this district. what i can promise you is when i go to congress, i will do everything possible to create an environment that brings jobs, that creates economic development engine like he did and to carry on the things that he did because it takes a lot of work and people working together. thank you is very much and i will do everything i read everything in my power to carry on what john murtha did. [applause] >> you have 30 seconds to rebut. . .

the first priority in this district is always job. my priority will be to work on my proposal to create jobs, and the most favored nation status for china, him maybe useful by

american workers who are the best workers in the world, if they create a livable jobs -- jobs that pay a livable wage, because the time -- it is time to start building the middle class of the weakened live the american dream, and unless you are -- it we have the coal industry here and solar power companies down and mt. pleasant, we have when the energy of band have been spurred, and we have nuclear power. western pennsylvania could be the energy capital of the world going forward, and we need delicate that and take care that and work your heart because that to be the jobs in the industry of the future for our children. thank you. [applause]

>> one minute. >> and a priority has to start with creating jobs in this district. in addition, we need someone to go to congress that can help put the brakes on this liberal agenda. i can tell you that even over the summer there is a very good chance that an amnesty bill will be brought up in congress. i would be opposed against amnesty for illegals. they are bringing up the whole idea of cap-and-trade that would not only be terrified -- terrible for this company -- country but devastating for this district. and i would be working hard to do everything i could to repeal the health-care bill and replace it with true an incremental reform. [applause] >> mr. critz, you have 30 seconds if you like. >> i am opposed to cap-and- trade. i was working in west virginia

talking about how devastating it would be with the coal industry. it is a reason why the united mine workers and the coal industry are supporting my candidacy. [applause] >> next question goes to mr. burns. i plan on making the twelfth congressional district appealing to the younger district to keep them -- under generation to keep them working here? >> they are only leaving because they do not have adequate employment. in addition to the few things that i mentioned about a better infrastructure, we need to stop punishing job creators. in this country and this administration, any old time we have job creation occurring with corporations, small businesses, we seem to punish them with our tax policies. we need to give tax breaks to job creators.

whenever i meet with people across this district and and the industry, but of the farming industry, the energy industry, the banking industry, they all tell me that they are the most regulated industry. every industry is overregulated. we need to reduce the regulations across the board to allow these businesses to prosper. the last thing is -- we set on a gold mine right here. we are sitting on a gold mine with huge reserves of coal and natural gas. we have the two largest coal mines in the world in this very district. and we set on so much natural gas, we could power the country for 100 years that is right here. the best thing we could do to promote these industries is to get out of the way. our own senator casey has supported the bill that would give sweeping new regulatory

authority on this industry. it would be terrible. we have to be allowed to take advantage of these vital natural resources and we literally can be the energy capital of the world right here. and when we are, there will be thousands of jobs created and as long as we have jobs, our young people are not going to want to leave. [applause] >> mr. critz, you have one minute. >> i will talk as. yet to create an environment and work for people to stay here. you have to work in your educational institutions. we have st. francis and others. we have a multitude of higher education that these kids can go to and we want to keep training them so they will stay here. a lot people are talking about quality of life. we have to support things like that trails, but water, we have for necessity.

i could not read that, i'm sorry. 30 seconds -- i am sorry. this is a multifaceted issue. you have to come at it from all directions and that is what we have been working on for years. it is not just jobs but other things and quality of life plays a huge issue for young people. you have to keep supporting all these different factors. thank you. [applause] >> mr. burns you have 30 seconds if you wish. >> the last few questions that come from the audience and we thank them for providing them. >> we go to mr. burns. >> he chose not to use that. the next question goes to mr. critz. >> that sounds like a loaded question.

one of the things that i proposed and talking about the federal budget in the issues of the federal budget is that i think agency-wide, every federal agency, the american people are hurting right now. the economy is hurting right now. people are worried about their jobs and their happening -- having to tighten their belt. i propose not to pick and choose which agency but every agency in the federal government should start looking to be more efficient. one of the things that things they should do -- during the clinton-score years, they were able to shrink the size of government through attrition for it when someone retired, they did not replace them. they had to do more with less. this is one way to shrink the government we're not giving out raises but saving money at the federal level. another way that i propose is that i think the u.s. congress should share in spain. i propose every member of

congress, every house member, every senate member, which should cut our budgets by 5%. we should feel the people's pain. this is how we can start shrinking government. talking about social security, i made a pledge that there would be no schemes to manufacture the privatization of social security. i'm going to stick to that. [applause] >> 60 seconds, mr. burns. >> thank you for it when it comes to social security, i am glad the question was asked. the first thing i would like to clear up, because my opponent is making more all south -- accusations saying that i was for privatizing social security. those accusations were completely false. but there is a pattern here and he apologized last week for all

specifications. another topic. let me be clear -- i am not in favor privatizing sells a security. -- in privatizing social security. people are concerned and rightfully so about any social security money going into wall street. and we've seen what happened in wall street the last couple of years. i can understand that. i think social security needs to be shored up. we need to ensure that the people on social security and expected to go on to social security are protected and that we make a bipartisan effort in congress to solve the social security problems so that it is there for future generations. [applause] >> mr. critz, 30 seconds if you wish. >> just to clear things up, i was up for last week hosted by a democrat and he answered a

question saying that all options are on the table. to me, that means that privatization is one of them. he had a fund-raiser with new kaine -- who was the architect of privatizing social security. i think my opponent should sign this pledges i did that privatizing social security is off the table. [applause] >> next question goes to mr. burns. this is another question from the audit. do you believe we deserve better than smear campaigns? why are why not? >> let me take 15 seconds to address this mere campaign that is coming from my partner here. [applause] [blooing]

>> i want to be very clear to everyone, i am not familiar with the pledge that he is talking about but i pledge to all of you that i will not support privatization of social security. just so that is clear. [applause] and that is consistent. i think the interesting thing about this campaign is the accusations that come from my opponent based on complete lies. i never once said that i was for privatizing social security. i never once said that i am for 23% tax increases on the middle class. factcheck.org already said that that was a lie and he already apologized for it. i grew up company in western pennsylvania. i created jobs and employed

people in western pennsylvania. i sold the company and it still exists in western pennsylvania. most of the jobs -- many of the jobs i created are still in western pennsylvania. i never shipped any jobs overseas and i would never intend to ship jobs overseas. it is one more light coming from the other side. -- one more lie coming from the other side. [applause] >> mr. critz, you have one minute. >> he talked about smear campaigns. i have been under attack this entire campaign with smears and innuendoes. it is one thing when you talk about calling someone a liar and telling the truth, tim burns said that he did not support a fair tax, the so-called fair

tax. let me read you this -- in may of last year's, he did an interview and said, "i would like to see that their tax ultimately implemented." exposing that is not a smear campaign. that is the truth then that is what my campaign is doing. >> mr. burns, you have 30 seconds. >> i am glad he brought that up because that "was taken out of context. that i would love to see the fair tax implemented. over the current irs structure, the current tax code is broken, but i do not believe it is practical and i do not support it. if you would finish reading the rest, i very clearly say that i do not support it. [applause] >> beginning wit mrh mr. critz,

what is more important, the environment or protecting it? >> industry and the environment has to work together to create an environment where we are not creating jobs to save the environment. we have to work together. we want to live on this planet and have a plan that left for our children. earlier i talked about the different things, quality of life, the trails, the water -- these different things that young people looking to do. but there times where the federal government and the statement government had moved too quickly. that is why i propose the cap- and-trade bill, because the government is moving too quickly and it is going to cost us jobs. that is why i came out against the cap-and-trade bill and why i support the entry industry in western pennsylvania. if you think about it, the united states is not only an energy issue but a national security issue that we are so

dependent on foreign sources for our energy. we need to get off of this, accusing foreign sources for all this energy. like i said before, we have so much resources and intellectual property and southwest pennsylvania and many did capitalize on that. that is the industry of the future. i think that could be that jobs for our children, our grandchildren, and going on. thank you. [applause] >> one minute, mr. burns. >> it is safe to say that no one in the room is for a dirty environment for it certainly i am not and i do not believe that any of you are either free we want to protect the environment -- no question about that. but we do not want to prevent industry from being able to prosper. especially in this region. here is what we really do not want. we do not want people in california like nancy pelosi

dictating to us what we can and cannot do in this district. there is a radical agenda going on in washington -- when you talk about cap-and-trade and other extreme regulatory burdens that they want to place on pennsylvania and on this district. there is a balanced but i can tell you that the state of pennsylvania are the ones that should be regulating this. they are the ones that are closer to the industry and they understand the issues. we cannot let washington dictate to us what we can do in this district. [applause] >> 30 seconds, mr. critz. >> i have heard nancy pelosi in this campaign so frequently that -- [applause] i want to remind my opponent

that this campaign in the 12th district of pennsylvania -- is in the 12th district of pennsylvania. we keep on talking about washington d.c.. i am worried about washington, pennsylvania. i am worried about the towns and people here. i will be the independent voice for the people back in western pennsylvania, not worried about what is in washington, d.c. [applause] >> mr. burns, this question goes to you. are you willing to work with the opposing party in congress? would you vote with the opposing party on legislation? >> i would love for the other party to come to my way of thinking. i would absolutely work with them. every time that that occurred. that being said, i can tell you that i will not compromise because of my principles.

but there are areas where i believe conservative democrats can certainly help solve some of the biggest problems and social security is one of those. i think i will not rollout working with conservative democrats just because they're democrats. i will not compromise my conservative principles. let me address one thing about the po -- pelosi issue. she is now working to get marked critz because she is a nice person. she is working with president obama and she is raising money for him because she knows once he is elected, he will be one more vote for liberal agenda. do not kid yourself. she is not doing it because she is a nice guy. [applause]

>> mr. critz, you have one minute, sir. one minute. >> tim, you do not know me very well. nobody tells me what to do. i do what i think is right, and you'd better believe that i am going to work with everyone in congress, i do not care if they are liberal, conservative, democrat, or republican. it is of the best interest of the 12th district, that is my job. that is why you sent me to congress. that means working with everyone. that is how we solve problems. you do not draw a line in the sand that you are in this room or in that room. we have to work together. that is what makes this country strong. and that is what i am going to do for you people, i promise you. [applause] >> 30 seconds, mr. burns.

