the military commission is studying the don't ask don't tell. it has been wiped away. i think that is what wisconsin voters dislike. when one federal judge replaces a democracy. i would like to wait to see if that steady at -- what it actually says. we we're talking about military operational effectiveness and soldier route. we should wait until we get the study before we make snap judgments. >> this country is in very tough shape. we are being threatened by enemies around the world. i do not think we should wait to have distinguished american men and women who are gays and lesbians be part of our military. we have a national security issue. >> next question. we are going up to jerry.

>> thank you. polaris will soon be leaving osceola, taking 500 jobs with it. it is moving to mexico to be closer to its customers and save on production costs. obviously this is a major blow for the small community of osceola. it is a good chunk of western wisconsin. what do you know about the situation, specifically, was there another reason that they chose to leave the state than what the company is saying publicly? was there anything the government could have done to prevent that from happening? >> we will begin with mr. johnson. >> i do not know anything about the specifics. if the implication is that we should not have free trade, i would disagree. we need free trade, but fair trade.

let me distinguish myself from senator feingold. i do export products. i know what exports looks like. my company exports to 25 different countries, including china. i have a great deal of faith in the workers in america. if we can insist on fair trade, and i would, we can compete with anybody. we operate in a global economy. it is not like we can choose to compete. we have to compete. if government would make sure they get out of the way and create a level playing field, we can compete. >> do you know anything about the poorest -- polaris situation? >> i do not know all of the details. the point is that mr. johnson says he is for fair trade, but he supports the trade agreements that were obviously not fair. he supports nafta, the china deal -- these devastated wisconsin. >> did we benefit in any way

from those deals? i am -- >> i am sure there were some jobs created, but the net was a disaster. 65,000 manufacturing jobs. the idea was we would send these jobs down to mexico and people would do better there and buy our products here. that was the idea. most of those jobs went to china. the whole deal did not work. was not wise. a giveaway to china has caused the border situation for wisconsin. i have led the charge against these -- >> you want to renegotiate. >> i want to eliminate or renegotiate. one of the greatest threats is a potential new zealand dairy deal, which would be devastating for our dairy farmers. my opponent has called this process creative destruction saying that the balance is good, but it has been a disaster for wisconsin. anybody who says they care about wisconsin jobs would knowledge

those trade agreements have not been good for wisconsin. >> i did not vote for those trade deals. like any legislation, i am happy to look at the provisions. no doubt about that. since the mid-1990's, our economy has grown from $7 trillion to $14 trillion. prior to the collapse of 2008, we added 28 million workers. in the state of wisconsin, 6400 businesses to export. 190,000 workers are dependent on exports. $16 billion of our economy is exports. our farmers rely on exports. we cannot hide from that. >> i do not know what senator feingold's proposition is. a trade war would be devastating for wisconsin. >> you were using the term creative destruction. you said it is not a good thing. >> it is an economic turn. it describes how an economy progresses. an example would be going from

vinyl records to eight tracks to cassettes to cds to ipods. that has made us more productive. that is how the economy actually moves forward. you create new things and become more productive. it benefits everybody. new jobs are created during the process. old jobs fall off. when we are chugging along in the american economy, creating 2 million jobs per year, 15 million new jobs, 17 million jobs lost -- it is just a fact. >> do we go back to the days of protectionism? >> you have fair trade deals that are actually balance. the idea that things are coming up roses in wisconsin -- there is absolute desperation for people who have lost their jobs. what has happened with the automobile industry -- mr. johnson's vision of wisconsin that this is working out with

the trade agreements -- it has been the greatest attack on wisconsin jobs in the history of our state. we negotiate these things fairly. that means having real environmental standards, standards for worker rights, and control on wages. these agreements have not been balanced. that is why i voted against them. he was not there, went out of his way to endorse these agreements. >> these individual companies are tragic. we have to do everything we can to help those workers get new jobs. we have to propel the economy forward. us not forget the 6400 businesses that do export -- let's not forget the 6400 businesses that do export. it is not as noticeable as some of the big job losses. >> another question from our southeastern wisconsin group.

>> we have a question from a former business owner in racine. >> the total federal spending and that have increased greatly in the last two grew administration -- the total federal spending and debt have increased greatly in the last two administrations. the situation is dire. what actions will you take or support in the next six years to significantly reduce the projected unsustainable growth of our country's debt? >> senator feingold? >> this is an area with a marked difference between us. mr. johnson was repeatedly asked about his specific ideas and he said he was not going to get into that because he would get attacked. i take a different position. i have specifically proposed to control spending now act that has 41 precise provisions that would cut over $500 billion out of the federal deficit and debt.

some things are military. a c-17 plane that is not necessary. cotton gets to have restored and no other commodity -- to have free storage and no other commodity does. the oil company does not pay for permits but the coal industry does. as a couple hundred million dollars. i have some of these already enacted. and work on this every day. i was part of the 1990's effort when we got rid of the federal deficit. the debt was coming down. i have a great deal of experience in identifying these programs. my opponent has no experience and he will not even tell you what he is going to do. it is like nixon's secret plan that will be revealed after the election. >> i have specific proposal starting with a hard spending cap like the amendment that senator feingold voted against four times. put that hard discipline on washington did in terms of -- on

washington. in terms of specific cuts, the stimulus did not work. let's not spend what has not been spent. the health care bill will increase our deficit and will be a huge budget-buster. i agree that half of his plan takes the t.a.r.p. money. anything paid back goes back to war deficit reduction. he takes credit. -- goes back toward deficit reduction. he takes credit for that. it's $25 billion per year. our deficit is 1400 billion dollars. he has a plan -- is $1,400 billion. he has a plan. he voted for the health care bill. these things will explode the deficit. he is looking at $25 billion of savings per year. that does not cut it. it is a scratch. >> 40 specific proposals that cut hundreds of billions of

dollars a vs absolutely nothing -- versus absolutely nothing. he said cutting the health care bill out will help. it will not. it will go the opposite way. medicare will be solvent for an additional 12 years because of the health care bill, because a cutting back on waste, fraud, and abuse -- because of cutting back on waste, fraud, and abuse. if we cut it back, it will make it much harder to protect medicare in the future. there is no serious effort to identify what you would do. i have made a serious effort. >> when he entered office, he had an 82-point plan. adept at -- the debt is now $14 trillion. he does not -- has not had much success. that that is false. that plan was one of the things used -- >> that is false. that plan was one of the things

that was used. it is dishonest for you to say that plan did not do what it was intended to. it is completely and totally dishonest. >> you should have voted for the balanced budget amendment in the 1990's to provide the discipline. you started out at $4 trillion debt. we are now at $14 trillion. your plans did not work. >> we will talk about immigration. please be concise in this last part of our debate. scott? >> it is not as important an issue in wisconsin as in other parts of the country. we have a question about immigration. >> it seems that the federal government has not been willing to enforce our immigration laws and protect our borders. what is your opinion on the enforcement of immigration laws related to wisconsin workers? >> one minute apiece. >> we need to secure the borders and enforce the laws on

employers who are attracting, enticing people to come into this country illegally. we should not pass laws that attract illegal. senator feingold voted for food stamps for illegals. he voted for social security to illegals after they have been granted amnesty. he voted for them to be granted amnesty. we do not pass laws that attract people. we secure the border. we have to stop with -- start with securing the borders. >> the business community does not want us to just secure the border. i agree with that. we need comprehensive immigration reform. we have a lot of people in the state who are not documented. it is a tough situation. they are being used as employees. it is a messy situation. i support comprehensive, national immigration reforms of our economy has a system where the hard-working people can pay a penalty, get a temporary work permit, and ultimately have to

pay another penalty and get in line for citizenship. he would leave this mess as it is. that is not responsible. >> what you do with the millions more in the country illegally? >> when we secure the borders and find out how many people are here, i have no problem at that point in time, the people who have been working hard -- if you came illegally, you cannot grant amnesty. >> let's talk about another important issue. what is happening in afghanistan. i would ask you each a very simple question. how long should american troops remain in afghanistan? >> as long as the threat that afghanistan can breed terrorism. that can act as a haven for terrorists. we have to keep our eyes open. fact is that an open-ended window? >> it has to be -- >> is that an open-ended window? >> it has to be.

we have to seek out where the threats come from. we have to respond to that. >> senator? >> we better get ready to invade just about every country in the world then. you have to go into somalia with the troops, yemen, pakistan -- if you want to do ground troops as a way to deal with al qaeda, you'll be in the exact quagmire that osama bin laden loves to see us fall into. afghanistan is costing us over $100 billion per year. that is not where the leadership is. are in pakistan, somalia, yemen. i'm not in favor of invading these places. i-n favor of the effective steps that have been taken to a debt -- i am in favor of the effective steps that have been taken to identify these people and knocked them out. i think we need to get out of afghanistan, just like we're doing in iraq. >> we need to have strong

intelligence capability to respond in kind. >> besides the threat posed by terrorist groups, what concerns you most in foreign policy today? what keeps you up at night thinking about what could happen to this country because of another nation or another group of individuals? >> i am very concerned about iran. that regime has the capacity to take steps that could be very extreme and could endanger israel and other middle east countries as well as our country. we cannot allow them to become a nuclear power. i feel very strongly about that. it worries me. we're in a very delicate situation of trying to identify exactly where they're at, what steps we can take, when we should take the steps to make sure either through peaceful means or other means to make sure this does not happen. >> iran and north korea represent really dangerous regimes. we should not have a pursuit --

remove the missile defense shield from the czech republic and poland. >> do you feel that was a mistake? >> the ambassador to the czech republic did not say it was a mistake. does that put us at a strategic disadvantage in the region? >> i think they know very well that they are extremely -- there are extremely strong arguments that that was the right approach. if your concern is north korea and iran, i do not know how a missile shield related to russia is the answer. >> you have repeatedly voted to decrease funding for missile defense systems. >> i'm want to put an end to the questioning from the citizens -- going to put an end to the questioning from the citizens. >> that sounds awfully harsh. >> i do not mean for it to sound that way. they did a great job. now it is time for closing statements.

