us the income tax, 16th amendment, and i rest. what is wrong with getting rid of the 16th amendment? i think it would be a great idea. [applause] and of course, i have already taken a very modest position on the monetary system. i take the position that we should just end the fed. [applause] [chanting "end the fed"] but there were other things that

went on during the wilson administration. our foreign policy changed for the negative. his goal was to make the world safe for democracy, and he brought us into world war we should have never gotten into. [applause] and we, as conservatives, accepted his principal that we are under constitutional and legal responsibility to engage ourselves and make the world safe for democracy. i do not think it is possible. as a matter of fact if you think back just a short time ago to the year 2000 when george bush was running, guess what he ran on? he was running against an interventionist foreign policy. he was running against clinton policy, intervention nation- building and the world, and he building and the world, and he

there is nothing wrong with being a conservative and coming up with a conservative for a policy where we don't go to war so carelessly. [applause] what is not conservative about saying do not go to war unless we go to work properly with a full declaration of war and no other way? [applause] unconstitutional war's cost a lot of money. they undermine our constitutional principles. war is the health of the state. if you like small government, you need to work hard at having

a strong national defense that is not so militant. personal liberty is the purpose of government, to protect liberty, not to run your personal life, not to run the economy, and not to pretend to tell the world the way they ought to live. [applause] [applause] for those who disagree, i have a few comments. i have been on this service, and i know all the arguments. but the bottom line for all conservatives and constitutionalists will be how we are going to pay for it. it is driving us to bankruptcy. we are now spending one trillion dollars a year to finish.

we are in 140 countries, 700 bases, and have you noticed the debt exploding? it is not all because of medicare. believe me, we do not have enough conservatives on the hill to start tinkering with medicare. eventually, this country probably will not do what i suggest, that we back off and back down. i make two promises. we will always -- i always will vote the constitution, as well as i will not vote for one single penny that is not paid for, because that is the monster, that is what will eat us up, and that is why our economy is on the brink. we are on the brink of a cataclysmic event, because we

are leading to, we board to much money, the chinese have backed off on what they love us, interest rates are going up, inflation factors are coming up. the next step is a currency crisis and rejection of the dollar. that is a big, big event. and then, your personal liberties will be severely threatened, because we will usher in people who say, well, just like before, we have had an event, and it is not the democrats alone. democrats and republicans said there is an event, so we should spend more money and stimulate the economy, are more money -- borrow more money. so we tell the fed, print more money. believe me, it will not last. it has to end. we cannot double the money supply. [applause]

we can double the money supply -- we cannot double the money to supply and not see inflation. but back to woodrow wilson, he was not an individual who respected civil liberties, and conservative republicans at the time fought him. republicans did not like the espionage and sedition act. he arrested thousands of people for showing dissent against the war. how do you want it? do you want it that way? you might have one position, others might have another position, but you have a right of dissent and you should never be put in prison for dissenting. [applause] a famous person was arrested

back then. i would not have agreed with the political elites, but he was a famous person who spoke out against the war, eugene debs. he was put in prison because he spoke out and woodrow wilson did not like him, and because congress passed these laws, republicans objected to it, but he was put in prison indefinitely, and i guess because of widow will since the illness and all through the end, he never got the part in. warren g. harding gave him the pardon. a republican. [applause] government is the enemy of liberty. government should be very restrained.

and as i have said so many times, it is time that we do study and understand from a conservative viewpoint on how much we should be engaged around the world. we have good backing from good republicans of the past. but that is the past now. i do not live in the past, because i think freedom is a modern movement. in the past, since woodrow wilson's time, too many of us have taken on the saying that we are responsible. [applause] who do you think it was that try to keep it out republicans did? one of the greatest republicans

was a statue over in washington, and they worked hard to keep us out of war. he also thought was a violation of our rights to have a military draft. he strongly opposed the draft. [applause] he was strongly opposed to nato, did not like the united nations. we casually accepted this. but who was at that point the words military-industrial complex? it was eisenhower that told us that. there is every reason for us to think seriously about what we really believe and what conservative actions really mean. in 1956, i thought a draft was

coming, because the french and british got in a fight over the suez canal, the egyptians wanted their canal. so i was worried because i thought i would be drafted. i was not drafted for 10 years after that, but i thought i would be. they went to eisenhower and said take care of us, they are taking the canal, and eisenhower said, i will have no part of it. [applause] back 100 years ago, speaking of woodrow wilson, what happened in this country is we took freedom and chop it into pieces. there is only one kind of freedom. liberty comes from our creator. it has nothing to do with government. you want small government to protect liberty, that is good, that is what the founders

believed and what the constitution was written for. but if we have some group over here saying that economic liberty as good, we are all the keynesian snout -- dickensians now. [applause] if liberties come to us as individuals, freedom does not come in groups. you have freedom because you're an individual, and that should be protected. [applause] but i do not believe freedom can survive and we as conservatives

who can contribute if we still think freedom only comes in pieces, that you can protect economic liberty but not personal liberty. i imagine everybody in this crowd would say yes, protect our right to religious values. but as soon as it comes to putting something in your mouth or in your lungs, you say you do not have enough sense, so we will use the heavy hand of government to protect against yourself. [applause] we have not on a long way from the constitution. it says the only under the declaration of war and we go to work, but we are in war now, and it will take a long time until we go bankrupt. but we have done a few things

that are endorsed by both parties, and one is that we have endorsed the principle of preventive war. another term for presentive worse is aggressive wars, because someday somebody might do something to it. that is not part of the american tradition. just last week there was a hearing on the hill, and the subject of assassinations came up. the administration was there and explain that yes, they endorsed the idea of assassination. and they asked if they would endorse the idea that we have an obligation to assassinate american citizens, and the answer is yes, they do. they claim they have right to assassinate american citizens.

what are the conditions? somebody makes a determination that that individual is a threat and can be assassinated. he is probably a bad guy. but the principle is important. there might someday be six or eight or 10. what about the fact that eugene debs might not have been put in prison, but assassinated. this is not radical liberalism. this is about protecting the integrity of our country and constitution and the rights of the individual. we have now as a country accepted the principle that

habeas corpus is only worthwhile in a limited fashion. some people do not deserve it. if there is a design, they can be held for an unlimited time. they can be subjected to torture. that is not what we are all about. we are much better than that, and we as conservatives have to realize we have to bring the spot again. good conservatives can believe personal liberties are of the utmost value. we all more easily agree that the free market is a good way to go, and yet we still have a lot of people reject the notion of regulations and benefits and bailouts for wall street and the federal reserve system and paper money. all of those things have to be worked in. but there is nothing wrong with being a conservative and saying republicans, as recently as the

year 2000, we won elections by saying we should not be the policeman of the world, and we should be nation-building. it is time we got those values back. [applause] i believe we are on the verge of something significant. i have spoken out quite a few times on college campuses, and reception is fantastic, and they want all package. they do not want bits and pieces, they want economic liberties. because the government has failed, and they know they will failed, and they know they will i have more support from the military than from any other in

the campaign. [applause] so let us take this opportunity. let us take this opportunity. for those of you who disagree, all i ask you to do is to think seriously about it can think about it and read about it and put it in context. during the campaign, the presidential campaign, all of a sudden, the crash that i was predicting came. all of a sudden now, fox news network has shown it 60 times since the campaign was over. [applause] but let me finish by saying one

reason why i like this idea of what freedom works. it brings people together. freedom does not challenge people's personal values. it does not challenge their religious and valleys. the one thing -- i want change and i want a lot of changes, but i preach non-ryland change. the other -- but i preached non- violent change. we should remain tolerant. people who disagree with you, or look different or have different views, we have to allow freedom of expression. that will bring as together. otherwise, we cannot win.