>> i would like to point out that if you are truly a man of your word and you will not let other people tell you what to do, i wonder why you are strangely silent when you said you were against the health care bill because he did not tell anyone about that until after the bill was passed. i believe that the request and nancy pelosi, because she was working so hard to get it passed. >> the next question goes to mr. critz. the question is don't ask don't tell has captured the nation's attention. what is your position, and why? >> add mall in who is the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff has said that it be repealed. i defer to his judgment. >> don't ask, don't tell has been working for the last number

of years. we're fighting multiple awards. there is no reason that i can think of why we would want to change this policy right now, and change the policies of our military. i think it would be distracting and i am not in favor of changing don't ask, don't tell. >> mr. critz, you have 30 seconds if you want. >> from my perspective, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, admiral mullen, he loves his country and he loves his military. i would defer to his judgment. [applause] >> the next question starts with mr. burns. both set -- both candidates have said you are pro-life. what are your plans to reduce or eliminate abortions in america? >> first let me explain how i got to this position.

my mother was 16 years old when she had made. she dropped out of high school, and it was very difficult. they did not get a tremendous amount of support from either one of their parents when they got married. they have a difficult life. i can tell you that they made it through and they always taught me the importance of life. i am pro-life. that being said, i think we need to do everything we can in order to preserve life. i would support overturning roe v. wade, and i think we need to continue to support organizations that support unwed mothers and programs like that so that we can show women that they're all our tentative store version -- there are alternatives to abortion. [applause] >> one minute, mr. critz. >> i think we have reached the

watershed. we've actually agreed on something. am i allowed to say debt of -- ditto? i also would support the overturn of roe v. wade. like him, i think there are alternatives. i do not think abortion should be used as a form of birth control. [applause] >> will move on. we have numerous questions from the audience concerning cap-and- trade. this one is the most blunt. would you promise on camera to never raise my taxes? [laughter] [applause] >> let me tell you something. part of my jobs plan is the elimination of a tax loophole

for companies that ship jobs overseas. [applause] the bush tax cuts for the very wealthy are about to expire. in this economy, we have a government that needs revenue streams. i think they should expire. what i can promise you is that i will fight like heck to never raise taxes on working men and women. >> mr. burns, 60 seconds. >> let me answer that question very directly on like my opponent. i will pledge to never raise your taxes. [applause] in fact, early in my campaign i signed a taxpayer protection pledge, and this loophole that

he talks about, i can give you a copy of that pledge perino where does it talk about any loopholes whatsoever. i will not raise your taxes. [applause] >> back to mr. critz for 30 seconds. >> i can promise you i am not going arrays any of your taxes, it just says. -- i am not going to raise any of your taxes, just hehs. -- just his. >> the cost of education is rapidly increasing. what will you make our students dreams are reality? >> college education costs -- just like cost in virtually every other thing -- has been

going up across america. one of the things i think we need to be very careful about is in this latest health care bill for it the government is actually taking over student loans. and that is a bad thing. we need student loans to be available. we need this money to be available so that the students can borrow the money in order to go to college. that process has been in place and it has worked. there may be some improvements made to it but the government takeover of the student loan process is a very bad thing. i would like to repeal that as well. >> one of the issues at hand is that pell grants, which of a lot of students including me relied on over the years, have not kept

up with inflation. i think this needs to be addressed. if it had not been for programs like the pell grant program, i probably would not have been able to go to college. what we're saying is so many students coming out of college now with huge amounts of debt, it is crippling them for the first couple of years of their white, maybe the first decades of their life. we have to work to find ways to make college more affordable, whether through scholarships or whatever. though france is a key issue. they have to keep up with -- pell grants is a key issue. they have to keep up with inflation. >> 30 seconds. >> mr. critz, it is likely that pennsylvania will please -- lose up to two seats. political experts believe that that 12th district will likely be the first to be wiped out.

assuming you when the special election and again in november, why should anyone believe that your effective if you only serve one term? >> my goal is not to serve one term. the message i have been talking about, and jobs, working for the people back here, it will serve me well in congress and serve the people of this district very well. if we are unfortunate enough that this district is move or taken away -- and i don't think anyone argues that the line to going to change no matter what happens. my goal is really something i've been talking about frequently, trying to solidify any sort of rectangle out of this district so that ndf -- so that this is a rectangle and weaken solidifies said that there will always be a congressman from this area. we cannot predict what is going to happen in the future. all i can do as did the best job that i can for the people of

this district and then rely on that going for it. -- going forward. >> mr. burns, one minute. >> i think the realities of redistricting are such that it looks like the republicans will control the state house in that will control redistricting. i think that if a democrat would win this seat, it would be a very good chance that the district would be eliminated. however, i believe that a republican wins the seat, that nbc lost would probably occur somewhere else. i am hopeful that this seat and this district will remain for many years to come. >> mr. critz call you up thirty cents $3 i've heard this argument and i find it puzzling part where mr. burns lives is the stone's throw where tim murphy lived. my perspective is is that if he

wins, this district is gone. [applause] >> next question begins with mr. burns. how would you represent the district in tackling the national immigration issue? >> the immigration issue, i think, is one that needs to be addressed immediately. we have to stop giving incentives for people to come here illegally. what are the incentives? first of all, illegals know that if they stay here and they can stay and other radar, eventually we will give them amnesty. we need to stop that. we need illegals to understand that illegal means they not -- they are not allowed to be here. they should not be here. the other thing we need to do, we need to eliminate this idea where if you come here illegally and you have a child, that that child is automatically a u.s. citizen. we are giving people an incentive for coming here.

that has to change. i looked at like someone breaking into your house, all of you here this evening, if someone had broken into your house, that is illegal. what the law stated that now that they are in, you cannot keep them out. you have to give the mostly. and if you have the -- and if they have a child, you have to send that child to college. that would not make any sense. [applause] that does not make any sense for your household and it certainly does not make any sense for the united states. >> one minute, mr. critz. >> certainly we have a major issue in this country. we have approximately 12 million illegal immigrants in this country for the first thing we have to do, we have to seal the borders. let's stop the inflow of illegal immigration. the illegal immigrants that are here should not be supplanting

those who are following the rules. the illegal immigrants that are here have to be moved out so that they can follow the process the right way. thirdly, employers -- if there are no jobs for these illegal immigrants to come into, it will be a little bit different 3 they will not be coming in here because there is no place to work. the employers -- there has to be some sort of sign or retribution to the employer that employs the illegal immigrant. this is not a one-sided argument. without the employer, the immigrant would not want to come -- the environment would not be so bright for them to come and. -- to come in. >> mr. burns, u.s. 30 seconds. >> i would agree. we do need to get tough on sealing the borders. we passed a bill -- we said we would build a fence. we actually need to do what we

said we would do. we need to use the structures and technology. we need to get serious on border security. [applause] >> next question comes from the audience and goes to mr. critz. are you in favor of term limits for congress? >> there are term limits. they're called elections. [applause] >> you still at one minute and 50 seconds. >> i could saying. -- sing. >> i guess the thing that you could just vote them out. that was before i actually decided to run for congress. since i have run for congress, i come to learn that the special interest groups in washington, the large special interests, they do not give the republicans are democrats depending on how they feel, because they have no

ideological souls. they give to both parties the same. they tried to keep the incumbents in office. we do have a two-party system. it is not republican than democrat. it is incumbent v. the challenger. the system that we have in place to date makes it nearly impossible to challenge a sitting incumbent. that is why all parts of 95% of incumbents get reelected. i think it is essential that we have term limits. it is good enough for the president of the united states, it should be good enough for congress. [applause] dollar next question. -- >> next question. mr. burns, the special election will require the winning candidate to spend more than $1

million per a lot of that money is coming from outside the district. why should the voters believe that if you win, you would not be beholden to the powers that are providing much of that money? >> i can tell you because of the reasons why i got an this race. i am not a career politician. i am not spend my career in government. i'm a businessman with two children. i got into this race because i believe that this country is facing significant challenges and we need people from outside of government assistance based on what is best for the district and what is that -- in the best interest of the country, not necessarily the best interest of getting reelected. i have no desire and intent to retire from congress. that is why i am ok with term limits. i can tell you that i got into this race because i know that i would not be of a look my children in the eye and let them go up and tell them i did nothing about it. that is why i got into this

race. how can make one promise to you, and i only make this one promise, and i know i can keep it. i promise that every decision i make in washington will be done with my children and your children and grandchildren in mind. [applause] >> mr. critz, you have one minute. >> i am thankful that i have been receiving widespread support from both democrats and republicans, liberals and conservatives. the reason i receive the support that they know they i'm going -- that i am going to beat the independent voice for western pennsylvania. the work i have done all over the years has shown people that i am on it. i have worked hard for it what i say is what i mean. have been a working man all my life. what you see is what you get. people know that and i appreciate their support.

