itself 84 times, each with its own bureaucracy, staff, rules, money. we cannot afford that. we would put a guard rails around the white house and require each year that they send an honest budget that stays within those rails. not a pie in the sky budget but a real budget that stays within the guard rails. we give the president a sort of a line item veto. the reason we call it an item reduction veto is because it is a sharper scalpel. what we found was the those who had the best success in controlling spending and cutting out pork-barrel projects and waste money is that when a budget came back, they did not have the ability to zero out the line item, but they could go

within and search out the poor can pay it out. finally, we end forever the threat of a government shutdown. you guys have seen this acted out before. parties bump heads over spending and there is the threat of a government shutdown and at the end of the day, we see more spending. we have a simple budget to continue. if the congress deadlocks on the budget, each fall the government will continue on, but at a 10% cut. when congress gridlocks committed to taxpayers who win, not the bureaucrats, but taxpayers. congress needs to do with job.

we have two years plus of not seeing a budget out of the senate yet. this will force lawmakers to the table. we did some things differently in this bill to make sure that we cannot make it impossible to cut taxes or keep them low. we make sure that congress cannot game the system, like they do in the past. we just introduced this, but this topic honest -- top economist calls it one of the most honest plans ever. his strong support has him come to washingtom. n. the cato institute, they and a

number of conservative groups have said this is the way to control government spending. people ask where the jobs plan is. we think that's the problem. washington is in the way and history proves this to be true. as spending grows, jobs on main street shrink. they have the last 40 years. here is a chart that shows from 1981 until 2001. we shrunk government and we grew 37 million new jobs in america. when we spend more as a nation, 2001, the 9/11 attacks, congross

ess shrank and you can see the spike. we have 2.5 fewer millino jobs today. the answer is not more stimulus, bailouts, or spending but the opposite. shrink government. this shows you the path to get government shrunk down to a size we can afford over time. this is projected spending under the map act.

regardless of whether that happens or not, we need laws to constrain and put guardrails around this. the map fact done right and put in place to continually monitors the right way to shrink the size of government over time and keep it affordable again. we have some other stuff. let's stop the power point and take questions and answers from the crowd. let's hear from you. you have the microphone? >> i am from liberty county. these provisions only work if they are allowed to work.

in 2001 and 2003, republican controlled congress passed the bush tax cuts. these included the sunset provision to mind -- to automatically and in 2010 this was done because congress did not want to fight the bird act -- byrd act, showing the would not increase the federal deficit during the following a 10-year period. by your tried to renege on the sunset will. you're trying to avoid the consequences of decisions you made in the passage of the act. you're calling this a tax increase instead of tax restoration. my question is this. after 10 years, contrary of what we are sure of, our country's economy has been the worst has been since the great depression.

ignoring the sunset provision, how would this change what happens in the last four years? >> i respectfully disagree with every description you just laid out. in the house ways and means committee, the only reason the bush tax cuts were not made permanent is because democrats in the senate blocked that provision. we did the next best thing. we phase them in overtime. we had a great fight over it. the votes in the senate were not there. as far as the economy, i would gladly take over the bush years and employment that averages 5.5% than the 9.5% we are enjoying now. we will fight to extend those tax cuts for everybody, for every family, for seniors, job

creators, and i think the president has this wrong. the worst thing we can do today is raise taxes on america. why do we not just tax the millionaires and billionaires? our tax code is wrong today. more than half of americans not paying any federal income taxes at all, we are taking more and more taxes laying it on fewer and fewer americans. at the end of the day, that is a recipe for disaster. i appreciate your comments. i knew we would have a question from the crowd and i just wanted to make it clear that i am not voting for taxes period for any reason. [applause] hi, paul.

>> i want to thank you for understanding that you represent everyone in your district, not just those who elected you. i appreciate you as a thinker. someone i am honored to have. you mentioned that half of us pay the taxes for the other half. i think we should give the opportunity to the other half of our country so that they can contribute like our service men contribute. as we restructure our taxes come of we need to think about taxes and spending. [applause] taxes and spending. when we talk about taxes and the upper 50% pain for everybody, we

need to have an increase in taxes for everybody. a transaction fee, overhead, i do not care what you call it, but we need to restructure. >> the tax code is terrible. you could not the design it to be a bigger drag or harder to comply with that than what we have today. it needs to be fundamentally reformed. we are pushing for that reform of the tax code. i think a flat tax would be an improvement over what we have today, but if we really want to reform the tax code to jump- start the economy and we remain the strongest in the world, my view is that we need a fair consumption-based tax that does

this. >> have a question about medicaid and medicare. why is medicaid so much less than medicare? it seemed like there are so many more people on medicaid. what is the difference? >> all seniors go into medicare. medicaid includes children, low- income low-income families, nursing home care. nursing home care nurses just financial health continues to grow at a fairly high clip which is what is driving it going forward. you hear a lot of efforts to try and scare seniors in america

today. the problem that we have is that medicare is so important but it will run out of money in 10 years. it will become insolvent in 12 years. if congress does not backed, medicare and itself. what we are proposing is to act now to keep the program in place for these seniors in the next generation. what the republicans are proposing is that if you are 55 years or older, there is no change. you are in medicare today and it does not change. we will try to preserve it for the next generation and we will make changes coming give them choices, provide them the models that employees have, and that our plan offers for seniors today that allows the plan not only to continue but to be more tailored it to them.

