[captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] ♪ >> presidential candidates speak at a forum hosted by the republican jewish coalition. later, newt gingrich, governor rick perry, and michele bachmann. the republican jewish coalition held a forum with six of the republican presidential candidates. the first speaker was rick santorum. we will also hear from former utah governor jon huntsman, rick

perry and michele bachmann. it took place at the international trade center in washington, d.c. [applause] >> i want to thank the republican jewish coalition for having this forum today. i look forward to giving some brief remarks. i want to thank them for the great work they do in reaching

out to the jewish community with the principles of the republican party. we have seen a dramatic transformation in this country with jews all across this country understanding that the values of the republican party are in concert with theirs. we have stayed a dramatic road with jew involvement with the republican party. i look forward to working with them while president of the united states to continue that effort. today is december 7. a date that will live in infamy. it was the day in which the united states was blindsided because for a long time, a lot of people in this country did everything they could to avoid war at the price of almost losing the entire world to darkness.

december 7 reminds us that america is vulnerable. it reminds us all so that people in washington and around the country of good will can have different approaches to solving problems, see things differently. we need to learn from history. history taught us that on june 14, 1940 when france fell and winston churchill went on the radio and pleaded for america to did to ouher aid and we nothing in response. we did worse than nothing. in the summer of 1941, one year after europe had gone dark and the pacific was going dark under japanese rule, we had a debate on the floor of the house to determine whether we would abolish the draft. there was so much of an effort because people badly wanted to avoid war. they wanted to turn their eye

to a gathering storm. we almost came within one vote of abolishing the draft, which would make it harder for us to arm up after the events of december 7. i know people in this country are tired of war. we are all tired of war. how will pearl harbor already happened. it happens 10 years ago on september 11. this war is on like the war we fought in world war ii. it is the long war. why do we call it the long wars? it is a war that has been fought in the past. it was long, 1000 years long. long, but with people who had radical ideas they wanted to spread throughout the world and conquer western civilization. western civilization one that

long war, that thousand your war -- won that long war, that 1000 your war. without one word, that war would still be going on -- 1000 year war. without one word, that war would still be going on. that word is oil. we see in this administration a blind eye toward those radicals. in the last campaign, president obama referred to the revolutionary islamic government of iran as a little country in the middle east. ladies and gentlemen, it is a serious threat to the future of our country. it is not a little country. we see evidence of the president's's policies of ignoring the threat of radical

islam. we see the naivete -- we see the evidence of the president also policies of ignoring the threat of radical islam. we see the arab spring, which should have started a real arab spring in the summer of 2009 with the revolution in iran. this president, faced with a toronto -- tyrannical regime that has been at war with us since 1979 and has attacked the united states multiple times and has been attacking afghanistan ied's made ind ieb' iran, but through two

administrations, we have done nothing about that. in the summer of 2009 when a real revolution started, we had a chance to do something. in 2004, i introduced a bill. we work together, the republican jewish coalition, because we saw the threat that iran was. we understood that the existential threat to the state of israel, a threat to the security of this country long term was this theocracy in iran. we worked together on a piece of legislation in 2004. i got no support when i introduced it. it put sanctions on iran. there was no pro-democracy movement. it had been suppressed. we said we are going to help fund and nurture that pro-

democracy movement because we know there are decent people in iran who want to overthrow this radical regime. even though there were no co- sponsors, within 18 months when it became apparent, they educated people in congress and we ended up with 60 co-sponsors. i took the bill to the floor of the house and was opposed by joe biden. when i talk to college students, when you are trying to figure out what your world view is with respect to policy, find out what joe biden thinks and take the opposite opinion. [applause] you will be right 100% of the time. joe biden and president bush proposed may, oppose our bill on the floor of the united states senate. -- opposed me, opposed our bill

on the floor of the united states senate. buried near the exact bill passed unanimously a --the beat very near the -- very near the exact bill passed in the house and senate. when 2009 came around, we had no ties. we had no effect. the president of the united states stood ambivalent to the cries of those in the streets leading to america to take a stand. we took no stand and they fell. interestingly enough just one year later when a group of radicals including the muslim brotherhood and radical islamists took to the streets in egypt against our ally, our friend who has not attacked us or declared war against us and is not a radical theocrat that

wants to control the world, we quickly jumped on board with the moslem brotherhood in the streets. through a cold and nevertheless - we threw a friend of the united states under the bus. we continue that pattern. in libya and syria, we established diplomatic relationships with president assad and called him a reformer. we still have our embassy there. despite all decries to remove him, we have sat on the sidelines and done nothing and said, we would like to see him leave. it is like stealing out -- fill ing out your bracket for the ncaa.

this president, for every radical islamist, he has had nothing but appeasement. we saw that during the lead up to world war ii, appeasement. we saw that if you can just open up and negotiate with people, somehow this will work. ladies and gentlemen, learn from history, not just the history of world war ii. but the thousand year history before that. we need a president that will stand up to beat american public and talk about what is at stake. what is at stake is clear when you look at the situation development -- developments in iran. iran is on the precipice of developing a nuclear weapon. we need someone in the executive office and the oval office who has the courage of their convictions, who has the experience and the will to stand up and do what is right, to confront this radical -- this

radical theocracy that if they develop this weapon, it will change the world. there is no greater purveyor of terror in the world than iran. there is no greater threat to the existence of israel and iran. we must stand up and say not only that they should not get a nuclear weapon. the president says that. it is another one of those picks in the ncaa bracket. it does not matter unless you have the power and the will to do something about it. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, i laid out a four point plan of what i would do if i was president of the united states. i have a record of working with you over the years. i worked on the armed services committee with the misses --

with the missile defense program. i help fund a joint programs so we could protect israel from those missiles. that is not enough. we have to make it clear to iran that the united states -- i did not say israel. the united states will stop iran from getting a nuclear weapon. period. [applause] before i tell you how we would do that, i will tell you why it is important. iran is different as a nuclear power than any power that exists. iran is not a country where mutual assured destruction will work. bernard lewis once said, mutual destruction works if you are a country that is atheistic as the soviet union was an elite that

-- and believes that life is over what it is extinguished in this country. mahmoud ahmadinejad has said that the principal virtue of the islamic public of -- islamic republic of iran is martyrdom. it will deliver them bear 72 virgins. bernard lewis said mutual assured destruction is not a deterrent to iran. it is an inducement. ladies and gentlemen, we cannot sit and hope to contain iran. [applause] what we need to do quickly is to use those funds to help the people in the streets of iran and in their home locked away because they are afraid.

we need to give strike funds to those who are striking against the government. this means of verbal support for a new regime in iran. we need to have sanctions like the sanctions that that in the united states senate where we do something to cripple iran and their ability to conduct business in their economy. we need to shut off their oil supply. i understand the chinese will continue to buy oil. if you are the only customer for iranian oil, you are not going to pay the world market for oil. you are going to pay a lot less. it is going to hurt their oil market a lot. we need to do everything we can to stop their nuclear program. that means using covert activity that occurred at the missile sites just recently in iran. [applause]

i would like to think the united states was involved in that. i would like to think we have something to do with that missile sites. recordhe president's with osama bin laden and not being able to keep anything secret for more than 24 hours, i suspect we would know if we hadn't thing to do with that explosion. we need to -- if we had a thing to do with that explosion. we need to be working with israel right now, publicly. we need to be saying to the iranian government that you will not have a weapon developed.

you need to open up your facilities and dismantled this program or we will work together in concert to degrade that program by whatever means necessary to take that facility out. [applause] people have said to me that i talked a lot about national security when i am out on the campaign trail. i do. i believe there is a good chance that by election day the national security issues will be a higher priority in the eyes of the american public that the economy. our national security affect our economy. the idea that all this going on in the middle east -- not just with the higher oil prices as tensions increased -- all of this going on with iran getting a nuclear weapon and being able to purveyed terror with impunity. why?

because no nuclear power has ever been attacked. they know that. the president boldly announced that the iranians were tried to kill a saudi arabian ambassador here in america. what was our response? nothing. again, nothing. ladies and gentlemen, we need to stand up because it is going to affect not just our national security, but our economy. i have a bold plan to get this economy going to throw out the tax code, reduce rates, cut the corporate tax, eliminate them completely for manufacturers so we can get jobs back here in america. we have all sorts of ideas. unless we are safe and secure, the number one responsibility of the american government, none of that will do any good if we are in a state of panic. you understand that. it is one of the reasons i came

here today. i have been spending a little time in the iowa lately. i was there yesterday. i am meeting tomorrow morning. i came back just to be here, to a firm you. -- to affirm you [applause] to affirm you that what you are standing for -- is critical for you to be here and to find the candidate in the republican party who has the courage of his convictions. we have had great leaders in the past. a lot of them have had great ideas. we need more people with great ideas. what we need more are people who have the courage to fight for those ideas. and when things get tough, have the conviction to hold fast to make sure those ideas get put in place. if you look at my history, you

will see that we have worked together against my own administration and thought and had the courage to fight for the got use that were important for the security of our country. i held fast despite partisan opposition. in the end, we won the day. that is the kind of leadership we need. i look forward to your questions. where am i looking? over here? >> i have no dispute with the thing you said. you said iran was an existential threat to iran. iran is and an existential

threat to israel and america. one of my favorite ayatollah's said the possession of nuclear weapons is a reason to launch missiles against the west. >> we are not going to sit by when our allies are attacked by anybody. people are concerned about iran launching a missile. i am concerned about iran using that as a shield to pervade terror all over the world. we are talking about -- as we

saw just recently -- iran having the temerity to plan an attack on american soil. it is not the first time. with a nuclear shield, it will be the first of many to come. that is why we must adopt -- must stop. >> i like that you mentioned we should be wary of our dependence on oil. are you willing to promote every alternative, including biofuel, which many experts say is the most credible substance given our current infrastructure? >> thank you for that question. you are absolutely right. i believe energy is the key to the economy of this country.

the cheaper the energy, the more of billable it is, the better our standard of living is going to -- it more available is, the better our standard of living is going to be. we need to do exactly the opposite of what this president is doing with respect to energy production in this country. whether it is closing down pipelines or deep water drilling or not opening up and walk for drilling -- not opening up anwar for drilling. we had a pipeline that was shut down because we do not have the volume of heated oil going through. we need more production up there to keep the existing production online. the president is doing everything he can to make us more dependent on the people he is appeasing. it is a remarkable abdication of

leadership and the irresponsibility to protect the interests of america. we should eliminate all energy subsidies. let the marketplace work. [applause] open up the market, allow us to mine coal, allow us to drill for oil and gas. in pennsylvania, we had the second-largest gas line in the world. when i left the cinema, -- when i left the senate, gas was $2. we are moving to a 20% clean energy standards for our electric grid. we cannot get to it or maintain. we are going to cripple america. energy independence -- how about

energy security so we can happen of production in this country like natural gas so we are not dependent on speculative places where we get our oral from now that causes the price of oil to increase. >> senator santorum, dan from iowa. >> dan, sorry. i cannot see anyone with these lights. >> i want to thank you with york -- or your service, especially spending so much time in iowa. my question is, what would you do or what would the country look like with a santorum administration in the first week? >> you heard the plan that i outlined. i do pray that we do not have an

explosion in the middle east and iran that proves they have nuclear weapons capability by the time january 20, 2013 rolls around. the plan i put in place will be the first thing i do on day one to make sure the united states is safe from his existential threat. that is number one. number 2, i will go up the process of repealing obamacare. [applause] it is the biggest threat to freedom in this country. it will increase dependence on the government and people addicted to entitlements. we need to create stability and certainty and lower regulation and taxes for our business community. you cannot waive it.

it will not work. rjc, you work hard. you give us 50 senators and we will use the reconciliation process and we will gut obamacare and it will be a worthless document. [applause] that is number two. we have to do something about the economy and the debt. i put a proposal on the table that says we will cut $5 trillion over five years. that will be steps two and three of going out there and cutting government. one of the first places i will start is the state department. we have a state department in this country that is working against the interest of our country and the interest of the u.s.-israel relationship.