[applause] >> i really think in these trying times, but the challenges that we face, but the out of control spending in washington, we have got to send people that are from outside the system. we have to. we know that this does not work. we have tried it for so many years. we have to give people that have basic business principles, basic home finance principles like you all have big you cannot spend more money than what you taken very you do not and the government should not either. >> this question is for mr. critz produce stand on the proposed employee free choice act? >> when i go to congress, i am going to co-sponsor it. [applause] can i get another water?

>> you have one minute 50 seconds. >> i have another minute? >> you have another minute and 50 seconds left if you wanted. >> i think you are right. >> you know. the middle-class has been squeezed of the last decade and longer. one thing that i know growing up is that if it were not for unions, if it were not for the democratic party, many of the things that we enjoy now, minimum wage, 40-hour work weeks, health insurance -- we would not have them now because corporate america is only concerned about profit. they're not concerned about working men and women. that is why i will always be a supporter of the working men and women of this nation. [applause] >> mr. burns. you have one minute.

>> i fully support the right of workers to organize. us fully supported. but i can tell you, i also support the right to a secret ballot. every single one of you have the right when we're going to vote, hopefully for may, on may 18. i fully support the right of a secret ballot when it comes to union as well. i think it is important, and this idea where mr. critz seems to want to punish corporations and talk about corporation. i can tell you that there are plenty of corporations right here and johnstown that are employing hundreds of people here in this town three corporations employed people. we need to not want to punish them, but to support them. [applause] >> are you done?

>> we're down to our final two questions. that will come from the audience. thank you for sending out fantastic question this evening. this will begin with mr. brant candidates said that they would create a "good paying jobs." would you consider a decent living wage? >> i consider a decent living wage of wage will you can raise your family, if you can hopefully work hard, and save your money if you want, and spend it however you want -- buy a home, by car -- but i do not think it is for the federal government to determine what your living wages. -- what your living wage is. the beauty about america is that if you want to succeed, if you want to work hard, then you can achieve anything you want. and that is the spirit of america. that is what we need to preserve.

those of the principles that we need to fight for, not government punishing people because they want to do well, because they want to do better. those things -- those principles do nothing but hurt america. we can do better. i believe that we can do better, and i believe it is the right of every american to achieve whatever they want to. that is the duty of this country. -- the beauty of this country. [applause] >> i'm ashley told that this is the final questions about i apologize that. you have one minute to answer that question. this is the final question before closing statement. >> the way that i will say this is that there was a time in my life before it came to work for mr. murtha that i work on temporary jobs. there were times that i had to work five or six jobs in a week. you would work two days here and nights there and days here, because i needed to do all of

that to pay the bills. my wife and i were young. we had some bills to pay. that is the type of thing that i think we need to protect against. when small business creates jobs, you can work one job and support your family and you can buy your home and maybe get to go on vacation. that is a livable wage. that is the american dream. that is what i support. [applause] >> gentleman, thank you for your candor tonight. we're going to deviate from our format just the bedford we're going to allow the libertarian candidate three minutes for his statement through there was a mixup in scheduling that caused him to be late tonight. but he did agree to be here so he will have three minutes to an effective his opening and closing statements, and then we will go in the prescribed orders as we chose before with our closing statement. you have three minutes.

>> my name is deemed 0 agoris -- demo agoris, i am your liberty candidate. the way to do this is to read contain our out-of-control government. it is totally outside the bounds of our constitution, and when i first took this obligation of running, i the lot of thinking. i did a lot of investigation. i have come to have a great respect for our founding fathers. they established a form of government that should be contained within our constitution, and the reason why is out of control is because our government officials have gone and outside the bounds of the constitution. we have to put them back within

the bounds of the constitution, and the only way that you can do this is to vote for liberty candidates. i came across two short videos, 18 minutes long and the other 10 minutes long, please go to my web page and click on them. you will start to understand where we have to go. let's say. and if we do is start containing our government, not only will be able to not increase the taxes but we will be able to lower the taxes. [applause] and when i started this process of analyzing our government, i came to the conclusion that it

has to be an educational thing for me and for the people. one minute? and i remembered my mother, i was at 24/7 caregiver to my mother, and i went into the room one time, and she was a schoolteacher associate tried to educate me on everything. and then one time she started talking to me about the birds and the bees. i went to the education on the birds and bees. i'm going to start to try it teach you about bad government and i wish all of your mother's a happy birthday and happy mother's day. and that they mothers are super people. they should have a whole month, along with our farmers, and the farmers that are the producers

of food. thank you very much. >> and now we will go to our closing statements. mr. critz, you have two minutes to close. >> again, thank the richland high school. i think this was a great form for use it to hear our ideas. i tried to relate what my beliefs are, what the issues are, and i think the one playing that i think you can take home with you is that regardless of who you agree with, you support, you should know that i care. i care about the people of this district more than anything. i have been doing that for many years with mr. murdoch. i want to do it for you as your congressman. talking about creating an environment for jobs, helping people live the american dream.

when i started working for mr. murtha, one of my regrets is that i did not get into public service earlier. i love this job because i love the people here. i want to do the things that are needed to make the environment better, to make life better, and that is what the congressman is supposed to do. he is supposed to be your voice in congress. as i listen to the arguments and the spirits from, it all comes down to -- the house of representatives is the people's house. this is your voice in congress. i want to be the voice for you because i will listen. i will work for you. what you're from the tea party, what you are a liberal, whether you're conservative, i'm going to do to think to make -- i'm going to do the things to make things better backyard. i'm going to listen to the people come through that door, no matter what their beliefs are. i promised to represent everybody in my congressional

district. that is what i can promise you. i ask for your support on may 18. thank you for your support. >> mr. burns, u.s. two minutes. ladies and gentleman, please. mr. burns. >> this evening we heard some different opinions on complex issues, but i think this race is rather simple. you want someone who has worked in the real world. you want someone in congress to -- who knows nancy pelosi and president obama or do you want someone who will stand up against them? if you think america is on the right track, and this is all that this district has to offer, then i am not your candidate. i refuse to believe that this is the best that this district can do. we have to use the natural resources, we have a natural resources and a great work force, and we have the willpower to literally become the energy

capital of the world. i believe that this administration is taking america in the wrong direction. i do not believe that congress should be focusing on taking over the greatest health care in system -- health care system in the world, they should not focus on cap-and-trade and giving amnesty to illegal. mr. critz believes that this is the best that this district can do, because he did that. i think we can do better but it takes a different approach. remember, we do not want to send someone to congress who hopes he can attract a job. we want to send someone who brings to congress -- send someone to congress who understands what it takes to create them. i appreciate it. i appreciate being here. thank you so much for hosting this event. god bless you remember, on may 18, you can vote for me twice legally. i would appreciate the support. and thank you again so plunge

-- so much. >> mr. burns, mr. critz, thank you. and remember, but on may 80. >> british voters go to the polls tomorrow to elect a new parliament and a new prime minister three learn about the issues on line at the c-span video library. watch what you want, when you one. and you go watch election results tomorrow afternoon just before 5:00 p.m. eastern on c- span3. >> not congressman david obey on his decision to leave the house of representatives after his term is over. he spoke to reporters on capitol hill for 40 minutes. >> good afternoon, everybody. before i start, of want to introduce the happiest woman in wisconsin at this point. my wife, joan. [applause]

[applause] i deeply resent that. that's more applause than i usually get. next is my son. my son, craig. doug's wife, kate. and craig's wife kirsten. this is going to be a long statement, longer than the press would like.

