will punt and extending the bush tax cut some parrot the senate -- the house and senate must pass a measure to keep the governor running until after november before they leave town this week. good morning, everyone, this tuesday morning. today on "washington journal," we want to get your thoughts on the right u.s. education system, the problems and solutions. president obama yesterday

talking about the issue, saying we need to add one month to the school year, citing competitive nest for the united states. also, you have seen it on msnbc, and democratic candidates are talking about the issue as well. so it is your turn this morning to weigh in. what of the problems and solutions? all numbers are on your screen right there. we will get to your calls in just a minute. and remember, you can send us a or an e-mail. let me show you this headline. "new york daily news." let's add a month to the school year. year. the president backs and longer school year. then also the front page of the story, the president saying the d.c. public schools don't add up to private education. that is from the present yesterday as well. then there is a "the washington post" this morning with the headline. democratic candidates blast the gop over education policies, in search of a rallying issue.

it looks like candidates in the house and senate races talking about education, hoping to sway independent voters. eliminating the education department has been a staple of some tea party candidates. some have retreated from the statement but democrats believe emphasizing them can resonate with moderates and serve as a rallying cry. are there problems with the education system, and what are the solutions? all owings mills, maryland. shirley, democratic line. caller: i think a lot of the problems unfortunately lies with the teachers. i have a nephew who is sort of developmentally challenged and i had to write letters at the school to get them to test him. i was appalled the speech therapist tested him and said the way he pronounced words were afro-centric and that was okay

and they will just let it stand and i had to fight. host: what are the solutions? caller: i think the solutions are that we need to start taking better teachers in the beginning and not let them stay on. i am a nurse. if you don't do your job, they fire you. i think that is what we need to do with these teachers. i think they need to be paid more. host: ok. caller: and i also think, though, some teachers just get in there and stay and stay and look forward to retirement and not really caring about the students. and i am an african-american and i think we need more male teachers in our schools. host: increase their pay but don't allow them tenure. caller: exactly. host: washington, d.c., steve, democratic line. caller: i think the problem is poor teachers not being kicked out of the problem is that as we don't have a good evaluation system for teachers.

but i think the larger problem -- and no one is talking about this -- is the inability of many parents to be a good partner with the schools and teachers in the education of their children. if i don't think they either do it or know how to support their children's education when they come home at night. whether it is doing homework or having teachable moments, teaching attention, discipline, being involved with the teachers in the classroom. i think a lot of parents have lost or were never taught how to be a good parental partner in the education of their children, and i think we need to create workshops or some sort of support for the parents to be better partners at home for their children. host: lake stevens, washington. curtis, independent line. good morning britta caller: my comment is this the -- you know, i grew up in the inner city in

chicago, illinois. i was 25 years old when i eventually left. sometimes the truth is a painful pill to swallow. but i did not believe that the achievement gap between minorities and the majority white population or any aspects of academics will change until the parents in the inner-city make the dropping out of school -- take it off the table as an option completely. you have some parents who walk around with gucci bags or louis vitton bags and these kids don't have a backpack. we need to become a culture -- we continuously blame the teachers. how can we blame the teachers that -- if they are doing the absolute best they can but at home these children are receiving absolutely no discipline?

host: new jersey. joe on the republican line. caller: we spent 20,000 a student in the newark, new jersey, and we were just given $100 million from a business guy. but it is not the problem of money. democrats want to throw money at it all the time. what we have to do is to get the families be involved. when i went home, my mother and father said, what homework to you have? and we finished it. and they got involved. but we don't have that today. typical of every democrat, from money at it. host: take a look at how much to the education department is slated to get if congress goes through with president obama's edges take -- education request. an increase of $3.5 billion over fiscal year 2010. would he make of those numbers? caller: a lot and say is, when i

was a kid we did not have an education and washington, we had it local. it may get local. get rid of all of the bologna this guy is handing us and get the parents involved and get the local schools involved. if it is crazy that we have to have education and washington that disk -- dictates, mandates, and everything else. host: if you go to the education department website, they talk about the federal role. they say education is primarily a state and local responsibility. it is states and communities as well as public and private organizations of all times that established schools, colleges, develop curriculum, determine requirements. destruction -- structure of education finance reflects the dominant state and local role. of the estimate of $1.10 trillion spent nationwide and education of all levels, a substantial majority will come from the state, local, and

private sources. this is especially true at the elementary and secondary level where 89.5% of the funds will come from non-federal sources. the federal contribution to elementary and secondary education is about 10.5%, which includes funds not only four of the department of education but also for other federal agencies. host: chicago. doug, democratic line. the u.s. education. what of the problems, but solutions? caller: thank you. one of the problems as all of the people who are trying to cure the problem itself -- callers to c-span -- judges, lawyers, administrators, principles, commentators, and even parents. it is everyone, except for the teachers. there is a certain contempt in our culture for providing -- you

know, these abusive parents with help themselves, with academic help, psychological help, counseling. this whole culture needs to change. the conservative mentality of, you just let people think on their own is not going to work for this country. it has been going on for a long time. and it is just going to have to stop. we have to nip this problem and of but it and help these children and we have to help their parents as well. host: what are the solutions? caller: one of them is -- i know that social workers are underpaid, and they can be used to be getting after these parents. i know that can be a solution. the german talk about the amount of money spent on the department

of education but -- gentlemen talked about the money being spent on the part of education but what is not being spent on law enforcement and social workers and other forms of help for people who are living in desperately poor and overcrowded situations. host: if you go back to the education web site, a little bit more of the issue of how much is being spent in the federal level. education department's programs and responsibilities have grown substantially over the years but the department itself has not. planned fiscal year 2010 level of 4199 education staff, 44% below the 7528 employees who administer federal education of -- programs in several different agencies. from 1980 when the department was created. staff reductions along with wide range of improvements helped limit administrative cost to approximately 2% of the

discretionary budget. fullerton, california. helen, republican line. caller: i am a teacher in the los angeles area and also the proud member of the tea party. it one thing that is the problem with education is that it is one of the few professions that has been so politicized, meaning that it is government funded but it is a profession outside of government with its own time honored institutions. it has been around a lot longer than most governments have -- the institution of education. but the problem is, it is so politicized. and in response to the political movement at the time. so, they are guilty of doing for research. guilty of attaching themselves to quick fixes to make themselves and look better in the eyes of the politicians.

i'd cut can i jump in and ask you something -- i wanted to show you -- host: can i jump in and ask you something. i wanted to show you 2009 education statistics. percentage of people 25 years older -- and over, and education attainment. from 1940 until 2009, you can see a steady decline in those that have less than high school completion a steady decline in those who have completed their high school years. and an incline in those who are receiving bachelor's degrees or higher degrees. is there even a problem? caller: the problem is -- first of all, 1940 you had half the population you do have now. 1940, you did not have the wave of immigrants coming in who have english as a second language, who have come from maybe more impoverished background. you have some differences.

you are not putting in all the numbers that show the true picture. a and we do have more people now -- i can go to about five other statistics and five other graphs that show more people now than in the 1940's are getting college degrees. you have one graf, i have about three or four other graphs that show the opposite. not setting any one is right or wrong in this. but there are more numbers than what is being presented in the media. host: as a teacher, what do you think are some solutions? you talk about immigration policy. do you have solutions in mind? caller: the solutions -- why don't you let teachers teach? why don't you let people know the profession have more control over it instead of allowing it to be politicized by any local politician or federal politician or state politician who wants to make a name for themselves and they jump on this "i am going to fix education, give or your kids college bandwagon."

why not allow this to be a profession -- not specifically you, but the table who are always complaining about education, let the professionals take control of it and improve it. i have been doing this for a couple of decades. i have an idea of what i am doing. i have a master's degree. i did not buy it from somewhere. i really endeavored in my field and in my profession and i cannot allow to be a part of it. i am always having to dance to someone else's tune, political tune. host: when you say you are not being allowed to be part of it, is at the printable, school board, superintendent? caller: i am going to say directly it is those people i never see. not the board of education -- i would say the federal government and the state government with all of the mandates and a new quick fix fads to appease voters. race to the top -- yeah.

no child left behind. it is all the same fad, and what is so frustrating, no child left behind, most teachers jump through all the hoops. that is never really brought out. every teacher was told you have to have extra education, you have to meet these above and beyond standard, and most of them did. now we have raced to the top. host: before we go, because we need other voices. i wanted to ask you quickly. you said you are a proud member of the tea party movement. do you agree with some candid and said we need to abolish the education department? education department? caller: did know what, to a degree because the real problem i see -- this is why i am leaning toward the tea party -- is it is too much government, too few people making too many major decisions affecting most people. that is why i am leaning toward the tea party. it really is a phenomenon -- it really is a grass roots movement that is not headed by

an elite few, not a hierarchal organization. that is what appeals to me because i think honestly, i think most people know more than most politicians in washington, d.c. host: we will have to leave it there. on this article and "the washington post" this morning. democratic candidates are going after the issue of education, and when they are running against tea party candidates, take a look at michael bennett's ad in the column are the senate race and then ken buck. then i am michael bennett and i approve this message.

>> i will be a voice to represent the people on main street. >> who is ken buck, and does he speak for colorado? he wants to privatize social security. even question whether social security should exist at all. is an't know if it constant -- constitutional or not. >> on education. >> we do not need a department of education. >> he wants to and student loans for middle-class kids. >> ken buck even once the ban common forms of birth control and his view on abortion. >> i am pro-life, and i will answer the next question. >> maybe ken buck asked the right question. >> ken buck commission not be speaking for colorado. >> michael bennett's votes are >> michael bennett's votes are so bad, he can't defend them, so

he is attacking me with false and unfair ads. what is unfair to colorado of bennett pausing record of overspending, regulating, and taxing. rubberstamp for his friends in washington, he is legislating unemployment, spending money we don't have on programs we don't need. what is the ken buck difference, what is right for colorado's and not big spenders in washington. i am ken buck, and i approve this message. >> the latest ads in the senate colorado race. michael bennett over ken buck's comments that he wants to do away with education department. cold water, mississippi. betty, democratic line. caller: this is my second time calling, long time c-span watcher. my feelings are that when we talk about education, education, and my opinion, is a three-way

street. first, it starts with the parents, then the children, and then the teacher. children should come to school prepared to start first grade but some parents are negligent. but some parents are negligent. next, we need to find parents -- make the parents required or be responsible for -- so children are required to come to school. host: let me ask you a question -- can you turn down your television a little bit? did you say that you are a teacher? caller: retired. host: use said parents need to do more to get their kids prepared for first grade. why is that so of board and what the parents need to do? why is that the benchmark? because, we have had start and all of these programs. parents -- there are things they

need to do, like read to the children, making sure they know their letters, make sure they know how to count up to a degree and prepared them for learning to speak and know their names and things like this before they get to school. host: what does it do, what foundation does it said? caller: it sets the tone that you are ready to learn. host: about listening and discipline. caller: teaching them right from wrong before they get to school. we have taken over the jobs of the parents. we have given them a breakfast, we give them lunch, and they have -- when they get home. i think one of the solution should be that in certain areas of the state, in cities, especially, all-boys schools have shown they really make a difference. all-girl schools, they really make a difference. i'm one of the things that i find now is that testing -- teaching to the test.

