today, the united states of america has 283 war vessels. who, two weeks ago, launched their first aircraft carrier? >> china. >> 70% of the mass of the earth is what? >> water. >> the were concerns about the unintended consequences and loss of life and the united states potentially going into bankruptcy over financing these wars. what is your opinion on these unintended consequences? >> when i look at the mandates in the constitution, there are five. it says injure domestic -- ensure domestic tranquillity, promote the general welfare, and so on. i can make you as prosperous as you want to be as a people. if i do not protector security, what difference does it make? -- protect your security, what difference does it make? there were people who were going to work 10 years ago on

september 11, 2001. the world changed. the fight came to our shores. if we can get back to having a government that understands this constitutionally mandated responsibility, we can set it straight as far as our fiscal situation. but if we have the government continue to create agencies and bureaucracies that never meet their intended purposes -- there was only one reason we created the department of energy in the late 1970's -- to make the united states of america energy independent. no one has yet to be able to explain to me why we have a department of labour. -- labor. what do they do?

the department of education -- what has happened to the performance standards of education? it has gone down. it is an inverse relationship. when we get a government that understands its proper roles and responsibilities, we will have a federal government that does not have these large debts and deficits. [applause] >> i think you guys said how we do that. it is about making the hard decisions. it really is. if you take a pebble -- i am telling you. be specific? anything that does not meet the constitute -- the department of energy. why do we have a department of energy when they are not producing anything, according to their mandate? we do not need to have that. when we have a department of education, education should be a local issue. it cannot be the federal government. [applause] those are the things. those are the types of things we have to do, and then we can get this budget on its right track. >> congressman, virginia wants to know why you feel it is necessary to be in so many wars up once.

-- at once. >> first of all, i have never felt it necessary to be in so many wars at once. the one thing that a soldier, sailor, airman, marine understands -- they took an oath to support. they took an oath to protect you. but we really would like to stay home with our families. we really would like to come home every single night and see our wife and kids. when we go to war, we do not have to be. when we went to war in correa, -- in korea, 75% of the legislators had been in combat. they knew what it meant to send men and women into war. now you have less than 10%. and they do not have a phreaking clue. [applause]

i know what it means to stand over an american soldier that has been shot. so the decision to say we're going to go into a combat operation is personal to me, because those are my friends, those are my brothers and sisters. that is my nephew. if we could get more people who have been on that side and understand what it means to tell someone at 2:00 in the morning to pack your rucksack and your dufflebag and we do not know if you are coming home -- that is what we have to do to fix this situation, as far as commitment to conflict and combat operations. >> i want to move to one area regarding tax reform. i have a question from elizabeth moose. can you comment on fair or flat tax? >> that is a great question. i think there are a lot of misconceptions out there.

the flat tax means we flatten it out, one basic tax rate. you eliminate loopholes and subsidies. you have very few deductions. that is why i say with a flat tax of 13% to 16% on every wage earnings -- mortgage deductions, child tax credit. on the corporate business side, 21%. you have no loopholes. you have no subsidies. when you are talking about a fair tax, a consumption-based tax, that is what we had before 1916, when we created the kind -- the amendment that allows us to tax. to do the fair tax, all levels -- levels of federal taxation have to be gone, or you get what is called a value added tax. you have your basic federal tax and then a fair tax based on

your consumption, and sales taxes on top of that. you have to get rid of capital gains tax, dividends taxes, the death tax, estate tax, the irs if you want to have -- [applause] i know. if you're going to have a fair tax. that means you have to repeal the 16th amendment. i believe the air attacks can be in a state, but a flat tax can -- that their tax can be an end state that we get to, but a flat tax can be a bridging mechanism. you have 40% of households that are not paying any federal income tax right now. what a shock it would be if they suddenly got a 23% national sales tax on goods and services. that is why we have a flat tax, as a means by which -- remember, incrementalism is not a bad thing. get more people into the tax base. then we can start doing things to move toward having a fair

tax. that is the situation. >> congressman, i know you mentioned the corporate tax rate in that explanation. how about lowering the corporate tax rate to 20% with no loopholes. that could create an additional $100 billion. >> i said 21% because i looked that if we keep our states with a 4% to 6% corporate business tax rate, ne corporation tops out at 25%, 26%. i think that would be the right place to go. that gives them a competitive tax rate with the rest of the world. we cannot lower it down to 12% to 13%. then there are no loopholes. there are no subsidies. we just give you a competitive tax rate. >> what is your opinion on the bayou added tax?