but after 42 years, i think i have earned it. in december i will let been in public service for 48 years -- over six and the wisconsin state legislature and almost 42 years in the u.s. congress. i've served in the house longer than anyone in his house -- in wisconsin history. god and my constituents have been incredibly good to me. when i was a kid growing up in wausau, i never dreamed that i would even have one-tenth of the opportunities that come my way. i hope that i have used those opportunities to do the most that could be done for the causes i believe in -- fairer taxes, greater economic opportunities, better schools, of affordable health care, expanded education, and health- care benefits for veterans, research that will help us fight diseases like cancer, diabetes, and parkinson's, better health,

safety, and economic security for workers, cleaner air and water and preservation of national parks and some public places. the people of northern wisconsin have given me the honor and the privilege of representing them in dealing with the great issues of our time, ranging from vietnam to watergate, to the iranian hostage crisis, to the reagan deficits, are iran- contra, the collapse of communism, two gulf wars, the economic and budget reports of the early 1990's, the government shut down, 9/11, and the economic meltdown of the past decade. for a decade as the chairman of the foreign operations subcommittee, i had the privilege of helping lead efforts to meet our responsibilities to our fellow human beings around the globe who share this planet with us, but did not necessarily share our same good fortune. during that time, we consistently moved foreign aid

money away from support of military dictators to the expansion of long-term development activities and for programs like unicef contributed to the savings of millions of children's lives. i am especially proud of the role i played in resisting american colonialism in central america, working with people like james baker, dave bonior, jim wright, lee hamilton, matt mchugh, joe moakley, and tom foley to end the contra war in there for what corporate probably the most important historic role the subcommittee played was the bipartisan work we did with the george h. bush administration and officials like secretary lawrence eagleburger in helping eastern europe country transition from communist -- to transition from communist authoritarianism to western capitalist democracies after the fall of the berlin wall and the collapse of the soviet union. although what happened a long time ago, i am especially proud

of the losing fight that i helped wage with congressmen henry royce and mo udall to prevent the passage of the fiscally irresponsible reagan budgets, which at a time of devastating inflation cut taxes at the same time the defense budget was being doubled, all paid for with borrowed money, more than tripling the long-term budget deficit picture. the ob-year old-royce alternative budget was a progressive alternative to the budget of both parties, which spent less, borrowed less, and produced smaller deficits than either the democratic or republican base bills, and won the support of a majority of democrats. at the time our actions were hugely unpopular. about 70% of the voters in my district supported reagan's budget, but time has proven us right. today i am similarly proud that i was the principal author of the much maligned but absolutely

essential economic growth -- economic recovery act of 2009, which in the midst of the deepest and most dangerous economic catastrophe in 70 years has pumped desperately needed purchasing power into the economy to cushion the fall and reduced the number of families who -- whose breadwinners were thrown out of work. when it was passed last year, the american economy was losing 750,000 jobs per month. last month, by contrast, the economy added 162,000 jobs, the largest increase in three years. that corner could not have been turned without the recovery at. my only apology is that it should have been larger, but it was the most that the system would bear at the time. i am especially pleased to have had the privilege of presiding over the house when it passed the historic health insurance reform legislation just about a month ago.

i have been waiting for that moment for 41 years and its arrival finally made all the frustrations of public life worth it. during my congressional service, i have also tried to do what i could to keep us out of misguided wars and i fought to reform the political institutions -- especially the congress -- to improve the quality of their work and to strengthen public confidence in them. and despite the misguided and disastrously destructive decisions of the u.s. supreme court that put the system of american elections on the auction block, i have worked to limit the influence of private money in elections that by definition should be public events. i acted along the way i admitted difference for the district and the state that i represent and for the country. but there is a time to stay and the time to go. and this is my time to go. frankly i hate to do it.

there is so much that needs to be done. but even more frankly, i am bone tired. when i first put my name on the ballot for the state assembly in 1962, i was 23 years old. 48 years later, i will soon be 72. when i went to congress in 1969, i was the youngest member of the house of representatives. as you can tell by looking at me, i am not anymore. says that first day in 1962, i've gone through 25 elections and engaged in countless battles. i am ready to turn the page, and frankly, i think that my district is ready for somebody new to make a fresh start. not somebody who poses as a fresh face, but what in reality take us back to the good old days of bush tax cuts for the rich and and a misguided iraq war. not someone whose idea of a fresh idea is to say, "what the

market do it," which translated means, "let the corporate elites, big banks, and wall street big shots and insurance company ceo's do anything they damn well pleased with no regulation to protect investors and consumers." there is nothing fresh about that. no, what the seventh district could the -- deserves and what the country deserves is for someone to step up and be counted on to put working people first, someone who will bring fresh eyes and fresh energy to the battle, someone who will not use slick words and an actors' ability to hide the fact that he is willing to gut and privatize social security and medicare and abandon working people to the arbitrary power of america's corporate and economic elite. .

my second goal was to expand federal support for education in order to expand opportunity for every american. that has been a hard slog, but, especially in the last three years, we have been able to move a large amount of federal resources to do just that. just this last year, we were able to greatly enhance federal support for student aid. it is not enough, but it makes a difference. my third goal was to help move this country into the ranks of civilized nations by making it possible for almost every american to receive quality health care without begging. for years i despaired of ever getting that done. but last month, i had the great privilege of presiding over the house of representatives as it finally completed action on historic health insurance reform legislation. over the past few years, whenever a member of the press asked if i was contemplating retirement, i would respond by

saying that i did not want to leave congress until we had passed health care reform. well, now it has. and i can leave with the knowledge that thanks to speaker pelosi and president obama and so many others, we got the job done. i haven't done all the big things that i wanted to do when i started out, but i've done all the big things i'm likely to do. frankly, i had considered retiring after the 2000 election, but i became so angered by the policies of the bush administration that i decided to stick around as long as he was here. in 2002, after a year--long reapportionment struggle, which devoured my time and the time of my colleague jim sensenbrenner, i publicly stated i would not be around for another one. that is exactly what i would face if i returned to congress next year. i simply don't want to do it.

many years ago, in an interview with richard cohen, i told him that the way i looked at public service, i believe the job of a good politician was to be used up fighting on behalf of causes you believed in, and when you are used up, to step aside and let someone else carry on the battle. well, today i feel used up. in the last months, two colleagues, charlie wilson and jack murtha, have died. both were 76. for me, that is only four years away. at the end of this term i will have served in the house longer than all but 18 of the 10,637 men and women who have ever served there. the wear and tear is beginning to take its toll. given that fact, i have to ask

myself how i want to spend the time i have left. frankly, i do not know what i will do next. all i do know is that there has to be more to life than explaining the ridiculous, accountability destroying rules of the senate to confused, angry, and frustrated constituents. [laughter] i absolutely believe that, after the economy returns to a decent level of growth, we must attack our long--term budget deficit. but, perhaps i expect too much because, in addition to an attack on the federal budget deficit, i also want to see an equal determination to attack the family security deficit, the family income deficit, and the opportunity deficit which also plague the american people. i am, frankly, weary of having

to beg on a daily basis that both parties recognize that we do no favor for the country if we neglect to make the long-- term investments in education, science, health, and energy that are necessary to modernize our economy and decline to raise the revenue needed to pay for those crucial investments. i do not want to be in a position as chairman of the appropriations committee of producing and defending lowest common denominator legislation that is inadequate to that task and, given the mood of the country, that is what i would have to do if i stayed. i am also increasingly weary of having to deal with a press which has become increasingly focused on trivia, driven at least in part by the financial collapse of the news industry and the need, with the 24--hour news cycle, to fill the air waves with hot air.

i say that regretfully because i regard what is happening to the news profession as nothing short of a national catastrophe which i know pains many quality journalists as much as it pains me. both our professions have been coarsened in recent years and the nation is the loser for it. let me close by thanking some people. first, let me thank my wife, joan, who has put up with so much and endured so much so that i might follow my dream of public service. when she agreed to marry me, she thought she was getting a college teacher. instead, she got stuck with the "charms" of political life. whatever good i've done, i could not have done without her. let me also thank my two sons, craig and douglas, who have also shared in the burden of public service. craig has spent his adult life trying to bring health care to

people who needed it, trying to protect workers in the work place, and trying to protect our precious public lands from abuse by special interests and their mouthpieces in government. doug has spent his life as a working journalist, first covering capitol hill, and then informing his readers about the realities of the politics of environmental protection and the interaction between science and politics on the profoundly important issue of global climate change. let me thank all those who have worked with me as staff through the years those who have worked in my district offices in wisconsin, in my personal office in washington, my joint economic committee staff, and my appropriations committee staff. your ability, your decency, and your fierce loyalty to me are gratefully appreciated. you have been not just my counselors, but my protectors, and my understanding friends.

let me thank those special friends who have helped me get through 25 elections and everything that has happened in between. you know who you are. by giving me your political and emotional support, you have sustained me through the pressures and the ups and downs of political and public life. i will not forget. i hope you feel that your support helped to make possible whatever good i have done through the years. let me thank bob huber, frank nikolay, dick bolling, and gaylord nelson for teaching me how to be a legislator in madison and in wisconsin. and let me express a special thanks to speaker nancy pelosi whose heart, guts, and soul have provided the steel necessary to accomplish some extraordinary things.