teaching to the test does not provide critical thinking, problem-solving skills. how can you think you are educated and you cannot think on your own? someone has to tell you everything. that is like teaching to the test. host: that was betty, retired teacher from mccall water, mississippi. a talking about education system. we will continue talking data for the next 20 minutes. but we have evan andrews to talk about the legislative agenda in the senate this week. let us begin with what legislation they are going to be doing in the senate. of the payroll tax holiday for corporations who hire u.s. workers. a little more complicated than that. >> good morning. and the senate is going to be taking up a bill that just surfaced last week from the leadership, the democratic leadership, and it is called --

creating jobs and ending offshore act. kind of a grandiose title, and to convey the message that this to convey the message that this bill will take away the tax incentives, subsidies for companies that move jobs overseas. the bill has basically three components. the first one is it would give companies a very generous holiday from paying their share all of payroll taxes, social security taxes, on employees, for two years if they can show that they have created a job in the united states. move the job from overseas back

to the united states. host: how is it going to be for businesses -- how do you go about proving that? guest: that is a really good question and that question print -- pervades all aspects of this the bill. the language i have seen, they have to show or certify that this in fact happen but it is really hard for me to imagine that there are going to be that many equal comparable job shifts from china back to the united states or the other way around. host: what are people saying about whether not this has an impact on creating jobs in the united states? guest: the business community and that natural association and and that natural association and many factors are dead set against the bill, saying that it

will hurt american combativeness, heard job creation overall. it is going to distort the market. the reality is, the key thing in need to look at in this legislation is the revenue impact. according to the joint committee on taxation, the payroll tax thing would cause the thing would cause the government's $1 billion over 10 years -- that is a minuscule amount of money. the disincentive, the other provisions of the bill that penalize companies for moving jobs overseas, those penalties and would raise less than $400 million over 10 years, and even more minuscule amount of money. this is really friendly window dressing.

it will have no affect on anything. host: what is going on here? as critics have said, is this just politics? guest: i am afraid it is just politics. it is showboating right before the election. it is something that sounds good but it will have no discernible effect on american life. at least judging from the revenue numbers, it is just a miniscule. there are a number of other issues related to of shoring that do involve big money, but they are not taxable in this bill. democrats have argued for some time -- and john kerry ran on this -- that you should abolish the practice known as deferral under which american corporations are allowed to defer the u.s. taxes on foreign profits until they bring them

back into the country. there are hundreds and hundreds of billion dollars in american profits parked overseas. in fact, companies say they never intended to bring the province back to the united states. there is a big debate of whether you should end the practice of deferral. this big -- bill here would tackle a teeny part of deferral but a very small fraction of it. host: and when are we expecting a vote on this? guest: it is not clear to me, but i think they are going at it today. host: thank you for joining us this morning. appreciate it. guest: my pleasure. host: back to the u.s. education system, problems, solutions. here are the charts this morning talking about 2009 statistics, the highest level of education obtained by persons 25 years and over.

it says here that 19% received a bachelor's degree, 9%, associate degree. some college, 17%. masters, 7.6%. doctors, 1.3%. less than high school completion, 13%. north carolina. david, republican-led. caller: good morning. the only thing i see as a problem really -- i am an old school republican. not one of these democrats try to act like republicans or republican what ever tea party, i am not. i went to public school. what i see as the problem is, all the money is doing a big loop. going up to washington. it enhanced on it and send it back. but they are setting certain standards, like standardized testing, when all they care about -- all that you can fit into a standardized test is maybe one one-hundredth of what

an individual in this world really needs to know. book manufacturing -- and that is in charge. then you have the book manufacturers, principles, electric bills, of their bills -- other bills, sports. we need to break this stuff down and find out when it goes up there, who is putting hands in it. are they trying to destroy the school system for individual so that the rich can go to private schools so they can and doctorate duty and doctors and in these religious schools like in pakistan -- indoctrinate them in those religious schools like in pakistan? i want my children to be able to live and breathe -- our problem is not global warming, it is global pollution and -- host: independent line. your thoughts.

caller: a couple of thoughts. if you continue to throw money at a problem, nine times out of 10 it is not going to solve the problem. we have seen that across the whole entire historical spectrum. i have taken a bachelor's degree. one in political science and one in history. if you take a look throughout history, and it's time the government starts throwing money at a problem, occasionally they will hit the net on the head and find a diamond in the rough. rough. but the education system -- the more you throw money at it, it is not going to solve the problem. host: what are the solutions? caller: there is no real quick fix solution, as another caller pointed out. i think it was the caller from california that says we have this quick fix fad. she is right. my wife is getting to be a teacher herself. she is up an arms over this.

host: what did she want to teach? caller: she is studying secondary education social studies. in the social science -- basically it is getting shafted. nobody is learning anything at all. you teach to the task. like another caller -- you can't do that. you are not going to learn anything. host: grand rapids, michigan. tom, republican line. caller: michigan, they have so many mandates for high school kids their heads are spinning. they are required to take they are required to take algebra one, two, chemistry, geometry, and then -- for kids back and do all of that. the big problem i see is not every child is capable of handling chemistry or algebra ii. what they need to do is step back and look at what these kids

can do. host: what about that, though? we had a segment on "washington journal" with an advocate for more math and science in our schools, saying our u.s. competitiveness depends on that and we need to change the culture of saying not everybody can do math and science. that we need to change the culture to say, yes, everybody can do math and science. caller: i am not disagreeing that they can't do math and science. i am just saying as to what level. not everybody is a rocket scientist. that is the point i am making. four years in math, that is fine. algebra, geometry, general math. basic math functions, that is the most important things and a lot of ways. you look at the dump the system a lot of times it is on sports

-- you look at the emphasis and a lot of times it is on sports. i totally agree they need to learn a foreign language. i spent nine years in the army and i went to germany and i learned german. i firmly believe that if somebody comes into this country, they should learn of the host nation language, just like the military emphasizes. host: in political news, the front page of "the new york times" has a story about lisa murkowski, running as a right in candidate. she is emerging as the dark horse, not as the incumbent. in a matter of weeks she has more from establishment incumbent toward renegade under guard. for many it may be crushing to go from sitting senator to right and that she is using it as an advantage painted herself as a maverick. front-page of "the new york times." and other political news, president obama will be back on

the campaign trail. he will begin wisconsin later today for a rally at the campus. obama but campaigning back on his agenda. that. "the new york -- zero >> puts campaigning it says rahm emanuel will make a decision about whether or not he stays or leaves to run for chicago mayor by the end of this week. politico says the replacement is likely to be an insider. that is "the new york times" this morning and politico on rahm emanuel. front page of "the washington post" campaign 2010 superpac. new groups raising millions. committees until all have spent $4 million in the last week alone and registering at the rate of nearly one per day. not just republicans. democrats, too come are forming

these superpacs. it is "the usa today" editorial this morning about the issue and also in "the washington times." jerry, democratic line in illinois. talking about education. caller: interesting and very volatile topic. in the 1960's, a report came out and a lot of tenants and that report were soon dismissed but there are some real very important things that ring true. they talked about the 80-20 rule. educators -- schools control only 80% of what a kid or student learns. a great part of it is at home. a 20% is what we ought to be certain extent we impact in a kids learning process. to a large extent, that is true. when we look at education we have to this aggregate the day

that and understand that and a lot of communities they are very content. the biggest issues is what is going on in our metropolitan and urban areas. unfortunately we can't talk about that because we would be viewed as being racist. i am african-american. but what i have seen in certain urban schools, absolutely unbelievable. the the day-to-day aspects of a child learning in a classroom, child learning in a classroom, people cannot believe the constant disruptions, the issues, maladjusted behavior that is allowed, not because of these teachers or administrators wanted to but to a certain extent they are powerless. they don't have corporal punishment. i am not advocating or punishment. but i am advocating some kind of line of standard. but unfortunately it is hard to articulate that because you are viewed as out of the loop or you don't understand how to deal with minority students. but you have to address the issues.

host: if you want to be part of the conversation, you can go to our twitter page. here is a tweet -- you can also e-mail us. this one says -- also, another e-mail from a viewer. like most leaders, mr. obama is clueless about education. more time is not interfered baker disorders, emotionally disturbed children, and esl dump in the same classroom and a teacher has the spend all his or her time with discipline problems. i've taught in the united states and overseas. my students in the far east are a gift of god. i can complete a phonics

students with them in eight weeks that would require an entire year in the united states. joe on the republican line. caller: my comment is, education in this country, when i compare it to the middle east. i came here to finish high school. host: where did you come from? caller: i come from the middle east. i came over here to get my engineering degree. i am one of the few -- i love this country. i have two daughters, went to be educated. when you look of the farm families in this country, a lot of the kids get education. doctor, lawyer. but when i see most of the kids a better here, they don't want to get an education is really

killing me to know why. my daughter's friends. the problem is very big. number one. it is not about the family involvement. they keep talking about family involvement. no, it is not about family involvement. my dad did not know what great i was in. he asked me what grade i was then. i was surprised. the family does not get you involved. the kids themselves know they have to get an education. host: it is a cultural issue? caller: in this country, the different gaps between college- educated and high school -- is not that much. a person go finish high school

and do good job in an old field and to make good money. why would they want to become an engineer? i worked for government and my salary was almost the same amount as a schoolteacher. schoolteachers work for nine months in a year. if you break it down, 180 days -- i was making it as a license civil engineer. host: we have to leave it there. we talked about the decision by house and senate leaders not to vote on extending the bush tax cuts. "the new york times" editorial this morning. profiles in timidity. this week house democrats appear poised to follow suit. the idea is to spare and comments are having to vote before november 2 --

washington, d.c., matt on independent line. what are your thoughts on the u.s. education system? caller: the students in the pipeline, i do not see how you could fix those. but somebody hits it earlier what headstart program. when i was a much younger parents -- my son now 22 and on his way back from iraq -- he went to head start. i noticed a difference between him and his siblings, the importance of head start and what it did for him and even when i started making more money, i wanted to come back and in roll the rest of my kids in my program and pay for it instead of paying for day care

because i thought the program and what they did really prepare kids for the first grade. he was really prepared for the first grade. what we need to do is -- how can we vamp up the system and create different veins and arteries so that when they come into the first grade, they are prepared. that is one thing we should do. current students in the pipeline in the school system now, there is a lot of disruption in the classroom and i think as a parent who had a kid in school, i saw a lot of parents come to school and overreact and as a parent you have to have a husband and wife added to -- attitude. you never disrespect or argue with the teacher in front of a child because you have to keep that solidarity between parents and teachers. if you do happen to disagree with the way a teacher reacted or did something, you should at least give them the professional courtesy to talk to them

outside and away from a child. that is how you keep the solidarity and the teacher keep control of the classroom and the kids know that when they come to class, well, ms. so and so is in charge and i have to do what they said, versus parents coming to the school overreacting, screaming and hollering and the kids say, my mom does not like you anyway, or my dad does not agree with you anyway, and you take authority away from the teacher and a teacher needs that authority and respect in that classroom. host: columbia, south carolina. joe, republican line. caller: this is what you get when you let a bunch of liberals run something and they have been running this since the 1960's. it is about self esteem, just a bunch of crap. i have tried to help here locally and it's down to a situation where they think this is just a money situation -- more money, that will save it. we have gone downhill since the

