while at the same time trying to do with gaddafi, this government is also intent on forging ahead in keeping the middle east peace process going? >> i think my honorable friend makes an extremely good point. i listened quite recently, a palestinian leader said to me, "you really want to establish a long-term situation with al qaeda." and a solution for the palestine the heart of the problems we face in our world. >> as someone who has argued that any military action should be based on the resolution of the united nations, i accept the situation today is different than it was yesterday and previously. despite all that he has about no

ground troops, does he recognize that in the country, i think there -- we could be dragged into a war in nine years. mr. prime minister, make sure there are regular reports to the house of commons so we avoid the situation of the third war. >> i think he puts the point well. first of all, i agree with him that there should be regular statements. we should start with the debate on monday on a motion so that they can come and debate that. we will be putting down that motion later today so you can have a look at it. in terms of taking the country with us, i think it is vital. we have a legal basis, the u.n.,

the world's governing body coming together to make sure that what we are doing is legal and right. i also said we have to make both the arguments that it is wrong to stand in silence and it is in our interest to act. we do not want this pariah state on our borders. the point he makes about no ground troops and occupying forces vital. it is there in the resolution. it is an assurance that is not part of our aim, it is not what the u.n. wants, it is not what britain wants. that is a limitation on our ability to act. people should be reassured by it. >> british prime minister david cameron fielded questions from the house of commons. it will air one hour later in usual due to the time difference

between the u.s. and britain. you can see it 8:00 eastern live on c-span 2. next, rode to the white house. then a discussion on what is ahead for congress and the president. and then the former new hampshire senator and governor. monday night, a white house summit on bling featuring a report from president obama and -- who speaks on his own experiences. >> we remember what it is like to see kids picked on. i have to say with my baby years and the name that i have, i was not immune. but because it is something that happens a lot, it is something that has been around, sometimes we turn a blind eye to the problem. >> watch it monday night on

10:00 eastern on c-span 3. today on a road to the white house, c-span interviewed radio talk-show host herman cain on why he is likely to enter the gop race. this is about 45 minutes. about 45 minutes. >> why are you thinking about running for president? >> i am thinking about running for president for several reasons. reasons. my parents were able to achieve their dreams. they wanted to own a house and turn it into a home. my parents just could not afford to buy an entire home. that was one of their dreams,

and they achieved that. in input -- they wanted to see their two sons get a better their two sons get a better start in life and did. life and did. i graduated from morehouse college in 1967, and my brother, he eventually graduated from morris brown college, so we were able to achieve our american dream based on our own individual aspirations and determination. and for my grand kids, i do not believe they're going to have that opportunity because of the changes that are happening in this country. >> such as? >> such as too much legislation shoved down the throats of the american people. too much regulation. the regulations of the environmental protection agency. there is the development of energy from our own resources in this country. and too much taxation. we need to pay taxes in order to

pay for the things that the federal government ought to do it, but we are paying too much in taxes, because the tax code is being manipulated by some of the politicians to select winners and losers. i believe consumers should make those choices, and, ultimately, what i would like to see is to replace the tax code with the fair tax, which is a national consumption tax, so all of these constraints on our lives, businesses, and individuals, are making it much more difficult for my grandchildren, your kids and grandkids come to achieve their american dream. i was just over at the heritage foundation, and they shared with me the economic freedom index report of 2011. i was startled when they showed me that in 2009, the united states of america was no. 6 in

the world, not even one, but we were six, and in 2010, we dropped to eight. and in 2011, we dropped to ninth. because of the attack of all of the regulatory and tax stuff and being opposed to businesses and individuals, and i think that is going to strangle the ability of our children and their grandchildren to pursue their dreams, and i believe in that old adage that we all have to use our individual powers to do what we can do to try to make things right. >> when someone talks about your candidacy, if you go back in history, from abraham lincoln through today, only two presidents did not hold elective office.

military generals. grant and eisenhower. >> yes. i will be the third one to have not held office and the first one to have not held office and to have not been in the military, but i respond to that and say to the people, most of the people in washington, d.c., have held political office. how is that working for you? the many town hall meetings that i have been at. they really do not care that i have not held public office. what they see in me is a problem solver and not a politician. when i put that on the table when i am talking to groups, and i do this constantly, to get my name out there people at the grassroots level, i say, "i have never held public office," and i get applause, because they really are sick and tired of people who have held public office thinking that that is the primary requirement.

the political landscape and the political dynamics have changed in the last few years be i happen to believe we are going to see it begin in november 2012, and it is because of the changing dynamics and give someone like me a chance to get the nomination and become president. >> you did run for office and came in second in the georgia senate race. >> yes. >> what did you learn from losing? >> i did not lose. it was an impressive second, coming within points against a standing congressman, and there are two big lessons that i learned. if i were to run for office again, i would start earlier, hire good people earlier, and representative -- a representative succeeded primarily because his campaign

had been effective as a whole year before i could get my off of the ground. i had to go through three campaign managers before i found one i had confidence in a. so i was a year behind. i finally got a campaign manager and finally got the campaign going. the representative was getting commitments in terms of money from a lot of people, commitments from organizations. his name identification was already pretty high, so in a short period of time, i was able to get my name out there from 0% to 50% son, so if i had started earlier, knows how that would have turned out -- from 0% to 50%. >> a field with a lot of former >> a field with a lot of former officials, mitt romney, others.

