>> next a memorial service for washington post columnist david broader then eric baits on their special report concerning u.s. soldiers in afghanistan. after that, the weekly addresses with president obama and house budget >> in washington, d.c. on tuesday, a memorial service was held to honor the life and career of washington post political columnist david broder. speakers include vice president joe biden and washington post

chairman don graham. offereder's four sons memories of their father. he won the pulitzer in 1973 for his coverage of the watergate scandal. he died on march 9 and was 81- years old. this is about one hour and 30 minutes.

♪

>> welcome. david broder was a reporter. he knew that about himself from literally his youngest days. he never reconsidered or later

in his passion for his calling for his competitive resolve to be the best he could keep became a columnist, a lecturer, a speaker, at pandit, and a tv talking-head. he was also a husband, a father, and a grandfather. i am george broder, one of his sons. i stand with you wearing at his watch, which was his own father's watch -- a depression era men from chicago to took care of his patients entered payment in cash only when he could convince them they could afford it. here with us today, among his other items, his left-handed typewriter and the united states flag presented to our mom by the

veterans administration in recognition of his service in the u.s. army. on behalf of my mother, and broder, my brothers josh, matthew, and mike, our lives when the, karen, susan, and robin, and his seven grandchildren, dan, warren, maddy, julia, and luka, thank you all for being here today. thank you mr. vice president for being here. thank you, distinguished guests, contacts, and sources. [laughter] his colleagues and peers from the fourth estate and those of you who were his loyal readers for being here. thank you for your patience in waiting to get started.

we hope you enjoyed the slide show and the music of the sage string trio. my father was active, engaged, and curious until the very end. his last column ran on february 6 and he left us on march 9. he would not have truly understood it, and the truth is, i do not get it, but in the 24 hours after he died, he had more tweets than charlie sheen. not bad for an 81-year-old who had his challenges with a new, wired world we all live in. thank you for laughing. [laughter] not because i am 8 what to be stand-up comic, but because we want to be a -- we want there to be laughter in the ring today.

this is a memorial service. there will be tears. but my father loved to laugh. let's recognize that also. yes, our family is grieving. we thank you for being here to share that with us as well as the celebration of the long, full life. we regret that the circumstances in his last months prevented many of you from being able to visit with him. the family wants you to know that he was never in any great pain. in his last hours and days, he was at peace with himself and the decision that it was time to go. my mother -- excuse me -- my father, my mother, and my family, we understand the place of faith in many people's lives -- the peace and serenity that comes from this. we are not a religious family in

the conventional sense. so we gather here today at the national press club at his direction, the cathedral, if you will, to the highest values, standards, and goals to the profession for which he dedicated his long life. the brilliance and importance of the first amendment to the constitution, the role and purpose of the free press, democratic society. the duty of the media on behalf of the people to ask hard questions, to investigate, probe, and analyze the issues of the day. the responsibility of the members of the fourth estate to inform, educate, and communicate their views about what they found in an unbiased, straight- forward, and honest form. finally, with the distinct sanction of the first amendment,

the need to exercise this honor and obligation with civility and respect for fellow americans and those from other nations. that is why we are here at the national press club and those who speak today will share their insights into his life with this backdrop. our family is indebted to each of them for grain to do this. let me say a couple of things about my childhood and adulthood as one of the signs of an and david broder, a political activist, and a political reporter. are you surprised if i tell you i majored in political science at the university of wisconsin? my apologies to those who have heard the story. i remember an evening in 1968. the family dinner was going on, watching the black-and-white tv as president johnson talked about vietnam. as the president spoke, my father realized with the speech was going.

he jumped up and shouted, "he is not going to run." then he bolted for the door. [laughter] moments later the telephone rang. my mother answered. she assured the person at the post but he was already on his way and on up. [laughter] in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade i had a paper route. family connections had nothing to do with it. [laughter] this was before he won the pulitzer. my friends already had routes and when another route became available, i took it. h. truitt father, up one morning i was so upset, i cannot deliver my papers. he rose to the occasion. following an address list, he got the job done. it took so long, it was light out by the time he was finished. word got back to my mother from a neighbor within a few days.

she said, "i sold they did the other morning. that is amazing. he writes the paper on monday and delivers it on tuesday." [laughter] as an adult, like many of you, i was always delighted to be able to talk public policy and politics with him and to top sports. he loved sports, especially baseball. him abouttalking to most. no more teasing him about the cubs were commiserating about the woeful redskins. in recent years, i would not call it a tradition, facing the countdown we work on -- i made a point to always call him. when i was going to my first baseball game of the year. walking on the embarcadero in

san francisco, usually with a cigar, i'll tell him who was pitching. we are playing the rockies. he would tell me, "have fun. i wish i was with the." i am going to miss making that call this year. before the first eulogy, we want to show a video of our father. he is talking about his favorite topics -- his grandchildren and his voters. three years ago from new hampshire. we think you'll enjoy it for the same reason we do. it shows how much he loved what he did and how he was still at it. 78-years old -- his 13th presidential campaign -- decades and decades and decades on the

beach, and not a single -- on the beat, and not a single cenacle bone in his body. -- cynical bone in his body. >> i have a lot of memories of talking to voters here across -- and across the country. one of my favorite experiences was being run off a property by a guy who came out with two very large adults and made it very clear if i did not clear out very fast, he was going to let the dogs all their lease. the people in new hampshire, not just the politicians, but the people themselves are really into it. >> i work for jfk as a senior in high school. >> you see more front yard and

campaign signs in any state i have ever been. the people really do feel very committed to the candidates that they are supporting. that level of energy that comes straight from the people is what makes new hampshire politics really wonderful. >> i am pleased to introduce our first eulogy. staying with baseball, we had a grand slam lineup. we had to start with the news room where my father spent so many years of his life when he was not on the road. i do not know what cosmic forces are in play, but he has the same initials as our father -- d.b. he has become a good friend to the rest of the family along the way. dan balz from the "washington

post." >> thank you, george. anne, george, josh, matthew, mike, mr. vice president, distinguished guests, friends and colleagues, we are here to pay tribute to one of journalism's giants, david broder, a political reporter without fear. he was one of the most decent human beings we ever worked with and he was also might good friend. we mourn his passing, but we celebrate a life that in its richness and accomplishment remains an inspiration to all of us. david broder is part of a generation of remarkable political reporters.

at the post, haynes johnson and david shared a special bond. the same is true of luke cannon. one night in new hampshire, our two aces and manage to misread the tv listings and missed the opening of the republican debate. with a little help from back home, they managed to scramble and covered the debate adequately, but we never trusted them the same after that. [laughter] whether his own generation or subsequent generations, they did was always special. he was called the dean for a reason. he brought to this reporting unmatched integrity, keen insight, fairness, seriousness

of purpose, and troop humility. he was, as george said, a reporter's reporter. he may have been one of the most widely read columnist in the nation. he set a record that would never be broken. but he never thought of himself as a pundit. he did not think he had all the answers. he knew that answers and insight root out of doggett reporting. he believed elections belonged to the voters, not to politicians or strategists or commentators. many reporters pay lip service to this idea, but you did it as they did -- carefully, methodically, completely. he would slog up and down neighborhoods of strange towns for hours on end. he went into living rooms. he engaged people in conversations. he learned their hopes and fears. most of all, he respected their

opinions. this is not the easiest of work, but david never tired of it. one summer he decided the two of us needed to go around the country. we would start, he said, at the national governors meeting, which was a regular stop. from there, we would do a number of days of door knocking. that would have been enough for me, but not for david. he declared that at the end of the week we would meet up at the national conference of state legislators where we would do another round of interviewing. i was more than exhausted, but david was still full of fight. given his devotion to voters, a friend suggested the other night that we would ask everyone here to volunteer two days of door knocking in the battleground states. the assignments will be distributed on the way out. [laughter] another thing that set david apart was his unerring ability

to stay focused on what was important. he loved dripping campaigns, but he believed it when the campaign ended, politicians had a responsibility to do what they could to solve the country's problems. he hated for the lawlessness in politicians. he thought that journalism was an integral part of society. he thought it may be machinery of government work better. he believed in holding politicians accountable and he always focused his energies on the big event -- big issues and the toughest problems. at the post, he led our coverage for more than four decades. in an era of big foot journalism, he always walked lightly. he taught by example and he made certain that other reporters at the space and the encouragement to flourish and expand their own horizons. ask anyone who is covered politics during the time they

did was there, and they will tell you that. that does not mean he did not occasionally intimidate his editors and fellow reporters. we could tell when he did not think we measured up to his exacting standards. nobody liked it when "the look" was directed at them. i first experienced this in 1968 as a college senior. i was interviewing david for a class project. after two questions, he looked at me in only the way that david broder could and said, "what do these questions have to do with your topic?" [laughter] once i pulled myself back up all before, broder-like, he showed me how to refocus my project and do it right. it to younger reporters he was always unfailingly generous.

