fair that took place friday at the soap box and that weekend's straw poll. thank you always for your perspective on company. >> thank you. >> a couple more minutes of your phone calls. janine joins us as we look at the scene inside the hilton coliseum. go ahead, janine. caller: yes. thank you for taking my call. being in iowa i know that we spend a lot of time with michele balkman and we've heard a lot from tim pawlenty. who was nice watching the straw poll and giving the idea that there are those thaddeus mckotters out there that have just a kind of take and some were giving that information as well as she indicated, that's the state fair that they have [inaudible] where they had the coins dropped in the jars, and

the fact that we have so many candidates, and we don't know a whole lot about any of them. that's where we're getting the spars look at republicans are a big force but we just need the candidate that has that big specialness. >> you place a colonel of corn for the candidate who is your choice. the republicans and president obama is listed this. is listed there. tomas is joining us. denver, republican line. go ahead. >> hi. i was really disappointed with michele balkman, because she just panders. she had a great sea pack but ever since then she just panders. so i'm real disappointed with her. >> do you have a candidate in this race? >> no. i'm kind of wandering through the field. thaddeus mccarter has a speech

that put it into the 21st century and how we could be empowered through the internet with what's going on. and herman cain, i like him. i just like him. and rick santorum, i think he's getting a bad wrap from the media. and ron paul, he lives in fantasy land and is shown to be the most selfish kind of american there is. he doesn't want a foreign policy. and tim pawlenty is just an old ordinary politician, that's all he is. >> thank you. outside the coliseum where tim pawlenty and others have their tent and trying to erin courage people to vote at the straw polls. it's just past 4:00 and the voting has concluded. the calculations continue and

are expected in the next hour. from houston, go ahead. thank you for waiting, andrew. caller: no problem. thank you for taking my call. i just wanted to say, listening to something amy said about ron paul being an aislelationist, and i just totally disagree. when the founders started this country, even without entangling yourselves in other people's alliances. that's part of the reason why we're broke is because we think we have to save everyone in the world. you can't do that. it's probably the biggest form of welfare. because we go out, we can't take care of stuff at home and we go out and spend money and money and money and money, and it's just ridiculous. we go into libya, and we're already broke. then we talk about his electibility. all of these news stations, they don't even talk about ron

paul. they don't give hip a shot -- they don't give him a shot. in the primary, people wouldn't even mention his name in the news. they were talking about the guy in the second place but not about ron paul coming in at third place. also he talks about the fed, which is one huge reason why we have such, you know, big monetary or economic problems right now. you have to think about monetary policy and fix them before you fix any other problems. >> six candidates speaking. nine on the ballot. also a place for a write-in balance lot and results expected from the coliseum in about an hour. we will hear from matthew strewn -- all of the interviews

that you heard at the "des moines register"ed soap box including congressman ron paul and thaddeus mckotter and mitt romney, they all spoke there over the last couple of days. it's posted on our website as are our interviews and all our c-span coverage. more form morning on tomorrow's "washington journal." we'll break in live when the results are announced but earlier today the announcement of rick perry, the governor of texas who is the longest-serving governor in the country and has been elected three times and has a war chest of $20 million-plus and here's his announcement. charleston, south carolina at about 1:00 p.m. this afternoon.

>> ladies and gentlemen, welcome to south carolina. it is my pleasure to introduce governor rick perry. he is married to his high school sweetheart anita, the first woman he ever dated. and he has two children. and governor rick perry's cut taxes on property and small businesses, stopped lawsuits and cut government spending for the first time since world war ii. rick perry has helped build the

nation's top economy since june of 2009, more than 40% of all new jobs in america have been created in texas. that's why we, today, can call him the jobs governor, rick perry. [applause] >> yes, sir. howdy. afternoon. erik, thank you have. it is great to be at red state but it's even better to be the governor of the largest red state in america. [applause] and it's sure good to be back in the paul meadow state of south carolina. i enjoy coming to places where folks like mickey haley are elected. true conservative. and also where they love the greatest fighting force on the face of the earth, the united states military. [applause]

and i want to take a moment. i want to take a moment and ask you to just take some silence. think about those young navy seals, the other special operators who gave it all in the service of their country and take a moment to say thank you, lord, that we have those self-less, sacrificial men and women. their sacrifice was immeasurable. and their dedication profound. and we will never, ever forget them. [applause] i stand before you today as the governor of texas. but i also stand before you the son of two tenn't farmers, ray

perry who came home after 35 bombing missions over europe to work his corner land and amealya who made sure my sister, mil and i had everything we needed including hand suing my clothes until i went tufe college. i'm a product of paint creek. don't have a zip code. too small to be called a town along the rose and plains of texas. we drew cotton and creek and when i wasn't farming or attending school, i was generally over at troop 48, working on my eagle scout award. [applause] and around the age of 8, i was blessed. didn't realize it, but i was blessed to meet my future wife aanytimea thinking pen at a

piano recital. we had our first date eight years later and she finally agreed to marry me 16 years after that. nobody says i am not persistent. you know, there's no greater way to live life than with someone you love. and my first love is with us today, my lovely wife anita. [applause] we're also blessed to have two incredible children, griffin and sidney. and they are also here with us today, and they are our and our wonderful daughter-in-law meredith. i'd like to introduce those, too. [applause] yes. thank you. you know what i learned growing up on the farm was a way of life centered on hard work and on faith and on thrift.

