. c-span didn't say anything about his faith. he sat in a racist church 20 years and he was asked questions and he said that he didn't hear anything he is saying and that it was dropped. host: the only thing i can tell you is we very much did focus on barack obama's faith and religion. we had a number of questions about his father and whether or not he was a u.s. citizen, his only muslim favorite and the speeches or the -- from jeremy wright -- and used that as a series of questions in 2008 so we did focus on barack obama's faith and upbringing during the campaign. caller: i thought obama's mother was a jew and nobody ever said anything about her. host: well, we have talked about his mother. his mother passed away many years ago.

he was essential raised by his grandmother. but the point is we focused on his faith and this is an issue that came up over the weekend by a supporter of governor rick perry. it is front page this morning in a number of papers and this a response from bill bennett who spoke yesterday at the value voters summit the headline from politico. jefress's comments is bigotry and i would say you stepped on and obscured the words of perry and santorum and everyone else who had spoken here. you did rick perry no good, sir in what you had to say. sarah is joining us, tuscon, democrats line. does it matter? caller: good morning. i'm a little torn. i have mormon neighbors. i have had them in my house. they wanted my 18-year-old son to come to church with them.

they are very nice people. i'm very torn because i know some of the beliefs they have are not something i agree with. but then you don't want to be somebody who is prejudice or treats somebody different because of their faith. so, i'm not sure. host: sandra from massachusetts. organic, welcome to the conversation. morning.organgood on this subject, it is a shame that we have to strike out at people that have beliefs in god. why can't we all get along? to top it off, romney is not a bad human being at all. i think that his healthcare is working up in massachusetts, i know. and he's a wonderful human being as far as a family man. they took kennedy down with a bullet. they said catholicism was bad. they struck out at barack obama's religion. shame on them. shame on the people that do

that. at least somebody believes in something. give them that much. they have religion. they have faith in god. what is wrong with you people? thank you. host: thank you. you mentioned john kennedy. it was on september 12, 1960, that john kennedy spoke to a group of baptist ministers in hughes and he addressed his catholic faith and the issues in the 1960 campaign part of c-span's video archives. here is a portion of the speech. >> the hungry children i saw in west virginia, the old people who cannot pay doctor bills, the families formed to give up farms and america with too many slums with that few schools and too late to the moon and outer space. these are the issues that should decide this campaign and they are not religious issues. for war and hunger and ignorance

and despair know no religious barrier. but because i'm catholic and no catholic has ever been elected president the real issues in the campaign have been object scoured -- obscured, trapped in some quarters less responsible than this. so it is apparently necessary for me to state once again it is not what kind of church i believe in for that should be important only to me but what kind of america i believe in. i believe in an america with the separation of church and state is absolute, where no catholic pope can tell the president how to act and no protestant minister can tell people how to vote. host: that was president kennedy shortly before his election the first catholic to be elected

president. appear smith was the catholic nominee in 1928 as a democrat. he lost that election. we will have more on the contender series this week, 14 weeks as we look at presidential candidates who lost yet helped shape american politics. the headline from the this morning st" romney pushes aside the mormonism question, so religion is still an issue in 2012. we are asking you whether or not it matters. rick is joining us from ohio, republican line. caller: let me preface my remarks by saying i'm a preacher of the gospel. each sun morning i come -- sunday morning i come to my study putting the finishing touches on what i plan and i have c-span in the background so when this came up i turned up the volume a little bit. theologically i think it is very important what romney believes or does not believe. politically, i'm not quite sure.

the issue for me concerning his faith is that some of the points of doctrine that the mormon church holds are incredible and i mean that literally. they have no credibility to them. so, i wonder about the thought process of a man who would subscribe to mormon doctrine. with that being said, as i understand our american history we have had presidents in the past who had some rather peculiar beliefs and i'm not real certain that that would affect my vote for mr. romney. host: let me ask you one question. he was born in the moral,faith through -- mormon faith through his own family. does that make a difference, the he was born into the faith rather than somebody who converted in the faith?