they need to have a meat ax taken to them so they know which direction we need to go in. [applause] yes, ma'am. ? >> you should tell the audience the sign you have above your kitchen sink. >> my wife is here. i was trying to introduce our. wherever she is, say hi. karen and i have been to israel. this was many years ago, back in the 1990's. we brought back one of those tiles that says prey for the peace in jerusalem. we have that in our kitchen -- pray for the peace in jerusalem. we have that in our kitchen and we pray for that every day. it is the epicenter of every

religion in the world. unless we have that situation salt, world peace is impossible. >> thank you. the question i have -- the gulf of mexico is called our soft underbelly. i read a couple of weeks ago that the drug cartels might start using submarines. when prime minister ariel sharon rowland built a fence, terrorism was reduced by 96%. we need to secure our borders and get rid of those tunnels. hezbollah has a presence in mexico. what are your plans for our border? >> thank you. i was asked the question, what is the threat we have not talked about? we talked about defense and i have been committed over the course of my career to building that stands, not just because of

the economic impact on our country. it is because of the national security impact. when i was working on the iran freedom support act, one of the things i noticed was that iran was trying to spread its influence in central and south america, particularly with hugo chavez. i gave a speech. here we are in the middle of the iraq war. afghanistan was not going well. that was unpopular. the anti-war movement was alive and well. i gave a speech in pennsylvania called the gathering storm of the 21st century. the problems now developing in central and south america. you all know about the presence of jihadist training camps in central and south america and the relationship between al qaeda and hugo chávez.

this is it read in our hemisphere. attention was focused across the atlantic. we have allowed a lot of relationships to go to sea in central and south america. with both our socialist enemies and the radical jihadists. we need to begin to engage our friends in the region. we need to confront the radicals that are joined together with the radical islamists to create a sphere of influence that is a threat to our country. [applause] >> i am from florida. we thank you for everything you have done for the pro-israel committee. it is amazing. [applause] there is something going through

congress at the moment. the administration is trying to water it down. it is about crude or oil and trying to be able to create a situation with oil. what would you do so that the price would not go up? the administration is saying the price would be exorbitant and they want to stop it. what we do do to create a level playing field so that we could create sanctions and get on with the job? >> you think the price will go up now, a imagine what the price will be when iran has a nuclear weapon and is starting to purvey terror all over the world. we will want the price to be what it is today. if we put sanctions on the iranian central bank and their

inability to sell oil to the rest of the world, we know that china will not pay attention to those sanctions. they will continue to buy our oil. but they will buy oil for a lot less than they are paying now. the oil will be on the market, but iran will not being -- will not be paid. that will harm their economy. >> good morning. thanks for coming. the soy from bucks county, pennsylvania. -- i am from bucks county, pennsylvania. a lot of my friends are moderate and independent. i completely agree with you on your opinion of world affairs. my friends and i are concerned about your stance on the shivo case.

how do you recommend i respond to them on that? >> if you look at the republican field, all of the pro -- all of the republican field is going to be pro-life and pro-marriage. you are really choosing between -- not on the issue. you are choosing between something a little different. i would make the argument that we had president to candidates that have been pro-lifers or pro-marriage and have not been comfortable talking about those issues because they do not feel comfortable about the positions they hold. there may be people in this race that fit that moniker. i am not one of them. i look at it this way. when you are electing a president and you say the issues are the same, you want to you that the president who trusts that they say what they believe? or would you like to have a president who says, i am saying

this because it is what i need to say to get elected. what you are looking for in the president is someone with integrity, someone you trust, someone you know that when they tell you something they mean and they feel it. i do and i do not back away from that. i am honest with you about that. [applause] i think character matters in a leader. i think someone who has the courage of their conviction matters. we are not going to agree on everything. sometimes, i do not agree with myself on things. people are looking for authenticity, someone looking to stand up and tell what they really believed to the american public. my wife is here. she will make sure i do that, as she does on a regular basis. you will see what i really believe in. i think my track record shows i

am is someone i did not condemn people whom i disagree with them. i respectfully disagree with them. we want to get to make this country a better country. [applause] this is my look. thank you, allen, for gracious to come out here. let me wrap up by saying thank you again. i mean that from the bottom of my heart. i have toured the vineyards. for those of you who started this organization -- it was not the most popular thing to be, to be a jewish republican. you stood up for the principles that you think are important to keep this country free, safe,

prosperous, and strong. if you are looking for a candidate that has the same kind of conviction, who has the track record to back up what they say they are going to do, who has the courage to stand by and hold fast for the issues that you believe is important for the future of our country, we have bought in, and i hope i can get your support. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you for the kind introduction, far more than i deserve. ladies and gentlemen, members

of rjc, i am deeply honored and grateful to be here with you today. i am a candidate for the president of the united states of america. if i speak with and new hampshire accent, you have to excuse me. i have been spending a lot of time in the granite state. new hampshire is always going to be that state that up ins -- upends conventional wisdom. all i ask is for your consideration and for you to take a look at what we have done. what i have done as a twice elected governor of the state of utah, where i have done living overseas three times and serving as the united states ambassador and, most importantly, being a father of seven children. i have three daughters on the

campaign trail with me. if you want to see some of their antics, go on to you to -- to youtube. a candidate can to a speech on foreign policy and get five hits on youtube. two boys in the united states navy. i am honored that they are willing to wear the uniform of the united states. two little adopted girls, one from china and one from india. every day, i look into their eyes and deal sort reminded of the world they are about to step into -- eyes and i am reminded of what they are about to step into. i will not contort myself into a

pretzel. i will not going to sign those silly pledges. if we the only candidate on the debate stage who will not do that. [applause] i will not go to a donald trump debate either, by the way. [applause] but i do not want anyone leaving this great room without understanding why i am running for president of the united states. i am running for president of united states of america because i think it is absolutely unacceptable and we are passing down the greatest nation that ever was to the next generation for the first time in our nation's history in a condition that is less good, less productive, less competitive, more divided, and more saddled with debt than anytime in recent history. if that that doesn't grab you by the lapels, i do not know what

would. i was born in 1960. we exported $3 for every $2 we imported. we owned 36% of the world's gdp. it was all ours. all of the nobel prize laureates came from the united states of america. 25% of our gdp was derived from manufacturing. i look at where we are today. 9%. we have no leadership. the greatest nation that ever was. this light that are a rating usage are about, that shining city on a hill that moves people and trends -- that we are raging about, that shining city on a

hill moves people. when the united states is is a betterworld' place. we have not spoken up as a country in a long time about what it means to be a friend and ally of the united states. that must change. so must two of the deficits we face. i think they are at the core of where we sit today as people. number one is an economic deficit. we have $15 trillion in debt. it is like a cancer that is metastasizing in this country. under this president -- i would argue that if we do not get new leadership, we will see a lost decade of economic growth.

for the most optimistic, problem solving people the world has ever known -- we need some tough message in terms of how we chorale bad debt and spending. i have a short speech on how i can get all the best out to be corralled -- short speech on how it can be corralled. i like the why and planned - the plan.n we have got to get back to 19% of gdp. the right and plan allows us to do that. beyond that -- the ryan plan allows us to do that. i ran for governor in 2004 on a

promise to my people in the state of utah that we would fire the engines of growth, that we would reform the tax system, that we would deliver that state as the number 1 state for business in the united states. people laugh when you talk about that but i got elected on that platform. it took us two years, but we delivered a flat tax to people about our state. i hear people talking about tax reform. i do not know another can they in this race that has delivered a flat tax and engaged in the meaningful tax reform i engaged in with the people of my state. it allowed us to triple the rainy day fund. it allowed us the largest tax cut in the history of the united states. it allowed us to become the best managed state in america. it allows us to get unemployment down 2.4%.

remember those days. we became the fastest-growing state in america. people want the dignity of a job. i say, this economic deficit we are facing today, is having profound consequences, the likes of which are not registered with a lot of people. this thing called joblessness. 15 million of our fellow citizens who were without the dignity of employment and millions more who were so dispirited they have given up trying. that is homes and neighborhoods. that is communities. they have been shipwrecked by today's each time. that is mothers, fathers, and children who find it impossible to get back on their feet delayed.

it is not who we are. it is not american. we are not going to be able to address this the guy we have in this nation until we can address the issue of joblessness. we are not going to be able to address this issue of joblessness until we can corraled debt and spending, which is having a drag on our economic performance. you get 90% of debt to gdp in yuri time will not grow. as a former senior negotiator working on issues like nonperforming loans, structural barriers. i say this country is too good and too smart to move in that direction. deficit number two. as president of the united states, i want to go after energy. it is a deficit of trust.

today, in our country, our people no longer trust their institutions of power. no one wants to talk about it. no trust left in congress. 8% approval? i'd like to find out where those people are hiding out. 40% approval for a present that cannot lead. this country desperately needs leadership. the trust toward wall street with banks that are too big to fail. i say, when you see me as a candidate and you watch out or rise in new hampshire -- because that exactly what is happening -- we have gone from a margin of error can they to a candidate knocking on the door for it and third grades, low double digits.

-- third and fourth place, low double digits. we need to go to congress and we need to say, you need reform. people have no trust in our institutions of power. we need term limits in congress. i understand there are a lot of people who will not want to talk about. you have to be a status quo player when it relates to reforms to our congress. we need to close the revolving door that allows members of congress to falling -- to file right on through so they can become a lobbyists. it leads to a greater and a deeper sense of cynicism among our people.

as president, i will talk about lessening their pay until they can balance the budget. there are just a few things that should be required of members of congress. then i will go to wall street and i will say, we can fix our taxes like i want to do. the phasing out of loopholes and deductions in total. i want to create a level playing field for entrepreneurs and innovators in this country. i want to go to the business side about our tax code and say, corporate welfare, gone. i cannot think of a better way to clean up this town than eliminating corporate welfare in total. if there is nothing to lobby for --

we can no longer afford subsidies given where our economy is. we have hit the wall. as we move forward recognizing that we need to fix our economic deficits and our trust deficits. we are going to have to repeal obamacare. we are going to have to repeal dodd-frank. it gives rise to too big to fail in our banking system. the president had a chance to address this, but he didn't. tax reform and regulatory form and taking steps toward energy independence. it is absolutely needed and doable in this country. six banks that has assets --

that have assets equal to 66% of our gdp -- $9.6 billion. they are too big to fail. they have an implied bailout on the part of the taxpayers. as long as we have that system that is up, running, and recognize, we are setting ourselves up for long-term disaster. that is something i will deal with as well. these gentlemen, finally, let me say from a foreign policy standpoint, it is time for the world to understand who our friends and allies are. it is time for the world to understand that we stand with israel during this time of need. it doesn't matter if there is a change in the region brought about by the arab spring. it does not matter if the winds of uncertainty are blowing.

what matters to me is our commitment to israel. we stand together, we must make sure there is no blue sky between us. there is a sense that we are not together. those days, under my administration, will be done. ladies and gentlemen, i look at the map today, and i see 700 installations in 60 different countries. i say, our foreign policy has a little bit of the cold war over hang 50,000 troops in germany. in 20 different installations. the world is it changing place. the russians are not calling any more. i look at afghanistan and i see you and the townships -- and i

see 400,000 troops. we have no foreign policy in this country. we are not able to project and radiate the values we stand for until we fix our core. that core is our values and that core is our economy. i wanted fallen policy that recognizes where we are the second decade into the 21st century. i want a foreign-policy that is led by economics. it is one thing to secure the premises of the world's without the economic benefit. it is another thing to security promises without everyone else getting the economic benefit. it used to blake -- to use to break my heart -- it used to bread my heart.

ladies and gentlemen, i want a foreign policy that recognizes the value and power of free trade. i wanted foreign policy that recognizes the dow u.n. power of the best man and international economic engagement. secondly, i want a foreign policy that recognizes that as far as the eye can see into the 21st century, we have a problem called terror. it is not going to go away anytime soon. we do not need to be nation- building with 100,000 troops. we need something that speaks to tactical intelligence gathering, that speaks to special forces capability and rapid deploy ability. we need something that speaks to ongoing training with our friends and our allies. not just in southeast asia or southwest asia. number three, i want a foreign policy that reminds the world what it means to be a friend and

ally of the united states. when you are a friend and ally of the united states, there are certain commitments economically and from a security point that we will stand up and we will meet. nothing happens from its foreign policy standpoint until such time as we get our core fixed in this nation. we have no foreign policy if we are broken at home. it is time for us as americans to come together. finally, let me say that spending two years in canada needs me to conclude a couple of things. they are moving down in terms of economic reform is. no longer will we see those 10% economic growth rates for 30 years. unemployment will rise. the large, itinerant workforce

will put greater stresses and strains on the large city centers. which means, by extension, there will be greater political uncertainty and predictability. the investment dollars that moves into china will be looking for an alternative. i humbly submit that we are crazy in this country if we do not recognize that reality. we are crazy in this country if we do not find the kind of leadership we so desperately need that will fix our competitive environment. that is taxes and that is the regulatory environment. that includes workforce and vocational training in order for this nation to launch a manufacturing renaissance. it is within our grasp as people. that investment dollar is going to go someplace.