based on the coin toss, mr. johnson goes first. a reminder to the folks here, please hold your applause until the end of the broadcast. >> thank you. i would like to a bank marquette university -- to thank market university. there is a clear choice. senator feingold has voted for the failed health care package. he has voted for the last three budgets that have added $3 trillion to our nation's debt. it cannot afford these failed policies. i offer a different direction as someone who has been building a manufacturing business for the last 30 years, producing products, exporting products, creating jobs, i want to use my experience to help get the a economy growing again, create jobs, and of our nation's debt and spending under control. the promise of america is incredibly precious. it is exceptional. it is our job to make sure it survives for future generations and thrives. that is why i decided to run for

u.s. senate and why i am asking for your vote. thank you and good night. >> thank you for having this wonderful program. i am more than happy to have this decided on who is more fiscally responsible. i have proposed fiscally- responsible programs to get rid of things that were not needed. i was involved in balancing the budget successfully under president clinton. the candidate to my left, mr. johnson, refuses to give any specifics about how he would cut spending except for making sure there is a huge tax cut for very wealthy people, which would balloon the deficit even more. almost every group has identified me as one of the toughest people in terms of fiscal responsibility in the congress. i know what people in wisconsin expect. it is what i have always done and will continue to do if you would like to keep working for you. >> thank you. before we go, we want to thank the candidates for being with us tonight, for taking time away

from the campaign trail. these are busy days for both of you. we do appreciate you making time here at marquette university law school. i would like to thank everybody who has been part of the broadcast, especially the last three broadcasts. thank you to all of you for joining us tonight. we also want to send a special thanks to our host, marquette university law school, and are co-sponsors, milwaukee public television, and our statewide affiliate's who have done such a wonderful job. waste -- we appreciate it. we're going to let the audience applaud. thank you for being with us tonight. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] [applause] >> thank you. >> thank you very much.

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>> midterm elections are less than two weeks away. each night on c-span, we're showing debates and events from key races around the country. here's our lineup for tonight. next, a debate in the pennsylvania senate race. after that, a profile and debate of candidates vying for the ninth district seat in indiana. then, president obama at a rally in las vegas. >> tomorrow on washington journal "," christian -- "washington journal," christian dorsey, zalmay khalilzad, and a discussion of the whiskey leaks -- wikileaks as well as u.s.

relations with pakistan, and tom lang, former deputy -- tom blank who explains the tsa flight program scheduled to take effect next month. that is live at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. >> this weekend on "booktv," alison dagnes. on afterwards "," -- on d'souza.ords, dinesh in "poisoning the press," we examine politics. but for the entire schedule online at booktv.org. >> now a debate in the pennsylvania senate race.

republican pat to me and democratic congressman joe sestak -- pat toomey and democratic congressman joe suspect. this is about one hour. >> decision 2010, the senate debate, starts now. >> good evening. great to have you with us for this u.s. senate debate. the senate seat in pennsylvania is currently held by arlen specter, but he will no longer be the incumbent. i am david johnson. this is the senate debate between the republican pat toomey and the democrat congressman joseph step. we have had a coin flip to see who will go first on opening and closing statements. congressman setback will lead off on both.

the opening and closing is will be one minute. the questions will come from me as well as wpxi's facebook page. we also got some videotaped questions from me. we begin with congressman joe suspect. -- joe sestak. >> thank you for tonight to debate. we know the challenges to our state. tonight we have two men who have been shaped by different experiences in life, who have different set of values. mr. toomey comes from wall street where he believes answers can be found by giving breaks to large institutions consequences to the middle class. -- large corporations but with consequences for the middle class, for us. i've served 21 years in the u.s. military. -- i've served 31 years in the u.s. military. those who want to approach the problems that we face with practical solutions and those who want to focus on small businesses, we might prosper i

and have americans do all it can do. we can drive the wealth. i am standing here tonight. because i bucked my party during the primary against arlen specter. i believe that my party has put politics over principle. i want to be a representative of pennsylvania. that is the choice you have in this election. >> thank you. mr. toomey? >> thank you for being here. i got into this race because i am very concerned. i am convinced the federal government is taking us down the wrong path, at the path of way too much government. look at nationalizing industries, spending money on a scale and never thought -- i never thought possible, corresponding debt that is on fixable. you add cap and trade -- is it any wonder we do not have a recovery?

is it any wonder we are not -- we are not creating jobs. congressman sestak has been in washington the last four years. he voted for every item on the agenda list and is only criticism that its -- and his only criticism was that it did not go enough. -- did not go far enough. he is so extreme he is to the left of nancy pelosi. we need to limit the size of baron, keep spending under control. we want to have the recovery that we need. >> mr. toomey he took one of the -- , you took one of love word out to my mouth. -- mr. toomey, you took one of the words right out of my mouth -- "extreme" or "extremist." i want to talk to you about not only your party labels but the labels you give yourself, then you give one another, the differences between neyou

ideologically. let me start with you, mr. toomey. you say you are conservative and he is a liberal. >> right. >> congressman sestak, do you agree? >> i believe that he is an extreme -- i would not call it conservatism. he is on the fringes of his party. i knew hundreds of fellow admirals'. i have yet to meet one of them who is a liberal. we tend to belief when we are on the ground in afghanistan that we do not breed of rules or conservatives. -- read liberals or conservatives or ideologues. what we breed are problem solvers. when i got to washington, we had to clean up a mess that had been put in place a few years earlier by congressman toomey. i understand these labels. that is political rhetoric. >> the redirect liberals for yourself. you would not -- you reject liberals force yourself. -- you reject "liberal" for yourself. you did not call yourself a liberal? >> look at my voting record. i was in the middle of the democratic party. john murtha voted more times with the majority party then i

will -- then i did -- than i did. i found myself pretty much of a pragmatist congressman toomey headed "club for growth." he bled personal attack ads against republicans trying to get out of his own party. it cannot work with those in -- if you cannot work with those in your own party, how can you work with the rest of us? that senate is not working together. >> moderate? >> mainstream. independent. >> is "liberal" a bad word? >> no. i had to stand up for that to get here tonight. >> the only time he has stood up to his party was to promote his own career. if you look at the actual record, it might be that he is the most liberal admiral, maybe the only one. during the primary campaign, he

is happy to described himself as a progressive. that is the euphemism they used to describe themselves. most pennsylvanian do not share their liberal views. last year, joe voted with nancy pelosi 100% of the time on everything. he has accepted the entire agenda, every item that i went through, his only criticism has bid that they do not go far enough. he voted for the stimulus bill. over $800 billion of money that we do not have. his criticism was is that it should have been $1 trillion. he voted for every single bailout even after a majority of the house voted to end t.a.r.p. he was voting to keep tarp go wing. he introduced his own bailout bill that would force them to -- force taxpayers to build underwater mortgages. -- bailout underwater mortgages. cap and trade -- it would ruin pennsylvania in general but would devastate particularly in western pennsylvania. he voted for it. he said it did not go far

enough. the health care bill, too, he was in on. on every single issue -- he is to the left of the conservative democrat. >> you use the word extreme. do you believe he is extreme? >> let me make clear. congressman toomey is extreme on the policy. one of the zaniness ideas i have ever heard is -- he said he wants to eliminate all taxes for corporations. he says borrowing from america's -- buying american is an unfortunate contingency. he noted that if you're corp. -- you're a corporation -- is it if you close your factory and fire your workers and invest in a factory in china, that when you import cheap goods your profits are not taxed. he called it a gift to us. he says in his book that it is open "creative destruction." -- that is "greeted destruction." hundreds and thousands of jobs would be lost -- that is "to creative destruction."

hundreds and thousands of jobs would be lost. it is extreme policy. >> there is no question. joe is well to the left. >> extreme is an extreme word. >> it is appropriate. >> i would recommend people buy my book. not the least of which, because i like to have the royalties. you will find out what is in a. what is in it instead of what joe says about it. government and economic freedom gives us prosperity. now on taxes, i think we should lower the top corporate tax rate from 35% and we have today in -- that we have today, that is the highest in the world, i think we -- the second-highest in the industrial world, second only to japan, and they are in the process of lowering theirs -- i think we ought to lower it to 25%. then we would be able to compete better with our trading partners. if we do not do this, then go down the road that he prefers to raise taxes, then america becomes a less competitive place, a place where people will not want to headquartered their

business. we will lose jobs when companies go overseas. >> let's talk about the stimulus and whether you think it is working. mr. toomey, i will start with you. i think i know the answer. why do you not think it is working? it has only been a few months. >> it has been well over a year. >> the president has not been in office that long. >> he has been in office for over a year-and-a-half. we were told if they got their stimulus bill toll, the -- stimulus bill passed, the unemployment rate will never go above 8%. it went over 10%. where are the jobs? where is the growth? it is a flawed concept. the idea of borrowing and spending federal money is going to generate prosperity is just a huge fallacy. they are taking money out of the private sector and allowing politicians to spend it. that does not create growth. look at the things that are in the bill. there is $31 million in that th bill to build a spring training facility for the arizona diamondbacks and the colorado rockies. i am a big fan of baseball.

i'm counting on the phillies making it to the world series. i think every team needs a spring training facility. how about the owners pay for it? $11 million is for microsoft to build a bridge across a highway, where the richest companies in the world. -- microsoft is one of the richest companies in the world. joe sestak voted for that bill. he is the only guy in america who think it should of been $1 trillion. -- who thinks it should have been 100 -- $1 trillion. rather than spend $800 million -- billion that we did not have, there would have been a better way to do it. we would not have had to look--- ready programs. there would have been better ways to deal with it. >> i know you voted for it. unemployment is still high. he makes some points. why do you think it is working? hon>> i arrived in congress the

year the recession began. we were headed to a depression. mr. bush called upon us to help. mr. paulson did. i'm reminded of my very first job in the united states navy during the vietnam war. i was in the navy during vietnam. we lost 3 million americans that lost their jobs. in the first three months during mr. obama's term, we lost another 3 million. and the past few months we have created 8 million. -- created a million jobs. toomey 00 -- said we -- we would have had a slightly harder down if we have not done anything. another 8 million americans would have lost their jobs. he is right. we wanted to do something else. i had wanted to work with republicans and say that we could get tax credits for small businesses.

a 15% tax credit for every small business. we would have created another million jobs. it was not perfect. i wanted to work with republicans to focus washington, d.c., on small businesses. congressman toomey said we should have given the money to corporations. a 66% of all corporations in america already pay no taxes. he was to eliminate all taxes? -- he wants to eliminate all taxes? how can you go below zero? everyone watching tonight in a working family pays more than a fortune 500 corporation. now he wants to eliminate all taxes? -- taxes for corporations after having voted thatif you actually invest in a -- that if you actually invest in a factory in china, they are not taxed. that is why he has extreme policies. -- that is quite an extreme policy. >> we also have questions from a videotape. we took a camera to the streets of pittsburgh. let's hear the first of those.