so i thank you very much for this opportunity to visit with you. i hope it is challenging. we are in a challenging time. quite frankly, if you do the right thing, we can pull out of the economic mess we have and we can be better than ever. i believe that is what this type of an organization and group of people coming together. we know what is best for america if we work together and are a bit more tolerant, we can achieve it. thank you very much. [applause] ♪ . you" by queen plays] ♪ \

next, the president at a town hall meeting in henderson, nevada. then we'll hear from some of the speakers at the american conservative union conference. including columnist herman cain and minnesota governor tim

pawlenty. this week on "america and the courts," a preview of next tuesday's supreme court oral argument in holder versus humanitarian law project. the case will test the constitutionality of a provision in the u.s.a. patriot act that makes it a crime to provide "material support or resources" to any group that the government has labeled as a terrorist organization. the panel includes co-counsel for the humanitarian law project. america and the courts, tomorrow, at 7:00 p.m. eastern. on c-span. president obama at a town hall meeting in nevada, a day of events for the president in the las vegas area campaigning with senate majority leader harry reid, this event was held at the green valley high school in

henderson, nevada. it's about an hour and 15 minutes. >> thank you. it is good to be back in nevada. it is good to be back in vegas. it is good to be back in henderson it is good to be with my good friend, your great senator, harry reid. [applause] i understand that henderson is where carey went to school as a boy and fought in the ring as an amateur boxer. looking at him, you would not say -- let's face it --

[laughter] but i can personally attest that harry reid is one of the toughest people i know. he does not give up. he knows what he cares about and what he believes in and he is willing to fight for it. sometimes, he takes his licks and gets back up. he has never stopped fighting. he has never stopped fighting for henderson. he has not stopped fighting for nevada. he has not stopped fighting for the united states of america and middle-class families that need a fair shake. [applause] i am looking forward to hearing

what is on your mind and trying to -- let me say a few words about -- harry is not one to sugarcoat things better said these are tough times. when president kennedy was here, he called patterson a city of destiny. for too long, i know that many of you feel that your destiny has been slipping beyond your control we do not need -- you do not need me to tell you that. he felt in the construction industry. the unemployment rate is 13%, which is the second-highest in the nation.

home values have fallen more than any place else. for most middle-class families, income actually shrank. i know that it is tough out there and harry reid knows that it is tough out there. that s why we ask you to send us to washington. we didn't run for the fancy title or a big desk or a comfy chair. the fancy chairs. we did not run to get our paper in the newspapers. [laughter] we did not run so that a bunch of people on cable tv will chatter about you. we did not run to kick our

problems down the road. we ran to solve problems that folks like you are facing every single day. that is what i wanted to be president of the united states, to help you. [applause] >> when my administration took office, our plan was clear. we needed to stop the great recession from turning into a great depression. economists of every stripe warrant that that was a big responsibility. we had to make some decisions. these were decisions that were

necessary. this was not a time for satisfying the politics of the moment. it was a time for doing what was right. that is why we helped stabilize our financial system. not because we felt any compassion for big banks, but because it would have endangered americans. by way, i was committed to ensuring that taxpayers would keep all financial system afloat. we are on our way to doing that. getting back every single dime from those banks. [applause] in fact, one battle but we are having right now is that we think that the largest banks

should hold the taxpayer harmless. [applause] as you might imagine, the banks are not enthusiastic about that. he will not surprise you to learn that they have a few friends in congress who are willing to go along. we will get your money back because terri reid will guarantee that you ditch your money back. we helped shore up the american auto industry. i understood why. if we let gm and chrysler go wonder, it would have meant hundreds of thousands of hard- working americans would pay the price.

we told them that if they are willing to take the painful steps that are needed to become more competitive, then we are willing to invest in your future. [applause] gm's ceo would provide an that information by june of this year. one of the things that you need to know is that they have nothing to do with the recovery. we had to do that as an

emergency measure. i just want to point this out. i have my pollsters. we knew this was not going to be popular. but we did it because it was the right thing to do. it is also why we pass the recovery act. a lot of people think that the stimulus package and the recovery act, you would think that it is about giving banks money. that has nothing to do with the banks. the other week, i saw a poll that said that americans did not like the recovery act, but just the individual parts of the recovery act. when you ask folks what was in the recovery act, it would be

unemployment relief. that is what it was. 95 percent of you, you may not have noticed, up 95 percent of you got a tax cut because of harry reid and because of harry reid and recovery act. 1 million people one million people in the state of nevada. we expanded unemployment insurance at a time had it was absolutely vital for people as they were trying to stay afloat. more than -- more than a quarter million of your members of your neighbors, it was job for construction workers and jobs for cops and firemen and jobs for almost 2,000 education professionals right here in nevada. i haven't talked to the principal but i guarantee you, we would have -- we would have seen some very difficult decisions having to be made about maintaining teachers

right here. at green valley, if it hadn't been for the help that hear -- that harry reid provided last year. [applause] you would have seen some very tough choices. all of this from the tax cuts to the unemployment insurance to the jobs, that was only possible because of harry's leadership. and as a result, our economy is growing again. almost two million americans who would otherwise be employed are working right now. because of what harry reid did. we're no longer staring into an economic abyss. because of what harry reid helped to do. now, he and i both know that's of little comfort to the seven million americans who lost their job in this recession. little comfort to homeowners who are facing foreclosure or steep declines in their home value or the students who are having to delay their college plans because they can't afford it or older folks who are

postponing retirement. older folks that are facing retirement. that is why all of america is working again. this is benefiting the middle- class. this is benefiting americans all across this. that is what we are aiming to do. i said before that the way that i measure our economy, the way you measure ripped is by whether jobs are growing. the other we we measure it is of folks have lived up the

dream. a special right here in nevada. part of this, i have to be blunt, part of it was because too many lenders were focused on making a quick buck instead of acting responsibly. to many borrowers acted irresponsibly, taking on mortgages they knew that they could not afford. and what happened was that regulators in washington turned a blind eye. it said a house and bubble. now, it has left devastation that we are grappling with today. government has a responsibility to help deal with this problem.

government cannot solve this problem alone. we have to be honest about that. government alone cannot solve this problem. it should not. but government can make a difference. you cannot stop every foreclosure and tax dollars should not be used to reward the irresponsible lenders and borrowers that helped bring this about. what we can do is help families stay in their homes. we can stabilize the housing market so that it begins rising again that is why we are buying up vacant homes and converting them into affordable housing, creating jobs and growing local economy. that is why we put a tax credit that was worth thousands of dollars in the pockets of $1.4 million -- and 1.4 million americans. that is why we are offering more

than 1 million struggling homeowners lower their payments. that is one banks with the leadership of harry reid are announcing a fund for housing finance agencies in the states that are hardest hit. that means here in nevada. [applause] so, if this is going to help out homeowners, it will prevent -- it will help them help and borrowers and lenders alike and will help those that took out its second mortgage to modify their loans. so, yes. we need to strengthen the

housing markets and to focus on job creation. one thing that i want to be clear about very we can do all of those things. -- clear about. we can do all those things. we need to solve some of the long term problems that have been with us for years. we have to recognize that our future is what we make of it and unless we get everything we've got to secure americans, our children will not have the same opportunities. i have traveled all over the world. i have to tell you that countries like china are competing to win. there is nothing wrong with that. we want china to succeed. they have much more poverty than we have here. it is good for their stability if they are doing well. but i do not know about you.