1970's. you have to ask yourself why. if you look at the people who are running the education department and you look at the people on the local bases in most of these major cities, it is basically something that they are just doing for themselves. i had a friend of mine applying for a job in columbia, one of the local school districts, and he goes to the school district and he thought he was in a mercedes dealership. he walks and -- of course, he didn't get the position. it is a lot of social engineering and a lot of people trying to teach children the wrong things. it's good you said you tried to help out at a local level -- host: you said you were trying to help out at a local level. caller: just tried to get our children involved and they told us to go to private school. they looked at us and said -- and this was 1990's -- 1986, 1987, and there. basically this school district

in colombia has been run by -- i am just going to say it, run by a bunch of democrats cents at least the late 1960's. basically if you don't agree with what the people in atlanta, georgia, were thinking, that is what they tell us. this school district is run by a group of people in atlanta, georgia -- and we are going, who are they? basically they could not tell us. basically people giving people marching orders. host: the front page of "the new york times" this morning talk about smaller is not always better when it comes a classroom sizes. if you are interested in that, from page of "the new york times." tennessee. james, a democratic right. good morning. caller: can you hear me? caller: can you hear me? i believe they should put whoopins back in school. yeah, i believe this to put a

whopping back in school like it used to be. it's go before we end this morning talking about the u.s. education system i want to let giono about a "washington post" series, exurbs from bob woodward's new book "obama's war." all about the role of the vice- all about the role of the vice- president joe biden played in shaping president obama's decision about a surge in afghanistan. i an not assigning onto a failure, is the quality from president obama. bob woodward will be on this program october 8, 8:30 until 9:15 a.m.. next, the military's view of diplomacy. we will be right back.

man i trust that following my testimony, both sides will work together on this issue in the best interest of the american people as you always do. >> whether poking a little fun at congress or dealing with issues more seriously, celebrities have often. in washington. take a look at some of their cause is what this c-span video library. nearly every program since 1987. search for names you might know, any time. >> every weekend on c-span 3, experience american history tv, starting saturday at 8:00 a.m.

eastern, 48 hours of people and events telling american stories. here historic speeches by national leaders and eyewitness accounts of events that shaped our nations. it uses -- museums, historical sites, as pop history professors and leading the story is delve into america's past. american history tv, all we can, every weekend, when c-span 3. >> "washington journal" continues. host: admiral james loy , co- chair of global leadership coalition. you may recognize his name and face because he was -- thank you for coming back on "the washington journal." a new survey out from your group that shows military officers of you on the issue of diplomacy. 55% strongly agree that diplomacy is key for national security. 43% view it as a very important

non-military toole. what is the take away from that? guest: i think the take away from this particular group and paul, it is reflective of military folks who have been in the trenches, been in iraq and afghanistan and haiti and lots of places where the military has been asked to come in and carry the ball, so to speak, for u.s. interest and influence. i think the reflection is that these guys now understand because of their personal experience, that it is a combination of things that really allows us to optimize our u.s. influence around the world and even towards attaining a greater degree of our u.s. objectives around the world, interests around the world, whatever they may be. so, it is a combination of military presence, diplomacy, and the development activities that really are the menu for making these kinds of things the reality around the world. host: 59% said that funding for

diplomacy house national security and only 20% said it would hurt national security. is this, though, nation- building, another word for nation building? are the military saying what we are doing in iraq and afghanistan, some would be critical of it and called nation-building and essaying, it is ok? guest: i think the reality is we should be fielding a varsity team, so to speak. the analogy becomes that people who are gifted, trained, and resource properly to do certain things ought to be there as well as the military folks to do what they are extraordinarily good at around the world. thankfully we have the world's best military in all five of the armed services. that is reflected time and time again where we find young people around the world doing what we are asking them to do. but in the aftermath of the initial military engagements, so

many of the challenges become developmental or diplomatic in nature. and perhaps more to the point, a strong diplomatic and economic development investment and often keep us from having to engage in those military young men and women to begin with. in other words, if we have done a really good job in keeping the military engagement from even occurring, that, it would seem to me, would be the optimal opportunity for u.s. influence around the world. that means we need to resources those elements properly, including the state department's budget each year, which takes care most directly of our diplomatic corps and economic development folks in aid. host: if you look at the situation in iraq, the state department is taking on the role of transferring the country into having its own government and

also taking up some security aspects. here is the headline in "the new york times pair, -- "the new york times." guest: and has to be committed to optimizing our influence and allowing in this case the iraqi government to take it responds ability for the iraqi nation. at the other end of the day, the right people to be responsible for the security of iraq is in the iraq government dealing with iraq services and forces to cope with the challenges that they continue to have and will continue to have long after the u.s. has left. to the degree combat forces but would like it -- go way, 50,000 others about to depart as well, the challenge shaped wherever we can be helpful, we should be doing it and it to be destined through the ambassadors work and a team that be available, including military folks, to help unprocessed, but in the other end of the day, the ultimate response ability is the

iraqi government. host: another front-page story this morning, the cia intensifies drawn campaign within pakistan. has drastically in peace -- increase bombing in the mountains of pakistan in order to thwart a potential attack in the west from terrorists. what does this do to diplomatic efforts and for the soldiers on the ground in afghanistan? guest: the challenges, are we using the right set of tools for the right challenges that we face. afghanistan i think all of us understand to be a rather different challenges than iraq was. in iraq, there was a sense of nationhood and a reality associated with a legitimate government, etcetera. afghanistan presents a little different challenge. in fact, may be a rather dramatically different challenge, the tribal nature of -- and what constitutes

afghanistan's people. the graveyard of empires and all such things -- makes what goes on there if a different the challenge for the ambassador there than it is for the best ambassador in iraq. how we bring u.s. influence, military or otherwise, ought to be keyed it through the challenge of the ambassador's office. host: marine times, air force times, navy times, army times, these are publications for military officers. the story about your survey is in each edition. why was an important for you to get that story in this type of publication? guest: these publications are a wonderful spokesperson effort for the military forces all the way down to the new seamen coming into boot camp.

you will see them in the rooms and mass deaths of every ship, army base and airforce the installation. this is the way we have to communicate not just to the generals and the folks on the front line, but every military person who wants to pick up that periodical can't read the story. we wanted to reach them. had a great editorial board last week with the folks, gannett, who publish all of these periodicals. they were interested enough and what we were doing to publish these articles. host: did you want to reach a rank-and-file soldier? guest: absolutely. there's lots of ways that where general officers were posted up, if you will, on what we are trying to do. u.s. global leadership coalition has been around for four years now. it is a campaign more than anything else to get in front of the administration and get in

front of the congress this sense that these 400-plus companies, ngo paucity of thousands of people will sort of sign on to the campaign, are quite serious about this notion of adequately resource and the diplomacy and economic development and of these tools of the trade, so to speak, that the president has to gather support for u.s. interest and influence around the world. but it is also very important that it is not just general or admiral talking, but understanding quest in the articles. rank-and-file, precisely the audience we were trying to reach. host: we are talking about military attitudes toward war and diplomacy. a special line set aside for active military -- 628-0184. we will get to your phone calls in just a minute. let us talk about the state

department budget. he said adequate funding needs to be there. did they not receive adequate funding when it comes to diplomatic effort? guest: it was clear with the statements that began with a speech secretary gates made in kansas city awhile back and amplified by secretary clinton and certainly supported by rajiv shah, aid administrator and others, that is if we are to depend on this cross section of u.s. influence players, they have to be adequately resource. we have had, for example, petitions to the president's from 247 different members of congress basically saying please send us up a budget that adequately funds the state department. president bush and president obama recognized that inside the so-called national security envelope we should recognize the

legitimacy of adequately funding the state department and usaid in the same sense that we do the department of defense, recognizing, of course, with two wars going on, there is a balance that has to be struck, and i am not suggesting we borrow from the defense department to fund adequately the state department, but take in and of itself legitimacy of adequate funding for state departments of president obama has sent up and request this year. the last set of marks we saw going by before congress was on recess was about $54 billion. then you have to pay attention to where would the other four go and where does the 54 go? if it is heavily weighted toward afghanistans and iraqs of the world of which should be cautious about other places that deserve our attention, like a said earlier, we use the economic and diplomatic investment to keep us from ever having to deal with a military

engagement. host: what about the terrorist threat? we have seen headlines that yemen, areas like this are becoming a center for terrorist gatherings and thoughts. is the state department putting enough resources toward those areas? guest: i have not actually looked at the numbers of dollars heading that direction but i could certainly support your notion that wherever you see rising elements or indications of that kind of concern or consideration, we should be making our investment in dollars as well. there are a couple of simple examples i would offer. i can remember vividly back in the 1990's when we were in the middle of one of the nightmarish haitian refugee crises and say, and it was all part and parcel of an effort to deal with the departure of the junta and a rival of mr. aristide as a senior player.

and the challenges of ambassador bill swing orchestrated, both in terms of development and making and the structure investments and getting roads and schools squared away wherever possible in haiti, offered air rather diminished role for general jack sheehan and myself and others who are working that issue on the military side. a wonderful opportunity that if you play the cards correctly, you can have u.s. interest and influence net are around the world again, i say, to keep military engagements away when not necessary and to complement them properly if it has already occurred. host: our guest is also former homeland security deputy secretary, and currently senior counselor for the cohen group, talking about military attitudes on war and diplomacy. he was talking about the state

department budget for diplomacy this year could be about $54 billion for next year's budget. guest: that is correct. host: if you look at the state department's budget as it has grown over the years, 2006, $34.3 billion and is projected to be $54.7 billion this year -- to be $54.7 billion this year -- my father was u.s. navy, extremely proud of it. want to suggest, first of all, that i agree with you, if i understand you're thinking that thinking that're he state department' -- obviously, that goes without

saying. you do not know what you do not know. i am thinking about somalia. greta just brought up yemen. greta just brought up yemen. that is a place, the world, maybe the french could be involved in this one. we should try to do something about somalia. that is becoming a world problem. that needs to be handled. host: you said somalia needs to be handled. militarily or diplomatically? caller: militarily. mr. lloyd, -- mr. loy, i do not know about the tactics or anything, but perhaps you do?