my concern is that congress, like it has in the past, will put its head in the sand. because it is too tough for it is not politically popular. my mom is on medicare. i know there are young people in this room hang out of their salary today for medicare and will not be for them. it will not be around for them unless restart to act. how many of you believe congress needs to act now to preserve medicare? that is what we see in our district. >> my name is bob goldstein. i do not know if whether i was fortunate or on fortunate to come up in a time when my parents came from the start of

to 1995,s all the way over 100 years. both of my parents seemed to think, and were firm believers in one thing, that if government found a way to have an income tax, it would never decrease but only increase. over the years, the government has proved them right. every year that i hear an election, someone will do something about it. it is never radical enough or enough people are willing to stand up and pay the price, but it will take this country to get back to the point where government ceases to take our

freedom, ceases to take karen come-- our income. right now, in my lifetime, i do not think that people have a choice. as much as i hate to say this, over the years that i have lived and participated in the military and other things in my life, all i have seen is the degeneration as taxes increased and entitlements increase. socialism to the point where i would say better than half of a person's salary now goes to illegal immigrants and people who are no longer working, whether it is their choice or they just want to live off of

the government. now, i really enjoy listening to congressmen and senators who are going to run and they all make promises. i heard one man over here saying, why did you not do more darks excuse me? he's going to respond. my question to you is, rhetoric aside if you had a chance to go for a fair tax and you had a chance to go for a $0 budget, how strongly would you stand up for it? would you be willing to put your career on the line for that? >> bob, thank you. the answer is yes, i would. the only reason i ran for

congress is because we have two little boys. their future and opportunities will be less than mine and yours if we do not win the battles in washington today. i know people do not like the battles that we are having, but it is about the future of the the country. are we going to have a country that continues to take more and more? the answer is, the only reason i am here is to make that sacrifice to get the country back on the right track. we are going to need your support in doing it. i am a co-sponsor of the fair tax, as you know. we have the sunset law. i think the answer to getting spending under control is more

votes and more people behind it. thank you. >> i live in riverside, taxes. good to see you again. my question is the federal register. the lead question today was that the federal register passed a regulation that will greatly affect only the state of texas power plants and the number of bills that have made it through the house and senate is not at an all-time high, national forests are being laid down by the administration's regulators. is there any way that we can review or muzzle? we should place the federal register in a state of review that would end of january 2013 until such time. right now, the federal register

is the tool in which the administration is enacting their agenda. >> the point that scott is driving home is that in the federal register, we see all of the new rules and regulations getting moved out of washington at a level we have never seen in our lifetime. there are regulations dealing with obamacare, creating 159 new federal agencies and bureaucracies. we have 400 new rulings dealing with dodd =frank. whenever washington says we are creating a new bureaucracy to watch after your pocket book it, hold on to your pocket books, because we know what is happening. the epa is on steroids these days and it is taking its biggest swings.

they are penalizing because we are a state that has not bought into their back door efforts to put cap and trade, global warming regulations in place, and we said no. we are fighting in a major way, but here's the answer. those regulations go out the door, they are in place. the answer, i think, is a bill that has been introduced by one of my colleagues on the ways and means committee, jeff davis, in kentucky called the reigns act. it would put a stopper on new rules and regulations.

but that has an impact of more than $100 million before those rules and regulations go into effect, congress passed to a pprove them. i think that is the solution of stopping the tidal wave. between now and next november, this president will stop it. we will pass the reins act. we will have another fight in the senate over it. we need a bill like that in place. do you agree? is that something that may be helpful? >> they are not being very green it because they are land down the forests to print their paper. by putting it in a state of

review, that puts the process on hold. i chose the date in january because that would be when president perry is sworn in. [laughter] >> my name is charles. i'm from walker county. i apologize for not standing, but i have trouble. i know this is a sensitive subjects, but i see very clearly that there is a royalty built in, basically a class difference between what are congressman, federal employees, and it so far are receiving in salary and benefits. the equation of the private sector is ahead of what the federal employment received.

we, the taxpayers, are relegated into certain programs such as the new health care. federal employees have different programs. there's something not right here. it is getting worse instead of better. >> thank you for being here today. you are right. congress should live under the same laws that everyone else in america has to live under. there has been some progress along that line. in 1984, congress changed the social security and their retirement system. they put members of congress in social security.

they ended their separate health-care plan and put them in with the rest of the health care workers. members of congress have blue cross blue shield and we pay for it. they put us in with the rest of the federal workers to get us away from these cadillac plans. in 1994, speaker newt gingrich passed the laws to put congress under the laws of the land and a whole list of those agencies, regulations, osha, all of them applied. there has been some progress, but i do with greed that our salaries in the federal sector have gotten -- i do agree that salaries are too large and it is outpacing main street.

i saw one study where there were how many more thousands of federal workers in a state that made more than the governor of that state even made. that has to end. i have a bill that starts to reverse that. it cuts the size of our federal workforce by 10%. it shrinks the size of government and starts to reform some of those plans. it is the start of a solution on this. i get the daily emails you get about members of congress and retirement. if members of congress get full retirement over two years, no one would serve longer. i know that to be the case. finally they changed those plans and it is in better position.

>> i will like to get back to the federal registry. i check to that document today. the united states government has 551 agencies in the vast majority of them are ones people have never heard of. i've noticed that since congress has been out that the epa has been moving forward. some of the things, such as the ones congress has voted down they went down and did regulations just like it was law. they seem to from their nose at you. my question to you is to oversees these agencies.

? many of these regulations, they have an excise tax, attires, driers, many things. who oversees these agencies? to give them the power to do that? >> oversees these agencies? to give them the power to go through the back door when congress and all authority stops? congress does overseas agencies. then taken a supreme court ruling that allows them to regulate certain emissions, greenhouse gas emissions, and taken stretch that. this is one of the biggest fights in washington. we not only voted to repeal

obamacare but to repeal the authority to do cap and trade through the back door, through the epa regulations. our problem continues to be the same. none of them get a vote in the senate. they certainly never make it to the president's deask. we need to turn these back. we're going to have to repeal the to these lawmakers until we get to the point where we can repeal them. this is what it will take. >> the obama administration released their epa regulations and the coal and energy that

will eliminate 60,000 jobs and the coal energy that produces. did that come to congress? >> absolutely not which is why i think we need a new law that allows us to block of this before it goes into. coming from an energy state, this white house sincerely believes that energy jobs in oil, natural gas, all of them are expendable. they are not clean energy jobs so they do not count. we become more and more dependent upon foreign sources of oil when right now we are discovering more natural gas. a 100 years' supply that is gaining every day that we are getting locked in washington. it is a fight. i do not understand why we cannot create more american made energy with american aid

workers. whenever the president says he wants the energy companies to pay more, i have a solution. put the energy companies back to work. we leave it as $7 billion per year in taxes and royalties off of the table because we do not have access to the gulf coast, to alaska, and we leave 1 million jobs on the table by not doing this. this is a constant fight about what is good energy in america. unfortunately oil, coal, natural gas, and nuclear all are on the bad side. it makes no sense. >> time for three or four more. >> i am from trinity.

