campaign. and bloomberg news reporter angela greiling keane talks about the -- federal investment in electric car technology. "washington journal" is next. herman cain's campaign expected to make an announcement at noon today. you can see that. it will take place from atlanta. you can see it live on c-span and hear it on c-span radio. politico has a story on its web site this morning, talks within the campaign about a possible suspension. many candidates in new hampshire today. new -- when it comes to polling, the two top contenders for the republican primary amongst those polls were mitt

romney and newt gingrich. for the first 45 minutes we will look at this and other stories concerning the two men, but we want to hear from republicans only. and here is what we would like to have you comment on amongst republicans, if you had to choose between the two, who would you choose mr. romney or mr. gingrich. we have divided the lines regionally. 202-737-ooo 1, eastern and central time zones. and 202-737-0002. if you had to make choice today between mitt romney and newt gingrich, who would you choose. if you want to send us a tweet this morning, you can reach out to us at twitter.com -- if you had to choose between mitt romney or newt gingrich, update

you on a story you probably have seen concerning the former senator george mcgovern. he took a fall last night as part of preparing for our series on him, contenders series. he was supposed to appear last night. he took a fall crossing the street to his home. we want to give you an update. george mcgovern was injured during a fall friday evening in mitchell as he was preparing to appear on c-span. he was transported by ambulance, later taken by hospital to mckenyon hospital in sioux falls. a nurse described his condition as not critical, but it is something that we need to keep an eye on. late friday, mcgovern was in quote guarded condition and doctors plan to watch him closely. mcgovern's daughter, anne, who helped to bring him inside the

library named for him after he fell, said the former congressman and senator was badly hurt. he has a serious head injury. anne mcgovern said two hours after it occurred, alone walking to the library about 6:00 in the evening. took place about an hour before the c-span show that was set to start. he apparently tripped and struck his head. focus of last night's contender's program on mr. mcgovern and his candidacy. this is a statement from the hospital. statement says that senator george mcgovern has been hospitalized tonight at the health center in sioux falls, south dakota. air lifted to mitchell, south dakota after falling and hitting his head. per request of the family, no further information regarding the senator's condition is being released. they have asked for privacy at this time. as we get more information we will update you. we want to wish the senator a speedy recovery post his accident. now to your question.

part of this morning questions based on a recent poll, and here amongst the republican candidates it breaks down for those polled between november 13th and november 30th. it shows that newt gingrich game in with 26.6% of those registering polls, mr. romney coming in at 20.4%, and mr. cain at 14%. that was followed by ron paul, rick perry, michele bachmann, rick santorum and john huntsman. we are using this polling amongst the top two contenders and those in the paper dealing with mitt romney or newt gingrich's campaign to ask you republicans out there, if you had to choose between the two, who would you choose and tell us why? again, the numbers are divided regionally. 202-737-0001 in the eastern and central time zone.

202-737-0002 in the mountain and pacific time zone. baltimore maryland, first call this morning. greg, good morning. go ahead. >> good morning. i'm calling because i think that mitt romney should get the republican nomination. i'm an african-american but i'm disenchanted with the democratic party and i think that mitt romney would do a fine job as president. and the reason why i say that is because when i look at newt gingrich, newt gingrich, he is a nice guy. he is a smart guy. but i just don't think he really has what it takes to lead our country and the reason why i say that is because he presided over a period when the government was divided, the government had shutdowns and we don't need that. mitt romney, a man who has ran a business. he has been the governor of a state, but most of all, mitt romney is a man who believes in family values. if i could just say this,

herman cain, i just think it is time for him to sit down and get out of it. i think he is doing a disservice not only to himself but also to his family and also to the gop. >> san antonio texas, celine, good morning. >> yes, good morning. i'm a republican and i would like to say between both of them, i mean, i'm not really a fan of either. you would have to go with romney. i feel like all of the stuff that i have seen on the news and i like to watch cnn, fox, and msnbc to get a good graphic of everything, that gingrich just with the way that -- the ad where it showed that he -- anyone who had anything to do with fannie and freddie mac, they should go to prison, but yet he made $1.2 million off of them. if that is no hypocrisy to its finest, i really don't know what it is. you are saying you're a historian. oh, okay. this is a man who you know left

and you really seriously -- run for a presidential bid but you left and took a vacation. you know your staff left you. everybody was making fun of you. really one more point i want to say before i get off. >> can i ask you first about mitt romney? what is the standout feature? what is the standout qualities that you like about him? >> i like the fact that mitt romney, when it comes to family values, him and his wife have been together. my thing -- in the republican party, don't stand here and throw family values in my face, gingrich, you know, you cheated on your wife. both wives. you married the third go-round and really one more point i would like to add, huntsman, a little more up in the polls, because i actually respect him. in des moines, iowa, donald trump is going to be holding the -- the republican debate. reality -- you might have

well -- ryan seacrest or kim kardashian do it. it looks like a freak show. who else do we have? no wonder why they were begging what is his name to get in from new jersey. there is no -- >> brings up a point about donald trump. he will host a debate in des moines, iowa, sponsored by news max and ion television, cosponsor of that event. jonathan lamerer, moderate a presidential debate -- hired for the highest office in the land. mr. trump's appeal to the conservative base is enormous and newsmax recognizes that. lawrence, georgia, go ahead.

ed, go ahead. >> yes, i like newt gingrich, not romney, because romney is a rhino. people have called in so far, they don't sound like republicans. they sound like democrats. >> you mean the acronym rhino which means what. >> rino means republican in name only. you can't trust romney. obama is running for president. he should be running the country. >> and the caller has left us. joan from california is next. you're going to have to turn down the tv first, joan. do that real quick. >> i -- yeah, i can be a little more succinct that your previous callers. the caller before last -- i

really -- i ask for prayer for the women and other people like her in that everything she -- superficial scene or event. we are in a point in time and in history where we have to think of character. we have to think of who has an awareness historically -- the largest part, causes effects and permutations of what's going on. you know. marriages, were you on the canoe in the mississippi playing with an alligator when your campaign fell apart? you know. >> who would you choose between the two men? >> newt gingrich. >> specifically why? >> specifically why -- the man

appears to be very clear-eyed. he's also a man who is very familiar throughout his lifetime of having someone poke him in the ribs and say will you please be humble. he can arrogant as the best of them, this, that, and go way this -- well fix it. >> it was this week on abc news that mr. gingrich talked about his campaign and his thoughts about if he was going to be the nominee. here is what he has to say. >> we respond to republicans who say if you don't draw distinctions between mitt romney -- perceived vulnerabilities are, barack obama and the democrats are not going to show that same reluctance and you are doing obama a favor by -- >> they're not going to be the nominee. i don't have to go out and point out the inconsistencies of people not going to be the nominee. >> you're going to be the nominee. >> i want to be the nominee. it is hard not to look at the

recent polls and see that the odds are very high that i'm going to be the nominee. >> clear politics recent polling showing mr. gingrich on top amongst those questioned, followed by mr. romney. your thoughts amongst republicans only for the first 45 minutes, if you had to choose between mr. romney and mr. gingrich, who would you choose and why? numbers on the screen. you can reach out to us on email and twitter, too. >> hi. all about winning the election in the general election. who can make -- reagan democrats -- towards the republican side, and it is going to be mr. romney. he is the only man. tired of fox news. this man has got no support from no one -- he stands a very good chance, and i just hope that people will understand the situation. >> when it comes to policies, which policy do you support

most? >> what do you mean policies? >> economic policy, foreign policy, which policy do you support the most and why? >> i think this election is going to be about the economic policy. all about jobs. this is the only man who is going to do it. >> what has he said that convinces you that he can do the job? >> look at his past experience. look at all of his past experience. >> madison county, illinois. good morning, harold. >> yes, hi. >> hello. i was just going to comment that i think that the whole group that we have to choose from this time is pretty much a disappointment. it is kind of like judging between bad and worse. i would like a viable candidate. it seems like these people just aren't listening to us anymore, and big business is taking over every aspect of it, republican

and democrat. >> what makes a viable candidate? >> i think we need somebody that would just speak out for the people. somebody like joe the plumber. >> why do you think that either mr. romney or mr. gingrich don't speak out for the people? >> i think that mr. gingrich is probably into the big business for $1.2 million. so, he don't speak for me. he is speaking for the big business. and romney, i'm thinking that he is probably our best bet right now because he's willing to compromise and he's willing to change his views on every subject. so maybe if he would change his view, something would get done. even if it is wrong, something would get done. we're to the point where we need something done, even if it is wrong. >> mr. romney on fox news this week in an interview, one of the things he talked about was the time that he did spend in the private sector and how that translates into his policy to create jobs.

>> my view is that newt gingrich and i have very different backgrounds. his background is very valid, of course, but he has been in politics almost all of his life. last decade working in government affairs in washington, in washington 40 years or so. during that same time i was trying to build a business, doing my best to understand how the economy works. created jobs, created a good return as well. i think that america needs to have a leader who has run things. who has spent time in the private sector, understands the power of the american experience and how it is that we can make our economy stronger. >> apologies, that was not the interview, that was done yesterday. a couple of emails, i think romney would be the better choice because of family values. huntsman is the best choice, he would give obama a run for his money, that is steve. newt --

>> las vegas, nevada, mike, go ahead. >> i think over those two choices, i think i will vote for newt gingrich. i think what he did in that last debate on cnn was smart and i think it helps the republican party. >> tell me a little bit about what brought you to the place of supporting mr. gingrich? >> well, in the debates, i think he handles himself really good. he seems very sharp and has an answer for every question. they all seem to be pretty intelligent answers, so it seems. i haven't been following politics for very long in my life, and so i don't know too much about his history. i really want to vote for ron paul though. >> when it comes to mr. gingrich, some callers mentioned his previous

marriages and consulting work, does that concern you at all? >> not too much. i have a lot of skeletons in my closet, too. i'm not perfect. i don't want to get involved in their relationships, you know, and what happens in their house too much, but, you know -- but sometimes it is bad for cain, it seems like it is a bad time with that lady coming out for him at least. >> again, mr. cain's announcement is scheduled to take place today from atlanta at noon. you can watch it live on c-span here and also listen to it on c-span radio as well. idaho, good morning, jan, you're on the air. >> good morning. i support newt gingrich based on his record and his years as speaker. and he is fearless as a candidate in tackling some issues with solutions that i think are excellent. his proposals on immigration

are sound and legitimate and humane. i believe his experience in balancing a budget and working in a bipartisan fashion successful successfully, really strong skills that we need badly. i would like to see him against obama in a debate. for all of those reasons, i think he is our best candidate. >> mr. romney made a point about his long-term experience in washington, and sometimes that can be in some cases looked upon badly upon folks who are decided in these kind of things. what do you think of that? >> experience in washington is -- is excellent, equipping him for knowing how things work and i think that is a positive, that he has that experience. >> houston, texas, good morning, julian. >> hi.