caller: not as far as his ability to believe noncredible points of doctrine. i know many people who were born into various denominations and they really don't think it through, they simply say, you know, this is what my mother to -- or grandmother subscribed to and they do it without any study of the holy scriptures. i have a book in front of me now because i have been in the process of writing lessons on cults and the mormon faith is not the only cult. host: you call it a cult. you say it is a cult and not a faith? stkpwhro tpeubl is a >> michele bachmann is arriving

for a town hall meeting. this is part of her campaign tour of new hampshire. this is part of the lakes region tea party. you are watching live coverage on c-span. >> hi there. thank you for taking the time to come out. i am so glad you are here. >> that is one of the things i find most gentleman -- most genuine. >> i want to welcome you today to this historic event in new hampshire. i want to save a few comments before i get started to put into context what is happening today. first of all, the good lord has

provided us with an absolutely spectacular autumn day here in new hampshire. there are storm clouds on the horizon. there is a political perfect storm brewing right now. the center of that storm is president obama's ideology. that storm is just as powerful as the one that almost tore apart our nation in 1861 when we were still a young, tender nation. at that time, the issue was a human rights issue. right now, is an economic one. we are being attacked by foreign and domestic and lease -- enemies. we need a leader that has the ability to think long term and make the decisions that will allow future generations of americans to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. we need a leader that embraces

the u.s. constitution and recognizing -- recognizes it as a sacred document. we need a leader that knows how to create jobs, that actually runs and helps run a small business and makes a weekly payroll. we need a leader that honors the sanctity of life and recognizes that the backbone of a strong america starts at the dinner table. i maintain we need a core rate is leader that has become a rich -- a leader that has the courage to rebuild america to what it once was. that leader that right now has all those qualities and many more i have not named is standing in our midst. [applause] it is a great honor.

i want to tell you it is a great honor and a privilege to introduce to you the next president of the united states, michele bachmann. [applause] >> thank you. thank you, tim. what a terrific introduction. thank you everyone for being here. please come and find a seat. we welcome everyone who is coming. what a glorious day in new hampshire. earned we thrilled to be able to be here? this is the best auditorium we could ever ask for. thank you for taking what is the number one weekend in new hampshire to make sure you are here on this sunday afternoon doing our duty as an american citizen to help choose the next president of the united states. people of new hampshire take this very seriously.

on behalf of the rest of the nation, i want to thank you for taking this as seriously as you do. let me introduce myself again. my name is michele bachmann and i am running to be the next president of the united states in 2012. [applause] i believe with everything that is within me that 2012 is our last chance to take the country back and get it set on the right course. i believe we can get its act on the right course. it is going to be a difficult proposition to do. it can be done. i am not here to sugar coat. we can do it. we are americans. we are in the live free or die states. we know how to make tough decisions. it can be done. it is your day and your time. i want to give you as much time

as you need for your questions. what i want to say first of all is that no matter what course of action we take the wind " work. the first place we have to begin is to cut spending at the federal level. you need to consider -- [applause] you need to consider that this year your government is spending 40% more than it is taking in. that is breathtaking. it would be one thing if it was just one year and if it was just one emergency. but it is not. it is one long, protracted bad habit. they have been doing this for a long time. the day that i came in and took office, i have been fighting nonstop for five years in washington, d.c. i have spent my whole life in the private sector. for the last five years i have

been fighting. it took us 290 years to get us $8.67 trillion in debt. we were gasping for air with that much debt. how are we going to pay that off and balance the budget? every year we spend money and you hear about a deficit. that is the amount we spend too much up in that given year. that is one problem, overspending in one year. the bigger problem is the accumulated over spending over a number of years. we are paying back its credit card cap. that big credit-card tab. it is $16.70 trillion. i need to be in washington, d.c.

i was one of the loans voices in washington saying, no, stop, we cannot do this. the question is, will we get barack obama another $2.40 trillion blank check. we had enough money coming in to pay the interest on the debt. we could pay the interest and what we needed to do was set our priorities. what we needed to do was do it now, set priorities now. stop overspending now. now is when we have to do it. [applause] the big mistake congress made this summer was to keep the game going. they did not want to stop. it is more fun to spend money than get your act together. it is a lot more fun. imagine if you spent everything

you make in the year by june. then you decide it felt good and you will keep spending. you spend it all. you find some foolish banker to give you a check so that you can keep up that level of spending until december. then you start all over the next year. are you better or worse off? you are worse off. you will not even make it until june the next year because you have to be making interest payments on your debt. maybe you will only make it until may. every year, you get any worse position than before. that is where we are today. in 4.5 years, we have practically doubled the national debt that took us 219 years to acquire. at a certain point, the music is going to stop. that was why it was imperative

this summer to stop rather than adding $2.3 trillion. that will only get us through until next year. then we are worse off next year than we are now. then who is going to say no? at a certain point, we will say no. it is just like if it is an iceberg in front of the ship. you see it and know it is there. you have to answer for all of the spending you have made. if you know the day of reckoning is coming, it would make more sense to get your house in order now. you see people put away their credit cards so they cannot get at them. we should not just cut them up. we should tell them they cannot have access to them anymore.