-- value-added tax? >> that is killing europe. it is not a good thing. you are just increasing the level of taxation on people. if you're going to have a fair tax, you have to eliminate all other forms of federal income tax rate so it does not become a value added tax, which would crush american households. >> i want to move to the area of the environment. kelsey crane wants to know -- you recently voted to roll back the clean air act, seriously compromising public health and our clean air. we promise to protect our future and support clean energy solutions? >> i do believe in clean energy solutions. but this is a thing you have to look at. with a lot of these new regulations coming down, it is the epa tightening up where we already have regulations to the point where you are putting americans out of work. i do not think that is what we

want. the administrator of the epa set before a congressional committee, i believe the energy and commerce committee. when she was asked if she could take into consideration the economic ramifications of the regulations, she said absolutely not. now is not the time to end up killing our small businesses and corporations in the united states of america. i believe in protecting our air. i am a master scuba diver. i want good, clean reeves. -- reefs. i want a great everglade. but -- say it. >> [unintelligible] what happens when a hurricane comes? and that nuclear waste? >> i sit around and look at the fact that france is 70% to 75% nuclear capable and it is recognized as one of the cleanest sources of energy you have out there. [applause]

>> there is a question about tourism being the life blood for an economy and many energies like hotels and fishing, which rely on clean water. how will you ensure that water quality standards protect these businesses from nitrogen and phosphorus? >> it is very simple. when you have the third largest reef system in the world, we are not going to have any pollution of our water system. we are looking at how we can enhance and develop energy resources from the gulf stream. we are looking at how we can harness the energy of the ocean and use it to power our systems here in fort lauderdale and across of florida. no one is looking at how they can pollute. one of the critical things that is good to be happening soon -- in 2014, the panama canal is going to expand. bigger cargo ships are going to be coming here.

we have to look at how we can do the dredging necessary for those ships to come here. but you have some people who are seeing how they can make sure they can protect our wreath -- reef systems, even while the of -- they are thinking how they can accommodate these vessels. once again, we cannot continue down a path of sacrificing america's jobs over these type of things which are not really proven to be so. no one is poisoning our oceans. our oceans right out here in south florida are some of the cleanest around. you can laugh about it, but i was down 120 feet a few weeks ago and i think it is ok. [applause] >> again on water, and one-third of florida residents get their daily water supply from the everglades.

how are you working to support everglades restoration project? >> i support also between richmond project. -- also beach renewal projects. that is part of our tourism industry, as well as the everglades. i think michele bachman said something that was a faux pas yesterday when she mentioned the possibility for energy resources in the everglades. when i see her next week, i will straighten her out about that. [laughter] [applause] >> there was one question i am not familiar with regarding the keystone, pipeline. are you familiar with that? >> that is a pipeline coming out of canada, an oil pipeline. oil shale. >> do you support the keystone pipeline to solve some of our energy needs in the future? >> yes i do. i think right now when we looked at -- [applause] i would rather have a pipeline to canada than continue to send our money to saudi arabia, venezuela, or possibly to canada.