>> i am from pennsylvania. what is your stance on shell and drilling? -- marcellus shale drilling? are you for or against it? why? >> did you hear it? >> i've heard it. >> not just are you for or against it, but taxing it? >> we have an opportunity to do something i think is very exciting with the natural gas. if you add that the energy that -- add up the energy that is in the gas, it is equal to half of oil in saudia arabia. -- in saudi arabia. it is a staggering amount of energy. it is right here in

pennsylvania. it will not go anywhere. penn state did a study. they did some research. they predicted over the next 10 years the development of this could create jobs. -- this could generate 250,000 new jobs in pennsylvania. it is not just the development of the gas itself. if this entire industries that need this. -- it is entire industries that need to locate near the source of natural gas. this is a huge economic opportunity. it is the biggest economic opportunity for pennsylvania in 100 years. we need to do this in a way that will be safe for the environment. we can do this. i met with the secretary of pennsylvania's department of environmental protection to get his input on the challenges and opportunities. we know how to do this safely. we know how to do this responsibly. we need to make sure they have the resources and manpower to regulate this properly so it is done in a responsible action.

-- in a responsible fashion. joe says that takes the extreme view and calls for complete moratorium on all drilling -- joe sestak takes the extreme view and calls for a complete moratorium on all drilling. no other elected official that i know of has called for a moratorium. no one in congress that i know of calls for this. this is an example of how extreme it is. >> would you tax it? >> is likely there will be a tax. that is a common approach. >> do you believe it should be? >> that is a decision for harrisburg. i think it is likely it will eventually happen. it is not a decision for me. >> should marcellus shale be taxed? >> yes. the congressman said it well. i know that governor rendell does want to do what you said. i am an independent. we need practical solutions. i patrolled the oil lanes in the persian gulf.

i am tired of sending men and women overseas in order to protect a big oil. this is what it is about. do we need to drill? you bet we do. this is a bone. on.bon let's do it right. that is how i learned to do things in the navy. seven counties have had their drinking water contaminated already. the federal environmental protection agency is not allowed to know the chemicals that are pouring into the place. these are firms from japan. 85% of the workers come from outside the states. before we do it more, let's get it right. let's make sure we know what is in our water before more counties are building it. -- before more counties are drilled in. 15 states with the largest natural gas in america puts a 5% tax on it. we should get that tax and alleviate our seniors tax burden

and repair our roads. i want to make sure that, ascongressman toomey said he thinks we should drill in lake erie. he says any regulation of oil companies is nearly criminal. let's do it practically. let's make sure we take the advantage of this. >> i never said we should drill in lake erie. this shows how joe is very extreme and to the left of the entire consensus of the democrats. he thinks the epa needs additional regulatory overlay. the epa already thoroughly regulates this. he calls for a complete potential job creator ini do not understand that. >> i want to make sure that 85% of the workers from outside, bulet's make sure our community colleges train them. those should be our workers.

the ruling must once we start it right. -- drill we must once we start it right. >> let's go to our first facebook question. what makes you more qualified than your opponent? >> i appreciate the background an experience that congressman toomey has. but we want someone who understands the value of main street pennsylvanian. -- of the main street pennsylvanian. he supports any programs that support wall street. we need support ones that -- need to support one is that support pennsylvania and the middle class. they drive as forward. -- they drive us forward. i learned to work across the aisle. i was taken with the endorsement i received. across the aisle.y to w

in the navy, a you learn about accountability. i did not run for my congressional seat. i stood up to my party. it is not about my job. it is about making sure the people's jobs are taking care of. i want to bring my experience in the military and accountability. i want to make sure we refocus washington, d.c., and pennsylvania ends -- on pennsylvanians, not special interests. >> thank you. mr. toomey? >> i think it is the sum of my life experiences. i was born into a working-class family. my father was a union worker. my mother was a part-time church secretary. there were six of us kids. we were a close family. we did not have much growing up. we are still a really close family. it was a wonderful upbringing. i was a lucky kid. i went to a good school. i'm the only candidate that has

actually created jobs in this race. i started a small business with my brothers in allentown. we opened a restaurant and hired hundreds of workers. i think this is a time when we badly need people in washington with some business experience excessivestand that government regulation and taxes will actually hurt our ability to create jobs. >> we have a huge budget deficit. what taxes would you like to see cut? mr. toomey. i will get to budget cuts in a second. the specific. -- be specific about which taxes you would like to cut. >> there are too big challenges that we face -- two are big challenges we face. one is to create maximum growth to bring people back to work. i mentioned my dad as a union worker.

there were times when a union called a strike. when they called a strike, my dad was out the work. -- was out of work. those are times of enormous anxiety. especially for my dad. my dad knew that eventually the strike was over into be able to get back to work. -- the strike would be over and he would be able to go back to work. my heart without the people now -- my heart goes out to the people now who lost their jobs. they do not have a job to go back to. we have to make sure we maximize economic growth and job creation. it has to come from the private sector. private taxes will inhibit our ability to do this. >> i am getting to that. i think we need to make the 2003 tax cut permanent for everybody. dole announced that raising -- joel acknowledge in december of last year that raising taxes during hard times is a bad idea. he was right them. -- he was right then. and forced to become a he has unfortunately, he has changed his mind now.

i would take the top corporate tax rate and lower it to 25%. out also lower the capital gains -- i would also lower the capital gains rate. the president has announced a -- acknowledged that lowering capital gains is a job creator. he wanted restrictive. i want to probably create those jobs. -- he wants it restricted. i want to broadly create those jobs. >> would you cut taxes? if so, which ones? >> i believe washington has to change the focus on taxes. toomey says to eliminate all corporate taxes. he vote -- he would vote that the profits in china do not have to be taxed. what i would do is it your capital gains tax. -- what i would do is a zero capital gains taxif you invest in a small -- tax if you invest in a small business, it creates 80% of all jobs. if we gave a 15% tax credit to

every small business for every new payroll jobs they create it, -- payroll job they created, we would create 5 million jobs in two years. i never got my advanced degree -- got to use my advanced degree until i got to congress. in the navy, i did not need it. here is what else. the bush tax cut, we need to extend them. it is my vote that we would not -- it was my vote against the chairman that gave a 210 to 210 tie, that we would not go home to extend the middle house tax cuts. -- middle-class tax cuts. toomey congressman said that let's at least get a middle- class tax cut. he went on television and said, not unless the very rich -- the top 1% also get their tax -- >> can you respond to that quickly? >> joe has no experience in business.

he did not understand the consequences. -- he does not understand the consequences of the really bad policies he has proposed. he has an idea about small businesses create jobs. he did not realize all the -- the problem is he does not realize all the damage that they have done to our economic environment is never going to offset thit. the reality a much higher health-care costs. the threat of higher taxes and higher energy costs. there is a huge energy tax he advocated in the cap and trade bill. when small businesses are faced with all of those threat, a tax credit to hire a worker will not get them to do it. there are bigger weight on their -- negative weights on their shoulders that will prevent that. it helps to get some experience in business. you can understand what the decision making processes for the entrepreneur -- process is

for an entrepreneur. >> you are sitting you would cut -- saying you would cut some very quickly? >> yes. but keep in mind that when toomey congressmen was on the -- congressman toomey was on the small business committee, and he slapped the business administration in half so the loans used to go to small- business men and women, he voted there had to be a $3,000 fee and then the loans got cut dramatically. when he said he invested in a small business, he was actually working for a chinese billionaire in china. under oath he said he never had a hand on experience in my small business. he said that he never had hands- on experience in his small business. which one is it? >> joe knows very well what it is i had to reestablishment. -- what it is. i had three establishments. one of them i delegated responsibility. -- well what it is that i did. i had two establishments. one of them i delegated responsibility.

i had one of my brothers running them. joe knows very well that i was a small businessman for many years. he knows that i was in their creating jobs, running my restaurants. this is a silly destruction. we need to talk about how to get the economy moving again. the problem is the weight that joe is imposing through the failed policies. joe is devoted to these bad policies. the bailout when two giant banks. i was opposed to all of the bailout. who do think is going to pay for those bailouts? >> hold on. you can answer. you vote in favor of some type of tax cut. -- you are both in favor of some type of tax cuts. they are great, but they do not reduce -- >> joe is in favor of a net tax increase. >> hold on. if you are going to reduce the deficit, cutting taxes alone will not do it. you must have in mind some programs.

what programs? can you answer what programs you would like to cut? >> first off, what is most important and what i voted for was a government that had to live within its means. if you want a new program, cut another one. congressmen toomey voted to throw it out the window in 2001. when he left congress, we had the largest deficit in the history of america. he went on television and said deficits aren't important. the debt doubled during the bush-toomey era. that is back. we also need a cap on discretionary spending. you need to prioritize.

there are items to do. toomey congressman voted against the entire [unintelligible] -- the entire transportation bill twice. he voted against the veterans administration. there's a better approach. let me give you a couple of examples. and armed services, a f-the22 -- -- in the armed services, the f-22, we shouldn't buy any more. there is no more soviet union. 65 ceos have a larger market value. the navy could not afford 55 submarines. in education, the scholarships are duplicative of early start. they tend to go to those who are not needy. there is a smart way and practical way to do this.

you do not just slash and burn and say q things about cutting taxes and government. what is he going to cut? we know that social security is on the table. >> let's ask him. >> this is amazing. he voted for every single bailout. he introduced additional bailout the lacoste 100 billion -- which would cost $100 billion additional. he voted for the stimulus. he is pretending he wants to reduce spending. this is unbelievable. let's talk about deficits. during the six years i was in the house, which ended six years ago, the average budget deficit was 7/10 of 1% of our economy. that are now roughly 10% -- joe is now voting for deficits that are now roughly 10% of our economy. that is 15 times bigger. we're running $1.50 trillion deficit and he says we have not spent enough. this is extreme policy and it is dangerous. >> give me an idea what you a kite.