caller: thank you for the question. this kind of question is what is perplexing to a lot of americans. what is the right tool to use when we see something happening, developing? we must find our way out of what has been the traditional cold war the way of thinking, on the one hand, and recognize the new national -- transnational threats that are rising, on the other. probably a different set of tools that could be brought to bear as we cope with the transnational threats, including the terrorists of the 21st century, as opposed to the one that we coped with in the 20th-century. inside of the national security envelope, i mentioned a moment ago, it is not only defense,

intelligence, and the department of state. it is also lots of things that can be brought to bear. there are a set of questions that are taken in the sense of national security. as for the yemens, somalias of the world, there was a concentrated effort started by president bush, continued under president obama, to find those associated with 9/11. i think some of us would be surprised about the leadership of al qaeda. in the case of pakistan and afghanistan, today, they

compare it to september 12, 2001. the other thing is, al qaeda look-alikes that are merging and have to be dealt with. even in our own country, cells being developed, individuals, coping with the challenge of terrorism. all of this mandates that we looked across all the lines of opportunity, to put the many together, to cope with this correctly. where there are special operations, they should not be taken off the table. the point that i would make is we need to recognize the value of diplomacy on the front end such that we do not have to engage militarily when we do not have to. host: people get frustrated when

they look at how much money is spent. $50 billion. what is the best use of state department money? when you look at programs -- humanitarian aid, everything that the state department does -- what would you say is the best use of state department money? guest: some functional programs. i can remember back in the 1990's, we spoke about the asymmetric array of threats. we had survived the cold war, won the cold war, were considered one of the last remaining superpowers. we were trying to really figure out what that meant, and perhaps still are.

however, there were other challenges around the world. my great concern was what would occur when those criminal activities intersected with the ambitions of the terrorists. i think we have crossed and now we have to deal with a transnational terrorist, ambitious, that has the ability to link up with the profits of the drug war, something else, to make themselves even more challenging. so where we are able to combat these things on and long term, for example, there are some great successes. polio was once a challenge. however, now there is a 99%

differential from a polio epidemic from around the world because of terrific efforts undertaken by the u.s. 75% of the african children are in school today. in the 1990's, it was as low as 50%. those investments around the world can help us to put potential impact on the tools that we would use to confront yemen, somalia, as it seems to be developing in africa today. host: athens, georgia. good morning. caller: this reminds me a lot of the bank. i wonder if you're coalition works with them? i know it may do a lot of micro lending. -- your coalition works with

them? i think it might like up well with your economic ideas. are you working with the bank? guest: i do not know about the bank. if we are not, it certainly sounds like we ought to be. there is another example where us aid, through micro financing, has helped many fledgling businesses around the world. they have about an 80% success rate for the businesses that they lend, invest in. it sounds like this bank is along the same line. i could not agree more. if we had defense, diplomacy, development, inside of the

development envelope, such activities that you are describing are invaluable. host: louisville, ky. rob. caller: there was an election and it is september, the government has done not been put together. at the same time, they have agreed to buy a $14 million in hardware. how does that help or three d's? guest: i think there is always a balance. in the case of iraq, afghanistan, there is no part on u.s. global leadership to undersell the legitimacy of the defense side of the equation. in the mind of the government, and elected by the iraqi people, to the degree that they see the rightness of purchasing the

equipment to defend their country, that is what they should be doing. i would also suggest there is another idea of this from the private sector side of the united states of america. everything we have been talking about our government entities. at the same time, if we are properly investing in our time and thinking in advance, there are enormous opportunities for u.s. companies to make contributions, whether it is about tanks, other things within the development envelope, all of that represents opportunity for the u.s. i think we could all agree, first and foremost, we have to sustain the strength of our economic foundation as a nation in order to aspire, not only to

our political ambitions domestically and around the world, but in almost anything we do. do. so this is not just the idea of being good guys around the world, so to speak, it is about being smart people as well. host: john, good morning. caller: i have a couple of points. host: we are listening, and john. caller: we used to consider trade more, you know, intelligently before. things were so backward, if they ever got money, one day, they would attack us with it, kind of like the saudis did. the chinese are bombarding our

computers. and we are increasing our trade with them. host: what do you believe about sanctions on iran? caller: they have not attacked us, but we went after saudi arabia for funding the terrorists, and there are still finding them. guest: if you look at what the saudis have accomplished vis a vis the radical elements to the degree they were saudis, of course, your usama bin laden was. was. having exercised him essentially from saudi it influence, we have to recognize in this post-9/11 security environment, how do you

cope with the transnational, radical terrorist which may have ties to originally, the thereby homeland or to other nations. the intention is to deal with these people as terrorists, not saudis, or anything else. that is the challenge for the development side, but also for the military side. that is about policy formulation that the highest levels of government, recognizing the security is not the same as what we were able to the same as what we were able to identify, in a nation at fault, as we have been dealing with things for several hundred years. this is a new world of post-

9/11. with respect to understand it correctly, coping with it, that is the ultimate challenge that the government has. host: let's go back to when you serve that homeland security deputy secretary. at the time, you were engaged in iraq militarily. as you saw the deputy secretary, did you see that military action caused an increase in terrorist attacks? there was too much militarily and not to -- not enough to matter at -- democratically? guest: i would say the opposite. there has been an enormous challenge to rethink our way through properly what constitutes the defensive end of things, which the department of

homeland security was designed to take care of. there are many of us that would suggest an offensive and other activities immediately in afghanistan -- there are challenges always about what you do next. but as it relates to afghanistan, when president bush said we will find you and we will deal with those who provide sanctity, the notion was, every good move overseas offers us not only time to develop the defensive posture we needed for the homeland, and there is an agenda being shaped

every day in the department, but the investment in the office made us safer by taking the battle to the enemy. host: said it bill north carolina -- fayetteville, north carolina. sean, good morning. caller: i am glad to hear you focusing more on diplomatic aspects of foreign policy, but i have one question. you said it was a good thing for american companies to be supporting or providing military hardware to company's overseas -- countries overseas. i was a big supporter of george of you bush. i was proud of his efforts --

george w. bush. i was proud of his efforts. i think it would have been a better long-term thing for the united states not to provide military aid. guest: you make my point well, thank you. i could not agree more. there are 55 million people around the world that have been helped in the last decade by u.s. intervention, natural disasters, other types of things they dealt with around the world. there are 2.5 million folks receiving their correct antiviral medicines in africa for aids. initiatives supported by both president bush and president obama. so our challenge here is very non-partisans. it is the reality of those kinds of investments which allow the

image of our country to be what we want it to be. i have found, in my last 10 years, a great desire to go back and think through what the founding fathers were thinking when they put this together. that is what i understand america to be all about. it is important to recognize that each generation has to rededicate itself to those principles. those principles are pretty simple and rather few. the concept of popular sovereignty. the concept of a market economy. the concept of a rule of law. the concept of a secular state.

those principles upon which our country was founded, we have to rededicate ourselves to those principles. when we do so, the influence that is reflected in folks looking at the united states of america from all corners of the globe would be reflective of what we want us to be standing for. the investment that you mentioned would be extraordinarily helpful in making that happen. host: given what you just said, here is a tweet -- guest: i am not exactly sure what bubble that person is living in, but the reality is of the world also reflect -- the

realities of the world also reflect that there are challenges that we need to deal with, and we need to deal with them in a thoughtful and appropriate manner. what we are trying to make certain of, what these retired general officers are trying to general officers are trying to point out, it is the mix of development, defense, deployment. it is simply our turn on watch, those of us who were around in the 21st century, to never lose sight of that. sight of that. host: james loy is here on

behalf of the u.s. global leadership coalition. talking about attitudes this morning. admiral, i want your reaction to a headline in the washington ""the washington post."n pos guest: of course, this goes to the patriot act. the sense that it was a dramatic difference security environment and would require tools that we never did engaged in before. i can recall as a new department, we had folks around the corner, in each of which had in their mind the best security

adjustment that could take place in our country. quickly, it came to gov. ridge and i, as we were entertaining those thoughts, we had what became known as four-way conversations. if a person could -- they could always tell us what the security advantages of their new idea would be. but if they could not answer these three questions, we sent them away until they could. the first was, what are the economic implications of what you want to do? the last thing we wanted to do was to shut down commerce, which is the fundamental foundation in order to narrowly deal with the security piece that they had in mind. the second question was, what are the implications about our

civil liberties that are part and paul sartre to your idea? the third was, what are the international implications to the idea of security that you have? we ended up with these four-way conversations about every one of those ideas brought to us. there were literally thousands of folks and companies, corporations, that would have a security adjustment that they wish they could make. so in this particular case, talking about the advent of social networks, we have the principles of the patriot act, the civil liberties, discussions that have to take place in order to make good policies for our country to respond to the challenge of the moment, yet to reflect and be true to the principles that constitute the u.s. government. guest: nor spell, north

carolina. go ahead. caller: my question has to do with homeland security. i have been trying to float this idea, but i seem to not be able to get opinions from lawmakers. could the u.s. government save money by shutting down the usga and shifting the responsibility to the national guard? guest: we are talking about two military camps. clearly, in the aftermath of 9/11, when the congress stipulated in the aviation transportation act, that they needed an agency that could take stock of the challenges associated with commercial aviation and security, and other transportation modes as well, but the focus has been on

commercial aviation. we often tried to make certain that what happened does not occur. i believe this to be easily placed in law enforcement can as opposed to military. as such, would hasten to suggest that we hold on to this new agency that was put together for the purposes of securing commerce and people. i think it has done a tremendous job. we are dramatically safer than we were on september 10, 2001. that is a result of 60,000 people inside the transportation security administration working those issues. not only what we see on the public face, checkpoints at the airport, but in the policy

review-end of things, day by day in their office. host: on this had nine in "the washington times" -- guest: the humor of that is always when that the correspondent is absolutely right. at the end of the day, there is a reference to that line of thought as to why we need a tsa, homeland security department. every paradigm that we put into place that we think gets us to the point of being the head of the bad guy, you can rest assured, the bad guy is working as diligently as they can to circumvent what ever we just put in place in order to stay half a step ahead to put it into a

sports metaphor, the idea is for us to be one step ahead of the bad guy all the way down the road. so having a purpose law enforcement entity within the government structure is exactly the right thing to do. host: john, independent line. conn. caller: thank you for c-span. you do a wonderful job. i heard your response to an earlier comment that and on foreign government is investing in m-16's and tanks. they may try to salvage our economy through a jobs program created by the military. it seems there must have been some arm-twisting behind that deal. and do you really want our image abroad to be one of reforming countries? i do not see the utility of f-16

jets against an insurgency, which they can certainly expect to see now that we have pulled out. guest: thank you for your comment. please do not misunderstand my comment about whether or not it was am-16's, tanks in iraq. the general notion i was trying to paint is it is absolutely not only legitimate, but in this global marketplace, as companies, our challenge is to keep u.s. companies as competitive around the world. whether it is tanks on the one hand, caterpillar machines for our cultural products, what ever it is that u.s. companies bring to bear on the marketplace, i want our companies to have as much of a competitive

opportunity. maybe even if we do our homework well and make our investment, we have a competitive edge to others around the world right are trying for those some elements in the marketplace. so i would have to defer to smarter mind than myself on the iraqi side and u.s. side. iraqi side and u.s. side. once established, i have no problem. i would certainly encourage that our companies be on the competitive frontline offering