we need to be very concerned about a spanish company called repsol. they are looking to drill off the international waters of key west. about 10 miles away. how they are going to go into deaths that are deeper than the -- depths that are deeper than deepwater horizon did. if you understand slant drilling, you understand you can offset under the water and go into the continental shelf. but they are going to establish the platform in cuban waters, which means it cannot say or do -- we cannot say or do anything about it if there is a mishap. if something happens, that oil slick, that will go into the gulf stream. this is why i believe -- there is a piece of legislation to prevent cuba from allowing people to come in and slant drill within a mile of our international waterline. we cannot allow that to happen. >> i wanted to move on to some

questions regarding jobs. there are some broad ones and specific ones i want to ask of you. emanuel new -- emanuel more asks what you feel is the best way to improve employment in florida, as well as the united states, but specifically florida. >> in south florida, we have an unemployment of 11%. there are three things we have to have. i call it confidence, capital, and certainty. we have to have confidence in the economic policies, the tax policies, and the regulatory policies coming to our local level. you have small businesses looking to grow, but because of the tax burden and the regulatory burden -- with the health care law, they are taking people off health care plans or putting them on part- time because they cannot afford the increase in the insurance policy. those of the things we have to

turn around. when you look at access to capital, we have small banks who want to lend to our small businesses, but when you read the dodd-friend bill -- dodd- frank bill, it includes our small banks under the larger net that the large banks have been caught under. there are regulators telling them they have to reclassify good loans as-assets. negative assets. it is about the access to capital that will help our small businesses grow. we see too many clothes store -- closed store fronts. the last thing is certain to. people do not know what is when to happen day to day in the fiscal environment of the united states of america. if we can rectify those things, open up that access to capital so small businesses can grow and hire more americans, and we can provide certainty 7 know what is -- certainty so that they

know what is fun to happen as far as tax rates a year from now -- which is why i support a flat tax. small businesses operate as subchapter s corporations. they use their personal income tax rate. we have to provide them certainty so they know what their rates are going to be. >> if you have a question, write it down and bring it up to us. i have a lot to get through. we will get yours if we have a chance. the next question is from marjorie collins. sir, if you have a question, please just write it down. if you could just write it down, that would be helpful. thank you. congressman, you are putting in place -- what are you putting in place to help those unemployed get jobs? specifically, are you in favor of tax deductions for outsourcing? >> i am not. i think when you look at the problem in the united states, we're out sourcing too many jobs.

there was an urban legend going around that fast food restaurants were outsourcing their drive-through lanes. we do not need to do that. the important thing is how do we give competitive tax rates to corporations and businesses so jobs come back the united states of america. then you do not need loopholes and subsidies. if they continue to outsource, you have every right to fine them. right now, we are creating that problem. remember that ice-cream cone? we are telling corporations and businesses -- we are pushing them away, and then we are finding them for having these incredibly high tax policies that are not enabling them to grow. they want to come to america. they want to grow. we just need to set the conditions. that is not what they are doing right now. [applause] >> , charlotte weiss of jupiter

says you were elected to bring jobs to the country. specifically, what kind of jobs bills have you filed or introduced in congress to do that? >> if you look up h.r. 60 and -- 1663 63, the small business encouragement act, it says we will extend the work opportunities tax credit until 2013 for small businesses who in the previous fiscal year had $20 million or less in revenue, had 120 employees or less. will give you a $600 tax credit for any american you hire off the unemployment rolls. -- a $6,000 tax credit for any american you hire off unemployment rolls. if your an account with double digit unemployment, there is additional. -- you are in a county with double-digit unemployment, there is additional tax credits. that is sitting in the ways and means committee. see if we can get that push through. but there are nine pieces of job-promoting legislation that passed the house as early as

march of this year. nine pieces of legislation. they are sitting over at the senate. that is the thing in washington, d.c.. action versus in action. but i know we have hope with a -- helped with a new facility that opened just north of palm beach. we're talking to lockheed martin about possibly bringing a repair facility for a combat ship down -- the look for combat ships down -- littoral combat ships down to west palm beach as well. in october, we are going to bring the small business committee down for the fort lauderdale boat show to show us how we can alleviate the tax and regulatory burden on them so they can grow. those are things we are trying to do. [applause] >> people are frustrated with congress and the seeming inability to have a job

creation. when is congress coin to get to work and focus on this job, is ideology aside? >> when you say is ideology aside, you have to understand there is an illogical chasm in -- an incredible ideological chasm and the united states of america. there is a group that believes the way forward is to have more people wedded to government either through an assistance check or an unemployment check. this is a group that believes the way forward is to set the conditions for private sector growth so they're the ones that create the jobs and opportunities for american citizens. that is a very big chasm that is widening every day. if we continue to believe the best way forward for america is a bigger federal government, who pays for the public sector? 13 to 14%.