i don't want to concede the 20th-century to anybody else. america does not follow, america leads. [applause] america leads. what does it mean to leave? it means that country's that out agitate us today will out was tomorrow. that is why we are working with educators, to transfer the cost to transform our schools and prepare our kids for science and engineering and technical degrees, because those will be the jobs of the future. and because the future belongs to countries that create the jobs of tomorrow, we have to

lead an industry. that is why we want to produce solar power and wind power and the inefficient electric grids. [applause] it is vital that we do that. our nation cannot lead. we cannot prosper if we have a broken down health care system that works better for the insurance company that it does for ordinary americans. we cannot squander the opportunity to reform our health-care system to make it work for everybody. that is why we will be meeting with members of both parties and we will move forward the

democratic proposal. we hope that the republicans have won two. we will go section by section. america cannot solve our economic problems unless we tackle some of the structural problems. america cannot lead -- we cannot succeed unless we are getting a handle on our debt. we have to confront this crisis that has been brewing for years. that is why we are cutting what we do not need to pay for what we do. americans should pay as we go and live within our means. that is why i announced the bipartisan commission that will help us meet our fiscal challenges once and for all.

this will responsibility, clean energy, a world-class education. a health care system that works and an economy that lives of all our citizens. that is how we can leave. we will all come together to win this. with all the petty partisanship and game play in washington, i know that sometimes you got some free press. i know it can be easy to despair about whether we, as a nation can come together anymore. for those who wonder if america can unite, just think about it. this is a town that was founded during world war two. this is a town that was not built by liberals or conservatives. it was built by americans, by

patriots that rally around a common purpose in an hour of need. i am certain that if we can reclaim, in this country, the spirit of unity that bill -- that was in henderson nevada, then we can build cities across this country and the future will belong to the united states of america. the thank you. god bless you. kut bless the united states of america. [applause] all right, everybody sit down. this is where i am on a hot

seat, so i have to take off my jacket. everybody sit down. some of you have been to town halls before, so this is pretty straightforward. we have people in the audience with microphones. just raise your hand. we will go girl boy girl voice so that we make sure it is fair. i will try to take as many questions as i can in the time remaining. before you ask your question, if you could introduce yourself so that we know who you are and try to make your question relatively brief so that we can get as many as possible. we're going to go girl void for a boy. the young lady right there. >> thank you president obama. >> what is your name? >> my name is lawrence.

in nevada, we have the second highest number of medically uninsured, about a hundred 25,000 uninsured. more than five working adults our colleagues that die each week because of no access to health care. i am the founder of volunteers in medicine, a free clinic that has been set up to help our sick and dying. there are hundreds that have rallied like a core of angels to provide free health care for their struggling neighbors. housekeepers and operators and social workers. in your health reform bill, you have a provision to protect the federal refunded and subsidize community clinics. it is not clear if they are going to cover the free clinics where volunteers throughout the community have rallied to give

support to the struggling neighborneed can you help us with that? >> thank you for the great work that you guys have done. we appreciate that. if you are like a lot of free clinics across the country, i know you're getting overwhelmed. the need is so great. the bill that harry and i have been working on will provide assistance to a whole range of community-based efforts preventative care, well as care, which is absolutely vital not only to the people that are receiving services, but also for reducing the cost of health-care overhaul. the more that people have access to preventive care, the less likely they are to go to the

emergency room when things are already out of hand. let me speak more broadly about health care. i have to it meant that this has been an issue that i was warned i should not take on. no, seriously. when i first came men and harry was part of these conversations. there were a lot of political advisers that said that health care is just too hard. it is just too complicated. everybody says in the theory that they want to reform the health-care system, but because it is complicated yet all kinds of criticism the insurance lobby will spend money.

your poll numbers will go down and will not get a lot of cooperation from the other side. that was the warning. pause, because the economy is bad, a lot of people are feeling anxious. so, they are thinking that if @@@@!,@ @ @ @ @ @ @ h @ @ @ @ @ this is probably not the team to be too am birks. so i wanted to explain why i decided to take it on. i decided to take it on because i get a letter or two or five every day from people who have lost their job and suddenly

they don't have health insurance. somebody in their family gets sick and they lose their house. they are solid middle class folks until they lostñi their j and lo and behold they $t coverage becausj something had happened to them before. because something had happened to them before. maybe a woman had had breast cancer and it was ok as long as she had her employer based health care, but once she lost her job, she could not get health care. i have looked to many parents in the eyes that say that their children have these chronic diseases and we found out that our insurance only cover us up to a certain amount and then there was a cap and afterwards, it makes sure that the kids would live. that was the main reason i said we had to take it on. the second reason was because

what has happened to your premiums. if this was a representative sample, i am assuming that 85 percent of you have health care. some of you are buying it individually. no matter what your situation, it has got up double digits over the last year. they doubled over the last decade. there will more than double over the next decade if we did -- do not do anything. this is digging deeper and deeper into your pockets. some of you saw the news. for those of you that do not do

this, one of the biggest insurance providers just announced that they were going to raise rates on these rates up to 39%. that is the future. that is going to be one of the main things that helps to bankrupt local school districts. those young people that are about to go a college, finally, the third reason we had to take this on is because the deficit

and debt that you hear everybody getting in a tizzy about, the vast majority of our long-term debt is driven by medicare and medicaid. it is driven by our allies in health care cost. you could eliminate every year mac -- ever earmarked and foreign aid and it would amount to 5% of the budget. most of it is health care costs. that drives up even faster. pretty soon, the entire federal budget will be gobbled up by these rising health-care costs. you are already seeing it at the state level. the government is talking about cutting all aspects of medicaid because of the cost.

here is my point. we cannot wait to reform the health-care system. it is vital for our economy to change how the health care is in this country. it is vital. [applause] having said all that, the people who were giving me advice were right. healthcare has been knocking me around pretty good. it has been knocking harry around pretty good. harry had shown extraordinary courage because he says that we will get this done. that is what he has been saying consistently. i am proud of him for it. [applause]

let me describe what it is that we have proposed. i am waiting to see what the republicans propose in return because there has been a lot of misinformation. what we have said is this. if you have health insurance, we will pass a series of health reforms so that the insurance companies have to treat you fairly. they cannot prevent you from getting health insurance because of a pre-existing condition. they cannot put a lifetime cap in the fine print and it turns out your not fully covered. there is a whole series of insurance reforms. we have a series of cost controls. we are saying that every insurer has to spend the vast majority of your premiums on actual care as opposed to profits and overhead.

we are saying that we have to get out of some of the waste and abuse including that which runs in the tens of billions of dollars every year. that is not a good use of taxpayer dollars. we are working to improve wellness and prevention so that people will not go to the emergency room for care. the thing that is most controversial is what we are also saying which is access to coverage. we set up something like an exchange where individuals and small businesses that do not get a good deal because they do not have the same negotiating power as the big companies when it comes to the insurance market, they can't fool -- they can pulool so that they have the

purchasing power of a million people behind it will give subsidies to local -- working families. [applause] i want everybody to pay attention next thursday when we have this health care summit. you may not want to watch all six or eight hours of it, you have things to do. but pay attention to what this debate is about because there has been so much talk about death and girls. the attention. this is -- what we're proposing has nothing to do with health care. most of you would have the exact same health care that you have right now, but you'd be more protected and more secure. if you do not have health care, you have a chance of getting

health care. it would actually save us money in a long term because all those ways will dollars we are spending right now, the experts say would save one trillion dollars by passing it. i think it is the right thing to do. the republicans say that they have a better way of doing it. i want them to put it on the table. if you show me that you can do the things that were talking about, make sure that the costs are controlled and people that do not have health insurance are covered, and you can do it cheaper than me, then why would i not do that. i would just grab your idea and say great and take all the credit.

i would be happy to do it. so, show me what you have. but do not what the american people go another year or another 10 years or 20 years without health insurance reform in this country. unreasonable guy. wouldn't i do that? say, great, and take all thei'd be happy to do it. in this country. [applause.] okay, it's a gentleman's turn. it's a man's turn. this guy over here. this guy with a beard. >> thank you, mr. president. ben burris [phonetic] , from jonesboro, arkansas.