he shared information with competitors, including some he barely knew. they never forgot as the m emails i received after his death show. he loved his wife of 59 years and his sons, daughters in law, and his grandchildren, especially. he loved the cubs. he loved the theater. he led the gridiron club whose strange customs contributed so many songs due out the year. he was a straight arrow, but he was not always all business all the time. i remember opening night of the 1980 republican convention in detroit. those were colored days, as you can imagine. we were not tweeting around the clock. we had some extra time before the opening session. david invited me to join them

for dinner. the restaurant at the hotel was filled with delegates and reporters. there was a combo playing in the background. there was nothing rushed or hurried as we talk about the week ahead, but finally it was time to go to the convention floor. as we were settling our bill, david lean back in his chair and looked at the condo. i will never forget what he said next. "my head tells me to go to the convention, but my feet want to stay here and boogie." [laughter] this is perhaps a side of david broder some of you have never seen. [laughter] i would also be remiss if i did not say that david kept [unintelligible] driving with them could be an adventure, especially at night. as george suggested, he could be sometimes technologically challenged. more than once when we were on the road together and he was struggling to file a story on

deadline, our political editor at the time would call me and say, "can you not just go to his room and sent the story?" [laughter] none of this slowed david down. he kept at it with an intensity and a pace of someone half his age and for four -- 44 longer than any of us may have tried. he was still there at the age of 81 making his rounds. he wanted to see and hear for himself what was happening in that campaign. to the end, he had an indomitable spirit. now that he is gone, we all miss him terribly. he leaves an extraordinary legacy, one that embodies values that can guide all of us in these difficult times. he leaves a huge void. he is, i believe, irreplaceable.

i have said this before and i want to say it again -- i cannot imagine there'll be another political reporter like cam or colleague for whom so many t.ople have respec goodbye, friend. it may rest in peace. >> thank you, dan, for that beautiful tribute. my name is matthew broderick. thank you for coming to honor our father today. one of my father's traits that came through repeatedly in the public testimonials after he died was his willingness to help younger reporters. with characteristic modesty, he often said his the advice was

free and that it was worth what you paid for. for the people on the receiving end of that advice, they usually knew better. in that spirit, i am going to offer a little advice this morning -- this afternoon. to all the young reporters out there wondering, "how do i get to be a big-time pandit in the ultra competitive world of journalism? how do i get to 4000 columns, to the 400 appearances on "meet the press?" i had the answer, drawn from the life of the game himself. practice on your children. [laughter] on your young children. [laughter] i offer as evidence the contents of late an old postcard i discovered some time ago while rummaging through a box in the

attic of the family's summer home in michigan. this was a postcard my father had said to me while he was on a reporting trip in 1964. i will do the math for you. the future pulitzer prize winner was a 34-years old. i had just turned 5. [laughter] on the front of the post card was a studio photograph of three puppies. the postmark was from somewhere in texas -- houston, i think. "dear matthew, do you like these puppies? these puppies or sad. do you know why they are sad? they are sad because they lost their oil-depletion allowance." [laughter]

love, david." i will mention for only a moment the ridiculous situation this has put my mother in. even a university of chicago education does not prepare you to explain the oil-depletion allowance to kindergartener. suffice it to say that this postcard explains why my father wrote eight books on politics, but not a single one on parenting. [laughter] all kidding aside, this story provides an important insight about david broder. he experienced the world through one wins only, the intersection of politics and policy. a postcard to a child became the chance to dwell on tax policy. a trip to san francisco sports

bar with my brother george years later prompted a column about the presidential campaign process and the attention span of the electorate. there were the annual trips to beaver island, mich., which my father took not really to relax, but more often as a springboard for abusing us on the environmental policies of the reagan administration or public education or the application of alternative energy programs. a bench during our personal conversations, my father would eventually steered the conversation back to politics. i must tell you, honestly, there are times when the said it becomes very annoying. but as time passed, i came to appreciate this, not just as one of his enduring court, but perhaps as what most defined him and fuelled his infectious happiness at being alive. when you see the world as one

big classroom in which you can learn something astonishing everyday, everyday brings a new source of joy. i say to my father, thank you. speaking of young journalist, i now had the pleasure to introduce one of my father's favorite journalists from the generation that came after him. he had a big part for anyone with a pen and a pad, but it is fair to say that he loved few of his colleagues as much as c love gwen ifill. our intelligence was obvious to my father even before they were colleagues at the washington post in the 1980's and the friendship they developed only deepened during the years even though gwen went to work for a competing organization. later, my father always look

forward to his appearances on gwen's show and faithfully what step on those weeks he did not appear as a guest. the entire family is -- we can think of no more fitting representative to do so. >> thank you for allowing me to speak here today and for allowing us to borrow david for so many years. david was very special to me as he was to everyone in this room. he was a totem for those of us who aspired to cover politics.

he was a mentor, who always seem to have the time for younger reporters. of course, he was a friend even when he was beating you on a story where telling it better than you ever could. of the past few weeks i have been trading stories with other journalists, looking for any debts. i probably should be surprised that in the end everyone seemed to repeat the same version of exactly the same story, always using words like generosity, excellence, and modesty. in common decency, one political report record. irritatingly centrist wrote another. i am sure he would have liked that one. i was one who looked up to him and was stunned that he never looked down on me or that he never really noticed me standing there worshiping pam.

i often got to be the one to run interference at political debates when david was on deadline at all the campaign consultants were tried to get a piece of this story. i was proud that before they could get to david, they had to get bite me first. when he died, the stories bore witness to the kind of man he was. the reminiscences by in the post, but also in the dubuque telegraph herald in iowa. they -- rolled together into a single narrative, the story everyone would tell sounds like this. i can imagine it all said in unison. i first met david broder when i was a great reporter covering my first campaign. i did not know where to sit or how to sleep on the plane or how to oppose the proper question or

whether to force my way into a conversation or help to meet my crazy deadline or how to get the lead right. the story invariably continues -- david broder introduced himself to me out of the blue or he invited me to sit next to him and closer to the candidate, or he advised me how to preserve my energy on a long campaign road, or he gently pointed out what the news was so i could put it in the first sentence. [laughter] if you were lucky, they would take you out to knock on doors or to meet governors or to join him for a candidate interview. collectively, we were all awed by the great man. as one colleague told me, "he cared about politics and the

issues and there was never ever an agenda." inid's wisdom reverberated ways he could not have possibly appreciated. in 2006 i had to write a book about african american leaders coming to age. the first thing my editor sent me was his own copy of "changing of the guard." david wrote it about a new generation of leaders coming of age. nearly 30 years later, they did was among with the nicest reviews i receive. he never mentioned that i had written off, and burton lee, but truly. when david chapel on the road, we went to a university once in 2000. it was the first time i get to see what a rock star he was. when i return to iowa state last week, strangers offer me condolences. i realize that any place where politics is discussed, he is

still a rock star. david sat around the table hundreds of times at "meet the press." he had his opinions, but he was seldom a pandit, always a reporter, and consistently the voice of good humored reason. that should not be unique, but it was and it is. when david taught to governors, presidents, voters -- they knew he was a person they could trust to tell their story. he was the one who taught me that the best interviews or almost always the ones with someone you had never heard of. the light of these types because he was so low-key himself. david invariably failed to toot his own horn. he may have been an egomaniac behind closed doors, but we never saw it. he devoted a chapter of a book he wrote in 1987 to telling a story that he got wrong.

he recognized the worst in our profession. he taught us about that too. the new and how easily the press could be manipulated by politicians, but he also loved journalism in a way that allowed many of us to appreciate what is romantic about the craft and profession that so often puts falls on display. he taught those of us who came up behind him, and there are many of us -- he taught us how to work hard, how to appreciate authenticity, how to play nice with others, and always, always, always held to take a poke at yourself. i will leave you with one story i love. it is recounted in one of his books. richard nixon credit did they did with being one of the few people at the 1968 nominating convention who knew in advance that he would pick spiro agnew as his vice-presidential nominee. this was supposed to be a

secret. the shovel is, david said the story is not exactly true. he did not know. what really bothered him about it is this an accurate detail might survive him. he wrote, "how would you like to have on your tombstone, and he knew it would be agnew?" [laughter] no worries, david. no worries. >> thank you. that was an amazing and wonderful tribute. now it is my pleasure to introduce michael ryan. mike is an accomplice soloist

who many of you may know from his years of performances at the gridiron club as a soloist for the marine band. mike has given thousands of performances, including many at the white house, at ronald reagan paltry first inauguration, and bill clinton's second, as well as several other venues. in addition to this, mike was a frequent collaborator with -- with my father at the annual gridiron dinner. david took great pleasure in combining his love of music with his deft sense of humor and his deep knowledge of current events and political personalities to help put together songs for the show. i know that he enjoyed working with mike and always marveled at his ability to carry the less musically inclined on his shoulders. most importantly, though, he valued it might as a friend. that is why we have asked mike

to lead us all in singing a song my father loved to sing at wrigley field. ladies and gentlemen, michael ryan. >> ladies and gentlemen, you know what is coming. as george said earlier, this is a celebration. in that spirit, we will ask you to turn to the back page of your program where you will find the words to "take me out to the ball game" as sung at wrigley field in chicago. today, we are all cubs fans. i will ask you to stand and sing with me, "take me out to the ball game." since it is such a short song, we are going to sing it twice. [laughter]

here we go. ♪ take me out to the ballgame. take me out to the crowd. buy me some peanuts and cracker jack i don't care if we never gert back. root, root for the cubbies shame. don't win it's a strikesone, two, three you're out at the old ballgame

