happy birthday ♪ later, a look at the energy department's role in securing loans for energy-related projects. that is live at 7:00 eastern here on c-span. >> it joining us on the " newsmakers" is pete sessions of dallas tx and head of the

republican campaign committee. joining us for the questioning is jessica taylor from "national journal" and alex eisenstaedt from "politico." a poll from earlier indicates 14% of the american people approve of the job congress is doing. how do you get republicans reelected? >> there is a lot of gridlock in washington. the republican-led house has passed a lot of bills, the democrat-led senate has done very little. the president is up on the hill or around the country proposing his agenda. it does not look like we are achieving a lot. the facts of the case is republicans have a plan and the democrats have a plan to the president's agenda. we do not agree on raising

taxes. we do not agree on the epa and its assault on employers. we are concerned about the threat of higher taxation. it means republicans are attempting to craft our ideas and work with the president when we find common ground. we found common ground yesterday and the day before as we passed the bill, the three trade bills and the trade assistance. when we can find things we can work on together, i think we are very good. as ec people camped all wrong the country, people are asking for us to do a better job. the facts of the case are simple. as the president was trotting all around the country, including dallas texas and ohio and virginia, he could not find one co-sponsor for his bill

among democrats on capitol hill. this has created some what of an illusion about what the president is for and what congress is for. the facts of the case are simple. the president's tax bill, stimulus jobs bill is dead. it was dead on arrival and he knew that and still wants to go round the country and mislead the american people about the direction we should be going. they are not fooled. >> you now how to -- you now have to defend your majority. polls show republicans losing on generic ballots. you talk about how you want to make this an offense of a cycle, which will have to play defense on a couple of friends, with the generic move against congress, how are you preparing to combat this anti-incumbency wave? are you worried about the same

wave that swept into office could be more difficult next year? >> i think that's a fair assessment of the current situation where looking at. as you look at congress and then look at the present, you will find is the president, his policies and his agenda which the american people are most frustrated with. people want congress to overcome the and patents. they wanted jobs bill -- overcome the impediments. they wanted jobs bill that would not tax-and-spend and keep people at bay for jobs. what we're going to do it the national republican committee is highlight how we can work with the free enterprise system in the creation of jobs for the american dream all across this country. we had two elections the same day three weeks ago. a stunning victory for the republicans. when we go on the offense and when we tell our story, when there is a difference between

the two parties and an opportunity for the american people to point at the direction they want, they selected to republicans. we will find where those battles exist, we will go and tell our story and the democrats will tell their story. in a head-to-head match up, we will do well. >> you said you were talking all about president obama. someone's name who was not mentioned was nancy pelosi. i'm wondering as you narrow your focus on the election cycle, are you going to focus more on president obama of and national -- and nancy pelosi? >> we ran at feverishly because it was nancy pelosi as theater. her later -- her leadership said we would not raise the bills and the environmentalist assault that is very present in this country and passing the obama health care bill.

nancy pelosi as leader for the democrats is going all around the country running to be the speaker again. it will be my job and my duty which i will be pleased to do to highlight the difference between john boehner republicans and nancy pelosi democrats all across this country. if she is running, she will be fair game. >> why is compromise so hard? you have the house and the senate, you talk to people around the country and there is a sense that washington is dysfunctional. what would you do to make this work and get domestic bills passed on fiscal issues and the american economy? >> my perspective is to get the american people engaged in the issue. we have seen polls that have been tossed about this morning as we spoke about what the american people want. the national republican

congressional committee is after is to have a pro-growth agenda, a job creation opportunities. what i would do is if i were trying to push inside, i would do exactly what john boehner is doing. john boehner has worked closely with mitch mcconnell -- it does take republicans and democrats in the senate to move an agenda. with harry reid, i would find common ground for us to put into place something that is less change and more stability. assurances to the american public and insurers about what they can count on until the election is over. today, people don't know what to count on. people are planning for the worst. small business cannot get loans

and the lemming obama jobs bill -- we are expected to lose some 800,000 net jobs. that does not bode well for stability. >> veteran members are facing these intraparty challenges. what are you attributing that to end what is your approach at the committee? are you worried that some of these could add fall victim to a challenge elsewhere? >> what i am very aware of is that last cycle, we have a lot of organizations and people that helped us become the majority party. every single one of these organizations found common ground in lay a message that we as house republicans have about stopping spending, growing our economy or perhaps about doing

something that would be positive about the tax code, meaning we would lower taxes for individuals and corporations. now, we see all across the country, in eight, nine, 10 places, very active agreements by these organizations tuesday after the same message. they want to make sure we did it in the republican party and we do. the tea party agenda and the people who are attempting to work with republicans across this country, their agenda is still alive. it is a natural thing for a brand new member of congress to be challenged his first time out. we expect that not only from the democrats as they come after our first term freshmen members, but we expected internally. this is a healthy thing. >> does it help that they're having to spend money early? >> at this point, i don't think