those values have stuck with me my whole life. but it wasn't until i graduated from texas a&m university and joined the united states air force, that i truly appreciated the blessings. abraham lincoln and the last great hope of mankind. [applause] >> the systems of government that el crate rulers at the expense of the people. socialist systems that cloaked, maybe in good intentions,s but were delivering misery and stagnation, and i learned that not everyone values life like we do in america. or the rights that are endowed

to every human being by a loving god. you see, as americans, we're not defined by class, and we will never be told our place. [applause] what makes our nation exceptional is that anyone with, from any background, can climb to the highest of heights. as americans, we don't see the role of government as guaranteeing outcomes but allowing free men and women to flourish based on their own vision, hard work and personal responsibility. and as americans, we realize that there is no taxpayer money that wasn't first earned by the sweat and toil of one of our citizens. [applause]

that's why we reject this president's unbridaled fix asian on -- fix sation on taking more money out of pocketbooks of american families and businesses and giving it to businesses. it punishes success while setting a course for greater dance on government. washington's insatiable desire to spend our children's inheritance on failed stimulus plans and other misguided economic there's a have given us record debt and left us with far too many unemployed. but of course now we're told we're in recovery. [laughter] >> yeah. but this year doesn't feel like a recovery. it's more than 9% of americans out there unemployed. or the 16% african-american,

11% hispanic in the same position or the millions who can only find part-time work, or those who have even stopped looking for a job. one in six work-eligible americans can't find a full-time job? that is not a recovery, that is an economic disaster. [applause] think about it, for those americans who do have put the jobs, they are not experiencing an economic recovery with the rising fuel costs and food prices going up, recovery is a meaningless word if the bank has forclosured on your home or if you're underwater on your mortgage or up to the max on your credit card debt. those americans know that this president and his big spending, big government policies have

prolonged our fastball misery, not alleviated it. [applause] and what do we say to our children? do we say, well, you know, y'all figure it out. don't worry. washington's, you know, they have created 17 debt and entitle commissions in 30 years but the fact of the matter is they just didn't have the courage to make the decisions to allow you to have the future that you actually deserve. that washington wouldn't even make modest entitlement program reforms in this last debate. and if president even refused to lay out the plan for fear of the next election. how can the wealthiest nation fail so missouriicallyably to pay its bills? how does that happen?

well, mr. president, let us tell you something, you cannot win the future by selling america off to foreign creditors. [applause] we cannot afford four more years of this rutterless leadership. last week that leadership failed. and the tax and spend and borrow agenda of this president led to the first-ever downgrade of a credit rating of the united states of america. in reality, though, this is just the most recent downgrade. the fact is for nearly three years president obama has been downgrading american jobs, downgrading our standing in the world and downgrading our financial stability, downgrading our confidence and downgrading the hope for a better future for our children. that's a fact. his policies are not only a threat to this economy.

so are his appointees a threat. [applause] see he stacked the national anti-labor relations board with croneys who want to dictate to a private company, bowing, where they can build a plan. no president. no president should kill jobs in south carolina or in any other state simply because they choose to go to a right to work state. [applause] you see when the obama administration is not stifling economic growth with overregulation, they are achieving the same through the reckless spending. debt is not only a threat to our economy. but also to our security.

america's standing in the world is impairible. not only because of the disastrous economic policies but from the incoherent muddle they call foreign policy. our president has insulted our friends and encouraged our enemies, thumbing his nose at traditional allies leykis real, he seeks to dictate new borders for the middle east and the oldest democracy there, israel, saw it as an abject failure in his constitutional duty to protect our borders in the united states. [applause] you know, his foreign policy seems to be based on alienating our traditional allies while

basing our domestic agenda by -- we don't need a president who apologizes for america. we need a president who protects and projects those values. [applause] it's pretty simple. we're going to stand with those who stand with us and vigorously defend our interests. and those who threaten our interests, harm our citizens, we will simply not be scolding you. we will defeat you. [applause] our nation cannot and must not endure four more years of angle less foreign policy. we must not have four more years of rising taxes and unemployment and rising energy dance on nations that intend us harm. it's time to get america

working again. maas applause -- [applause] to get citizens, to get our citizens working in good jobs and getting the government to working for the people again. you know, page one, page one of any economic plan, to get america working so give a pink slip to the current residents in the white house. [applause] listen, we just got to get back to the basic truths of economic success. y. as governor, i had to deal with the consequences of this national recession. and in 2003, and again this year. faced billions in budget short falls, but we worked hard. we made tough decisions.