-- of what you would cut. >> i would end all these bailout. i want to ban earmarks. earmarks' are very wasteful. they are pernicious and very wasteful. it is where they tried to bribe constituents with their own money. they lorded over people. -- they lord it over people. they hand out a big check and take a picture. they are spending taxpayer money. there were 123 opportunities joe for to vote to strip out remarks -- for him to vote to strip out individual wasteful year -- earmarks from the appropriation bill. he voted for 122 out of 123. this is no effort to cut out wasteful spending. >> you brought this up. you are knowing for showing up with a big check in hand. you would end that? >> that is what i am saying. -- pennsylvanians understand that

this is how we got into this mess. we are spending way too much money. when we have a budget under control, when our fiscal house is in order -- we are getting tax is lower. they will be much better off. >> thank you. of course he does not want to remaining portion of the stimulus to continue. the heavy bulk of that middle class tax andcut, he said he -- the heavy book of that is middle-class tax cuts. he said he would have -- would give them to corporations. 66% of corporations do not pay u.s. taxes. i'm the only one appear with up here -- i am the only one up here with legislation to end earmarks. we have to control our spending. i want a law that requires if you want to do programs, cut another one.

rememberin the gdp during the bush-toomey era, it is the slowest growth since world war ii. zero jobs were created. during the clinton era, we had the largest expansion. 23 million jobs were done. congressman toomey renewed the -- remove to the -- removed the requirement that you had to cut a program. it now in an election, all of a sudden he things that we should control spending. he took over corporate growth. they said they worked to change the republican party from of balanced budget party to a pro- death at it spending party -- pro-deficit spending party. to pay for it he says we should borrow from china.

>> you have made that point before. >> this is -- >> this is going to have to be quick. >> let me be clear. what he has done with earmarks is unbelievable. he took a pledge that said that he would not take contributions. -- from anybody who seeks an earmarke from my office. they found out he had. -- he had taken hundreds of thousands in those contributions. he said he only met during a limited amount of time. he said he never meant for the pledge to the public. the house passed a role that the -- pass the rule that said that democrats said they will only seek your marks -- earmarks for not-for-profit companies. joe did $350,000 earmarks to a sham not-for-profit and funneled it to a for-profit.

this has to come to an end. >> can you tell the truth? i went to congress. i'm the only one new published appropriations bill -- who publish appropriations. -- who published any appropriations that we got. it was not a requirement. if the president of a corporation or company or university came to me, quietly, i could not take it. his professor gave $300 from the anthropology department did. toomey congressman said he did -- congressman toomey said he did not take your marks except for -- earmarks except for the first year. now we find out he took them a second time. he is yet to publish where he got them from. worse than that, he took millions of dollars in bonuses from wall street corporations. now they are following his campaign. the issue is influence of money. we do not want to have a senator at all from wall street.

we want someone from pennsylvania to represent us. >> our next question has to do with cuts. this is our question no. two. let's roll that tape. >> i live on the north side. why is it that it seems to be neighborhoods that had the most need for these services have do -- neighborhoods where people do not have cars and access to different types of services are the ones that have their budgets -- bus services cut the most? >> yes speaking specifically of bus about services. >> thank you i've been to the north side number of times. john f. kennedy said, to neglect our city, we'd use it to our peril. -- to neglect our cities, we do so at our peril.

because to neglect our city is to -- cities is to neglect america. we truly have neglected our cities. pittsburgh has lost 17% of its population in the last 30 years. pittsburgh has not had the focus upon small businesses that they should. worse, it has been our manufacturing prowess. let me give you an example. congressman toomey said that the steel industry went bankrupt because it to some of their own self-inflicted wounds. -- because of some of their own self-inflected wounds. .

have merit and allocate the money to states and let local officials make the decision about the allocation. >> do think the stimulus funding has extended higher unemployment rates in the market will work things out by themselves? >> i still cannot believe it should have been bigger. this is an example of how extreme he is.

this is the mindset of joe. he is in step with nancy pelosi. it is only criticism is that she did not go far enough. we cannot spend our way to prosperity. in instead of is growing government, let's have an across-the-board cut in payroll taxes. we could have cut payroll taxes roughly in half for about three years. every single worker would have a take-home pay raise. >> us to get the stimulus bill. economists said another 8 million economists would have lost their job.

unemployment would have been over 11%. 1/3 of the stimulus wanted tax cuts for the middle-class 1/3 one two unemployment. congressman toomey voted against it. 1/3 was for a job creation. he is right. i did want to do something else. i wanted to work with republicans. this is a good word. if we have given that tax credit for every new job that was created, we would have 5 million jobs created today. it is a matter of looking at it pragmatically.

the stimulus help? yes, it did. was it something of wanted congress to do? no. it was something where we had been torpedoed. the ship was sinking. we had 700,000 jobs a month. we have created 1 million in the last eight months. >> i think any to get to the last to videotape and questions. the time has just flown. i would do that and then ask a couple more really quick answers. i know that is hard for you. from facebook, i love this one. what is your most obvious fault? what is your biggest strength? >> congress and sestak sestak. congressman sestak congressman -- sestak. >> i do too much. i asked to get out and beyond the education committee. education is the key to the

future. then i asked for ways to get out of a third committee. we are only allowed to be on two committees. my greatest asset is my wife. >> well done. >> we will go to dinner tonight. i love her. i learned it is not about me. and and you are not as responsible for what you are supposed to do. you are willing to be held accountable for what you are supposed to do. i did it because it mattered pennsylvanian spell were losing their jobs. when the father walks of the -- upstairs and stairs and a half

to tell his son is not one to go to the college that tia been saving for because he lost his job, those 8 million jobs we lost were not just jobs. i am willing to be held accountable for doing things for pennsylvania. they were fathers and mothers. we prevented another 8 million. we have to be held accountable. >> be tried to do too much for your wife. >> maybe my biggest fault is that things in times i tried to keep a lot of balls up in the air and can get distracted. it is important to impose a discipline of keeping focus. >> it is the same answer to both questions. you try to do too much. >> there is no question that my wife is my biggest asset. on a personal level, one of my strengths and semi small- business experience. i work as hard as i can every day to try to grow this business and make the right decisions. if we did our very best and worked as hard as we could, we could hope to be competitive

with the other good players. they gave me a sense of humility. and i have to work that hard to beat it my business, the might to tell everyone else how to run theirs? -- to be good at my business, who am i to tell everyone else ?ow to run their stack >> let's go to our last videotaped question. >> i grew up in the middle east. there is no separation between church and state. do you think religion should be involved in our government? >> did you hear that? should religion played a role or be involved in government? she said to greg in the middle east where there is no separation. -- she grew up in the middle east where there is no separation. >> when it the great -- one of the great things of america is the constitution. it prohibits -- this is a vital part of our constitutional system, our history, and art tradition.

it is not mean we have to deny the fact that most americans are of faith. it does inform the judgment of most americans. it also forms the basis of many of our laws. sometimes i think there is a tendency to think we have to deny faith and religion entirely. i do not think that is what it means. for instance, i am a big believer that we should offer every child the opportunity to attend the school their parent chooses for them. i think that would be enormously helpful. there is so many kids second failing schools. i believe parents ought to be able to choose schools whether there public or private or religious or non-religious. i think you would be a great

opportunity for the kids to have a better education. i like our tax dollars to follow the child. >> i also have to agree it is right about our constitution. there are some extreme candidates in delaware that thinks it might be a state mandated religion. we know that is wrong. you can almost and buy yourself anywhere. -- invite yourself anywhere. i go to another church or synagogue or a temple every week since i have been a congressman. i do that because i find good congregational leaders are like military leaders. they are what politicians should

be. the public servants. -- good public servants. they are dealers of hope. the also care about the surrounding communities. how can we work together? people really do want to work together. we want to help solve our problems. we need to make sure we focus on their community. >> you mentioned pelosi. i want to ask you about your advertisements. do you hear from the voters on opinions on your ad? >> sure. >> what do you hear? >> most people i hear from like our ads. >> i do not hear that. i am not picking on you or you, but in general. >> i am joking.

i think the tone of the campaign is unfortunate. the tone of campaigns in general, and this one in particular i wish we could have a more substantive discussion. i had a picture of myself and joe sestak and the line under a it,two good men with different views and then it checked up on the big issues. my ads are focused on the big policy issues. he has an extreme view of the government's and following nancy pelosi. i think we should have less government and less spending and lower taxes. we have different views. i thought we could stick to these differences. joe has chosen to go down a different road. >> do you agree the tone is unfortunate? >> i do. a toomey congressman said it well in his book. truth is often the first

casualty of the elections. >> it is a pretty scary book. -- on halloween. -- read it on halloween. >> corrected the tone of the campaign. i did not have any ads until late summer. ds said that i voted to do we with of private health insurance plans -- how outrageously wrong with that. my daughter who had brain cancer is now nine years old would have lost your healthcare i had done that. which did not be pointing at one another -- we should not be pointing at one another. i have great faith in pennsylvanians. we are the most common sensible

people i have ever met. i was born and raised here. they will see it. we've all had to look at ourselves. what we want is someone, who is going to be on their side? >> could you ever foresee add that say this is what i plan to do and not attack? >> i do not think it is right to run ads that smear a person's character or is this honest in any way. i think it is reasonable for them to understand that one person wants higher taxes are lower taxes. i think this is part of the way it has to work.