it is. the reason why is there is this constant dialogue that is occurring with people back home and their expectations of washington. people are still dissatisfied and not happy. it does not bother me necessary that theys a reminder need to go back and sell the agenda and the fight were having in washington. >> a lot of your freshman are relatively new to politics. i'm wondering if they come here, has it been difficult to get them thinking about having to run for reelection and raise money? has that been the challenging part of your job? >> i think it is challenging. anytime you take a group of 89 republican freshmen and speak with them about becoming a professional member of congress, about talking about the votes

they will have to make. we will have to make these votes. they will have to go back home and stand on those and sometimes they're popular, sometimes they're not. the choices, when they're given, they have made the right choice. it is difficult when you say to a member, please go work as hard as you can work and then come back and exhaust yourself in washington, please go back and do that again. what we have tried to do with the schedule as the chairman of our team who put together the changes of what are the majority would look like, he insisted on us being held every third week. we are in washington two weeks and then back home for one. it gives our members a chance to put in voters minds and people who elected them that the agenda we have is open and we give an

honest dialogue. we do read the bills before we vote on them and our embers are responsible for what we're doing. >> every two years for the house and six years for the senate, would you prefer to have members seated for a four year terms where you have a cycle of constantly running in raising money? >> that is posed to me often. i'm sure any sitting member with like to be elected for life, but the facts of the case are, our founding fathers understood this -- the house is closest to the people. that means you need to stand for election every two years. as time-consuming as it is, it is the right way to do things. we should have to, for, and 6. >> half the states have completed their redistricting processes. even the larger states are still

out there. what are your main concerns? where are your biggest worries? >> finalizing the maps through processes, texas, illinois, as these are finalized, it contains the bulk of the changes that happened. arizona went through what i would say are some mindset changes. the fact of the case are there are others that are ahead. at some point, we would find out what the net would be and i don't think either party, while there would be substantial changes, i don't believe any party would hold a plus or minus that would cause a swing in any way in aggregate. >> in the last few months, there has been a swell of outside

groups that we saw emerge in 2010, but they are coming up in greater forms on the republican side and democratic side. all of these groups coming into existence, what role do you see in the future, what role do party committees have? >> i think the role i see for the national republican congressional committee is one where we have a responsibility to our conference to make sure not only are we prepared for the future with recruiting, because i do not think the super pacs will recruit or deliver the inside information that's necessary, for how to talk with a candidate. the daunting task of money and the competition for money in

that environment will be very keen. increasingly, it's important to have great candidates who are able and prepared on their own, not just to raise money but communicate effectively. in a marketplace that changes so rapidly, it will always be upon the committees and me to make sure we have top-flight, blue- chip candidates all across the country who are able to articulate what they are after. >> you had a big advantage as far as outside spending groups i your site last year. do you expect that to continue into 2012 or will democrats make some inroads? >> it is important to remember what helped republicans last time in the house and across the nation was based on the president and his agenda as well as speaker pelosi and that they matched up. this next cycle will be about

the president and his agenda. few people can claim that they would be an underdog with a billion dollars. in fact, he may be correct. his policies have not worked. they have contributed to a loss of jobs across the country and there is no way are around any substantial job growth from now to the immediate future unless we make changes to his policies. the president will be a circus -- will be the person we're focused on. >> looking at the elections next year, do these outside interest groups cloud the message you are trying to sell to the voters? they will focus on narrow part of the focus. there's usually concerned about the epa. thousands of work projects today have been stopped through state and municipal initiatives.

if you look at the dodd-frank bill, it's going to make banking more expensive but cost the ability for small businesses to get loans. those organizations are speaking out. it's not republican or democrat, it's about policies that inhibit job growth and employment. >> we have been through several special elections already. new york 26 was not a good moment, but he seemed to turn around and when new york 9 and nevada no. 2. what was your strategy behind turning that around? looking ahead to one more special now, what is your take on the oregon special collection? >> we view the nevada race as a

jump ball. either team could win. i think john mccain won by some 100 votes against barack obama. it was a chance to educate the voter. republicans have been thrust into position of medicare because of was the democrats to the obama health-care bill that took out $500 billion. when you take $500 billion out of a program, it puts the financial footing of that program in jeopardy. republicans have a chance to say what do we think medicare should look like to the benefit of seniors for its long-term stability and in the longer view? who should make the changes and when should they occur? we have talked about what that

anticipation would beat. no one who is 55 or above today would have any changes to medicare. the changes that do need to occur must begin now. >> elections are not happening in a vacuum. there is a presidential race. is there a republican candidate now you like to see at the top of the ticket that could help your candidate? some like mitt romney or herman cain -- to the thing to be a good leader for your party in the presidential election? >> it's important to note that today, if a poll were done -- somebody who was an unnamed republican is ahead of the president. that does not assure victory at all. because you do have to put it together behind one person, a man or a woman, because we have women running for our nomination also. what we are after is someone who