it needs to come right here to the greatest nation in the world. [applause] thank you. the one thing you find from living overseas is that as the economy goes down, there is tremendous uncertainty about their future. they think their day has arrived. a lot of blue sky in china. years of economic growth has put them in and exalted position. and you look at this country from 10,000 miles away. i do not know any other way to put it. we are in a funk. we are in a deep funk as people. we are dispirited and dejected. we find ourselves in an with no leadership and no self confidence. it is time for that to change. [applause] we need to get back on our feet. we need to start doing whatever

generation of americans have been able to do. you face the challenges head on, you rebuild and leave the world and your people a better place. i also recognized from 10,000 miles away that we have every attribute. we have equality in the country would ever want to succeed. we sometimes don't even recognize it in ourselves. we have stability. we have a rule of law. we have the longest surviving constitution in the world. we have private property rights. we have the greatest universities and colleges in the world and people still flock here to attend them. we have the most innovative, creative, and entrepreneurial people on earth. all they want is to be left free to work their magic in the marketplace. we have the brave and courageous armed forces. [applause]

what we do not have is leadership. what we do not have his confidence. what we do not have is a way forward. barack obama won the election in 2008 on this thing called hope. who would not want hope, for heaven's sake? proved the point that you can win the presidency on a mantra. that does not guarantee that you can lead. we can see what the consequences have been. the president had two years to get this economy right, to infuse confidence in our direction. he has failed. that door has closed. it does not matter if he goes to illinois, ohio, california, or new hampshire. nobody cares. nobody is paying attention. it does not matter if he puts a

small, pro-growth proposal on the table. people have to doubt. they are looking to 2012. i humbly submit that this will be the most important election of our lifetimes. [applause] >> i humbly submit that this election will be based on real leadership and real solutions, and i complete submit that i will be your candidate. thank you so much for having me. i appreciate that. thank you. [applause] >> thank you. listen, and now we would be happy to do questions. >> ladies and gentlemen, "q&a" microphones are available. >> it was a pleasure to meet with you in china when you were the ambassador there. you were very gracious in getting sanctions for iran. the israeli ambassador could not

have spoken more highly for what you have done for israel and the u.s.-israel relationship in pushing a joint agenda forward. you did not address those issues in your prepared of marks -- remarks. i wondered if you could comment on that. >> let me just say that the ambassador is a close friend. in a place like beijing, when you are working in pretty difficult and challenging circumstances, you begin to understand who your true friends are in the world, and i had no closer friend than the israeli ambassador to china. [applause] >> thank you. i would say that we must recognize first and foremost that the transcendent issue of this decade is iran and other ex

-- their aspirations to achieve nuclear status. i believe they have made that decision internally. they want to become a nuclear power, and they have done so having analyzed north korea, and they have looked at libya, where they have nuclear status but was given up in exchange for friendship abroad. i think they concluded they want nuclear status. so, we can talk about sanctions. we can later additional sanctions on top of those that are there. all the while, the centrifuges continue to spin, and at some point we will face the reality of enough material of which to make a weapon. that is the reality. i'm a realist. i do not pretend to see if any other way. we can go back to china and russia and work on more security

council resolutions, but the reality is this -- what needs to be done at this point is specific language in the amex of the security council resolutions. you can get floury language that most will buy into, and that is kind of where things are, and then you have to get specific beyond that about trading companies, banks, individuals, companies, that are part of your sanctions. that is difficult. it will be difficult to get the chinese and the russians on board. we are left with an environment that means more than ever before our consultation, our friendship, our alliance with israel really does mean something, because i think we will get down to the next one- to-three years with israel and it will go something like this

-- are you with us or not? i think we will have that conversation. we, as a country, better be prepared for that conversation. as for me, if you say you want to live with a nuclear iran, you have to live with the implications of proliferation in the region -- saudi arabia, turkey, probably be shipped. i cannot live with that outcome, because i think the consequences are disastrous for the region. if you cannot live with a nuclear iran, and i cannot, then you have to say that all options are on the table, and for me, all options are on the table. it means that when israel strikes of the conversation i believe they will, you had better be prepared to remember and put in place what that relationship and that alliance actually means. thank you. [applause]

>> thank you. [applause] >> thank you. hello, and thus her husband. i'm from northwestern university. as a former diplomat, as an ambassador, what did you meet -- make of the comments recently made about the ambassador to belgium, and what is said about the administration that they're not publicly rebuked him, fired him, or what kind of reaction would you find necessary? >> this speaks volumes about the continued ambiguity this administration has towards the of -- israel. these are not speeches cook the that the local level within the embassy. they go high up within the state department, and probably within the national security council. somebody had ought to ask for an explanation in fall as to what this means, and was responsible

for the language. chances are it is not just the diplomats. [applause] >> what would you have done under the circumstances? >> well, if the ambassador was not at fault, you could easily recalled the ambassador, but it would serve a better purpose by finding who hire up was responsible for the language, and deal with it at that level. yes, sir. >> thank you for being here today, governor. one week ago in "the jerusalem post" there was an article dead ranked republican candidates in terms of been good for israel, and there was some characterization's in there i was concerned about and i want to ask you to react to. that is the following -- while sympathetic to israel, jon huntsman blames palestinian authority actions on israeli

positions, representing a fundamental misunderstanding of israel's predicament. would you react to that please? >> i would have to find out where that language comes from. i am not sure where it comes from. you could look at my policy platform. you could look at what i have talked about, and that is recognizing the importance of the u.s.-israel relationship, the alliance, the free-trade agreement that is the oldest and we have dating back to 1975, and the care and concern that through this alliance we should have with respect to israel's security. does that mean i will force the peace process? of course not. why micromanage certain outcomes like this in administration has done? of course not. does it mean we will stay shoulder-to shoulder with israel during a time of great need and

great flocks in the middle east? absolutely it does, and that is what you need to know mommy and how my administration would handle israel. -- know about me, and how my administration would handle israel. [applause] >> thank you. thank you. it looks like the time is up, and i want to thank you all as a member ofrjc for the work you have done and your willingness to be involved with the republican party. i say there never has been a time quite as important as the times we face today. for you to be involved and active in rebuilding the greatest nation that ever was, and rebuilding the strength we all know we have within the united states of america, it is critically important because as we strengthen who we are, we re the dead did this, that set of values to the rest of the -- radiate that goodness, that set

of values to the rest of the world, and i've seen how that most people, and changes history for good. thank you for being here. [applause] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [applause] hi. thank you. thank you. how are you? good. thank you to those that bring you together. i am grateful to the republican jewish coalition for hosting

this forum. thank you chairman flaum and matt brooks for your leadership. and, of course, i join you in honoring the service of ambassador sam fox. ambassador fox has contributed in extraordinary ways to our economy, to our communities, to our nation, and to israel. thank you. we appreciate your leadership. [applause] today, we gather as republicans, americans, and friends of israel. for us, the last three years have held a lot of change, but haven't offered much hope. [laughter] [applause] it helps to have a president who has had a job. our debt is too high and opportunities are too few.

almost a trillion dollars in failed stimulus and trillions more in deficits have left millions of americans out of work. the unemployment rate has been over 8% for 34 months. this is the slowest recovery since hoover. over the last four years, the median american income has fallen by 10%, even as the costs of food and fuel and healthcare have risen. americans are suffering. the poor have a safety net and never seen things so bad. internationally, we have witnessed a weakening of our military and a decline in our standing in the world. president obama's troop withdrawals in iraq and afghanistan were based upon electoral expediency, not military requirement. dictators.

and when the opportunity arose to defend freedom, he's either been late to the game or failed to show up at all. president obama rushed to apologize for america, but he has hesitated to speak up for democracy and freedom. he has visited egypt, saudi arabia, turkey, and iraq. he even offered to meet with mahmoud ahmadinejad. yet in three years, he has not found it in his interest to visit israel, our ally, our friend, the sole middle east nation that fully shares our values, the nation in president truman's words, that is an "embodiment of the great ideals of our civilization." no, over the past three years, president obama has instead chastened israel. in his inaugural address to the united nations, the president chastised israel, but said

little about the thousands of hamas rockets raining into its skies. he's publicly proposed that israel adopt indefensible borders. he's insulted its prime minister. and he's been timid and weak in the face of the existential threat of a nuclear iran. these actions have emboldened palestinian hard-liners who now are poised to form a unity government with terrorist hamas and feel they can bypass israel at the bargaining table. president obama has immeasurably set back the prospect of peace in the middle east. as president, my policies will be very different. i will travel to israel on my first foreign trip. [applause] i will reaffirm as a vital

national interest israel's existence as a jewish state. i want the world to know that the bonds between israel and the united states are unshakable. i want every country in the region that harbors aggressive designs against israel to understand that their ambition is futile and that pursuing it will cost them dearly. i would not meet with ahmadinejad. he should be excluded from diplomatic society. he should be indicted for the crime of incitement to genocide under article iii of the genocide convention.

iran's ayatollahs will not be permitted to obtain nuclear weapons on my watch. a nuclear-armed iran is not only a threat to israel, it is a threat to the entire world. our friends must never fear that we will not stand by them in an hour of need. our enemies should never doubt our resolve. today, you will hear from several of my fellow republicans. like me, each will acknowledge president obama's failings toward israel. it is a long list. we have a lot of material. like me, each will assure you of our friendship and commitment to israel. we are not distinguished from one another by our opposition to

president obama or even by our support for israel. what distinguishes us is our experience, our perspective, and our judgment. i spent 25 years in business. i've signed the front and the back of a paycheck. [applause] backi've helped businesses, like the sports authority and staples, to grow from start-ups to international enterprises. i've served as governor of a state and the steward of the olympics. my perspective is informed by those experiences and by the defining constants in my life, my 42-year marriage to my wife, ann, the life we've built with our five sons, and the faith

that sustains us. my family, my faith, and our freedom these are enduring truths in my life. my commitments are firm, and they do not falter. when i was young, i had the opportunity to live abroad. i recognized that the greatest advantage my parents had given me was being born in america. i am passionate about the principles that have made this nation the land of opportunity and a shining city on a hill. i believe in america. i believe it is the greatest nation in the history of the earth. i believe that the next century

must be an american century. our highest priority must be to maintain a people, an economy, and a military so strong that no nation would ever risk challenging it. my faith in america stems both from my faith in the american people, and from the principles that have made our people strong. we are a people from all parts of the world and all walks of life, but we are strengthened by our nation's unique founding principles. it is not accident or luck that made america the greatest nation in the world it is the power of our values and beliefs. we weathered a great depression. we emerged victorious from two world wars. we faced down an evil empire. today, as we face new challenges and threats, i have every

conviction that the american people, edified by american principles, will rise to the occasion again, securing our safety, our prosperity, and our peace. one of these principles is a merit-based society. [applause] achieve success and rewards through hard work, education, risk taking, and even a little luck. the founders considered this principle to be one endowed by our creator, and called it the "pursuit of happiness." our course in life. society gathers and creates a

citizenry that pioneers, that invents, that builds and creates. . and as these people exert the effort and take the risks inherent in invention and creation, they employ and lift the rest of us, creating prosperity for us all. undaunted make us better off. [applause] american prosperity is fully dependent upon our opportunity society. i don't think president obama understands that. i don't think he understands why our economy is the most successful in the world. i don't think he understands america. [applause] he seeks to replace our merit-

based society with an entitlement society. in an entitlement society, everyone receives the same or similar rewards, regardless of education, effort and willingness to take risk. that which is earned by some is redistributed to the others. and the only people to enjoy truly disproportionate rewards are the people who do the redistributingthe government. entitlement societies are praised in academic circles, far removed from the reality of a competitive world. [applause] opportunity is replaced by the certainty that everyone in an entitlement society will enjoy nearly the same rewards. but there is another certainty,

they will be poor. in an entitlement society, the invigorating pursuit of happiness is replaced by the deadening reality that there is no prospect of a better tomorrow. risk-taking disappears, innovation withers, and small business is replaced by large, government enterprises. 4and the result is a nation that stagnates, that declines, that cannot defend itself. i am convinced that this is where president obama's "fundamental change" is leading america. and it informs aspects of his foreign policy. internationally, president obama has adopted an appeasement strategy. appeasement betrays a lack of faith in america, in american