we balanced our budget, not by raising taxes, but bissetting priorities and cutting government spending. it and it must be done in washington, d.c. [applause] we have led texas based on some really pretty simple guiding principles. one, is don't spend all of the money. [applause] you know, two, is keeping the taxes low and under control. three, is if you have your regular tori climate fair and predictable. four, is reform your legal system so affirmative louse lawsuits don't terrorize those trying to create jobs. [applause] and over the years, we followed

this recipe to produce the strongest economy in the nation. texas is responsible for more than 40% of all the new jobs created in america. think about that. we're home to less than 10% of the population in america, but 40% of all the new jobs were created in that state. i've cut taxes. i've delivered historic property tax reductions. i was the first governor since world war ii to cut general revenue spending in our state budget. we passed lawsuit reform. including just this last session. loser pays to stop affirmative louse lawsuits from happening. [applause] i had an know i've talked a lot about texas here in the last

little bit. i'm a texan, and i'm proud of it. but first and foremost, i am incredibly proud american. [applause] and i know something. america is not broken. washington, d.c. is broken. [applause] we need balanced budgets and lower taxes and regulation and civil justice reform. those same four principles. our country's most you are intelligent need so revariety lies our economy, stop the generational theft going on with this record debt. i came to south carolina because i will not sit back and accept the path that america is on. because a great country requires a better direction. because a renewed nation needs

a new president. [applause] it is time to get america working again, and that's why with the support of my family and unwavering belief in the goodness of america, i declare to you today as a candidate for president of the united states. [applause] thank you. thank you. audience: perry! perry! >> you know, it's time for america to believe again. it's time to believe that the promise of our future is far

greater than even our best days behind us. it's time believe again in the potential of private enterprise, set free from the shackals of overbearing federal government, and it's time to restore our standing in the world. our being fed up. the change we seek will every emanate out of washington, d.c. it will come from the windswept prayers of middle america. the farms and the factories across the great land. from the hearts and the minds of the good-hearted americans who will accept not a future that is less than our past. pates. patriots who will not be confined to a fate of less freedom in exchange for more government. [applause]

we do not have to accept our current circumstances. we will change them. we are americans. [applause] that's what we do. [applause] we roll up our sleeves. we go to work. we fix things. [applause] we stand up and proudly, proudly proclaim that washington is not our caretaker. and we reject the state that in margaret thatcher's words, she said a state that takes too much from, in order to do too much for us. we will not stand for that any

longer. [applause] >> we're just -- we're dismayed at the injustice that nearly half of all americans don't even pay any income tax, and the liberals out there are saying that we need to pay more. we are indignant about leaders who do not listen and spend money faster than they can print it. in america, the people are not subject to the government. the government are subject to the people. [applause] and it's up to us. it is up to us, to this present generation of america, to take a stand for freedom. to send a message to washington that we're taking our future back from the grips of these

central planners who would control our health care, spend our treasure, who would downgrade our future and micro manage our lives. it's time to limit and simplify the taxes in this country. we have to quit spending money we don't have. we need to get our fiscal house in order and restore our good credit. and we will repeal this president's miss guided one size fits all health care plan immediately. [applause] we'll create jobs. we'll get america working again. we'll create jobs and build wealth. we'll truly educate and innovate in science and engineering and math and create

jobs that are going to be needed to get america working again. and i'll promise you this. i'll work every day to try to make washington, d.c. as inconsequential in your life as i can. [applause] and at the same time, we'll be freing our families and small businesses and states from the burdensome and costly federal government so that those groups can create and innovate and succeed. i believe in america. i believe in her purpose and her promise. i believe her best days have not yet been lived. i believe her greatest deeds are reserved for the generations to come, and with the help and with the courage of the american people, we will get our country working again. god bless you and god bless the

united states of america. thank you. [applause]

>> texas governor rick perry

there launching his campaign for the republican presidential campaign and has planned stops in iowa. a look here at the stage in ames, iowa. people gathering to hear the results of the straw poll due at 6:00 p.m. governor rick perry is not expected on the ballot but you can follow updates at c-span.org. next up a look at some of the candidates on the ballot starting with michele balkman and ron paul. [cheers and applause] ♪ >> thank you very much. hi, everyone.