>> to understand that people think it is-? -- you understand that people negative?s >> it is when the ads on issues are false. congressman toomey as a guy is a good person. i have had a beer with him. that was after we debated. you are right. >> we are quickly running out of time. gun laws in this country, do you like where they are? would you like to see more or less? >> i think the second amendment is a fundamental right.

i always have. it is spelled out in the second amendment of the constitution. this is pretty high up. it is important to me. i am glad to have the endorsement of the nra. this is something and joe differ on. i think law-abiding citizens and not have their legitimate rights to fire arms constrained. i think we should certainly make sure that we have lost a place so that criminals and any dangerous person is not able to obtain a weapon. law abiding citizens -- we are about good right now. we should do a good job and forcing it in some places. >> i lived my entire military career with weapons. i know how to use them. i know how they should be used. i have defended the second amendment for 31 years. those 1 million hunters that go out for the family tradition,

whether it is for hunting or self-defense, and they must be able to have the right always protected. i also know that back in the mid-90's when military weapons were banned, the death of law enforcement officers by the weapon dropped by 20%. i think criminals should have steady aim and they would never get a gun. laws? >> if i could respond to this. >> i'm the candidate you has the endorsement of the pennsylvania state troopers.

my record in support of the second amendment. and the support of law enforcement and being tough on crime. >> look, they supported what i said. >> time for closing statements. you are first. >> thank you all for tonight event. thank you. two days ago we stood in the national constitution center. the above as were those words were protected for 21 years. it is we the people, not leave the corporations. we --the corporations. it is about the people. as i went through the backroads comment that if you to invest in the middle class and lets small businesses prosper, watch out china.

i loved being in the military. i loved serving after it helped my daughter. i would ask for your vote. i would ask you to come out and vote no matter who you vote for, to honor those men and women. they are serving our nation in war today. come out and vote on behalf of them. >> thank you. thank you. i just believe strongly that our federal government it off on the wrong track. for the last four years coming sestak joe has supported and attended that has nationalized industries with a staggering amount of spending and unaffordable deficits and debts and government run health care. if he is argued it should go

further. it is preventing us from having an economic recovery. i am very bullish on america. i believe we can have a strong recovery. we can restore prosperity. we will do with job growth. we need to clear away these steps. -- threats. spending is not under control. we need to have lower taxes so it can maximize incentives. i would appreciate your vote to we can turn things around. >> thank you very much. thank you at home for watching this. do not forget to vote on election day. thank you for the folks who wrote in their questions. we greatly appreciated. election day is drawing near. do not forget to vote. thank you. we will see you later. good night. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010]

>> here is a quick look at political news from around the country. from the wall street journal, other pro republican groups have gotten a lot of attention from the amount of money they are spending on the outcome of the midterm election. it is the biggest outside spender in the 2010 election. that stands for the american federation of state, county, and municipal employees. the group is spending millions

of dollars for democratic candidates around the country. for more political news, go to our web site at the c-span.org /politics. >> you can clip in share our programs with a friend. that includes more than 100 debates we have erred on c-span. you can watch the tutorial on how to share. it is on our website. or you can go to the c-span video library. >> tomorrow night, live from denver, democratic incumbent michael bennett and a republican candidate. it begins at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. >> midterm elections are coming up november 2. every night here on c-span, we show events from key races in the country. here is the lineup tonight.

we will hear from candidates vying for the nine districts seat in indiana. after that president obama in las vegas and then the wisconsin senate debate. >> the local content of vehicles are traveling the country visiting communities and congressional districts as we look at some of the important parts of the country leading up to the november elections. >> there are only a certain number of congressional people that are highly competitive. there are very good opportunities for republicans to pick up a seat in congress. this is one of those. >> it is one of those races that is a barometer of what will happen nationally. it has always been that way. i think that is one there is -- why there is some much interest. >> candidates running in the

ninth congressional race, a democratic incumbent. he was elected in 1998 and has served most of that time until now. he is challenged by a republican who is making his first young in public office. young.e is tofdd to look at this, it would be somewhat homogenous. but there is some what diversity. you have in area near bloomington, which is probably the most liberal area of the state. they have some role areas that people consider themselves democrats. they elect democrats locally.

the thing you have an area near cincinnati on the river that is urban and suburban. the result is even though the district has certain considerations, -- you are never sure how it is. to play out in a race. what makes it interesting and expensive is it is covered by several different people. louisville, cincinnati, indianapolis, and in other. none of those are majority. your advertising dollars do not go there. it is a very expensive and complicated. to contain.

we do not know if it will make a difference to get reelected. >> some have been controversial about health care. we may have to explain to an individual voter about what the health-care plan will mean for individuals. the question is, will he have the money and the time to get that message out to enough people and if they will buy his explanation. i think it is really going to depend on his ability to raise money. it is if he will have the death money for advertisers. it is a very difficult district to advertise in. a lot of radio and cable television. i hate to say it, but money will

play a huge role in this. young was raising money about at the same pace. if they increase that momentum and the national republican campaign committee, the that is where the difference comes in. >> so security is not a huge problem to correct. we are at a time where we have to readjust again. the commission is taking a look at it to offer recommendations. they may not come until december. we will fix so security and keep it as it is rather than privatizing it as my opponent would like to do.

>> congress is irresponsible with our finances. they spend our money is on everything but retirement. we have the essential programs out there. baron endorses' privatizing social security, which i think scare's people. >> it will be a big issue in this race. we are not quite far enough into it to distinguish where their differences lie. it seems that hill will try to distinguish his opinion from young and whether privatizing some security -- young has spent

a lot of time bringing up the past both of hill. for health care law again for the unsuccessful cabin trade bill. there is going to be some debate about that. although hill is a blue dog democrat. -- he is somewhat conservative in spending. they will spend a lot of time talking about the federal budget and the deficit. he is a guide that is somewhat

conservative. you can get a test of how voters are feeling about incumbents. >> c-span has local content of vehicles traveling the country. we are looking at some of the most closely contested house races leading up to the november election. for more information, go to c- span.org. >> now a debate about those running for the ninth district in indiana. they made a stop in bloomington, indiana. this is about one hour. ♪ the indiana university school of public and environmental affairs presents the 2010 indiana and ninth districts

congressional debate. >> welcome. i am the dean here at this school. we are pleased to present these candidates and their viewpoints. our moderator of this evening is one of the newest faculty members. he brings 11 years to policy debates here. he has taught classes in public speaking debate and presidential rhetoric. he has coached national debate championship teams. i am confident he will be an outstanding coach for you as well. [applause]

>> thanks. good evening, everybody. the rules for tonight is very simple. i will ask them several questions. each candidate will have one minute and a half to respond to each question. afterwards, they will be allotted an additional 45 seconds for rebuttal. during the debate, the audience has agreed to be quiet. that is except right now as we honor our candidates. [applause]

>> thanks to our representatives for being here today. baron hill, todd young, and greg knott. what does this supreme court decision mean for american democracy? >> i think it was the right decision. unions have the right to free speech, which was determined in that decision. i think all americans should have an opportunity to express their views and use their own resources to get their opinions out about the issues of the day. i encourage every individual to express their thoughts on the issue of the day. that is whether it is by coming to even slight this or speaking two candidates after or by purchasing television ads on

their own or through a corporate entity or vehicle. ultimately, id for on these decisions to the u.s. supreme court. they determine what this all means. i will leave it at that. >> sometimes the supreme court gets it right and gets it wrong. they got it wrong this time. these corporate in union dollars that are spent on advertising campaigns are being spent right now, some already in the ninth district against me. others cannot compete with something like that. there is too much money in politics. i have been doing this for 10 years. this is another example of the money pouring into the campaigns

to influence decisions. do we want big energy companies controlling what the message will be on television all the time by applauding -- affording them unlimited resources they can use to persuade the public to vote one way or the other? i cannot compete against that at all. i think it is a terrible decision that was made. i am very dismayed that this decision was made by the supreme court. one of the things we can do is make sure that before a corporation or union -- they had to get permission from stockholders before they can use that money. some can be used for these television ads. if returned to congress, i plan

to introduce legislation to do just that. >> thanks for moderating. thanks for hosting this great debate. i am honored to be a part of this. the supreme court did get this wrong. i agree with the congressmen. we have too much corporate money influencing us. i am the only candidates to fight the washington corruption pledge. i urge the others to sign this law. it goes -- many of the reforms that he referred to, shareholders giving corp. money to spend and overturning this supreme court case are encompassed in this pledge.