public-sector growth over private sector growth. it is only a matter of time. centrally controlled economies have never been successful anywhere in the world. but remember what winston churchill said. americans will end up doing the right thing after they've tried everything else. we're trying that here. that is the antithesis of what we are in the united states of america. 235 years, we have been in existence. what built america? big government or entrepreneurs? [applause] >> i know you spoke about your trip to israel, but there were a few questions people ask. what option -- and this is from jim hunter -- what option does

israel have to protect itself from iran and the satellite nations? >> the biggest option is eventually they may have to take action to defend themselves. that is their right and that is their responsibility. prime minister netanyahu is responsible for the safety and security of the israeli people. 50 to 100 rockets and missiles were pouring into southern israel almost every day when i was over there. has the law has 50,000 rockets -- hezbollah has 50,000 rockets and missiles. they have the capability to strike every major city in israel from southern lebanon. when you think about the fact that they are developing -- iran is developing intercontinental ballistic missiles which may have nuclear warheads, which definitely could have other dirty war heads, they have a responsibility to do that. i want you to do some homework before you go to mark. -- tonight. i want you to understand where does the word palestine come from. a lot of people think it is

associated with a certain individual, but it is not. it comes originally from a roman word. palestina. in 73 a.d., when the romans conquered to suppress the jewish rebellion, emperor hadrian decreed the land would no longer be called today a, a derivative of judah. it would be called palestine. the romans got that word from the root word philistines. but the original philistines were not arab. there were not from that region. they were great. -- greek. when you hear people talk about free palestine, when you hear people talk about return palestine to the original owners, the original owners are the jewish people. [applause] it is time look at the

situation in the middle east and understand the facts and history, and not irrational emotionalism, and not being a puppet of the information in the media that is put out there. [applause] a lot of people were talking about the earthquake and hurricane irene. the were not a lot of stories about the terrorism occurring in israel at the same time. and is only intensifying, ladies and gentlemen. >> beth grossman from boca raton has concerns about the obama administration position on israel and asks is there any hope the obama administration might reconsider their current position. >> when you talk about 1967 lines, that is untenable for israel. now you are talking about the modern day state of israel would only be 9 miles wide. that is not feasible.

when i talk to the leadership over there, there is uncertainty in the middle eastern situation. the saudi arabian is are really angry at america, because they saw what happened with costa mubarak. they believe now that are on their own. they are cutting deals with others. there are a lot of questions out there. they must vote against this unilateral declaration of a palestinian state. we have to veto it in the security council. if they intend to proceed forward with it, the funding has to be cut off from the united states of america. >> i have a question from i think a chef. how is the food in israel? [laughter] >> it was too much. let me say it was a very, very good trip.

it was an incredible experience, the cultural aspect, the political aspect. every bit of it was so important. if you have never had the opportunity to travel to israel, i would recommend it. >> i wanted to talk in more of a broad category, administrative issues in washington, d.c.. the incident and audrey cassidy from jupiter ask what was the response from congress people about spending more work time in washington. i think early in the session you questioned the work schedule that was put out. >> there were some people that were not happy with me about that. last december, when the congressional calendar came out, we only had 153 days of being in session. i fired off a letter to majority leader eric kanter. -- cantor.