first of all, i would like to say that i'm with one of your previous callers. i'm going to vote for ron paul. i don't like being faced with the two options, but if i had to, i would vote for romney just because americans really have to get out of this mentality, idea of flip-floppers and the idea that working with the other side is hands down something that we can't tolerate. it is that thinking, that exact thinking that has us in the predicament that we're in because we elect people that refuse to nominate, you know, a liberal for supreme court or for court justice or as romney did, employ a statewide medical -- medical reform, but if i had to, i would vote for him just because it seems like

we might actually have bipartisanship for once in a very long time, and something might actually get done. >> other stories, financial times dealing with former new jersey senator john corzine. former chief executive of mf global will be forced to attend a congressional hearing in the collapse of the broker dealer next week alongside top regulators. house -- taking quote the extraordinary step of using congress's legal power to compel the former new jersey governor to turn up at the hearing. also expected to face the same panel congressional aides say, mr. corzine had stayed out of public view since mf global filed for bankruptcy october 31st. mr. corzine now faces a difficult decision, whether to plead the fifth or to answer

lawmakers' questions. mr. corzine's trip to washington next week may be followed by two more hearings the week after. senate agriculture committee and house committee on oversight and investigation said they were both considering subpoenas. columbia, south carolina, good morning. >> good morning. gingrich is definitely my candidate. mitt romney -- i think mitt romney would give the democrats too much fuel. his positions on life for a very long time, he was pro choice. he even had stories about family members compelling him to be pro choice, and also issues from back in the 90s about him sending jobs overseas. the democrats would absolutely have too much fuel with romney as a candidate.

newt gingrich has confidence, and he has flip-flopped a little bit, but i think at the end he has the confidence and the knowledge to take us through. >> california, tom, go ahead. >> yeah. >> you're on. >> i am? i'm hearing no questions. actually i favor gingrich. no question about it. i have from the very beginning. basic reasons, i have been employed by several airlines over time. i was a -- the first officer for pricing in the airline industry. i watched gingrich one night on television very late from atlanta, and the man knew more about the airline industry than i did and i was an alleged expert. he is really quite good. i'm impressed. there is no question i will vote for him, despite the fact

as i told you before, i have been a democrat all of my life, but i continue to vote republican because they simply have candidates who are more amenable to everything that i believe in. that's it. >> we will continue on with this, but first i want to take you and see -- front page of politico. story posted there. decision date for cain, remembering that announcement at noon today which you can see on c-span. here to talk about the latest going with the cain campaign, isaac dovere, deputy politics editor for politico. what do we know this morning about what the decision will be? >> well, we don't know any details about what is in herman cain's head, specifically, although people around him who have been talking with him are getting the impression that he is likely to announce that he will be withdrawing from the

race later today. >> can you expand on that? >> this has been a difficult couple of weeks for the cain campaign. they have been under fire because of the sexual harassment allegations and other stumbles that people might remember when he had some trouble with an answer on libya policy, speaking with the milwaukee journal sentinel a couple of weeks ago. they were doing okay in their minds holding back the tide. the revelation monday by this woman, ginger white, that she has claimed to have an affair with cain for the past 13 years, seems to have been too much for the cain campaign to handle in the same way. on tuesday morning, cain was on a conference call with supporters saying that he was going to reassess his campaign, and over the days since, he has been defiant in his public appearances, but in interviews

has been indicating that he has been leaning towards deferring to his family and perhaps pulling out of the campaign. he was -- he met with his wife yesterday in person for the first time since the affair came out, and was -- >> did any information come out of that meeting? >> the meeting between cain and his wife, there is no -- no official information out, but, again, the people who have been talking with cain are coming away from it with the impression that he is likely to pull out today. >> and you're talking permanent suspension of the campaign, not a temporary one. >> that's what they're -- the pieces that they're putting together from what they have heard from cain according to the sources that have been speaking to politico. again, the cain campaign has proven that they have a lot of surprises up their sleeves, and so i don't think anybody would

be totally shocked if he decides to forge onward today but it does seem that that is not what they're expecting him to do. >> to your last point, the web site that we have seen in recent days, women for cain and how that plays into this. >> well, every campaign has an effort like that. that web site went up in the last two days, and it's part of an effort that the cain campaign has been going through in the last 36, 72 hours to try to rally support to have another page that is encouragement for cain. they have a site where they're asking supporters to tape holiday messages for cain. the women for cain effort is one that obviously in light of the claims and allegations about him, they were hoping would be a bit of a buffer, but

in the end, if they feel that all of this is too overwhelming, i don't know that the women for cain effort would be enough to hold off the tide. >> there is one source saying that mrs. cain, or his wife was involved in this project. >> she was listed as the official chair. they have not done anything with this group beyond putting up the web site yet. it is not clear exactly what that entails being involved with it. and the notable part of that is that his wife has really been an absent presence from the campaign trail. we're used to seeing candidates' wives campaign with them, deliver speeches on their own and campaign without their husbands out on the trail. that has not been how gloria cain was involved with the cain campaign. she, i believe, was at his campaign kickoff rally, months

ago in may, but has not been at a campaign event since then. not even at the debates that we're all used to seeing of the candidates wives coming up on the stage posing for pictures with them. she has never been there for that. has only done one interview with fox news and that was a couple of weeks after the sexual harassment allegations first surfaced. >> what is the state of the cain infrastructure, along that line, because of this week? >> they were campaigning in michigan, ohio, and south carolina this week. we had reported that most of those events, they were seeing huge numbers of supporters show up. the campaign infrastructure, though, has always been smaller

and less experienced than that of mitt romney, for example, and so there have been questions about whether some of that staff will move to other candidates now. so far they have -- they have not. and obviously if mr. cain decides this afternoon to end his candidacy, we would expect that what small infrastructure he had put together would likely move to one or the other candidates. there is a lot of feeling that the prime beneficiary would be newt gingrich. >> that is isaac dovere, deputy politics editor for politico. politi politico.com, where you can find the latest story on herman cain. thank you. >> thank you for having me. >> you can see that announcement live today from atlanta at noon on c-span and

also listen to it on c-span radio. back to our question this morning for republicans only about choosing between mitt romney and newt gingrich. hollywood, florida. good morning. thank you for waiting. >> good morning. how are you? >> fine, thank you. >> i would definitely vote for newt gingrich. i could give you 12 different reasons. >> what is your top one? >> i actually believe that he wants to shrink the size of government and get rid of some of these departments. that is my top one. second top one, i believe he wants to privatize social security, which that idea, you know, this is nothing new. that idea has been around for 30 years, and it is a great, great idea. i believe that -- >> for those two you have chosen, what makes you think that mr. gingrich is able to

complete those or accomplish those? >> i'm hoping that the republicans could ride in his coattails so that we could increase the majority in the senate -- i mean in the house of representatives and hopefully, you know, take over the majority in the senate. >> belchertown, massachusetts. richard, hello. you're on sir, go ahead. >> i'm in favor of newt gingrich, and i'm a very active republican in massachusetts, and i'm on the republican town committee, and there is 35 members there. i don't know one single member that is for romney and he was our governor. >> because -- >> well, because he really performed as a liberal here. those of us -- i'm from one of the towns out in western massachusetts, and he got elected and he caved in to the liberal side.

that was his way of making things work. he gave us the health insurance bill. he shoved aside a governor that was performing quite well, swift, and made a deal with the convention they would pick his lieutenant governor and as soon as he had an opportunity, he broke that word and selected his own over the will of the convention. so, i've seen romney from a front-row seat and i don't want to see him do to america what he did to massachusetts. >> when you say he caved in to the liberal side, can you offer specifics? >> yeah, specifically with the health care provision. what a lot of people don't know, people in this state who are covered now -- being fined up to $1,100, $1,200 every tax year. most people who don't have insurance here are people who really, really can't afford it. now the tax burden and tax liability, which can be a criminal offense, it makes it

even worse. he just -- he just don't have it, you know. i'm -- that is -- he just doesn't have it. that is why he hasn't got beyond the 23%. there is something about mitt romney that people don't like. i think that newt gingrich is the smartest guy in the room. he has answers to the questions. he certainly has experience in dealing with congress. the next president is going to need a lot of experience with that. >> if you had to match up mr. obama against mr. romney, the president against mr. romney, this is how rasmussen says the polling shows, mr. obama with 42% of the support, mr. romney at 40%. if you compare those numbers with president obama against newt gingrich, those figures showing president obama receiving 43% support, also mr. gingrich showing 45% -- that is a rasmussen report.

liz, good morning. >> good morning. thank you for taking my call. i'm telling you, i don't know what is wrong with mitt romney. he is getting bashed on all sides. i find him to be a very intelligent, very charming, very attractive man. he knows his stuff. he has a nice family with not a whisper of scandal. and as far as romney care, he experimented in his state and that is what you are supposed to do. that's one of the things why the states have power, and he has just got blasted by all sides. i think a lot of the men are jealous of him. i'm serious. they wish they had what he has, especially compared to newt. pudgy, unattractive man, to stand up there next to obama --

he does have that charisma -- >> as far as mr. romney's policies, what do you like about them and what do you like most? >> well, because he says he wants to get rid of obama care, and he is a businessman. he has plans, kind of complicated right now, i don't understand them, but he has a proven record with business. you know, he's moderate to conservative. and he has proven that he can run a state, which many of the people, you know, are liberals, they voted for him anyway. he almost won against ted kennedy in a state. and i think he has a lot of goals and i think people are denigrating him because they know that he would be the best guy to win if he was running against obama. >> a picture this morning in

the "new york times" of german chancellor merkel, headline she is seeking swift action on what may be a long job to save the euro. saying that mrs. merkel called for quick changes, it is possible by the end of the year. historically nothing speedy about the remedy she proposed fixing -- it took years to negotiate and ratify -- mrs. merkel az call for a new treaty, tracked with a speech made thursday by french president nicolas sarkozy, some experts say more expeditious ways to affect treaty changes than the traditional path followed by the lisbon treaty. also an additional story in the