i think all of the candidates nationwide should sign off on this. over 200 candidates have signed on. i challenge my opponent to join me. thanks. >> next up is todd young. >> i do not see there is a great deal of difference between myself and the other candidates. i would ask that the stockholders of the corporation are union members and receive their permission to receive their -- receive their permission to put their add up. one person has spoken out on this issue in the past and received $1.8 million. corporations like general electric which owns nbc -- this

levels the playing fields. >> your rebuttal? >> i am delighted to hear that he agrees on this legislation. too much money in politics. because of that, there is too much influence. this was a terrible decision that was made. i wish mr. young would agree with that. >> final response? >> we need to know where this money is coming from. if congressman hill wants this legislation in congress, he

should resign on to this pledge, which includes these reforms. >> our second question for tonight is directed to mr. hill first. it is regarding the foreclosure crisis. could the policy be in place? >> it is a housing and mortgage problem in this country. one of the reasons we remain in tough times is because the housing market has not fully recovered. we need to do a better job of overseeing this. it does not happen overnight. the financial crisis occurred because of the housing market. you got the mortgage and then the banks and loan companies

would break it down and sell it on the strip. many did not know if they were getting a good investment or bad investment. we learned the housing market was in crisis because the loans being made for better loans. that this -- went through the cracks of the last few years. we can better regulate in monitor this. we passed a bill recently in congress that would try to crack down on some of these las vegas type loans papermaking. we first still working on this. hopefully this bill will help us get to where we are going. >> you need to take

accountability for your votes in congress. one is regarding the banking act. it contributed to the too big to fail crisis. it stripped of the separation between wall street banks and mainstream banks. this led to too big to fail. it was the wrong solution for boaters in southern indiana. the democrats that voted against the deal only receive have as much as the average democrats who voted for this deal. i hope that you will take accountability for your record. i agree the financial reform was passed it was a section right direction, but it was mainly

written by the banking industry. it was watered down and had no peace for derivatives for for many other things. we need stronger regulation, not less, which you repealed in one act. >> thanks. >> like some many of these national issues, old met irresponsibility does rest at the feet of congress. years ago, it had a well- intentioned piece of legislation. it encouraged bankers to make loans they may not otherwise made for the purpose of ensuring more people could own houses. there were some unintended, -- consequences. these mortgages, these

government entities like fannie mae and freddie mac, they played a role. then when many of these mortgages failed, people in main street were left holding the bag. but congressman hail the not reform fannie mae or freddie mac at all. they will one of the causes of this financial crisis, which hurt millions of americans across the country. we need to go back to the table. i like to be a part of holding fannie mae and freddie mac accountable. >> i did not vote to bail out wall street. i thought that was a mistake. i left washington d.c. to fly back here. i spoke to my staff to see what the latest was.

i thought i would have to come back monday. i told my staff at the time, there is no way i will vote for a multi billion dollar bailout for wall street. we did reform wall street. it addressed a lot of issues. no longer in large banks feet's too big to fail. we eliminated that possibility. congressman hill, you need to take responsibility for your vote to repeal an act. it led to the crisis that we are in right now. i applaud you for getting on board with a school platform -- the no bailout platform.

however, by the repealing this act, it led to too big to fail. you voted to repeal because you took $800,000 from the banking industry. >> in your final response? >> i want to reinforce what i said before. [unintelligible] >> just a reminder, please keep the applause down to a minimum. the next question is directed towards knott. do you support the extension of all of the bush and administration tax cut for only those for the middle class? >> i disagree with the new wording. there is no such thing as a tax

cuts with borrowed money. we have to quit pretending that with borrowed money, it is a true tax cut. we would have to pay that back with interest to china. it is wrong. i disagree with that. if we need to have tax cuts, they need to be true tax cuts. i am the only candidate of here proposing this in the right areas. we spend as much as the other countries in as the world combined. that is too much. much of it is wasted protecting other countries overseas that should be paying for their own security they are wealthy enough

to do this. we should not have to pay for that. and i want to reform agricultural items. it is robin hood in reverse and it is wrong. >> the last thing we need to do is increase taxes. that is according to a recent study. it cut into over $700 million. this is ill-advised. we can have a debate in the future when we pull out of this. mr. hill will favor more spending. let us agree to put that off

until we looked at our economy and stabilize at war. >> we should extend the tax cuts for those that make to under $50,000 and west. that is the way to go. in -- we have to get serious about the debt. we need to reinstate certain rules. those rules led up to surpluses for years. when president bush was elected , if the lead to a record deficit. those rules is what discipline congress. you will spend extra money or

cut taxes and find a way to spend for it. we should spend extra money and borrow it to get the economy going. i asked the president to help me pass those rules back in place again. we did pass them, and it will lead us to fiscal responsibility. we will get out of debt sooner. >> thanks. now we will have a rebuttal. >> wire we borrowing money. that is the only way we can fix it. we cannot afford to be wasting money overseas on military and wasting money here at home at corporate welfare. we have to be honest about the tax cuts.

just because you go out and get a loan for a house does not mean you have a free money. let us be honest about it. my platform is to lower national debt. go to my website. >> we need to pass a budget. our house of representatives failed to pass a budget. every family across southern indiana set priorities. pego rules thing is not

as great at this it seems -- as it seems. >> i do not know where he is getting his facts on those rules. it was important in getting us out of debt. it worked in the 1990's. it has a proven record of working. i am proud of the fact that i introduced a key piece of legislation and was able to persuade my democratic and republican friends to vote for it. to say it is a ruse is just not true. there are many things we have done in congress and applied to those rules on a consistent basis. i am very proud that we have those back in place again. >> thanks. the next question is directed at todd young first. what will you do to reform so security to make it viable for future generations? >> so security is a sacred act.

we need to honor our commitment to today's seniors and make sure they get every cent they have been promised. they do not have time to change their retirement expectations. for those that are my age, and we will ensured that the program remains in tact. we are trying to see what the president's fiscal responsibility is. it will require a bipartisan solution. i want to work in a bipartisan way to make sure that this program remains. i remember the greenspan commission that helps sustain social security for a long time. it can be done. there are some ads that indicated we do something other than that for today's seniors. that is not my language.

that is fact check dot org. there has been many misleading advertisement on this. [applause] >> please refrain from applause. >> the ads are not misleading. if you look at this very carefully to what mr. young is saying, for those people 55 years of age and older, it does not change. what about those that are 55 years and younger? the facts are, mr. young works for the heritage foundation, which is a big advocate of privatization. i believe that mr. young is for privatization of those 55 years and younger.

i will not privatize social security. so security is for everyone not just those in that certain age range. he was privatized social security. you can jeopardize benefits for those that are older than the edge. you mess with the solvency of the fund. there are problems that we can fix. we will offer our report in december. i am hoping that one of the suggestions made will be why it should the very wealthy not pesos security tax and the rest of us have to?

>> thanks. please refrain from applause, because it is taking away from the responses -- the time to respond. >> i have a platform. job growth, simplicity, and fairness. how does the tax reform relate to social security reform and medicare? medicare is the more pressing problem. we used to have many more workers to support future retirees. now there is a shrinking work force and it should be supporting an expanding retiree base. we need to replace the funding mechanism which is currently payroll taxes, which are a drag

on our economy and a job killer. what would be fair tax do? it is not an additional 23 -- certain percentage of tax on everything. it replaces most federal level taxes. it would create jobs. it brings the general fund so that social security can be saved. >> your rebuttal? >> i agree with congressman hill. members of congress have rated the social security trust fund, transferred it to the general fund, and spent the retirement money on everything except for retirement. that is wrong.

only one person has gone on record for privatization. that is congressman hill. check out a youtube video and see him say that he is open to taking your payroll contributions for social security and have the government invest them in the stock market. >> i am not for privatization. us clear it up. i will not privatize social security. >> let us have a meeting where we trade places on various matters. [applause] >> let us schedule that meeting. >> would you be willing to sign a pledge? >> please. [applause]

>> your final response? >> of which question? >> i used to the rebuttal. [laughter] >> your final rebuttal. >> i wish i had known congressman hill would not have abided by our pledge to use profs, or i would have brought my own. [applause] both of my opponents need to come clean on their position on this issue in not hide behind a blue ribbon panel the the. if you are elected to congress, you should take a leadership role. mr. young, if you are for

privatization, you should say that. >> thanks. one more reminder. please refrain from applause. we only have so many questions to get through. >> a global climate change in combating it? what are your thoughts? >> i have been working on legislation. i want to clean of the informant in make as energy independence in create jobs. this was a bill that i cannot

support when it originally was started. i went to work on the committee. i wanted to change a bill. it does three things. it reduces the carbon emissions, which we need to do. it is causing global warming. second, it creates jobs it would create 30,000 jobs in indiana alone. and three it would make us energy independence. it does a lot of things that are good for our environment and for our people and for the year that we breathe. i probably support it. i do not know where greg is on its. i know the the it would not

increase rates in southern indiana. .

>> with respect to the science of global climate change, i know that there are intelligent people of goodwill on both sides of the issue. even if we accept of the worst premises of those who believe that climate changes caused by

man, this is not the solution. this is likely to be the largest tax increase in american history. 95 pint and -- 95% of the power in indiana is powered by coal. we will see jobs migrate to the coast and especially overseas. an increase of 26% for gasoline, 64% for our electric power. over 43,000 jobs are lost. this will adversely impact indiana more than any other state in the country.

>> the sciences overwhelming. there is no question that man is contributing to unchanged. this is god's green earth and we should respect it and to what is right for our environment. this bill is what is right. for years, we have tried to pass legislation and the special interests always bottled this up. if this is so bad, why did ronald reagan himself to the same thing with sulfur? this is no different. this is not what people have portrayed this to be. it is the special interests and using their money and interest to make sure that their interests are represented and not the environment.