let me also thank so many of my congressional colleagues, past and present, who have worked shoulder to shoulder with me in pursuit of so many causes some won, some lost, and who have on occasion forgiven me for my excessive passion. it has been said that in life our strength can also be our weakness as i have demonstrated

on more than one occasion. and let me profoundly thank everyone who has ever cast a vote for me for the privilege of representing you in madison and washington all these years. i hope that in whatever years i may have remaining, i will still find occasion to help move the needle forward. we have laid out some of these things we are able to do. do the fact is that it was the staff that largely made that possible. i appreciate their efforts per family. i hope that in whatever years i have remaining i will still found occasion to help the movement go forward. for me, after 48 years, it is time to pass the torch. i had planned to end this

statement by doing a rendition of god bless america on my harmonica. given the unanimous request of the press, i decided to forgo that. instead, i will take a few other questions instead. [applause] >> thank you.

thank you very much. >> [no audio] >> and me put it this. does anyone really think i do not know how to win another one? for that matter, howas anyone seen you walk away from a fight in my life? there is not a chance of that progress of congressional district electing someone who is a poor imitation of george bush's policies on a bad day. i have been thinking of retiring --

[applause] i've been thinking of retiring for a good long time. it george bush -- if i have not had a meeting in the white house that i had with george bush when we discuss homeland security matters and experience the as of the stubbornness of the bush administration, i would have left this place a long time ago. i never dreamed. when i was elected, i did nothing cowley get reelected. -- i did not think i would get reelected. i did not dream of being lucky enough to spend 25 years here, much less over 40. the fact is that is i am just plain tired. there have been very few people in american history that has

served longer than i have. i think i need a change. my family needs me to have that change greta. i simply do not want to have to go through another cycle. unless you have been due them, you do not know how time- consuming they are, how frustrating they are. i've already given new my expression of love and inspection -- and affection for the senate. i just do not want to deal with it anymore. it is just that simple. >> what exactly happened? >> after 9/11, bill young and i were frozen out of our offices because of the anthrax scare. bill and i and our status talks.

we decided we would go around to every security agency in town and tried to find out exactly what it but they needed to respond to 9/11. we did that. bill was the chairman of the committee. bill is the chairman of the committee. i was the ranking democrat. we went around. we put together a package of additions to the budget that we felt we needed for homeland security. we had expected to go down to the white house and talk about it. when the staff of them together, we've looked at the list and we said, cut it in half so there is no garbage here. the way to get down to the white house. -- then we to get down to the white house. the president walked in. he said, i understand some of the one to spend more money than we have asked for homeland

security. mitch daniels tells me we have asked for more than enough money. i will need to understand if you add a dollar to my budget, i'm going to be to the bill. i have time for a few questions and then i'm out of fear. that was virtually what he said. bob byrd express what he thought about that approach. he said we are not here for an argument. we have just done some work. we are of looking for ways to improve the situation but there is a thing on the list you do not like, we will drop it. when it came to me, i said, i have been coming down here for almost 30 years. this is the first time i've ever been told to that the president's mind was closed for

the subject was opened. i said, i'm going to ask you some questions about things we have been briefed on. i want to know what you have been told and if you have been told. i know what we have been told and it scares the hell out of me. we went through those items. to make a long story short, it was apparent to me that even though we had bipartisan agreement on a number of these items, the president was not interested or seeking anyone else's ideas. at that point, i thought i change my mind about what i expected from the whole bush administration. at that it would be a moderate administration. i thought he had a great sense of humor. he does have a good sense of humor. his attitude that day convinced me that i was going to stick

around for a while, because i could see some things happening that i did not like. it is a long story. it is simple. i've never forgotten that meeting. if it had not been for that meeting, i would have been out of here a long time ago. >> are you concerned by stepping down the democrats may lose the seat? >> we had six democrats at the table. i talked to all six of them this morning. i think that any one of them is capable of winning that seat. if i thought so, i would not have done so. i have wanted to do this and took that the health care bill would be done by september. then i would have been able to make my announcement them. as you know, it dragged on for

ever and ever. i didn't know until the last six weeks or so that it was tied down. i also wanted to make sure that the economy looked like it was really going to be turning around, even if only slowly. i wanted to make sure those elements were in place before i did what i wanted to do a long time ago. i love this place. i love this room. i love most of my colleagues. [applause] -- [laughter] after 48 years, it does get a bit much. i want to do something else for a few years. starting with playing a lot more music than i have played in a long time.

>> will you play the harmonica? >> no. [laughter] >> [inaudible] >>no. [laughter] >> the harmonica is not a good solo instrument. if i had thought to have greg and other bring their guitars, then i would have played. i will tell you one thing. i did play that's rosa's party two weeks ago. i have played a they love to give musicians but. i played with willie nelson. i've played a lot of people. i'm going to do a lot more of

that. >> how much of this has to do with the friction you have had with us, the press? >> do not overreach yourself. [applause] [laughter] i have a great deal of respect for the president you have it checked operative -- i agree to the respect for the press. you have a tough job. the economic situation is devastating. do i find the press irritating? yes. that is a natural state of affairs in a democracy. i was shocked to have one of my sons become a reporter. just as i was shocked to have one of my sense marry a minnesota vikings fan. [laughter]

there are certain things you can overcome with help. >> what would you like to get done in your remaining time? >> everything. i would hope that we will give real financial reform. i would hope that we would recognize that we would have such an immense growth for the economic elite in this country. we need to turn that around and began to put average middle- class people first. he is a helluva lot more fair to loving families. we have to attack issues like climate change.

after all, at this climate withstand us all. we have got to continue to do with the jobs problem. we cannot allow have the jobs that we saved in last year's stimulus package to be lost this year because the congress ceases to recognize the shambles in most state budgets. i would hope we would get something like that dumb. i hope we will continue to help states still with their child health problems. there is no lack of things for the congress to do. >> [inaudible]

a using your kind democrats will have less influence going forward? >> no, the mood of the country seems to be that -- in some sectors of the economy, herbert hoover seems to have won the economic argument. i thought this country had learned that in times of economic recession we needed to be inflated economy by providing temporary tax cuts and temporary spending increases they seem to be so focused on the federal budget of the zapata they are recognizing more

the problem we are facing. i'm tired of fighting that fight. >> can you talk about the millions of dollars in the health-care system [unintelligible] tell us about the effect that has had on health care. >> i'm sorry what? >> [unintelligible] >> if you take a look at the

page labeled healthcare, public safety, you will notice a lot of items describing the clinics with able to establish in the district. i am going to dedicate a new clinic that is going to surf and area -- serve an area in my district. i met a man -- a woman who told me about your problem. her husband was sick. i think he had ms and could not work. her son had braces on his teeth. he had them on for a long time. she called every one of the 34 a dentist and that three county area the to the medicaid patients, try to find one

dentist who take the braces off of his teeth. she cannot find one. she finally held the kid down while her husband to the breezes off with pliers. i ran into another elderly man who told the staff at the dental clinic that he had extracted six of its own teeth with a pair of pliers. he could not get into a dentist. that kind of nonsense judge should not happen. -- just should not happen. we tried to broaden and insist on dental care and as many places as we could. >> have the talks about who might replace you? >> who will replace me?

>> that is all of the to the caucus. -- all up to the caucus. he is also become chairman of the defense subcommittee. it only took him 32 years in order to rise to the top of the subcommittee. i think he will do a fine job. is that it? thank you of very much. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010]

>> c-span, our public content was available on television and radio. you can connect with us on twitter, facebook, and youtube and sign up for our scheduled alerts e-mails @ c-span.org. >> now senate hearing with michael bloomberg and raymond kelly. the testify about the extensive car bombing in new york city, the terrorist watch list come and gone purchases. joe lieberman chairs the committee. this is an hour and 20 minutes.

>> there is the president here. we thank all the witnesses for being here today. i want to begin by extending on behalf of all the members of our committee, thanks to all who work with you. -- and lived in that great city. remains the best definition i know of courage and for the brilliance long investment work

that you and your colleagues did to bring faisal shahzad him to justice. this was scheduled long ago. its urgency has certainly been made clear by the events of the past four days. our growing understanding of the dimensions of the plot to attack times square and certainly should remind us of a reality i fear we sometimes forget. that is global islamist extremism, terrorists, have declared war on america.

they are attacking our homeland with increasing frequency. in fact, they have attempted to carry out more than one dozen attacks on american in just the last year. it can be done by extraordinary law enforcement work. there were failed attempts on christmas day and last saturday night in new york city. here is the fact that i hope that will focus our concern and attention and hopefully motivate our action this morning. the only to terrorist attacks on

americans since 9/11 that had been carried out successfully in taking american lives were carried out with firearms. the most lethal was in november of last year when he opened fire with a semi automatic weapon and ford, a texas, killing 13 americans and wounding 30 overs. it is the deadliest terrorist attack on america since 9/11. it is the death of his domestic against american troops in the history of our country. it is carried out by one man with two guns. a pistol and an older revolver. in june of last year, in an event that not many people remember, a man named carlos who changed his name shot and

killed a u.s. army recruiter and seriously wounded another that a navy recruiting station in little rock, ark. simply because they were wearing the uniform of the u.s. military. he did with a semi-automatic rifle. in other cases, homegrown terrorist cells have stuck of firearms will planning attacks specifically against personnel in new jersey in at the marine corps base in virginia. thankfully, again, a great law enforcement stopped both of the plot. had the planned succeeded, and many other americans would have lost their lives as over 160 people did in the attacks in mumbai, india in 2008 that were carried out largely with firearms.