strength, and in america's fox future. like others among the washington elite, he believes that america's role as the leader of the world is a thing of the past, that this will be a post- american century, perhaps an asian century. american strength, he imagines, will eventually or possibly be eclipsed. and so, president obama seeks to appease those he believes will balance us or challenge our leadership. this appeasement by this administration has taken many forms. it includes offers to engage with the world's most despicable dictators. it consists of concessions to russia to remove our missile defense sites from poland and to exclude tactical nuclear weapons from the new, remarkably one-sided, new start treaty. president obama even looks the other way as china employs unfair trade tactics that

endanger our economy and kill jobs. this president appears more generous to our enemies than he is to our friends. such is the natural tendency of someone who is unsure of america's strength or of america's rightful place in the world. [applause] the course of appeasement and accommodation has long been the path chosen by the weak and the timid. and history shows it is a path that nation's choose at their own peril. the president promised that he would fundamentally change america. he is doing just that. at home, he is changing us from an opportunity nation to an entitlement nation. he is building a government so large that feeding it consumes a greater and greater share of the people's production. and it is a government so

intrusive that it can command free people and free enterprises according to its bureaucratic will. abroad, he is weakening america, shrinking our military, shrinking our commitments to our friends, accommodating our foes, and appeasing the competing forces that are vying for global leadership. this election is not only a referendum on president obama's failures on employment, on income growth, on housing, on recovery, or on a nuclear- intent iran, on an emboldened china and on friends like israel being put at greater risk. this election will decide what kind of america we will be. it is defining. will we remain an opportunity nation or become an entitlement nation? will we remain the leader of the free world, or become a

follower in a more dangerous world? will america be transformed by barack obama, or will america be restored with the founding principles that have made this the greatest nation history has ever known? many think that because of his staggering failures, president obama will be easily defeated. but an incumbent is rarely turned out of the white house, and his resort to class warfare and demagoguery are powerful political weapons. in less than a year, americans will be asked to make a choice about the kind of country they want to live in and the kind of future they will bequeath to their children. it will be a choice between entitlement and merit, between appeasement and resolve. our party must offer a candidate who can make the case for freedom, opportunity and

strength. our nominee must offer americans more than just a chance to vote against president obama, our nominee must give americans an opportunity to vote for a different path and a better future. a path dictated not by government, but determined by a free people. a path marked by the virtues of merit, not by the slow decline of entitlement. a path that achieves prosperity through opportunity, and peace through strength. this is what americans deserve. this is what the moment demands. and this is what i will deliver, with your help. join me. join me, and i will lead our party and our nation through these difficult times to a brighter future. america has been a shining city on a hill. that light is dimming.

but together, we will reignite the spirit of american greatness. we have wandered and drifted. i will lead us to a better place. join me, and together we will reclaim and rebuild the america we love. i believe in america. our fight starts today. join me. thank you. god bless you. and god bless the united states of america. thank you so much. [applause] thank you. [applause] >> let me turn to some questions

they you may have on this or other matters of benchrest. this is quite a gathering. there's hardly a line there. >> it is great to be popular. >> my friend and i are mostly conservatives. our concern has always been that the governmental class is made up of republicans and democrats. whether it is banning a stupid lightbulb which the republicans did or running amok like the people next door are doing now, we are looking for a leader who will change the regulatory governmental insane environment we live men caused by both parties. how would you do that? >> the answer is leadership. you all have been involved in various enterprises. one of the things that is most remarkable is the impact of a leader.

i have seen -- we have all watched what happened when ronald reagan came into office. isn't it amazing that one person was not a technocrat or a legislature. he was a leader by his capacity to lead and bring people together and to inspire people on both sides of the aisle to do what was in the best interest of their nation, not politicians. he got congress and the evil empire to change. leadership. i am not a perfect guy. i have made mistakes. one thing i have learned is leadership. my mother and father were leadership. my dad was a leader. i aspire to have that. some remember him. he was a remarkable man. i was lucky enough to be the young this of the four kids. my brothers and sisters took me around.

i watched my father lead and run for political office three times. i witnessed seeing a leader. then i became one myself. i led four enterprises. the test of a leader is not what job they get. they can be given to you. if they can be earned her a boat of popularity. when you get it, what do you do with it? i turned around one enterprise in trouble. i built a starts up from the crowd to an acclaimed firm. i went to the olympus and turned it to the most successful winter olympics. we or able to balance the budget. -- we were able to balance the budget every year i was in office. i can go on.

my list of fun things in massachusetts was great spirit weaver number one in the nation. -- was great. we were number one and in nationale. our kids are doing well. the best hope you have that i will be able to change washington is that i have had the experience of leadership and i am not a creature of washington. i am a creature of the private sector. i am a business guy. i do not want this as a next step in my little career. i do not have a political career. i care about america. i am convinced the path we are on is toward degrees and ireland. we will not only suffer now if

we do not turn it around, but the world will suffer. one at the leaders said america will be criticized if you are president. do not forget this. what we fear most is a week america. american strength is the best allied peace has ever known. i will keep america strong. thank you. >> in new jersey. i want to thank you. i do not think there is another republican leader who has spent more time trying to help the new jersey republican party than you. >> thank you. >> you on a piece of chris christie. >> he is helping me, too. >> in new jersey, our governor is constantly fighting the

democratic majority in assembly, getting anything done is difficult. what can you do in the first six months of your presidency to help our economy and bypassed specific things -- and bypass congress you want to argue. >> there are a budget thing a president does were they do not need congress. those things i will do immediately, on day one. i'm going to put a halt on all regulations that were installed during the obama years. all of them. these agencies are filled with people who do not like you very much. they do not like the private sector and private venture -- enterprise. we will evaluate which ones are hurting jobs. people fill the job of government is to hold down free enterprise.

i believe the job is to try to encourage our economy and make us more competitive. i will also directed the secretary of energy to provide licenses to the drilling companies that want to start getting more oil and gas. i will issue an executive order that says no longer do you have to use unions on federal government projects. [applause] make it competitive. the list goes on and on. that is a sample of the kinds of things a president can do. i will reduce the number of federal employees. that is something i can do directly. it something that needs legislative helps i am content of linking the pay of government workers with the pay that exist in private sector. [applause]

then we have to go to work on some things that are tougher. i will grant a waiver from obamacare to all 50 states. you can see all the president that a president gets to do if he cares about principles. if you give us a republican house and senate and president, we will get america right again so that it remains strong. thank you. >> pennsylvania. in 1981, we had a problem with their ron. -- with iran. the hostages were released. is there anything you can do that on january 20, 2013 we will not have a problem with them building a nuclear weapon? they will understand it is

unacceptable. >> i do not know how far along we will be. i do not know where they will be or what happened before that. i was at the conference in tel aviv. it was for five years ago. i laid out the seven steps to dissuade them. none of them have been pursued. we keep talking about crippling sanctions. we do not do it. one of the greatest policies was when he decided to give russia their number one foreign policy, which they fought for for 10 years, which was removal of their missile defense, he gave them that.

he did not get the commitment to back crippling sanctions. that should not stop. we should treat the leaders like the pariah of a are as long as they are pursuing nuclear weaponry. that includes indicting ockham it in a job -- ahmadinijad. regime changes what will be necessary. we should make it very clear it that we are developing and have developed military options. nothing concentrates the mind than seeing this. it is unacceptable. we keep using that word. they are in during an air drawn with a nuclear weapon.

it means e.g. nuclear. turkey nuclear. it means a world that is not safe for europe or america. that is not something we can allow to occur. thank you. >> i will make this very quick. we have had a president to has gone the world apologizing for the united states. i hope you will go all around the world apologizing for obama. [laughter] [applause] >> when they are laughing and applauding, you sit down. >> you have been a tremendous lifelong republican. some of us appreciate that. eric holder has said false information to the congress

regarding gunrunning to mexico. he ignored a new black panther voter suppression. so far i'm not seen investigations on solyndra going on. hillary clinton has ignored our brothers and sisters in egypt. she has the chutzpah this audience will understand. she will say your women are not being properly tendered to by the government. would you consider nominating ahead of the election somebody like a rudy guiliani to take on eric holder? consider nominating someone to

be secretary of state to take on hillary clinton and allow the american people to see the kind of nominee is that you would have to go after the nominees that are very important? >> the answer is yes. i cannot give you any names. i was in new york this week. people remarked what a remarkable city new york has become because of rudy guiliani. every time we draw you toward weakness and accommodation, uc a person of strength that stands for principles. you see the positive outcome. we see its then new york city.

a five fortunate to be president, i will be a president that focuses every aspect of foreign policy upon whether or not makes america stronger. it means linking arms with their allies. if you disagree, i do it in private. united we are strong, thank you so much. it is great to be with thee. -- with you. thank you. >> here with the candidates are saying from the campaign trail with a newly designed c-span website for campaign 2012. >> their philosophy is simple -- everyone is left to fend for themselves and play by their own rules. i'm here to say they're wrong.

>> do we want to move back to a balanced budget, or borrow trillions of more dollars? do we reward and encourage those create jobs? washington is a mess, and we need to send mitt romney to washington to fix the mess out there. >> read the latest comments from candidates and political reporters, and linked to media partners in the early primary and caucus states. >> next, more from the republican jewish coalition forum, with six of the republican presidential candidates. coming up, former house speaker newt gingrich, texas governor rick perry, and minnesota representative michele bachmann. the event took place in washington, d.c.. [applause]

>> first of all, it is good to be back with a lot of friends. we are delighted to be here. my daughter and her husband are here. three have so many friends in this audience. -- we have so many friends in here. he said we needed fundamental change. how many of you would agree that we are far enough off the track that we need fundamental change? [applause] how many of you would agree that even if we win the election that the forces that brought

this to the mess we are in will fight every day to stop us from the changes over the course of the next four years? i happen to think both of those are true. i think this election is the most important collection since 1860. that is the primary reason i am running. i think we will be a definitive choice. i believe if president obama is elected, eight years will make the country dramatically more difficult and have dramatically different problems. it is a difficult deciding point. are we in favor of radicalism? are we in favor of earning a paycheck are giving away food stamps tax do we want to borrow 20 more dollars tax do we believe in class warfare? this applies to foreign policy.

this administration gave this. this administration should be reprimanded for insulting performance the other day. this administration should stop next week's meeting with those who would censored the world on behalf of islam. there are huge gaps. the changes are so big that i did not ask anyone before me. if you say you are for me, you will go hall and say i hope he fixes it. i do not believe that is possible to get the scale of change we need. our system does not work that way.

i ask people to be with the for the next eight years to stand shoulder to shoulder to insist on fundamental change to remind the congress of what we need to do, to remind the governors and state legislatures. if you undertake change, we are going to make mistakes. if we can build feedback mechanism so you can tell when we are making mistakes when the situation has changed, we are going to be dramatically better off. then we can execute it. if we implement the 10th amendment and we shrink the bureaucracy in washington, we have to grow citizenship back home. we are talking about a fairly profound series of changes. in order to get to foreign

policy, i want to start with three fundamental questions. we have to get the economy growing again. if you look at newt.org, we have the beginnings of a contract which will finance -- finalize. you will see that we have adopted the reagan playbook. he cut taxes and developed american energy. he praised those who develop jobs. it is the opposite of obama. you'll find that exciting. we abolish the capital gains tax. they can focus on job creation. we have a 12.7% corporate rate which will a break $700 billion for profits to come home. they will pay taxes because it is cheaper to pay them instead

of hiring lawyers to avoid them. we have 100 term expensing. we want a conscious strategy. this is the key to our ability to compete with china and india. we also did change unemployment compensation see the sign up for a training program. we are using the time to rebuild our human capital. we're not paying people for doing nothing. [applause] we have a proposal to create an alternative 15% flat tax on the hong kong tradition. or you can give up all the deductions and pay a simple tax. it has worked very well for a

generation and a half. we hope to repeal obamacare on day one. we want to repeal the dodd/frank. our goal is repeal a campaign that is sent to be a victory so that we have a big enough majority. the american people have voted on an agenda and a way that enables us to execute these ideas rapidly. i am for a very dramatic american energy program. our goal is to become the world's reserve supplier of energy. i think it is very important for us to understand that this is both in national security and economic strategy. it is the opposite of obama.