>> what are you doing all the way here in vegas? >> everybody comes to vegas. [laughter.] >> that's what i'm talking about. there you go. everybody comes to vegas. [applause.] yes. now, here's my only question,have you spent some money here>> oh, yes, sir. >> he says "yes, sir."[applause.] >> yes, sir. >> he's spending some money here in vegas. all right. that's good. we like to see that. all right, what's your question? >> well, sir, i'm reasonably familiar with the current and proposed legislature as it applies to dentistry and oral health. and my question is, what's your vision for how dentistry will fit into your larger framework for health care reform? >> are you a dentist yourself? >> yes, sir. so if somebody has a heart attack, you better still call 9- 1-1. [laughter.] just a dentist. >> now, it is interesting that you raised this. it turns out -- this is serous -- that dental hygiene is actually very important for keeping your heart healthy. it turns out that heart disease can be triggered when you've got gum disease. so everybody floss. that's my first -- am i right? you got to floss. [applause.] at minimum -- at minimum, i

think it's very important that we've got dental care for our kids. [applause.] because what happens is, is that if we can keep our children's teeth healthy, then usually that means they've got healthy teeth as adults. and if not, oftentimes that actually distracts them and -- if we can keep our children steve howe, then that means they got healthy teeth as adults. if not, oftentimes i actually distracts them and prevents them from learning, because both dental and eye care -- a lot of kids end up being distracted. they can't read the blackboard, they've got a cavity that's been untreated. it's a huge problem. so i would like to see dental

care covered. i will tell you that some folks are going to say we can't afford it. at minimum, i'd like to see that our children have the care that they need. [applause.] >> can i say one more thing, sir? i think most of us in dentistry think that health care is the primary need here in terms of that, and children as well. so we think that if you can take care of health care first and let dentistry -- do that kind of thing -- it's more important to take care of the health care first. thank you, sir. >> there you go. all right, i appreciate that. thank you. [applause.] okay, it's a young lady's turn. it's so hard to choose. okay, i'll call on this young lady back here, right over here. yes, you. [laughter.] all right, we got to get the

young man with the mic over to you. >> thank you, mr. president. thank god for this opportunity. i realize that insurance and medical care has been a major issue. this is my problem. i worked for united airlines for i don't know where else to turn. i don't know who else to talk to about the problem. i've written you letters and letters to many of the senators here in las vegas. i've talked to the doctors. i've done everything i know how to do. but i am a widow with a special needs child. i live in the house that i lived in for 19 years. my house is in foreclosure. i have disability insurance. i have social security

disability. that disability tells me, your insurance is not accepted here. i can't get the medical help that i need to get better. i would love to be a flight attendant for you on that u.s. one. i'm trained on u.s. one. >> well, look, the -- in terms of your specific issue, come see harry reid and harry reid will see if he can help you out here. all right? workman's comp is generally a state issue as opposed to a federal issue. so -- but harry -- he's got a few connections here in nevada. so i suspect that he can help out. but look, to the larger point, there are a lot more people who are actually going on disability right now, partly because job opportunities have shrunk. and that's why it's so important for us to really

focus on jobs. now, if you were listening to the republicans, you'd think that last year,; we -- we weren't paying any attention to jobs. were just kind of -- i don't know what we were doing, harry. i guess we were just sort of sitting around. [laughter.] the truth is, is that everything we did last year was designed around how do we break the back of the recession and move the economic recovery forward in order to promote job growth. you can't have job growth if the economy is contracting by 6 percent, because businesses look and they say nobody is spending money, we got no customers, we can't hire. so the first thing we had to do was to make sure that companies were starting to make a profit again, and the economy was growing. we are now in that position, because of the work that harry did and a lot of -- and these two outstanding members of

congress did, congresswoman berkley and titus. [applause.] the economy is now growing again. but here is the challenge that we've got. the challenge we have is that after they've laid off 8 million people, now they're growing with fewer people. so they're making profits, but they haven't started hiring yet. our challenge is how do we get businesses to start hiring again? now, some of the jobs, i'll be honest with you, are probably not going to come back. and the reason is because people have installed new technologies, or they've set up new system where they can do more with fewer workers. that's why it's so important for us to invest in new industries and new technologies. i'll give you an example. we were talking about autos before.

do you know that before the recovery act was passed, the united states was producing about 2 percent of the advanced batteries that are used in these clean cars, these electric cars? we were producing 2 percent of the batteries -- less than 2 percent. what we did as part of the recovery act was invest in developing plants for battery production here in the united states. and do you know that in 18 months, we will have the capacity to produce 20 percent of the advanced batteries around the world? [applause.] and by 2015, we'll have the capacity to produce 40 percent of the batteries around the world. we've created an entire new industry -- an entire new industry has been created here in the united states that can produce jobs. so we've got to constantly look for those opportunities in solar and in wind, and in other hi-tech areas, because that's going to be the future. the more people have work available to them -- there is just a virtuous cycle that

happens. when people go to work, they feel good; their health is better; their kids do better in school -- right? [applause.] business -- they've got money to spend, they come to vegas, right? tourism industry starts taking off. [applause.] so we're going to be putting -- harry and i are working now on a jobs package for this year that's designed not -- it's no longer designed to grow the economy. now it's designed to give incentives to businesses who are now making a profit to start hiring again, and to help small businesses get loans. because a lot of small businesses are still having trouble getting loans from banks, even if they see an opportunity for business growth, and we want to make sure that they've got access to capital. all right, it's a guy's turn.

i'm going to call on this guy, even though he's got a cubs jacket on. [laughter.] everybody knows i'm a white sox fan, but i'm going to call -- just to show that i'm unbiased, i'm calling on a cubs guy. [laughter.] >> you're not a cub hater. >> i'm not a cub hater, that's right. >> okay, before i ask my question, i want to say something. i'm enrolled in a medicare advantage plan. i understand that my benefits will be cut with health reform. i'm all for it. >> well, how about that? let me -- let me -- before you ask your actual question, let me just make this point. we're not actually eliminating medicare advantage. what medicare advantage is, is basically the previous administration had this idea, instead of traditional medicare, let's contract out to insurance companies to manage the medicare program. and the insurance companies can then kind of package and pool providers of dental care or eye

wear or what have you, and it's a one-stop shop for seniors. now, in theory that sounds like a pretty good idea, except as you might imagine if the insurance companies are involved that means they've got to make a profit. and what happened was they didn't bid out competitively this medicare advantage program. so these insurance companies were just getting a sweet deal. all we've been saying is let's make sure that there's a competitive bidding process and that we are getting the absolute best bargain. [applause.] but i appreciate your larger concern, which is let's make sure that everybody has access to health care. and traditional medicare, by the way, is a great deal.