good to see you. god bless you, every one. we are going to do 8. it is going to happen. 2012 is hours. we are going to take it back in 2012. [cheers and applause] all of the greatness, the energy, all that we need to do to take the country back in 2012 is right here in this room in ames, iowa. we are going to do it together and take it back. [cheers and applause] my name is michele bachmann and i am running to be the next president of the united states of america. [cheers and applause]

and together, we are going to make barack obama a one term president. [cheers and applause] from one iowan to antoher, iowa will be the pace car to set the tone and pace for bringing this country back for the greatness itwas meant. it is iowa where we will see the greatness once again begin. i am so thrilled with what i have seen. our campaign is 48 days old. i have been all across the four corners of iowa and all points in between. i was born and raised in waterloo and cedar falls of.

in this wonderful part of our state, what i saw were reasonable, fair-minded people who loved me, poured themselves into me, and that is the voice i heard growing up. common sense and moral values. that set the tone. everything i needed to know in life, i learned in iowa. [cheers and applause] my mother and father taught us to always love iowa. iowa is the breadbasket of the world bank and we feed millions of people from iowa. be grateful. i have always been grateful that i am an iowan. i believe it is time to have an house. in the white

in the last 48 days, as i have been everywhere from spencer to storm lake, to you name it, we have been there, and ames as well. what we have seen is a restoration of that dream. you have restored in me my faith in america. i see on the television destruction all across the country, but inot in iowa. i see happy, confident, optimistic people. their crops are growing. we have a wonderful season. people are more energized than ever before because they know we can do this. if we stick together, they know this will happen. they know we can secure the promise of the future for our

children. how do i know is that? because i have seen wonderful people who believe this. they believe that life is precious, and that from conception until natural death, we stand for human life. that is iowa. [cheers and applause] and all across iowa, i have seen a marvelous appreciation for a marriage, as one man and one woman. [cheers and applause] you showed the world when you did not retain those three justices in your last election. [cheers and applause] and as president of the united states, i will only appoint justices who followed the

constitution and do not legislate from the bench. [cheers and applause] this is important. it is fundamental. it is foundational because the family is the foundation of a unit of this country. with the family, we are everything. without the family, how do we survive? we need the family to go forward. now -- [cheers and applause] people say, and that is unrealistic. it is absolutely essential that we maintain the family. i thank god for family. my parents were married here in waterloo, iowa. my parents, unfortunately in later years, divorced. i was raised by a single mother. we went to below poverty

overnight, but my mother said it will not always be that way. it is going to get better. one thing that i learned from my great family is that we did stick together. that was a great life lesson, we are thae i saw that social conservatives and we will never be ashamed of being social conservatives. [cheers and applause] we understand that religious liberty is the essence and a foothold of this nation. we should never be ashamed or afraid of the faith that this country was founded upon. i think god for the religious faith that my parents taught to me. i thank god -- a [applause] i think god for what he has done. god has mightily put his hand of

blessing upon this nation. we can never think that we did this ourselves. it was almighty god who gave this to us. [cheers and applause] we are social conservatives. we are fiscal conservatives, and i am one. i am a former federal tax lawyer. my husband and i started our own successful company. i get it, how to turn the a economy around. we think it is a good idea to turn a profit. [cheers and applause] and we agree with the declaration of independence which said we have the right to the pursuit of happiness.

the founders designed that to be we have the right to keep the fruits of our own labor. what a concept. [cheers and applause] and as president of the united states, i will stand for life, marriage, and the right for you to keep the fruits of your opponent labor. [cheers and applause] -- of your own labor. nationale alolso security conservatives. we love this country. we love our brave men and women who served this country with respect and admiration. [cheers and applause] we will never forget that every day there are those who wake up in the morning thinking

how they will kill americans today. there are those thinking how they will destroy the united states of america today. i am privileged to sit on the house committee on intelligence. we are a very small committee that deals with the nation's classified secrets. we must never forget that we always stand for the safety and security of the american people. and i will. [cheers and applause] in iowa, we have successfully maintained the chain of liberty for 150 years. my family has lived in iowa. every generation has successfully handed the torch of liberty to the next. it is if we have forged a chain link of liberty.

every generation has successfully tapped the change going. now is our chance here in iowa. we get to forge a that next chain on the link eo fliberty, to make sure is not just our generation, but generations of 150 years from now that look back and say thank you for restoring the promise of the future to my children, thank you that you restored greatness again to the united states. that is what we will do to get their. we will stick together, stand together, do with the solomon brothers said, the famous sullivan brothers from waterloo, iowa. all five brothers gave their lives for the cause of liberty. they said, "if we stick together, we will get it done." whether we are in the tea

party, social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, we stick together, and this will happen. the greatness will once again belong to the united states of america. nchpad.gan the lau [cheers and applause] because i know right now as i look across this arena here in ames, we are the team that cannot be beat. [cheers and applause] teh sullivan brothers of waterloo, our military men and women -- they have laid it on a line for us generation after generation after generation. they have laid it on the line for us. now it is ours. we will not let the next

generation down. we too will lay it on the line, and in 2012, which will take the country back. join the. i am headed over to the voting booth right now. come with me now because i am going over to the voting booth to cast my vote. i am asking for your vote to be the next president of the united states to take your voice to the white house spending god bless you! god bless the united states of america! i love you all. god bless you! i love you! thank you so much! i love you! ♪