if we do the right thing, if we rebuild it, if we use science and technology and dramatically improve our education, we do not have to worry about china. china cannot compete with us. it is unrealistic to think we can be stupid and as the chinese to be dumber. we have to be smart. this is a program with a very high tempo. i also want to apply this to the federal government. you need a government which is much more agile and faster and that belongs to the world that works. if we will remain the leading country. this is the background.

we need a dramatically rethought strategy for the middle east. i want to save you things that are a little bit politically incorrect. this is sort of the basic of what i want to do. we did a movie and joe and john paul the second -- on pope john paul the second. we were told that the decisive moment was the nine days that he came back in 1979 and the way that he aroused the fervor of the polish people. they thought the soviets. there are fighting a dictatorship which cut in prison unit. they put up signs that said for poland to remain poland, 2 + two must always equal 4. i was intrigued. it was very profound. it to plus two equals four is a

fact, you now have a factual basis. poland was a fact. i got involved. he writes that there are times a man can be killed for sang to plus two equals four. we have a solidarity sign. or well wrote about london. it this is the centralized planning. it will lead to a dictatorship. orwell has the state torture were -- torture says it's because this. lincoln said if a man cannot agree that two plus two equals four, you will never win the argument.

fact have no basis. i want to say a few things that actually correct. it took a part of the state department as an implementation system that cripples the capacity of the united states to do things in places like iraq and afghanistan. i stand by that today. it is fine to go in and take out saddam, you should be able to do it in three weeks. you then want to hire the regular army and get out. you do not want to try to redesign it. it is a long proposition that we will fail. in december, i gave interviews.

i said thanks to him, we have gone off the cliff. we have changed our mission without our resources. we were trying to undertake something we cannot achieve. i am very worried about our entire relationship. it is based on a pack of lies. it is based on a pack of self perception. it is an act of this honesty. they have to take up the word is lomb. it is an outrageous denial of truth. [applause] he said how proud he was that we were helping with the project.

why in a peace process with israel need to have a missile defense from gaza? can he imagine that our next neighbor were firing missiles at us? this is why it was so utterly outrageous. how about same gift of violence and come to the table? it is always israel's fault and no matter how bad the other side is, that has to stop here. [applause]

we are in the long struggle with radical islamists. we have not yet had the long telegram. we have not yet had the three speeches of 1947. we have not had the airlift. if not developed a thin natural one. we obtain the soviet empire for 45 years. it is a very difficult national dialogue. we need this conversation. we have mortal enemies who are determined to kill us. we allow them to sit up and morally indefensible one-sided conversation.

the fact that secretary clinton would talk about discrimination against women in israel and then meet with [inaudible] meet with saudis? [laughter] [applause] [applause] the fact that the state department will hold a meeting on behalf of censoring its is not going to say that this is terrific. there were excited about the meaning. pteron hold a conference on terrorism. the secretary general sent a special envoy and a message of gratitude. our allies we were disarmed by a state department incapable of

this. if he will accept it, i will ask [unintelligible] [applause] >> if he will accept, i will ask john bolton to be secretary of state. [laughter]

[applause] i will only appoint him if he will agree that his first job is to complete and thorough transformation of the state department. >> and the replacement of the foreign service culture with a new aggressive culture dedicated to the proposition the defending freedom and america is the first business of the state department, not appeasing our opponents. [applause] . .

i need your help to get the nomination. but beyond that, i need your help to make sure that we have a big majority in the senate, bill nelson has to go, ben nelson has to go. let's go down the list. we want to pick up enough senate seats and a few more house seats so we have an effective governing majority on that day. and i will ask the new congress to stay in session on january 3rd and to pass the repeal of obama careber i am sworn in to hold it as the desk and bring it out during the inaugural so we can finish signing it. let me tell you one last thing. and i say this with mome

trepidation because, after all, all of you were told in june and july that i had disappeared and it must be a great shock to have me showing up again. people talk about electibility. if i do become your nominee, in tampa i will in the acceptance speech challenge the president to seven three-hour debates with a time keeper but no moderator in the lincoln-douglas tradition. i will concede in advance that he can use a teleprompter. after all, if you had to defend obama care wouldn't you want a teleprompter? an there are three reasons he is going to accept. the first is he announced in february of 2007 in springfield

quoting lincoln. the second is he is a graduate of columbia, graduate of harvard law, editor of the harvard law review, the greatest ore tor in the drarkt democratic party. how does he look in the mirror and say he is afraid to debate some guy from georgia college? the third reason is fractcal. i'm a student of history. i've studied american history. when abraham lincoln announces in 158 he has been out of office tor 10 years, he only served two years in the house. he was announcing against the most famous senator in the united states and the presumed next president. and he said, we have 105 days left, why don't we debate every day? and douglas said i don't think so. so lincoln took up a pattern

wherever douglas went lincoln would show up one day later. and presently douglas began to figure out the news coverage was always lincoln's rebuttal. so he wrote lincoln and said, i'll debate you. there were nine congressional districts. he said we're not going back to the two you have been in but i'll debate you. it was widely covered and printed. lincoln had the debates reprinted as a book the next year, which is a major step towards his winning the presidency. i would argue that it is since the federalist papers the finest collection of discussion about the nature of freedom that you will see in american politics in 200 years. so let's remember how lincoln got douglas to decide. if the president has not accepted by the time we get to tampa in my announcement, in my acceptance speech i will announce that the white house as of that moment is my scheduler.

wherever the president goes, i will show up four hours later. and in the age of talk radio blogs and instant television news, i doubt if they can take the pressure for more than two or three weeks. but if they would rather have me chase him all the way to election day and watch a country watch a man afraid to defend his own word i think that will work equally well. i think we have a couple microphones. let me take questions for a minute or two, if we could. >> my name is heman and i'm the republican district leader of the oldest republican club founded in the 1880 called progress republican club and it is sighted in the east village in manhattan.

we have two events of great interest to this audience. we were the neighborhood that reclaimed israel to life in 1848, and abraham lincoln became president by his speech at cooper union a nation divided cannot stand. and my question is, we have lost our manufacturing base in this country. thousands of companies have moved overseas. particularly in our state, new york state which was once called the empire state but some of us call it the empty state now. and under the leadership of ed cox our republican state chairman we're trying to bring back business to our state. how would you as pt bring back

the many, many businesses that have gone overseas from the seed bed for them in our country? how would you do that? >> i think what i began to describe earlier is the key step. you have 100% expensing so manufacturing firms limitly can write off all their investment in one year. you have a 12.5 corporate tax rate. in addition, you have a retrained workforce because of new model of unemployment compensation combined with training. i would replace the environmental protection agency with a environmental solutions agency that has to apply economic rationale to its decisions. you create a 21st century food and drug administration whose job is to go from the laboratory to the patient as rapidly as possible, not as slowly as possible.

and you design a new model of occupational safety and health which starts with performance and basically says if you don't have any problems nobody's going to visit you. which means you automatically eliminate most of the bureaucratic bologne. a steel entrepreneur has 35 workers who says his major problem wasn't china it was the u.s. government. we want a government that helps, not hurts you. >> i'm a dentist from columbia, maryland. many of the people here live in the bluest parts of the bluest state. it can be extremely frustrating to know that in every race from school board to congress your vote does not make an ounce of difference. if you were chosen as the candidate what will you do to help elect republicans in local races in blue parts of our nation? >> first, it's a very, very good question, i'm glad you ask. and it's a topic i care about a lot. first, remember that my background, having been born in

pennsylvania is that we arrived at fort bening, georgia, when i was a junior in high school. there were no republicans in georgia. so today when we totally dominate the state i think i have been through a process where we took a state that was supposedly blue and then ceased to be blue. i have some knowledge of how you do this. but for this particular campaign, i have two major breakthroughs for all of you to think about. the first is i want to be preaching inclusion, not outreach. all of you understand this. outreach is when five white guys hold a meeting and call you. inclusion is when you're in the meeting. and so whether you're korean-american, african american, latino american, native american, whatever your background, we want to design a new model system where everybody is in the same room. you want to know why california is hard to carry? california republicans can't figure out there are 6,000

koreans in los angeles. we had six tv cameras in korean. and they were fascinated. they were thrilled that a republican candidate for president was willing to talk with them. and you have to do this over and over. so inclusion is half of this. the second half is simple. the underlying core symbol of the campaign very easy modeled on mckinley. on the one side you have the best food stamp president in american history. more people have been put on food stamps by barack obama's policies than by any president in history on the other hand you have a candidate who wants to create jobs. we brought unemployment down to 4.2% and created millions of jobs. there's no a precinct in america where if you walk up and say do you want your children to have food stamps or a paycheck you don't get 80 or 90% faveringing a paycheck. it's a myth that people like to

be dependent. so i intend to go into every neighborhood. i hope naacp invites me to address their convention. itches in new york this week in part to make one case. this will be a 50-strait campaign and we will seek votes in every state in the united states. >> as you know, many people in this room have confirmed -- had our worst fears confirmed last month when the iaea came out with a report about how close iran is to a nuclear bomb. what would you do about that? and also, we have over 4,000 southeastern dissidents who have been killed over the last eight months. what would you do to support the dissidents that want to

overthrow that brutal regime? >> they're both very good questions. the only rational long-term policy is regime replacement and that's why you need to go back to having a covert capability. i would focus on their gasoline supply. 40% of the gasoline they use has to be imported they only have one large refinery. i would be focused on how to covertly sabstadge it every day. i would follow the reagan playbook and margaret thatcher and pope jean-paul ii playbook. i would find the capability. do everything i could to unnerve the regime and keep it off balance. and you would presently break it and replace it. all of these studies -- it's amazing to me how little people study history. the iaea says we're about this close, we're not this close. we were totally wrong about the

pakistani-indian nuclear weapons. we were totally wrong about the soviet nuclear weapon. they got it years before we thought they would. why would you think we can relax? we know they have a program, we know they're sincere. therefore, you have to assume that sooner or later they're going to make the break through. it's better to stop them early than to stop them late. >> on syria, the policy of the united states should be to replace the hah sad regime and we should do everything we could indirectly and covertly without american forces to help the dissidents rebel and help them defeat the government. it's a small minority in a country which is largely sunni. and i think it would be a significant blow to iran to lose syria and to lose asad. we don't know what it would be like but it's worth the risk to

break up the iranian relationship. >> i'm a student in rutgers university, the state university of new jersey. i would like to ask about people who have concerns about your electability tend to focus not so much on your congressional record but more on your, the accusations of past ethics violations. how would you answer that in the scheme of electability? >> i think nancy pelosi has done a lot to answer it. the democrats filed 84 charges against me, 83 were dismissed the only one survived was my lawyers had written a letter inaccurately and i signed it. the democrats refused to compromise. she was one of the three who refused to compromise. but i let you decide. if she was in the middle of it, how nonpartisan and just do you think the process was? on every charge the people have

said recently, for example, did we -- as a phd in history did i inappropriately teach a course using tax deductible money? the i.r.s. backed off apologized and said they were wrong. did we violate the fec rules? they backed off and apologized. those that either know coverage or page 63. what the democrats decided in the fall of 1995 was they could not defeat our program but they could defeat me. they ran 121,000 ads attacking me if we had have been clever i would have immediately filed a counter charge for violating and abusing the process. we kept thinking this would be fair. the attrition effect on your members of that many ads and charges has wore down people and i lost the ability to lead because i was ultimately so battered by the process. so what it tell people is go look at the record.