everybody who is in it is pretty happy with it. but go ahead with your question. >> i'm going to introduce myself. my name is norman -- i live in north las vegas. i'm retired. [applause.] and my question is about social security. >> are you a former chicagoan? >> yes, sir. >> where are you from in chicago? >> schaumburg last. >> fantastic. well, the weather is a little bit better here, i got to admit. [laughter.] >> well, we can visit snow here. >> exactly. all right, go ahead. >> well, my question is about social security. now, i know there are a lot of myths out there, and i know you can dispel them. i saw an interview on "meet the press" with alan greenspan, who, as you know, was on the social security commission in the '80s. and tim russert asked him specifically, what about the crisis in social security? alan greenspan's response was, there is no crisis in social security; it's a payroll tax issue. can you comment on that? >> yes. here's the situation with social security. it is actually true that social security is not in crisis the way our health care system is in crisis. i mean, when you think about the big entitlement programs, you've got social security, medicare, medicaid. these are the big programs that take up a huge portion of the federal budget.

social security is in the best shape of any of these, because basically the cost of social security will just go up with ordinary inflation, whereas health care costs are going up much faster than inflation. it is true that if we continue on the current path with social security, if we did nothing on social security, that at a certain point, in maybe 20 years or so, what would happen is that you start seeing less money coming into the payroll tax, because the population is getting older so you've got fewer workers, and more people are collecting social security so more money is going out, and so the trust fund starts dropping. and if we did nothing, then somewhere around 2040 what would happen would be a lot of the young people who would start collecting social security around then would find that they only got 75 cents on

every dollar that they thought they were going to get. everybody with me so far? all right. so slowly we're running out of money. but the fixes that are required for social security are not huge, the way they are with medicare. medicare, that is a real problem. if we don't get a handle on it, it will bankrupt us. with social security, we could make adjustments to the payroll tax. for example -- i'll just give you one example -- right now, your social security -- your payroll tax is capped at $109,000. so what that means is, is that -- how many people -- i don't mean to pry into your business, but how many people here make less than $109,000 every year? [laughter.] all right, this is a pretty rich audience -- a lot of people

kept their hands down. [laughter.] i'm impressed. [laughter.] no, look, what it means is basically for 95 percent of americans, they pay -- every dollar you earn, you pay into the payroll tax. but think about that other 5 percent that's making more than $109,000 a year. warren buffett, he pays the payroll tax on the first $109,000 he makes, and then for the other $10 billion -- [laughter] -- he doesn't pay payroll tax. so -- yes, somebody said, "what?"[laughter.] yes, that's right. that's the way it works. so what we've said is, well, don't we -- doesn't it make sense to maybe have that payroll tax cut off at a higher level, or have people -- maybe you hold people harmless till they make $250,000 a year, but

between $250,000 and a million or something, they start paying payroll tax again -- just to make sure that the fund overall is solvent. so that would just be one example. that's not the only way of fixing it, but if you made a slight adjustment like that, then social security would be there well into the future and it would be fine. all right? [applause.] okay. it's a woman's turn. anybody -- i'm going to go back here. nobody's got -- these folks haven't had a chance here. hold on one second -- i'm going to let you use my mic. you'll give it back, right? [laughter.] okay. >> my name is peggy -- and i'm a native nevadan, grew up in boulder city. [applause.]

there's a few of us here -- known this great guy, harry, all my life. and my question, which is near and dear to my heart, and there's a few of my co-workers watching right now on television, and a few here -- is we want to know what is going to be done for tourism in nevada, particularly airlines. i am a u.s. airways employee who has been furloughed for 17 months. they furloughed over 500 more just on the 14th, so there's many, many of us now on the unemployment rolls. and we want to see what's going to happen to bring our jobs back to las vegas. [applause.] >> well, first of all, obviously tourism is directly connected to the state of the economy as a whole. if people have disposable income, then they're going to travel. and if they're going to travel and have fun, they're going to come to las vegas. [applause.] right? so -- but on the other hand, if times are tight, they're having trouble paying the bills, making

the mortgage, et cetera, that means tourism declines. so everything we're doing in terms of improving the economy as a whole will start improving tourism. but what is also true is that we can take some particular steps to help to encourage the tourism industry. and harry, before we came out, was talking about a bipartisan tourism promotion/travel promotion act. harry -- i'm going to give the mic to harry for a second. harry, do you want to talk just a little bit about what would be in the act? [applause.] senator reid:we're going to try to take that up next week. you'll save a half a billion dollars over 10 years and create tens of thousands of jobs. we're the only country in the world, major country in the world, that doesn't promote itself. you'll see on tv jamaica does, new zealand does, australia does, south africa does -- but

not the united states. we hope within two or three months we'll be promoting ourselves. [applause.] >> good. now, that's the kind of leadership that harry is showing. let me make one last point about airlines in particular. the first is on energy. part of the reason that airlines are getting squeezed all the time is because their fuel costs are huge. that's the single biggest problem for most airlines is fuel costs that skyrocket or are unpredictable. and so if we got a smart energy policy that is encouraging the use of electric cars and improving gas mileage and making sure that we're looking at alternative fuels like biofuels that can be used for trucks and all those things

will help to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and as a consequence, will over time stabilize fuel prices in a way that is very helpful to the airlines. the second thing that we need to do is we've got the upgrade -- got to upgrade our air traffic control system which is a little creeky. -- creaky. it's safe to travel. i don't think anyone to think, creaky, that doesn't sound good.ñr what it is, is that because we don't use the latest technologies, a lot of times the holding patterns for planes, how many planes can land safely at the at the same time, all those things are reduced, the efficiency of the overall system is reduced because we're not using the best technology available. if we can upgrade those technologies, then we could reduce delays, we could reduce

cancellations, we could reduce the amount of time that it takes when there's bad weather for planes to land. and all that would also help improve profitability in the airline industry which in turn would mean that they would be able to hire more workers and provide outstanding customer as much as. . -- outstanding customer service. . gentleman's turn. this guy right here. he's a big guy, he stood up and -- he stood up, i thought, man, that's a big guy, i better call on him. [laughter.] say you're big, too -- i agree. [laughter.] don't worry, i'm not saying you're not big. [laughter.] all right, go ahead. >> thank you, mr. president. my name is dr. herve misoko [phonetic] . . i am originally from france -- actually from africa, moved to france, and now i'm here in america because i believe -- i still believe that america is

thecountry of the american dream. and i came here -- i'm a scientist, president of a renewable energy startup, and i came here because i really believe that america can become the first country for clean energy. [applause.] one of the comments i wanted to make, coming from europe where carbon is regulated, i see firsthand -- i have a company in france also -- that regulation works. it creates job. my company has been growing 30 percent every year in france for the past two years. and i really want to see that happen here. and i think that even if you don't believe in climate change, there's like byproducts that are awesome jobs. the country is going to advance technology-wise. we're going to become once again like we were with the space industry, the most advanced technologically country in the world. and so i really want to see these regulations happen because it's going to help all of us in the clean energy business. [applause.]

>> okay. well, let me just talk about -- this is -- when the conservatives have their conventions and they yell at me and say how terrible i am -- [laughter] -- along with health care this is the other thing that they usually point out, which is that "the president wants to create this cap and trade system and it's going to be a job killer and it's one more step in the government takeover of the american economy."so this is a good place for me to maybe just spend a little time talking about energy and climate change. a halffirst of all, we just got five feet of snow in washington and so everybody is like -- a lot of the people who are

opponents of climate change, they say, see, look at that, there's all this snow on the ground, this doesn't mean anything. i want to just be clear that the science of climate change doesn't mean that every place is getting warmer; it means the planet as a whole is getting warmer. but what it may mean is, for example, vancouver, which is supposed to be getting snow during the olympics, suddenly is at 55 degrees, and dallas suddenly is getting seven inches of snow. the idea is, is that as the planet as a whole gets warmer, you start seeing changing weather patterns, and that creates more violent storm systems, more unpredictable weather. so any single place might end up being warmer; another place might end up being a little bit cooler; there might end up being more precipitation in the air, more monsoons, more hurricanes, more tornadoes, more drought in some places, floods in other places. .