[applause] you are the ones to have to give out -- go out and get the second and third jobs to pay off their spending. they're spending did not result in many jobs. barack obama said to give him $1 trillion. he wanted borrowing authority. he went and borrowed $1 trillion. he said he was going to create three please 5 million jobs. he lost about 2.5 million jobs. that equation did not work well for us. all of this is nonsense. it is a dramatic government intervention going back to the $700 billion bailout. i was one of the chief voices in washington saying not to do that bail out. do not give the secretary of the treasury, for the first time in the history of the nation, a blank check for $700 billion.

i said to the treasury secretary behind closed doors when they said we had to give them this authority, i said what is your evidence? what do you have to show me that if we give you this point check that it will turn it all around? on what possible basis is it going to work? they had nothing to show. i said then you could not have my vote. i did not give him my vote. we should not have given him the vote. that $700 billion led to the automobile bailout. that led to the $1 trillion stimulus. that led to the mortgage bailout. on and on we go. now we are continually giving out 99 weeks of unemployment benefits. it goes on and on and on. someone has to pay for that. here we are where we have doubled the national debt in 4.5 years.

it all starts with spending. i am a former federal tax litigation attorney. that is all i did, work with taxes. that is my background and expertise. i get have devastating high taxes on businesses and individuals, families, and farmers. i have seen in. i have seen people lose businesses. i have seen farmers lose their farms. i have seen people lose their houses. it is not fun to see. taxes are so high and out of control. you may know a couple of people who have a house in or near foreclosure. the house may be under water. they owe more than the house's work. this is happening all over america. it is not funny or cute. it is reality. there are people now who are just paychecks away from losing their house. there are people who may not have a job much longer. we're seeing it in new hampshire.

israel. america cannot wait. we need a different kind of president. -- it is real. america cannot wait. we need a different kind of president. we need someone who will say what they mean and mean what they say. that is the kind of person i have been every day in washington. i have taken the voices of american people to the halls of congress. now i want to take your voices into the white house where it has not been heard for a long time. that is my goal. [applause] i promise you, this is your time. let's get to your questions. i cannot wait to hear what you have to say. >> if you raise your hand, i will bring the microphone to you. i think she was first. i will get you in a second. >> welcome. in a world where many foreign leaders have little respect for women in general, how will you

stand up to the leaders of the rogue nations when they look down upon women anyway? will you stand up to them with boldness? >> i absolutely will. you can count on it. i have been married 33 years. i raised five biological children and 23 foster children. i have raised 28 children. if i can raise 28 good kids, i can stare down the road dictator. i can do it. the united states is not respected across the world. i hear that over and over again from colleagues. we go around visiting different leaders. we are not respected. it is not because barack obama is a man and i am a woman. it is because of a policy's the united states has had. barack obama has put forward a persona of weakness regarding the united states. one of the greatest areas of weakness he has shown is when he put daylight between the united

states and israel. he is one of the first president ever to do that. that was a very bad decision the president made. he helped create a climate of hostility in the middle east unlike anything we've seen in the last 40 years. i am very upset about what the president has done and the level of hostility. the president has led from behind. that is his foreign policy, leading from behind. when i am president, i will leave from the front. i will not lead from behind. i will not apologize for the united states of america. that will never happen. the united states is the greatest force for good in the history of the world. this is another reason why our economic strength is so vital.

the international monetary fund has said this may be the last election if we do not change course when the united states is the number one superpower of the world. they say by 2015, china will eclipse us as the number one superpower. reagan understood this. if you want to be the premier military superpower, you have to be the premier economic superpower of the world to support that. right now, we're sending interest payments to china. six weeks ago, china launched their first naval aircraft carrier. guests who paid for that? we did. dentsu is paying for china's jet fighter craft? we are. -- guess who is paying for china's jet fighter craft? we are. we will pay for the entire people's liberation army of

china, which is the world's largest employer. our interest debts will be so high within 10 years that we will spend more money financing the interest on u.s. debt than we spent on the entire united states military. there will be choices that have to be made. the military may have to choose the military. washington may have to choose the military over welfare. this is the election. we have to choose wisely for 2012. we cannot just of the other team in another jersey this time. that is not good enough. it is not good enough to settle for anyone but barack obama. this is election when we have to have a constitutional conservative who gets the problems and will know what to do from day one. that is what i bring to the field that is different from

anyone else. i have been fighting on the front lines in full force, even taking on my own party because i believe you put principle over party. it has got to be about the nation. we have got to get the country back. [applause] >> my name is mike moreno. my question is directed to your experience as a tax litigator. we have paid taxes over our lifetime. we all know there is an underground economy of cash earners who do not report their fair share. what can you do about that? >> one reason why you are seeing such an underground or black market is because there is a tax theory that says any time you

tax people more than 20% of their income from all sources, when it reaches more than 20% of a person's income on average, human behavior says it is too much. i need to keep more for myself. unfortunately, people break the law by not reporting the income. it says we are taxing people too much money. i think that is true. we are taxing people too much. the government is doing too many things it has no business doing. we need to back the government off of doing things it is doing now. there are departments that i would shut down. we need to completely cut back on what government is spending. then we will not need to tax people at that level. >> another question over here.