the directory me today israel. it can inflict heavy casualties in seconds. while it is true that homegrown terrorists but we are seeing increasingly in this country are generally less sophisticated. there may be harder to stop if they are operating on their own. the easy availability of lethal weapons insurers the homegrown terrorists can legally obtain sufficient firepower to cause terrible damage. they will make clear this morning that we are simply not doing all we can to stop

terrorists from buying guns. the united states department of justice has no authority to block the sale of firearms to suspected terrorists even when the department knows they are about to purchase guns. this unfortunately is not a rare occurrence. the number of times is suspected terrorist has been allowed with the government's knowledge to buy guns in recent years is standing and infuriating. this morning, and the government accountability office will testify that in the last six years, a terrorist suspects on watch lists have tried to buy guns more than 1200 times. in a 91% cases, and they did buy guns. the other 99 set -- the other 9% were stopped because they were on some other list, such as

having had a criminal records of some kind. i think most americans understand once they hear these facts and will agree that this has to change. we can do so and we can block harris from obtaining guns without compromising second amendment rights. in recent survey done by frank show that over 80% of nra members believe that suspected terrorists should not be allowed to buy guns. the bush administration proposed legislation to give the attorney general to have the discretion of getting guns to terrorists. it is not enacted.

it is a straightforward bipartisan bill supported by mayors and others all over the country, particularly the marius the cities are prime targets of terrorists, including the dippers coalition of mayors that -- the diverse coalition of mayors that mike bloomberg needs. we need to close this dangerous loophole before another suspected terrorist is able to buy firearms legally and use them to kill americans. >> our nation remains a target for terrorists. terrorists continue to target

men, women, and children. in their disregard for life was on full display in new york city this past saturday had not been for in an ecstatic. have not been for an alert street vendor and the police department, many lives would have been lost. many people would have been injured. i applaud the quick and effective investigative work by federal, state, and local authorities that led quickly to the identification and a rest of the suspect that allegedly placed the car bombs in the middle of times square. this attempted attack reminds us once again that terrorists are unrelenting in their desire to kill americans. we cannot let down our guard. we must continue to me to this ongoing threat to a strength and

resilience. from fort hood to the skies over detroit in now to times square, our nation must come to grips with the terrorist threat, particularly the threat of homegrown terrorism. we must alert citizens, it is one of the best defenses against terrorist attacks. signs in the new york city subway system rate if you see something, say something. the u.s. capitol as those of us who were on capitol hill to pay close attention to help be the eyes and ears with our local law enforcement. it can be our lasbest line of defense. senator lieberman and i have been introducing legislation

that would encourage individuals to report suspicious activities to the appropriate officials. it would protect individuals from lawsuits when they in good faith report suspicious behaviors that may indicate terrorist activity. our colleague has introduced the bill on the house side. given the recent events in new york city, i encourage the senate judiciary committee to pass this important bill. during the past eight years, significant resources have been devoted to the prevention of a terrorist attack using a biological, chemical, or nuclear weapon. give the recent attacks have shown the improvised explosive device remains the weapon of

choice for terrorists. in 2009 alone, if there were more than 3700 terrorist incidents involving an ied worldwide. the materials used to construct ieds ubiquitous. gas cans and propane tanks available at any home improvement stores allegedly formed a core of the times square bombing. when terrorists can turn items that can be found in an average family is there a rush into any weapon of death and destruction, it underscores the need for intelligence collection to identify threats as well as the need for vigilance by state and local of porches, business owners, and all citizens have learned the warning signs that distinguish legitimate activity from the

precursors to a terrorist attack. terrorists can also choose to use firearms. that is the issue that brings us here today. for many americans, including many maine families, the right to own guns is part of their heritage and way of life. this right is protected by the second amendment. this committee and this congress faces a difficult issue today. how do we protect the constitutional rights of americans to bear arms while preventing terrorists from using guns to carry out their murderous plans? let me note that this dilemma did not arise to me applied the terrorist watch list to the purpose of its clauses. one of the more important

accomplishments since 9/11 has been the creation of a consolidated terrorist watch list based on information from all parts of the intelligence community and the fbi. our watch list system implemented can be in an effective mechanism for keeping them from boarding an aircraft. it also helps officials to more carefully screen potential terrorists and it allows the state department to revoke visas of foreign individuals with terrorist ties you are attempting to travel to the united states. the fact remains that the evidence used to compile the watch list is often fragmentary and can be of varying degrees the credibility.

as senator ted kennedy discovered when his name was included, the watch list can be inaccurate. it is not the equivalent of a criminal history. the latest doj report concluded that approximately 35% of those samples from the biggest were left on the best based on outdated information. it usually results in privilege such as the right to board a plane. the expansion of the watch list system to potentially deprive law-abiding americans of a

constitutional rights different in raises many questions. as we consider what seems to be an obvious step that we should take, we must carefully consider these questions. are there appropriate -- to protect the constitutional right? if not, what procedural protection should be afforded those who are erroneously denied the ability/? what guidelines are needed to constrain the attorney general's discretion to prevent law abiding americans from purchasing a fire arm? let me emphasize that none of us want a terrorist to be able to

purchase a gun. neither should we want to infringe upon a constitutional right of law-abiding americans. thank you. >> we will begin to describe the legislation. then we will be honored to hear responses. you have been a real leader on this. the value introduced has been referred to the committee. we are holding this hearing today to inquire as to the impact passage of your legislation. i thank you very much for being here. >> thank you. i want to offer my welcome to

mayor bloomberg. each of them has enormous responsibility. one cannot help -- a note has been done by senger collins. -- senator collins. the police work that went on to get this guy before he was able to lead this country was fantastic. i want to thank you for holding this critical hearing produced by thank my colleagues for being here today. i thank peter king for introducing the that the station. this past that today we were reminded that terrorists are determined to kill americans on american soil. this story is now a little old

but shahking in a to further -- but shocking enough to further review it. there is a timing device discovered in times square. it is one of the most visited places in america . the terrace behind this plot was going to murder -- the terrorists behind this plot what did to murder as many americans as possible. it did not explode this time. they will do everything they can to stop a feature terrorist attack. it to pull this terrorist the upper hand. this loophole allows terrorists to purchase military grade explosives and firearms legally in our country. mindful of what senator collins said, we do not want to rob people of a constitutional right.

i do not like saying this. it is to air on this side of protection. -- err on the side of protection. it is a challenge is sometimes have to take whateve. just last year, it person on the terror watch list was cleared to buy explosives. how can it be? the federal government cannot block the sale of explosives or firearms to someone simply because they are on a terrorist watch list it sounds pretty frightening to me. it is the law of the land. some in the same explosive agents said their use to make roadside bombs in iraq and afghanistan are available for sale legally to known and suspected terrorists here in our country. we know terrorists to knock own

-- the u.s. citizen who was arrested at jfk airport in connection with the times square car bombing had a loaded gun in the car that he drove to the airport. if you look at mumbai, we see that assault weapons and small explosives are being used more and more. the fact is that they are able to compact these horrible weapons into smaller packages. that is why we need to change this. they are forbidden from buying guns. nothing in our laws keep fanatics on the terror what list from getting guns and explosives. it is hard to believe. it is true. this is not some theoretical concept. not only can documented terrorist buy firearms legally,

and they do. [unintelligible] here is what we've learned. from 2004 to february of this year, terrorists tried to buy guns and explosives 1228 times. 91% of those cases they were given an ok. 10% roughly of these people were able to buy guns. america is handy up the welcome sign. i have introduced legislation. rep king has offered it in the in nearly identical proposal. it very simply would give the

united states attorney general the power to review and deny the guns and explosives to known and suspected terrorists. it is not some light it is an impediment. it is common-sense legislation for their it is not anti-gun. it is anti-terrorists. i support the legislation. it is widespread. the bush administration which fiercely defended gun rights asked congress to pass this legislation. eric holder has expressed his support for the legislation the chairman of the 9/11 commission has urged congress to close this dangerous people. police chiefs have endorsed our legislation. they tried to argue that the gun owners ofoppose the bill.

not true. 82% of the nra members want congress to close this gap. everyone talks about making our country safer. this is our chance to actually do it. as thank you again for holding this hearing. >> thank you very much. congressman king, welcome. we welcome your testimony now. >> i want to thank you for the opportunity to be here today. i want to thank you publicly. you lost with the public purse. it is an honor to work with the. -- you have always been honest with the public. it is an honor to work with you.

the actions of the last 96 hours have been apprehending the terrorists in your in showing -- in new york enjoined professionalism. -- and showing professionalism. the city has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to protect itself against islamic terrorist attacks. the whole world country observed what goes on every day in new york. i would ask that my testimony be britain. -- written. it is common sense. we are at war with islamic terrorism. enemies are coming from overseas.