i had not even been sworn in yet. i basically told him the calendar needs to work. i did not see how it would be possible with all the things representatives that we would be able to get everything done. look where we are. we have only done six out of 12 bills. [unintelligible] that is on us. that is on us. when you look at those 12 appropriations bills, one of the questions is what is the most important appropriation bills? what are the tears we can establish? maybe some of these appropriations bill should be on a two-year cycle and not a one-year cycle. we are never going to catch up and get to them. we continue to have continuing resolutions. the united states federal

government never has a budget. i really think we have to spend more time in washington, d.c., making sure we have the right type of schedule and votes to get things done. then we can come back in that last week of the month and can sit down for two or three days with our constituents. but there are a lot of pressing issues in washington, d.c.. this calendar schedule is a little bit lacking for me, especially when you come from a military background. when you're in a combat zone, it is 24/7. >> peter kofu from west palm beach wants to know will we ever actually cut and the federal government staff in washington, d.c. >> you love, but one of those appropriations bills was a deal with the legislative branch. we have cut another 7%. you do see a lot of cuts. i've told my chief of staff met with the money we are allocated i want to make sure we come in -- i think i said 10% below the

money we are allocated. i want to be able to turn that back to the treasury. those are the things we have to have people that are doing. >> these are a couple of questions that are more election-related. david frum, beach wants to know what will be done to prevent voter fraud in the coming election. [applause] >> i know that we have the chairman of the palm beach executive committee. regardless of your party affiliation, this is what you need to do. it is important we do not have intimidation are the things we previously saw.

we need to clean and our reputation now. >> congressman, gerry has been following the congressional race -- presidential race and wants to know why you think governor perry has become so popular so quickly. >> i do not know. maybe because he wears cowboy boots. i could not tell you. i can tell you this. it is still pretty early in football. -- preseason football. we still have a lot of people to fill up the roster. it is a marathon. it is not a sprint. let us see what happens by november. or even at the end of the year. it only takes one single thing to flip. i remember back -- howard dean. remember, howard dean was well ahead.

one single thing. then he was forgotten. politics in the united states of america are very interesting. i think we have to be patient and watch this process. we have to continue to talk to people about the issues that are pertinent. understand there is a difference between a midterm election cycle and a presidential election cycle. in the midterm, you get people that understand the legislative process, people that understand what the congressman is and a senator is. presidential election cycle, you see an increase of people that come out and participate because it becomes more american idol. it really does. be prepared for that. there will be people who will not know who they are going to vote for a week before an election. all of a sudden, i like his suit, or i like his smile, or whatever. that will be the kind of thing that puts them over the top. we have to educate ourselves and step back and be attuned to

the issue. it is free seat -- it is preseason football. >> there were a couple of people in here who were willing to talk a little bit about the budget. you expressed opinions about that early on. john weingarten is concerned about having a budget that is not balanced. what are your opinions on the balancing of the budget. >> i think you have to. if you look at many of our states, 49 have a balanced budget amendments. the federal government needs to have that. if you continue to see what is happening in the fed, where we are monetizing our debt and keeping interest rates at artificially low levels. we cannot keep that path. japan tried nine stimulus

packages. i think we have to have a balanced budget amendment. i think we have to get away from this budget which means each year we raise it up, then say we will cut it. we have to get back to a 0- based budget system. those of the structural reform things that have to happen. it takes 5 miles for an aircraft carrier. a lot of things we are contending with her husband over -- have happened over a 30 year time. the financial meltdown of 2008 traces back to the community reinvestment act. think about all the things that happened along the way. think about the creation of fannie and freddie. all of a sudden, there was the separation between investment banking and commercial banking. we started to sell mortgage- backed securities from bank to bank. we went on with all these things.

30 years later, we have a meltdown. if we can get to the point where we do not have financial election cycle sound bites, where we really start to look out 30 and 40 years and understand the policies and ramifications thereof, then we will get things on the right footing in the united states. >> what is the most important thing you think can be done to reduce the deficit? >> the debt is what we know, and the deficit is the difference between the revenues coming in and the spending going out. the most important thing is that we have to institute fiscal responsibility. we have to understand the constitutional mandates of the federal government and get them back on the right side and scope to perform its duties. remember what i said. what built america? the government, or entrepreneurial spirit? if we continue down that path, the deficit is bigger. if we believe an entrepreneurial spirit, we will