our products and services, as would any other country at that point. host: time for one last phone call. arnold, tennessee. good morning. caller: i would just like to ask you if you are familiar with the life of smedley butler. i believe he was a general in the marine corps. host: what is your question or comment? caller: to general petraeus came to nashville and spoke at vanderbilt last year. you could go on line to ask the general question. i asked him online, i do not know if he was ever asked or not, but here is my question. heck do you know, believe there

is a god? if the answer is yes, are you comfortable with yourself? host: you can choose to answer that or not, that is a personal question. guest: in fact, i do believe there is a god. one of the most important things that we have as a nation is the aftermath of the founding to the causetion that every american should be able to worship his or her god as they see fit. that is one of the foundations -- i described it as a secular state. but in the course of whether or not i believe in god, i definitely do. i am constantly, myself to live up to what i believe to be the

direction provided by that god in my life. host: let's quickly get your thoughts on the mosque in new york city, that whole debate. do you think, if they had fought for and built the mosque, what would that have meant diplomatically? guest: i think you have to parse that into the two things that have become quite evident. have become quite evident. in the freedom of the separation of church and state in our country, the opportunity inside the rules of getting permits, zoning, all the other thing that are part and parcel to the political reality here in new york, i come down on the side that the greater call for all of us would have been to allow the mosque to be built. there are certainly those who

would suggest on a judgment call, if i were the ones building a mosque, and i really wanted the services to be available to my folks, i would have found a place to build it elsewhere. there is a judgement side and then what we believe as americans. if we believe what we truly profess to believe in, we would have supported the building of the mosque. host: james loy, co-chair of the global leadership coalition. thank you for being here. coming up next, we will turn our attention to the young voters, whether or not they will turn out for the midterm election. president obama is having a rally tonight in wisconsin, hoping to get the young people like in 2008. we want to focus now on some

pennsylvania races. our c-span digital bus is in downtown philadelphia this morning. a political writer with the " philadelphia political news" is with us. let's begin with the senate race. why is this so competitive, what are the latest polls showing? >> the latest poll we have is the quinnipiac university poll from last week. toomey is leading joe sestak by about 20 points. the reason this is important, this is a true ideological divide. pat to me is very conservative. -- toomey is very conservative. joe sestak is pretty

conservative for having served in the navy, but they are in the navy, but they are fighting from different political corners. host: let's take a look at some of their ads. >> the think joe sestak -- when joe sestak went to washington, we had a record deficit and a financial disaster. >> you voted for the president's health-care plan, stimulus plan. which establishment are you running against? >> want to change washington? pat toomey does. >> are you ready to turn back the clock? pat toomey is. he supported the bush agenda every step of the way. tax breaks that send our jobs overseas. he backed bush on privatizing social security.

pat toomey, why would we ever go back? host: chris has is aboard our c- span digital bus. we just saw the lastad, sestak focusing on whether or not voters want to turn the clock back. there has been a debate on whether that is the strategy, or do they focus on the tea party movements? what affect is this having? >> as with all political ads, there is a slight of hand in all of them. in the toomey ad, it is more subtle. he criticizes on the stimulus,

healthcare, but some of that came under the bush to administration, and he was a pretty good supporter of president bush. i think he could peg sestak with about half of that stuff with bush. about 53% of voters do not want someone in the senate who would support president bush's agenda. having said that, a slight of hand is a little more apparent. they hang heavy on the word and derivatives. he did work to pioneer currency derivatives, which everybody believes help to improve the economy in 2000. host: let's talk about the

governor's race. the candidates squared off in hershey, pennsylvania. what are the headlines? >> i would say these two are far more similar than the candidates in the senate race. they are both pretty moderate. the big topic is the marcellus shall issue. it is the world's second largest deposits of natural gas. everyone is looking into how they can go into it, how they would tax it. oderotto, the democrat is in favor of taxing it. corbo, the republican opposes it. is ahead right now, helped by his position as attorney general. it is sort of a double edged

sword in pennsylvania. people recognize your name when you are attorney general, but pennsylvania has never elected an attorney general to governor, over several tries. host: thank you for speaking to us this morning. we appreciate it. the c-span bus will be open to the public at the philadelphia public library, before going to drexel university. both of beds are in partnership with comcast cable. for more information, c- span.org/bus. with me right now is ever -- heather smith, president of rock the vote. talking about young voters, will they turn out? that is the question. guest: everyone keeps asking that, and it is too early to tell. our most recent polling has shown, similar to what we see on the ground, they want to

precipitate, there are some of likely to vote, they want to show up, but there are a couple of things standing in their way. they are more cynical about the political process. they are paying attention and getting frustrated with the corporate influence in politics, the pace of change. i honestly think they are hungry for leadership. if someone says this is what i believe in, but for me, and then reaches out to them in a real way, talks about their real issues, similar to how obama and the presidential candidates did in 2008, then they will respond. host: does the president planned to use a similar rally as he did in 2008? it was a game plan, dreamed up by david gluck. you said real, that a leadership steps up to do something real.

to you believe that those strategies will not work today? guest: what was smart, what worked was having real conversations about these young americans. they worked hard in 2008 because they really were we looking for a way forward. they were willing to work hard to do that. i will be interested to see the reaction today. people stilly -- still really like the president, but you start to feel a little used, right? in our office, we tend to talk about it in terms of first aid. about it in terms of first aid. -- in terms of a first date. it went ok, but you did not get a call back. when you get a text message a year later, you start to wonder, is this for real? host: are most young voters

democrats? guest: they voted for democrats about two-to-one. party affiliation is dropping -- they are still way more democratic than they are republican -- but what we find is they have lost their connection to the democratic party -- maybe they never had it. i would vote that they voted for obama, not the democrats. host: so young voters tend to be more independent? guest: they tend to be, they tend to care about the issues, and they vote for candidates to will step up and speak to the concerns in their own lives. host: let's take a look at the survey that you did, a shift in favorability. looking specifically at president obama, 69%

favorability rate. it has dropped down to 50% with the young voters. sarah palin, favorability in 2008, 37%. it has dropped down to 28%. unfavorable rating has gone up since 2008. what are you hearing about governor sarah palin? guest: in the 2008 survey there were also a lot of people who could not rate her. they were not familiar enough to say that there were favorable or unfavorable of art. as they got to know the governor, even you see the tea party -- there favorability is not very high. unlikely to support a

candidate with that party. you see faces in the crowd, it is older people. also, the angry politics, the bickering. that is not something that has attracted youth to the political debate, ever. so to me, it is not surprising they are not jumping on board. host: we are talking about young voters with the president of rock the vote. ages 18 through 29, 202-737- 0001. 3350 202-737-0002. let's talk about rock the vote. let's talwhat are doing for the midterm elections? guest: our primary focus right now is on voter registration.

as most of the viewers and listeners know, there is only one more week left to register if you wanted to dissipate in the upcoming november elections. for young people, that is an incredibly important moment. since the 2008 elections, 9 million people have turned 18, so we have a lot of work to do. our primary mission right now is getting out there and making sure those new voters have the opportunity to register. as well as those who registered and voted in 2008, about a third have moved, so they need to be registered. our goal is at least 200,000 people by monday. coming out of that, we will then turn to a voter education, making sure they can make up their own mind and cast a vote on election day. host: what is your budget on this? guest: there are 45 million

young people, right? we can only make a small dent in what needs to be done in this population. we will spend about $3 million this year, which is nothing compared to what the political establishment, campaigns can spend, if they were to invest in the young people. host: the democratic party plans to spend about $50 million on efforts. is that enough? guest: well -- we will see how they spend it. if that is the extent of it and that is it, no. if they are setting up the candidates, whether for congress, senate, governor, even local office, but then they pick

up the ball from that rally and use that momentum to go out and speak to young people about the issues -- not on their doors, call them, speak to kids on campuses. if the money is spent to that, peer to peer a rich, personal contact, and continues post election day, then it would be money well spent. host: how do you get your funding? guest: we are a nonpartisan foundation, groups, individuals. we have concerts' and festivals' with some artists, supporters. we sell t-shirts. and young people themselves can contribute. host: critics say that this just does not work. how do you respond? guest: we have registered 2.5 million people in 2008.

we have to build a relationship with people and assured them through what is a very confusing process. you turn 18, you want to get your driver's license. this is a process that everybody knows about. people do not really know what to do about voting, especially if their parents are not walking them through the process. to me, it feels like the most american thing that you can do in our democracy. here is what the form looks like, here is the process. here is your attorney of state. here is how it works. host: how you get them interested in that? when you look at the favorability, on favorability rating toward congress -- in 2008, they viewed congress on favorably 38%.

higher in 2010. in a midterm election where you do not have president obama or an equivalent republican candidate, how did you convince them that these are important races and they need to vote? guest: this is not 2008, there is not a major presidential election. one, a lot of them do not know that there is an election in november. there is a lack of civic education in our schools. we run this program called democracy class where we talk about the history and founding of our country, six. we open it up to a conversation and ask what are you concerned about, when you care about? we hear everything from global

warming, trash, and global resources. once you start directly talking to them and explain that it is these people making those decisions, they become interested. host: corpus christi, texas. go ahead. go ahead. caller: yes ma'am , good morning. i am 26, i currently go to college. i was part of that 70% that voted for barack obama in the last election. i wanted to say something about the two-party. i view them as a racist organization. -- about the tea party. i grew up in texas, i know the code word for racism. when i hear it, i know what they are speaking about.

the tea party are anti-gay rights, anti-civil rights -- host: are you going to be voting in november? are you voting democrats across the board? caller: i will be voting democrat across the board. host: ok. chicago, on the line between 30 and 50. go ahead. caller: yes, thank you for taking my call. i have been voting ever since i was old enough. i can tell you, about the negativity of the young population, they view the political process as being basically correct. and for the first time, at least in my lifetime, we are really excited about the obama

administration, about the policy -- possibilities and change that he promised. but what we have seen has been the same old same old in terms of actually getting things done. we understand -- you know, you have to deal with the senate, house of representatives. but he came into office with a majority. majority. i begged some of my friends to go out and vote. they did, but they see him going into office -- as well as other democrats -- and he is negotiating with people that they did not used to have to. they consider him weeak. host: joe biden was in new hampshire yesterday and he said

democrats need to stop whining and stop focusing on what the white house has not done, in their opinion, and start focusing on what would happen if republicans took control. caller: that type of attitude can be quite damaging. to have that type of arrogant attitude -- and again, i support joe biden. and i kind of understand what he is saying. but on the flip side of that, they went into office on the tail wind of a lot of first-time voters. voters who were already cynical about the process in the first place. host: i think we have your point. guest: i think your sentiment is shared by a lot of people. we know it is hard to make policy. we know the governing process is tough.