more recently, it is here at home. our policy overseas has been affected. we are stopping terrorist from coming into the country. that has been discussed. al qaeda is always adopting. others do not have known ties to al qaeda. it is harder for us to follow them. the plus side, it means that those that are here are more likely to try with whatever weapons they can get ahold of . terrorist have access to guns and explosives.

all of us were here on september 11. we remember that day and the next day saying, what could we have done to prevent this? i would just say if we find out that islamic terrorists such as uighur sagenite -- that we saw saturday night had gone out and bought weapons and carry out a massacre anywhere, how do we allow this to happen? we have to explain that even though we knew this person was a terrorist and we knew they had war against us and we knew we were facing a threat at home, we still allow that person to buy a weapon. just think what the american which people would think of us. there is a lack of faith in government today. imagine what it would be if we

allow that to happen. will be responsible for the deaths of all those people. that legislation is common sense. i agree with this completely. we provide legal information. they can go to court. they can challenge any of it. i would be willing to adopt my legislation. no one wants someone to be on a list wrongly. if balance the equities, we are facing a possible slaughter of american citizens. . .

this is legislation dealing with their real and present danger. the fact is, how many attacks do we have to have before all with the american people and the house and senate realize that this is a real enemy that is here and amongst us. thank you for holding this hearing. about four to working in a bipartisan way to make sure that the legislation is entirely compatible with other reasonable protections.

thank you for allowing me to testify and tell how you back the balance of my time. thank you for being here. >> thank you. but a time when it is clear that the american people have lost confidence in their government, you have set a standard for confidence.

>> we will tell the government affairs committee what is going on. the governing accountability office shows the suspects on the terrorist watch list were able to buy a big guns from licensed dealers. that is a dangerous breach of national security. this raises a very dangerous question. i believe that they should and so do 500 mayors that are part of our bipartisan coalition.

it is time to close this gap in our gun laws. it is imperative that we close this gap quickly. the car bomb found was not the only attempt at terrorist attack on our cities since 9/11. since 1990, there have been more than 20 terrorist plots across our city. it is critical for congress to fully fund homeland security programs like the securing city's initiative. we want to make it hard for them to attack us. the nypd prevent the two major

planned attacks on our city. the first was when terrorist purchase guns and explosives as part of a planned attack on a temple in the bronx. the second was when the city and federal authorities broke up a plot to detonate explosives in the new york city subway system. of course, the planned attacks have not been limited to new york. last june in arkansas, a man opened fire in a military recruiting station. on november 5th, an officer

shot and killed 13 people. after the fort hood shooting, i will wrote an op-ed urging congress to close the terror gap. our message is that we cannot wait for another fort hood to happen before we take action. people have no problems buying guns and both of. it is important that the legislation before you would give the fbi agents the ability to make exceptions when they determined that this would tip off the suspect could g.

general supported closing the care gap in testimony before the senate judiciary committee last year and so did the vast majority of americans. a december poll by frank luntz found that 82% of the nra members the port closing this gap. it is true that if it with in the end by get that gun shows. that is why our coalition is urging if mayor's to close the loophole.

we have one of the most intense counterterrorism programs. many of our people work on terrorism strategies every day. that is white air passengers walk through metal detectors. that is why they randomly checked back on the subway and patrol sensitive locations. that is why it is common-sense to keep terror suspects from purchasing guns and explosives. our founding fathers did not empowered -- want to empower people to destroy it a free state. today, the security of our free

state is being tested by terrorists. i urge you to take common-sense steps to strengthen law enforcement including closing the terror got enclosing the american people. >> thank you. >> law enforcement people filled the this is set by the nypd. you have raised the banner even higher. >> thank you for the opportunity to be here. terrorists are determined to attack the country by any means.

we are looking at the different ways that terrorists might try to attack. the police department trains constantly to defend against every type of threat. obviously, the more we can do to deny terrorist access, the safe we will all be. that is one of the urgent that we close the care gap. this country's place that even greater risk. last year, i testified before about the assault on mumbai india.

by sustaining the operation for hours, this maximizes the council. this is part of our comprehensive response. we have decided to use the extractors as another reserve force. all of our police recruits receive three types of heavy weapons. we have taken these measures because we believed in a tactic involved in active shooters as a possibility. we also guard against terrorist

armed with homemade bombs. people can purchase explosive ingredients. we have built a counter- terrorism program from the ground up unrealized in addition to -- the police department needed to build the analysis and infrastructure protection. we recruited the best that

america had to offer to have those operations. we created a new program. we also started reenforcing sensitive locations with more security. we look for cooperation with the private sector and with federal agencies including the fbi and the department of homeland security. all of our efforts would benefit with the passage of this bill which would exclude anyone from being able to purchase a gun.

we would like to stem the flow of illegal guns into our city. we are by no means declaring victory. this would go a long way from keeping them from exploiting a dangerous loophole. for that reason, i hope that congress will pass this legislation without delay.

>> thank you. we will do a seven minute round of questioning. the fact that you're here so soon after the event of the past four days gives us an opportunity just to ask you if you have any immediate lessons learned. in other words, from the last four days. a lot of what we hoped would have been in a terrorist attempt situation, the cooperation between the federal, state, and local government.

>> return of the party over to the professionals. they're the ones with food from the crown that we want to defend us. all of the training that commissioner kelly and the nypd that we do together and with federal agencies, the state agencies, showed itself instantly that they were aware that there with a problem. they got the other police officers to start pulling people back. they called in the fire department and then you saw a group of people working together. thank god, it was not worth that was. the explosives did not go off. had they gone off.

the professionals that were called then did what they had to do to protect us. that should give us comfort for the future we are the target, we will be the target again. the next attack or attempted attack will be different. that is why we keep training for any eventuality. the relationship is strong and certainly a very productive one of this investigation shows.

we were able to get information from the databases that were very helpful. as a lot of people if a remarkable amount time to close this case. >> i cannot agree more. i was pleased to understand that some of the databases that are within the department of, of security, they were very helpful to you.

, they were bringing that to bear very quickly. correct? >> yes, sir. >> i was thinking about those two street vendors. there was a case where a woman was attacked and no one watched. this is dramatically different. two people saw something suspicious and they immediately went to the police officer on scene and not prevent it worst from happening. we have an enemy coming out of that home. we simply cannot stop the matter

how hard we try. that is where the citizenry becomes the 300 million plus or more prevent birters. i think people understand that the brady gun law says that if you applied for a federal license, your name is run across a database. some will automatically disqualify you.

talk about what the purchase of a gun makes setting about the moment in a would-be terrorist activity. in other words, might it to jeff that that person is about to go operational? >> certainly. we are still gathering information about the suspects purchase of a gun.

it appears that march is when he decided to get in motion. it very well may be an indicator of putting something catastrophic in motion. >> ok. but does want to stress what i think has been said that in the legislation, this does not mandate the that the person on the watch with got a gun. this gives the department of justice to do so. there might be cases where the justice would want the gun purchase to go forward. he or she might lead to other co-conspirators.

>> we have a chance here to have a good discussion about some important issues. the idea that america has gaps in her defense is is a timely topic. we do, we have at think our defensive at the hearing our southern border. we allow people to overstayed their visas. all 19 hijackers were here illegally. they had multiple drivers licenses. it is easy to fake documents. we are still almost 10 years out and we have not learned our lesson. there's one thing that we can agree on.

but could not have been better treated by the police department or the people at the hotel. you should not be worried to go to new york. i've not seen a more professional group of people other than the military. it was a wonderful experience. new york is open for business. it is irresponsible thing to do for america's to talk about topics such as this.

i am not sure this is the right decision. but dc gun ban law was in experiment that if you had a lot against having a gun that he would be safer. i don't think that worked. the supreme court went too far. there are 1000 to under 20 people on the watch list that try to purchase a handgun. is that right? what something like that. >> what percentage of them are facing terrorism charges now? >> i did not know. i cannot agree with you more, border security is important.

anyone can forged documents, a past board, or a social security card. we should get control of our borders. we track people when they come through immigration, we don't track them when they leave. we have documents that are too easy to fake. we have to get control of immigration in this country. we should choose who comes here, what skills and not let who would like to come here determine this. >> you have been very for cleaning in a balanced way. >> when it comes to reasonable restrictions which the supreme court's that are capable and consistent with the second amendment, i think that this is a reasonable restriction. i cannot know of any on the

watch list that are facing charges that the moment. if society decides that these people are too dangerous to get on an airplane with other people, then it is probably a corporate to look very hard before you let them buy a gun. >> i totally understand. we are talking about a constitutional right. the reason that brought that out, if all the people are fanatics is a terrorist, it would be strange that 1228 are

not being charged. there is a disconnect between what we are same and reality. we have 400,000 people on the terrorist watch list, what percentage are american citizens? >> i cannot give you an answer. >> the law prohibits the purchase of a gun unless you are a legal resident alien. we are talking about a fairly small percentage. some people believe that banning handguns is the right answer to the gun violence problem. i believe that my right to own a gun should not be infringed because some not will take a gun and use it incorrectly.