♪ thank you. >> thank you very much thank you very much. it's great to be here. looks like aery exciting day. and we're delighted with the way things are going. [applause]

the one thing about our campaign. it's been identified with one particular word, and i'm very proud of it. we are identified with the cause of liberty. [applause] i'm convinced that liberty and an understanding of that and a constitution can bring us peace and prosperity. [applause] but today i'm going to emphasize something slightly different than just the cause of liberty. because the's somhing that proceeds liberty, and that is life. [applause] i believe in a very limited role for government, but the prime reason that government exists in a free society is to protect liberty, but also to protect life, and i mean all life. [applause]

i want to tell a very short story, because time is short, about how i came to be very strong right to life. when i was in medical school in the 1950's it was a non-issue. it was assumed everybody was pro life and abortions weren't to be done. in the 1960's when i was a resident studying ob/gyn, the doctors in the medical centers were defying the law in doing abortions. this shook me up. one day i walked into the operating room and they did a history rot my and lifted out a baby that was crying and breathing and puit in a bucket in the corner of the room and let it die and pretended nobody heard it. that was rather disturbing. but as i walked out of that room because i was a student

and observer, i walked out of the room and a baby about the same size was born prematurely. and all of a sudden 20 people, nurses and doctors all rushing around to save the baby's life, which seemed very logical. but my cclusion that very day is you can net have relative value for life and deal with that. we cannot play with that decision. all life is precious. [applause] if we are to defend liberty and allow people to spend their money as they want and go on the trips that they want and run their lives as they please, you have to understand where that liberty and life comes from. it does not come from the government. it comes from our creator.

[applause] but there's a lot of ways you can defend liberty. in many ways, in a personal way, in intellectual way. in a religious manner. but also, as determined as i am to promote the cause of pro life and making sure that governments don't slip off to defeating life and taking life, one of the most atrocious positions this country could have, and that is where government will come along and take money from those who strongly believe in pro life and commit abortions with that. that should be reversed. [applause]

being pro life can be extended and pro liberty even into all ages. yes, it is good to be pro life, and we must be pro life, or you cannot be pro liberty, the way i undersnd it. but i also think it's being strongly pro life if we work very hard to have a policy when those young people, those babies that are born, when they come to age, those lives are just as precious and they are never forced to fight in undeclareible, unwinible wars. [applause] i find it very difficult to protect liberty if you don't truly understand what the patriot act is all about. i understand. i was in washington with the great concern on the day after

the day of 9/11, but the paiot act is an attack on our liberties and the fourth amendment. it does not solve the problems that we face. not when you take liberty away from the american people. [applause] if you want to think about the sue that comes about if you get careless about the protection of liberty, that the patriot act along -- if we tolerate that type to interfere with our lib i we have to be -- you can not repeal in order to say yes, we can give up a

little bit of our freedoms to be safe. you never have to give up liberty to be safe. [applause] and foreign policy has been a big issue in our campaign, because thcountry is tired of the war. and we're all so broke. thwars have been going on for 10 years. they are undeclared. they are fought under international banners, nato and the united nations, and we don't see an end to it. but it's also costing us a lot of dollars, those trillions of dollars should have been left in the economy to build jobs and prosperity here at home!

one other symbolism of a failed foreign policy is what we did in iraq. we went into iraq. we were supposed to go into iraq to get al qaeda. there was no al qaeda. we went in there to get weapons of mass destruction. there were no weapons of mass destruction. today one half of the christians have been run out of iraq. we have not done a good job. and now they are closer to the iranians than they have ever been. but symbolically i want to tell u what was done in iraq. we built an ambassador there. the embassy is as big as the vatican. and just recently the d.o.d. budget authorized the employment of 17,000 people to work in this embassy. that is not the way to achieve prosperity [applause]

there's something you have to do because we have importance if you want to understand economics and process parity, you have to understand monetary policy and the mischief of that and we have to change that. [applause] in order to attract investments and capital into a country, you cannot have the weak currency. we inflate endlessly which means we print money to pay for the debt. it goes to the stronger countries.