>> the ground game that we have developed over the past couple of years, and i was developing this on purpose for the purpose of running for president, and what i mean for that, let me give you a football analogy. teams can have a string -- strong running game, but maybe they do not have something else. a strong passing game. a running game. we are developing a strong ground game, as i call it, because of the natural affiliation i have had with national organizations for years. i am the former ceo of the national restaurant association, a former chairman of the board. i have worked extensively with americans for prosperity. i am very well known with the tea party movement going on in this country. i have worked with the fair tax

organization for over 10 years. with the number of other organizations, and as part of my business career, i have been a keynote speaker at many conferences and conventions, all over this country, and even in different parts of the world, where people know herbert cain as a business leader who knows about leadership. my ground game had already started, and now, we are simply building that. i believe that a successful ground game, a successful grass- roots awareness has been a lot easier to get media attention. let me just give you one piece of compelling information, we think. the tea party patriots held a national policy summit in phoenix about three weeks ago. there were about 2500 attending. they put all of the likely candidates, 90 or 20 of them, whether they had announced or

officially had exposure or not, herbert cain came in first. the next person that was closest was six percentage points behind. that was the actual data. my awareness with people on the ground is a lot greater than the visibility i have had. >> so what role will the tea party activist, what role will they play in determining the nominee? does that make 2012 different from 20008, 1992, 1981? >> absolutely. the answer to your second question is yes. the impact of the citizens' movement is great. the tea party movement, the tea party patriots, the tea party express. all of these organizations in this country, all of the

conservative organizations, they have mobilized their membership, so more of them are being acted. more of them are getting information about what is going on, what is happening, and what makes this different in 2012 is that more and more folks who have not been active at all, or any sort of political event, they are much more active. when i was doing my radio show for the last couple of years, occasionally, i would take my show on the road as part of a take back to work. i would invite businesses to come up to a location that we would have selected, and we would get large audiences, and i would always ask the question, how many of you have never been to sort of a political event before, and 50% of the people consistently raised their hands.

so the difference is going to be, number one, more people are active, and this is one to be the second thing that has changed. information. 10 to 15 years ago, people did not have access to accurate, correct information about what they were sometimes being told period. now, they of the power of the internet and the power of conservative talk radio. they have got blogs. redstate.com is one of the ones that i think about. >> between you and somebody else. they have a track record.

i know where they stand. you do not. what do you tell them? somebody looking at you and somebody yells verses your track record -- taking your track record into account. >> those mentioned as possible nominees, look for leadership. which of the candidates present the greatest leadership based upon the record, based upon business experience, because leadership in the biggest, toughest jobs in the world is going to require somebody who really has a grasp on problem solving, which i have used, successful business people have used, to make sure that you set the right priorities, make sure

that you surround yourself with the right people, strong people around you, and make sure that if you do about that you can then execute any entity or business or the united states of america, but if you do those four things, engage the people, and yet, -- >> and yet, as you know, running a business is very different from running the government. >> yes, but it has one thing in common. when my associates knew what we were trying to do, and there was the strategy, they were much more likely to executed effectively. taking that same analogy to the american people, i hear every day from people. they feel left out of the process.

what is going on in washington, d.c., is in the people's best interest, and this is why, when i do those first things effectively, i will be a president of the people, by the people, and for the people, making sure that we are engaged in solutions. members of congress. >> that is my next question. how do you deal with a divided congress, like we are seeing now? the tax crisis, george w. bush. clinton. changing the tone of washington. they admitted that they failed in those areas. >> well, with all due respect, i think that they both did a good job and a lot of respects, but my energy to connect with people -- i think there was a former senator and said they

will see the light. this is have you bring this congress together. and there have been recent examples that have demonstrated that. when the united states house of representatives passed the cap and trade bill, one representative said that by the time it zipped through congress, and democrats were getting ready to send it over to the senate, but everything was going on, she was asked on a television show what happened, and she said that the party line melted when she was asked about on television. the citizens' movement that i have been talking about, to show that legislation down the throats of the american people,

like president obama shoved obama care down the throats of the american people. steve, you know the house and the senate could not agree on a compromise. they could not even agree. democrats were in control of the senate. democrats were in control of the house. so what did the president do? he used the power of the president to get members of the house of representatives to have the plan and vote on the senate bill. many of them paid for it on november 2. >> is barack obama a good leader? >> no. he is a politician. but he is not a leader. and here are some examples as to what he is not a leader. number one, no leadership model on the planet says surround yourself with 36 czars all along

with the heads you inherited as president. how are you going to manage that? his leadership model was flawed from the very beginning. secondly, leaders surround themselves with people that know more about certain subjects than they do. to complement your areas of weakness, if you want to call them that. the president appointed people that did not have as much business experience as he had, and he had none. 7% of the president's appointees, 7%. the lowest in recent history. those surround themselves with a lot of people, even if it were

only 50%, 50%, that would have been better. so this is why they have proposed, try to pass, and implement policies that did not work. one of my guiding principles, steve, and one of my guiding principles as president of the principles as president of the united states, go to the people closest to the problem, and they will more than likely have a better solution on how to fix the problem. >> finish this sentence. the state of union today is -- >> in free fall. >> in free fall. >> yes. the state of the union is in a freefall. the country is stalled. people are not clear what the foreign policy strategy is with what is going on in the middle east. they cannot pass a fiscal year budget, and we're almost done

with the fiscal year. with the fiscal year. and the attention is being shifted constantly to social issues, a lack of sound fiscal stimulus policy, and the focus is on passing legislation that we do not need or want on the part of democrats who are in control of the senate and the white house. the state of this union is in freefall. >> what about the house? >> the republicans in the house of representatives have slowed the process down. they cannot turn the ship without having control of the senate and control of the white house. they have slowed it down.