young people, first-time voters who are cynical about the process, who feel like they are not seeing change fast enough, what they do not want to hear is how hard it is to pass something, the filibusters, the excuses. we want to know what you are doing, moving forward. we want to know about the vision the people rallied behind, the path to get there. so many people came out for the first time who were perhaps cynical about the process, thought that it was corrupt, that corporate interest trumped their own. but they got together, the elections ended, and they are left wondering, what is next? instead of the continued engagement from those that they elected, instead they have a whole bunch of excuses about why things were not getting done. a lot has happened, but that has not been communicated nearly as

well. if they want to read gauge these first-time voters, there is an opportunity, but there is a small window. if they do not do that, they keep on complaining, politics, bickering in washington, excuses for why things have not gotten done, you could turn off a whole generation of voters to the process. host: david, 58 years old. go ahead. go ahead. caller: i come from the time when when my mother had to give the to recite the pledge of allegiance to vote in the 1960's. i am very diligent about voting. i am concerned about the country as a whole. i am standing with the democrats. the tea party seem to be people who are out for their own agenda, a payday.

the democrats are focused but they cannot get anything done overnight. i hope people have the insight to be patient, to see what has been accomplished, and to go from there and to know that it is better than what it was. host: what do young people what their leaders to be talking about when it comes to the economy? guest: these young people do not have a context for what it was like before, so it does not resonate. the context they have is the life they are leading right now. the biggest issue, by far, it is the economy, jobs. the unemployment in the country, 9.7%. unemployment for young people is almost double that. at least one in five are truly unemployed. if you add those searching for jobs, part-time jobs, jobs that they do not care about, and even

greater number. 81% of our college graduates this year graduate without a job. job. they are hopeful, and they know the economy is bad, they think they will figure it out, but it is a struggle. they are starting to get nervous that there is not a path for to make it get better. host: in your survey, you ask about the most important economic aspect to address. 47% said to invest in job creation. creation. 30% suggested reducing the national debt. manhattan, benjamin, 21 years old. are you going to vote in november? caller: definitely. i am a career college student. i have been concerned when it comes to the job market. especially in regard -- i look

at it from an international standpoint. i know other countries even have students coming out with master's degrees, that is the norm. i think this administration is taking good steps to improve everything over all, but i believe there is influence -- even just from the media -- it feels like they take the jobs that sampling of what ever the a administration is. yes, you hear the republicans, but the demonstration is doing a lot of good things. i wish it was not being overlooked, as it is. especially when it comes to education, that is being improved. if we can improve that, we can definitely improve the job market.

guest: benjamin, you are speaking words that i hear all over the country. people are concerned about the job market. job market. and it is not ge just a small set of young people. i was speaking to a young man, the varsity captain of the soccer team, he had a 3.8 gpa. he graduated from college a year and a half ago and he is still seeking a job. when you add that up, look at what that means for people in their 20's graduating from college, but also what it means for this country -- as you were saying -- what does this country become when our smartest and most talented are not ending up

with the best quality of education that they can have, and are not contributing back to this country? we seem to be investing in democracies abroad rather than building the strength of our country through america's young people. host: a tweet from one viewer -- guest: that is how politics runs and what makes people a little bit cynical. democracy and voting really is about -- there is only a certain amount of researchers available. if you don't take your piece, someone else will. we'll try to empower young people to stand up and take their peace. the summer jobs program for young people, or do we invest in defense programs, other programs, that have little to do

with the young people directly in their jobs issues? for them to stand up and be a part of that decision making process and make their concerns heard, making decisions that reflected their needs. host: and e-mail from a recess that rock the vote goes to college campuses that are mostly liberal to register young voters. do they also voted conservative and churches are not college campuses and cities as well as too conservative college campuses? guest: yes, we do. we probably register more young republicans than anyone else, because we register more young people than any other organization in the country. we go into communities, i schools, community colleges, community centers, worldcom or been. we are also online -- community centers, rural, urban.

we are also on line. we are able to spread the message of a registered to vote by october 4 in key states. there are artists from christian rock bands to rock-and-roll. we have no intention of discriminating, of course. host: another e-mail says that rock the vote helped to put obama into office and young people of the majority -- have our responsibility to keep democrats in the majority. changing a country does not happen overnight. do you take issue with that first part? guest:, young people put obama into office. we registered young people and made sure that the information they needed to make up their minds. 66% of them voted for barack obama, the largest turnout of young people ever in the history of this country. they stood up and spoke and they elected a president in many regards. but it should be said that not

every young person voted for barack obama. but if they had not turned out in the numbers and they had, i don't believe we would have our current president today. host: richmond, virginia, 35 years old. go ahead. go ahead. caller: yes . i am 35 and i work with -- i have been voting since clinton, i think, came in. i think that young people are not as informed as they used the. -- as they used to be. even older than i am, there were civics.in school about si guest: civics education in our schools has been systematically cut over the last 30 years. but that is not so you can blame young people about.

that is an issue of where we investing resources, where are we investing in the young people? we have a program called democracy class that is available to teachers around the country, if they want a one- classroom curriculum. it should be significantly more than that. but young people are savvy. they are paying attention. we see they are following the news closely than they have in many years. i think that is what is causing some of the cynicism. they are starting to pay attention. they see that their interests are being cut by others or by corporate or special interests at times. they are savvy right now, especially with the internet, to actually find out information and research information and make informed decisions. host: on the line for those older than 50, drum, north carolina. caller: i have tried many times

and i'm grateful to get through. i am a low-income democrat. this is not a recession. this is a financial collapse. people seem to forget that a financial collapse takes time to recover, to regain confidence. people are paying off their credit cards, and we are making progress. people were thinking that money grew on trees. i am thankful for my social security and my good health care at the durham medical center. host: what is the one area that the government should be focusing on to create jobs and bring them back for young people? caller: well, that is a tough question. the stock market is indicating that things are getting better. i keep my own data on the market and i did not lose in the big downturn. the one thing we should be doing, i suppose, number one is education.

people are accepting all the gop propaganda too easily. host: in the survey that rocked the boat did when they asked 18- to-29-year-olds about the most important aspect of the energy policy to address, 43% said there needs to be investment in new technologies to create jobs. they are looking at the energy sector to do that. guest: the top issue is jobs and the economy, and then you see education, and the deficit, really interesting, rising as a top issue for young people. the ec energy issues. each one of them is really -- that you see energy issues. it's one of them is really about jobs. education, improving the quality of education in this country so that we can get better jobs and be better prepared. but also lowering the cost it

goes back to an economic issue. host: north carolina, 28 years old. caller: my question is, especially with young voters, and someone who voted from 18 in the 2000 alexian to now, how do we break the rhetoric from reality, say, one that tea party comes out and says for fox news and so on and so forth -- how do we get past commercials on tv or they just slam their opponent for something that nancy pelosi said versus the underlying issues that make young people more well-informed? guest: that is what i am doing here today. that is what needs to happen, right? it can be slamming your opponent, it can be partisan bickering, it could be excuses about the process, it conversations about things like the filibuster.

it does not feel real, it feels so disconnected. when they go and talk platitudes in these big, overarching concept that, again, don't apply, i think there is an opportunity for leadership. i think there is an opportunity for candidates to go out and explain, here is what needs to happen to get us out of the economic downturn and provide a path for a better future and allow the each one in this generation, each one of these young people, can have that part of the american dream that makes us believe in america. host: do you have education materials like you are talking about on your web site? guest: we do, and i work with candidates on both sides of the aisle, and brief them on what the top issues are and what the policy solutions are for young people, and set up opportunities for them to interact directly. we invited u.s. senate candidates in six different states to meet with young people

directly and debate in an audience of a college campus, and all but two of them declined. it takes both of us doing this work, but it -- there is only so much we can do aand at some point these candidates, democrat or republican, have to stand up and understand that if we want to be proud of this country at the end of the day and if they want to build all loyal base for the party and we want to continue to strengthen the continue to strengthen the democracy, they have to engage these young voters in a real way. host: we are talking to heather smith, president of rock the vote. north carolina, on the line for those between 30 and 50. caller: my question -- my statement is that at the time of 18 years of age, i registered to vote. it was based on the fact that, one, i knew it was my duty, and two, my right as a citizen. i don't really understand all who block -- i don't really

understand all hol -- the whole hoopla of having rock the boat, when it was with me at a very early age. where did the breakdown occurred? as a citizen, it is everyone's right and duty to register to vote and vote for candidates that are of their mind set and point of view to make it a country. i find it hard to understand where the complacency has fallen. guest: something went wrong, right? we are not teaching about this process in our school systems, we're not communicating to our nation's youth about the duty and right and responsibility and opportunity and, honestly, the public that they have to live in a democracy where -- the

privilege that have to live in a democracy where they have an opportunity in this direction. in this world, only about 14% are living in well-run democracies. for example, and iran, people step up and fight for the right to have their say. in this country, we have failed our youth by not going out and expanding our history -- explaining our history and the process and what it means to live in a democracy, and that is why we exist at rock the vote to fill that gap. if i could be out of a job because the problem was solved, absolutely. host: this says that most young people get their news from "the daily shoat." guest: they look for it in

places that are communicating to them and ways that are culturally relevant the also know what to trust and not trust. they are watching "the daily show," they are reading newspapers and talking to their friends. the most trusted source of news is their peers. but "the daily show" -- look at the colbert and jon stewart rallies that have been announced for d.c. thousands of people travelling to d.c. to be a part of this process, because it feels like is for them and it gave them a place for them to participate. host: peter on-line for those over 50 in kansas, good morning. caller: first of all, i salute you for what you are doing, and

greta, i think you are doing our remarkable job. i would just like to say that for all progresses and democrats -- all progressives and democrats, it is absolutely essential that we get out and vote to allow the country to continue to move forward. we have to stop this country from going back. please keep up the good work. thank you very much. host: we will go to a benjamin in massachusetts, 21 years old. caller: hi. nice to be on air, and thanks so much for everything, both of you. i'm calling because i heard you guys talking about the cynicism of young people, and i think i definitely feel a lot of that. but it also heard you saying that we don't really have a context for the cynicism, like we cannot look back to the 1990's and say that things were better here, but we are in this immediate reality of things not being good for us, i suppose. the problem is is that we really

did see things in the 1990's through a different lens and contacts. we saw it in public schools, right? our understanding of all that is that -- i mean, we really don't know a time when anything was any better, because, i mean, things have always been structurally against us. guest: i think that is true. despite all that, benjamin, you are watching c-span in the morning and many of your peers and colleagues are -- millions of them work super hard and give millions of hours at a time and energy to participate in the 2008 elections. there are thousands of volunteers working with rock the vote right now are around the country. the last point i will make about our poll is that despite the cynicism and the fear that we are -- we may not be better off

than the parents' generation, there is still the 83% of 18-to- 29-year-olds polled saying that they are optimistic as a generation that they can change the world. that optimism in the face of these hard times and the face of the reality of that debt at a bad economy and the public schools you just described, benjamin -- that optimism is what makes opportunity. to anyone out there, i would just say that we are willing to work hard and do our part and what this country to be a better place and we want to make our lives better. but that takes a political system and the candidates themselves who are willing to do more than just show up on campus for four different events when they need is to turn out and vote again. host: heather smith, president of rock the vote, thanks for

being here. guest: thank you so much. host: we will talk about campaign 2010 and a potential state law election problem we will see in november. first, every year sees that as a video documentary contest -- every year c-span does of video deck and a contest called studentcam. adrienne hoar with the c-span's education department is with us. who can enter the competition? guest: studentcam is for middle and high school students. they compete in the middle school competition, and students in ninth through 12th grade are competing for the high-school level competition. studentcam is the annual video competition for middle and high school students, and we asked students to pick a topic, a political topic, that they are interested in, and we want that to create a documentary about

the topic. this year's theme is "washington, d.c., through my lens." we want them to tell about an issuer event or topic that helps better understand the role the federal government. students in middle and high school -- their videos should be between 5 and 8 minutes long. in addition to the timeline, we ask that the students include c- span programming and show varying sides of the issue. each topic as an argument on different sides, so we really what the students come in order to provide full -- we really want to the students, in order to provide a full explanation of the topic, to show more than one side of the argument. one thing we do encourage students to do is to take a side. we think it is ok for them to

state their opinion, but we would like them to do that after they have given a full treatment of the topic. host: what can they win? guest: students can win a total of $50,000 in cash prices, that is how much it c-span is giving away. the grand prize winner is eligible for $5,000 in cash, and there is additional cash prizes for the first prize, second, third, and honorable mention. host: you found since doing this that there is more to this than money. the kids that the bells out of doing this competition. -- the kids get something else out of doing this competition. guest: will really found from parents and students and teachers is that they are really grateful for this, because it gives them an opportunity to explore the topic and get their hands dirty in an issue and really learn.