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those costs and price energy accordingly. that means that things like wind energy suddenly become more appealing because they do not produce those pollutants. other sources of energy become less appealing because they do produce those pollutants. the idea has been that if we put a price on these carbons, maybe that would be a way that companies would all respond and start inventing new things that would make our planet cleaner. that is the whole idea. the last point i am going to make on this -- what is true is that a lot of us depend on dirty

sources of energy. a lot of us depend on really inefficient cars and buildings. there has to be a transition. we are not going to suddenly get all our energy from wind, or all of our energy for some -- energy from outside. -- from sun. it is not there. but we could move their gradually. that is what countries across europe and asia are doing. we do not want to be left behind. xdwe are the only ones who have left -- who have missed the boat. we are still using 20th century technology and everybody else is using 21st century technology. suddenly, everybody was buying cars from japan or south korea.

we want to make sure that does not happen when it comes to wind turbines, solar energy, etc.. the ideas that are being talked about is how we provide more incentives for clean energy companies to operate profitably. over time, how do we start shifting from less efficient ways of using energy? it is a pretty straightforward thing to do. there is nothing radical about it. it is not going to happen overnight. it is going to take some time. we are still going to be getting our electricity from coal. we will still get our electricity from nuclear energy. we will still get power from natural gas and other traditional sources. we just want to make sure we are also moving into the future as we do so. i think we can. i think i have time for one more question. this is the last question. last question.

everybody is pointing at her. right up there. right there. i could not call on anybody. you know i love everybody here. >> good morning, mr. president. i teach math right here at the high school. [applause] >> excellent. >> and my mom is right behind you in the top row. right there. >> hey, mom. you are a very young looking mom. >> thank you. speaking on behalf of all of us math teachers, did you have math homework every night? if you did, did you do it? [applause] >> the answer is yes and

sometimes. [laughter] first of all, let me thank you for being a math teacher, because we need more math teachers. we need more science teachers. we need more teachers who are enthusiastic about their work and their jobs. thanks to all the teachers here. we love teachers. [applause] all right. we are actually, unfortunately -- our students are falling behind in math and science internationally. we used to rank at the top. now, we are sort of in the middle of the pack when it comes to math and science performance. this is why one of the things i have been emphasizing this year

-- this has not been subject to controversy. this is an area where we have been able to get good cooperation between democrats and republicans. we are promoting math and science education, promoting technology education. the more that we are moving our young people into these areas, the better off this economy is going to be. that means we are producing engineers, producing scientists, producing computer programmers. we want to make sure that we are recruiting more math teachers, we are recruiting more science teachers. we want all outstanding teachers to get higher pay. [applause] we want to make sure that there is constant professional development when it comes to the teaching profession, so that if

you have the best way of teaching math five years ago, it might not be the best way of teaching math five years from now. you should be able to go back and constantly sharpen your skills. to the students, i want to say this. we are doing a lot of work on education reform. we are doing a lot to bring in new teachers, to improve classrooms, to make sure they are all connected to the internet, to make sure that college is more affordable. but let me just say that it will not make any difference if our students are working a little bit harder. i am not saying all of you are not working hard. i am sure many of you believe you are working hard. malia and sasha always tell me how hard they are working.

i do think that we are going to have to emphasize, in the next decade, that we are competing around the world. america will continue to be at #one as long as we are just as hungry asç other countries. if our kids are spending all their time playing video games and somebody else's kids are getting the math and science skills to invent videogames, we are not going to be number one. it is as simple as that. the need to turn off the tv, put the video games and name -- the video games away, buckle down on your work, make sure that

parents are checking homework and talking to teachers, being accountable and responsible -- that is going to make sure we continue to thrive, we continue to excel into the future. thank you. i had a great time. goodbye. [@@@@@ @ @ h @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ♪ ♪ ♪

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>> next, we will hear from some of the speakers at the american conservative conference. it includes herman cain, tim paolantonio and congressman mike pence. -- tim politawlenty. >> c-span coverage of the cpac continues on saturday. liven up 6:30 p.m. eastern, bollenbach. that is saturday on c-span. -- live, at 6:30 p.m. eastern, bollenba glen beck. >> of the conservative political

action conference is under way in washington d.c.. it is an annual political conference attended by conservative activists and elected officials. now, we will show you speeches from newspaper columnist herman cain and others. sink ♪ ♪ float >> good morning. good morning. >> good morning. >> i want to thank those of you that stayed out late and drank a lot. [laughter] >> and still got up to come to this presentation this morning. [applause] >> because now you can tell those that slept in what they missed. >> yeah! >> our founding fathers said it better than any group of men in

history when they said we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men and women are created equal. that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness [applause] >> it didn't say a guarantee. [laughter] >> and there's nowhere in the constitution where it says that the federal government should establish a department of happy. [laughter] >> it said the pursuit of happiness but you and i know that the pursuit of happiness in this nation as defined and conceived by our founding fathers is violently under attack. it is under attack from liberal

proposers with this administration and with this congress that are designed to strip us of many of our liberties. that is designed to restrict our ability to pursue our definitioç of the american dream based upon each individual's aspirations. each individual's motivation. and each individual's determination. not the dictate of the federal government. [applause] >> and so as we wrestle with beating back cap-and-trade and tax and kill, as we wrestle with beating back employee no-choice act, as we wrestle with beating back healthcare deform

legislation, you see if something that's supposed to reform something, it is supposed to make it better. there's absolutely nothing in that proposed legislation, either version, that makes anything better. it just makes everything worse so you can't call it healthcare reform. [applause] >> healthcare deform legislation. all of these attacks on the pursuit of happiness but there's good news. there is good news. the voice of the people is being heard. that's why they'd been put on the back burner. [applause] >> the voice of the people is being heard. that's why they're being put on the back burner. that is good news. but we're not done yet. we've got some more work to do.ç

we won't be finished until they move from the back burner to out the back door. [applause] >> and we have an opportunity to do that in november of 2010. [applause] >> move them out the back door. now, here's how we do it. it's really very simple. you see, the founding fathers, they did their job. the founding fathers did their jobs. i did my radio show remotely last night from here, from d.c., and i had a caller -- and i was talking about the mount vernon statement that was signed two tays ago by nearly 100 leaders of conservative organizations from d.c. and all over the country. and i was praising the wisdom and the foresight of the founding fathers.

and a guy actually called and said, how can you admire and praise the founding fathers when many of them had slaves? i said you don't understand.ç the wisdom and the foresight of the founding fathers was to set the bar high and not low. it didn't say we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal except slaves. it didn't say that we are endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights except for slaves. it didn't say that. they set the bar high and challenged this nation to work up to those ideals, which we have done. [applause]2l

>> you don't set the bar low. because you will work down to it. the founding fathers set it high and as a nation we have worked up to those ideals. we are the only nation in the world that's been able to change the way we have changed in the last 200 some-odd years. how sad is the greatness of america, our ability to change. i am just glad they set the bar where they have said it because over time, the founding fathers did their job. they did not develop a limited declaration. they develop those family principles that we should never ever get away from, which is why i was proud to be one of the signers of the mount vernon statement to days ago because we needed a reaffirmation, a reconfirmation. as one of my callers pointed out

last night, he said that we need a revival. l. and that's exactly what this is all about. that's why you're here. that's why i'm here. this revival is happening. it's happening across this country. [applause] >> so the founding fathers did their jobs. you know, one thing that i love about talk radio is i learn so much from my callers. [laughter] >> i really do. i do listen. i get accused of, you know, only taking calls where people want to disagree with me. but that's just not the case. if you can make a logical argument for your point of view, i will listen. and i will share with people. but if your argument is illogical and no facts, i will cut you off. [applause] >> i don't like to waste people's time. i don't like to waste people's time. another caller called one day and said, mr. cain, i love your show.