it's public record. you look at the total record. you can go to newt.org and you make a decision. i have found so far at least it's not much of an issue. i think people generally are prepared to concede that my record of achievement is vastly better than whatever scarring the democrats have managed to do. >> pleek, i'm an entrepreneur from houston, texas. yesterday, president obama gave one of those two plus two equals 563 speeches. he argued about fundamental fairness in the united states without talking about the obstacle to fundamental fairness, which is the teachers union. what would you do to narrow the education gap between wealthy and poor kids who are trapped

in a system that is failing them? and failing us as a country. >> you've raised a good point. sometime in the near future i'm going to give a speech on inequality from a couple of angles. one is i believe in leveling up by giving everybody a chance to be more successful. he believes in leveling down. i believe in wealth creation. he believes in wealth redistribution. i believe the primary problem with the very poor is they're trapped in government institutions that destroy their future. he believes we haven't sent them big enough checks while keeping them trapped. this is why i want to have the debates next year. the difference will be so vivid and clear that it's really important. i'm about to get the hook here. i want to take one minute to talk about a recent example of this. i believe that it is really important for children to learn to work. how many of you -- [applause]

how many of you earned some money before you were 15? [applause] ok. i was with a fairly wealthy young lady two years ago who could clearly be living on her trust and her grandfather paid her to run errands. and i said how old were you when this started? she said five. now, why am i saying this? the other day i said -- and this goes all the way back to an article that was written some 20 years ago by joe kline, i think in new york magazine. if you look at the price of new york city school jantors who are paid more than the teachers, the entry level janitor is paid twice as much as an entry level teacher because of the unions. my model would be to have a janitor and assistant janitor who are full grown adults and know what they're doing and take the rest of the money and hire lots of kids part time. and you could hire them part

time to be a clerk in the front office, hire them part time to work in the library, hire them part time to help in the kitchen. there are lots of things you can do. but what i want to do these are in the very poorest neighborhoods where kids are in public housing surrounded by people who have no experience with working. the reaction on the left has been hysterical. when moynahan used common sense 30 years ago, the left went crazy because you go to the very heart of their belief system. in the problem is that we need to have people learn the culture of work and learn the culture of saving and learn the idea of value over time, you just made this country dramatically more conservative. and so the left goes nuts at the idea that you are actually going to let young kids learn. last example. jack kemp and i used to argue for equity in public housing. we said people from public housing who don't suffer from a physical or mental problem should have a responsibility to

help take care of their apartment and they could gradually build up a sweat equity. and you could imagine, they could acquire ownership. we had this one great debate and barney frank got up and he said you realize if you allow poor people in new york city to actually own their apartments, that these apartments could be sold for several million dollars and they wouldn't be poor any more? i'm for an america where there are no more poor because they all had a chance to rise. thank you all very much. [applause]

>> it is an honor to be with you today to share my thoughts on faith, foreign policy, and the free state of israel. it is great to see so many friends in the audience. back stage, dr. jeffery feingold was in the audience as well and i hope he has moved back out here. i told him i have a stem winder of a speech, you need to hear it. and kirk was also back there. so -- and as i look across this audience, thank you for so many friendships that we've made through the years and as we gather today. i'm struck by the coincidence that two american citizens being unlawfuly detained abroad today are jewish.

alan gross in cuba, and warren wine stine by al qaeda in pakistan. and in both cases, their offense was spreading political and economic freedom to better the lives less advantaged people around the globe. it was their selfless commitment to this work. i think that is a testament to the great value that the american jewish community has brought to our nation and frankly to our world and our government should be working aggressively to achieve their speedy release. [applause] the very repressive castro regime should not be rewarded with increased tourism while mr. gross languishes in prison

there. and pakistan should clearly understand the significance of re cuing mr. weanstein from the terrorist elements within their borders if they value the foreign aid that they seem to take for granted from this country. we have an administration in washington today whose foreign policy is an incoherent mess. thev emboldened our adversaries by isolating our allies. there is no greater example of it than president obama's failed foreign policy than how he has undermined our historic friendship with israel. senator, it is good to see you here. my stand -- stand up. i want to introduce my senator, florence shaprio from the great

state of texas. thank you for being here. she has trained me well as i have worked my way through the legislature and lieutenant governor and the governor of the state of texas. the story is powerful for us. israel is our oldest -- it is the oldest democracy and it is our strongest ally in the middle east, and our relationship is founded on three basic principles of prosperity and security and freedom. and with a robust economy, israel is a strong trading partner. it is importing our goods, supplying us with both high tech innovations and specialized natural resources. and i am very proud of a texas company, senator, noble energy, which is supplying a very large amount of the natural gas that

israel is counting upon today. israel's security -- yes. israel's security is critical to america's security. we must not forget, it was israel that took out the nuclear capabilities of iraq in 19 1, of syria in 2007. and in both instances, their actions made the free world safer. israel shares a commitment to our core principles of personal freedom. and yet, president obama systemically undermines that relationship with israel. specifically on the question of a negotiated settlement with the palestinian people. and i want to make clear, i support the goal of a palestinian state. but it should be the palestinians who meet certain

pre-conditions. and those pre-conditions must include statehood that is directly negotiated between israel and the palestinian leaders, and secondly a palestine who is recognizing israel's right to exist as a jewish state. [applause] and thirdly, and very importantly, palestinian leaders must renounce the terrorist activities of hamas. [applause] instead, the administration has insisted on previously unheard of preconditions for israel, such as the immediate stop of all settlements and all settlement activity. president obama has suggested the 1967 borders as a basis for negotiations and he has instituted the practice of indirect talks, subverting the oslo accords, yet, his

administration seemed blind sided when this fall the palestinians declared a new state with east jerusalem free of any jewish settlements as the capital based on the 1967 borders, established through the united nations without israel's involvement. but in effect all the palestinians were doing was taking president obama up on his concessions. they were basically taking his ideas and going forward with them. the threat that is posed by iran makes our friendship with israel all the more critical. as the international atomic agency report last month confirmed, iran is marching unimpeded towards nuclear weapons. we also know that iran has

chemical and biological weapons programs and they are accelerating their ballistic missile programs. the islamic republic has made no mystery of their intent of what they will do with those weapons. against israel. and eventually against the united states. and as this threat gathers, our president has pursued a failed policy of outreach and intellectual engagement with tehran. this administration was silent during the green revolution in 2009 and they have avoided tougher sanctions that would cripple iran's economy. i have repeatedly called for the sanction of iran's central bank and just this last week the united states senate voted unanimously to sanction the iran central bank.

as well they should have. [applause] so now president obama is isolated even from his own parties' position when it comes to the iranian question. and here's why. you see, democrats know what we know. that current sanctions may have caused significant discussion in tehran as vice president biden recently said, but they haven't actually stopped processing or working towards producing a nuclear weapon. this increasingly leaves only two options. a military strike or a nuclear iran. many seem to think that israel can step in and dispense with the iranian threat through targeted strikes as they did in iraq and syria, taking the pressure off the united states. but iran is a much greater

challenge than that. israel would face terrible repriseles from tehran and its terrorist proxies. so the military option is not one that israel would take eagerly or lightly. but only after very long deliberation in the face of overwhelming evidence that iran is on the verge of an operational nuclear weapon. what israel's military needs from the united states is our needs from us is our ongoing support through hard ware, through guaranteed supply change. but israel also needs our vocal unairing moral support in the face of what will inevitably be international condemnation if she is forced to strike. here's what israel does not need. israel does not need our president demanding gratitude for being the best friend that

israel has ever had while his secretary of defense rails that israel get back to the damned table, quote, with the palestinians. and his secretary of state -- [applause] and his secretary of state questions the viability of israel's democracy. even as his ambassador to belgium blames anti-semitism among muslims on israel's failure to accommodate the palestinians. i might add, all three of which were said just this last week. this torrent of hostility towards israel, it doesn't seem to be coordinated. it doesn't. it seems, from my perspective to be a natural expression of this administration's attitude towards israel. i want you to know something --

[applause] i want you to know something. and that senator sitting right over there knows this very strongly. that the american-israel policy is not just a box that i check off for a campaign. it is a very deeply personal issue for me. and it is also the cornerstone of my larger demrobal strategy. i feel, as cheryl shared with you, a very special connection to israel dating back to nearly 20 years when i first visited the holy land, repeatedly been to the western wall, that most seek red symbol of where jewish pilgrims gather to pray today. it has withstood the assault on the jewish people since the time of the early romans. i walked in the footsteps on

that high mountain sit del of mo sada. that for tress of defyance, symbolizing their loyalty to freedom even more than life itself. i took a group of texas business leaders, which cheryl went along with us on in 2009 to go into dur at in the gaza strip or next to the gaza strip. i wanted them to see what everyday life was like. i wanted our texas businessmen and women to walk into a playground where children have to be covered by protective shield so that they can go outside. it was a very clarifying moment for each one of us as we recognized the constant threat of attack even the children of

israel live with every day. and i had the distinct pleasure of sharing a meal with a former soviet disdent who spent 9 years in a ghouling a including 400 days in a punishment cell. a great champion of democracy. it is a living link to the atrocities of brutal regimes. when you visit israel, you gain an understanding of a nation that is survived by more than 60 years despite living in a constant state of seige. but something else becomes evident about the jewish people in israel and around the world. a resolve, a resolve to live free. a willingness to go to any length to preserve your history, your heritage, your

faith that is unsurpassed i will suggest by any people in the world. today, 6 million jews live in israel. the largest population of jews in the world. whether you are old enough to remember the 19 40's or not, you know the significance of that number. when we speak of the unspeakable, it is often said never forget. in making this vow, of never forget, we honor those who suffered the most inhumane treatment, those like us who were made in the image of god. and in making this vow, we recognize that peace and freedom are fragile enterprises that can only be preserved with determined vigilance. it is in the spirit of those words, never again, that we

must do everything in our power to make the world safe for freedom and democracy. we must have faith -- that we are in the right and that we must fight with the might of a super power. that is why i utterly reject president obama's political strategy to hold our military budget hostage unless congress gives in to his proposed tax and spending increases. we have already sacrificed too many of our defense capabilities to misguided austerity that will not balance our budget and will weaken our ability to defend ourselves and our allies. we must demand action in congress to block these cuts that will threaten to hollow out our forces and prevent president obama from using the capabilities our war fighters need as political pawns in this

budgetary game that he is playing. the men and women of our military are the greatest ambassadors of freedom the world has ever known. in the last two decades, they have repealed the forces of oppression from places like kuwait and bosnia, iraq, and afghanistan. in fact, no country has done more to liberate millions of oppressed people, many of them muslims, since the end of the cold war. our freedom agenda applies to all regardless of their faith. because i believe every human being was created to live free, to worship freely. and because there are a number of countries, there are numerous countries that oppress freedom, that deny basic human rights. i am adamant that the

discussion of any foreign aid should start at zero. now, let me -- there has been questions asked about that statement that i made about starting foreign aid at zero, and i want to just clear up something while i have your attention here today. israel is our strategic ally. america long ago ended the traditional foreign aid to israel. strategic defensive aid to israel is what we will continue to be focused on. and i will assure you one thing. strategic defensive aid, strategic aid in all forms under a perry administration will increase to israel. [applause]

and any of those other countries who we decide about where those dollars are going to be going should always have an agenda that advances the american interest. our nation was founded on the principle of religious liberty. and like israel, many of america's earliest ancestors sought a safe haven, a safe haven from religious persecution. they came to the new world to leave behind the injustices of the old world. they came here to live in freedom. and for many, to live out their faith. america is rooted in that judeo, christian set of values. our laws emanate from the anchingeshnt law of the torah. they come to us as principles handed down from our ancestors who fought and they bled and they died to defend them. but the law is more than that.

it is as jeremiah wrote, a law written on our hearts. faith and freedom are the fiber of our nation. my favorite founding father was also a life-long champion of religious freedom. james madison. he wrote in the first amendment to the constitution that the civil rights are none shall be abridged on account of religious belief or worship. nor shall the full and equal rights of conscience be in any manner or in any pretext infringed. my faith will guide me as your president. and what i mean by that is not just faith in god's plan for us as a nation he has blessed, time and time again, but it has also faith in the ability of

our people with his help to accomplish the impossible, the miraculous, as they have done before and will again. as i travel across the country and i see the plight that we are in, people without the dignity of a job,en certain where to turn for help, i turn my thoughts recently to knee maya. i think of his return to israel. finding the city walls laid to waste, the defenses crumbling, the people dismayed. they had almost given up hope. so he gathered the people together and he told them what he would do. then said i unto them, you see the distress that we are in, how jerusalem lies in ruins and how its gates have been burned with fire.

come, let us build the wall of jerusalem together that we will no longer be in disgrace. neemia did not do this work by himself. he did it prayerfully, he did it seriously, because he understood the desperate need. and when their enemies came, he urged the people on to keep building with a brick in one hand and a sword in the other until the city could stand tall again. bringing america back begins with faith. faith in the almighty who creates us, faith in our friends and our allies in a time of trouble, and faith in each other to not give up hope. we must keep the law written on

our hearts. we must put our minds and things above. but we must set ourselves to the work that must be done. so come, let us rebuild this great country together again. god bless you. [applause] thank you. cheryl instructed me that i was to attempt to answer any of your questions. so i will do my best. and is there a microphone? good. great and good. yes, sir. >> governor. >> hi, jeff. >> i want to ask you about health care. >> yes, sir. >> people talk about repealing obama care. but replace it with what? there was a crisis that came up that forced that to happen and

it was primarily driven by the insurance companies not giving coverage to people who needed it. i'm seeing my career disappears because of the overreaching obama care. what are you going to do? you haven't had a great record in texas with insuring people. what is your plan to replace obama care with? >> i want to disagree with you with one thing and that is that we have a great record in the state of texas of taking care of our people. and one of the great -- [applause] and you will find there some of the greatest health care in the nation, whether it's md anderson, a myriad of other places where very, very capability health care is practiced. and one of the reasons is because the senator in the work that she and her colleagues did by passing the most sweeping tort reform in the nation --