>> we talk about cutting spending. the democrats say we do not care. you talk about taxation. that can affect people's incentives. the democrats call as greedy. we have seen a double down or quadruple down on regulations and policies driving business out of this country. why are we not talking about cutting those regulations to stop driving away jobs and start bringing them back? >> that is one of the key components of my recovery plan. i want to introduce the mother of all repeal bills. when the liberals get in power, they have the mother of all spending bills. i want a mother of all repeal bills. the number one thing i hear from job creators, my husband and i

are job creators. we want more people to be able to turn a profit in their business. job creators tell me the regulatory compliance kills them and is more aggravating and more of a hassle than anything else they deal with. the number one regulatory problem today is the government takeover of health care called obamacare care that is the number one regulatory burden. three weeks ago, ubs him out with a study saying the number one reason businesses are not hiring is obamacare. it makes sense. obamacare costs a minimum of $3,000 per extra employees. that hurts unskilled workers more than anyone else.

we have youth unemployment so high right now because of regulatory burdens. the regulatory burden is keeping employers from hiring these good kids in the 30% range. good kids that want a job cannot work. we're talking about people here legally who cannot work. it is because the regulatory burden is keeping employers from hiring them. i was considered the chief critic of barack obama on obamacare. that is a badge of honor as far as i am concerned. i am the chief author of the bill to repeal of obamacare and the jobs and mortgage description -- destruction act because it does the same thing. it destroys it and makes it more expensive. how many of you have heard there

is going to be a new $5 fee on debit cards? thank you, federal government. thank you dodd-frank and chris dodd for putting that in place. the government thinks it is doing a wonderful thing when it squeezes on one side. but then the squeeze comes out on another side. that is why the regulatory burden is killing job creation. more than anything else, is the regulatory burden killing job creation. the $1.8 trillion every year in compliance with regulations does not even include dodd-frank or obamacare. that is one thing you need to know. i will not rest as nominee until i can elect 13 more like-minded u.s. senators to go with me to washington so that we have a 60- seat filibuster proof senate to

repeal obamacare. you have to have 60 senators to get rid of it. [applause] i am going to elect them. i am a hard-working woman. in my last election, nancy pelosi made me one of her top targets to defeat. i decided just for spite that she would not win. i raised more money for my reelection than any member of congress in the history of congress. i did it with an average donation of $45. it was a movement and a voice that we sent to washington. that is the movement i want to take to the white house as well. we do not need to have big special and interest money. if we band together, we can do this. do not worry about barack obama having $1 billion. he will need $12 billion and it still law -- will not be enough to get him elected. people have made their minds of.

the cake is baked. barack obama will be a one-term president. [applause] i do not take it for granted. i do not take it lightly. i will fight as hard as i can. the american people have made up their mind. they do not want it. you know the republicans are not going to vote for him. >> over here. >> welcome back to new hampshire. the last few weeks, we have seen what is going on in new york city with the occupied wall street movement that is spreading throughout the united states. the media is making a great comparison between occupied wall street and the tea party. if anyone would be able to comment on the comparison, i

would think it should be. what comment would you make in comparing that? >> i would tell the occupy wall street movement to move to the gates in front of the white house. if you want to go somewhere and complain about the economy, go and complain at the gates of the white house. never forget is barack obama who had a gigantic advantage when it came to campaign contributions from wall street over john mccain. it was the democrat contributions from wall street that got him elected. that is where they need to focus their energy. the tea party movement was organic. it was all across the country. i love the tea party movement because it is made up of democrats, independents and republicans, a political people, constitutional conservatives, people who have never voted. that is the tea party movement.

it is an idea. it is an idea that is completely in line with our forbearers from 1776 was said we are taxed enough already. that is the tea party. they are the ones who said clark within the limits of the constitution. that is what the tea party movement is saying. that is the movement that i identify with. that is the movement that is going to take the country back. this is it. it is 2012. this is when we do it. we have to win in 2012. we have to change things in 2012. if we do not appeal obamacare in 2012, we will never repeal it. it will metastasize into the federal government. it will metastasize into state government and private health insurance plans until they collapse. that is the intent, that all the

private insurance companies will collapse and fold into the government. the original goal has always been socialized medicine. that is what barack obama wants to see come about. there was a study that said 114 million americans will be thrown off of the private health insurance. what happens then? they will go running to the government. this is not a good picture. in the bill, i was one of the people who discovered there was $105 billion, $464 million in the obamacare bill you will not find one story written about that before the bill was voted on. how could you have members of congress vote on obamacare, to spend that much money and not know that was in the bill which might have to do that? nobody read it.