but they know they can push, but they cannot stop it. radical socialization. >> how be reduced a $15 trillion debt? debt? >> you do a couple of things. financial stimuli that is correct. making tax rates per minute. extensions for two years is two years of uncertainty. nearly $1 trillion can come back. it has been generated by corporations. provide a real payroll tax

holiday, all of it, and 6.2% 4 employers. all of it. they differ for spending and that they are direct, not in direct stimulus, and phase two would be to totally replace the tax code with the fair tax. tax code with the fair tax. it has been calculated that if we continue to grow at this rate, the chinese will have a gdp as big of -- as big as ours in 15 or so years. we have got to get this going. then we start doing things to dramatically bring down the national debt consistently.

there is an entitlement mentality. unfunded mandates, we would change the rules. unfunded mandates. we must empower the states. we must empower businesses by improving and simplifying the regulatory environment. one of the reasons we do not have any effective energy independence strategy in this country is because of the regulatory environment. in power businesses. in power businesses. we will be creating careers

because we still have a lot of advantages that other countries do not have. we still have a great structure. we still have a great transportation in the world. we still have some of the smartest and brightest people. these are some of the greatest entrepreneurs. so we are, in fact, in a position. we simply need to get government out of the way. >> who in the republican party has been a guiding force for herman cain? >> jack kemp, who was also from new york. secretary kemp, he stirred what

i call the american spirit. despite challenges that we face. despite the snail pace at which change takes place in washington. and the american people are hungry for stirring that spirit of america while we face our problems. abraham lincoln. abraham lincoln took over this nation. he was not afraid of the challenge. he knew that he needed to keep this nation together. he had people fighting and working against him, lincoln had the ability to appeal to the american spirit. in order to keep this nation together.

not everyone agreed with releasing the slaves. he knew it was the right thing to do. "we hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal." but they put the bar where they knew it had to be. that kind of stuff fuels the american spirit. >> you are a minority of the republican party. the vast majority of african- americans. they are democrats. >> yes. >> so have you been in braced by the gop? . .

. ready ready. .

>> over the years, my goals turned from just how much money i could make to having an impact on the people around me. when i went to god father's pizza in 1986, it was going bankrupt. people who look at the financials say well, maybe it's just another company that should go bankrupt.

i saw 12,000 people's jobs at stake. as a result of being president and ceo. i saw achieving the objective of keeping the company afloat so 12,000 people wouldn't be looking for a job was more important. we did both. >> why would somebody choose god father's over brand? >> consistency and quality. are they price competitive. can higher premium price but don't go crazy. they have a limit in which the consume ler say you have a better product but i don't want to pay this much. american corporations spent much

time evaluating strength of that brand and whether or not they can command the premium price. similar if you look for someone to be the president of the united states of america. >> you knew my next question. hugh new you knew my next question. people openly have to look at all. the candidate is going to be president barack obama. that's just not the history of either one of the major political parties so when you look at the field of potential nominees of the republican party. people in their own psychic look in the way of the brand that each individual presents. and in this case, it's does this person project confident or make sense, are they offering some realistic ideas and more

importantly, do they feels an if they can trust this individual. because people ultimately want to follow a leader that they can believe in. so that's what they going to be looking for as they make the decision process over the next signal. >> married with how many grandchildren? >> maryd for 42 years. 32 year old son. be 33 next week. three grandkids. 12, 7, and 16 months. >> how did you meet your wife? >> through a mutual friend. young lady that i'm - i went to high school with. attended a different church than i attended but we went to the same high school, and so this good friend o of mine named ruth. she was a class mate and we didn't live that far from each other and so ruth, for about two

years, kept saying to me, herman. i want you to meet my little sister. i said, ruth, thank you but blind dates have not worked out for me very well. time goes by. herman, i want you to meet my listsl little sister. so one day she through a party and i was a freshman in college and little sister had graduated from high school on her way to college. she introduced me at the party. herman, this is the little sister i've been trying to get you to meet for a long time and i go, is this the little sister? i been running away from? [laughs] i met one of the smartest, most attractive young ladies. i think it was love at first

site. >> how you stay married for 42 year? >> don't try to change each other. this is what i tell young people all the time. know who your marrying and know who they are. know the things that you love about them, understand the things you don't like about them. but don't try to change them. that's when couples get in trouble. >> you had a bought with cancer. when your die nosed and how you feel today? >> i diagnosed with stage four cancer which meant i had in my colon and liver. when it's stage four that means it already went to other parts of body. in 2006. stage four cancer as first surgeon i consulted with said that's as bad as it can get. that didn't make me feel good but is it what it was.