♪ good job. [applause] thank you. >> thank you. >> wow. thank you, michael. my name is michael broder. i like to quote my nephew is i get started here. i am told that as he was walking to school on his first day of kindergarten, he looked up into his father's eyes and said, "i am more nervous than i looked." [laughter] so, dave, i hope you know how i

am feeling right now. over these past four weeks, we have all been experiencing the public wake following date's death -- the many tributes or touching, eliminating, and comforting. it has been a joy, frankly, to read and years and many personal stories that all include some simple act of kindness and humility by david. i have to tell you, growing up in our household, we never heard david's sake, "today i felt so and so with his or her career." he was not that into himself. we were far more likely to have our father want to talk about issues such as the senate races from midwestern states or, more

likely, how some former cubs player just put together back- to-back all sports seasons since leaving chicago. [laughter] as we have all seen in the outpouring of remembrances, david was a good friend to a lot of people. david was my father and he was my friend. here are a few things i remember about my father. he was humorous and playful with a sly wit. david was also a fan of watching his sons and grandchildren play sports or perform onstage even though his work schedule did not allow him to attend many of those events. i remember him having a particular fondness for going down to the potomac river to watch the three of us compete in races. the regatta's replace he could relax with some comfortable

clothes and just the outside. crew is not often the best spectator sport. [laughter] the races or 1 mile long and typically are not easily observed from the spectator area. go figure. but they did would not be deterred. during my high-school years, he would often what back across the bridge to the virginia side and scramble up the va riverside just so we could get a better vantage point on the earlier part of the races. needless to say, he was the only spectator watching from the va would. all of us in the boat could see him in the foliage, not just because he was shouting loudly, but because he was wearing a bright, fire engine red pants. when we returned to the dots, others would ask and i would

confirm, yes, that is my dad in the red pants. [laughter] fashion choices aside, one of the things i love most about my father was his ability to connect his personal and professional life in very specific moments. my senior year in high school coincided with the 1980 presidential election. my government teacher was a big fan of david. he and i cooked up an idea. it was mostly his. he would take one of the short paper assignments that she gave me and he would write the paper for me to submit. [laughter] as we expected, she came back to me a couple of days later and said, "this is quite a good paper, but it is not written in your normal style and i think there are a few parts you need to rewrite." i will never forget the look on

her face when i told her who had written it. it was priceless. four or five years ago, they did agree to be interviewed by my daughter, nicole, for an oral history project she was doing with a friend. the topic -- how has my life been affected by the typewriter. [laughter] a few days ago, i listened to the interview again and was reminded how gentle, yet serious he was in answering questions about when he learned to type, did he use different typewriters, and what were the most important stories he had ever written on the typewriter. priceless. more recently, they did agree to take some time all the 2008 presidential election to join my daughter's seventh grade social studies class.

seated at a desk, he told them a little bit about his job and then he answered questions like "is a gift -- is it difficult to write a newspaper story every day? and had you met barack obama and sarah palin?" it helps students gain perspective on how important presidential elections are. priceless. i am kill myself lucky as having david as my father and as my friend. -- i consider myself lucky to have david as my father as my friend. my father aligned himself with the washington post and the graham family. in the weeks leading up to his death, many people reach out to pass along their best wishes to my parents. don graham was one of those

people. i quickly gained an appreciation for something my father told me many times -- donald graham is a great friend. don hasvid's passing, done so many things to help our family during this very difficult time. including being here today to deliver his own eulogy. ladies and gentlemen, chairman and chief executive officer of the washington post co., don graham. >> mike, thank you so much. we all love and admire you and know you're the greatest part of this story. mr. vice president, members of the broder family, distinguished

guests, and others -- the year was 1964. patrick graham, a brand new publisher of the washington post for less than a year, had gone on the campaign trail to see for the first time helped her reporters covering campaigns. she was with a man named chalmice roberts and charles roberts of newsweek when a man she did not know came up. he was introduced as the best in the business. paul's a minute. this was 1964. david was already covering his second presidential campaign. exactly one member of today's house of representatives, and john dingell of michigan, and

one member of today's senate in illinois work in all this in 1964. president obama was a three- years old. vice president biden was at the university of delaware which, according to ms. which could be a biography, he was more interested in sports and socializing -- socializing been studying. [laughter] more than 40 years later, david broder was still introduced by his rivals as the best in the business, except it would have been superb list. his longevity was amazing. it was not the most important part of david's story. when someone dies who has been so important to so many of us, it seems to me a good moment to say, "why? what may have some special at

what he did"? david knew exactly what he wanted to be. he was a member from high school days of the crazy class of people called "reporters." they are as smart as a college classmates to go into law, banking, where business. they understand but will not get rich as reporters, but they want to ask questions, and want to find things out, they cannot explain why they do what they do. there colet's life recalls, not around the fraternity or -- their college life revolves, not around the fraternity, but around the [unintelligible] i do not know the other members of the chicago class of 1964, but david was not the wealthiest. but in his working life, i am sure he was one of the happiest.

david was one of the lucky ones who fell in love with this subject. he never wanted to do one thing in the world but right about american politics. he believed that elections and the work of elected officials was important and he wanted to describe them as fairly and as accurately as he could. robert frost said it perfectly in a line -- my object in a living is to unite my education and vocation. that is what david did. third, and david was the best colleague in the world. i remember having dinner with someone who had just joined the staff as a reporter. he had gone with a bid to a governors association meeting and he had a hard time describing it. brodeur had introduced them to

dozens of his sources. in 1972, jim crouch wrote in "he boys on the bus" that' brodeur generously shared the goods. in new hampshire, he said you better go out and knock on some doors. for a journalist, that was tantamount to an act of sainthood. [laughter] fourth, his judgment was simply superb. i was publisher of the washington post for 21 years. david's ataturk, ben bradlee, is with us this morning. , ben bradlee,tor is with us this morning. david put us on the map.

in addition, each time there was a major problem at the newspaper, i would walk into david's office for advice. not an easy feat in itself as some as you will recall. [laughter] his advice was always a good. at the time of the janet cooke disaster, 1981, he began, "at the heart of the paper are the beat reporters. if they are all right, the paper will be all right." his was the first advice once sought. what else should be said of david? that he was epochal in a most straitlaced way. he was old fashioned it before it was in fashion to be old fashioned. [laughter]

he was the fairest of reporters. he made mistakes. no one was more meticulous about correcting himself, even devoting a year-end column every year to that purpose. he always had time -- a little time. if you had business with david, he liked it done with dispatch. he worked in comparably hard. in his last illness, they told the senate that he was ready to resume his column. the director of this in the kit said -- syndicate said to him, "just do one a week for now." david had promised two a week and he would deliver. we loved him. if you took us all back to our college newspaper days, we dreamed of being true to our

ideals for a lifetime, up remaining dedicated to our craft, of being the best in the business. whatever our own shortcomings, we could at least look across the room as someone who had done just that. to go back to that long ago introduction in 1964, what a tiny handful of people in any profession in the world are universally acknowledged "the best in the business." what a tiny, tiny handful are exemplary in behavior -- the most decent, the most generous, the most honorable to friends and colleagues. how many people? how lucky we were to note david broder.

>> thank you, don, for capturing the essence of our father so beautifully and succinctly. let me extend just for a moment a thanks also to ben bradley for inviting my father to the party, a party that he enjoyed for more than 40 years. thank you. when i was about the age that my 9-year-old boy is, my father took his four sons to the capitol building for a little civics lesson in the legislative process. we were in the senate gallery. it's a saturday. the senate is not in session, but the gallery is somewhat crowded with tourists, and we four boys are sitting in the up holstered chairs in the front row. our father is hunkered down in front of us sitting against the

railing, the empty well of the senate behind him, and he gives us a detailed, clear, orientation to the process of the senate. the committee system, amendments, debates, and the engineered by design inefficiency of the bod yifment he concluded by saying even if a bill mansion to pass the senate, it is not yet a law. the next step occurs in the house of representatives, and we will go there now. [laughter] and my father stood up, and his four sons stood up, and about 15 tourists stood up. [laughter] they had overheard his lecture and either for their benefit or for the benefit of their kids had sat down quietly behind us and listened in. dave gave each of them his dave

broder hand shake, and then all 20 of us headed over to the house of representatives. [laughter] i felt so proud of my father in that moment, but if i had any of the things he showed in predicting election results, i would know that for the rest of my life i would be sharing my father with a lot of people. i've always been very proud of that. and to be honest, it has been something of a mixed bag. but even as a kid it was hard to begrudge my father his work life. he just loved reporting so much. he was obviously having a great time. as an adult all i could do is marvel at someone who wanted to spend his time was actually how

he did it. how my father wanted to spend his time was observing the daily dance of politics in america. about six years ago he started working on as close as he would come as a memoir. it would be about his political experiences in his half century in washington. his lyndon johnson, his tip o'neal, his teddy kennedy. my wire has done creative workshops with older people. and through her i look at this tendency to sort through memory is the inevitable process in sorting through life of a healthy human being. then came the 2008 presidential election, and dave lost all interest in his book, his past and his memories and got back to today and how today would affect tomorrow. for myself, i wish he had

finished that book, but i love my father's embrace of today. and i'm so happy for him that he lived long enough to cover a presidential election that he found even more thrilling than his first in 1960. that passion for employment and policy supported him through the dynamic first two years of the obama administration, stuck with him almost to the very end of his life, right to his last week among us. and then with days to live, our father lost interest in politics. he no longer wanted read to him articles about failed parliamentary procedures in the wisconsin state house. he joined the other 99.99% of the population. [laughter] but when dave broder loses interest in politics, what's left? i will tell you. first of all, a manifest

adoration and gratitude towards our mother. beyond that, laying in his hospital bed waiting patiently for death, our father was to everyone, family, friends, kind, good-humored, sliss tuesday, appreciative, gentle. 50 years ago in the senate gallery, what drew those tourists to david s. broder was his expertise. a month ago what had orderlies, nurses, doctors stopping by his bedside for an extra visit and to see to his comfort was our father's goodness, his decency.