the bill did not even get printed until three hours before they voted on it in the senate. nancy pelosi said, you have to pass the bill to know what is in it. the no, with the money is being used for? postdated checks -- do you know what the money is being used for? >> postdated checks to implement obamacare all over the country. we only have one election. we only have one chance to get rid of socialized medicine. it will change our country for ever. in the future, we may elect a republican again in the future, but we will never again control the agenda if obamacare stays in place. that is why this is so serious. that is why you hear candidates say they will get rid of obamacare, you will understand

they do not understand how important the repeal is. when they say they will issue waivers to the states to get rid of obamacare, you know they do not understand what it takes to get rid of obamacare. the only way to get rid of it is to repeal it. that is the only way. you do that through the united states congress. it is not going to be easy. this will be like pushing a big boulder up over a mountain. it is going to be really tough to undo. i am here to tell you that i am not for the fight. that is why i am running for president. i am absolutely committed to the full still appeal of obamacare. it is not good enough for our nominees to say they will sit behind a desk and wait to have the bill put on their desk. it will take a president willing to be a leader and elect other

like-minded senators. after the election, it will be hard. the whole bill is nothing the special interest groups. it will take one tough cookie to fight the special interest groups. i am up for it. that is why i want you to consider your choice for you -- for who you make a nominee. the candidate has to be committed to the fight, not just the issue, but the fight to get rid of it. that is what it will take to get rid of that and dodd-frank. that is the jobs and mortgage destruction bill. we also have to change the tax code. i have been the only tax lawyers in congress. i am the only tax lawyer running for congress -- president. i want to lead the fight to change the tax code. that is the job killing center of the universe.

i want to change that for pro- growth policies in america. we need to grow the economy. the jobs will follow automatically. the government does not create jobs. the private sector does. >> she is wearing a lovely color of red. >> republican red. >> i called it in december that you would win the iowa straw poll. all of my friends paid me a lot of money. i researched for three years and endorsed this lady. she is phenomenal. she is the answer in my book. we came from the state of texas. take our governor down. he has not secure our borders. the illegals are walking free and not being prosecuted. you understand illegal

immigration. i beg you from the state of texas that you fight for us. illegal immigrants are walking free. gov. perry turned a blind eye. they are being taken from the court dockets. this woman understands illegal immigration. he is not doing it in our state. i beg you to take that puppy down. [applause] >> this is an issue we can address. i am terribly sorry about your husband. you have the sympathy of everyone here today. it is a terrible thing. it is something that most americans have had it up to here with. in minnesota, we have had our own troubles with illegal immigration. i do not know if there is a state in the union that has not been impacted by this.

there are the physical problems but also the financial problems this country has had to deal with. go to heritage.org. there is a great study talking about the financial costs associated with illegal immigration. this is something where the american -- federal government should be apologizing to the american people for failing to deal with the issue. it is both administrations of both parties where they have not done the right thing by the borders. i will. i will build a fence on every mile an inch of the southern border. i will fully resources all of the border guards. i will tell them that if you will uphold the law, i will have your back. rather than have our government go after the agents tripled in the law, we should have their backs. i will not sue the state of

arizona for protecting their own people. that will not happen either. we need to make sure that our ice agents know that they will enforce the laws. the laws are good. we have very good laws on the books. we need to stop with the mad as for illegal aliens. no more taxpayer financed benefits for illegal aliens. that has to stop. [applause] the official language of the federal government must be in english. we are an english-speaking country. it needs to be in english. we can deal with a problem. we have dealt with it before well. it was in the mid-1960s when things changed. i will deal with this issue. >> right over here. >> one way to cut medical costs would be to do something with tort reform. i wonder what your thoughts

would be on that. >> i agree. we need to have medical malpractice reform and have a cap on suits and judgments. it has been out of control. that has led to defensive medicine. there are whole communities that cannot get obstetrician's because it does not pay for them to be in practice any more. this is a real issue. it's passed on. costs are the big issue. edison needs to be addressed. under my plan, i want to repeal obamacare. when we do that, i want to allow every american the privilege of being able to buy any insurance policy they want with no minimum mandate. you cannot do that now. there is a monopoly with insurance companies and every single country in america. i want to break the monopoly and let any american by any policy they want.