now we have the greatest debt in the history of the world and we ow $1.4 trillion to china and we wonder why we have a problem. you have to have a strong currency. there's nothing wrong with us reconstituting the constitution because only gold and silver can be legal tender. [applause] also you have to have the proper environment for companies to bring their moneys back home. you can't have a money bring money or park money overseas and double tax them and charge them 35% again, that's changing , around it would be a good idea to get rid of all this income tax and corporate

taxation. [applause] and of course with a strong currency and with a change of the tax system, you also have to deal with the regulatory systems. we have to shrink the size of the federal rister. we need a lot less regulations not more regulations. [applause] it is said that those of us who promote the free market system, that we don't care about regulating those ruthless, big corporations, but just think about how the sound economy would regulate those companies and banks -- stopping the debt

on themerican people, causing the unemployment and causing the little guy to lose his house. [applause] the problems are very large. they are very difficult. the solution is not complicated if you understand how we got into this mess. basically we got into this mess because we have lost respect for our law of the land, the constitution, and we have lost our thumb for freedom. that we, ourselves can take better care of ourselves, and predict our money and lives and our children's education >> much of the work has done better without government down our backs and in our freems,

it's time we restore freedom back to america. [applause] and we have that opportunity. before start -- people are starting to recognize. people are accepting the argument that the economy is now in shambles, and there was a housing bubble, and there's been a collapse of the housing bubble. the american people now by a large majority areaying we've been overseas too long. we need to protect the our borders and forget about the borders in afghanistan and pakistan. [applause] time to bring the troops home. [applause] there is no argument that is viable to say that we have to keep troops in south korea. they've been there since i was

in high school. they've been in japan since world war ii. they've been in germany since we need a boost in the economy! -- they have bn in germany since i was in high school. we need a boost to the economy! >> [applause] if we got in this trouble by a lack of loyalty to our law and constitution, it is not that difficult. all we have to do is restore the bleeping freedom and restore our conviction that the constitution works. it would take a while. but it might only take a year. we're into the fourth year of this recession. yes. we got in this trouble by not having respect for the constitution. we can get out of this trouble by respecting the rule of law in sending[cheers and applause]

>> more candidates now. earlier remarks by former pennsylvania senator rick santorum followed by tim pawlenty and herman cain. we will show you up as much of these as we can before the straw s come in.ts first. let me introduce my wife karen along with five of our seven children behind us. they can to -- we can to i was three weeks ago. people said it is nice that rick was coming.

no one really thought we were going to do much or have much of an impact. thanks to the great work of my wife karen? i will introduce to you right now -- [cheers and applause] -- and these five children -- how many people got calls from my kids in the last three weeks? [applause] they have been on the phones and traveling around the state. we did 50 cities around the state of iowa for 14 days. we went to all four corners of the state of iowa. one of the commentators called our campaign the ring of fire campaign. [cheers and applause] we wanted to make sure all of iowans were heard from and all of iowa got a chance to meet at least one of the candidates, to

sit in their libraries or living rooms, to talk to them and listen to them because that is where the great wisdom is in america. then, enter their questions, be accountable to them. that is what i did it. 68 counties later, we have come here to do something important. we have come here, all of you have come here to say that the folks in washington, the people in the boardrooms in new york and the media centers, they are not the ones who are going to choose the next republican nominee for president. you are going to choose the next nominee for president. [cheers and applause] what the poeple of iowa have said to me is that they want someone that they can trust what they say are going to do and do what they are going to say.

as a positive vision for the future of this country. there is a positive vision for the future of this country if we do what our founding fathers did, believe in the goodness of the american people, free people, who government says yes, like in our declaration of independence which founded this great country, transformed the world. we had governments that were not run from the top down, not where you have the divine right of kings with the king was given rights by god and then spread the wealth around. no. our founders believed in a country where we hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal with certain unalienable rights. [cheers and applause] it was that belief in free people that transformed the

world bank for the first time, we said that we were going to have a government whose job under this constitution was limited to protect life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. many people have said that the social issues are not important in this campaign. i have talked about all of these issues. i will not back down on the sanctity of life and marriage. [cheers and applause] what the people of all i what recognize is that america is a moral enterprise. our founders understood that for the constitution to work, it had to be based on something deeper, something grounded. our rights came from a creator. the creator has rules. nature and nature's god.

they understood that through reason and faith we could build a strong country from the ground up based on a moral society. john adams said our society is holy and adequate for any other. that is the mission for america. to suggest that we can be a party just about tax cuts and spending cuts and not about strong families and a strong faith and strong faith communities, you do not understand iowa and you do not understand america. [cheers and applause] ladies and gentlemen, as you saw from the debate the other night, this campaign is about scratching and clawing for any bit of recognition i could get. i had to wave my hand to ask for

recognition. this is the little engine that could campaign. [applause] they told us we had no chance, to not pay attention. all the press does is right about these shiny engines that keep coming by to help. maybe we will start to hitch up and work hard. we did not wait around. which started working hard. -- we started working hard. we have been to iowa more than other candidate because i want to be accountable to you and the people who make decisions, who are going to have the fi cut of narrowing this field to select the president, will get a chance to look me in the eye, keblick my shins and the tires, and to hear from me division of