students have found that maybe they will be future filmmakers or journalists, and they have found a niche in the competition. host: if you go to the studentcam web site, how can that help them put together their entry? guest: right now you are looking at the studentcam home page, and it has the basic information i've been talking about earlier. this is something we just added on the web site, a portion were students can download videos. one of the requirements i mentioned is that students have to include c-span programming. that has been difficult in the past, but with this addition on the web site, we have easily downloadable video, and there is a list of topics that they can use these videos to include with added a documentary. host: and their teachers held these students with their entry?

-- canadair teachers help their students with their entry? guest: sure. often they do, the teachers act as giving guidance throughout the process. we have a home school students who have participated in the past. whenever you feel most comfortable with is what we encourage them to do. host: we get a lot of repeaters, a students who have done this before, but for those thinking about it for the press time, what is your advice? -- for the first time, what is your advice? guest: take a topic you are really interested in. you want to be eedte you want to be engaged with the topic to create a documentary about it. you are telling a story to the viewer, and the best way to do that is to really be interested in that story. host: adrienne hoar, thank you

so much for the information this morning. for more, our viewers can go to studentcam.org. thank you. at next is susannah goodman, the director of common cause, the national campaign for election reform. you indicate that there are bad tennis swing states that could have some potential state elections -- there are about 10 at swing states that up until state election law problems -- that could have potential state election law problems. let's begin with arizona. what could be some hangups we could see? guest: arizona, of the 10 states, is one of the toughest ones to be a voter in. one of the biggest burdens voters have to face is to register in the only state that requires proof of citizenship. when you register you have to find your passport, birth

certificate, find someone to prove your citizenship. -- find some way to prove your citizenship. creates an enormous hurdle for voters and it does been shown to inhibit -- it has been shown to inhibit registration. anti-immigrant sentiment has translated to frustration at the polls. a result of all the states without that has the most room for improvement -- arizona of all the states we look that has the most room for improvement. host: governor jan brewer signed the immigration law you everyone is talking about, and running against democrat there. what will the impact the of these immigration laws? guest: arizona does not have a strong anti-intimidation statute. we saw in 2004 and 2006, folks

going out to the polls, asking folks if they spoke english, self-appointed vigilantes' at the polls. the voters need to feel empowered and get out and vote, whatever the party, and the state needs to work with voter education groups and to get the word out about voter registration deadlines and problems with -- getting rid of problems ahead of time in terms of casting ballots. i think voters really have to struggle in arizona more than in any other state, and that could impact the outcome of the election. host: we have a tweet hear that as somewhat sarcastic. "oh, my god, you have to prove your are a citizen.

oh, the humanity." guest: arizona at is next to mexico and has a lot of undocumented people coming through. those are the last people to register to vote. they do not want to be seen by the authorities are caught by the authorities. what it does is it takes students, elderly people, people least likely to have the kind of documentation, and put the highest burden in the country to voting. i don't know. i hope that tweeter knows exactly where his or her passport is, or his or a birth certificate is. i had to get my license renewed, and it was this whole hassle, and i had to call the registrar in california. it was an enormous castle in getting these documents. why do that for voters -- it was an enormous hassle in getting these documents. why do that for voters who are

already citizens? host: colorado, looking like tight races there. one of them being the senate race. incumbent michael bennet against can talk -- against ken buck. water obstacles in that state that you found? -- what are obstacles in that state that you found? guest: in the last month before election, voters become engaged. the deadline has already passed and that is something we're concerned about in colorado. we feel like the state is not doing enough to reach out to minority voters. they could be doing a better job. colorado does some things right, though. they have a good law dealing with provisional ballots. the state does research to help them count provisional ballots. but colorado is going to be tough.

what we are trying to say with all these states is that the rules of the game really do matter, and whether they are fair matters, and whether they are enforced matters. we all watched some sports game or some football game or one of the world cup soccer matches where what the referee said and did change the outcome of the game. that is what we're seeing here. the rules really matter and you need to have a fair rules on the books, you need to enforce them, and they need to be there for the benefit of the voters. you're not trying to create hurdles for voters. you are trying to create a system that allows citizens to register to vote without an undue burden. host: susannah goodman is our guest and we're talking about state election laws and potential problems. start dialing in now.

we talked about arizona and colorado. what is happening in illinois? guest: another close situation there, competitive situation. illinois is a state that makes it a little easier for voters. i will tell you why. voters to register to vote can vote up to a week before the election. that eases the burden on the voter. as voters become engaged because advertisements are flying around on tv and papers are writing about the closeness of the race, illinois is a state that helps voters become engaged. it is not a problem-free state. there are still problems with it. but it is a more voter-friendly state. host: of these states, the top three problems, are there similarities with all these states? what are they? guest: for registration, as i said over and over again.

in some states, when you are born, you are registered to vote. some countries make it easier for voters. in the united states, the l aws vary across the states. most states we look that have it. long lead time before the election for voters to register to vote -- most of the state's we look at have a very long lead time before the election of for voters to register to vote. maybe they have gotten married, maybe they have moved a few blocks they might be left out of the process because the deadline falls so early. north carolina, of the states -- we love north carolina. it has a long period where voters can register to vote, from the early voting period to

the saturday before the election. it is a terrific way to engage voters, ease the burden on voters, ease the burden on election officials, and leading up to election day, they can register to vote and vote. that is a state that really reduces the barriers to voting and makes it easier for voters to engage. host: brandon, republican line, akron, ohio. caller: good morning, ladies. i would like to talk to the both of you about groups that say they are non-political. obviously, the lady you had on your show from rock the vote was clearly for the democrats, in my opinion. i was wondering what you have to say about that. host: you are talking about rock the vote? they say -- she says they tried

registered voters from both parties. you believe they are for the democrats? caller: it was obvious, to me. host: ok. what is requested for susannah goodman? caller: -- your question for susannah goodman? caller: i was wondering what she thinks of the political groups affecting the vote when they say they are non-partisan -- host: i think we got the point. guest: common cause is a non- partisan group. we were started by republican. all ilkseople alof with common cause to be of a former democratic congressman running the organization. -- we have a former democratic congressman running the organization. it is about having people

engaged in democracy. voting, participating in campaigns. it is absolutely non-partisan. host: do groups like rock the vote help with the voter registration problems you are talking about? guest: yes, absolutely, especially in midterm elections. during the year parties are out registering voters, and as i said, getting voters to register is so important. most states have a really long period right before the election were you cannot register. if you're not registered the month before, you are out of the game. groups like rock the vote are so critical. she says they engage christian rock groups and conservative campuses and they go to liberal campuses and they reach out to students, period. host: cincinnati, democratic line. caller: in cincinnati and the

great state of ohio, today you can begin to early vote. it does not matter if you are out of the country. any citizen of ohio can begin to vote today. we in cincinnati made a campaign to early votes that we show the importance of our vote and that our vote counts. guest: that's great. i mean, early voting is great for voters and i commend you for the work you did for it to come to fruition in ohio. ohio has made some great strides in making it easier for voters to participate in the process. great work. great work, ohio. host: there are problems in ohio as well. guest: sure right. ohio as another step with -- the deadline -- sure. ohio is another state with a deadline and month out. they had problems years ago with

complying with the national voter registration act. now they have stepped up compliance, and what that means is that at the division of motor vehicles and public assistance agencies, the state comes into contact with potential citizens and voters, and that is where registration should occur. anything to help citizens engaged in the process, we make engaged in the process, we make it harder than it needs to be for citizens to engage. ohio has stepped up compliance. host: you look at all of these states and he said that there were states that could potentially have problems, and they are swing states, and they could impact who controls the house and senate and the governors' seats. any of these problems are rising to level off hanging chads or what we saw in 2000, that could be taken to the courts? guest: in 2008, common cause had

to sue the secretary of state and colorado because he was unlawfully purging voters from the registration rolls. he said he was cleaning up the rules. the law says he cannot do that 90 days before. we had to sue the state of colorado to reinstate those voters who had been illegally purged. we are on the lookout for things like that. we have monitors out there and we're on the lookout. you have to be vigilant. i don't know off the top of my head where problems are going to pop up, but we are on the lookout. host: dan in oregon, go ahead. caller: two things, one good, one died. they don't allow independents to vote in the primary, which i don't agree with because i am an independent.

the good part is that we allow everybody to vote by mail. host: two issues there, susannah goodman. guest: voters who are ill or overseas or serving in the military can vote and organize a vote by a male state -- it creates a lot of convenience, but some people like to go down to the polls and vote. we did not cover or again in this report -- did not cover oregon in this report but they have been a leader in this process to make the system more modern. as you move from one street to the next, your voter registration will follow you because of a change of address forms. that is pretty cool. host: adam on the republican line, you are on the air with

susannah goodman. caller: i am calling about the complaint about the laws on voter registration. proving your status for voter registration -- you have to prove that to get jobs. you have to get a driver's license to get a pack of cigarettes, drive a car, buy a beer. to perpetuate this kind of fraud in our voting system is ridiculous. guest: sure. i am not sure what fraud at the about. is talking we don't have non-a citizens trying to vote in this country. they're not crossing the border to vote. they are crossing the border to get jobs. i have a lot of a family in arizona and i am very sympathetic to the problem. on the other hand, these laws go

too far. you sound like a young person, but what if you or an older, a senior citizen, you have been voting for years, but suddenly you are required to find her birth certificate. maybe he cannot lay your hands on it. -- maybe you cannot lay your hands on it. people did not have access to these documents and they have been voting for years, and suddenly they are excluded from the process. it solves a problem that does not exist and it keeps citizens from voting. that is why we have a problem with it. host: democratic line, missouri. caller: good morning, greta, susanna. i cannot quite agree with the deal in arizona. if your house catches on fire, the first thing you do is grab your kids, second thing is to grab your box of important papers.