i love what you stand for. but she said i have -- she said i have a question for you. i said what's that. where are the defending fathers. the founding fathers did their job. and she made me job and think. we must be the defending fathers. of this nation [applause] we are the defending fathers. and there are three things that we need to do in order to continue this momentum. in order to be able to do what the second part of the declaration of independence says. too many people call up and say, my vote doesn't count. can we really change things? and i have to remind my audience and i remind people when i'm giving talks, if you read the

declaration of independence, don't stop at life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness keep reading. and if you keep reading it says, when any form of government becomes destructive of those ideals, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it. [applause] >> we've got some altering and some abolishing to do. [applause] >> don't stop there. that's the most important part is about our right to alter and abolish. and i would like to point one thing out. i recited that without a teleprompter. [applause] >> i'm just saying. and as the defending fathers, all of us are part of this

defending fathers movement, i don't care whether you call it the tea party movement, the 9/12, intelligent thinkers movement. all of the various organizations, that is the beauty of this movement. it has multiple arms. it has multiple arteries. i've said that for the benefit of my doctor friends that are here this morning. thank you. [laughter] >> docs for patients. three things we need to do quite simply to make sure that we can abolish the liberal control of congress in november. and just like the founding fathers set the bar high, i believe we need on the bar high we need to change the court of appeals starting with the house of representatives and here are the three things we need to do in order to bring it about. first, stay connected. stay connected.

every one of you here is connected to an organization. or an initiative. or a movement. stay connected. and one of the reasons that we are experiencing the success that we are experiencing is, quite frankly, because more people are getting connected. one of our responsibilities is to encourage other people to get connected. not everybody should or could run for public office. not everybody should lead an initiative. but everybody can do something. and because we have become more connected as a movement in the last year, that's why some members of congress are hearing the voice of the people. now, the president doesn't hear us yet. his administration -- they do not hear us yet. harry and nancy, they ain't listening yet.

[laughter] >> but the good news is, the core conservatives in congress along with some moderates and independents, they are beginning to listen. they're beginning to listen. that's why all of these threatening proposals have been moved to the back burner. and it is our job to get them out the back door. so we've got to stay connected. one of the -- one of the great things that i felt so proud of a couple days ago when we signed the mount vernon statement and many of the people that participated are here today is that all of these nearly 100 organizations who for so long have operated in their individual silos have gotten above the silos and they're looking across.ç and somebody made the statement -- i don't remember who said it first. nothing unites a movement like a

common enemy. [laughter] >> and we have a common enemy. it's called the liberal attack on this nation. [applause] >> so stay connected. number two, stay involved. and encourage your friends and neighbors, if they'll listen, to stay involved. you can't make people get involved. but whenever you hear the statement, i don't have time to pay any attention to that stuff, you say well, one day you're going to wake up, to paraphrase former president ronald reagan you're going to wake up one day and you're going to be telling your grandchildren what freedom used to be like because this isn't an environment. we're already telling them that.

this is an environment where we can't sit back.ç you know, it used to be where we could elect people, send them to washington. and they were statesmen. and states women. and they would do what was best for the nation and best for their constituency. that doesn't exist anymore. this is why they have to hear from us frequently, loudly and forcefully in between elections. that's the different dynamic that we're having to deal with. [applause] >> and that's why we have pushed these things to the back burner. we got to stay involved. and so when you have an opportunity to talk with or influence some of your family membersq -- my son, he's 32. my daughter is 38. i finally got them to pay attention. [laughter] >> you know how i got their attention?ç

i said now dad is not a cagilloonair and mom and dad are going to be comfortable in our old age, and if i don't spend it all, the government is trying to take your inheritance. [applause] >> it's amazing how that got their attention. [applause] >> they woke up the next day as conservatives and didn't know it. [laughter] >> i said welcome to the american dream. welcome. so stay involved. and encourage others to get involved. and as i tell folk, get off the sofa and get off your anchovies.

because americans are under attack. number three, stay informed. stay informed. because if you don't stay informed and if you don't know your facts and if you don't know your history, you could be tempted to drink the liberal kool-aid without knowing it. and there's a lot of liberal kool-aid out there. and in order to stay informed, you have to be aware of what i call the liberal tactic that is they use all the time consistently no matter which liberal is talking. and if you -- if you recognize their tactics you'll be able to counter their tactics with good information, good facts and reasonable logic but sometimes some of these reporters that i see on tv, they are blindsided so quick they don't know how to react. you have to stay better informed because if you look in the liberal playbook, you will find that three primary tactics -- they commit what i call liberal sin.

capital s, capital i, capital n. and watch whenever you see a liberal being interviewed on tv. they call the radio show all the time. and sometimes when i know that it's one of my regular liberals, i will warn the audience. i'll say, now, we're going to take thomas. but you all know what to look for. he's going to sin. s, whatever the topic he's going to shift the subject. they do it every time. i was talking to a liberal one night on my radio show. i said did you know that president obama has allowed the national debt to increase over $3 trillion in one year versus george bush allowing it to grow

$4 trillion in eight years.çó almost as much in one year as eight years under the bush administration. but the liberal says, well, george bush got us into this war. [laughter] >> i didn't ask you about the war. we're not talking about the war. we're talking about runaway tsunami spending but they like to shift the subject. watch that. listen for that. and if you're in dialog with them, then you can get them back on track. so they sin. they shift the subject. they do it all the time. secondly, i. they ignore the facts. to paraphrase jack nicholson in that famous movie "liberals can't handle the facts." they hate the facts.

when president obama started trying to sell healthcare deform, he continued to use the number 46 million people are without health insurance. now, fortunately some radio talk show hosts -- [laughter] >> some news -- cable news outlets and a lady by the name of sally pipes of the pacific research institute and others took a look at the data and unraveled that 46 million and found that it was not 46 million people who were going without health insurance because they couldn't afford it. some of those people made enough money to buy it and they chose not to. and some of those people were counting in that number were residents of the united states of america but they were not citizens. and do we owe health insurance to every other person in the

world? >> no. >> so when you start to peel back the numbers, it's not 46 million. and then in the president's address to joint members of congress on just healthcare, he started using the number over 30 million. the real numbers are about 10 million. he still has a few others in there. and here's one other thing about healthcare deform that i want to make sure that i state in case somebody else didn't state it.ç we do not have a healthcare crisis in america. we have a healthcare cost crisis in america. and that proposal is not the way to fix it. [applause] >> i'll get the liberals who call up and say, well, what do you have against all americans getting healthcare? i said i have nothing against all americans having healthcare.

there is a right way and a wrong way. and unfortunately your party, your leaders are trying to shove it down our throats and we the people are saying not this time. you're not going to shove it down our throats. [applause] >> so this is why we have to know our facts.@@@@@@@ @ @ @ @ >> i have to take advantage of this opportunity. when you are in dialogue with a reasonable liberal, you can point out to them -- i know that there are not many of them, but you might get lucky and run across one of the bus or something. -- on the bus or something. three things would change the health-care cost equation in this country. no. 1, port reform.