can effectively gather together the ideas of what republicans really stand for. we are for moving this country forward through a very positive, pro-growth agenda that would include jobs, job growth, and a free enterprise system. the growth of small business. i think there are several candidates have spoken to that. i'm not here to pick one but i would say each and everyone have attributes that would make our party stronger, it's about ideas and i am proud of what they have done. >> let me ask you about your governor -- rick perry, the atop of the race on the top of the polls and this past week, if you look at the polls, he is third or fourth. at this stage of the campaign, why has he dropped significantly? >> it has been an interesting ride. gov. perry came in with high

accolades and attributes. i think he is having to learn to get his footing. he is having to enunciate himself in the midst of four, five, six or eight people. it's hard to single yourself out and i think you'll see him do more campaigning himself in large crowds. but none of us are immune from fighting in a competitive world. this is one thing where mitt romney has been able to give a good job. he has been able to master the questions well and has been able to master their responses even better. in that, we are seeing a leader began emerging, but it is still the voters that will decide that. that is where republicans count on a republicans across the country.

tillich carefully at the kind of leader we want. i think we will select a good one. >> after eight years of george w. bush and a lot of similarities in the style of governor perry, as a country ready for another texas for public and? >> i think the republican party is ready for a model -- a strong job growth. more jobs have been created in texas than in all the other states combined. pro-business, working with employers to ensure their needs, whether it be electric generation, a current supply of good employees, it always been something he is proud of and we aim for. lastly, competitive education. that means we will continue to have students that come out that are prepared to lead within the state and stay there to make employment better. i think that is a good model. that is something president

obama cannot begin to enunciate. >> how do you feel like your recruiting has been going? where does your focus apply going into next year? >> i think we are good going into next year. people have been pleased to see an old name that is going to win that house seat. she was a veteran from last time. >> [inaudible] >> this is my point. those who have been out there and to have been seen as doing a good job, they -- we need to get better by getting lines finalized. we're looking at the orlando seat. it makes it difficult to try to be prepared.

we'd lines to form, candidates are there, and we will be ready. >> can you name a couple of democratic incumbents that will not be here in two years? >> i could look at states, the state of north carolina, the state of georgia. if you look at illinois, as you look at california, there are members who will be matched up against each other and there will be members who have seats that were competitive. once again, all of the lines have not been finalized. as they become finalized, it will become more apparent. north carolina and georgia are the closest ones where we could say there will be a huge number of changes. >> are you enjoying this round? >> i've had more fun than ever because of rain dance has a whole lot to do with timing to it is raining in washington which is an indication of

success for republicans. >> congressman pete sessions, thank you for being with us. we continue the conversation with jessica taylor and alex eisenstaedt. what did you take away from our conversation? >> it was interesting as we were leaving, he was talking about what might be the bellwether for an upcoming election. an open seat that just came open in illinois 12th district. republicans saw this as an opportunity which came as a surprise to those committees. is a moderate democratic if district, but republicans have a shot there. you see them putting a lot of shot there. they think the president could be somewhat toxic down ballot. what was his strongest state last time? >> you were pressing up the

outside interest money we saw in 2010. we will see an explosion in 2012. >> the republicans are way ahead in this game of outside spending. democrats are trying to get their feet wet, but republicans seem to have the major advantage. democrats -- there are going to be a lot of decisions democrats have to make that will be pretty critical. >> and if you could dress recruitment and redistricting. >> recruitment and redistricting -- the democrats tried to talk about recruitment, but it is hard to tell how well democratic recruitment is going right now with an absence of how well their fund-raising is going. we're seeing democrats lineup

because certainly a lot of canned it in a lot of districts. we heard pete sessions say they are likely to be awash in terms of who wins, but i think there'll be something really important that happens in redistricting. i think you will see it form up for already republican held seats which could make it harder for democrats to crack the majority. >> the democrats ruled that -- rolled out several and the onus was on democrats after they lost 63 seats last time, have to beef up their ground game and have these candidates in place early. the impetus is not as much on republicans, but he talked some about the young candidates that they have. there is when they have to is 24 years old and not even constitutional age yet. i think you will see some more

republicans who will come out later, but with redistricting, it is hard to see a full house picture come into scope until we get all of these lines. there are some lawsuits going on in illinois, texas and arizona that it could be thrown into a legal limbo there. >> the dynamics between a midterm election -- as we saw the campaign against nancy pelosi and a national election with the president at top of the ticket and the republican nominee. >> you have already seen in the new york 9 special election, running against obama proved to work. an elder borough, new york city to seek, i don't think democrats ever saw that coming into last week's of the campaign. i think republicans continue to use that message, we may not see them used nancy pelosi as much. she was not as visible in the early campaigns, but obama,

there's no way of running away from him with him on the top of the topic -- top of the ticket -- the hot of the ticket. >> that bonuses on democrats to make sure the house is in play. they're straining to do that and feel a lot of pressure to save houses in play. i don't need we have enough information to say that there is a storm during that will allow them to take over the house. i don't think that is there yet. could be there? perhaps. i think you have to give republicans the upper hand. >> thank you very much for being with us. >> tomorrow, a