this country. today is an opportunity to strike a blow for the people of the heartland. this is a hard land campaign, not just about wall street, but about all of the issues that you hear about. to moral and culture issues, and yes, to getting this of economy going. look at the plan that i put forward. it is about the heartland. it is about using the resources in iowa, pennsylvania, and offshore to create energy security for this country that is desperately needed. [cheers and applause] i grew up in a little steel town outside of pittsburgh, pa.. my grandfather came to this

country because he wanted to be free and believed in the goodness of america. an america that believed in him and what he could do to provide for himself and the family -- and his family and a god that he served bank for 40 years, he clawed for my freedom until he was 72 years old. i am here today standing on his shoulders because i believe right now in thithis country is in jeopardy of losing its freedom because of one man and one bale -- obamacare. -- and one bill -- obamacare. [applause] obamacare is the single greatest threat to one generation's charge of handling this country off to the next generation

freer, safer, and more prosperous. margaret thatcher said she was never able to accomplish what ronald reagan accomplished, never able to turn the tide of socialism. never able to turn it back in britain like reagan did. and getting americans to believe in themselves, not some government official to take care of them. what margaret thatcher said, she was never able to turn it around. the british national health-care system. i was in the green room at fox a couple of days before the vote for obamacare. they decided to jam it down the throats of the american public. i said to juan williams, "water you doing? " you are committing political suicide bank he said that me tell you what the administration told me. "we believe obama.

we believe that america's love for entitlements, and once we get them hooked on this entitlement, they will never let it go." [crowd boos] just imagine a couple of weeks backhen barack obama's was against the wall being pushed for a debt ceiling increase. was his first move? just like at basketball, it was to the left. [laughter] his first move was to get in front of a national audience and tell the people who were dependent on the federal government that they were not going to get their social security checks, that they were not going to get their benefits, but they were not going to get their medicare benefits. they have the hook. at the time that they need to,

they pull the strings spending now, with obamacare, everyone is a manic and. being able to be pulled in the way that washington wants you to be pulled. not o;n my watch. [cheers and applause] you have an opportunity in this race to take someone who the national media is not paying a lot of attention to. maybe it is because in my elective history i defeated three democratic incumbents, twice for the congress -- [applause] -- toys for the congress -- twice for the congress and once in the state of pennsylvania, a state that republicans have not

won since 1988. i went up against an incumbent democratic senator whose campaign was managed by a couple of guys who just managed a successful campaign for president back in 1992. i beat them. [cheers and applause] in fact, one of my proudest accomplishments in james carville's book. item number 3 on his list. -- i am number three on his list. [cheers and applause] maybe it was because i fought for welfare reform and the only one on this stage the other night that actually authored a bill, managed it on the floor of the senate, got

bipartisan support, which got a democratic president to sign it, ending an entitlement, and is transformed society. [cheers and applause] maybe it is because i am someone who says to the people of this country who care about the sanctity of human life that i will just not give lip service. i will stand on the floor of the senate and in the oval office and i will fight for life because i did it for 12 years in the senate and got bipartisan support for three major bills to pass pro-life initiatives. i led the fight. that is not just doing it the same. it is doing it. [cheers and applause]

>> you have an opportunity today to send a message that iowa doesn't want what new york and the media and the rest of them want that iowa can govern consistent with our constitution. thank you, and god bless you. [applause] ♪

>> thank you. thank you. thank you so very much. thank you. thank you very much. i appriate it. thank you. i hope that you'll give a great iowa welcome to the fosmer first lady of minnesota and my two daughters, anna and maura. [applause] >> i want to tnk you for being here today. thank you for loving america and thank you for you patriotism and thank you for being on this journey to take back our country from barack obama.

[applause] 30 years ago on this very day, august 13, ronald reagan, one of the greatest presidents in the history of our country signed the economic recovery act into law. it was kghted in that time of our country, massive revenue growth. massive job and and as we face similar challenges today, we know what to do, don't we? [applause] we know what america needs. but unfortunately, barack obama has absolutely no clue. he is like a manure spreader in a wind storm. [applause] about four years ago, barack obama came through iowa.