that simple humanity that so many people here loved in our father dave witnessed in our final speaker today. in 1987 on the occasion of then senator bide's the 1988 presidential race. dave wrote last summer i saw bide walk awhat from a long -- large number of fans. any presidential candidate would be happy to recruit. instead he closetted himself for close to an hour with a stranger in pain. the man had just about broken down while telling biden that he had aids. what kind of society is this, he asked in his pain? dave continued. that much i overheard. the rest was between biden and this man. when i saw the man later in the

meeting, he seemed calmer. biden had found a way to help him if only by listening. that compassion deserves to be noticed. in dave's 4,000 columns for the post, he wrote about or mentioned joe bide many times. he was not only so generous. he once said biden preferred to fuzz the issue than give a straight answer. on another occasion he felt biden lacked a clear set of standards on foreign policy. but often dave cited jo biden as an exam pillar of themes. biden's advocacy of fiscal discipline in 2003. dave pressured straight talk. in a column following joe

bidenen selection as obama's running mate. if he wants somebody who will be direct and not worry about phoneding the president, he has found the right now. i am honored to welcome the president of the united states, joseph biden. >> josh as you walk off the stage, the words weren't always easy, but they were accurate. there is no higher than thing truth. i think that david broder shared that view. josh, thank you for the introduction, and let me say,

ann to you, the boys and the whole family, as i said to you privately, i am truly honored that you would ask me to be here today. i am probably the most out of place person in this room. representing not one who worked with david broder, but one about whom david broder wrote, along with many, many other people. i say to the boys if my dad were here, and my dad got to meet your dad, which was a high point for real in following me in the campaigns, he would say boys, you have got good blood. you have got good blood. i want you to know that i am fully aware that this task is beyond my capacity to find the words to do justice to what your husband, your father, your grandfather meant to our

institutions and those things that assure that our democracy persists. from my perspective -- and it was a totally different perspective than all the other speakers. from my perspective, david broder lived a life that was full and complete. my dad had another expression. he would say it is a lucky man who gets up in the morning, put both feet on the floor, know what they are about to do and thinks it still matters. there are very few men or women that i have met in my career, any acquaints i have had that have been able at 81 years of age to know that it still mattered, and it mattered to them.

david broder's entire career -- and i don't know it post career or previous to his career -- seemed to me to be spent ceaselyless and -- ceaselessly and elegantly in pursuit of the truth, which is a tough commodity in this town or any town. you heard from colleagues who knew him on a professional and personal relationship. mine was a different relationship. i speak from the vantage point of one among money who dave reported on, observed and commented on. i as well as many others can tell you that i not only admired him, but i learned from him. i was telling ann earlier -- and i wasn't going to say this, but this has been so personal, and hopefully it is appropriate. there have been many great

reporters i have had the pleasure of meeting that have covered me in bits and pieces, some more than bits and pieces. many i admire. several were mention today. but there's no person who has ever covered me for whom i cared, not what they wrote about me. i always cared what they wrote about me. any politician who tells you otherwise is lying to you. but i cared what he thought about me. it mattered to me, chris, what he thought about me. and i also, every time he wrote , whether it was about my promise as we have referred to it, or my shortcomings, i can tell you that i learned something. i learned more about myself.

i took it seriously. i still have hanging on my wall in my library at home -- which my wife framed -- was that story marking the end of what was an embarrassing campaign in 1987. i also learned, and i think like tens of millions of americans, i also learned more about my country reading david broder, listening to david broder. his observations about our country, our government as wells the political figures he covered were straight forward, and from my perspective, always unvarnished. he was different. he was different than every other press person i have ever met.

like all of his undertakings, and all under takings in all-pro fegses, there are some who to you we are -- tower above all others, whether in baseball, politics, journalism or others. he wasn't only recognized by his peers and fellow journalists, he was recognized by those of us on the other side or in the note boke. he was a towering figure, you didn't have to know he had enough awards to fill up my entire office in the west wing. you just knew. you understood. it was obvious. the town full of monuments,

david broder stood tall. if you forgive me as a politician commenting on the profession of journalism, he stood tall as a monument to journalism. he was fair. he was fearless in the pursuit of both truth and of justice. he was anchored. the phrase has become very popular, but he knew what he was. he knew what he believed. and he had an uncanny ability, an uncanny ability to get to the essence of the person who he was covering. you referenced a story about the chicago meeting and the 1987 campaign. again, i was telling ann a moment ago what amazed me to the very end, that he would get in a plane, in an automobile,

and he would drive to places and do things, and interview people who i don't think anybody else thought was worth interviewing or traveling to. he was a guy who it seemed to me was always clear-eyed and analytical, who thought it was necessary to observe the details himself, to feel it, to touch it, to get his own assessment, to taste it. he was doing that as the family knows and all of you know, when he was 80 years old. i showed up in places in the last campaign and wondered why did he go here? i couldn't figure out why the hell i was there, and i was running for vice president. and he wasn't covering me. [laughter] >> ladies and gentlemen, he seemed to me that he was a skeptic without being a cynic.

it was obvious that although he seemed to have very little faith in the grand solutions offered by political figures and others, he did have faith in the strength and purpose of our institutions both governmental and non-governmental, faith that they were the vehicles if they were functioning well, that could guarantee the promise of our constitution and protect our very essence, and to deliver the kind of government people deserved. you know when you use that expression here all the time, we are a government of laws, not of men. it seemed to me that david broder knew individual could make a difference. institutions is what made us so different from every other country. he didn't mother-in-lawize. he always analyzed.

he reported the facts as he saw them by covering them up close and with his own eyes. it always amazed me that, as i said, a man of his stature would seem to pay so much attention to what seemed to be inconsequential details in the middle of a political campaign or in analyzing why the government was or was not functioning as it should be at the moment. it was not unusual, it seemed to me, that he did that in covering every one of us, any one of us who were involved in politics. he was one of the few guys or women that, when they covered you, you were quite sure there would be nothing glowing that would be written. [laughter] but you were also sure that whatever he wrote would be reflective of the essence of

who you were even if, even if he exposed your warts, which he did. he gave true texture to his writing, and it gave insight to his readers. he was a writer who knew himself, felt and knew the real story that others seemed to be just covering. he covered washington, in my observation of 38 years, with no malice, no sentiment talt, and no excuses. as has been mentioned many times, he was always fair and occasionally hopeful. just as he made me and my colleagues look at ourselves, and "semi pro" specks is not a virtue that -- sfwro specks is not a virtue that many

politicians have. his piercing intellect, his prodigious talent, his integrity and objectivity as well as his discipline with which he pursued his profession were not only admirable, but as some of his colleagues have implied today, they seem to me to be the standard to which aspiring journalists should repair. emer son once wrote an institution is little more than the lengthened shadow of a man. an institution is little more than the lengthened shadow of a man. david broder cast a very long shadow, and our nation will be indeed lucky if the next

generation produces one, let alone several, david broders casting their own lengthy shadows over the next generation. truth isn't always beauty, but the hunger for it is wrote the noble laureate -- nobel laureate nadine gorimer. dared broder's hunger was insatiable. i learned more about it today. our world is a little more beautiful because of that insatiable hunger that he had. his legacy i believe with every fiber of my being is a standard worth pursuing, a standard that the professional -- the profession of journalism would do well to recalibrate and look at what made him what he was,

as well as those of us who are covered by the press, to have the humility of knowing that some of you, if not a lot of you who cover us, have more insight into who we are than sometimes we do. may he rest in peace. >> hello again. thank you, mr. vice president. thank you for honoring him, honoring the family, and honoring everybody here by speaking so honestly. and speaking on behalf, as you did, of those that were in that reporter's notebook. thank you very much. as we conclude, thank all of you again on behalf of the family for helping us say farewell and celebrate the of

our father, our grandfather, david d. broder. our father was a patriot in the truest sense of the word. to end this service we have asked michael ryan to lead us in the singing of god bless america. following the song, please remain for a few moments in the ballroom as our family and the vice president leave the room. a reception will begin shortly on this floor on the other side of the building. please wait for the voice of god and the secret service to alert you that it is ok to leave the room. once the family leaves, we will visit with you soon across the hall there. we know many of you have to get back to work running this

country. those of you that can stay, we look forward to visiting with you and hearing your stories. please make sure you sign one of the guest books and look at the items in front of the ballroom as you wait. on behalf of our family, thank you very much for being here today. michael? david s. broder. >> let's all stand once again, and this time we will sing god bless america. ♪ god bless america land that i love stand beside her and guide her through the night with a light from above. ♪ from the mountains to the prairies to the oceans white with foam. ♪ god bless america

my home sweet home god bless america my home sweet home ♪ [applause]

>> well start the next thing shortly. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

>> next, rolling stone executive editor acre bates on their report exerning u.s. soldiers in afghanistan. after that, president obama and paul ryan.