[applause] where if you are a physician or involved in a nursing home or hospital that you are protected against frivolous lawsuits, we have seen more than 20,000 physicians licensed to practice medicine in texas since 2004 and i will give direct, almost direct credit to all of that because those physicians know they can come into the state of texas. but let me get into your specific question of how do we do with this issue of health care in and there are a number of medicare and is one side of it. i think paul ryan and some of his colleagues will come up with some very good ideas and concepts how to deal with the medicare issue. and i'm not going to go deeply into that. but please, if you will take a look at what congressman ryan and tom coburn and some of his colleagues have laid out for

medicare and how to make that more available, more affordable, give a lot of different options, the ideas so that individuals are more in control and to truly allow for that patient-doctor relationship. now, i have been asking multiple administrations, i've been the governor of texas for will you 11 years here for a couple of weeks so this is not a new gig for me and we have been asking for health and human services agency to give us some waivers so that we could better run health care in the state of texas. and i will assure you practically every governor and their legislature knows how to deliver health care to give better options than a one size fits all washington mandated medicare type program. so as the president of the

united states, i would allow the states to put their programs -- and if there are states who say went doe want to do that, we want you to do it from washington, d.c., we certainly leave them that option. but i would suggest the vast majority of the states, becausely because of the costs and savings that can accrue, plus there will be better health care, more options, more people being insured if we have that type of strings detached from washington, d.c. so that is just a little couple of ideas. i'm a bhig believer that you give people options. there are folks out there that they're 25 years old and the fact is they don't want to pay an insurance premium. so the idea that government mandated insurance, i'm against that. when i talk about freedom, i believe in it. and i believe in the tenth amendment and the states being able to make those decisions.

if you want to live in a state that has high premiums, with high taxes, high regulations, you can go to california. people will vote with their feet is my point. and they will go to the places where they're business mep and women or private citizens who want a particular life style or particular environment to live in, that was the beauty of what our founding fathers were talking about when they created the federal government and gave those powers to the government and they said -- one of the things that i laid out about ten days ago that has gotten such an amazing response about the country, i was talking about overhauling washington, d.c. as i have read in the newspaper as you did and probably found out the same way that 7.7 trillion has gone from washington to wall street

finance years and we didn't even know about. that dreist me up the wall. it infuriates me that washington and wall street have become so corrupt and so interactive together that -- and i call for an overhaul of washington the first part of that overhaul is a part-time congress. let them go home and work a job like the rest of the legislators do back in most states and live under the laws that they have. florence and her colleagues, they have regular jobs back home. we meet for 140 days every other year. we're the 13th largest economy in the world and we are able to get our work done. right? it works. the idea that we have to have all of these people in washington, d.c. spending all this money is just not right. [applause]

i got right off subject there. but it was spot on. governor. >> yes, sir. >> yesterday, obama said free markets and the rugged individualism of americans doesn't work and it's never worked. >> wow. >> how on earth can a country that's built on liberty, which is individualism, say that about our country, about our past? he said it didn't work in the 20s when we expanded on a greater rate than before. can you give me an example of texas, rugged individualism and free markets, worked? because you've created jobs where he has failed to create any. >> it's not texas. it's in iowa, it's in new hampshire, live free or die. that's their motto up there. it's all across this great country.

government is the problem. government is the problem whether it's in the states or -- and in washington, d.c. in particular. i'm not a psychologist and i don't know how to get inside the president's head and ask the question of why do you think that? what were you taught? where were you raised that that was penetrated into your psyche that somehow or another america is not a strong and a powerful and an independent and a free thinking and free market and capitalistic driven and that's not good? people give up their lives every day to still continue to come to be a part of this country because they understand what america is all about. and that is what we cannot lose.

we cannot lose this -- i will never go into another country anywhere and apologize for america. never. we have freed too many people, we have given too much blood on foreign soils to allow people to live free. are we perfect? no. do we allow because we were busy doing our job or whatever to let washington get out of control and to let washington, d.c. do sweetheart deals and become corrupt and get into bed with wall street and america's next generation is paying for it? yes. that is partly our responsibility of not watching close enough and letting people stay in washington, d.c. that have crupt this system. and it's not going to change unless we put an outsider in. and i'm telling you, they don't want me up here. this city is not ready for me.

but the idea that we have a president that would say that our country has lost its soul is inappropriate and frankly irresponsible. [applause] >> i invite you to talk about our universities. it seems like we're paying for our own defamation through student loans funded by the government. we sent out open-minded good-hearted 18-year-olds who generally love our country to school and four years later they pop out, despise america, hate capitalism and think israel is the devil and we're helping to fund this. how do we stop a system that's

95% liberal socialist marxist and using our government funds to help maintain that system? >> here's what we've done in the state of texas and we have started asking about in 2007 i set out a set of seven reforms that we asked questions about to our universities, to the administration about how many hours are your professors working? what type of money are they bringing in? kind of a cost benefit analysis of the universities. and it caused a great pushback. the universities do not like to be asked. they don't want to be treated like anything other than just send us more money and leave us alone. and i say that with great respect. we have some fabulous universities in the state of texas.

but they are all costing too much mup and we are not getting a good return on our investment. we're not getting the utilization of our buildings that we need to. and i have called for in the state of texas a $10,000 bachelor's degree. now, when the first time the university types heard that their heads explosed and they were greatly offended. but they're starting to see now that the american people or certainly the people of the state of texas understand that you can do that today. that you don't have to spend $100,000 to send your child to a university and let them spend that four of five-year period of time there and the issue of what they're learning while they're there, i will put that burden upon the governors and the regents who are the

managers of those universities and i don't know how every state's university structure is but in the state of texas the governor makes the appointments to the board of regions. and hopefully there's not too much of that being taught at texas universities. but i'm sure there's a bit of it. the free thought of what goes on and what have you i respect that greatly. so my daughter came out of texas a.m. and she is still a card-carrying republican conservative. cheryl's given me one more question. >> i'm a proud conservative at rutgers university. >> are they teaching any of those things that she was talking about? >> i'm a middle eastern state major so i don't know it first-hand but it's an uphill battle but i'm proud to fight

it. my question is you've seen first-hand violence occurring in mexico due to the war on drugs. 60% of the drug cart else's budget comes from u.s. citizens buying marijuana. will you allow states to experiment regulating marijuana? >> no. and let me tell you why. i'm not going to just walk away with a straight no. because i do believe that we can win the war on drugs. but we have to fight it first. and when the president of the united states like he did earlier this year and said that the border was safer than it has ever been that tells me this administration is not serious about securing the border or fighting the war on drugs. i know, i've had to deal with this for 11 years. we spend texas state taxpayer

dollars on securing that border. i know how to shut that border down. it takes a substantial commitment by the federal government. the states cannot do it by themselves. but securing that border can be done with strategic fencing, with a substantial increase of boots on the ground, with aviation assets. i will assure you that with predator drone type erik looking down giving real time information, we can know everything that's going on from san diego to brownsville texas. that's what needs to happen, a president who is committed to securing that border. i called for a new monroe doctrine and one of the debates i said it's time for america to again implement a monroe doctrine like we did back in the 1820s and as we dealt with cuba in the 1960s. we have the iranian embassy in venezuela is the largest in the world. you know what's going on there.

you've got colombia and brazil that really want us to step in and be a powerful nation in the western hemisphere. the panama canal opens back up in 2014. i mean, we must as a country think about our security in this western hemisphere and it starts with securing the border with mexico and the united states. and i will promise you this one thing. 12 months after being sworn in as your president, that border will be shut down and secure. god bless you and thank you.

>> good afternoon. thank you for that wonderful, wonderful welcome. 11 minutes after israel declared her sovereignty in may of 194, our united states president harry truman made the best decision that any president could have made. he recognized israel's sovereignty and he told the world and israel's hoss till enemies and neighbor that the united states of america would have israel's back. as president of the united states, i want you also to know i and the united states of america will once again have israel's back. . .

i took a plane and went to work at a kibbutz. at that time, we did not have a rocket coming across on a nearly daily basis. it opened my eyes. we would wake up in the morning at 4:00, get on a flatbed truck pulled behind a diesel tractor, and we would go out to the fields where i would begin the process of picking weeds in the cotton fields. thereafter, we would come back to the wonderful sight of the kibbutz, help in the kitchen,

and then finally playdown in the ghetto where we made our home. it was an absolutely wonderful experience for an 18-year-old girl from minnesota. it was 1974, and israel as you know in 1974 was a very different place from what is today. at that time, we got off the plane, on the tarmac, and there were card table set up. chickens were flying and people were screaming. it was a very different place. it opened my eyes. more importantly, it opened my heart to the jewish people, to the plight of the jewish people. i will never forget the love and the place in my heart that

america needs to have for israel and for the jewish people. our blogging has always been, next year, a jerusalem -- our been, nexts always year, jerusalem. [applause] there is a very different way that i go to israel today than i did years ago. as president of the united states, my maiden voyage the visit will be to sit down with the prime minister and to speak if i am privileged to do that. [applause] i also want you to know it will be on inauguration day under my administration that the united states will move our embassy from tel aviv to jerusalem.

[applause] and i already have secured from a donor who told me he will pay for the ambassador's home and embassy to be moved to jerusalem, so we are good to go. the boxes will be unpacked on inauguration day. today, we commemorate the 70th anniversary of the attack on pearl harbor. some 19-year-old young men from minnesota were stationed at pearl harbor. they reported to their superiors that they cited something they thought was very unusual which came to be known as a japanese submarine. their warning signals from those both ways became a bitter calamity, and it was something that was ignored. the same is true today with iran

and other dangerous actors in the world. i fear we are ignoring the warning signs. i worry about what other peark harbors will be. it seems the president has forgotten the importance of israel in the united states and only thinks in terms of what we, the united states, due for israel. its seems the president is more concerned about if israel build apartments or additional homes on its own land than the threats that are being received on a regular, daily, and sometimes hourly basis to israel. i think the president was right to promise to veto the bid for statehood in the u.n. security council, and i thank him for that.

it was the president's weakness in the middle east. daylight between the united states and israel. the only president to do so. that has emboldened the palestinians in an attempt to achieve statehood through the un rather than the legitimate negotiation table with israel. our policy is confused engagement and has inspired israel's enemies. the palestinians must recognize israel's right to exist which they have not. and the palestinians must renounce violence against israel in order to become considered even a serious partner with israel in the peace process. clearly, they are not. [applause] my administration's policy will be the authority's compliance

with prior agreements is the first that that has to be taken to assure peace in the middle east. the palestinian authority must meet its existing obligations that collect illegal weapons. they have not. pursue terrorists. they have not. cooperate with security forces. the have not. change the constitution which calls for the complete eradication of the state of israel. they have not. stopped in citing terrorism. they have not. because come out like you, my commitment is an unequivocal and on changing. we stand with israel. [applause] i am sure we all understand that israel requires the necessary

aid that the unit states gives to our allies. day are our only ally in the region. if we are to continue to provide assistance, then the united states needs to get her own fiscal house in order. we have not. [applause] there is a vocal minority in this country today. it is occupy wall street, otherwise known as the obama reelection team. [laughter] [applause] that is the truth. they believe the economic problems we face are capitalism or free markets. that have one bottom line. they want other people to pay for their stuff. that does not work in the united states of america. [applause] because we are here to occupy

america. [applause] the problem you see is the government is doing both what the constitution and decent morality per habits and that is capitalism or forcefully taking your money for the purpose of paying off a politician's political friends. people are tired of that game. cronie capitalism days are over. [applause] the problem is one set of standards for individual americans and another set of standard for those who make political donations to candidates. and individual tax code with 3.8 million words. when i worked as an attorney, i had to deal with those 3.8 million words. it is too complicated for the average american and too

complicated for the people who work for the irs. it is time to change the tax code. [applause] our corporate tax code is making america hopelessly uncompetitive at almost 40% and getting higher when you add the federal and state taxes. it is a tax code that contains loopholes exploited by companies large enough to hire an army of lawyers. as one newspaper wrote, in 1981, the entire developed world had high corporate tax rates. they averaged 47%. then it rate plummeted to 25%. it is the united states of america that has remained stuck since 1986 in a highly uncompetitive corporate tax rate that is sending our u.s.