your son is a former marine, is that right? >> yes. >> he was ta former pilot, right? >> yes. >> you have been great on this issue. no one would expect a marine to read someone caught off of the battlefield their rights. you catch them and you interrogate them lawfully. york unit is probably the best in the world but i don't think it is smart for us to say that the homeland is not part of the battlefield. you get rewarded if you can be caught here?

why should you get a better deal if you get here? even if you are an american citizen, you should be seen as a potential military threat not someone tried to commit a crime. i look forward to working with the police department, the mayor of new york, to devise a law that recognizes we are at war and when you capture someone like this that you have the opportunity to hold the suspect because they represent a military threat to our country even though they are a citizen, and be able to gather intelligence before you did anything else.

we need a long that would allow you to go somewhere and hold the suspect and working with the intelligence officials to gather information. blue the watch list of many problems. it is not a purpose to go down the road that we're going. that of my concern. please understand that i feel differently not because i care less about terrorism. >> the house we can relax her

fears. this is access to a billion times a year and the error rate is probably as low as on any large list. in congress, you have passed laws preventing convicted felons from purchasing a gun, that does not mean that every convicted felon is going to commit a crime. i think that it is a reasonable position to take and there is the ability if you were on the witlist. >> if many people have tried to buy guns who are on the list and

91% were allowed to buy cans and other them are being prosecuted, we have they could connect. -- of good conduct. innocent americans to have to go into court to get the gun right back, i want to slow down and think about this. >> my reading is that you can declare someone an enemy combatant. they have moved the battlefield from afghanistan and pakistan and we should find legislation -- >> let me set the record straight, the fourth second held that an american citizen could be held as an enemy combatant.

an american citizen overseas can be held as an enemy combatant. it is my view that they will allow them to write a law that the homeland is part of the battlefield. when it comes to an american citizen, they have a responsibility of it off country. once you go down that road, then you should be viewed not as a common criminal but a military threat. they can be tried in federal court. the charge of treason should always be on the table. no one got killed in this incident, then got. if it is proven that this man committed an act of treason and of his fellow citizens, i want to keep that charge available to our government.

>> that cannot be tried in a tribunal. >> thank you. i think that this is very limited. in this community, i have argued that we should more broadly applied a terrorism watch list to give secondary spring to people before they board airplanes. reached a conclusion about after the detroit case. in the current state of operation, only people on the

more of a limited list are actually given secondary screening when they show up to an airplane. if anybody has done is -- nif anyone is on a watch list, it is the interested everyone on the plane and society to at least stop them and give them a secondary screening. that would have presumably found the explosives on the detroit bomber. to me, the same is true. if someone is on a watch with a most of the people are foreign nationals. there are a good number of americans including -- why would we not want to give discretionary authority when one of them comes in to buy a gun?

they cannot buy a gun, they might be going out to kill americans. i don't see an argument that is based on the rights of law- abiding citizens to buy a gun. if you have a criminal record today and that turns up when you go to buy a gun, you cannot buy that gun. you don't have a choice. that is not compromisecompromise rights of citizens. they're saying to give the department of justice the discretionary authority -- >> > there is no constitutiol

right to get on an airplane without being screened. when the founders wrote the constitution, they did not consider flying. i don't believe it protects any of us from being able to get on an airplane without being screened. what if all of the secondary screens happened to be 99% muslim males? that is where we are headed with this thing. >> only if they are on the list. >> we are at war.

we have to realize the profile of the enemy. you don't want to focus on law abiding muslim males who are serving in the military and justifiably. as you said, this is not about religion. there are plenty of people in this country of the muslim faith who were fighting and dying for this country. we have to what we're doing and saying. we are talking about the second amendment right and some of the people pushing this idea are pushing the idea of banning handguns and i don't think that this makes me safer. but the belief that if of that and the nine it not act you have been convicted in a lawful court of a felony where did it hurt. court, i think you're going too

far. there is a huge defense between losing your gun rights based on a felony charge of proven by a court of law and appeals and is a conviction on the books than on a list that is at best suspect. i am concerned that this is not going in the right direction. i am concerned about the gaps in the defenses. maybe i'm not making a good argument to you but it makes perfect sense to me that losing the ability to own a gun which is a constitutional right, this is unnerving. >> we will continue this argument.

this is a very limited law that is being proposed by congress spent the to say that someone suspected terrorists cannot buy a gun. we will continue that discussion, i am sure. we would like to expand the databases.

because of the e-mail contact that they had with the radical cleric in yemen, barrett is a larger data base for people who are subject of investigations. wouldn't it make sense to go beyond this system and to also ask for someone to come in and purchase a gun that would run through a database. >> i would fully agree with that.

>> the nypd has a program called operation accesnexus. can you talk about this? >> i with the police commissioner and this is a program roughly similar to that. it has to do with the airplane parts leaving the country. this is an outreach program on

the part of the department. we have made probably about 50,000 visits since the beginning of this program. if gives them a certificate and it gives them a way of notifying if they see something of a suspicious nature. the british authorities came here in 2003 and they say that they look at this program and copied it and it was helpful in one particular case.

there has been a helpful none of leads. -- helpful in some of the leads. >> there has been some reference to the gun show loophole. that is not specifically the topic of this hearing but this is another concern that we have about the ability of terrorists to buy a firearms at gun shows without having to go through the tax.

i wanted to ask both the commissioner and the mayor. i believe that they did an investigation of gun shows and reached some very important conclusions. >> it was a private group that we hired that did the investigation. let me explain what the loophole is. the federal laws require background checks if you buy a gun from a dealer. there is an exemption ostensibly so that if you own a gun and you want to sell it to me we would not have to go through any of the investigatory process. you will find people going into

the shows with hundreds of guns to sell. these were meant for individual purchases. closing the loophole requiring the same processes for non registered dealers. the federal government has legislated that they should not have them.

i think that this is another one of the categories that is sympathetic to the concerns. i think that he is a -- this is consistent with the other laws that the congress has passed. corks how willing are the gun show dealers to break the law? -- >> how willing are the gun show leaders to break the law? >> we are concerned about the loophole.

we have certain state that seemed to contribute excessively. gun shows predominate. >> in our investigations after this, we want to make sure the seller of the gun said to the potential buyer, if you had to go through a background check, but would you pass? many said they would not pass. there is no question of what is happening here. there are people that cannot go to a reputable dealer. many people insist on the

background check. >> thank you for your testimony. thank you for taking the time in the middle of everything you were dealing. hopefully this will encourage our colleagues to close the gap. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010]

#$% ^5 >> by this time tomorrow night, it will be done and tested. we will talk with the threhour .

>> it is nice to meet an old friend. i wonder what will actually happen. >> peter mendelssohn might not be elected to tell us what to do but he enjoys the campaign. gordon brown has just finished his final rally. david cameron and nick clegg

have contacted their constituencies. let's hear from our political editor who is in favor camerons constituency. what is it like there? clark's conservatives think that they have done enough to win 300 seats. that would be enough to form a viable minority government. some of them think that they have done enough to actually get a small majority. bu i caught up with david camern in the west midlands. david cameron begins his fifth event since midnight last night after stops in wakefield, grimsby, and nottingham shire.

>> what have you ever done for us? >> we are getting into the hospital. that is a big challenge. >> this is a seat held by one of cordon brown's closest aides and this shows how undecided voters are. >> i am undecided. >> i am undecided. >> you are undecided? >> i am undecided. >> it is hard to believe that this will switch many votes on the ground. this is all about the

conservative campaign showing momentum and energy. this is the fourth country in 36 hours. here, they need a huge swing to oust the city and liberal democrat. >> how long did that take you? >> this is a feat that favored karen might prefer not to win. only once has the mmp supported the government party. >> i'm undecided. >> how about you? >> i am undecided. >> will you vote? >> yes, i will vote.

>> do i look tired, michael? >> david cameron. quirks after 30 days, the final campaign event. here, the rally in bristol. -- >> after 30 days, the final campaign event. here, the rally in bristol. what do we need? change. wendy and a chess is drowning in bureaucracy, what do we need, change? when he economy is in the floor.

>> david cameron knew that tomorrow is full of unknowns. he acknowledge that the possibility of the liberal democrats holding the balance. not the kind of climate that he hoped for. >> what is the mood with gordon brown? >> this small community center had a big part in our recent electoral history. on the eve of the 2001 -- 2005 general elections, tony blair made this his last campaign stop. he said to the people, whatever your doubts, your disappointments, i asked you to

come home to labor. they hope that they will have looked at the change the message from the other parties and have a look at their windows and still have significant doubts about the issues of the jobs and economy. did quarter brown really believe that he would be in possession of a, a majority? i don't know. i know that his energy levels are -- by the time that we caught up with them he was already on his third campaign stop. it is amazing that in the course of these encounters, and no one