then shimon peres talks about things going on in the middle east. >> sunday on news makers, the republican national championship on possible 2012 g.o.p. candidates, primaries and fundraising. that is at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. eastern here on c-span. >> as a host and i think as a trader, your not necessarily a republican or a democrat. you are looking at the impact of what government is doing on the financial markets, whether it be the oil markets, or trading, or wall street firms. >> sunday, cnbc's fast money anchor melissa leon her career and influences, and what she believes is her role in reporting business and financial news. watch the rest of the interview

sunday night at 8:00. >> now a discussion concerning rolling stone magazine's report concerning u.s. troops in afghanistan. from the "washington journal," this is 40 minutes. "washington journal" continues. host: joining us from new york. city is eric bates, executive editor at "the rolling stone." he is joining us to talk about "the kill team." you can see the article on their web site, along with the pictures that were taken by members of the group. we warn that some of these pictures are grim and graphic. tell us what happened.

tell us what happened and what was the involvement in this group known as "the kill team. " guest: this was a group that over the course of four months basically went on a killing spree in afghanistan, selecting an armed afghanistans for execution and then planting weapons on their body to make it look like the soldiers have been been attacked. the killed at least four people that we know of. they often took treasures from the body, cutting off fingers and toes. host: who was taking the photographs? guest: it was part of a group of thousands of photographs that soldiers took. some of them were of children,

afghan people. some were taken by the soldiers posing with bodies and the civilians they killed. other photographs we do not know who took. it looks like other soldiers took them. one of the disturbing things is that among some of the photographs it appears there may have been war crimes committed by soldiers of the on this particular unit. there is one set of photographs that shows several afghanistas tied up on the sidef the road. this was another group that did that to those men in the photographs. ourt: we want to onwarn viewers and listeners that some of the pictures can be graphic. this is part of an article that rightwrites --

host: how did this story come to the attention of mike bowl? guest: the store has been reported well. 12 of the soldiers are charge. some have already been convicted in the killings. what mark did is take a look at the complete army investigative record we obtained and really tried to piece together the narrative of how this happened. what is disturbing is that this platoon has been portrayed by the pentagon as road platoon,

that they went off on their own and no one diknew they did this. when we look at the record, it looks like the responsibility for the killings may go higher and wider than the pentagon has led us to believe. it looks like other units may have participated in these kinds of war crimes as well. and host: how unusual is it that none of the officers who may have been involved have been charged with this? guest: what is disturbing is it was sort of an open secret among the soldiers that this was happening here ye. they boasted about it among themselves and to other platoons. one soldier said that the platoon had a reputation for staging killings and getting away with it. it is widely known.

the real question is why officers who were involved who were in a position to release some suspicions about what was happening were not disciplined? the first lieutenant of the unit that did this has been promoted to captain. host: we're talking to eric bates. he is coming to us from new york stone"out th"the rolling coverage of "the kill team." if you want to be involved in the coverage, give us a call. we will remind you that if you go to the rolling stone website to read the article, some of the pictures can be quite graphic our first call comes from pennsylvania. joe on the line for democrats.

and caller: i am wondering why a lot of the other news outlets will not cover this information when we should have freedom of the press, and it takes a good rock-and-roll magazine to let us know the facts. thank you for taking my call. guest: that is a very interesting question. i have been surprised by the lack of coverage in the traditional media and the last week of this report in the release of the photographs. in this case i think the photographs are so graphic and gruesome, television has had a hard time figuring out how to handle this. if they do not have visuals, they tend not to cover things. the rest of the media has been very reluctant to pick this up. part of this has to do with the fact it was u.s. soldiers engaged in this atrocity.

perhaps that is something for the american people to really fix.at and experiencnd host: next up, augusta, maine, on the line for democrats. caller: good morning. i appreciate your magazine. my question has to do with drug use among american soldiers in afghanistan. i have seen videos of troubled american soldiers having to train afghanistan police because they are stoned all the time. and i am wondering if we have been the idea of what the incidence is of drug abuse among american soldiers? my second question has to do with the ultimate impact and cost of this war. we have almost 1.5 million soldiers who will be returning at one point in time who have served multiple tours, and i am wondering if people really

calculate the cost of posttraumatic stress treatment and the cost of compensation and disability. thank you. guest: the first question i cannot speak to how widespread drug use is, but i can say with in this particular unit that was committing the crimes, it was clear the soldiers were basically getting high allot. -- getting high a lot. the way that these crimes came to light was through drug use. one soldier ironically named stoner went to complain to his superiors that the other guys were smoking in his room and did not like it. when the other guys found out that he told on them, they beat them up. certainly i do not think this platoon is alone in drug use. as to the cost and the

consequences of returning soldiers, i think we will see them more and more. we have covered several stories of soldiers returning from iraq who have had real difficulties with posttraumatic stress disorder. in some cases who have killed other people in the state's. i think this is going to be something unfortunately we will see a lot more of an have to grapple with here at home, the consequences of these very young men in these kinds of situations. host: as a matter of fact there is a piece on the incident you referred to.

host: back to the phones. jacksonville, n.c., on the line for independence. go ahead. caller: i am in the marine corps. it is really unfortunate one small group can stand the entire military, because this is not an everyday thing, and it is sad that the ones that are dying every day or the ones that have been captured, it is just sad that this is talked about when all the other things happening every day. is there a concern that this is putting about lights on all the military operating in afghanistan? guest: i would have opposite

concerned that stories like these did not get covered enough as compared to the heroism and other things that soldiers engaged in. because of the nature of the crimes, it is very hard for people to face up to them, so i think it is very important look at them. one of the disturbing things is it is not necessarily a group of small soldiers. the pentagon went through extraordinary leads to keep these photographs under wraps. -- lengths to keep these photographs under wraps. the pentagon set agents across the united states to get photographs and thumb drives across united states to get these so that no one would ever see them. one of the reasons for the court seal is that the photographs would negatively impact the reputation of the military. the judge in the pentagon had the same concern as the callers did about how this would make people look at the armed forces.

i think ultimately, while that is a concern, what is more important is that we look at any possibility of wrongdoing, and criminal wrongdoing, and make sure everyone is held accountable for it. the only way to make sure this does not happen again is to make sure the command structure knows of things kind will not be tolerated and officer in charge will be held accountable. host: how did "the rolling stone" come across these photographs? guest: we a tamed them from a source. -- we obtain them from a source. hem from a source. we have many more that we have not shared. in a lot of cases we felt that we just did not know enough to

put them out there and say what we were looking at. host: two of the soldiers featured in the article feature corporal more lock and david brown. tell us about corporate morlock and why he is central to this article. guest: he was convicted a week ago on three counts of murder. he pleaded guilty to a guilty sentence in exchange for testimony against the team leader who the pentagon is portraying as the ringleader of the killings. he grew up in alaska, not far from the palain's. there is really a question about whether he should have been allowed in the military to begin with. the military has been lowering its standards because they are desperate for recruits.

he had a real history of getting into trouble, of getting drunk, the scene of a serious car accident. only a month before deployment he was charged with disorderly conduct after burning his wife with a cigarette. there is a real question as to whether he should have been in the military to begin with. host: we are talking with eric bates, executive editor of "the rolling stone" we're talking about actions of a group that has come to be known as "the kill team." vicki on the line for democrats. go ahead. caller: thank you. i just want to point out that we as americans are doing this to young men who are willing to find out what their adult life

is going to be by signing it over to us, to this country. i believe the soldiers do not have a sense of value and dignity and as americans over there and their purpose. i think it is no wonder that the suicide rate for the military is so high. i just cannot help but wonder if there are any suicides in connection with this incident. people who were aware of it and just could not bear to be affiliated with it. guest: that is an excellent question, and i think that the point is well made also. what is disturbing is to see the military's reaction to this. while it is admirable they're

prosecuting these 12 men to try to minimize it and portray it as only this one group of soldiers, when there seems to be evidence to suggest that culpability may be wider than that. the military has a responsibility to implicate the troops with the right values and right approach. if you have this degree of a serious breakdown where u.s. soldiers are picking out a 15- year-old boys and gunning them down for no reason, you really have to ask, is the military doing its job and is there more serious breakdown they need to be addressing? host: in an article he writes this --

host: back to the phones. alberta on the line for republicans. you are on eric bates with "the magazine.one's"

caller: the problem is guys like you. if you did not fight for this country, you should not be in this position. which you it is all about money and putting your face on television. i would like to see all you people all here pointing fingers. guys like me to our disabled and to ruin us. the problem is with the american people, what would happen if this happened in this country? we fought kids in vietnam. i do not want to hear your nonsense in your stupid magazine. you should be ashamed of yourself. host: have you had a chance to read this article? caller: no, but i have p.t.s.d. host: let me read you a little

bit of the article -- caller: this is every day war. we should not be there if these

people are going to put this on tv. i got busted in vietnam. i was not allowed to shoot back. this is what is wrong with the media. host: we're going to leave it there. eric bates, go ahead. ' anger is callers an understandable. they are asked to take life-and- death situations in an instant, and in not battlefield situation there is no question that mistakes can occur and that horrible things can happen. what is really important to understand in this case is this is not a story about the fog of war. this is not a story about civilians under attack and accidentally killing civilians. this is a story about soldiers who decided to kill unarmed civilians who went out and targeted a 15-year-old boy.