-- >> number two, level the playing field in terms of who gets a deduction if you buy health insurance. right now the employer gets the deduction but the employee doesn't get a deduction. and if you level the playing field so it doesn't matter who pays for it, you get a tax deduction for your health insurance. now, let me just say parenthetically we need to eliminate the stupid tax code. but while we got it we might as well do the right thing for the people and that's number two. and number three, allow insurance to be sold across state lines. if you do those three things -- if you do those three things and if government gets out of the way, we won't have a healthcare cost problem. [applause] >> it's commonsense. it's not rocket science. it's commonsense.ç so know your facts. know your logic. stay informed.

that's all we have to do in order to be the founding -- the defending fathers, the sin, s.i.n., when they can't shift the subject on you. when they can't ignore the facts they name-call. you right wing nut cases. you tea party -- let me see if i can't remember some of them now. nancy said we were astroturf. harry reid said we were unpatriotic.p jeanine garrafalo that we were redneck tea baggers. [laughter] >> and some other democratic leaders in congress called us crazy.

well, it reminded me of my grandfather when we used to spend time on the farm during the summer. and when we did something to upset my grandfather, we thought he went crazy. [laughter] >> and grandpa's favorite phrase when he was coming after us -- when we be saying, but, pa, you're going crazy. he would say, i'm going to show you some crazy. [laughter] >> and that's one of the messages to the leaders in congress. yes we're crazy. we're crazy about the declaration. we're crazy about the constitution. and we are crazy about the greatest country in the world. and we want to keep it that way. [applause] >> yes, we're crazy. [applause] >> we're crazy. oh, yeah! [applause]

>> we're crazy.ç yeah! they say you all are a bunch of crazies, say thank you. [laughter] >> thank you. yeah, we're crazy. we're crazy about this country. we're crazy about our children and our grandchildren. and so that's what we have to do as defending fathers. that's my message to you today. stay connected. say involved. stay connected. stay involved. and stay informed. and that way you can come back from the liberal sin. and with the winter olympics going on it reminded me of the closing song, the words of the closing song of the 2000 likes. . -- olympics.

... the power of one begins with believing that you hold the key to all of your achieving. just look inside.

and you will find just what you can do. the power of one begins with believing that you hold the key to all of your achieving. we have a message. for the president, his administration, and the liberals. we the people are still in charge of this country. [applause] ♪ testy over the past weeks and i was really, really glad it was not him flying that airplane into the irs building. grover norquist. ♪

>> well, i get cpac's next speaker, governor tim pawlenty. and his is an american story. he and his wife mary of 20 years have two teenager daughters. he was the first in his family to attend college. his father drove a truck for a living and was a teamster. he got involved is a reagan republican early on. went to the state literature. -- legislator. has twice been elected governor of the sometimes blue state of minnesota. 2002 and 2006. and he has governed as a conservative. he has said no to tax increases and vetoed tax increases. he has no to too much spending and vetoed too much spending. he's helped to bring minnesota out of the top ten taxed states down towards the center. and he's been a leader in reform. he's been advocating real healthcare reform, not more government. but saying let's start by electing -- allowing people in all 50 states to buy their health insurance in any state in

the nation. less government will lead to lower cost healthcare for all americans. and more opportunities for americans to have healthcare. ladies and gentlemen, our next speaker, the governor of minnesota, a reagan republican, a conservative, governor tim pawlenty. ♪ >> thanks a lot. i sure appreciate it. i want to thank grover norquist for that kind introduction as well as for his years -- really decades of advocacy and leadership and championing the conservative cause for limited government and lower taxes. we owe him a debt of appreciation. i'm thankful for that kind introduction. grover norquist. [applause] >> now, some of you from this area know washington, d.c. has been experiencing a lot of challenges and one of those, of course, is the epic snowstorm that blew through town about a week ago.

schools were closed. businesses were closed. people couldn't come and go as they had hoped. even the united states congress was closed. [applause] >> and i say -- and i know you agree, that any day, any day that harry reid and nancy pelosi can't get to work is a good day for freedom. it's a good day for liberty. and it's a good day for the american people's wallets. [applause] >> now, you know that with these terrible weather conditions that this isn't president obama's fault. he inherited these problems from president bush. you know that. [laughter] >> that's the line. i'm delighted to be joined here this morning by the fabulous, wonderful, beautiful first lady of minnesota, mary pawlenty. [applause]

>> amongst her life experiences as she was a judge for 12 years. and she's been a dedicated champion for great causes in our state of minnesota. one of which is the support for families of members of the military. as you know when members of the military serve, their families serve too. so mary has pulled alongside and put together these enormous efforts to try and encourage nonprofit organizations and community groups and individuals to support and to love and to extend acts of kindness to the families of the military. she's gotten involved in women's heart health issues and so many other wonderful causes. but i do want to share with you -- and you probably can relate to this. if you have a spouse or a significant other, they do a pretty good job of keeping you grounded. keeping you on track. keeping you within the guardrails and making sure your expectations are about right. and so i had this experience very dramatically with mary in 2001. i was the majority leader of the minnesota literature. -- legislature.

and i decided i was not going to run for our governor. i came home to our house in ebegin, minnesota. and i came through the door, and i said honey, i don't think i'm going to do it. jesse ventura looks like he's going to run again and this is a blue state. it's really time to turn the page. i've been at this for a while. i've done what i can. and she grabbed me literally by the lapels. [laughter] >> and she looked me straight in the eye and gave me a speech that would be right out of a rocky balboa movie. i mean, she said, we need you. minnesota needs you. you be strong. you get in there. you fight. you can do this. i thought, man, all right, i'm in. [laughter] >> so i ran. and in a state that really is an uphill battle for a republican much less the conservative, i won. [applause] >> a few months into my governorship i came home and we had a little tension, a little

disagreement about my schedule and missing some commitments for the family. there was a little tension in the discussion. i said, but honey, remember you're the one who told me to do this. you gave me that great inspiring speech. don't you remember? and she looked at me and she said, yeah, i never thought you'd win. [laughter] >> she said i just told you that because i wanted you to get it out of your system so we could get on with the rest of our life. now, when we were here a year ago at cpac, there were a lot of naysayers, not here in the room, not within cpac, but on the outside. we had all these pundits and smart alecks saying the sun was setting on the conservative movement. we had people saying we might enter a 30 or 40-year era of liberal government. we had people talking about how the new era of hope and change was sweeping aside our values and principles.

hope and change and teleprompters. [laughter] >> did you see the other day -- did you see this, president obama was in a grade school classroom. a grade school classroom speaking to elementary children, and he was teleprompters. [laughter] >> i mean, you got to be kidding me. [laughter] >> that's not a joke. that's a real story. so even in the classroom -- but a lot has changed. when we were here last year, i mentioned to you in my speech that notwithstanding those who were trying to visit discouragement upon us, that the spirit of ronald reagan was alive and well in this room. that the energy and the values and the principles and the passion of the conservative movement was on the rise and on the march. and it worked. those of you in this room, conservatives all across this country did a great job igniting this nation.

having your voices heard in congress. having your voices heard in city halls. having your voices heard in legislatures up and down main street. all across this country. and you know what? the american people liked what they heard. [applause] >> they liked what they heard. [applause] >> and you know why they liked it? they liked it because it was bold. they liked it because it was direct. they liked it because it was telling the truth. and they liked it because it was different than what they've been hearing for so many years and particularly under the current administration. so i want to thank you for what you've done as a movement, for the leadership and the passion that you've poured into it. -- to just about everyone except us. we knew that when freedom is attacked, when our freedoms and our principles and our values are attacked