"washington post" this morning because of issues going on in europe concerning the debt crisis, treasury secretary tim geithner will travel next week to different countries to meet with leaders there and discuss these topics. >> good morning. >> good morning, how are you? >> fine, thank you. you're on. >> the one word that comes to mind when people talk about the candidates, is the last lady on there, she was talking about attractive. spoke of obama, articulate, attractive, knows his stuff. only one person on the panel that outdoes gingrich when it comes to knowledge from the beginning of american history to now, that would be ron paul. gingrich is definitely -- i believe he is the one that is going to be the next president. i believe he will get the nomination. he is really smart. the thing about gingrich, he's

real. there is nothing pretentious or fake or -- he is just a really down to earth guy that has had -- happen to have had his hands in a lot of stuff. and he's been busy about a lot of business. a man -- i forget his name, in order for evil to succeed, good men must do nothing. the problem with what is going on with america, truth is lacking. when you talk about truth lacking, about this -- the house being able to have insider trading and all of that, i could -- i accept the fact that nancy pelosi is going to be dealing some dirt like that, but when boehner was doing it, it disappointed me. the one that brings the most truth would be gingrich at the top of the polls, if he was a smart man, he would find a way to get ron paul to be his running mate. constitutionally, bill of rights, federal reserve, these two men together could really

change america if they really wanted to stand for truth and truth is -- lobbyists, favori favoritism going on -- >> we will have to leave it there. iowa a few weeks away. latest ad -- >> i spent my life in the private sector, competed with countries around the world. we are not going to balance the budget by pretending all we have to do is take out the waste. we have to cut spending, i'm in favor of cutting spending, capping spending as a -- the right answer for america -- i'm mitt romney, i approve this message. >> washington post this morning, u.s. pension agency under pressure, pension benefit

guarantee corporation. $26 billion deficit, largest in the history. when companies fail, the bpge picks up obligation to pay out pensions to employees, over the past fiscal year alone -- if the agency is forced to take over the american airlines pension, it would represent the largest ever single claim on pbgc fund. largest previous claim came when the agency -- the pension plans for american airlines, in 2005. from the chicago tribune this morning, house ethics committee announced that it would extend it's investigation of representative jesse jackson, jr., his part in the rod blagojevich scandal -- jackson, 46, denies the wrongdoing, being examined for two alleged violations.

one on whether a-- at least $1.5 million in campaign cash reportedly offered. reported use of two most senior staffers and office resources paid with tax dollars, one staffer termed a very aggressive -- >> caribou, maine, hello, jim. >> good morning, how are you? >> well, thank you. between romney and gingrich, neither would be my answer. >> because? >> with mitt romney, in 2007, last election cycle, i was watching a debate in michigan, cnbc today about the economy, and mitt romney -- all stood up there and told the american public that the economy was

robust. to me he did not have the foresight to see this coming down the road. ron paul has been talking about this coming for years what our economy is facing. right there that puts me off for romney. and gingrich, his comments about him being a historian, fannie mae and freddie mac, and receiving over a million plus dollars, you know, if you want to argue what the definition of wh a lobbyist is and be technical about the term, he was a lobbyist. he was in bed with fannie mae and freddie mac, one of the many culprits of the housing collapse. why would i want him in charge? to me it is clear that i don't think either of these guys really should be president. i think they're both insiders. inside establishment. and there is one clear person that people can see that is on that stage each debate, and that is ron paul. you have a good day. thank you. >> business section of the "new york times," deal that could remake the boundaries of the cable and wireless industry.

verizon wireless -- spectrum transfer if approved by the government, would allow verizon to further expand wireless data networks. separate agreement announced friday would enable the cable companies to market verizon services and vice versa, foreshadowing the possibility of cable television, broad band, home phone, cell phone service one day appearing on a single monthly bill. required approval by the federal communications -- and trust review by the review of the justice department. eerie, pennsylvania, barbara. >> hi. yes, i'm republican, i'm for gingrich. i know question because he had two previous marriages. i am catholic and i have good

information that gingrich has recently turned roman catholic and roman catholics stand for truth and i'm totally with the man who called in and talked about truth. that is what we need in our government. we need people that are honest and truthful, and believe in what is right, and will stay with what is right and not flip-flop. totally for him, and i think he would carry ohio and pennsylvania. i'm originally from the cincinnati area. i have lived in eerie, pa, last 42 years. >> randy. >> good morning. >> hi. >> welcome to everybody out there. hey, i don't think any of these guys. i think they're all mixed up in money, politics, money, insiders. insider trading. they're all of the way down. i think all of these guys are -- we need a real republican to run these guys are just all like the lady

said, she is all for gingrich. gingrich is the one that caused the problems back in the 90s. he was right in there with clinton and the rest of them. a bunch of crooks. i wouldn't vote for any of them. they're bought by the corporations. thank you. .

host: again, the challenge will continue for another eight days or so. one more call. san diego, california, morris did good morning. caller: i am for newt gingrich, mainly because i know he will

mop the floor with obama in the debate. everyone's goal my thunder. -- stole my thunder. we need someone that will tell us the truth. we are adults. i hope that obama goes off into the sunset and never comes back. host: that is it for this round of questions. if you want to talk presidential politics, stay with us, as we look at the battleground states in pennsylvania, and terry madonna will join us. up next, a discussion of the unemployment rate hitting 8.6%. this is "washington journal." we will be right back. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

>> he did not have a lot of romantic ideas about spying. he sought it for what it was. >> in "the man nobody knew" the life of william colby. >> my father changed after he was thrown out of the agency. if you watch the film closely and study him, he is a soldier. he took on the toughest, dirtiest assignments given to him from president eisenhower on. when it came time for the president to ask him to lie and mislead congress, he could not do it. >> carl colby and his father william colby sunday night on "q&a."

american history, the people that document the american story. >> i guess it was 12:00, and i said hey, we are at war. then i got scared. >> diskette said help me, and i helped him. -- this guy said help me, and i said -- i helped him. i then found out he was my best friend. >> when i go out there and read those names, i am finished. >> this weekend, c-span 3 marks the seventh -- 78 anniversary of the attack on pearl harbor. next week and, more programs about pearl harbor as historians' interest to take your phone calls. >> "washington journal"

continues. host: on your screen, luca flabbi, a professor from georgetown university. the unemployment rate falls to 8.6%. what does the number and name to you? >> -- numbermean to you? guest: it is good that unemployment is going down. it is a good indicator, but sometimes we put too much value on the indicator because there could be two reasons. one reason is that people are finding a job. that is what we want to see. another reason is people give up looking for a job. that is an indicator the labor market is not doing well. in terms of the recent numbers,

we had a decrease, and about half of that was due to people finding a job, and the other half was people giving up, not finding a job. so, that is not a good sign. so, overall, it seems there is a labor market that is improving but not picking up. host: we had two months with a drop in the numbers. is this trend sustainable according to history and with what you see behind the numbers? guest: there has been a lot of uncertainty about the global economy mostly due to the euro crisis, and the election year in the west. i'd -- in the u.s.. i think it is positive that the trend has continued despite

these factors. another indicator we should look at is how many jobs are actually being created. that is the other side of the coin, and they are obtained by a different survey. this is obtained by a survey where they ask households what is your current employment status, then they have another survey when they look at firms. that number is in line with improvement of the labor market the last few months there have been increases -- months. there has been an increase of 120,000 jobs. what is interesting is the private sector has created essentially all of those jobs. 140,000 jobs are coming from the public sector, and the public sector is losing -- private sector, and the public sector is

losing 20,000 jobs. we need to discuss how the private sector is creating jobs. the main reason in their is -- reasoning there is the losses mainly due to the loss of jobs in the u.s. postal service. the government is under a lot of strain so they are losing a lot of money. >> luca flabbi from the georgetown concerning the economy. we divided the lines differently. for those unemployed -- host: hit the line that best

represents year. you can also tell your experiences on intel and twitter. "the wall street journal" talks about the retail market. where do you see it going? guest: there is a big increase with jobs added, and that is seasonal. that was somewhat expected. that is pushing the number 4 job creation up, compared with previous -- for job creation up, compared with pre in -- previous months. those are jobs better clearly temporary. that is due to the type of job, the effected firms do not want to invest in prominent positions, but some of those jobs are not.

if you look of the subcategories, there are also good jobs there. in terms of the sector in job creation, i think the interesting one -- is all coming from a division of service. on the manufacturing level, there has been a little bit of job creation. that is a good sign because we are used to seeing losses of jobs in that area, and in particular in the car industry. i think those are good signs. manufacturing is a sector where we hear a lot that everything is offshore, and the u.s. has given up, but that is not true even if most of the jobs are created from service and retail. host: what about white collar

jobs -- high tech, it advanced degree jobs? guest: more than 20,000 jobs are from leisure and hospitality, and 30,000 from professional and business services. within these jobs, many of them are high quality jobs -- law firms, nba's -- mba's. it is a relatively big number, but not enough to systematically decrease the unemployment rate and bring the unemployment rate down to where it used to be when there was more full employment. it is a labor market that is holding there, but it is not expanding. there are many factors. host: what is chief among them?

guest: uncertainty about the world economy. hiring decisions for skilled labor force and investment for the future in human capital -- of course, you can fire later on -- it takes time. when firms higher today, they have to think months and years. we do not know what will happen with the european situation. what sets and is backed into a crisis? that is a bit -- will then send us back into a crisis? that is a big factor. the u.s. is better now and facing a crisis in europe than a few years ago, but still europe is a big economy, and if europe

does not grow, that is bad news for the u.s. economy. that is the chief factor, and something that is evolving right now, week-to-week. firms are just waiting. host: i know you are an economist, but we have a political question of sorts -- guest: what a government has to do in the situation in -- there are a few things. one thing is to say there have been gains in productivity, and salaries have been flat.

profits have increased, but firms are not investing because of the uncertainty of the environment. there is some of the needs to make the first move. initially, that is the government. traditionally, that is what the government does. they try to smooth out the cycle by intervention -- in the economy. this has been done the direction was the direction where most economists agreed the government should go, then it was probably too little. i do not think they have done too much in that direction. the stimulus was not particularly big. they did not start with hiring.

we see that in the number. the government is losing jobs. that is one direction in which the government could act. the other is specific policies for the labor market. we know it is a particular market. we are not trading apples. we are treating people, human beings. it is different. this means there are a lot of the imperfections in the way the market works, and government intervention may ease those imperfections, decreasing hiring costs and labor market frictions. some of the intervention the government has done, like decreasing payroll tax, is typical intervention to decrease in hiring costs. i think the policies were in the right direction.