the d.o.t. as a move that will require a commercial driver's license to operate any farm equipment. is there anything that can be done to stop that? >> there is no chance we are getting punked, si there? are we on "candid camera?" how recent is that >> i read that one week ago and again yesterday. >> that makes no sense at all. let me get some information from you and we would be glad to challenge that. it makes no sense at all. these bureaucrats have too much time on their hand. the have never been within 1,000 miles of a far more ranch mink

you can tell that -- 1,000 of a farm or ranch. you can tell that. >> we were talking about safety of the nation. in texas, arizona, and new mexico, we are very concerned about our borders. i moved here from el paso and have already had several gunshots coming across the border right there in town. talking about government safety and our safety, we need to talk about the border, the illegal aliens. i know that is not politically correct, but i cannot make myself say the other words. in conjunction with that, although the foreign aid, they say we have to send money to these foreign countries so they

will like us. they did not like us one bit more now after we send them millions of dollars. >> i agree on both accounts. foreign aid may only be 1% of our budget, but every dollar counts. there are plenty of countries that do not need $1 of our help and we will significantly cut aid to those countries. i can tell you that. the second point is, you are right on target. when your own administration admits that we only have operational control of less than half of the border, you know there is a real problem. if a country cannot control its borders, and cannot control its future period. just period. you need to shut down the back door of illegal immigration so you can open the front door for

legal immigration so people want to come in the front door right now. i know these been we are getting on deportation and how secure it is, but it is not. you just need to talk to the taxes landowners and they will tell you clearly what is happening today. we need more boots on the ground. we need deportations for those who break the law. i think the new back door amnestying is exactly the wrong thing and sends the exactly the wrong signal and only invites more of them to break the law coming in the back door. i believe we have to shut down the magnets of jobs in america who are here illegally.

it is unfair for a company in huntsville to follow rules and have its competitor across the street not follow its rules and win the contract as a result. final point, i know it is controversial in washington, but i am a co-sponsor of a distillation to end what many call -- of a bill to end anchor babies. i believe the front door of illegal immigration is what built this country. the more we allow a blind eye to the back door, the more we've invite more of it. i know there is a dispute about whether legislation will pass, but send it to the supreme court. let them make the decision about citizenship or not.

i will live with the results, but it cannot believe that is what the founding fathers intended in that section of the constitution. we have a lot of work to do, and it has to start with the white house that is serious about closing the back door. we do not have one. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] >> track the latest campaign contributions with c-span's campaign 2012. it to navigate the political landscape with twitter pd and facebook updates, candid it biographies, and the latest polling information. c-span.org/campaign2012. >> earlier this morning, the national hurricane center downgraded are rain to a tropical storm as it continues

to travel throughout -- downgraded irene. now an update from washington. speakers include homeland security secretary janet napolitano, craig fugate, and the national hurricane center director. this is 20 minutes to. >> thank you for joining us today. i would now like to introduce the department of homeland security secretary janet napolitano. >> thank you and good morning. thank you for joining us on a damp morning here. i'm joined by the director the national hurricane center and by the fema administrator craig fugate on an update on irene. let me express condolences to those families who have lost loved ones in the course of this storm.

even though the storm has now been downgraded to come and poses no less of a threat to communities in its path. we encourage individuals to listen to this as we move through the response. and we just concluded it briefing president obama on our ongoing efforts to support the state's being affected. he has instructed us to continue moving forward on our response. our number one message for individuals and families up and down the eastern seaboard this morning is that we are not out of the would get. irene remains a large and

potentially dangerous storm and hazards still persist. right now, hurricane irene's moving up the coast around the day. if you are in any of those communities, please stay away from the shoreline. mid-atlantic states need to stay focused on search and rescue. power outages remain an issue all up and down the coast. we are working with our private sector partners to make sure that they are getting power up and running as soon as it can be. no matter where you are this morning from north carolina to maine, we encourage you to stay off of the road as much as

possible so we can keep them clear for first responders and vehicles working on a power restoration. we encourage everyone to continue listening to their state and local officials and to visit ready.gov for tips. downed power lines, flooding, a generator issues and fallen trees are some of the dangers that exist after a storm. by taking a few steps, you can improve your level of safety for your family. we still have a ways to go, but i do want to thank everyone for today and last night. we have seen some loss of life, but by and large, with the evacuation's and other precautions taken, we have a decrease the loss of life over

the course of the storm. we want to thank the public for helping us to achieve that goal. as i have said all week, this is in three phases, preparation, response come and recovery. we are in the second phase, the initial part of the response. the damage assessments are under way. i spoke to governor perdue of north carolina this morning. as the storm clears, we will be conducting damage assessments in all of the effected states to determine the impact and the next steps that need to be done in the response and recovery. we have a ways to go but i think it is safe to say that the worst of the storm, at least up to and including new york and new jersey has passed. the storm will proceed in a land this evening and out of the

united states by late tonight come early tomorrow morning. with that, i would like to turn this over to the national hurricane center to get an estimate on the storms. bill? >> you did a great job of capturing the forecast of the storm. i want to add a few things here. we were very fortunate to be able to get a unique opportunity. we have the aircraft from the air force reserves in the middle of the storm as it was coming in earlier this morning. now we have come past the center is on the connecticut-new york line and we have the onshore flow with tropical force winds. especially when the wind becomes more out of the west and buzzards bay and areas along

with thailand will be the next four coastal effects. everywhere south of there, conditions will be improving, but we still have tropical storm warnings continue down to the south of the centers of this storm. it will pass into this area and to the maritime provinces and then the impact and follow up after that. next slide, please. heavy rain will be an ongoing issue. this will still continue for eastern new york state up into the adirondacks, northern new england, and should be exiting new england except for extreme western massachusetts this afternoon. next slide, please.