have the right tax policies and regulatory policies to grow the private sector, which means we will reduce the debt and the deficit. that is what that means. i think you need to reinstate glass-steagall. i think you repealed sarbanes- oxley as part of that. >> that was my next question. do you support reinstating that? >> you have to. we blurred the line between investment and commercial banking. there are people in the big bank world that should not be. the dodd-frank does go after some of these larger banks, but remember what i said. if it is worth regulating, people sometimes believe it is worth over regulating. now we have small community banks caught in that web as well. when timothy geithner came and

testified before the small business committee i sit on, i ask one simple question. when are we going to go back and review dodd-frank and clean it up? to make sure we are not penalizing small community banks? he told me he would get to it. [laughter] >> that question was from thomas simpson of poker upon -- boca raton. she is concerned about the spending in washington. julie johnson is from jupiter and says can't congress cut off the ridiculous -- [applause] can't congress cut off the travel allowance to the president and his family? [laughter] [applause] >> this is on c-span, isn't it? [laughter]

>> in the military, they teach you leadership begins with the leader. it is about setting the right example. i think if the president is going to be watching me, camera 1, we need you to lead by example. the american people are hurting. [applause] >> this is a question from judith mcginnis from north palm beach. she specifically wants to know what we can do to make public schools more accountable. [unintelligible] >> as i said, back in the late 1970's, the decision was to take education out and make it a separate department. back in the 1970's, the department of education had about 500 employees.

had a budget of $19 billion. the department of education today has closer to 5000 employees and a budget of $85 billion. education in the united states of america is broken. i did spend a year teaching high school. that was such an enjoyable experience i volunteered to go to afghanistan. [laughter] what we have to do -- seriously. [laughter] we have to make education relevant in the 21st century. we cannot believe that teaching a kid how to take the test is teaching a kid. it is not. [applause] ours start involving private sector to go in and teach the practical application of some of the theory we are

trying to teach our kids. my 14-year-old daughter, who just started high school, can do things with her computer that are unconscionable to me. i cannot know how. if students fail the fcat, they drop out. what happens? they become victims, they become dependent upon something called government, so government has to take care of them. and that means less and less of the entrepreneur spirit and innovation in this country. what we have to do is completely scrap our education system. we need to get in line with the technology and the types of things that our kids need to be

able to learn and contend with in this world today. we need to know the things that will produce the next generation that can be productive citizens. not every kid is corn to go on to college. there is not a right to go to college. but if every kid could leave high-school with a defined talent, a trade, something they can say that, "i can do this" -- there is nothing wrong with having summer apprenticeship where kids can take the thing they are focused on, that trade, and start to put it to practical application. you are creating a future employee. you look at some of these things -- there is nothing wrong with automobile mechanics. plumber's need to learn the metric system. that is nothing easy. we have to reform education.

>> should we observe constitution day, providing educational programs? how will you observe constitution day, 2011? >> i need to ask my staff if i will be in washington. if so, i will be defending the constitution. i will speak about my responsibilities in one of these local schools if i am not. to many of our kids do not understand civics. it is not just on constitution day. every day, we need to start teaching our kids about civics. [applause] >> many are calling for term limits.

and the repeal of the 17th amendment. repealing the seventh amendment would restore accountability to some of the establishment. would you support the appeal of the 17th amendment? >> i am not a senator. i think we can do better as far as accountability of senators. we do need to have a term limit in washington, d.c.. as a matter of fact, one of our constituents down here lives in florida which in atlantis, florida. he has a plan for the house of representatives that max's you out at 12 years of legislative service. in the house, it messes you up from six to eight years. the longer people are in the sea, the less connection may have to the people.

they never intended us to have career politicians. they intended us to have citizen servants who went to washington, d.c. they made certain pieces of legislation and came back and had to live under them. that is what we have to get back to. [applause] >> stanley wants to know more about the growth of the welfare population and some of the programs that service them. >> when i went back to atlanta, i did not recognize it. we have a 41% increase in food stamp recipients. we're going in the wrong direction.