it depends on what number you see. people might have different opinions. people might see the direction was right. they could have done more. recently, what has happened in europe has nothing to do with what the u.s. government could have done. that is coming from abroad. host: the first call is on the line for those that are unemployed. catherine, ohio. you're on with luca flabbi. caller: good morning. i am a c-span junkie. i watched every morning. i have children and grand children who are unemployed and under-employed, and the reason i would like to s to a question is simple. you have mentioned several times that we live in a world economy. if that was true, i should be allowed to go anywhere in the united states and buy oil from

venezuela and 60 cents a gallon. i could also go into any city in the united states and get my medical needs met from a hospital bed is from india, but, sir, i do not. the people who have companies can offshore jobs, but i never have an opportunity to buy a cheaper product. that is what is hurting the united states. guest: trade is a big issue. i agree. a typical good that is difficult to trade is labor. to most people, immigration can be a big cost. i agree that big corporations have an advantage in terms of

how they can move their labor. . there are services that are protected from trade. you mentioned health care and oil. . these are particular goods. there are some goods, and there we have seen decreasing prices and competition. the thing i want to mention is at some of the goods are not traded. they're not treated for a reason. health service, for example, requires regulation. so, i agree more trade for the consumer is good, but some goods are more difficult to trade, and we probably need to do much more work to decrease the asymmetries' in the benefits of

trade between consumers and corporations. host: from twitter -- guest: that is a good question. it relates to the seasonality we were talking about before. again, these numbers are adjusted to consider some of these factors. also, we can look one year back. one interesting indicator their, and that is related to under- employment that the previous caller mentioned, if we have to look it the other side, we have to look of how many people are actually employed right now. this is a number we care about to see if the economy is working to full potential. that number, compared to a year

ago, is improving, and the number of people employed is increasing after two years of decreases. the change in the trend they're actually happened in november -- in october, and is continuing in november. there is an increase of just 0.2%, but it is a trend, so even if you compare with november last year, the news is reasonably good. host: black mountain, n.c., unemployed blind. caller: i have been unemployed since december, about one year ago, and i am in one of these areas where there is a lot of tourism. these retail jobs sort of spike

everything up, but there is not that many of them here, and they pay minimum wage. my first job and made $3.80. my last job i made $7, just above minimum wage. see the incentive to get one of these jobs were after taxes you're making $5 an hour is not very high. something needs to be done about that. thank you. guest: minimum wage is one of the interventions the government can do. the problem is that it might be good for wages but it does not, as a role, increase employment. -- rule, increased employment. if you do the most simple model of demand and supply, that could

be an issue. in a more dynamic sense, taking into account expectation, -- the negative employment effects might not be too bad. i would say minimum wages something on the table, and is useful to increase wages, but not employment. there is a risk we would reduce employment. so, there is a choice you want to make with your policy -- i want to increase employment and wages. there are other ways to increase wages, if you reduce the tax burden on labor, for example. some of that would be shared with firms and workers. that is another area you could

do some intervention. not only has the minimum wage been fairly flat, but the other set of data coming out with the employment data is about hourly wages, hourly earnings, and that is also really flat. it is decreasing a little bit. that is detrimental to the economy, because the average wage has been flat for a long time. i do not think it is something related to the specific recession. we are seeing something more structural that probably has to do with the bargaining process right now, pressure from globalization, changing the behavior of unions, and so on. that is clearly something that might be detrimental. host: to the last point, the payroll tax cut debate among

republicans and democrats. guest: like i said, that could be something that is useful, extending the payroll tax cut. it gets in two ways. in one way, it is a tax cut. people have more money and consume. on the other side is a tax cut on the factor we want to get them, labor. if you decrease the cost of labor, the firm may hire more, so is -- there is this double effect. i could see the vantage of doing something like that. -- the advantage of doing something like that. the other side is the cost, which is where the debate should be. it should not be should it be done. those are something we have to

keep for the labor recovery. host: we have some statistics from the labor department. host: when you look a long-term employe, -- employed, 5.7 million, and in the long-term. factor in the part-time worker. guest: the part-time workers -- we used to think about the employed and the unemployed. right now there is a gray area between the two. there are people that would like to work more often. some people in our time would like to work more. -- in the part-time would like to work more. that is not unemployment, but it is still a loss of resources.

then, there are other people that are marginally attached to the labor market. they would like to work, but they're not with lou -- looking for work. they have sort of given up. some are discouraged, and they say i look for a job a year ago, but not done much more than that. all of this gray area is important in a time of uncertainty that has an impact not only on the decision of the corporation, but also the psychology. there is a lot of uncertainty. we are near a recession, and we are in this gray area and they gave up looking for a job. or, they accepted part-time job that does not pay me much or for my skills. in terms of the number, the fact that we see all these categories losing people is a

good sign. less people are in part-time, less discouraged workers is a good sign. the thing that is also very good in terms of long-term unemployment, as you were mentioning, is that also the number is down -- 185,000 people less in long-term unemployment. we need to check again how many of those are discouraged. long-term unemployment makes unemployment really costly, and it is something that is relatively new. if i had to pick up something that is peculiar of the recent recession it is long-term unemployment. this economy is to have an unemployment ratio that was really low, and europe was the region where there was this problem. the recent numbers are not too bad in terms of that. host: luca flabbi from

georgetown university is our guest. saint louis, missouri. the line for people that have stopped working,. --, ramona. go ahead. caller: i am no longer looking. i have been unemployed since january, 2008, and i fall into the category of too young to retire, and too old to higher. what about those folks that aren't in my situation -- that are in my situation where there is nothing out here? i do volunteer work. i am happy with it, but i could use getting paid. it is a growing problem for us in this category. host: age. guest: absolutely. that is another peculiar

phenomena for the u.s. labor market because in other countries where there is more regulation in terms of hiring, we do not have this group of people at a certain age said have lost their jobs. at first, i would say do not give up searching. if you really want to work, do not give up searching because these labor markets have not picked up yet. i hope there will be opportunity. the second thing to say is age is an issue, and the other issue is the human capital. one of the concerns of long-term unemployment is that staying out of work may actually reduce your skills on the job just because you have not worked for a long

time, or some of the skills you have might not become so valuable. so, if you can do anything to keep your training up while you are unemployed, that also would be very useful and make you more attractive. ages only one factor. age can be good. you have labor market experience. the disadvantage is you might not have the same skill, but maybe you can work on the skills you have. host: tampa, florida. go ahead, jessica. caller: i have been unemployed for several years, and decided to return to school. i realize the unemployment numbers you are showing right now either do or do not reflect the people who have stopped looking. i want to know how many of those

people are in my situation, who have returned to school, in an effort to find a job maybe later, like what i have done. guest: they do not have a specific number for that, because to know that number we need essentially to follow the labor markets career of the same person. these numbers we get are from a household survey that does not ask that question. the point you're making is useful to judge the discouraged worker effect. this was on the first page of all the papers. on in point is going down, but some of that is people not looking for a job -- unemployed it is going down, but some of that is people that are not looking for a job. one reason is given up hope, and

another is because they're going back to school. that is very different that might be -- very different. that might be exactly the right choice. we do not have good numbers to now how to be successful, but what we know is when you look at education there seems to be a shortage of college-educated workers in the u.s., and that will become even larger as the economy and the -- default. so, as we mentioned before, where the jobs are added, the required skills, and probably graduate school. overall, that seems like the right decision. host: the line for those that are unemployed, j. r., ill..

caller: i do not think people have given up looking for jobs. i think the jobs are not out there. i'm a 20-year union drywall finisher. up until about 2008, i did not have two weeks off. i never had a problem finding a job. i think the housing market has a lot to do with my particular situation, and i think that if we do not do something about the housing market, it is going to cause a bunch of other problems -- furniture sales, appliance every kind of different businesses going down because of the housing market. we have gone past the point of

people who bought too big of a house, and over-extended themselves. after two or three years we have gotten to the point where these people have made the right decision, they are hanging on to their houses, and we need to do something to stop foreclosures. guest: if we look to the employment number, construction is an industry that has lost a little bit of jobs. there, it seems the situation is not stable. the cost for that is not that people are fired, but they're just not working. the market is not keeping up. the cost there is in opportunity costs. that is a sector that absorbs a lot of labor and some of the skills we were mentioning.

that market has definitely not recovered. so, when that market will pick up, because eventually it will, since has -- it has been so stable and close down for so long, i think your specific situation will be improved. another thing i want to mention in terms of the skills you are describing, we also need to distinguish a little bit the changes in the reason of unemployment that are related to the specifics cyclical crisis now and that are more structural. there is no doubt the u.s. economy is changing in terms of what is produced, and which sector will be expanding in the future. so, in that sense, we can go back to what we were saying before. you have to make a decision. i'm might acquire new skills,

and na -- and i may adapt to what i think will be the change in the economy or the sector, or i just simply want to wait and look exactly for the same job that i was looking for before. basically, housing is a sector with a lot of potential. i agree that something must be done there, or there will be a problem. host: this week, head of the economic council, and gene sperling appeared on our "newsmaker" program. he talked about the unemployment figure. >> we have seen solid job growth over the last several months. there is the 1.7 million private-sector jobs created this year. if this was a typical year, you would think it was a satisfactory pace. when we are coming back from

such a deep recession, the worst recession since the great depression, it is not nearly good enough. you need to have much more robust job growth to get the type of job creation that would bring unemployment rates down at a more serious level. host: it is that robust growth coming? guest: it must come. in terms of the fundamentals, the money firms have, the overall economy, most of the adjustment has been done. what we are waiting on is to solve the uncertainty, may be related to the political side in the u.s., and to the situation in europe. so, it depends on what direction this uncertainty will be solved.

if europe will enter a recession of 10 years, then it will not come. if europe manage to solve its problems and starts to grow again in a few months, it will come by spring, say. i think that is really dampening growth right now. i agree with the assessment that these numbers are not too bad, but since we are coming from this very long recession and we have a lot of jobs to recover, it is not good enough. host: you mentioned here. what does it mean to you that the treasury secretary is traveling to talk to leaders there about the situation? guest: the problem in europe is a problem of coordination. the u.s. has done some very specific and coordinated action

between the treasury and the fed to solve the financial crisis, to support the dollar, or depreciate the dollar, and so on. europe has a common currency, but many governments, and not all these governments think alike about what should be the direction to solve this crisis. what they really need to do is coordinate. in this sense, the u.s. could play a useful role. they could have this coordination process. it is a powerful economy. it is an economy that could help here a directly through the institutions that are all around us. it can give a role for people to come to common ground. i think it is a good idea to go there and see what can be done.