this is the forecast for rain fall continuing from now on. we are now looking at some 2-6 inches of rain. this is very prone to flooding already saturating the ground. next slide, please. we are all give ready -- already getting reports about widespread to moderate major flooding. our anticipation is, with the rainfall going into new hampshire and vermont, that we could see record flood stages on those rivers. the detail is best had through the local forecast offices and by going to weather.gov to get

details on each one of the river systems. that is what i have for now. >> as the secretary said, we are moving into response. a lot is being done by state and local officials. we have been here well before the storm hit, so we are also looking at damage assessments already in north carolina and teams are doing the preliminary assessments. we looking at what additional assistance may be needed on top of the emergency declarations president obama has already issued. the focus really now will be the impact of the storm as rivers come up and in the get additional funds -- flooding. as the secretary pointed out, there has been a loss of life.

we're able to get in quickly and we will continue to work on what impact and assistance may be required. >> what preliminary damage assessments are you guys cn? >> in north carolina, flooding, trees down, and the coastal areas, several highways have had damages from flooding and also trees down. no dollar figures at this point. >> when will you have them? "generally come it takes several days and you need to understand that when you look at total costs, we are not counting insured losses. we're looking in damages that would be the responsibility of government that is uninsured. when you hear numbers about storm damages, we're looking at the cost to the government's and

the uninsured losses to individuals. that will not tell you what the insurance losses were which needs to be put on that. agricultural impact will be under the usda. >> what is the latest number that you have? >> we do not have the official numbers. we have reports from the states and i believe they had 1 additional fatality. >> i think that would be six in north carolina. >> there are working to get information from their local offices what their number will be. new jersey had someone swept away earlier today and that could become a fatality.

>> we just ask them to heat the local officials when they come in. the have announced that people can come back and they will be opening back up this afternoon. people will be able to get back faster, but he'd officials particularly with trees down. dimon to make sure everyone is safe. >> are their communities you have not been able to reach because of storm damage? >> they have been doing a lot of swift water rescue in the north carolina, but they have plans in place. we do not have reports yet, so that does not mean that is not the case. >> there have been a lot of people going out today. why did they need to go out? additionally, you have announced that you are diverting money

from previous disasters, most notably that from tornadoes, joplin, missouri, and others to help pay for this immediate situation. i am just curious how soon you will work with the white house to get the money that you need. >> a lot of communities start evacuations when the chances about 25%. people need to understand, we hope that people can go back home and there will not be damages. people may ask why they have to evacuate. it is for that 25% of the time happen in people and not evacuated and there is loss of life. local and state officials are having to make these decisions. it is not done lightly. the consequences are too great

not to go. you hope it does not get that bad, but you do not give a second chance. with regards to the disaster relief fund and money, i would change how you characterize that. we are not taking any money away from survivors. that continues to provide funds for all of the individual assistance programs for all of the open disasters. it also provides funding for the emergency protective measures and debris removal. we stop funding new or older disasters not in the system to maintain funds to support survivors and the response to this disaster. we are working closely with the white house on what funding may be needed. part of that will be based on the damage assessments we see in this storm. >> i know you said that irine is

still ongoing. is the damage less than you feared? are you breathing a sigh of relief? >> we do not live data that way. this is a huge storm. is covering a huge geographic area. there have been lots of impacts from the storm and the after- effects with the flooding, power outages, and the like. we are glad it was not a category 3 hurricane. that does not mean we can lean back and not put the full force of the federal government behind this state and local governments. that is the direction we have from the president and that is what we are doing. for questions by

telephone. please state your name and organization when asking a question. >> say it again. >> we're now ready for questions from reporters on the phone. please state your name and organization when asking a question. >> we do have a couple of questions on the phone. are you ready for those questions? >> we are ready for those questions. >> operator, if you could not hear, we are ready for questions. >> the first question is from iraq with the "new york times." -- eric with the "new york

times." >> outside of damage assessment and emergency response, has been and the federal government received requests for specific actions in terms of sending in federal manpower to respond to the disaster? >> we already had people in the states doing a coordinating role. we do have requests for some power assessment teams. the u.s. army corps of engineers teams are going in. north carolina had requests for generators. we're working on that. we're getting those kinds of requests now. fortunately, we have not had to deploy a lot of the search and rescue teams we have had on standby. this goes back to the team effort. a lot of this is being done by local and state responders. we brought in extra teams just in case they were needed. we're still standing by until the state's release us. >> do you have more specifics on

the actual damage details in particular cities where it seems to be the worst? >> we're just beginning that assessment in terms of numbers and dollar amounts, it is still very early. we're still concerned about rescue operations. as we get better conditions and have the emergency part of this taking care, we're starting the damage assessments. >> the next question is from allison with "new york daily news." >> this question is directed to bill read. what changed with the storm? do you know when the storm surge was? do you have details on the wind gusts? >> earlier in the week, we were

anticipating it as a category three coming out of the bahamas and over the warmest waters. there was no indication of anything that could disrupt it. we expected it to maintain or intensify. that did not happen. weakened as it approached north carolina. it was never far off land. >> we will leave that briefing from earlier today to have a look at the white house where the president has just spoken. craig fugate, the head of fema, is talking. >> we will work with the volunteer and faith-based organizations. we work for the american people. we're there for these survivors. we will be there through the length of these disasters. we're not going home just because it will not be on the news. we know we have a lot of work ahead of us. we will be there to support the

states and local communities as they begin the work ahead of us. >> we will continue to keep everybody posted throughout the week. a lot of communities are still being affected. we are particularly concerned about flooding because the continuing rains can have an impact well beyond the immediate center of the storm. we will continue to monitor that carefully. assessments are already being done in north carolina and virginia. there are search and rescue teams operating throughout the region. we will continue to keep the american people posted throughout our efforts on the response and recovery. thank you very much.