>> i agree that we must protect our environment. my major is in environmental science. i just don't think that this piece of legislation accomplishes this goal. half i wish that you would have sided with the indiana employees and not voted for this legislation. thank you. >> it changes global temperatures by 0.05 degrees celsius. let's analyze what happens should this come up next year. for both houses of congress, this will be signed by president obama.

it jostle my great overseas. places like china will have to build that are in power plants in order to sustain those jobs and those arms 30. for those under arrest and with the science, it can be very confusing. the cato institute analyst assigned to say this is not settled. the question is directed at, mr. knox, there has been discussion about the don't ask don't tell policy, the f the military in the queue up their end of the bargain. -- the military did not keep up their end of the bargain. we were told of the military would be able to respect people's opinions they wanted to

attend a gay-rights rally when they're off duty, that would have in no case. it would have been able to serve honorably but unfortunately the military has looked at people's private e-mails and on and on which to try to free stuff of homosexuals that are actually serving our country very fondly. indeed the translators -- we need arabic translators. the reviews of their performance have actually been very high. it is only because of the failed policies. i wish president obama would and did this through executive order and i hope the courts overturn this and i hope that our congress people end this failed policy. >> thank you, mr. knox, i don't think this is good manners for

anyone to discuss their sexual activities in the workplace but that is where our start with this position. i spent a decade in the military the winfrey for the navy for your in attending the u.s. naval academy for 55 years on active duty in the marine corps. i served during the time that this policy was implemented. i can say that on balance, there has been some implementation issues that need to be mended but i think that we should and this policy. this has been a compromise and this is one that should continue. the rationale at the time according to the joint chiefs of staff and the president was that our military is primarily a fighting force and that military morale and relate red for -- readiness is important. we were told that this might undermine readiness and morale

to allow gays to serve and the military. i serve to the military 10 years ago and is hard for me to see of kings served so dramatically. like all these issues, i remain open to more information. lou this law served with a congressman who approaches things with a measure of humility for 54 writedowns 5 have not heard enough to convince me that we have to his policies. >> i will vote to repeal this if given a chance. men and women serving in the army harlan to set their lives on the line. they're patriotic service should not be discriminated under any circumstances among these choices that we make. this is just plain wrong and i will leave it at that. >> thank you. >> again, this is not a horrible policy in concept but the

military has failed to implement this fairly. they have gone on which funds and have found people is enough to try to prove their, sexual, i thought the military service and i thank you for theft of a feckless disagree that this policy is the wrong policy and if i were of their hough home, would fill less safe on the battlefield than 50 military archer earlier move people for their sexual orientation. that is the wrongful policy. if >> i voted to fill as i will do this again. was one of the provisions allows for the u.s. to actually put sanctions on china if they did

not upgrade their facilities. right now, there is no weapon that we can use in order to get to them to comply with emission standard. of this bill actually credited with rest to do this so that is another reason why i voted for the bill. >> thank-you. it is directed towards mr. young pentode due to time issues will reduce the first beach down to 1 1/4 32nd rebuttal. >> your questions, should the u.s. did the course and afghanistan, what would your exit strategy >> this is not what i characterize as what our policies to be, the mission is to be clarified. and gentlemen with many years of experience said it was difficult for him to determine whether or

not they are winning or not. this is their fault for not having the generals have clear indications of success. if we will be there, we need to be there to win otherwise that hurts the morale of our troops. i will push for those changes but ultimately this is a training ground for terrorist activity and we need to make sure that it does not remain this way so we keep the american people safe. >> i have reservations about what the president wanted to do so i went there myself. we also went in to pakistan and had the opportunity to meet

with the pakistani army generals. there has been no question that a cozy relationship has been developed between the army and the taliban. i wanted to hear their point of view. i can away convinced because the taliban had almost captured the capital that the pakistani army was now ready to fight the taliban. the president kept his word in iraq and he will keep his word and it comes to afghanistan. it to diminish the ability of al qaeda and the taliban to inflict another wound like 9/11, that is the mission. >> we have come back to the noble platform -- no bull platform. i would cut wasteful spending

and invest this in scholarships said that we can graduate not three out of every four high school student but every high school students so they are prepared for the work force and college. afghanistan is a very difficult case because we're not at war with afghanistan or its people or its corrupt dictator. we are at war with a small crew. occupying an entire country with a heavy footprint is a wrong policy. what we did at first was the most successful thing we have done in afghanistan. >> this is the most important

decision that we must make. whether we should put people in these kind of conflicts. i'll ask probing questions. the majority has not asked enough questions in respect to this matter. >> this is a messy situation. this is something i believe we can do. i trust the president's word that he will bring the troops home. he kept his word in iraq and i believe he'll keep his word in afghanistan. we have made progress towards the mission. we're working with the army. there's no question that we want to bring our men and women,. what would we do this is to lessen our dependence on foreign oil. >> we have to pay some time.

what did it cost us to go to court in iraq and afghanistan? according to researchers at harvard and columbia, $61,000 per household is the total long- term cost when you factor in medical costs for our men and women of service and everything else. this was the wrong policy. >> we have time for one more question. as a retired educator, there are five different insurance vendors competing for my business offering many different costs for the service. how does this competition represent a governmental takeover of health care? >> the bill that we passed that i probably support it was not a government takeover, this is insurance reform. the one thing and that it does do, pre-existing conditions are

no longer in existence in this bill. children right now to get insurance if they have a pre- existing condition. there is a tax cut for small businesses in this bill your a young student and you are having a problem getting a job, you can stay on your parents' insurance policy until you are 26. the mayo clinic says that this bill is a step in the right direction to reform our medical situation as it exists in america today and i proudly stand before you to say that i voted for this bill.

[applause] >> what's the thing that you do when you're in a whole? stop digging? what he voted for did not address the major problem which is the cost of health care. and much better plan was a bipartisan proposal that would have brought down the cost. instead, we ended up with a monstrosity that doesn't lower the cost and adds to the national debt. what could we have done differently? well, the one reform that i would favor was to be able to buy health insurance across state lines. where i work, we can only get it from two people. that is not a free market, that is one step away from a monopoly. we need common sense reforms not

big government decors -- takeovers. >> i applauded the fact that we were talking about this and taking it seriously. health care costs skyrocketing, businesses, individuals struggling to meet the costs. this does undermine our ability to deal with costs. this piece of legislation does nothing to address costs. this actually increases costs by $300 billion. when we can expect premiums to shoot up over the next decade. we cut $500 billion from our seniors medicare.

this is bad legislation. >> that marks the ends of the question. we now transition to the closing statements. >> we appreciate the opportunity to present our suitcases. two years ago, i was summoned back to washington. -- we appreciate the opportunity to present our cases. if congress cannot act, we were looking at a depression, not a deep recession. unemployment rates at least 16%. that is what we were facing two years ago. this is an economic crisis like we have not had since the great depression. the economists said to go to

work and try to get the economy revived. we did, we passed the stimulus program. we passed the bill that would create opportunities for new homeowners through tax credits. we saved the automobile industry and the automobile industry in indiana hires almost as many people as michigan. we are second to michigan in the number of jobs. we all did this by ourselves without a lot of bipartisan support. that is what we did. instead of unemployment being 15-25%, this is now 9.2% in the sixth district. this is better off than what we would have had. do we want to continue the progress we have made by voting at this time? do you want to go to the old

ways, the time of george bush. if you elect me to congress, i will continue to fight for the people of southern indiana and this country and we will continue the policies that got us out of this mess in the first place. thank you and we appreciate his opportunity >> nearly two years ago, a word about the fate of this country and after much consultation with friends and family, i decided to run for congress. since then, i've traveled all across this district. i have been from new albany to napoleon. this is usually by myself. i recognize after consulting with so many people that i was not alone. i am one of many people who are

concerned about the direction of this country, all the spending, all of the debt. i have seen and heard them at town halls, kitchen tables, everywhere in between. this is their campaign. one woman traveled all the way to washington d.c. and she was told to go about her business and kicked out of the office and sent home. this is her campaign. in florence bird, i met an 86- year-old veteran of world war ii. he has gone directly involved in this campaign. this is his campaign. this belongs to all those people and some many others. it belongs to the common-sense

hoosiers who are concerned about the future of this fine nation and to oppose the reckless tax-and-spend ways and to refuse to let america drift into a less prosperous power. our current congressman has a sense of these policies and they are ill-advised. this is our campaign. this is our congressional office and together, we will take it back. >> my solutions are non-partisan and i will work with any representative from any party to get things done. however, i will also be on the

backside of anyone who gets in the way of reform. well, this election would empower john boehner as speaker , joe barton as chair. also the failed bush cheney policies of the past. the deputy prosecutors sought the best way to discuss his perfection. he is a lawyer. the we are the have over 200 of them in congress? i would rather have an i.t. professional from a small business and a washington outsider to bring the change you want? what about mr. hill? he took his chief of staff and they went to work for a lobbying firm. they took $30,000 in that firm

as seized and then when congressmen hill was reelected the following year to congress, he gave that same client $390,000 for the year mark. that is a pay to play scheme. i would fight to do the lobbyist reform act to make sure that never happens again. mr. hill called for an apology from me, he will not get it, sir. in addition, i call for your immediate resignation. [applause] >> your time has elapsed. i would like to thank our candidates for taking time out of your busy schedule in what is sure a lively debate. i would like to thank the opportunity -- take the opportunity to thank a league of women voters, staff, and the

members of lehigh school of public affairs. -- and the members of the school of public affairs. good night and good luck. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] course we will have a live debate tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. midterm elections on november 2nd and each night on c-span we are showing debates and events from key races around the country. here is our lineup for tonight.

next, president obama at a rally in las vegas. and then, a preview of the midterm elections. >> this week, two parliamentarians comparing contrast the house of parliament and the house of representatives. now, president obama takes part in a get out the vote rally for senator harry reid in las vegas. this is his third visit this year. the president is in a competitive race against sharon angle. -- harry reid is in a competitive race against sharron

angle. ♪ [playing bruce springsteen] >> thank you for being here. [applause] [crowd chanting "harry"]

i see searchlight is represented. we have some people who represent this area. chris is here, our commissioner. [applause] sam leiberman -- first of all, i want to thank the student teachers. they have done a good job do you not think? especially the principal, george levin. we are products of the clark county school system. we are glad we are.

all five of my children have gone to public school in clark county. right now, 11 of my grandchildren are going to public schools in nevada. [applause] i appreciate every day the good work of teachers, administrators in this great clark county school system. i know how smart the kids are. we have to move them along. we are trying to do that. i will do everything i can to

make sure teachers, administrators, support personnel, and all of the students have the best possible. but that starts with this -- no one, i repeat, no one is going to take away the department of education. [applause] the department of education is so important to fund schools. it is so important because it helps kids be able to afford to go to college. [applause] also, listen to this, everybody -- there has been some talk this week about my opponent talking about what this person or that person looks like.

well, i do not know what that is all about, but i know each of you look like you are from nevada to me. [applause] people of nevada are fighting a tough fight. we never give up, do we nevada? let me tell you, we are going to bounce back stronger than ever. there are three important issues on my mind and on your mind -- jobs, jobs, and more jobs. [applause] the single most important part of my job is to create jobs. [applause] we have a long ways to go, but let me give you some good news. just a few hours ago we announced a huge highway construction project. it will create tens of thousands of jobs.