host: los angeles, california, mary, people who stopped working. caller: you go to a grocery store, and you see these self- help stations that have taken the job of six people. you go to a bank, and you do not see a person any more. everyone is blaming president obama, but it is really the fault of computerized systems. how do you fix that? guest: these are parts of the structural change of the u.s. economy. these changes in technology have been going on for a long time right now. -- now. that is not specific of this recession. we have to think of what are the jobs there have been lost? are they good jobs, jobs and pay well and people want to do, or are they unskilled jobs, better

than unemployment, but not so great? on one side, it is much better to have a cashier jobs then be unemployed. on the other side, there are some jobs that do not paid much in the manufacturing sector, and the effect of these jobs are disappearing is not necessarily a bad thing. -- the fact that these jobs are disappearing is not necessarily a bad thing. who are the people behind those programs? the programmers, the producers, and so on? there the u.s. has a leading role in the design of those machines, or developing the software. that is a change. we move from a cashier to a computer programmer.

when you move the number, that is what you see. there is a shortage of people with a degree in computer science and engineering, and there has been high unemployment of poor people with high school degrees. that could be and advantage for everyone. host: i live in florida -- college degree, 60 years old. host: also, this from oklahoma. guest: in terms of the second question, that is something anyone can read. when they publish these numbers about unemployment, on the web site they tell you how they got those numbers. essentially, they have a survey

that asked people are you employed, unemployed, or are you looking for jobs. if they're looking for jobs, they ask about what actions they are taking to look for jobs. so, the answer to that question is this stopped looking. if you declare you have not done any active search in the labor market, they put you in this category. soca but it is clearly -- so, it is clearly a subjective decision. is a gray area. that is why i prefer to look at the unemployment rate than this number. as i mentioned before, employment is increasing a bit, but it is not that to where it

used to be. host: syracuse, new york. robert, your question or comment. caller: iphone bob nash.net. we try to help small businesses. the euro -- to not worry about it. it will be stabilized. i have equity partners writing to jump in with job creation, but there is a jam up with everything going on. with obama as leadership, france, australia, the euro will be stabilized because there is no other option. guest: a few months ago i would have said the same -- there is no other option. we of too much to lose if the euro falls apart. if i had to put a bet right now,

it would be that the euro will survive, but what has changed in the last two or three weeks, and i follow the situation closely because i am italian and italy has been a the center of this problem, in the last few weeks there was a sense the euro could fall apart. that scared people, and i think why there will be action. it is not an event that is impossible to happen. i do not think it is likely, but it is possible. everyone is waiting to see what will happen. host: we have one more call on our unemployed line. >>, go ahead. -- nick, go ahead. caller: what happens if the

economy collapses and we lose everything? i am unemployed and i have nothing. i have a college degree. i own a business that i am not doing any jobs with. there's really nothing for me. guest: he has a college degree and cannot find a job? host: he is worried about the overall economy collapsing and what it means for people in his situation. guest: even in a recession there is not an overall collapse. we have an unemployment rate that is less than 9%, which means most people looking for a job are finding a job. the our country said the fed 12% unemployment for all longtime -- there are countries that have had 12% unemployment

for a long time and date are not in a recession -- they are not in a recession. for these people, the only hope is to have some transfer from the government to hold on and wait for the economy to pick up again. we are nowhere close to a collapse of the economy in the u.s. in particular. i think most of the adjustment has been done. if europe really breaks down, there will be a crisis in europe and there will be a worsening of the situation here, but the u.s. economy will not collapse. host: our guest has been luca flabbi and economics professor from georgetown university. we will take a look at federal involvement when it comes to electric cars vehicles at 9:15. coming up, our battleground

state series. pennsylvania will be our focus. terry madonna will be our guest. we'll be right back. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> when i look at why a country does well or why it does not, but i think is fundamentally a values thing. it is not resources. do you believe the future can be different than the present, and do you believe you can control your future? these are not universal. in the u.s. we have an exaggerated sense of how much control we have, but it is good for us. >> this sunday, questions for author david brooks.

his best selling books include "on paradise drive" and his latest, a call the social animal." -- "the social animal." >> if you drew the affirmative side of the debate, you could make more positive points. >> tuesday, a subcommittee meets to discuss the allies in the supreme court. you can learn more about the issue ever c-span.org with our special web page devoted to cameras in the court. see public opinion polls, and what the justices have said. you can also watch video and members of congress talking about cameras in the court. >> "washington journal" continues. host: terry madonna servers as

the director of the center for public affairs. is pennsylvania a battleground state? guest: is -- it certainly is. the president's job performance runs below the national average. on the pivotal question of should it be time for a change, 50% stake it is time for a change. the president was here this week in scranton, pennsylvania. he has been here eight times this year. pennsylvania will be one of the states that receives most of the television and radio advertising. all things are clear to us when we look to various factors that pennsylvania will be very much in the mixed again this year as it has been for the last several decades. host: what has changed in

demographics, or moods? guest: that is a great question. let's look of the demographics. the president did very well with union households. he did extraordinarily well in the philadelphia suburbs. that is not a demographic, but among college educated women especially. as we look at the polling data right now, we find support has definitely softened among those groups. the college educated voters, though they did not vote proportionately more in 2008 and the had in earlier years, and let's expand that to 18-29-year- olds, the president got 65% of the vote, and it is now below 50% in most polls. when we look at a variety of

groups, the president simply is not doing anywhere near as well as he was in 2008. the other point is not unimportant. when you take a look at the more independent-minded voters, regardless of how they are registered, how do they vote, especially in big come must state-wide election for governor, u.s. senate, and for president -- we sometimes call them swing voters, and we find they're not voting at the moment for the president. in my state they live basically in the region around philadelphia, the counties that surround philadelphia, and up in the lehigh valley, allentown and bethlehem. lots of swing voters there. at the moment, the president would have a lot of trouble winning them. host: terry madonna talking

about pennsylvania as a battleground state. here are the numbers . host: we have set aside a special line for those of you that live in pennsylvania and wants to comment. what did the election in 2010 tell us about what might happen in 2012? guest: de elections in 2010 were a stunning victory for republicans in our state. they won back the governorship and five congressional seats, second only to new york where they pick up six seats. of the five seats, four of them had been won by the democrats in 2006 and 2008. so, they won five congressional seats, the governor ship, and a

u.s. senator post. pat toomey, who was on the super committee to work out long-term deficit problems, which everyone knows was not successful, was elected very narrowly. in the state legislature, the republicans regained control of the state house. here is how pennsylvania sets. the delegation to congress -- falls republicans, seven democrats. the house of representatives -- republican. the senate -- republican. the governor -- republican. one of two senators is republican. the republicans really had one of the biggest sweeps in our state in 40 years. host: the first call comes from allentown, pennsylvania. richard, you're on with terry madonna. go ahead.

caller: hello. glad to see you are on. guest: hi, richard. caller: isn't this argument all sort of premature in that the republicans have not put up a candidate yet? the choices over there are not attractive. guest: i think you do raise a good point. the way political scientists think about this is the election is 80% about president obama. do the voters of our country look of his presidency and say he deserves another term? there are all kinds of aspects we can talk about. then there is about 20%. i'm using crude percentages, even though they are specific.

is the republican candidate, the ultimate nominee, an acceptable alternative? but they just ran a commercial and our state and other battleground states taking on mitt romney for been a flip- .loper they are trying to weaken what they perceive to be the strongest candidate. we know given the president of the numbers, with a blow job performance, he is -- with the low job performance, he is beatable. you are onto something. it is early. we do not have a clue what general election voters will think in september and october. it is so early, and most of us make premature judgments about what the election will look like next year. we need to take a deep breath and stepped back, but doing what

we do for a living, the speculation will go on endlessly. host: baltimore, maryland. dorothy, independent line. caller: i hear you talking about and not -- an alternative. what do people want from a president? do they want a ceo? i know republican candidates do not do anything to promote corporations as far as they are a ceo. we, the people are not businesses. if you run a corporation, the first thing you look at is the bottom line. they will talk about how to make money for businesses, not how they can uplift america. people need to be very careful who they vote for, republican or democrat. then, ask what they are talking

about. i've not heard any republican talking about how they can uplift the middle class. corporations are doing fine. how much more money do they what? i do not understand it. host: mr. terry madonna? guest: most presidents have been governors, and they often argued they knew how to run a state, they provided the executive leadership, and that was transferable into the presidency. obviously, most governors do not make foreign policy, the typically domestic policy has been more important motivating electoral considerations than just about anything else. but, the caller makes an interesting point. a lot of voters look not so much for management skills, leadership skills. they might be transferable and inter-related to a degree, but being a leader is not

necessarily just having a corporate mentality or corporate consideration. we have not gone into the private sector, so to speak, to elect american presidents. we've gone to the political side, looking for a variety of attributes. i think that is far more telling. in all fairness to the republicans, i think they are trying to say the business community is where jobs will be created, where the future lies in terms of the expansion of the economy. that is the point some of them are trying to make. the caller makes a good point about the perception voters will have about what they are looking for when it comes to the president, when we vote next november. host: independent line, new york. you are on with terry madonna. caller: as an independent, i

find the only person that would qualify as a good -- hello? host: you are on. caller: ron paul. he was talking about the housing bubble crash in 2008 while the other candidates were saying everything is rosy. he knows what is going on. he has been a straight shooter from the beginning. the other problem is we know the media for what ever reason seems to be holding back as far as talking about him or allowing him to speak his mind. by denying him this, the american people are waking up and seen this is happening, and they are reacting grass roots. there is grass roots support for ron paul but is unbelievable. we know it. he is the man. he is not a politician. he is always been about keeping control, keeping government low

and limited, and that is very important. host: thank you. mr. terry madonna? guest: there is no doubt that ron paul has a hard core group of dedicated supporters. hi -- i get e-mail from his supporters, and of all the forms of communication i get i get more for ron paul supporters than anyone else. having said that, let me make this observation. one of the problems ron paul has let some of his positions like withdrawing from many parts of the world -- it looks like his position would mean if iran gets a nuclear weapon, that is ok, letting air traffic controllers being taken over by

the public -- private sector -- i think voters would be cautious about voting for someone in a general election that has those sorts of views. you will get a lot of e-mail, and i will get calls about that. in the polling i have done, some of his positions, not that he is not particulate or sincere, but he calls for too much of a scaled down, limited government -- probably further than most voters are willing to go. host: william, democrats line. illinois. go ahead. caller: this is something that is never talked about on tv and i do not understand why. they talk about unemployment not going down fast enough, but the reason is the republicans absolutely refuse to help this

president. if they test the jobs bill, millions of people would go to work almost immediately. because the republicans refuse to help the president, jobs cannot be created. how in the world can one person in america vote for the republicans who are refusing to help this president? that is never talked about. it is not that he does not have a plan, but they will not help him. that is my whole issue. host: mr. terry madonna, 8.1% unemployment in pennsylvania, 8.6% nationally, how does that factor in? guest: let me say to the caller that that is what the president has been saying out on the stump since he has been introducing the jobs bill, campaigning,

saying the president's are not helpful. i did not think that is the point at all. we are having a debate about which way works best to pull us out of the recession do we spend more money and increase the debt -- recession. do we spend more money and increase the debt, or do we let the economy work itself out, bottom out? some of the republicans have said to the 7 million, to 9 million people that have houses under water, let it bottom of and the economy will recover -- out, and the economy will recover that way. we are in the midst of a debate. regardless of who wins the nomination, even if it is mitt romney, the moderate a lot of conservatives are concerned about, we are going to have a

major philosophic debate about the role of government, and i think the president has been clear about that. i think the voters understand that. monday unemployment think a month as it -- from the on implant thing, as a pollster, i have looked at unemployment and what voters think about it. after the 1991 recession, it had been over for seven quarters, and bill clinton beat george herbert walker bush basically running on the economy. everyone remembers the slogan " it is the economy, stupid." here is the point. there is a lag time between when the economy gets better and when they think it gets better. that is what the president has

to deal with with unemployment 8.1% in my state and 8.6% nationally. when will the voters reached the conclusion that the economy has gotten better under president obama, and secondarily, has what he has done work to make it better? the third question is are they optimistic that the recession is over or likely to be over soon and things will get better? when voters sit down and think about the presidential election, that is the framework we should be paying attention to. that will be more revealing about what is likely to happen next year than probably any thing else. host: we have a map of 2008 show in the areas of pennsylvania that john mccain took. a lot of it is on the borders.