>> that is the president speaking at the white house just now. we will have the entire statement he made prior to where we were able to command a little later for you. if you would like to watch his statement and other briefings, log on to c-span.org. on tuesday, "washington journal" begins a series on the weather. we will look at disaster relief and prepared this, climatology and whether dynamics w --eather dynamics, noaa, and the role of the national weather service. and now, remarks from senator marco rubio of florida. he was the keynote speaker at the reagan library in california. he talks about the need for a

limited spending to grow the economy. this event begins with senator rubio escorting nancy reagan into the room. it is just under one hour. >> i am gerald parsky, a trustee of the ronald reagan foundation and museum. please turn off your cell phones. please remain standing for the pledge of allegiance once mrs. reagan is here. ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct honor to welcome former first lady nancy reagan, escorted by our special guest,

senator marco rubio. [applause] [applause]

[applause]

[applause]

>> in honor of our men and women who service around the world, please join in the pledge of allegiance. >> a pledge allegiance to the flood of the united states of america into the country for which it stands, indivisible,

with liberty and justice for all. thank you all very much. please be seated. [applause] >> i would like to recognize governor pete wilson and his lovely wife. [applause] the united states representative and his wife. [applause] the honorable gaddy vasquez, the

eight united states ambassador to the aid organization. from the ventura county board of supervisors, peter foy. [applause] all of our representatives from simi valley and thousand oaks city council. [applause] and last but certainly not least, i would like to extend a very special thank you to the general electric company, the presenting sponsor of the ronald reagan centennial celebration. [applause] mrs. reagan, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen, ronald reagan was known as the great communicator. we're honored to have as our

speaker today freshman united states senator who one prominent publication called "the most talented speaker in american politics today. " [applause] perhaps, a new "great communicator." [applause] the son of exiles from bill cuba, hestro's learned from them the same values that ronald reagan championed, family, faith, work, peace, and freedom. in his maiden speech from the senate floor, he recalled his early days.

"i come from a hard-working and humble family, yet i consider myself a child of privilege. i was blessed to be raised in a strong and stable family, and i was blessed to be here in the united states of america." marker will be a graduate from the university of florida in 1993 and the university of miami law school in 1996. after being elected to the a and florida house of representatives, he quickly showed his leadership ability and was elected speaker of the house. he is the youngest person and first hispanic ever to hold that office. [applause]

in 2010, he decided to run for the u.s. senate. he made his campaign not about past achievements about principles for guiding our nation's future. he called for cutting domestic spending, holding the line on taxes, rolling back federal regulation that strangles economic growth, and a clear, strong foreign policy. it sounds like someone else we all admired. [applause] in washington, senator rubio has stood by the principles on which he campaigned. during this year's debt debate, he defined the issues at stake when he wrote "our generation's greatest challenge is an economy that is not growing

alongside a national debt that is." he warned that if we failed to confront this, our children will be the first americans ever to inherit a country worse off than the one their parents were given. ronald reagan once said of the title that so many had bestowed upon him, "i was not a great communicator, but i communicated great things. they did not spring full bloom from my brow. they came from the heart of a great nation." ladies and gentlemen, at a time when many of us worry about how we can attract the highest quality to public office, please join me in welcoming a young leader who speaks for a new generation, a leader in the tradition of ronald reagan,

united states senator marco rubio. [applause] >> think you very much for this opportunity. introduction.for the i appreciate you not setting the bar to hide. [laughter] mrs. reagan, thank you for this opportunity. it is one of the highest privileges and honors i have ever had to come and speak in this place. earlier today, i was able to walk through here.

people from all over the world were touched by the extraordinary life of an extra new man. the contributions he made to this country were tremendous. the contributions he made to the world were even greater. meeting people who have been touched by those, it reminded me what a privilege it is to stand here and speak to you from a place like this. i am honored beyond any words i could use to describe it. thank you for this invitation. [applause] i have a distinct honor. the only two people i have never walked down the aisle with are here today. one is my wife, jeanette, and the other is mrs. reagan. [applause] i tell people all the time that i was born and raised in ronald reagan's america.

he was elected when i was in fourth grade. he left office when i was in high school. those are very important years, fourth grade through high school. those are the years that formed so much of what i believe and know to be true about the world and our nation. his era can be defined in most people's mind by the end of the cold war and the strong principles he stood for. he did not to believe that the soviet union and communism could fail, he believed it was inevitably destined to fail. he believed it was our obligation to accelerate the process. all we had to do with the americans and that would happen. that defined his presidency. that define his america -- defined his america in the time i grew up. there was something else the defined in. that was defining the proper role of government. he did that better than any american has done before. [applause]

it has always been important for americans to do that. i stand before you today at a time when defining the proper role of government is as important as it has ever been. the answer lies in what kind of country and want to have -- we want to have. i think the majority of americans share a common vision for what they want our nation to be. they want our nation to be two things at the same time. they wanted to be free and prosperous, a place where your economic hopes and dreams can be accomplished and brought to fruition. through hard work and sacrifice, you can be to god meant you to be, no matter who your parents were, no matter where you were born, no matter how much misfortune you may have had in your live. if you have a good idea, you can be anything if you work hard and play by the rules. americans share that vision.