they picked him out at random. they called him over and gunned him down. after they gunned him down, the cut off his pinky finger and kept as a trophy. it is very important to understand what we're doing is not meant as an attack on the troops for the soldiers. our concern here is the chain of command. are the folks who were in a position to know about those, and at least have suspicions that something was going on and did not take actions to stop it? the case you just read is a 15- year-old boy who was gunned down. the day after this happened 20 villagers marched on the local base were the soldiers were house to complain to their superiors that the soldiers had killed the boy.

the top officers at the base knew that the villagers were concerned to take this action and protest. that is why we put this out there. and not because we are attacking the soldiers, but we have real concerns that the command structure is being held accountable. host: the last calller was a veteran. meliy was a single incident. as horrific as it was, involving an entire village, what is disturbing is the soldiers were doing this over and over again over a time of at least four months, where they were picking out civilians and executing

them. they were also staging the killings to make it look like they have been attacked. they were gathering weapons that they could plant next to the bodies to make it look like they were enemy combatants. here you have a real calculated mindset over a period of time and the sharing of the photographs of themselves posing with their victims. that is particularly disturbing. host: our next call comes from orlando, florida. bob on the line for indep endents. caller: i am a vietnam veteran. and i can understand someone really doing wrong, breaking the law, but if "the rolling stone" and mr. bates who had never been in combat, if they are so concerned about what is going

on, why don't they just threaten to go public? look what they did to general crystal. i think "the rolling stone" is an outrage, and he should be ashamed of himself for doing this portion of the magazine to come out with this type of information. they could keep this under wraps. it is not necessary to expose the military to the atrocities they were doing. host: before you go, why is it so important in your mind that someone who was reporting on the wars in afghanistan have combat experience? caller: when you are being shot at and you can feel the bullets going over your head and beside you and you see your body next you get shot, believe me, it

just crews your mind up. -- screws your mind up. you do not know who you are fighting. we had a 10-year-old kid come and blow himself up. it is scary. it is absolutely scary. host: eric bates, go ahead. guest: let me reiterate, this is not a case where the soldiers mistook a 15-year-old boy for a threat. this is a case where they saw a boy in the field, called him over, knew he was unarmed and represented no threat and just picked him not to execute him. and this is something i would think that veterans and former soldiers particularly would be very concerned about, because it does besmirch the name of the

military and honorable actions of some of the soldiers. i would think veterans would be particularly a gas that this type of behavior and practically in a position to condemn it. certainly it is true, no one who has been in battle -- who has not been in battle can begin to imagine what the experience is like. the concern is the pentagon operating in secrecy has intended to cover these things up here yet that is why exposure is necessary to make sure everyone knows what is going on in to make sure that those who have committed crimes, and we're not talking about accidental shootings in the midst of a bottle, we're talking about crimes were people were guilty that those people be prosecuted and those in the command position be held accountable if they did not take action to stop it. host: when you notified the pentagon you were going ahead

with the story and have these pictures, what was their response? guest: we did notify the pentagon. in part notified them because we wanted to see what they could tell us about the photographs, and we also notified them because we knew the reaction might potentially put troops in harm's way. we want to give them a heads up that this was coming. they mostly spoke to was off the record, so i cannot tell you what they said, but in one on the record conversation we pointed to the photographs of the men tied up beside the road, and we wanted to know if they were investigating who those men were, the circumstances under which there were killed, and whether u.s. troops were involved in the desecration of the bodies. basically the response of the pentagon is they have no way of knowing in no way of basically figuring out who the men in the photographs were. that was disturbing, because you could see from some of the related photographs that there

were marks on the striker vehicles and other identifying signs that any peace investigator could have to track down what had happened in that incident. there is a real concern, and that is part of the region right we decided to go public with the material, that the pentagon was not investigating this aggressively. host: our next call is from durum, north carolina. stacy is the next calller. caller: i find this all very disturbing. this is coming from someone who supports the troops in the hard work they're doing over there. i think that "the rolling stone" has gone beyond the pale. i know you did an awesome job for what you did to general crystal, and now you are doing a bang up job on what you're trying to portray the military

as. i think if you took the same power and motivation to mexico, the killings in mexico, maybe your subscription would go up a lot more. knowing now that these people are not little sweet, funny maybe you mightits, want to investigate that. thank you. host: eric bates. guest: we have covered the war on drugs quite extensively in the war on mexico quite extensively. we have done at least two or three major features on that. in one case we went to try to track down a major drug lord and meet with him in person. that is an area we have paid a lot of attention to. i think there is a perception that by reporting this kind of atrocity that we're somehow

tried to portray the entire military negatively. in fact, if you read the article, we try to explain exactly the circumstances that the soldiers found themselves in. they were a member of the fifth rigade. burgra they found that the vehicles, which were supposed to provide them with a lot more mobility and armored protection simply did not work. the caliban figured out how to target the vehicles, and this burgrave suffered the highest casualty rates of any in the nine-year war. they were under attack under a daily basis. -- the taliban if you're out to target the vehicles, and this brigade set for the highest casualty rates of any in the nine-year war. they would send out patrol after

patrol, never having any engagement with the enemy, and they were getting very frustrated. what is more is this command structure in this particular case appears to a created an environment where everyone was seen as the televisialiban. here we are in a country where we are trying to win over the population to our side and our point of view, and the soldiers had come to see even children and elderly people as the enemy. they were going out and executing them for no reason. we went to great pains to try to understand the situation that the soldiers found themselves in and explain that to our readers. host: next up. wichita, kansas. caller: good morning. i am a 20-year navy veteran of vietnam. i can understand the vets that

were in combat. i was in the navy off the coast. i can understand their point, but i can also understand we cannot equate just because the taliban beheads people that we can have troops killing people. i do not get the correlation. i am glad for your reporting on this. i also think you for your reporter. thank you. guest: thanks for your comments. importantt is for anyone that supports the troops that they should be particularly vocal in condemning this behavior. host: michigan.

don on the line for indepen dents. caller: i am very glad for your reporting. i did not have to go to vietnam, but i am 72-years-old, and my grandson is on his second tour for iraq. i have seen in my lifetime of fought the germans, japanese, italian, chinese, koreans. this seems endless. your article does a lot of good. hopefully people will learn that perhaps just killing people is not going to solve of blooming thing. when we have these young people who leave their families to go over and they are being told you have to kill the enemy, our so-

called congressman, president, leaders are supposed to be adult enough to know what they are doing. instead of selling their souls to the military industrial complex for money and campaign contributions. host: don in michigan, thank you for your call. go ahead, eric bates. guest: i think it is heartening to hear veterans that recognize this kind of atrocity is beyond the pale. it is not the reputation in the military, it is about making sure crimes are prosecuted fully and accountability is distributed. host: in an update that was posted on your web site, there is a report where a washington times correspondent got a couple of seconds with former defense secretary ron spelled who says that's -- defense secretary

rumsfield who say the "kill team" photographs were much worse than the abu ghraib pictures. put these stories into context for us as far as the people who are reading them and the effects they are having on people in the united states and throughout the world. guest: i think abu ghraib had an immediate effect. they mostly did not involve anyone being killed. people could see the cruelty with which prisoners were being treated by u.s. troops. i think it had a very immediate impact. i think you saw some of the same concerns as you see with the

killed team about whether the higher ups are being prosecuted as vigorously as the troops on the ground who directly committed the wrongdoing. in the case of abu ghraib, very few higher-ups' were prosecuted. even though secretary rumsfield's own right-hand man was dispatched to basically teach the soldiers had to kill them and stimulate the through what reporting. those sorts of higher ups were never held accountable just as they have not been so far in "the kill team." general crystal is a very different issue. it is one for respect of civilian command. we have a military in this country that is subject to

civilian control and command. here you have the leading general in charge of all troops in afghanistan basically openly dissing his civilian commanders. that is a very grave situation and one that has real constitutional issues involved, but was not a matter of immediate life and death. host: in this situation regarding "the kill team" can you tell is the highest commissions officer level involved in this? guest: as of this morning the pentagon released a report that was there was an investigation into the command structure. apparently this investigation concluded that colonel tunnel, while not directly responsible or accountable in the killings had really let the environment group to get out ofad

control where everyone in the groups of everyone as enemies and there was a real search and destroy a mentality that was counter to the military strategy of counterinsurgency, which involves protecting the local population win them over. that said, the colonel was only given a letter of admonition. reprimanded. there appears to be lower- ranking officers that were reprimanded. i have not a chance to see which ones. until this report came out, all of this has been kept secret. host: next up, detroit, michigan. next up is bishop. caller: please allow me the time to complete my thoughts, because i tend to see you cut people off that do not agree with a certain point of view. i am a veteran of vietnam.

to study history and see that people do not follow it or learn from basically lies of history, we are doomed to repeat it. it was not based on a lie. basically the military industrial complex and international bankers and what ever that profit off of the wars, they have a vested interest in dehumanizing us and the enemy. it takes honor away from war. host: we will leave it there. go ahead. guest: the war itself is about desensitizing people to death in killing. we have done articles in the past where we look at the way the military trains soldiers.

basically in order to get young people to be able to kill and follow orders to kill, even in legitimate combat, involves a whole process of desensitizing them to the very idea they are killing people. they are not killing people, they are identifying targets. that kind of language is. it is very difficult or very tricky in a combat situation to make those kinds of distinctions about who you were targeting into you are killing. in this case you had a very conscious effort by a group of soldiers to just go out and kill civilians who they knew posed no threat. host >> malraux, a political

roundtable on the news of the week. -- tomorrow, a political roundtable on the news of the week. we will talk about federal spending and the budget with grover norquist. "washington journal" the 7:00 eastern on c-span. >> in his weekly address, president obama talks about friday night's federal spending agreement that avoided a government shutdown. he also talks about the need for future compromise. paul ryan also discusses the federal spending agreement as well as his proposed budget for next year.