the highly-populated ones were taken by president obama. talk about how pennsylvania might respond to newt gingrich or mitt romney if they are the upper tier candidates at the time? guest: you will notice a number of counties in light blue. those are the swing counties that i mentioned earlier. in order to win this state, any candidate probably has to win seven counties, the swing counties, and you see them in the eastern part of the state -- philadelphia, and the county's up into the northeast and in to the lehigh valley. that is where the large majority of the swing voters live. if you win that part of the state, you are likely to win pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes. i think most of the campaign

will be done east of the susquehanna river, which you cannot see on that map. the parts that were in pink or red are heavily republican and not likely to change very much. philadelphia and pittsburgh will remain democratic areas, along with. in the far northwest. the battleground area is the eastern part of the state, all of the areas particularly in light blue. those are the battleground regions. in the center part of the state you have where penn state is, and then union county, just to the immediate east of center county -- two big universities out there, penn state and but now, so there are a lot of college students, and many of

them voted for president obama in 2008. we're looking for a lot of activity in the state, and particularly in the philadelphia television market, the fourth largest in the country. you reach 40% of the voters in the state of pennsylvania advertising on philadelphia tv, as well as voters in delaware and new jersey. host: pennsylvania. we hear from lou. caller: good morning. i was running who is right -- i was wondering who is running against bob casey? guest: there are 10 people, literally. there are two wealthy folks. one from chester county, a guy in the western part of the state who used to own a coal

mine, a former staffer for then senator rick santorum, a tea party advocate, a former state house member who ran in the republican primary against now- governor, corbett, and got one- third of the vote, and lately there has been some consideration given to the senator who is the majority leader in the senate, a republican from delaware county. if so, there are nine or 10 people. whether they actually filed a petition to be a candidate remains to be seen, but it is quite an eclectic group of people. nine or 10 people are in the hunt at the moment. host: terry madonna, off twitter.

this could take us back to when this was said, and does it still resonate? guest: it was taken during the clinton-obama primary. the president made that statement at a fund-raiser in san francisco, and sometimes these candidates go into private meetings -- nothing you say any more is private. if you say it to more than one person, you can be sure it will be somewhere in the media. the president made that speech at a fundraiser, and it reverberated around the country. obviously, it did not help president obama in a rural part of the state, and it did not help him with blue-collar, working-class democrats. in the april primary into thousand eight, senator clinton defeated -- in 2008, senator

clinton defeated president obama by 10 percentage points. it was a stunning defeat. may i add one a general election came around, he won the state by 10 percentage points. host: oklahoma. lee, a republican line. caller: i have a question. you're talking about the blue collar in pennsylvania. as far as the voters go -- let me get my thought right quick. the republican and democrat side labor, where you have had, for example, in oklahoma we had a gm plant at our air force

base, and our average salary for the linemen was right at $68, and that was without a high- school diploma. now, a lot of those folks -- the union whort them so far the gm plant had to close. host: what is your question? caller: everyone talks about how previous presidents are at fault for the economy, and barack obama is still my doing anything, but as far as laborers go, when we talk about pennsylvania we are talking about a state that is really full of labor. host: we will leave it there. guest: about 15% of

pennsylvanian come from union households. we do have a fair number of blue-collar, working-class voters, and many of them are catholic and located in two regions of the state -- in the southwest, in the old mining portions, cities, small towns -- steel, coal, iron. then come up in the northeastern part of the state, in the scranton area -- area, lackawanna county. the old coal regions of the state. there are lots of blue-collar, working-class ethnics there. these are the voters that in the 1980's began to shift nationally we refer to them as reagan democrats. they were conservative on a lot of social questions, abortion,

and certainly an guns, as a reference to the question -- statement president obama made in the san francisco fund- raiser. they tend to be pretty religious. a lot of the roman catholic, as i indicated before. lyey are decreasing important in terms of numbers. the population has been from the eastern part of the state to the western part of the state. the pennsylvania population has grown with each of the censuses. we will lose another member of congress next year. in 1932, pennsylvania had 36 members of congress. we were the second-largest in the number of members of

congress of any congressional delegation. we're now down to 18. host: 50 more minutes with our guest. -- 15 more minutes with our guest. helen, go ahead. caller: hello? hi. i am here. host: stop listening to the television and go ahead with your question or comment. caller: i am calling because i wanted to speak about the election coming up. host: what is your question? caller: i am not asking a question. host: we will put you on hold and come back. rick from florida is on the republican line. go ahead.

caller: i think michele bachmann has been ignored by the media. the media is trying to manipulate who becomes president. michele bachmann has the moral and leadership character traits over the other candidates. i think she is a wonderful person. host: talk about the ground games for those campaigning in pennsylvania. guest: they have made forays into the state to raise money in pittsburgh and philadelphia. we will -- much will depend on

how the early delegate selection takes place in january and february leading up to super tuesday in march. we probably will not see much in the wake of a ground game. the pennsylvania primary is at the end of april. we typically do not see much action. the nominees are decided by the time the primary reaches pennsylvania. 2008 was a big exception where we had a dried out primary -- dragged out primary in what was in monumental six-week period in our states history. host: terry madonna is with us to talk about pennsylvania as a battleground.

go ahead. caller: i know the economy will be the first issue and foreign policy will be the second. we are in constant wars, and declared. do you think civil liberties will be the third issue? we've been seeing a lot of anti-freedom legislation coming out of washington. the national defense authorization act gives the military authorization to detain any citizen on the suspicion of aiding and abetting terrorism or being a suspect. guest: i think probably not unless there is some specific event or evidence that civil rights for an individual had been violated in a high-profile case. there is no doubt the economy

will dominate the election. everybody knows that. we have to throw out one big caveat. that is unless we are attacked, unless there is some intervening foreign event that would make a big difference in terms of what the voters might think of the election. if we do get in a military engagement, the tendency is for folks to rally around the president early on. we saw that in the iraq war. we have seen that in virtually every major conflict the country has been in. over time, we get war-weary as in vietnam and iraq. but it will be about the economy. that is unless there is some specificity or event where there is some demonstrable government

activity infringing on the civil rights of somebody. i do not think the passage of a law will play a big role in the election. host: how great our social issues among the concerns of the voters? guest: pretty low at the moment. they are in the single digits in the polling we have done. i will not suggest that there are not certain voters that will be motivated by choice issues were gay-rights. but that is not an overriding consideration of most voters. earlier i mentioned the independence-minded swing voters that live in the suburbs that tend to make the difference in whether the state will go for one candidate or another. those voters tend to be more socially liberal but fiscally

conservative. is there concern about debts and deficits? how much does that play into their voting choices compared to concerns about the recession and job creation and whether we're moving ahead out of the recession? when you look at the two sides of how the debate is playing out, republican candidates come and debts and deficits. that is their big concern. democrats, let's spend little money help government help us get out of the recession. what are the swing voters in the suburbs -- how do they view those issues as we come up on november? that will be something we will look at carefully in the months ahead. host: the next call is from st. louis, missouri.

carol is on the line for democrats. caller: you said president obama was 50 to 54 favorable. i was wondering about the favorability rating for governors and how that might affect the election. guest: nationally, he is about 43% positive. the pennsylvania polls show him running from 37% to 42%, below the national average. the other key indicator we look at is the big question of whether it is the election was held today he would vote for obama or if you think it is time for a change.

that is the big question, time for a change. in the polls that i have done, dpp, democratic automatic pulling, they are all in the high 30's and low 40's. that may be a general condition in which voters are saying they are not happy with politicians. they're not happy about gridlock. they're not happy about the ability of the government to work. we see that a lot in polls. that is not likely to change soon. host: oxnard, california, will is on the democrats' line. caller: president obama and the democratic national committee are going to have to do a better

job of explaining to the people the things that have occurred over the last 30 years that have brought the economy to where it is. they have to tell the truth. they have to do something about the republican governors and states. they have to make people aware of what is going on they have to get out there and work. they cannot look what happened in the 2010 elections happen again. they were so laid back. obama was so conciliatory to reach a compromise with the republicans. you have got to get the progressives. you have to convert them into independents. they should reach out to the occupy wall street people to get them on his side. they have to reach out and explain to the public what is really happening. remind them.

find the news clips. the information is out there. obama has been too laid back. host: in 2008, just over 6 million turned out to vote. guest: i think the turnout is not going to be as high as we saw in 2008. i would be stunned if we do 58% of eligible voters. we just heard a lot of the criticisms on the left of president obama. you stated it a little bit differently. the caller wants the president to be less conciliatory and more vigorous in his criticism of republicans. whether that works with independent voters is another matter. the caller is sort of the classic liberal democrat.

they are saying to their present, be more aggressive, the more hard-hitting. re- to be more hard-hitting. we hear that a lot. republicans say the problem with the president is that he will not compromise and is too liberal. the voters are going to have clear choices. there will be no room to the center --run to the center. i think it will be a stark choice for the voters. host: voter registration at the time was 8.7 million. >> voter turnout in our state is about what it is on the national average. i do not think it is likely to improve. voter registration rolls unfairly inflated throughout the

country. i am not a big believer in them. counties have to eliminate people who have moved and are deceased, whether that it's done is anybody's guess. i am not looking for a huge turnout. the turnout in the off-year elections in our state was relatively low. only about 25% of eligible voters turned out. i am not looking for a big turnout at this point. host: john on the independent line, go ahead. caller: you have paid people giving you a ponzi scheme. the president is not running the show. the federal reserve is a separate entity funded by leaders of all the world trying to come up with the next ponzi scheme to fool people are around the world.