they also want us to be compassionate america, a place where people are not left behind. we are a nation that will not tolerate those who cannot take care of themselves being left to fend for themselves. we will not tolerate our children being punished for the errors of their parents and society. we aspire to two things -- prosperity and compassion. ronald reagan understood that, perhaps better than anyone i have ever heard speak on it. america's leaders during the last century set out to accomplish that. they reached the conclusion that has placed us on this path. except for the reagan administration, republicans and democrats established a role for government in america that said we will have a free economy, but we will also have a strong government that will control the free economy through regulations and taxes. through government programs, they will take care of those in

society falling behind. that was the vision crafted in the 20th century by our leaders. though it was well intentioned, it was doomed to fail from the start. it was doomed to fail because it forgot that the strength of our nation begins with its people. these programs actually weakened the people. it was institutions in society that assumed the role of taking care of one another. if someone was sick in your family, you took care of them. if a neighbor met misfortune, you took care of them. you saved for your retirement and future because you have to. we took these things upon ourselves, our communities, our families, our churches, and synagogues, but all that changed when the government began to assume that responsibility. all the sudden, it was no longer necessary to worry about saving for security because that was the government's job. for those who met misfortune, it was not our obligation to take

care of them. that was the government's job. as government crowded out the institutions in our society that did these things traditionally, it weakened our people in a way that undermined our ability to maintain our prosperity. we built the government and programs without any account for how we were going to pay for it. there was no thought given to how this would be sustained. when social security first started, there were 16 workers for every retiree. today there are only three for every retiree. soon, there will only be two for every retiree. programs were crafted without any thought as to how they would be funded in future years or the impact they would have on future americans. there were done with the best of intentions. because it did not take into account the simple math, it was destined to fail. it has brought us to the point where we are today. it is a startling place to be. the 20th century was not a time

of decline for america. it was the american century. americans in the 20th century build the richest, most prosperous nation in the history of the world. yet today, we have built for ourselves a government that not even the richest and prosperous nation on the face of the earth can find or afford to pay for. iit is an extraordinarily tragic accomplishment, if you can call it that. that is where we stand today. defining the proper role of government was one of the defining issues of the reagan era. it remains that now. people are going around saying that we are worried about -- let me add something. this is an important forum for candor. i know is popular in my party to blame the current president. the truth is the only thing this president has done is accelerate

policies already in place and doomed to fail. all he is doing is making the day of reckoning come faster, but it was coming nonetheless. what we have now is not sustainable. the role of government cannot be sustained the way it is. some are worried about changing it. the good news is it is going to change. it has to change. that is not the issue. the issue is not whether the role of the government will change. the question is how it will change. will it change because we make the changes necessary or will it change because our creditors force us to make these changes? i hope to abdicate to you -- i do not think i have to given the makeup of the crowd -- [laughter]

i hope to advocate to you that we have a golden opportunity. we have the opportunity within our lifetime to craft a proper role for government in our nation that will allow us to come closer than many americans have ever come to our collective vision of a nation where both prosperity and compassion exist side by side. [applause] to do that, we must begin by increasing certain principles that are absolutely true. the free enterprise system does not create poverty. it does not leave people behind. people are poor and left behind because they do not have access to the free enterprise system. because something in their lives or community has denied them access to the free enterprise

system. all over the world, this expresses itself every day. every nation on the earth that embraces market economics and free enterprise is spilling millions of its people of poverty. the free enterprise system creates prosperity. it does not deny it. the second truism we must understand is that poverty and social problems are not created -- party does not create our social problems. our social problems create our poverty. [applause] let me give you an example. all across this country, at this very moment, there are children who were born into and are living with five strikes against them already through no fault of their own. they're born into substandard housing in dangerous neighborhoods to broken

families. they are being raised by grandmothers because they never knew their father and mother is either working two jobs to make ends meet or not home. these kids will struggle to succeed unless something dramatic happens in their lives. these truisms are important because they lead to public policy that defines the proper role of government. on the prosperity side, the number one objective of our economic policy from the government's perspective is simple. it is growth. it is not distribution of wealth. it is not picking winners and losers the goal of our public policy should be growth and equality of opportunity through governmental policy. when i give these speeches, members of the media get frustrated because there's nothing new and novel in it. we do not have to reinvent this. it has worked before and will work again. their simple things like a tax

code that is fair and predictable and easy to comply with. [applause] like a regulatory framework that does not exist to justify the existence of the regulators, to accomplish -- [applause] that does not exist to accomplish through regulation and rulemaking what they could not accomplish through the congress. [applause] it is the proper role of government to invest in infrastructure. the government should build roads and bridges. it should do so as part of economic development and infrastructure and not as a jobs program. [applause] government should invest in our people at the state level. education is critically important. we must educate and train our

children to compete and succeed in the 21st century. our kids will not grow up to compete with kids in alabama and mississippi. they will brought to compete with children in india and china, all over the world. these are the proper roles of government. it is within the framework of creating an environment where economic security and prosperity is possible. on the compassion side of the ledger that is also important to americans, conservatism is not about leaving people behind. it is about empowering people to catch up, to give them tools at their disposal that makes it possible for them to access all the hope, promise, and opportunity that america offers. our programs to help them should reflect that. there are people who cannot help themselves.