my treatment was chemo therapy. double surgery to remove the affected parts and in my case as my surgeon said, he said your lucky with your cancer. i said how do you get lucky with cancer and he said, all my tumors were isolated to a certain portion of my liver so they can remove that and cultivate the main part of it to grow back. that was five years ago. i did more chemo therapy. five years of totally cancer free. feel great with only a 30 percent chance of having made it. i knew god was smiling down on me and his message was quite simply. herman, not yet. >> you have a routine now with your doctor. some sort of treatment five years out? >> no treatment. tiss. now i'm on once a year. get a catscan. all of the blood tests and they do some sophisticated tests with

cancer. x-rays i do that now on an annual basis. right after my initial treatment we - i with u doing through a battery of tests and it was so consistently good that my oncologist said we don't need to do it every six months. now that i'm coming up on my five year anniversary it's continuing to be once a year to make sure it has not reoccurred and it has not. >> where do you go for ideas and information and what do you read and who do you talk so >> i read the bible for ideas. i have a few very close friends we'll talk very informally about things. as most people, i have some confidants i can talk to them about anything under the sun. you have to have a few people you can trust totally to be able to have those kind of conversations. i enjoy reading

thomas sole. people that put in it in common sense language in terms of here's ideas we ought to look at and pursue. i read a lot of the papers published by the heritage foundation. i happen to think, and i'm not on their board and they don't pay me. they happen to be one of the greatest sources of accurate analysis, policy and information we have in this country. there's some others but i got to tell you, i've known ed since the early 1990's when we is served on a commission chaired by him. he has built a tremendous organization with a tremendous track record of solid, policy analysis and information that a lot of people turn to when they want good guidance. >> would you - what ideas do you green from the bible?

>> first, do what's right. unfortunately too many people in washington d.c. consider the political consequences first. that sometimes can lead them to doing things that may not be right if you start with do what's right, treat people right, you probably going to end up with a correct result in the end. but if you start out with, what are the political consequences? no. what's the right thing to do? it wasn't right to shove obama care down the throats of the majority of the american people. polls had zone before he signed it a majority of the people did not want that solution to the problem he and the democrats supposedly were trying to solve. they wanted patient-centered,

market driven ideas and they were right there in, hr 3400 but a lot of people never heard of that. do what's right. >> what do your wife and kids think about this potential run. >> my wife thinks i'm nuts but she said, you've been nuts before when you decided to do something that seemed against the odds. and she and i were talking about it. my wife thanked the lord has always been very supportive of all my endeavors because, we just always have had that relationship. she's been that kind of a supportive wife. she's done thing in her life and career but always been supportive of my career. we had an understand i would be the primary breadwinner and we were talking about this whole president bid and i ask her, i said gloria, what scare use the

most? i know this is something that i never even considered this going growing up. three years ago never considered possibly running for president. she said, the thing that scares her the most is that i might win. because she has seen me turn odds against the odds. turn a region of burger king. take a low project at pills bury when i was vice president of information technology. i took a project behind schedule and over budget and we finished the property ahead of schedule below budget. she has been apart of my life, been apart of the challenges i have faced and so her biggest fear is i might win. my children, they too, are used to dad taking on some incredible challenges. and to quote my daughter.

when she was asked by a reporter. many, many, many years ago. i think she was still a teenager. she happened to be in a room when i was doing an interview and the reporter turned to my daughter and said, what do you think about your dad with all this publicity and all this notoriety. this is when i'm with the godfather and my daughter said, he's just dad. as long as i can just be dad and just be papa to my grandkids, life is good. >> let me conclude by asking about your potential rivals in a word or phrase, describe your view of them. romney? >> formidable. businessman. but will have to wrestle with what has become labeled as romney care.

>> polenti. >> an accomplished politician. and accomplished governor. articulate. - but, some people have said not very inspiring. >> hayley barber. >> dangerous? in a good way. [laughs] hayley basher is one of the smartest governors and one of the smartest office holders. yes, he's a politician but he's dangerous in the good way because he has been in washington. he said, his goal was to go back to mississippi and became governor and he did. he's very competent and capable. i have the great aes amount of

respect for him and have known him for many, many years and so he could be, he could be a force if he were to decide to run because of the depth of his contacts, as well as really understanding the process and able to connect with people. >> couple more. newt gingrich, your friend? >> formidable. one of the most intellectually sound thinkers on the planet. period. not just politics. >> his personal life a factor in this race? >> i don't think so. i think people look at your personal life history more previously than they do today. over the last several years while i was on the radio, steve, noticed that the terminal coming from listeners, where many of them had gone from being

concerned about the future of america, to being fearful about the future of america. and in that regard, they want somebody that can help us get us back on the right track. >> sarah palin? >> very popular. tells it like it is and she inspires a lot of people. >> two final points. mentioned radio a couple of times. when and how long? >> i was on the radio for five years, two years doing a weekend show, the herman cane show and then three years up until the most reenforcemently. five night as week onw sv out of at lan tax georgia. >> what's the hermanator? >> a nickname given to me by member of the restaurant association when i was chairman of the board back in the early 1990's when we were fighting hillary care.