what do you mean a battleground state of pennsylvania? let me finish. the media will not report the truth. you are sitting here waiting for the next war so you can strip everybody of their rights to join the new world order. host: we will leave it there. bonnie is on the democrats' line. caller: during the last campaign and election for president when president obama lawyers running, people who had obama stickers on their cars got contract. the kkk started beating people up and torching their homes. that is the reason why he did not get a big turnout in pennsylvania. obama will rule and get reelected.

the american people are not stupid. we're able to access other alternative forms of media. we are capable of discerning the truth, the we from the chief -- the wheat from the chaff. we're able to understand how the republicans have stonewalled the president to the point that no one will call him president obama. the ones who voted for him last time plan to vote for him again this time. host: we will leave it there. guest: in summary, pa. was among the top three most visited states in 2008. of the money spent on advertising, we were in the top three. i think we will see a lot of candidates visit our state.

we have the second-largest number of electoral votes among the swing states, second only to florida. i think it will be a close election. most analysts agree. i think it will be one of those elections that might tell americans where our country is likely to go in the future. our next call is at the end of january. we will begin a series of polls that we will do virtually every month throughout the campaign. host: our guest works at franklin and marshall college. you can take a look at the work of the center. i expect that your polls are available online at that website. guest: they are. some of them go back a long time. host: think you for your time.

in our final segment, we will take a look at the electric car industry, the federal role with concerns about the testing of the chevy vote. our guest will talk about that. we will be right back. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> he did not have a lot of romantic ideas about spying. he sought it for what it was, a dirty business. >> the documentary film producer examines the life of the spy master, his father. >> my father changed after he was thrown out of the agency.

if you watch the film closely and steady him, he is a soldier. he took on the toughest assignments given to him by the from eisenhower onward. when it came time for the president to ask him to lie in mislead congress, he could not do it. >> that is on sunday night on a "q&a." every weekend, the people and events that document the american story. >> i guess it was 11:00 in the morning before i stopped and said, we are at war. then i got scared. >> this guy walks up to me and said, help me. i helped him to the boat. i got him in the boat. he died on the way to the island. i found out later who he was. he was my best friend.

>> is just as tough to go out there to the memorial as it was the day i saw it burning. when i go and read the names, i am finished. >> c-span marks the 70th anniversary of the attack on pearl harbor with eyewitness accounts. next weekend, more programs about pearl harbor as historians join us to take your phone calls. it is so convenient to listen to c-span anytime, anywhere with the free c-span radio app. you can also listen to our interview programs. c-span is available wherever you are. >> "washington journal"

continues. host: angela greiling keane is a reporter for the regulation team of bloomberg news. there have been stories over the last week or so about the shah of evil. -- about the chevy volt. guest: they have a late-night fire after the crash test. they do the crash tests and had given them the top rating for safety. three weeks after the test, the car caught fire on the testing center lot. that is a big deal because electric cars are still new. people have been wondering about safety. it was a big deal. it is not a big deal if it happens in a crash three weeks

later, but it is a big issue if the batteries are catching fire. the battery is a lithium ion battery. that is used in all electric vehicles are now. they are big batteries. the technology will probably get smaller. in the vault -- volt, it is a big part of the car. it makes it heavy and expensive. the battery compartment punctured. the automakers built them to withstand severe crashes. in this case, the side impact test simulated a severe crash. they think the reason the fire started was because the battery compartment was compromised. in the real world, bad crashes do happen. they want to make sure that

safety is assured for all drivers of vehicles. it was an isolated incident in terms of the crash test. but they only crash tested one volt. after the news came out that the fire happened three weeks after the first crash test, they tested three more batteries in a government facility. they found in two of the three cases but also simulated severe crashes that fires happen. one was sparks and smoke. it was not an inferno like after the first test. the other one was more similar. there was a crash test in a week later, the battery did catch on fire. it was being continually monitored. the researchers are all trying to figure out what is causing

the. they have not figured out the reason for the fires happening a good while after the crash tests. host: there was an announcement of an investigation. guest: they are investigating just the volt. the investigation is limited to the volt and its battery. is powered by gasoline and electric power options. the leaf is only electric. chevy had been hoping to get to 10,000 units this year. that is small compared to the overall auto sales. they will not even make the 10,000. the volt is an important part in their portfolio. electric cars have gotten a lot of focus from the federal

government. running on fossil fuel forever is not sustainable for the transportation system of the future. the obama administration has invested a lot in electric vehicles. host: if you have a question about the federal role in the electric car industry, here's your chance to find out about it. the numbers are on your screen. we will take your questions from e-mail and twitter. overall carwith the industry. how involved is the federal government in the electric car industry? guest: the bush industries and focused on hydrogen vehicles. the obama administration picked

electric vehicles as where they want to focus. -- the bush administration focused on hydrogen vehicles. some funding carried over from the bush administration on batteries. there have been big beneficiaries in those programs to have gotten large loans to fund the electric vehicle research. there have been smaller companies that have gotten or requested money from the federal government for research. electric vehicles are expensive to purchase. they're not something the average consumer can go out and buy at this point. the argument is that the industry is so nascent that is not going to be sustainable from a financial standpoint unless it has support from outside the auto industry. host: they listed some of the

goals for the program. included investment and research in progress. the goal is 1 billion electric vehicles by 2013. it also included a rebate incentive. can you talk about a shift from tax credits to instant rebates? guest: right now, there is a 7500 attacks credit for anyone who buys an electric vehicle. -- there is a $7,500 tax credit for anyone who buys an elector vehicle. right now, it is a tax credit. if you buy your car in january of 2012, you did not get to claim the rebate until you file your taxes the following year. there is a push from michigan lawmakers to make an upfront credit like we saw with cash for

clunkers. that is controversial with dealers because they would have to front the money. some dealers are small businesses. $7,500 could be a problem for them. this is beyond stimulus at this point. host: our guest is with us to talk about these issues until 10:00. the numbers are on the screen. you can also send us an e-mail or a tweet. peter, you are on. are you there? go ahead. caller: when the crash test was completed and the fire broke out three weeks later, was the car were parable or a total loss -- repairable or a total loss?

if the car was not repairable, what difference does it make if there are no occupants in it? does that make sense? guest: that is a good question. they crashed the vehicle beyond repair. the first crash was an actual vehicle. it was not be isolated battery outside the car. it was crashed. it was sitting on a lot with other crushed the hackles -- vehicles. the fire was so severe it destroyed vehicles nearby. it is not a risk to the% in the crash. that person cares how it scored in the crash test. what is an issue is what happens to a car after it crashes. after a car is in a wreck, it is

to go somewhere. it may go back to your home if it can be repaired. it may be parked in a junkyard or repair shop. that is where the problem comes in. it may not be a risk to the driver or passengers, but it is a risk somewhere. if you are going to be having fires popping out, that is a concern to someone at the junkyard or repair place or someone having it parked in their garage. host: richard is on the independent line. caller: i am an old guy. just give everybody $20,000 to buy a horse. you will not have to worry about gasoline or electricity. you will have to put some water out for the horses. this is getting ridiculous. we cannot keep our highways in

proper repair. horses can walk on anything. i am being facetious. but if the government gets involved, it will be fouled up. thanks guest: that brings up one concern but the electric vehicles. it is funded with the gas tax, and that is funded with gasoline you purchase at a pump, or whatever other traditional fossil fuel. with electric vehicles, you are not buying that guess. they have environmental benefits and oil security benefits. there is a concern in terms of funding highway infrastructure. host: for infrastructure, what does it mean for the consumer they have -- that have these cars? how much did they have to invest? guest: you will need a place to charge it, and a place to plug

in. it is not a standard outlet. he needs an upgraded outlet to -- union operated out what -- you need and upgraded out with. if you have a better a logical system, you could charge fester. that is really a big part of the electric vehicles. there is also a big push with government assistance to install charging stations. there is one near here at union station in washington, d.c., that has a bunch about what's, and then there are some over at the capitol -- that has outlets, and then there are some over at the capitol. host: we have maps of charging stations or infrastructure. are these that we would find here in d.c., similar to what we

would find nationwide? guest: right now, there are more stations. it has been a successful push in terms of energy supply, but a big part is making sure they are in the right places. one of the challenges it is a few live in an apartment, where a city and park on the street. that is one of the things proponents are looking at, because they are good for short range commuting. some have a range of as little as 40 miles. this might not be a car you take on a road trip, but if you live in a crowded area where you live in a -- do not of a parking spot, it is a challenge and challenge. -- challenge. host: republican line.

kentucky. caller: you did not say how many have been sold, or the average monthly sales. guest: the go for gm is 10,000, not 100,000. so far, for november, there are about 3800 short of the goal, and they sold 1139 volts in november, but they are not likely to sell 3800 in the last month of the year. the nissan leaf has sold 8720 cars through november, and just to put those numbers in perspective, ford, with its pickup, the best-selling vehicles in the u.s., they sold

47,740 trucks in november alone. if you look at them compared with overall vehicle sales, it is far less than 1%. you mentioned the tax law, -- the tesla. what is different about this car? >> it is an ultra luxury car. they only have one vehicle. is a very nice car, but at a price tag of around $120,000, it is not available to most americans. if next year there are launching their second vehicle that is designed to compete with the mercedes bmw, and the starting price there is around 49,000. much cheaper than $120,000, but still out of reach for most americans. host: ban, south carolina.

new york. ian, independent line. caller: i was curious to know why in 1994 when general motors came out with the ev1, which actually threaten the the car makers in japan, and pushed them into the hybrid market and increased sales dramatically -- why general motors then dismantle the program be dismantled that program, and as a result toyota -- then dismantle the program, and as a result toyota became the largest carmaker in the world, and bob lutz, at the time of developing the volt, had sold all his stock in the company.

they had a lot more expectations for the volt to be a game changer in the industry, and quite frankly 10,000 cars is a joke compared to what this company, general motors, at the time of the industrial revolution in the 1950's -- what was good for general motors was good for america. host: thank you, caller. guest: there has been a lot of false starts of electrical vehicles. there's a great new movie that has the interesting here on that. there were a lot of vehicles 100 years ago. it is early to say whether this latest iteration will be the time that a leftist vehicles take off. it was the. -- whether the tiny electric vehicles takeoff. -- the electric vehicles take off. it will depend on if there is

research to make them better. in terms of general motors, they are poised to retake their spot as the world's biggest auto maker epiphany tell of this year. one of the reasons they developed the volt was to compete again with toyota, which has had the most successful hybrid vehicle in the prius. host: we have a viewer asking guest: there are facilities all over the world. the further along research has been done in asia and a lot of parts are imported from asia. one of the reasons the u.s. dollar men decided to invest is because we want to be -- u.s. government decided to invest is because we want to be competitive. the obama administration would like to have that supply chain here, in the united states.