i love the free market. i am a fan of the free market. i want to make sure that people can buy any policy they want with no minimum mandates. then i would like to be able to have people pay any amount they need to for health care. some need to buy a lot and some very little. i want people to be able to set aside tax-free and paid for your premium, co-pay, deductible, medical devices, pharmaceuticals with tax-free money and then have medical malpractice reform. that brings down the cost on health care. that is where we need to begin. then we need to back the federal government out of the industry. the federal government artificially increases the cost. we need to move people towards help savings accounts. that is what works. individual responsibility. that has become part of the problem in this country. there is too much dependency and

not enough personal responsibility. we have to have a mind-set change as well. >> medicare, social security, and medicaid, how would you do it? a great block of voters are of that age and are frightened. >> they do not need to be frightened. we need to look at this. it is a mass problem. if you have a business, would you keep running the business the same way you did 80 years ago? that is what we're doing with these programs. we're running the most same way. they have to be modernized and updated. the most important thing we have to do is let people know who are on current -- or are currently

on social security that nothing will change. we will keep the promise with you. we also have the promise to keep with younger people. we need to change the system for younger people. medicare is done on a fee-for- service program. barack obama has said that system does not work anymore. this is not even a republican and democrat issue. the president has said it does not work. the best system would be the one that mitch daniels has talked about. he is the former governor of indiana. he has said that if we have a system of health savings accounts, we would see real savings. i think we should examine those ideas. we should put them on the table. i would be happy to leave the national debate. this should not be a negative. this should be a positive. i was in the white house earlier this summer. we asked the president about his plan for saving medicare. we should talk about it. that this house seniors will not be frightened, if we have

positive solutions so they know we want to save the system. within nine years, the medicare hospital trust fund will be broke. there is a big iceberg. the ship is going right towards it. do i really want to see a beautiful, frail 85-year-old woman be told there is no more money left and you cannot have your hip replacement? know. i love senior citizens. i care about them. my stepdad is 87. the last thing in the world i want is for him to find out that the covered -- the cupboard is bare. it will be in less than nine years. it will be spliflat broke in nie years. this is a moral issue. do we love senior citizens or

not? i love them. it is a morality issue. and it will not let them go without. let's fix it. that's fix it and not be afraid of it. social security is something we could look at. we could look at what will work for our system. people who are currently on social security, nothing changes. it is for people moving up to the system. i think we could do a better system for younger people than what we have today. the other thing a lot of people do not know with social security is that people think it is an account in washington under your name and all of the

money you have been spending -- sending into washington, you just go to social security and aske for the dividend you have paid in. when they open that door, the only thing that falls out is moths and iou's. the politicians went in and blew the money on big government welfare-dependency programs. it is gone. they spit your money. it is a travesty. anywhere else, you would be in jail for doing that. -- they spend your money. the federal government has gotten away with it. that past and. -- that has to end. when i started today, i said the number [no audio]

we have to go with what works. that is what works in your life and business. that is what works in your church. it is not spending more money than what you take in and living within a budget. what a concept. that is what i promise i will do. that is what sets me apart. i say what i mean and mean what i say. i do not overpromise. i do what i say i will do. this will take tough love. i am not interested in going to washington to be there for two terms. i could care less. i am going there because i feel the same way you do about this country. you love it. you are like me. you see 235 years down the road to the next generation just like john adams and the founders did. they saw us sitting here today. they paid an unmentionable price so that we could be here.

the question is whether we will pay the price of common sense and stop spending away the future of america. i am here to tell you it will come faster than anyone thinks, the day of reckoning. i do not mean to be melodramatic or overstate the case, but i do not think we can say it enough. it will come sooner than anyone thinks. let's deal with it now. this is the last chance. this is the last go around to catch the brass ring of liberty. this is the last turn around the carrousel. if we do not do it now, i do not know that there is another day. >> to the front of you and to the right. i am pleased to introduce you to our national committeewoman. [applause]

>> phyllis, they differ what you do. >> she has a question for you. -- phyllis, thank you for what you do. >> she has a question for you. >> i am sure you are aware that new hampshire has been playing chicken with nevada and iowa regarding our new hampshire primary. we have a state law that says we will be the first primary state. i am wondering what your feelings are on that. we found ourselves in a situation where we have a state audit we need to comply with. what are your feelings regarding what the other states have done? >> all i know is i want to be

your number one and sweetheart in new hampshire. i will be here competing, hopefully successfully, for the spot. the states can do what they like. i know it was started by florida and everyone had to follow suit. whatever new hampshire comes up with, we will be campaigning here. we will be delighted to be here. i think the message that new hampshirites have told me is compatible with the message i have been giving back to them. they are fighters. they fight for liberty. they hate high taxes and over- spending. that is my message. they want someone genuine. they want the real thing. i have spent five years in every single battle on the front line,