he convinced the democrats of this great stite catapult him towards white house. and they did. but today's the day that republicans in iowa, indepeence in -- independents in iowa and conservatives all across this country send the message that barack obama's got to go. [applause] >> he's been talking a lot about the full faith and credit of america's deatheath. barackbama should put his full faith and credit in the american people. [applause] >> now the way forward may not be the easy way, but it's not complex. as we look over the history of this great nation, we know what works. we can see the lessons of

america's greatness and bring them forward to the challenges of our time. and here they are. let's be a nation that puts its trust in god first and foremost. [applause] number two, we know, this don't we? we can't spend more than we take in. [applause] and we also know as we watch him going across the world, apologizing for america, denying or ignoring america's k3e7pingsalism that we make sure our president will maintain the peace by maintaining our strength. [applause] and we're going to send the message from iowa here today all across this great country, and it's what hear from

hard-working and concerned americans experiencing the heavy-handed economic results of barack obama? the mess >> mr. president, get the government off our backs. [applause] >> let's get a start on that agenda. first, mr. president, repeal obamacare. [applause] number two, mr. president, please come before the country and tell us why you oppose a constitutional amendment to balance the budget? we want it, and the country deserves it, and you should support it. [applause] and i also want to share with

you and many other republican c57bd dats here and in the race, they are wonderful people and they have a great vision for network in deciding who you are going to support in this race. many replican candidates are going to say the same thing. they are going to say i'm the one who will cut government spending. i am the one who will reduce taxes. they say i am the one who will stand for the cause of life. they say i will stand for traditional marriage. theyay i am the one who will do health caret. he came through iowa with e great speeches, and the big rhetoric. but now we know this, don't we? his rhetoric doesn't put gas in our car, does it? and barack ama's relate rick

doesn't pay our mortgage, does ? and barack obama's rhetoric doesn't pay our health care premiums, does it? and barack obama's rhetoric doesn't put our children through college and payhe tuition and doesn't give us a job, does it? >> no. >> is it ti for barack obama to go? but for us, too, it's got to be more than words. we've got to deliver. and so i stand before you as a candidate who sticks his claims to iowa and here today on large part that i don't just talk about it. we get the job done for minnesota and more america. [applause] so if you look at my record in minnesota, you can see we took

spending from historic highs to historic lows. we cut taxes in my state over eight years and did it -- we advanced the cause of life and traditional marriage in historic ways. we did public employee pension reform. before it was cool and popular to do it in the rest of the country. those kinds of results, not just talk, is what america needs now. i also want to tell you doing that in minnesota isi? that's very interestingnd important to know. we need to not just preach to the choir and make sure we have a candidate who can win in places like kansas or oklahoma or some of the other great states in this country, alabama and georgia. he can come up to iowa and

wisconsin and pennsylvania and take the conservative message and urgeos to win and get this country back. i won and got re-elected in one of the most difficult states to be a republican, minnesota, and ll carry those states as a candidate for president. [applause] the way forward may not be, but america can overcome challenges, as you know. valley forge wasn't sy. settling the west wasn't easy. winning world war ii, for sure wasn't easy. going to the moon wasn't easy, but this is not about easy. it's about getting our country back on track. this is the united states of america. we are the american people.

[applause] the founding fathers created it. ronald reagan personified it. abraham lincoln stood courageously to defend it. and now the call comes to each of us in this time as our country again faces great challenges. this is the greatest nation the world has ever known. if we stand courageously to defend it and move barack obama and put the country back on track, we will have done our duty. he is a government for the people, by the people, we will remain the greatest country the world has ever known and our country will not perish from the earth. [applause]

so i want you to do everything you can in the closing hours of the straw poll to get support to campaign. i want to look you in the eye and tell you i know what this country needs and understand our conservative principles. i am not just going to stand up here and give you the word. you can take it to the bank. i will lead this country to a better, brighter, a stronger place. thank you very much. i appreciate your support. [cheers and applause] >> the founding fathers did their job. we have to do our job and be the defending father.

>> i love you. all right, they did not give me much time. thank you, thank you, thank you. we are america. we are the greatest nation in the world. and we do not have to apologize for it either. [cheers and applause] i do not have to tell you about the problems this nation faces, so i and going to spend my few minutes talking about how we solved this mess. [cheers and applause] we have become a nation of crises. we have an economic crisis, and entitlement spending crisis, an energy crisis, an immigration crisis, a foggy foreign policy crisis, and we have a moral

crisis, but most of all, we have a severe deficiency of leadership crisis. [cheers and applause] the people of this great nation -- they are tired of excuses. they want responsibility and leadership. the people of this great nation are tired of the blame game spending they want results. result we can get with the right person in the white house. [cheers and applause] our economy is stuck, not growing. our economy has stalled simply because this administration does not recognize that the engine of economic growth is the business sector, and once we get that engine going, this economy will begin to grow. we need to lower the corporate

tax rates. we need to take the tax on repatriated profits to zero. we need to take the capital gains tax to zero and make all of them permanent. [cheers and applause] uncertainty is killing this economy. it is killing this nation. we have an entitlement spending problem. we can no longer tram all around the edges. we must restructure these programs, such that this nation will go from being an entitlement society to an empowerment society. let's empower people. empower businesses. [cheers and applause] we have an energy crisis because of our dependency on foreign oil. oil. there is a way to