[applause] what it will do is ease traffic congestion in the middle of los vegas. there is more good news. just last week i was present when the mayor of the city from china brought 1000 jobs to nevada. [applause] they have already leased the property. they have already signed the agreement with the steel workers. they are going to build lights and at windmills. [applause] what is interesting, it is just the opposite of my opponent's jobs program which is to ship

jobs overseas. that is not all. last week the secretary of transportation was here to announce that we are going to have a train between southern nevada and southern california. [applause] it is going to create 35,000 jobs. [applause] i do not know about you, but that train cannot arrive soon enough can it? renewable energy jobs -- those jobs that my opponent mocked and called designer jobs, thousands of them all are in progress right now. sun, wind, geothermal -- all over the state of nevada. this week we were able to announce the joint venture between ls power to create a power line from the northern part of the state to the southern part of the state. for the first time in the state of nevada at this has been able

to happen. it will allow the data to become energy dependent within three years. after three years, we will be able to sell back power to energy hungry california. [applause] we also announced yesterday that a significant number of schools and churches in nevada will be supplied with solar energy. we started yesterday. [applause] you see, these are not just promises of progress, these are real jobs. there is a clear choice in this election. jobs. sharron angle is running against me.

[laughter] it was really hard for me to say the name, but i did. she says it is not her job to create jobs. but also, she is someone who calls the unemployed "spoiled." these are her words. i did not make them up. they are not my words. she is also the same person who says that social security recipients are on welfare. again, these are her words, not mine. she is also someone whose foreign-policy strategy consists of taking your job and shipping it overseas. her message is this, when the going gets tough the american middle class -- the nevada middle-class are on their own.

you have heard some of her ideas. phasing out social security and medicare -- those are her words, not mine. she wants to get big banks, big oil companies, and big insurance companies more leeway. if they are not regulated enough she says. well, let's see. she said they are too regulated. can you imagine saying oil companies, insurance companies, and banks are too regulated? that because of the bp oil spill was too much regulation? the wall street collapse was because of too much regulation? i believed it was greed, do you not think? she wants to help millionaires more than the middle class.

these ideas sound a little bit familiar? they should. they are the same exact ideas that got us into this mess in the first place. the rest of her ideas are even worse. they are extreme, they are dangerous, and the data cannot afford them. privatizing the veteran's administration? doing away with the department of energy? doing away with the department of education? doing away with the epa? and she does not believe insurance companies should be required to give mammograms -- to pay for mammograms or colonoscopys or cover autism? you have heard what she wants. she wants to take the country

back. but the problem is -- and she will not tell you this -- she really means she wants to take the country not back, but backwards. that is why those who know my opponent best are running away from her. for example, her hometown newspaper will endorse me. her home town mayor, a republican, endorsed me. [applause] her hometown senator, a republican, endorsed me. it is not just the big names. here is a postcard i received

this week from an everyday president of nevada. she said, "if sharron angle is elected, we will be walking backward into the future." i am not interested in taking our country back word. i am it will not give them that the shovels they used to dig this big hole they put us in. we all want to take the country forward. [applause] we are moving forward not fast

enough, but we are not going to give up. we are going to continue to walk forward and we will stop anyone and everyone who stands in our way. i cannot do it alone. i need your help. [applause] something special happened in this state and in our country two years ago. president obama asked us to reach for something bigger than ourselves. he reminded us that we are all in this together -- democrats, republicans, and independents. our job as citizens did not end with the election. the choice is clear, but that choice does not matter unless we make that choice. you do not get back on your feet

unless you stand up. so today i have three simple request for you. first, go vote. [applause] do not wait until election day. the mall is open until 9:00 right here. the vote tonight. second, tell your friends and family to vote. passed out fliers. knock on doors. help somebody get to the polls. finally, on what everyone here to give a good, big nevada welcome to someone who has bid did our state 21 times during the run for the presidency. a man i worked closely with. someone i am going to continue to work with every day to get nevadans back to work.

he loves the state and lost baggage. -- las vegas. ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states, barack obama. [applause] ♪

[applause] >>hello, vegas. it is good to be back in vegas. i am fired up. are you fired up? [applause] there are a couple of people on what to make mention of. first of all, you're congresswoman is in the house. an outstanding freshman congresswoman is here. [applause] senate majority leader is in the house. former governor, bob miller, is here. [applause]

my dear friend and senator from illinois, dick durbin is here. i want to say to all of the people from the school, thank you for your hospitality. thank you. [applause] i am happy to see all of you. and i have to say, for some reason, whenever i come here, suddenly a whole bunch of people on my staff want to come with me. i do not know. suddenly there are no seats on air force one. i told them they have to be made themselves a little bit while they are here. but the main reason i am here, the main reason i need you fired up is because in just 11

days you have the chance to set the direction of this state and this country, not just for the next five years, not just for the next 10 years, but for the next several decades. [applause] and if i am going to be able to help middle-class families all across this country live out their dreams, and i want to have a partner in the united states senate named harry reid. [applause] you know, harry is not the flashiest guy, let's face it. he does not move will quick.

he does not get up and make big speeches. but harry reid does the right thing. [applause] harry reid has never forgotten what it is like to grow up in searchlight, nevada. he knows what it is like to be poor. he knows what it is like to work hard. he knows what it is like sometimes to hit some bumps in the road, to have to overcome obstacles. that things do not always work out perfectly. but because of that, because he remembers where he came from, it means that thinks every single day about how he is going to get the folks in nevada a better shot at life.

[applause] and so, i want everybody here to understand what is at stake. i appreciate everybody's saying "obama," but i want everybody to say "harry." i need partners like harry. i need partners like shelly. but it all depends on you. just like you did in 2008, you can defy conventional wisdom. the wisdom that says you cannot

overcome citizens in politics. the wisdom that says special interest always win. the wisdom that says that the people with the most money with the most negative advertisements are always successful. the wisdom that says we cannot tackle big challenges in america anymore. in 11 days, you can say "yes we can." [applause] [crowd chanting "yes we can." >> yes we can. there is no doubt that this is going to be a difficult election. that is because we have been through a difficult time as a nation.

nobody has been hit harder than nevada. keep in mind, things were tough even before the financial crisis hit. between 2001 and 2009 average middle-class families in america lost 5% of income when the republicans were in charge. we had the slowest job growth since world war ii when the republicans were in charge. use all your health care costs go up. you saw the cost of a college education go up. too many people are working two or three jobs and failing to make ends meet. all this culminated in the worst financial crisis since the great depression. we know the results of the republican philosophy when it comes to the economy.

it is no secret. basically their theory was cut back for millionaires end billionaires', you cut regulations for wall street and special interest, and then you cut middle-class families lose to fend for themselves. that was their theory. what happened was before i took office, we had already lost 4 million jobs. a bunch of them were right here in nevada. we lost 750,000 jobs might first month in office. we lost almost 8 million jobs before my policies, harry reid's policies were put into effect. and so our hope was that because we were in crisis, that we could come together, both parties, put politics aside and

deal with this once in a generation challenge. i want to move beyond the bickering and partisanship that has dominated washington for so long. although we are proud to be democrats, we are prouder to be americans. [applause] the republican leaders in washington, they made a different decision. here is the thing, they realized what a big mess they had made. they knew it would take a long time to recover these 8 million jobs that were lost.

it is going to take a long time before the housing market fully recovers. instead of trying to help obama and harry reid to solve problems, they stood on the sidelines, sat on their hands, and basically just said no to everything. their theory was people will forget that we were the ones who caused all this stuff and we will be able to blame them and people will be so angry and frustrated that we will be able to ride this all the way to the ballot box. that was their theory. in other words, they are basically betting on all of you having amnesia. they are basically banking on the fact that you might forget who got us in this mess in the first place. so let me tell you, las vegas, we have not forgotten. we are not going to buy what they are selling. that is the choice we have in this election. [applause]

we have a choice between the policies that got us into this mess and the policies that are helping to get us out of this mess. it is a choice between the past and the future, between falling backwards and moving forward. i do not know about you, but i want to move forward. [applause] you know, the chair of the republican campaign committee was asked, "what would you do if you win back congress?" he said they would do the exact same thing with the exact same agenda as before they took office. their policies resulted in the worst economic crisis since the 1930's and they want to go back to that exact same set of policies.

does that make any sense to you? it would be one thing if they had gone away into the desert -- you have desert here, pick it up on into the desert. they could have thought about how they screwed up so bad. they felt bad about it and came back and ask for new ideas and wanted to cooperate with us. but that is not what happened. they want to do the same thing they did before. it is not as if we did not tried them. we tried them for eight years and they did not work. why would we buy that snake oil now? we are not going to. imagine that the economy is a car and the republicans drove this car into a ditch. it was a really deep ditch.

somehow they were able to walk away from the accident from the scene of the crime, but they left the car in the ditch. for me and harry, we put on our boots and went down into the ditch. it was so deep down there. when we got down there it was muddy and dirty -- it was hot. we were sweating. there are bugs everywhere. we had to make sure we get that car out of the ditch. we are pushing and pushing. every now and then we looked up and saw the republicans. they are just standing there sipping on a slurpee, fanning themselves. we said, "why don't you come up here and help?"

they said no. but that was ok. finally we get this car up on level ground. pilot we get out of the ditch. it is banged up. it has to go to the body shop. it needs a tuneup. but it is pointed in the right direction. [laughter] [applause] the engine is still turning. suddenly as we are about to get in the car, we feel this tap on our shoulder and we look back and it is the republicans. and they say, "excuse me, we would like the keys back."

we have to tell them, "you cannot have the keys back. you do not know how to drive." [laughter] [applause] you do not know how to drive. it be what, you can ride with us, but you have to ride in the back seat. we will put middle-class families in the front seat where they belong. [applause] have you ever noticed when you go forward in your car, what do you do? you put it in d. if you want to go back words, you put it in r. i do not want to go backwards. i want to go forward. [applause] let's go forward. i want to go forward. i want to go forward.