the tip of the spear of obamacare, fighting it, fighting dodd-frank and the stimulus. tip of the spear fighting against the bailout. the one thing people can know about me is that this is not just talk. i have five years of action lay myself down fight after five. you can know when i go to the white house that you will have someone who is absolutely going to do these very tough things. do you know how tough it will be to cut 40% out of the budget? do you know how tough it is to shut down apartments -- departments like education or the epa? it will take some doing. there will be some blow back. i am here to say i do not think

we have benefited from the federal department of education. i do not think the epa has been benefiting our job creators. we have 50 epa's across the country that can deal with those decisions. those are state issues. there are case by case situations we can deal with on the federal level. but it is time to change the course. that is what my candidacy offers, changing course. i am up for it sooner rather than later. if you want to have it in december, i am up for it. the people i talked to across america wish that the election was today. that is the democrats. they wish the election was today. i am up for it. i wish it was today. people will talk to me about how we need to change things. it is 2012. we just cannot see this as just

another election. it is not. it is not another election. it is our last chance. we cannot get it wrong with this nominee. it has got to be someone who really gets the problem, who understands the times we live in. they have to know what to do. the most important ingredient is they have to have the political courage to do it. i have been there where i have been the only vote. we need to have someone willing to do that, to be the only vote. when i go to cast my vote, i see all of your faces. i see people in the district that i represent. that is who i serve. i am not serving the leadership in washington or the special interests. i serve the people of this country. the one thing that affected me, i was in the business at quitting time. a man shook my head and said there was one thing he wanted

from me. he said he wanted me to give the country back to the people. he said he had a 6-year-old grandson and did not think we would go on. i said, you bet i will give it back. he said his name is is it -- isaac. he said he did not think this little boy would grow up and see what he knew today. i was flying back. me at theiting fon desk was from argentina. he came here in 1970. he said this is not the same country he came to in 1970. my heart sunk to my toes when he said that, but i knew he was right. it is true, but we are better than that. i know we're better than that. people i talk to all across the country want us to be the country again. i know we can be. i am tired of seeing the dollar

floats thing and not worth anything anymore. we have lost 12% of the value of the dollar just in the time the barack obama has been in office. when the dollar is not tied to anything of value, washington just runs the printing presses. they inflate money. they are stealing from us. i want to legalize the american energy production. legalize it. we should be drilling. we have more energy in the united states than any other country. we're the most energy-resource- rich country. we have more oil than saudi arabia. we have 25% of the call in the whole world. one of the largest fines of natural gas was discovered in pennsylvania. this is 1.4 million high-paying

jobs at a minimum. that is where i will start as president. that is a freebie. just legalize american energy and the private sector creates 1.4 million high-paying jobs. all of the men out there who want to provide for their families can. do you know how sad it is to see a man or woman who wants to revive for the family and cannot? this country is filled with people who want to provide for their families. they want to work. let's give them work. legalize american energy. start there. there are so many avenues where we can start. i cannot wait to get started. >> welcome to moultonborough. the last question asked was of frank johnson.

he did not listen. i have a short memory and had to write my question down. it is readily apparent that obama has far left in the logical views. he does not like america. he associates with radicals. he is a liar. he supports the occupy wall street crowd. he disparages the tea party crowd. it could be concluded he has marxist beliefs. his policies are bringing us down. you have stated that already. he is trying to collapse the system. i believe he is doing it on purpose. if you become the republican candidate, will you address these things and not be afraid of being called a racist? that is what happened in 2008.

nobody would hit him hard. [applause] >> i do not mean to be arrogant when i say this. the thing i look forward to more than anything as the republican nominee is taking barack obama on in the debates and holding him accountable for four years of destroying the country. that is what i look forward to doing. it would be an absolute pleasure. >> what are your thoughts on getting rid of the department of energy? >> it will be a long day. i will start early. i will go to the department of education and turn off the lights unlocks the door. then i will go to the epa and turn the lights off a lock the door there.

then we will go over to the department of energy and turn off the lights and lock the doors there. there will be a lot of for sale signs all across washington, d.c. it would be wonderful to turn those buildings into for-profit centers and have businesses by of those buildings. that is what we have to do. we would all be a lot better off. >> i am from roswell, georgia. i am lost. what is your feeling on the fair tax? >> the fair tax is a consumption tax. it is a national sales tax. all other taxes would be eliminated. we would only have a national sales tax.

they're estimating about 23% sales tax. that would combine with whatever there is that the state level. there is controversy about it. if you have a brand new system, it is one to consider. what is appealing is the fact that everyone would participate in the system. that is part of the problem we have today. today the estimates are that only about 53% of all americans pay any federal income tax. 47% do not. that is wrong. i would like to lead a national debate on a consumption tax or the flat tax for everyone would pay the same tax. you would not get a deduction. you would just pay a flat tax. i would like to lead that debate.