folks can visit our national museums and parks, and hundreds of thousands of americans will get their pay checks on time, including the brave men and women in uniform. this is an agreement to invest in the future, while reaching -- one making the largest annual spending cut in our history. this required everyone to give ground on issues that were important to them. i certainly did. some of the cuts we agreed to will be painful. programs people rely on will be cut back. needed infrastructure projects will be delayed. i would have not made these cuts and better circumstances. -- in better circumstances.

beginning to live within our means is the only way to protect the investments that will help america compete for new jobs. a few months ago i was able to sign a tax cut for american families, because both sides worked through their differences and found common ground. now the same corporation has made it possible for us to move forward with the biggest annual spending cut in history. it is my sincere hope we can continue to come together as we face the many fiscal challenges that lie ahead from creating jobs and growing our economy, to educating our children and reducing our -- turned up the sets.

that is our responsibility. that is what the american people expect us to do, and it is what the american people deserve. >> hello, i am congressman paul ryan. it is no secret our government has a spending problem, and the problem has gone so bad it is threatening our future and our ability to create jobs. republicans made a pledge that we would work to change this if given the opportunity to lead. since january we have been urging president obama to listen to the people and work with us to reduce spending. the president started this year by proposing a freeze that would make no cuts at all. now bipartisan legislation is in sight to enact the largest spending cuts in american history. this is good news for job creators in america, but much more has to be done to put our nation on it true path to prosperity. earlier this week the house budget committee advance a new

budget that will move the debate in washington from billions in spending cuts to trillion spirited we did so because it is unconscionable to lead the next generation -- lead the next generation with a crushing burden of debt in a nation in decline. washington's obsession with the next election has come of the expense of the next generation. we're calling this budget oa path to prosperity. by removing banker of debt that we start our economy and advancing pro-rate tax reforms, this budget is a jobs budget. it sends signals to investors, entrepreneurs, and job creators that a brighter future is still possible, a future in which america is still an engine of growth that leads the world. right now the legacy is in grave danger.

this nation is going deeper and deeper into debt, and the spending choices we make today will determine the kind of lives are children enjoy tomorrow. the facts are these, washington has not been telling you the truth about the magnitude of the problems we are facing. unless we act soon, government spending on health and retirement programs will count -- crowd out spending on everything else, including national security. he will live freak take every cent of every federal tax dollar just to pay for the programs. -- it will literally take every cent of every federal tax dollar just to pay for the programs. each year that policy makers take this can down the road means trillions of dollars and empty promises are being made to future generations. if we stay on the current path, we are heading toward a debt-

fueled economic crisis, meaning massive tax increases, runaway inflation, or all of the above. make no mistake, the prospect of a crisis is casting a shadow on economic activity in this country. uncertainty is keeping job creators from hiring as fast as they should be. businesses know that all of the borrowing and spending today, it means higher taxes and lower incomes for the customers down the road. economists agree advancing equitable solution to this crisis will begin to restore confidence and create better conditions for job creation immediately. the president's recent budget proposal is worse than just a commitment to the status quo, it would actually accelerate this country's descent into a debt crisis. it would double the debt held by the public by the end of his term and triple its in a decade from now. it would raise taxes by 1.5

trillion dollars, even though the problem is that washington spends too much not that americans are taxed too little. it would permanently enlarge the size of government by sending government spending as a share of the economies are rocketing to levels that help the economy simply cannot sustain and it offers no real reforms to save government health and retirement programs and no leadership. our budget is very different. instead of locking in a spending spree of the last two years, our budget cuts 6.2 trillion dollars over the next 10 years. this keeps government spending at a share of the economy consistent with the historical average of 20%. so that individuals in the economy can be free. instead of letting deficit spiral out of control, our budget keeps borrowing in check and put this in the path of balance.

this path to prosperity lifts this crushing burden of debt that is threatening our economy and our children's future. it is not too late to fix america's problems. it is not too late to get our country back on track so that our kids can also realize the american dream. we can and we must preserve this nation's exceptional promise, because that is exactly what previous generations of americans worked so hard to do for us. it is time for officials in washington to stop acting like politicians and start acting like leaders. we have a legacy to fill. it is time for all of us to get to work, put an end to the empty promises in advance and path to prosperity. >> next the israeli premise with wolf talks blitzed. after that, eric bates on this

special report concerning u.s. soldiers in afghanistan. >> throughout the month of april, we will finish the top winners of the student cam competition. nearly 1500 students submitted documentaries. watch the winning videos every morning on c-span at 6:50 a.m. eastern, just before "washington journal." meet the students who created them. watch them on line any time. >> the israeli president sat down with cnn anchor wolf on tuesday. r he began his journalism career as a reporter after reuters bureau in the israeli city of

televisa. the u.s. and 60 -- institute of peace to this event. it is about 45 minutes. i want to generally thank each and every one of you for joining with us. as you may be aware, president obama graciously invited the president to stay in the blair house during his visit to washington this week. to illustrate the wish -- richness of wisdom and experience of the president, it is important to note that his

first stay at the blair house, 50 years ago this month working on behalf of american and israeli relations. [applause] as we begin, i would like to pay particular recognition to my former colleagues in the united states congress, speaker nancy pelosi joined us earlier. my home town senator, senator bill nelson. senator chris tunes, senator bob parker, and senator frank wander. -- senator frank lumberautenber. members of the house. gary ackerman, sherry berkeley, dan burton, c:, ted deutsche,

who has very big shoes to fill, need a low week, jerry nadler, dan schakowsy, and debbie watzermen schultz. [applause] >> i would like to recognize and thank the distinguished diplomatic figures that have joined us this evening from the czech republic, egypt, france, ga., germany, israel of course, jordan, the netherlands, poland, switzerland, and the united kingdom as well as the european union and palestinian authority. [applause] i would be remiss if i did not pay special tribute to our center for middle east peace

team for their hard work and devotion. most especially i want to recognize a patriotic american, vetran, dannie war ii abraham. [applause] with that, i will turn the program over to a gentleman who is i would say -- respectively suggest the most trusted name in the news, a talented journalist and newsman who was not only

kind enough to join us this evening, but when asked said it would be a privilege. it is my privilege to introduce tzer.e bli [applause] >> it is my privilege to introduce the president of israel, shimon peres. [applause] >> mr. president, you should know that here in the united

states when the president is introduced, we do not have long introductions. i took that privilege to introduce you, the president of the state of israel. thank you for joining us. >> thank you very much. [applause] >> i do not think shimon peres needs much of an introduction. he comes at this issue with an enormous amount of history and credibility, so let's get right to the questioning, because the viewers in this room and around the country on c-span, as well as cnn, we're all interested in what you have to say. this is clearly an historic time in the middle east. we're seeing enormous change, many have compared it to what happened with the fall of the berlin wall in europe in the late 1980's, early 1990's. let's talk about egypt right

now, at the dramatic change. president mubarak no longer president of the region. is this good or bad for egypt -- israel? >> i have to be fair and say that [inaudible] i shall never forget another war in the middle east. we have to tell the people we are in the new age, modern life, and we cannot go on with this corruption and division and dictatorship. i think it is a good opening. it is needed for the egyptians,

and we are very happy. >> are you confident the next government in egypt will continue to honor the peace treaty with israel? >> i do believe it for many reasons. i think in all of the neighboring young generations will take over and go their way, we have to find a solution for the conflict between us and the palestinians. i would like to see them be free of it. i do believe we shall see in egypt a free and more successful egypt. >> i want to get to the israel/palestinian peace process, but let's continue on egypt for a moment. i was just there the other day

with hillary clinton. walking around cairo, i got a sense that it was by no means resolved who would be merged as a real leader of egypt. how worried are you that the muslim brotherhood could be merged in free and fair elections in egypt as the dominant player in the next government? >> i would not exclude it, but i would not take it as the only solution. the real problem of egypt is poverty. to solve it. in 1952 there were 18 million people in egypt. today 50 years later there are 81 million. the growing population is five times. nothing else grew at the same pace.

the real problem is how to enable egypt to escape the poverty. egypt is not a country that has a leader. it is a leader that fits the country. i think egypt can escape poverty if they join the modern age and an economy that does that hang on reverse, but rather science and technology. the young generation are educated people. they cannot find a job, so it is a combination of young people and women. women that want to have a quality. they will not give up even if they do not succeed the first time. they have opened their eyes

banks to modern communication -- thanks to modern communication. they have seen the ugliness of corruption. the ugliness of division and they will not close their eyes. the muslim brotherhood is not more than 50% or 20%. they are not the majority of egyptians. it depends on who will be better organized. generally they are not and will not be the majority, neither will they be the solution. >> when i was in cairo a couple of weeks ago, a couple of people said to me do not be surprised if the muslim brotherhood and new elections get a lot more than 50% or 20%. -- more than 15% or 20%. >> they make it more.