as an officer of the national restaurant association, i became one of the primary spokesperson against hillary care. and so, a gentlemen by the name of larry maccarthy helped us to develop some of the commercials that we used to tell people to the truth to wake people up about hillary care. larry tells the story about how one night he was watching t.v. and the commercial he had done with me in. representing the views of small businessmen had just run on his t.v. set. and then he was flipping the channels and he saw the movie, the herman - terminator. he got the idea. so he was excited about it and told the staff at the national restaurant association about this new nickname and it stuck. >> finally, what is your process in actually decided

whether you will run? sounds like you are running? >> put my toe in the water. now it's up to my neck and the feedback we've gotten from people across this country. tens of thousands who are willing to volunteer. the response we've gotten from people in terms of funding. the response that i have gotten from my many visits to texas. south carolina. new hampshire as well as iowa in terms of people connecting with my message. common sense solutions as i call it. those are the things that over the next several weeks we'll take a good hard look at to make sure we make the final decision to go forward. so it'll be within the next several weeks. several, could be five or six or less. >> herman cane. thank you very much for joining us. >> it's been my pleasure. thank you, steve.

>> tomorrow he's in chile. you can see the president's speech live tomorrow about #:30 eastern here on c-span. now a reporters round table for what's ahead for congressnd the president from today's washington journal. >> we want to welcome david brody from cbn, christian broadcasting network and michael

shfrn erer. what is the objective? guest: that is the big question. there is a short-term and long- term objective. one will be more difficult than the other. the short term objective is apparently to prevent a kind of humanitarian crisis in the country. there was some concern in europe that they would pressure the united states to join in, which was -- is colonel gaddafi going to attack and kill thousands of his own people? the humanitarian pressure to do something to stop that. the broader question is a, the united states and the rest of the western world have called for colonel gaddafi to l eave. the question really is and how do the two goals of both, that president obama express, which is not to get involved in of ground campaign, not to

participate in and extended war, a matter of days, not weeks or months, how does that square with the idea of trying to get mr. gaddafi out of power if does not want to go? these kinds of air campaigns can go on for a long time. host: as we heard from admiral staying and, gaddafi power is a real possibility. guest: who are these folks, the rebels, exactly? in terms of objectives, you are talking from the administration's standpoint, did in, get out, and move on. host: let me have you listened to part of what's gaddafi said a couple of hours ago at 5:00 eastern time as he took aim at u.s. and western troops using force on libya. this has been primarily air

strikes. here is gaddafi. >> you are the enemies. you are criminals. your people are -- everywhere in europe and in america, your people do not agree with it. the whole world, the whole people are against you. your government, your regime will go down. host: we've seen the pictures as well from libya. how is this playing out and the arab world, michael shear? guest: what has really been interesting, this assault launched on the eighth anniversary of the invasion of iraq, today. the difference, though, and what is striking about this is that there is support for this among parts of the arab world.

the arab league actually voted severa days ago to encourage the creation of a no-fly zone. there are ostensibly some arab partners and this, although, what we have seen and just the isrs after the assault, that we do not see a lot of evidence of that pticipation. you see french and american bombers. you do not see any evidence of the participation of the arab countries in the bombing. clearly, gaddafi had not only become uprise again to the western world, but he was a pariah in the arab world. host: some of our viewers are saying why not yemen? why libya? guest: what you see from this administration is that there is

a place where they need to fight their battles. t they said -- there is a political consequence to a of this. they need to go to places where there is a positive political upside. with bahrain, it relates to saudi arabia. it is a much tougher place. guest: there is a pragmatism played out in president obama' foreign-policy, where they pick and choose but not in an arbitrary political way, but also a cold calculation about where the united states interest are best aligned with the protesters, the rebels, the opposition, and where they are best aligned with the folks in power. guest: the bigger issue for the president is how this is playing

here in washington. you have the anti-war caucus that has come out against the president on this. as they did with george bush. and then you have the conservatives talking about dithering, and passivity, new gingrich and other of these candidates. you are getting it from both sides. this seems to be much more of a political problem for him back home. host: walt bachus on your daily blog. sarah palin is in india this weekend. guest: if you remember during the 2008 campaign, sarah palin was criticized for lack of the world view, her knowledge about the world and what goes on outside. since then she has taken a couple of these trips abroad, which it is anyone's guess how they are intendedo repair that

image. it seems likely that she does for president, she will need to have a better perspective on the world and a sense of that. she has gone to india. it is actually a paid speech, she is a member of the washington speakers bureau, and they arrange this for her. she will be going after the speech to israel, which is not a paid gate. she will be assessing the situation from israel and having dinner with prime minister netanyahu there as well as other israeli officials. and then come back to the united states. if he does run for presint, and it is anyone's guess, this will be an important piece in getting folks a sense that she has a better knowledge and grasp of the world. host: david brody, have you sat down with mitt romney or sarah palin? guest: sarah palin i have.

mitt romney, not yet, but there isn't a wall aspect with him. you can see him in a couple ples, but this is a calculated decision. clearly they need to figure out with health care what th exact target will be. as a release to sarah palin, i did sit down with her about a month ago. we talked about egypt where she made some news as to what she would do over there, or her assessment of the situation. we will see. there are a lot more interviews to come hopefully. st: you sat down with tim pawlenty. >> in evangelical christians, that is our personal faith perspective and journey. i am happy to share that, because people take the measure of you in terms of running for office or any other thing. they want to know what your values system is based on, who argue, what do you believe, why

do you believe that? and our faith in forms what we put our priorities for, what we turn to for help, what we believe in terms of our values. it is a measure of the person and part of how they think and what they buy you and what the believe. host: based on this interview, who was the targeted audience? guest: evangelicals clearly what tim pawlenty. he is already making a major player. everyone who says that the 2012 race has not gotten under way, it has gotten underway, no doubt about it. he is playing to the evangelical audience and gingrich will. how can he play with three marriages, but there is a resume for him as well, as well as it relates to sharia law and wahhabi as some and how radical islam plays within the evangelical orbit.