this is such a huge change. you have to have by ins from the american people. the bigger issue than even what kind of tax system we have -- i think we can all agree the current one does not work. i think we have unanimous consent. it is 3.8 million words. it does not work. the real issue is spending. what comes first, the chicken or the egg, spending or taxing? if we cut back on spending, we have to have a system where everyone participates. everybody should pay something, even if this is a dollar. everybody needs to pay something. we all benefit from this magnificent country. everybody needs to pay in. you are going to have to have

some sort of enforcement mechanism, but not the irs. under obamacare, that is to enforces obamacare. they are hiring 16,500 new irs agents to enforce obamacare. if you needed any more reasons to get rid of it -- if there is only one thing you remember about today, take this with you. there is one chance to get rid of obamacare. it is this election. you cannot executive order if away. you cannot wait for it away. you can only repeal it. it has to go through the house and senate and the president has to sign it. i have the will to make that happen. i will not leave office until it is done. i will pay attention to that until it is done. are we done?

>> a big round of applause for michele bachmann, the next president. [applause] michellebachmann.com many of you know the next gentlemen, the son of the former governor of new hampshire. we call him the ax man. i would like to introduce you to todd thompson. >> thank you for coming to new hampshire and bringing us this beautiful weather. i appreciate your words on energy, cutting spending, and cutting the size of government. that represents what we have on this ax. 40 yearsmy father's ax

ago when he campaigned across the state of new hampshire. i am deeply concerned about this election in 2012, just as you are and others here. it is not so much about me. it is about my grandchildren. i want them to have the america that most of us realized. it is going to take someone within the republican party to lead us out of this mess that obama has gotten us into. thank you for coming to new hampshire. i have they pledged that i have put together. i appreciate it if you would sign it. i have one other thing. this is a picture of michele on

april 29 at the presidential summit in manchester. she does know how to swing the ax. i would appreciate it if you would sign it for me. >> i will sign that and i will swing it all over washington. [applause] thank you. that is a privilege. >> we have two pledges because i do not want to lose one. when we get done, we will probably present one to the secretary of state. >> my pledge to the american people as candidate for president is that i will work tirelessly to cut taxes, fees,

and regulations destroying small businesses and jobs. i will cut spending and reduce the national debt. i will cut the size of government at all levels. i will do it at the federal level. i do believe the state and locals should deal with their own and the federal government should stay out. secure our borders using whatever means are necessary. build a fence. become energy independent within eight years, hopefully sooner than that. faithfully and forcefully of hold, follow, and in force the united states constitution with all of my might. [applause] thank you for this great effort that you are doing. did you want to say any more.

>> i want to thank you again for coming to new hampshire and campaigning and bringing all of these media folks with you. we have a state with no sales tax. be sure and load up before you leave. [laughter] [applause] >> we better go back and double down on our order of maple syrup. thank you so much. god has blessed this nation so richly. we cannot take it for granted. sometimes i think we grow up with so much that we take for granted. i have been on the front lines. i have seen what is happening. i had never seen anything like it before. i thought i saw a lot coming from the state of minnesota with how the taxing and spending. there is nothing like it. it is like you can hear the hourglass with the sand running out. the time is very short. consider that wisely when you are considering your choice for

2012. this is the election that will change the nation one way or the other. let's make it positive. thank you, everyone. >> a big round of applause for the next president of the united states, michele bachmann. around of pause -- around of applause for our other special guest. ♪ >> that is awesome. >> it is my pleasure. i will be seeing you tomorrow. >> you have my vote. >> thank you. let me sign this for you. >> my husband could not be here today.

i called him and said he had better vote for this lady. >> i will be back many times. thank you. what is your name? krista? that is a beautiful name. >> i am very happy about what you said on immigration. >> that is the same year my husband's parents came and were national -- naturalized. that is when immigration policy began. >> i enjoyed your interview baer.rett you should be in the white house. >> i wish i were. we would get things back on track. we will. i am so happy i got to meet you. what is your name?

hi, eleanor. >> are you coming back to naples? >> i love it down there. this is a beautiful place to be now. thank you so much. i want your vote. >> we knew something was wrong. everything you said today is how we feel it will be rectified. thank you. >> thank you. i need that support. tell everyone that you know. they give for coming today. what is your name? >> greg. i live a couple of towns over. >> thank you for coming. i want your vote. who is this for?

thank you. >> what is your name? >> my name is rosemary landry. i cannot wait for you to become president. you are the most common sense president -- person in the world. i am completely and irish. my folks came from ireland. they had eight children. they got into real estate. they have their opportunity. i want you to give that back to everybody. i know that you can. you are the light in the sky. i really love you. i want you to become president. >> will you tell