you know where they are at and get them out of the house. as part is seen as citizens, i am on social security -- as far as senior citizens, i am on social security and you get a statement every year on what you made to it that as proof of citizenship right there. or he would -- or you would not get social security. i do not think it would be such a big problem. they should know where their stuff is. that is one thing you should know, where your papers are. guest: right, well -- everybody should know, but there was a story about a big fire in san francisco, and they interviewed people who heard the big boom and it was a big fire. people don't have the time to stop and other papers -- to stop and grabbed their papers when the building is burning. you've got to get your kids out. what we're talking about is creating a law that creates

burdens for citizens. between 2004 and 2008, more than 38,000 registrations in arizona were rejected. despite court documents indicating that most of those were -- 98% of those were citizens. host: california, laurie, independent line. caller: good morning. i had been trying to get through to people probably for the whole time here. it has been really, really difficult. it is the first time i have gotten through. i'm thanking the universe and god and you people for letting me talk for it for years i have registered as a republican, now i am american independent, for the following reasons. regarding your registration to vote. my son is a manager of restaurant in oregon. he has six people who work for

him in his restaurant and each one of them has three different social set records, three different id -- three different social security cards and three different ids. he called the federal aes and told them about these identifications. they told my son not to do anything about these people working for him illegally. host: we will have to leave there because we're getting feedback from you, from television station. a tweet on proper identification -- guest: it depends on the state. some states require first-time voters and required utility bills -- there is a wide array of things that voters can do to prove that they are -- live

where they say they live and are residents of the state. in some states the bar is much higher. you have to have a photo id with the date on the front end has to be issued by a federal or state officer. just a regular state idea from a college would not do the trick. -- just a regular state id from college would not do the trick. you have to then go down to the dmv and get a non-driver of voter i.d. card. the question is how much bureaucracy do you want on voters? what is the problem you are trying to solve? non-citizens are not the ones trying to vote. voter fraud does not occur in person at the polls where you are going to be checking people's ideas. in indiana, i think in 2006, they passed this law requiring a

photo id it issued by the federal government and there were a bunch of elderly nuns -- they don't drive any more, they are not teaching any more, they have been voting for years, and they went down to the precinct and they did not have the right kind of id anymore. what are you trying to do with these laws? .hat is the question to yo host: and enol from of you were saying "we must have a paper trail from voting machines and it must be available immediately." guest: god bless that tweeter, emailer. that is an issue that is near and dear to my heart. in some of the states, it is a computer, a black box, a nice terminal that of order to cast a ballot on, but there is no software -- that a voter can

cast a ballot on, but there is no separate software. we all have computer problems. i know i have on my computer crashes and evident on it disappears and i run to get the -- everything, disappears i run to get the it guy and he says, to get the it guy and he says, i'm sorry. if you don't have an independent paper backup of how the voters voted, you can lose the votes. it is not hypothetical. it happened most famously in north carolina, where they lost over 3000 votes and the race for agriculture commissioner was undecided for months. they said, ok, we're not going to do this again. we are going to have a paper trail for our computerized voting systems or we are going to have paper ballots and we will have something to go back and become. look at the recount in minnesota in 2008. it took a long time, but you know what? they add something to recount.

that was the beauty of it. host: let's go to minnesota, pam, go ahead. caller: i wanted to give kudos to the state of minnesota because we have an excellent voting system, same-day registration, and all you need is a utility bill to register to vote or someone who is a neighbor. i think in minnesota, our secretary of state is wonderful, and so excited about how minnesota did their recount, and how al franken is are senator. i am very happy about that. i think it was a great election, and minnesota has a high voter turnout rate, and that is because of how our elections are won. thanks again to secretary of state and our former secretary

of state who worked really, really hard on our elections. host: ok, we will leave it there and go to a texas, independent line. caller: good morning, ladies. i wanted to let you know that i used to be a member of common cause. host: ok. guest: sign up again. we will take your membership, but i think i hear a "but" coming. right. you are there is a key party "but. host: ok, what is your point? caller: that is one of my points. you go on and on about every excuse and the world -- excuse in the world about having an id. you have to have an id for

everything. the lady from minnesota -- i don't know about the utility bill, but anyway -- host: why don't you speak to that, susannah goodman? the pros and cons of only showing a utility build in minnesota -- utility bill in minnesota? guest: the question is what is the problem you are trying to solve? non-state residents from voting, not just citizens from voting? there are id laws that make it hard, or harder, i should say, for voters to engage. we are saying to get rid of those kinds of barriers. maybe it is a non-photo id or maybe it is a non-photo id or utility bill, et cetera. there is a federal law since the help america vote act passed which requires new voters to show some form of id when they

vote for the first time. there is a baseline that protect the country from these kinds of things. ,ut we don't see it in person fraud at the polling place. that is a problem that is not really exist. there are other problems come from my perspective, registration databases, in one fell swoop getting rid of 30,000 votes. losing these votes because they don't have adequate paper backups is a problem. i think it is a red herring. we are trying to say let's not make it hard for voters to participate. nonsenseke it a no- process that makes sense, so that you can register to vote in time for the election, in a timely fashion, not too far away from election day, and you can

vote and there is not a whole lot burden our bureaucracy. host: another tweet here -- guest: i am not following that. i'm not sure what -- host: what are ballot access laws? guest: i would be happy to answer the question. maybe you can e-mail me at common cause and i could answer that question. host: the great thing about twitter is that he will probably respond to us. guest: i'm sorry, if you could rephrase it. i apologize. host: next call. caller: back to an earlier comment that your guest made about the sports analogy, she says that a referee can affect the outcome of the game by a good call a bad call -- a good

call or a bad call. it sounds like kerr opinion is that if you can get to get to get into the park, or whether it used in the fence, you should be able to run down on the -- whether you sneak in the fence, you should be able to run down on the field and play the game whenever you feel like it. guest: i think what i said is that our referee -- an outcome can depend on a good outcome from a raft or a bad outcome -- an outcome can depend on a good call from a ref or a bad call. that is the type of thing i'm focused on, and the kind of thing that our report looking at the 10 states focuses on. these are the laws that are in place and let's make sure they are fair and people are enforcing them. let's not wait until we have to sue to enforce the laws, like common cause did in colorado in

2008. host: democratic line, indianapolis, good morning. caller: my question is why is it that you would suggest that states -- what is it that you it's just that states come up with to make sure that actual citizens are voting? i think she is being naive in thinking there is not voter fraud at that level. guest: i think the help america vote act established of a good baseline -- established a really good baseline for new orders when you register to vote to show the kind of id you need to have. it is a baseline that states can build on. what we are trying to do is make it easier for voters to register. .ou live in indianapol

what do you say to the elderly nuns who have been voting for their whole life and now the new bureaucracy comes in and makes it impossible for them to vote, or really difficult? host: cspanjnky has tweeted back -- guest: ok, you are talking about something that we did not cover in our report. hopefully this show can get somebody to talk about third- party candidates and ways to open up the party system. we did not comment on that in our report. we look at the current status of election laws. election laws. host: mobile, alabama, a republican line. police said. ca -- go ahead. ca -- go ahead. caller: the issues you bring up are red herrings.

column today's in the paper, you should read it. he is black, one of the most brilliant writers. he says it is the justice department's voting section, and he gives many examples of what is wrong with the voting -- he says there are so many counters, they have more registered voters -they have people -- more registered voters than they have people living there. they get registration from both states -- host: thanks, we believe that there. susannah goodman. guest: the caller is pointing to

something that all states are struggling with. the states are required to have a database to address the problems the caller is talking about. how do you keep the voter rolls up to date so that you do not have duplicates, you don't have people who no longer live in the state? i think the states are doing a much better job in complying with that law and updating their voter registration databases. i think we will see more sophistication going forward and will make it easier for an election administrators and voters to register to vote, and for election administrators to feel confident about the content of their voter rolls. that is part of the will of voter registration thing. we want you to register to vote, and when you go to another state, we want you to register to vote there. we want to see voters encouraged in the process.

host: national, tennessee, county, democratic line. -- nashville, tennessee, tony, democratic line. caller: there have been lots of situations where i wanted to vote for another person in the primary and i could not. what do you think about changing the primary law us so that you can cut across party lines? -- primary laws so that you can vote across party lines? guest: i think that is a state -- states and parties have different laws. personally, i don't have a problem with it, but i think that is a question of state law. that is where i am going to end up with that question. host: all right, we will go to john, independent line, denver. caller: it is very strange for my entire life that i was always

limited to a democrat or republican. it seems like the biggest names in finance makes this happen. do you think that elections in washington are far too important to leave to the people? guest: no, i think elections are for the people. m an optimisty an about democracy. we have a lot of people who are vigilant about making the process fair and helping voters registered to vote, and community groups are doing our reach. i would give a plug for just vote colorado. we all the voters register to vote and do a lot of voter education. -- we all the voters register to vote and do a lot of voter education. we don't just work in elite neighborhoods. we are all around the state. these midterm elections are for the people, and there is no way that either senator could win in

colorado without the participation of voters from all income spectrums. host: brandon on the republican line in ohio. caller: well, i am a college student in ohio at ohio no. university, 19 years old. i actually live in michigan and voted for the first time this past august in the michigan primary, and i will be voting of by absentee ballot this coming november. as you mentioned in the case of the electronic voting machine not being able to record the votes in the case where they need the paper trail, the absentee ballot would come into a huge play, as they did in the 2008 senate election. guest: in minnesota. yes, absentee ballots provide a paper trail. ohio is a state where electronic machines have a trail.

it is a state, when jennifer brunner came into office, she made a real commitment that there were options for voters to vote on paper. host: jan on the republican line, good morning. caller: i want to tell ms. goodman that he keeps talking about the nuns who cannot vote. my mother was born in alabama and she has never had a troubled voting in arizona. you picked arizona as a bad place to vote. the other thing i would like to know t-- who finances you? who pays for all of this? you go after different states. who pays for your time doing this? guest: people like yourself. as a membership organization and you can go online -- it is a

membership organization and you can go online, commoncause.org. we were founded 40 years ago and most of our lights were turned onlinepeople going and giving donations. we're not funded by corporations -- host: government? guest: no, not the government. it is a citizen advocacy group. that is where our firepower comes from. when we stopped and small donations from the folks like you, the lead -- would allow -- when we stopped getting small donations from books like you, the lights will go out. host: next call. caller: there is a paper trail and the machines print out a piece of paper and they can be measured against the books. if you sign the book and you are a democrat or republican, the

final tally of the machine shows the disparity between who would probably vote republican and democratic. and the machine can be checked and taken on a simple test on that machine and that machine -- they can run a simple test on that machine and the machine will check from people who voted at a that was probably a fraudulent. it will show whether it was tampered with or not. host: final thoughts. guest: that you for your services in being a poll worker. i'm from new jersey, so thank you for that. i just want to thank you for having me on the show. there is a policy think tank in washington, d.c., and we both tried to change the law as in thestate's -- laws in st s