even the evangelicals on the ground in an iowa and south carolina, it is not just abortion and moral fiscal crisis issues. radical islam plays a key component in how evangelical see the world and the candidates. guest: i agree with that. the other person i would add would be mike huckabee, if he decides to run, who has his own issues with conservatives on a financial and fiscal side. but when it comes to the evangelical crowd in iowa, he is a proven vote-getter. host: a story that you wrote last week, michael bennet ined by 32 republicans and 32 democrats, and what is their message? guest: do something about the debt. their message is do not run away

from the entitlement programs just because they are top. the current debate that you talked about in your last segment i on the current fiscal year budget. that will and that some point. it has to. sometime this year, they will have to confront the question of getting control of the nation's soaring debt. the thing that will force them to confront them is raising the debt ceiling, which a lot of conservatives and tea party members opposed. what the 64 senators are hoping is that they can use the pressure from that vote, that potential vote, to squeeze everyone in this debate to, ok, we will raise the debt ceiling but only if there are long term fix is on these big problems. host: you're talking about medicare, medicaid, social security, and taxes. guest: there are three democrats

and republicans at the core of that larger group. they had been negotiating privately. the hope is that -- it had built sought the president's tax commission -- but if you can find a comprehensive agreement on those things, how to control the soaring cost of health care, hoyou can adjust social security to keep it solvent for longer, and then how you can make some changes to the tax code, do all that together and it helps the long-term fiscal crisis but the country, and then if everyone can see y are confronting those things, then people will be worked well into confronting. host: let me turn to politics. a defining issue for obama is a $250,000 lim.

guest: that will be a micro issue in this macro lens. and the macro lens is leadership. you sing gingrich talk about this, the spectator in chief comment. the president, according to many of these candidates, it is developing a resin made -- resume of sitting on the sidelines. whether libya, where he did not act fast enough, you can go down the line. entitlemenreform. republicans will come out and early april with their budget. ready and willing to take the political hit for it. they say. guest: chris christie has exactly the same message, disappointment in the president, saying he has not stood up to confront these problems. recently,istie's said you wonder at this point in american history if the political cost may not be as bad

as a lot of people think when it comes to touching the third rail of entitlements. or some of these other economic issues, because of the situation we face. host: is debt commission suggesting that for terminates goes up to 69. it is not an immediate, but over 5 to 10 years. guest: there are all sorts of ways in which you might adjust these things and have less of an impact in the short run but morgan impact in the long run. host: michael shear and david brody. tony is joining us from denver. welcome. caller: my question is around foreign-policy. when obama ran, he really ran on diplomacy and the need for coalition when you are using force. now here we are three years later. after being elected, his first

major speech is in egypt and he speaks to the young people and their aspirations for democracy, and that he accepts the nobel prize, and talks about using force with coalitions. now it is three years later, it looks like he is just what telling how he ran when he ran for president. using power when needed, but with support in coalition, maybe like president bush i, and a lot like feedback on that. he not filling how he ran? host: one comment from our bureau. -- and viewers. guest: he is absolutely right. this is what the president ran on in 2008. this is his governing philosophy. we are starting to see this.

in essence, president obama is a constitutional law professor at harvard. he is in a harvard or yale classroom, pick your id league school classroom. he is having an interesting debate about all this. on the one hand, on the other hand, and look of what happened in afghanistan. that went on because there were different viewpoints in the room. and republicans will deem him on this issue and they have. guest: the white house will argue that the president has done what he said. he is pulling out of iraq, slowly and responsibly, and he has reached its focus on afghanistan, which he said was the war that america needed to be engaged in. and now interestingly on this libya situation, there was a real tension and back-and-forth within the administration. you had secretary of state

hillary clinton, samantha power is, susan rice, all on this side of intervening for humanitarian reasons. on the other side, robert gates, the secretary of defen, the national security advisor, all worried about drawing in this something that will go on for a long time, difficult to get out of. secretary of state clinton won out this time. but as we have said before, it is a case by case basis. it is aragmatic approach this as we do not have to do things in a cookie cutter way. weill confront these things as we get to them. host: newt gingrich said that nicholas sarkozy was not sidetracked by his brackets. this is the president giving his picks for the n.c.a.a.. the president is not doing too

badly. guest: no, he is doing quite well. he obviously loves basketball. of the 32 games, the first 32, he got 29 right. he only missed three. i think he missed -- i cannot remember which ones he messed. louisville over morehead state, -- igan state over ucla = host: butler was a surprising pick. guest: he has picked kansas to go all the way. it is conceivable that the way things happen -- stand, that he has near perfect as most people get. host: what abo the criticism for spending time on doing this? guest: this is one of those perennial issues that comes up in presidencies. almost every democrat or