we're too rich and prosperous to leave them to fend for themselves. all the others who can work should be given the means of empowering themselves to enter the marketplace and work force. our programs and policies should reflect that. we do need a safety net, but it cannot be a way of life. it should be there to help those who have fallen to stand up and try again. [applause] by the way, i believe in america's retirement programs. but i recognize that these programs as they're currently structured are not sustainable for future generations. we must embrace public policy changes to these programs. i personally believe you cannot make changes to these programs for people currently in the right now. my mother gets mad when i say this. in her eighth decade of life -- [laughter] she is on both of these programs. i cannot ask my mother to go out

and get another job. she paid into these systems. social security and medicare cannot look for me the way they look for her. my generation must fully except that if we -- accept that if we want those programs and america to continue, we must begin to make changes to those programs now for us. [applause] these changes will not be easy. speeches are easy. going out and doing them will be difficult. it is never easy to go to people and say that what you a voice known, we have to change. it is not easy. will be hard. it calls upon the specific generation of americans, those of us decades away from retirement to assume certain realities, that we will continue

to pay into and fund a system that we will never fully access. we're prepared to do what it takes in our lives so that our parents and grandparents can enjoy the fruits of their labor and so that our children and grandchildren can inherit the fullness of america's promise. every generation of americans have been called to do their part to assure the american promise continues. we're not alone. we're not unique. i would argue that we have a pretty good. i think it is fully appropriate the those of us raised in ronald reagan's america are the ones being now passed to stand up and respond to the issues of the day. we perhaps better than any of the people should understand how special and unique america truly is. when i was a boy, the world looked very different than it does now. i vividly remember how many assumed and believed that soviet-style communism was destined to rule half of the

world. they urged our public policy leaders to accept it and that we would have to share the planet with a form of government that might be destined to overtake us as well. many discouraged our government from talking about the decline in failures of communism. many encouraged us to accept it as the way it had to be. they told us america could no longer continue to be what america had been. the world was just too complicated and difficult. it had changed too much. does that sound familiar? that is what they told us. but one person did not believe them. he happened to be president of the united states. he actually believed all we have to do was be america, that our example alone would one day lead to the decline and fall of the system that was unsustainable.

hinder stood the desire to be free, prosperous, and compassionate -- he understood the desire to be free, prosperous, and compassionate was universal. the desire to leave your children better off is something we have as americans, but so do people of the world. the principles this nation was founded upon is not that people in north america are in doubt by their creator with inalienable rights, but that all people are endowed by their creator with certain rights. transcribed in our hearts is the desire to live in freedom and liberty. it is our natural right. the job of government is to protect those rights and not to grant them to us. [applause] this is the natural state of man. anything that prevents it is a

natural and doomed to fail. all we had to do was be america. all we had to do was be prosperous and free. all we had to do was live our republic. all we had to do was be a voice for these principles in the world where there were challenged and oppressed. eventually, time was on our side. how right he was. when i was in fourth grade, the soviet union was a co-equal power to the united states. before i finished college, the soviet union did not even exist. so many people born since then have no idea what it even was. to me, this is extremely special. i will tell you why. during the 1980's, there were two people who deeply influenced me. one was clearly ronald reagan. the other was my grandfather who lived with us in our home. we live 1980 to 1984 in las

vegas, nevada. my grandfather loved to sit on the porch of our home and smokes cigars. he was cuban. [laughter] he lived to be 84 and smoked cigars. that is not an advertisement for it. my grandfather was born in 1899 to an agricultural family in cuba. he was stricken with polio as a young man and could not work the fields. he was sent to school. he was the only member of his family that could read. because he could read, he got a job at the local cigar-rolling factory. they would hire someone to sit and read to the workers while they worked. the first thing he would read every day it was the daily newspaper. then he would read some novels to entertain them. then he would sit down and rolled cigars because he needed the extra money. for all those years of reading, he became extremely knowledgeable about history and classics. he loved to talk about history.

my grandfather loved being cuban. he never would have left if he did not have to. he knew america was special. he knew that without america, cuba would still be a spanish colony. he knew that without america, the nazis and imperial japan would have won world war ii. when he was born in 1899, there were not even airplanes. by the time i was born, and america have bought the surface of the moon. he knew he had lost his country. the only thing preventing other people from losing theirs to communism was this country, this nation. it is easy for us who were born here to take for granted how special and unique this place is. when you come from somewhere else, when what you always love and new, you lost -- you do not have that luxury. my grandfather did not know america was exceptional because

he read about in a book. he knew it because he lived it and saw it with his eyes. that powerful lesson is the story of ronald reagan's presidency. it is our legacy as a people. it is who we have a chance to be again. i think that is important for all of us. being an american is not just a blessing. a responsibility.e th as we were commanded to do, let your light shine before men so that they can see your good works and glorify your father in heaven. as we gather today in this place pays homage to a great american, we're reminded that being a light to the world is not just our common history. it remains our common destiny. thank you. [applause]

[applause] >> a pretty good communicator, wouldn't you say? [applause] the center has agreed to respond to questions. we have collected some from the

audience. i have agreed to read them. >> i have agreed to listen to them. response is an option. [laughter] >> if your mother asks you to accept the v.p. spot, what will you say? [applause] what was that? did i get heckled at the ronald reagan center? [laughter] it is a great honor to be thought of in that way. as i joked earlier today, i have no interest as serving for vice president for anyone who could possibly live all eight years of the presidency. all kidding aside, it would be a great honor.

now i get a delayed reaction. i love being in the united states senate at this time in our history. i believe we can make a difference from there. what happens in politics is that the minute you start thinking there's something else out there for you, it starts affecting everything you do. maybe you are free to take the position on an issue because it imperils your opportunity to do something else. the reality is i will not be the vice-presidential nominee. i look forward to working for whoever our nominee is. >> next, a young conservative in the audience who followed you from the start of the 2009 senate campaign, his question is how you think the republican party can do better to attract people of his age. this is from john thompson. >> we need to be the party of prosperity in compassion, both at the same time. people of the younger

generations want prosperity. they also want to ensure that we live in a society where we do not leave people behind. you can do both. it is not an either or choice. there's only one economic system in the world where that is possible. that is the free enterprise system. there's only one economic system in a world where people who are employees can become employe rs, where workers can become owners. it is the only country in the world read to start a business out of your bedroom. it may be a violation of the zoning code, but it is possible. [laughter] that is the american free enterprise system. it is not just for young people. that is what all people want for their future. i wish that passing laws and government spending programs created jobs and prosperity. that is a lot easier to do than ask people to go to work hard. that is what it takes. that is what people are willing to do. the american free enterprise