people came to america because they believe there was a land of opportunity. but if we start to get to being the land of a handout and suppressing the opportunity, we start to become a land of equal achievement and not equal opportunity, where government can decide how far you go in your life, we're going to lose the essence of the united states of america. in inner-city atlanta georgia, i guarantee my parents would have never thought i would rise up and be a lieutenant colonel, command a battalion in combat, and the united states congressman. but the fact that we live in a country where it is possible, and the only thing that can hold you back is what is between your ears -- that is what my parents stressed to me. if we continue to have the breakdown of family structure in america and to make kids believe there is only a certain thing they can do, we're going to continue to see those failings in the social side of the united states of america.

there is a reason something is happening in philadelphia. when we were growing up, when we went to fast-food restaurants, especially during the summer, you saw one adult at a fast-food restaurant. that was the manager. all the others were kids, high school kids. you go in these fast food restaurants today, what do you see? they are all adults. what we are doing is we are now affecting those young people and their hopes and their opportunities, even at that early age of 13, 14, 15. we have to turn this around. we absolutely have to. >> this is more of a broad question regarding the budget. the reconciliation of the budget passed by the house and the need for continuing resolution as of october 1 --

what are you going to do to work with the gang of 12 to make sure a budget is in place by november 23? >> i cannot do too much to work with that game. i'm not head over heels about that happening. upset that we did not have freshman members represented there. some of them have gotten on the wrong track. we have only past six out of 12 appropriations bills. unless we do some herculean effort, i do not see any way where we're going to get the remaining six bills voted on in the house and the other 11 bills voted on in the senate so we can have a budget as we go forward and get the president to sign it in fiscal year 2012.

that is why we have a 13% approval rating. we are not staying there until the mission is accomplished. all i can do is continue to be the squeaky wheel. even if i don't get any oil, i will continue to be the squeaky wheel. this is where you are. we want something different. we really need to have the right type of structural reform in how washington, d.c. has been operating. >> what are you doing to ensure individual land rights are protected by the u.s. congress? >> nothing has come up about losing property rights. i do understand the concern.

agenda 21. i understand the concern and a lot of people have about losing american sovereignty to the united nations. there is a treaty where we could lose to the united nations. that is one of the things i will make sure i stay on top of. this child rights faint that they are trying to put -- the thing that they're trying to push through the united nations. we have to make sure we maintain our sovereignty, securing our borders. because we have a huge problem. >> there is a question about cfl bulbs the light bulbs that people use have become a big issue. is that something you're interested in doing? >> we could not even repeal that in congress. the government is telling you what kind of light bulb you can have in your home. we cannot even repeal that mercury light ball, which if you break it in your house you

now have hazardous-waste in your home. we will keep trying to fight for the light bulb. >> how closely the need to work with the united nations? >> i see the united nations as a failed organization right now. [applause] i do not want to see american soldiers having to wear that light blue beret. there is a different in the standards and style of leadership. the united nations intervention force in lebanon on right now,

spanish soldiers are being picked off and kill by hezbollah in southern lebanon. they refuse to go out and did the missions now. -- and to the missions now. i want to see us have leadership in parts of the united states of america. when you commit our forces in the united states of america, you give them the right guidance, you are given the right orders, you allow them to do the mission they are supposed to do. you expedite their set chelation and yes, your redeploy them back once they have completed the mission. but they have to understand what the mission is. when you look at the rules of engagement and how we are tying soldier's hands behind your backs, that is not enabling them to be successful and have victory on the battlefield. it comes back to having people on the end of the gun, because we know what it is like. before we send someone else out there. [applause]

>> congressman, there were a couple of questions about tea party politics. some talk about the racial tensions that they believe are involved in the tea party. would you want to comment on that? >> i think it was the week before i went to israel. i spoke in front of the palm beach tea party group. it was close to 400 people. last time i looked, i was african-american. they did not, like, try to run me out or attack me, or anything like that. one of the things people have to understand -- what is this thing called the tea party? i think there is a lot of media disinformation. that which washington does not understand, the attack. -- they attack.