republican when presidents try to achieve a balance when -- between light things like a vacation or basketball picks, and at the same time handling very weighty, monumental issues, whether confronting japan or libya. it is hard to balance those. he did get some criticism from the republican national committee and others that maybe he should not have taken the time to go on espn announce his picks just as the nuclear crisis in japan was unfolding. the white house was saying that he can walk and chew gum at the same time. host: the president is in rio talking business. guest: i think there is not only a political issue with that, but he will get criticized for that as well. you can make the argument, and the white house makes the argument on one side, and the other side says it is important

that he be in the moment of what is going on here. this all plays into a mentality out there in parts of the country, part of the heartland especially, that he is not as pro-america as other people think he is. i think that plays into all of this. you're filling out brackets and playing golf, you are in brazil when you might be doing other things, it makes people wonder. when you go to the voting booth, you do not vote on public policy issues as much as you do with your heart and with that emotional connection. it worked for president obama in 2008. we will see what happens in 2012. host: just asking that question. why are we discussing the president choosing basketball winners and losers? michael shear and david brody.

good morning. welcome to the conversation. caller: last night i tried to get a campaign to have name tags for you moderator's. host: it is not about us, it is about you and our guest. caller: i like to praise george w. bush. the poor maligned old guy remove dead dictator, a tyrant who killed more people and who was much worse than this clown, this character gaddafi, and i was like to talk about the big picture going on in the middle east right now. it seems like in country after country after country, the people are rising up and they are just demandinghat they

have a voice in their own government, to choose their leaders, to choose their policies, and it is like blossoming all over the middle east, like flowers. i wanted to ask, where did the seed for these flowers come from? it came from a picture that was circulated all around the world of a little old iraqi woman who had hea a thinker, her purple thing your pointed in the air. she get the chance to choose her ruler and the rules under which she is governed. and that was old george w. host: thanks for the call. do not be a stranger. guest: don makes a pretty good point. what a lot of conservatives feel in this country, if you

blindfolding yourself and listen to barack obama and george w. bush, they are in essence saying quite a bit of the same thing as it relates to freedom around the world, and that people have the desire to be free. towards the bush -- i am not suggesting that barack obama and george bush see the world the same way, but the caller makes a good point in that george bush possible legacy and the future of how fks may see this president may change quite a bit depending on what goes on in the middle east. this is where it all started as it relates to iraq and how that happened. host: we heard guested vary from secretary of state clinton after her meeting with sarkozy. she said that this was not a u.s.-led effort. french missiles and british missiles and u.s. tomahawk missiles over line. -- overnight. guest: it is the queasiness

inside the american establishment, inside the white house, the pentagon, that they do not want to be drawn into a long battle. it also signals the worry that the united states does not want to be perceived, despite the fact that we talked about that arab nations have supported the no-fly zone, there is a real worried that they do not want united states proceed as attacking again another arab country. to the caller's point, the george bush alumni would definitely and are definely arguing that the seeds of the revolution, the seeds of all the countries embracing democracy really was the invasion of iraq and the overthrow of saddam hussein, which was part of the argument that george w. bush

made as justifying that effort. you plant the seeds of democracy in a region that do not have it. host: michael shear and david brody. caller: i want to say that president obama toomey is doing what he said he was going to be doing. 75% of what he said he has done. the only thing i do not get are all these lies. people forget things. president bush went over into iraq for weapons of mass destruction. then he changed it to the people. you cannot have it both ways. you just cannot have it both ways. mr. obama is doing what he is supposed to be doing -- a leading this country. i am sick and tired of people always -- if they did not go over there, that would be saying

he is slow. he is not doing the right thing. host: thanks for the call. as the new york tabloids can only do that -- and from the new york post, strike one. guest: i read them daily growing up in new york. always an interesting headline. your post headline is interesting. we do not know where strike to end strike 3 will come, when and where. it is dgerous for the president of the united states to come out and say we will not use ground troops in libya. your boxing yourself in that that point, or you will have to explain your way out. that can be publicly -- politically problematic for this president. to say that early could come back to haunt him. host: we heard that buys

president biden was in touch with afghan leaders over the weekend to check-in. no specifics. guest: they never do. host: they wanted to make sure that there were no more civilian deaths in afghanistan. guest: afghanistan has for the last several weeks taken a back seat in the news. but it remains the big foreign- policy and military question mark hanging over the president. the iraq situation is proceeding on the lines of a bipartisan sense. but in afghanistan, there is increasing concern among some of the left especially that the war is going on, dragging on, but no serious improvement, and that some of the deadlines that the president had said are going to come and go without any real improvement.

guest: the 2012 election, this will be a point of contention. haley barbour has already come out and talked about his concern about afghanistan. it will put all these republican candidates on the spot as to where are you exactly? are we in, are we all, or just fiddling around? guest: it is a not place for some of these republicans because they have traditionally supported these interventions. in the past, when they have questioned the effort there, there s been flowback from their base. how they criticize the president when at the same time stay on the right side of their base? host: haley barbour definitely in? guest: the percentages are relatively high. host: silver springs, maryland. caller: my question is addressed

to the person who had the privilege to interview sarah palin. is he at liberty to tell us who or what group is responsible for managing, coaching, training, and speechwriting for sarah palin? guest: she has a close circle of advisers. that is the best way to term it. i do not think that is one concrete answer. guest: other than talk, h husband. -- todd, her husband. guest: she has some advisers based in washington around the country. she relies on certain people, but ultimately sarah palin is from alaska. you have an independent mind and