system has eradicated more poverty than all the government programs in the world combined. we have to convince people of that. if we do, that question will not even be an issue before long. >> how do we get hispanics to line their boats with their conservative values? -- had to get hispanics to align their votes with conservative values? >> hispanics want desperately to give their children options they never had. my parents had some tough breaks in terms of losing their country. there were fortunate they were able to come here. i do not know when it was that my father realized he would not be able to do the things he dreamed of, but would become the mission of his life to ensure his kids would have the chance to do all of the things he could never do. i do not know when that day was,

but it happened. he would never have been able to do that anywhere else in the world. when i come to venues like this , my father was a bartender. he was a banquet bartender and worked at events like this. he stood behind the rollaway bars so that one day his son or daughter could sit in an audience like this or stand and a place like this. it would be unimaginable for my grandfather to believe that one day i would be speaking in front of nancy reagan and an audience of people at the ronald reagan library. they never pushed me to go into politics or do anything else. but they did inculcate something simple and profound within me. i would have a chance to do things they never had a chance to do because i am an american and live in america. that is a powerful thing.

that is the hope and dream of all americans. it is especially true in the community made up of americans of spanish descent. the only economic system in the world without as possible as the free enterprise system. there is a reason why in other countries the same families and companies dominate everything. hear, an employee can put the boss out of business if they have a better idea and work harder. the free enterprise system is the only system in the world where that aspiration has any chance of succeeding. we have to do a better job of communicating that. if we do, the rest will take care of itself. [applause] >> in the upcoming budget battle, what position do you take between the defense talks

for higher military spending and the anti-tax groups? >> our tax code is broken. it is a mess. there are things in the tax code they got there because of good lobbying and not public policy. it has to be flat, lord, simplify, made more fair. it has to be made with an eye towards economic growth and job creation. that has to be the goal of everything government does. i believe in tax reform. my opposition to tax increases is not a religious or ideological beliefs. it is common sense. increasing taxes kills jobs. i challenge anyone to show me a tax increase that creates jobs outside of the government. [applause]

on the defense side, there has never been an excuse for waste. if there are wasteful contract in practices in defense, we should read that out. but the world is as dangerous as it has ever been. if we think weakening our defense is something we can afford to do, we're seven mistaken. [applause] we cannot. western europe has virtually no defense budget in comparison to what we do. it has not help them to fund the kind of government they have tried to do. weakening our national defense is not the way to balance the budget in the united states of america. [applause] >> what is the best idea to get across to our liberal friends to help them stay away from spending? [laughter] >> they are americans who love

our country and want a nation of prosperity and compassion. they think that government is the only institution in society that can do that. the truth is there is no nation on earth that has been able to do that. it is not because they do not love america. it is because they are wrong. [laughter] [applause] the proof is on our side. in february of 2009, this government. $800 billion and pumped it into the economy. unemployment did not go down. it went up. the measures the proposed, the things they've asked for are not working. they're not going to work. no matter what they do, the policies they are trying will not work because they have never worked and will not work now. the only way to empower our people to truly tackle poverty is to grow our economy.

the american free enterprise system is the only way to do that. i am not sure we will ever convince our liberal friends of that, but i believe we can convince the vast majority of americans of that. [applause] >> if you could give the tea party one idea or topic to focus on, what should it be? >> i think they are focused on it. that is the proper role of government in america. [applause] all the screaming and shouting back and forth in washington, the debate about the role of government used to be an illogical debate. now it is not even a debate. it is a mathematical reality. the federal government spends $300 billion a month. it only takes and $80 billion. it must borrow $120 billion a

month. you cannot keep doing that much longer. s&p did not downgrade the united states because congressmen are mean to each other. downgraded the united states because they see this money we are borrowing and spending and we cannot continue to do it. that is exactly what the tea party movement and a growing number of americans are focusing on, the proper role of government. we're not anarchists. it is important the government do the things it should be doing. but when government starts doing the things it should not be doing, when its role grows too much, it does harm. regulations are killing jobs. overregulation and lack of common sense is killing jobs. our tax code is killing jobs. as maligned as it may be in the mainstream media, the tea party movement continues to be a collection of everyday americans

from all walks of life who believe that this is the greatest nation in the history of the world, they can stay that way as long as it wants to be, but that is not where it is heading and it needs to reverse quickly. that is what the tea party movement was about and what it continues to be about. [applause] >> this person from the audience says, honorable senator rubio, what is the role of government in developing citizens with the principles of our founders? our public school system does not seem to be doing this today. >> developing citizens is a function of families and communities. [applause] our schools and government should be a tool that the families and communities can use, not where we send our kids to be raised. i know there are real problems out there. i know there are kids struggling to succeed because of aspects of

their lives better not their fault. that is the reality of it. it is important for us to remind ourselves of our founding principles and the simple truths. one that people really need to fully embrace is what i have heard from a lot of people. embodies many things that president reagan stood for. our rights do not come from our government. they come from our god. rights come from god. [applause] government's job is to protect those rights. those are the founding principles of our nation. without that principle in place, the american revolution was just another colonial rebellion. without those principles in place, that is all the american revolution was -- just a bunch of people who wanted their own country. the reason we wanted our own country was because we believe every human being was born with certain rights. every government denies those is

illegitimate. we want a government that will protect these rights. that is what the principles of our founding work. the more we remind people that, the better off we will be in terms of public policy that comes from it. [applause] >> this is the last question. it came from the audience. where do we send a check to support a presidential run presidentialy -- your presidential run? [applause] >> thank you. [applause]

>> thank you very much, senator. i would like to remind all of you that dinner will be served in the air force one pavilion in just a few minutes. the staff will help to escort you to dinner. i would ask that everyone remain seated while mrs. reagan and our special guest depart. thank you all for a great evening. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

[indistict conversation]

>> interviews with presidential candidates continues with jon huntsman, former utrecht -- utah governor and ambassador to china. he would this is -- and discuss strategy for the economy and trade relations with china. why he