the problem for egypt is not first, but poverty. many of the young people understand it. one of the illusions and life is that the right side is perfect -- the vicious side is perfect and the right size is corrupted. we should not -- we exaggerate all the time here yet to go let's move on to syria. syria.et's morve on to i spoke to an israeli yesterday who said as much problems as

there have been, there have not been any violence for 40 years or so. as bad as the relationship might be between syria and israel, they are worried about what might happen next. are you worried about what is happening right now in syria from israel's perspective? >> first of all, war is not the policy. if you have to ask yourself what can be done? i believe that finally a democratic system in syria is our best bet. the president of syria was believing that the people of syria were in love with him. e.d. emerged as an illusion. you have to distinguish between support and supporters.

in cairo, the support will disappear. for the first time in 40 years a family can say they are not supported as they were. we did not do it, neither can we stop it or change it. i believe this is democracy and freedom will take its place in syria. this is the best for the future. >> next door in love and on as well? >> yes. -- next door in lebanon as well? >> they are not so religious. they are extreme. it was a peaceful country. they want to control the government, but again, what for?

what is their message. they are getting $1 billion per year from iran. they are serving the wrong hands more than they are serving the lebanese. basic facts are we should not overlook them. we will like to see love and on free, united, democratic. this is the best solution. >> how close was israel to a peace deal with syria? >> if syria will divorce his block, we're very close. if they want to have it both ways, nothing will happen. will divorce hezbollah, we are very close. >> is as real ready to give it

up? >> all prime ministers in the past have said so. we are ready to change education, but -- the agreement, but not to the point will they will take over the iranians. an >> so you would insist on some sort of demilitarization? >> it is not enough. if the syrians want to have peace, we are ready and willing to have it.

and but not in the imagination. not something that is not real. if they will make a choice, we shall make a choice. >> on jordan, just checking in on your neighbors, are you worried about what is going on in jordan right now? >> i think what we have to do is try to serve the people. and if we are really serious, we have to help him overcome economic difficulties. he is short of water and energy. i think that we have to help him overcome, and when i say we i do not mean israel. i think we should keep ourselves

in the rear, not an affront, but whoever can help him. for example, the non-government to companies in the united states. so they have created their own foreign nations to give back the money. in the way of destiny and politics mainly instead of just helping sick people in the country to help sick countries to be able to cure themselves, and it will take care of their own sick people. and that will be a great change. we have to act positively.

dealings and moved are important, the but you have to make a choice. >> how did your meetings with president obama go today? >> very well. i trust the president. i think he is serious. i think he has a dilemma that all of us have, and the dilemma is between falling the core values and the realistic situation, which is not necessarily as small as it would like to be. and to be honest, everyone has the supreme consideration. if you do not have a moral code, you have to choose between difficult and complicated situations, at the least is the

best decision. otherwise it is the one that is the least damaging choice. i do not think the united states has declined. i think the burden on the united states has increased. you have the same shoulders, but not the same burden. the world became larger and numbers, complicated in nature. i think the united states remains the real responsible power. the uniqueness of the united states in my eye is that this is the only great power in history that became great by giving, not by taking. you are helping other people buy it regaining their independence, a future. you send your boys to fight for

other people. some of them lose their lives. you have territories and assets. you gave to the japanese and improved in japan. you gave germany and improved germany. and you all the time are using generosity as historic policy. and i do not know any other. >> would you say to the israelis that do not consider president obama a friend of israel? >> i say i am mistaken. -- they are mistaken. >> give me an example of why they are mistaken? >> they did not believe that the united states would use their power in the security council. the president has told me several times that as long as he

is president, the security of israel will be on top of his political consideration. the united states was the only country that did not take the assault on calls that as a true one. . so what ever we tell them, i can see that we have our response. the president's -- the president is not always flowerly in language. for example, if i take his cairos speech, the united states wants to improve relations with the muslim world. what for?

we would also like to improve our policies to the muslim world. the muslims are not our enemies. we would like to achieve the same thing. i could not recall [inaudible] >> did the president asked you once again today to freeze all settlement activity? >> the president told me this is the policy -- policy of the united states. i told him this is the policy, but also a situation over the past 40 years. for the past 40 years no israeli

government from the right or left built in the 21 arab suburbs. we're quinn to continue. so the united states officially did not support it, but accepted it. the same is about settlements in the west bank. the united states is against building more settlements. the best we can do is not to build settlements and turn them into building only in the existing settlements in the build up effort. >> do you support that? >> i respect the will of the people. so i support the democratic system.

this is the best we can achieve. while the united states would love to change its principles, [inaudible] >> is the united nations general assembly going to vote to recognize an independent palestinian state in september? >> it is a possibility. and this is a mistake. >> why? >> because peace must be a result of this. >> you do support a palestinian state? >> yes. >> you support a two-state solution? >> yes. >> everyone knows what out lines will roughly be. >> yes. >> so what is the problem? >> the problem is the border in nations and how to answer the

security needs of israel itself being alone in the middle east. well we respect very much the position of this, we cannot close our eyes to the danger of hamas in gaza. we left gaza on our own free will. we said repeatedly we do not want to return. we left gaza in order to bring back the settlers. we have mobilized 75,000 policemen. we have had to pay 2.5 billion compensation.

we cannot understand why are th shooting? one of the reasons we left gaza. what is the purpose? what do they want to achieve? >> the question is if the boat is happening in september of the general assembly of the u.n. to recognize the palestinian state, israel is a member of the general assembly, you think israel will vote against the resolution? >> yes. >> did the president tell you how the united states would boat? to go i did not ask him. -- >> i did not ask him. the united nations can vote.

they must be responsible. you cannot solve the problems just by issuing declarations. >> is president abas committed to the peace process? to go in my judgment, yes. i think maybe this is the best hope we could have a. >> so you should take advantage of the opportunity to negotiate peace with him? >> yes. . i think they have their own conditions. israel has its own conditions also. to get this it may be more psychological more than material, but it is also a problem. i do believe, and i do hope it is possible that there will be

peace. >> nothing is happening right now? >> i think there is an attempt to achieve it. i would not give up the hope that we can reopen negotiations. >> have you seen this initiative which 200 israelis have now signed? including former leaders of the military calling for palestinians basically in the pre-1967 borders, including the capital? >> yes. >> do you support this? >> i have to support the policy of the government. it is a democratic country. it is my due respect to respect the majority. and the majority today is for a two-state solution, but with a

very heavy emphasis on security and mutual understanding and agreement. >> as part of that agreement, would you be willing to give up land a pre-1967 israel to the palestinians in exchange for land in the palestinian territories that would become part of the state of israel? >> as part of a final peace settlement with the palestinians? >> we are willing and ready to go forward. if you need some percentage to have at an agreed and secure borders, we should compensate with other business plans. >> in other words may be a part of galilee? >> i do not believe that it is considered part of israel and would like to divorce is real.

so i would not force anybody. the peace must be done by agreements. and i think it can be an achievement. >> how close in your opinion is iran to building a nuclear bomb? >> i mean, there are different ideas. some say a year, two years, three years. it is very hard to know. because it is very hard to measure, but i do believe and a clear ira -- a nuclear iran is a problem for the rest of the world. a nuclear bomb is dangerous for

washington, new york, paris, moscow, everybody. i believe all of them today, including something that the russians understand some of the nuclear bomb in the hands of fanatic people is the greatest danger to the peace in the world. >> is it your opinion that iran recently suffered a major setback in the nuclear weapons program by cyber warfare? the warm that has been widely reported? -- the worm that has been widely reported. >> i know what is in the papers. >> i think you know more than that. [laughter] >> i don't think i have to take a position on intelligence and go into figures and numbers. >> without getting into who was responsible for that, did that

set back the nuclear program? >> i do not have a definite answer. i do not know. >> do want to tell us who was responsible for that? >> why is it needed? [laughter] >> i am a journalist, i am curious. >> you are a journalist, i am a politician. [laughter] [applause] >> i did not really expect you to tell me. i ask the questions. how much of our role is iran playing in the middle east and north africa right now in the unrest that we're seeing? >> by the way, whenever a president loses his political role, order is a must.

we do not need the agreement of the people to spend it. to give it billion dollars for example to sustain hezbollah, while there is 30% unemployment in iran. to take away money from the youngsters and invested in enriched uranium is a scandal. the best way to change the situation is to support the are romains people -- iranian people who are ashamed of their own government. i believe in dealing with them, sanctions are important, but what is missing is the mold corruption. it is the most dangerous one. they are the model of the mole

corruption. issues of money. calling for terror and death, hatred. an,y spend money anin irank, sudan, hamas. i must ask myself, what does he really want? he is the supreme leader. what do they want? what they want in my judgment is to be greater than they are. they want greatness. greatness is something that is very hard to achieve if you do not have it. you cannot achieve it by false pretense or decision. i think we have to understand that the holiness begins to such

an extreme degree that it is an unexpected level and it is a problem. it became dangerous since we have nuclear bombs. because for nuclear bombs we do not see the majority. people can carry from one place to another. that is a great problem. >> a couple of things because we're almost out of time. there was a report in some of the israeli newspapers already that you asked president obama today to free the convicted american spy, jonathan j. pollard. >> the argument is human, not judgment, but consideration. the man is sick. he is in prison for a long

time. and i myself am in charge of pardoning different people. we have 6000 appeals every year, and i have to check everything carefully. i am at the level of the judges, but the calls i respect. there are certain conditions, human suffering from a state of health, and that is what i asked. i did not ask the united states would change its mind about the wrongs that followed it, but will consider the human consideration. clemency. >> what did he say? >> i did not expect an answer to a question myself. if someone would say help me, i would say leave melo