an independent spirit. i think we have seen that in quite a few cases as relates to some of her comments on some of these issues. host: the impact of japan here in you -- here in the united states. michael shear, we will have a conversation with the chair of e nuclear regulatory commission, gregory jaczko. but a report will come out on how sick the u.s. sites are. what are the lessons from japan? guest: japan is just an awful story. i think what we will see as the immediate crisis fades, politically in the united states is a real renewing of the debate over nuclear power, and whether or not as had been the direction that the country was headed jt before this, we should expand and build new nuclear

facilities, and i did review of the comments that the 2012 likely candidates made on nuclear power. there were all incredibly enthusiastic about nuclear power, never been safer, mitt romney in his book that he released last year tald about how he does not understand the crics of nuclear power. it is the safest thing ever and we should embrace it. and frankly president obama was in that place as well, saying in a speech on energy last year that we needed to do more with nuclear power. one wonders whether the japan situation scrambles that political calculation. i do think that at the politicians try to balance this question of reliance on oil from the middle east versus the danger is so obvious in nuclear power, that will be top. host: three mile island is still

operational, providing electricity for 800,000 residents. the japanese plant will have to be scrapped. 90 miles away, food has been contaminated. guest: this story will be in the headlines throughout the 2012 presidential campaign. what you will see as it relates to nuclear-powered, it will be broader. a lot of the candidates start to tie to a larger energy issue. where we are getting our oil, it may not be drill, baby drill, but they will talk about alternate forms of energy as it relates to what we need to do to make sure we are not dependent on foreign oil. that is where this is -- at least they will try to pick it and turn it that way. host: gregory jaczko making his only son the appearance on "newsmakers."

his the chair of the nuclear regulatory commission. that is live after "shington journal" this morning. stay with us. georgia, a good morning. caller: why do we feel that it is ok for former colonial powers, not no rigid so much the united states, but we got drawn into it, to go when it and almost like in dade libya to protect the human beings, when there is a civil war going on just like what was going on in egypt, tunisia -- why are we not invading the rain? they are killing their people in bahrn and saudi arabia. of jerry s is not too far behind. -- algeria is not too far behind. comparing gaddafi with saddam

hussein to give as an excuse to go in and kill people, i do not understand that. guest: i think she raises the big head scratching point that peop have been talking about. they have been arguing about it inside the administration. how do you justify it? if you look back in history to win the -- rwanda is the prime example, when foreign powers did not get involved. president bill clinton at the time said that was one of the biggest regrets of his presidency, that they knew there was a humanitarian crisis going on, they knew that folks were being slaughtered, and the western powers stood by because what the same calculations it was not in their direct interests. how you balance that off against the questions that the caller raises? they are quite valid. how do you make those distinctions and to what extent

can you decide that one country is worth spending this kind of military intervention and others are not? guest: relating to bahrain, there needs to be a reality check. the saudis are involved in this. they are very important ally for the united states. it is complicated. guest: as in everything else, it is about the details and specifics. adopting -- gaddafi is seen as a madman. he does not have the support of a lot of his neighbors. i am quite certain that as they went to their calculations, that played a role. guest: in a gets involved in the sunni-iite issue. host: he pointed out npr, one of

many distractions to come. the house voting last year to the fund -- defund npr. guest: what we will see is that as the budget debate unfolds, a series of these kinds of distractions is one way to put it. slipr issues that cut across a small sliver. npr is a tiny piece of a trillion dollar budget. but it was important, one of those issues that is important for the conservative base. republicans were emboldened because of the recent scandals at npr. and so they decided to go for. they passed in the house. it is not expected to go anywhere in the senate and president obama would not senate -- sign it. guest: you had the issue of

defunding plan. head in this cr. you liken it to the abortion debate in heth care reform. they got sidetracked on that, i would not say, but people who believe that plan parent could should not be funded by the federal government, it is not a side issue at all. it is being major lobbied on capitol hill. it will be a test of hn boehner here. how much does he not want to go through the shutdown compared to what he wants to stick with the pro-life on this. host: he continues to say he wants the open rule whichould allow anything to come to the house floor. guest: his always had the mentality of letting the will of the house do its thing. if he sees the house republican freshmen were many of the pro-

life congressman, however the house starts to see how they want to go on this issue, i think he will allow that to happen based on the fact that this is the governing philosophy. host: from twitter -- guest: it will be interesting to see how energy pce up. if the president effectively declared a full debate over energy policy over cap and trade being dead at the last of last year, after the routing his party too but you will see more activity on capitol hill, not on cap and trade, but whether or not there is something that can be done in a bipartisan way to encourage alternative energy. the question of decreasing their reliance on foreign oil, and all of this stuff going on in japan will increase that.

host: 70 quick to respond. -- cindy qui to respond. guest: libya is one more event on the president's plate to the point where he may -- not necessarily take his eye off the ball, but first question was, if he spends more time here, and rightly so, there could be some backlash as to why this president is not spending more time focusing on the economy and jobs. and i believe the republicans will be ready for that. guest: that has been the pattern for the past two years. just when the president and this white house geta message that they feel is working, world events, whether oispills or crises in japan or elsewhere, there really has been a series of events that have knocked them off message. off message.