host: gurney, illinois. dave, republican line. good morning. caller: angela, you are able to get a full-time job as a regulation reporter for bloomberg news. that will tell you how far astray this government has gone. the united states government has no business in the car business, the banking business. regulation is something we need to cut back on. that is why when rick perry is elected president, to eliminate hopefully -- whole departments, he will hopefully put someone like you out of work. guest: bloomberg news has many regulation reporters and in many other industries. host: who gives the program oversight? guest: for the loan program, it

is the energy department, and congress, which oversees the agency's parent -- agencies. host: you have a story of a smaller battery maker that went under, and that dealt with the loan? guest: they were a what-the electric cars maker. they never produced a car for sale. the interesting part of this company that announced they were going out of business is they have the support of congressman darrell issa for their loan application, and as astute viewers and followers of the loan programs now, congressman darrell issa has been a strong critic of the solyndra loan but in this district, his own district, he had a different approach. host: the company went under. did it receive any federal funding? guest: id did not. they had 150 million on the

condition and a match that amount with their own fund- raising. the energy department says that is not the case. we're trying to sort out the truth, whether it is a difference of words or more, but no matter what they were not able to raise private capital. host: bronx, new york. democrats line. caller: i recently saw a story on the volt ended said all parts are coming from some foreign country. we're talking about jobs in this country, but there are no parts being made here -- only the assembly. i think general motors is really just greedy, and the volt is kind of a sham, because in truth, they're going to make money off of the suv and trucks. i know this to be a fact, and

like you said, 100 years ago, elektra trucks, cars, were doing just fine, and it seems like a business is going that very way. guest: to the point of the foreign components in the volt, you are right. the battery is supplied from an asian company. future batteries will be supplied by a u.s. battery maker. i have signed the contract for that. right now, yes, the batteries are coming from asia. right now the asian the electric battery research is further along. when gm wanted to make the volt, that is where they wanted to supply the battery from parent to the point of bigger vehicles yes, they have higher profit margins. that being said, chevy has sold about two hundred thousand cru

ises. guest: flex fuel means engines that could use gas and all -- gasoline, or ethanol. it has been a strong approach to alternative fuel vehicles for gm especially. gm has been the ones who embrace it. they have been able to meet the mandates, but the issue with flocks fuel is said -- flex fuel, it is not available at most palms, and even where it is available it does not make much sense. it is less efficient, some as the prices less cheaper, it does

not make sense. host: is a free market convention? guest: absolutely not. it is ethanol. there has been public policy supporting ethanol, and that as gone back for a while. it is another government support for electric vehicles. energy department loans have come under fire in more recent loans from the congress. host: why does it not have a feeling stations like we saw for electricity? guest: if you'll are feeling, you have the a small amount of pumps, and people do not want to buy it, does it is it worth it to fill them? host: dan, good morning. caller: someone diluted to the

gm electric cars that came out two years ago, and there was a movie i am sure you watch, "the death of the electric car." it is amazing that under the bush administration we had the same plant producing these cars that the owners were very happy with, and gm took them back and destroyed them, and the plant was turned into a hummer plant. it is just amazing you have an electric car that could take energy, be it solar, wind, coal , and is obviously the most sensible way to move forward. host: we will leave it there. guest: homers are not produced any more either.

what goes around comes around in some ways. there are great environmental arguments for electric vehicles, but as we see in washington nothing has epsomite agreement. it is a matter of who was in charge and what policies they sat. host: maryland, democratic line. caller: the last caller was reeves -- referring to the ev1. and you can buy the film "who killed the electra car?" and it was the bush administration. basically, everyone had to go back to the oil to keep re lee hunt and hunt oil happy. guest: the bush administration

did and best a lot including subsidies for the fuel cell car, which is another alternative vehicle. some companies have invested a lot and would like to see policy include support for those vehicles. i am not here to debate the merits of one or another, but there are different ways to approach alternative fuel, and it is not necessarily a question of alternative fuel vehicles as opposed to oil. it is a question of which approach policymakers take. host: what is the role of private industry in helping? guest: some retailers see an advantage in having the charging stations. if you have an electric vehicle and you have a choice of shopping, maybe you will pick walgreen's.

guest: is the only retailer -- host: is this the only retailer that has these type of things next guest: -- things? guest: i am not sure if they're the only one. i saw an advertisement encouraging people to charge cards at campgrounds. host: we have a debate about spending overall. does this industry get brought up as an area to cut back on? new guest: share. some people think it tax credit to buy an electric vehicle is not a good use of government money, as well as the money that has been used to support battery research. you find people that think it is a free market situation instead of one that is getting government support. host: jack, texas, and democrats

line. caller: i think the government should get out of it and leave it to the free market. host: des moines, iowa, and jim, a republican line. caller: you mention this will be better to have electric cars. i'm curious how we will generate all this electricity without burning more coal. guest: it is the catch-22. it depends on where you're getting electricity from. the cost varies state-to-state. it is an environmental issue is all the electricity is coming from coal, and it is a question of whether it is more cost- efficient as well, depending on where you live. there are a lot of calculations you can find, about what it costs to power an electric vehicle compared with a gasoline vehicle, and one way to look at that in terms of a solution is

to have incentives for charging overnight. obviously, more electricity is used during the day when people are awake. if you could charge at night, you could spread the electricity used more and have less peak periods. host: does the government use electric vehicles? guest: the obama administration is committed to purchasing a number for its fleet. it is a small number, but still they're putting their money where their mouth is and buying some cars, primarily the volt, since it is made by a u.s. company. host: we have some information about the collective vehicle pilot program. host: anything you want to add

to that? guest: one of the agency's a lot of people talk about is the postal service. it is interesting. the postal service, for their delivery vehicles have said routes, most know how far they drive however, the postal service's on the verge of bankruptcy so there is no money for them to buy electric vehicles. host: pittsburgh, pennsylvania. good morning to ed, independent line. caller: the morning. many probably did not remember the carter era, and the pinto. many think the elector carl will go the way of the panda. -- the electric car will go the way of the pinto. second point, the last time i

read the constitution i did not see where the federal government was supposed to feed everyone is horses. i do not know how constitutionally the contest -- the government should be in anything that is not in the constitution. guest: in terms of the pinto, it is interesting you bring that up. gasoline cars are not immune to fires. one of the things that has pointed out many times as you could certainly have a crash- related fire in a gasoline- powered vehicle, and it is a flammable component of the car that is almost on all vehicles of the car the pentode clearly was the poster child for exploding -- car. the pinto was clearly the poster child.

it is too early to say the volt or other vehicles will go the way of the's. host: what has been the response from gm? guest: have been working hard the past couple of weeks to communicate with owners of the volt. they offered volt owners loaners of a different vehicle if they feel uncomfortable driving if -- as the investigation continues. gm is confident the investigation will come out in their favor. they are saying they're willing to make it right for owners in the meantime. host: has there been a release in the department of energy or anyone involved in these programs considering the investment? guest: the one agency that does come out so far is nhtsa, who have come out and described in

detail the subsequent battery testing they have done in concert with the energy department and the defense department. nhtsa has been the voice so far. host: west virginia, you are on with angela greiling keane from bloomberg news. caller: the airlines and the nuclear power has been funded very much by the government, and people still find ways to make a profit. i wonder if they think people should let those companies fell. guest: there are lots of companies. highways, like you said, airlines -- there are certain industries that attract more attention and criticism, and the energy department loans have become a lightning rod. host: another technology brought

cells.hydrogen fuel sell guest: the problem is infrastructure. for increasing the electric vehicle is the structure is a matter of higher-capacity outlets. for the fuel cell cars, we would need a network for feeling with hydrogen. -- skewing with hydrogen. what you cannot do is go to your guests station and put hydrogen into your car right now host: no commercial vehicle right now the browns with fuel sells? she fell not right now. -- guest: not right now. the bush administration chose fuel cells. a lot of people say it is a

disservice to the auto industry to keep changing the vehicle. host: morristown, new jersey. you are on the air. caller: i wanted to ask about the compressed air technology. i have been reading about that for the past couple of years. announcinge if i am it right, but tata motors was developed in a product -- developing a product. guest: i do not know a lot about that. there are a lot of companies compressing petroleum and many other potential alternative vehicle auctions. there is a lot of research. the national labs in the u.s. have done volumes of research into various alternative vehicle technologies, and auto makers all have their own research and development facilities, tried to

make sure they are on top of the next big thing. host: s these vehicles come out, how would that play into did mandate to have more vehicles per mile? guest: the obama administration released the cafe royal, which would double the fuel economy. passenger vehicles, a big pickups, and so forth. for the cafe rules, the proposed regulation that would require 54.5 mpg average for the fleet by 2025. that is a big change. that means a big change in average fuel economy. the electric vehicles, hybrid

vehicles are part of getting there, but it is not everything. there are a lot of other changes that would have to happen, including making non--- making regular internal combustion trucks lighter. there are all sorts of options. that rule would not mean a wholesale change to the electric and hybrid vehicles, but it would probably mean more of them. host: iowa, you are the less call. caller: i am a teacher in high school. we teach engineering and talk about a lot of things coming in technology and the electric car. i am also an auto mechanic, and i see lots of parts that would not need to be made if we went to electric vehicles. i also see an electric motor easily been a million-mile motor

for the consumer. are these things in any way holding back the electric car? guest: that is a good question. i am not sure if i can give you a yes or no answer, but it is a good point. an electric-powered car has a lot fewer moving parts, so that means hopefully, less reason for repair, probably less work for mechanics, and definitely different training for mechanics turned of the dealerships selling electric vehicles have to have people trained in fixing them, of course, because it is a different skill sets than fixing an internal combustion engine. it would definitely be a whole new world for the repair industry. host: our guest is a regulation team reporter for bloomberg news, angela wright tim kaine. thank you. -- angela greiling keane.

thank you. did not forget, a campaign announcement from herman cain at 12:00 noon recess and impaired tomorrow, another -- do not. tomorrow, another addition of "washington journal." we will hear from rhodes cook, robert walker, and then barbara slavin to talk about current events in iran. that starts a 7:00 a.m. tomorrow. we will see you then.