and that is either side. [applause] all you are talking about is it constitutional, conservative, grass roots movement. they believe in four basic things. they believe in effective and efficient federal government. they believe in fiscal responsibility. they believe in national security. they believe in free market, free enterprise. anyone who does not believe in that, i do not know what you believe in. so that is it. are there going to be some folks that get off on the fringe? absolutely right. but those are the core principles they stand for. who would not want to embrace that? that is what america is about. [applause] >> we have a few more questions. this is about it obama's executive many dream act. -- mini dream act.

why hasn't the republican leadership been screaming? >> that is why i do not believe in going away on recess. he is talking about when the secretary of homeland security came out and said we are only going to enforce certain types of illegal immigration deportation. you do not get to pick and choose what you want to do when you are the executive branch. our laws are our laws and you have to abide by them. that is one of the things we need to pay attention to when we get back to washington, d.c. part of being a republic -- the preeminent thing is the respect of the rule of law. if we do not have that coming out of washington, d.c., we lose our edge. -- we lose our country. >> congressman, this is a question from austin white head. is there any plan to eliminate the increase in lobbyists?

>> i cannot make them go away. but i can stop them coming near me. you have 535 legislators. at last count, there were 35 to 40 largest -- lobbyists for each legislator. there is a street called k street which is the lobbyist street. this is what you have to do. you just have to close your door to them. there was a contentious thing about the second engine for the of 35 fighter aircraft. -- f 35 fighter. ge wanted to be able to come in and have that second engine. one of the top executives from ge decided to visit a young freshman congressman in his office. did not make a dent.

that is what you have to be able to do. [applause] people will promise you a whole lot of things up in washington, d.c., but you have to stand on your principles. i do not work for lobbyists. i work for you. [applause] >> congressman, there were some questions about some of the uncivil discourse of some of the dialogue that occurred after the tragic shooting of congresswoman deferreds -- giffords. there have been calls about disrupting town hall meetings like this. i think all of you for a civil and productive meeting. but what are your thoughts on some of that discussion between your colleagues in washington, d.c.? >> since i have been up there, i have been told i want to kill women and babies.

i am told i hate everybody. i might even hate myself. name-calling is what happens when people do not want to stick to the issues and talk about the things that are going to make this nation great. we have to get away from that. whatever your ideology is, whatever your belief is, let's talk about it in the arena of ideas, not the cheap shots. i will tell you this. i will tell you this. if you poke me in the chest, i am going to fight back. [applause] >> please come through on your commitment to see san diego. after everything i think we have heard today, you're going to spend a lot of time in washington, working on these issues.

>> san diego is a beautiful place. i flew in there on my way to head up to camp pendleton. maybe one day i would get a chance to go out there and visit the seal training in coronado. the right now we have a lot of stuff we have to do in washington, and also being down with the folks in south florida. but god bless you for coming over from san diego. >> believe it or not, i think we have gotten to just about everybody's question. some of them are similar in nature. if i did not call your name out specifically, i apologize for that. but i think this has been a great town hall meeting. we appreciate you being here to share your thoughts and answer some questions. [applause] >> i want to thank all of you for coming out. there were better places that you could have been. i know the weather out there is pretty nasty.

but figure for participating in this process and allowing me to share a year -- share my thoughts and ideas. god bless america. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] >> general david petreaus will become the new director of the cia. this morning his retirement ceremony. live coverage at 10:00 eastern on c-span3. the commission on wartime contractsing issues its final report. the bipartisan commission will showed tens of billions of dollars in waste and fraud from u.s. funded contracts over the last decade. we will have live coverage of 9:30 a.m. eastern on c-span2.

>> watch more video of the candidates, see what political reporters are saying, and track the latest campaign contributions with c-span's website for campaign 2012. easy to use, it helps you navigate the political landscape with twitter needs and facebook updates from the campaigns, plus links to c-span media partners in the early primary and caucus states, all at c-span.org /campaign2012. >> "washington journal" is next on c-span. then a discussion on the jobs an economy geared we would go to the u.s. came up -- chamber of commerce for their labor debriding. it gets underway at 10:00 eastern. coming up this hour, a look at new government regulations that the white house is considering daniel mitchelldaniel of the daniel mitchelldaniel of the cato