companies fleeing the united states for a more competitive tax climate. ask any number of companies. why did you leave the united states? other nations are now a more profitable place to do business to receive a return on investment. did you ever think in your lifetime he would live to see the day when the united states is not the freest, most economically innovative nation in the world? i assure you that is my priority, to make us competitive once again in the world. [applause] for your future and for wall street in particular, we need to wake up and stop blaming job creators for the failures created by a very selfish

politicians who wink at their political donors because they are assuring their friends with government financial backing, their businesses will never fail. that is what i call the jobs and housing destruction act, also known as dodd-frank. i wrote the bill to 100% repealed dodd-frank. [applause] under dodd-frank, there are 400 new rules that are required to be written. 26% so far have been written. do you know that they will now require just those 26% of the rules? an estimated 11 million uncompensated man hours in compliance by business. as president, i will repeal

dodd-frank, and i will throw peel obamacare. -- repeal obamacare. [applause] every day, politicians are winking at their political donors. perhaps no better poster child than that of a cylindrical, where president obama put his political fundraiser in the department of energy specifically for the purpose for putting out which loans should go to which political donors. that is selling drop. it is ugly and it has to stop. we are not a banana republic. we are the united states of america. we need to act like it. [applause] we need a system that forces large, well-connected corporations to play by the same rules as small businesses and individual americans.

we believe in equal treatment. there is a reason why the founding fathers decided to establish political capital in a different city from our's capital. i think it is time to reaffirm that wisdom by getting washington, d.c., out of directing free-market. they are not free when it comes at the hands of washington politicians. i understand the difference between free markets and bernie madoff-style, a gangster government. [applause] my administration will stop the obama administration's dangerous policies. he has delegimitzed is real as describing it as a 60-year-long occupation. and by wrongly blaming israel and her settlements for the lack

of a peace process in the middle east. obama abandoned prior policy and un resolution 242's assistance that israel is entitled to defensible borders. the administration advocated the previous commitments in the 2004 letter committing to the united states to the policy that israel will retain large, west bank settlements blocs, that there will be no right of return for israel for palestinian refugees. [applause] and that the palestinian authority's compliance with its obligations including the obligation to stop inciting terror, which has never stop doing, is the first step that must be taken towards peace. [applause]

in state, barack obama is in properly calling for israel to retreat to 1949 armistice alliance and to then face of further demands to divide jerusalem. i will guarantee you without any reservation, i will never call for a divided jerusalem. [applause] the obama administration has also given the palestinians unprecedented amounts of united states foreign aid. they have opposed efforts to condition that aid on the real step that would bring about peace. the so-called palestinian right of return would demographically destroy israel by swapping it with millions of arabs who have never lived in israel. thereby turning the world all

the jewish state into the world's 23rd arab state. secretary of defense leon panetta went again publicly displayed this administration's disdain for israel by putting israel on the same footing of the palestinians and declarant "they get to the dam table" to resume peace talks. israel's prime minister was one he had to "deal with" every day. the ambassador to belgium went even further. he justified anti-semitism because of the actions towards palestinians, and the president should fire him immediately for those irresponsible remarks. [applause] instead of defaming israel as the obama administration has done, my administration will recognize that in the words of israel's declaration of

independence, israel is a country based on liberty, justice, and peace, taught by the hebrew profits which has safeguarded the sanctity and viability of the holy places of all religions. like the declaration of independence, my administration will call upon israel's neighbors to cooperate with the jewish nation and return to the ways of peace for mankind. what the president demands israel give back land necessary, he has taken his eye off the most serious threat to security, and that is an iran with a nuclear weapon which must never be allowed to occur. [applause] some 80 years ago, the world saw evil rising. but the worldke, th

chose not to listen. millions of jews lost their lives. today, a madman is speaking once again, and it seems the world is not really listening. madeh iran's president has his intentions of israel abundantly clear including as recently as his visit here to the united states in september. he intends to wipe israel off of the face of the map. make no mistake about that. he will use nuclear weapons against the united states of america given the chance. make no mistake about that. consider the iranian constitution. ironman's army will "be responsible for fulfilling the ideological mission of jihad in god's way."

think of that. this is in the constitution of iran. we ignore these words and a call for global jihad and establishes at our peril when a mad man speaks. world, pay attention. [applause] and unfortunately, iran has made good on that very terrible promise in the last 30 years, from the bombing of the united states marine base to be the leading supplier of arms to kill american soldiers in iraq. iran is at the heart of much of israel punta problems. first, we must never allow iran to obtain a nuclear weapon. [applause]

second, we must realize this is every bit as a threat to us in the united states as it is to israel. we must not, we cannot, we absolutely cannot ever allow the outsourcing of the united states national security, certainly not israel's national security, to the united nations. [applause] this is our moment for clarity, our moment for clarity for standing with israel and against the u.n. we cannot afford to wait until the election to change course. the president must make it his policy now to bring down the terrorist leaders and to replace it with a democratic government that can be at peace with the united states, israel, and the free world. this is something i hope would one day happen. the united states must be clear

that it is at the u.s. policy to stop iran from building and deploying nuclear weapons. president obama has been ambiguous with iran and has given the luxury of time to advance their nuclear weapons program without real punishment as we learned unfortunately from the report. the u.s. should develop and deploy comprehensive ballistic missile systems to protect the american people and our allies from the threat of ballistic missiles. iran, with the help of the chinese, have obtained missile delivery systems for nuclear weapons posing a threat to israel, to the region, and potentially us. while we do not buy oil from iran, iran is a major player in the oil market which directly affect the united states.

for the last four years, i have been working to legalize american energy production to free us from iran's influence of oil. [applause] president obama must immediately and his doctrine of appeasement to iran and pursue common sense strategies ignored or rejected currently by this administration. we need secretaries of defense and state who police support a pro-freedom and pro-security policy to iran. we need them to replace those in the bureaucracy who will not fully support this policy. [applause] iran needs crushing economic sanctions. unfortunately, our options are diminishing including on the central bank and on oil and gas industries. we need to hurt the iranian economy more severely.

the president will stand with occupy wall street, but he will not stand with israel. when israel looks at president obama, they do not see a friend. the state department should expose the activities of the iranian regime that is at murdering innocent citizens. we need to accelerate operations in iran. i am privileged to sit on the house intelligence committee where we are focused on national security and the classified secrets of our nation. the president must order the cia director to stop iran from getting the bomb before it is too late. [applause] the pentagon must prepare a war plan. only a fool would wish for war but only a fool would not

prepare a plan. the president's lack of leadership and the failure of the super committee to lead will "create devastating cuts that will seriously damage readiness, making a military response more difficult." the president has damaged the security of israel by decreasing our status as a military superpower. part of that plan should direct the u.s. navy to make preparations for a possible to cutde of iran's ports off critical petroleum revenues. [applause] we need to continue comprehensive missile defense development while we continue to move additional missile defense systems into the middle east to protect our citizens and asset,

israel, and our allies, and we must sell the additional fighter jet, the bunker buster bombs, the refueling tankers and other materials israel needs to defend herself. [applause] my administration will recognize that israel is the historic homeland of the jewish people, a vibrant democracy and an ally. my administration will recognize jerusalem as israel's's undivided capital, and we will be the first administration to finally implement a law requiring states to move their department of the u.s. embassy to jerusalem. [applause] and my administration will also recognize israel's 1980 annexation and any settlements which israel -- [applause] -- as a sovereign state chooses

to annex. my administration will court israel did respect that sovereign nations are entitled. i will announce that our industry will move from tel aviv to jerusalem. i do not take lightly the prospect of committing troops in an effort to stop iran. only a fool wishes for war. we must be necessary to do what ever is necessary to stop the iranians from obtaining a nuclear weapon and destabilizing the region by attacking israel. they would use them to do harm to america and our way of life. i recognize that our security is intertwined with the security of israel. hitler once famously said in the

justification of his order to murder the jewish people "who speaks today of the annihilation of the armenians?" ahmadinejad is counting on the same collective memory loss today. make no mistake. we must send him the message that we will never forget. god bless you and god bless the united states of america. [applause] if we have time, i would be delighted to take your questions. >> microphones are available in either aisle. >> hi, barry. hi, marie.

>> congresswoman, only several months ago, a major national poll showed for the first time well over half of american jews opposed the establishment of a palestinian state. what is your position on statehood and continued aid to the palestinians. >> i do not see today there is a road for statehood with the current state of affairs. [applause] there would need to be radical changes afoot. as was seen this last weekend by leon panetta, there is a complete misunderstanding of this process. israel is the victim in this case is not the one that needs to alter what she is doing. >> and the financial aid?

>> that is something that i think the united states shoudld end. [applause] >> i am a practicing general pediatrician north of chicago. as pediatricians, we view our successes in preventive medicine with a tremendous amount of pride and we consider the modern vaccines scheduled to be the centerpiece in what we do for preventing illness in children. you were reported to make some comments with regard to one vaccine. all of us in this room i think are aware of the difficulties you face in dealing with the media. i hope you could clarify your views on vaccines in general. >> i would like to see the creation of more vaccines and medical cures.

we had a meteoric rise in vaccines that were created. tuberculosis, a whopping cough. this change the course of history. bureaucracy has risen up. today, we are no longer seeing the miracle cures that are coming forward. we need those cures. i would change that process so the united states once again becomes the mecca for the creation of new medical cures. i also left a charge of against obamacare in the united states congress. i led that charge and that brought 40,000 americans here to washington, d.c., to fight against that measure. i believe socialized medicine would be wrong for the united states.

obamacare will ultimately collapse the private insurance industry. we cannot have that in the united states and think that we will survive. my issue regarding that vaccine was with the issue of crnoie capitalism. that was the problem. it is not right when a politician receives money from a political donor and in turn pays off that donor either with legislation that creates an advantage or shut out their competition or gives them an unfair grant that should not be theirs in the first place. that is my concern. cronie capitalism. [applause] >> i happen to be jewish and a former submarine medical officer, but currently i am a

cardiologist at the medical school. >> you have a lovely pedigree. >> i am going to ask you about economics. unlike the depression in the 1930's when we had workers, manufacturers, and employers ready to come together and all they needed was a spark, i do not see that our school system is turning out either during the regular k - 12 or through the post-graduate universities is turning out a work force that is ready for the 21st century. what we need to reinvigorate our economy is that work force. do you agree with me? second question -- how do you fix it? >> number one, i do agree with you. i am a mother of five biological

children and 23 foster children. i am very concerned about the educational system. [applause] i worked in the real world. my husband and i started our own successful company and that worked for years as a tax attorney but was nervous about our foster children and what they had in their backpacks. 93-and four-year old color -- when you are in 11th grade, you should be learning math. you should not be coloring. what i did it was lead a movement in my home state of minnesota. we became the first state in the country to get rid of the federal government could go down and down political correct

national education standards and replace them with academic standards. i believe the united states government should get out of the education business. i would shut down the federal department of education. [applause] i believe instead -- i would encourage the states to adopt true choice. we home schooled our children because we wanted them to know how to read and been replaced them in private schools. my state allowed my foster children one option -- public schools. that is why i got involved. steve jobs before he passed away berated barack obama and said i have to relocate our company in china because we do not have the 30,000 engineers that we need in the united states. here is also something else that

we need to do. we need to continue to put out the animating principles of the united states to young people. no one owes you a living. that is a great lesson to learn in life. [applause] i say that because i came from a family where my father was an engineer. overnight, our family went below poverty. when i was 12, i got jobs babysitting so i could pay for my glasses and my clothing. it was one of the best gifts that god ever gave me at a time when i needed to embrace the responsibilities of life. that is a i think something that parents need to focus on, teaching their children that no one owes you a living. yes, we love you, but no one owes you a living. [applause]

>> excellent talk. thank you. iran has declared a determination to rule the world and a genocide against israel and america. do you think america should insist that i ran to get kicked out of the u.n.? do you think the u.s. should leave the un? [applause] >> i am completely on board with that estimation. i think the most overrated organization in the world today is the u.n. i would be more than happy to back that up. no more questions? all right. you have been a fabulous audience. god bless you all. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011]

>> i prided myself on not being afraid to tell people what i thought. the worst thing you can do is let a senior leader head down the wrong road when in the back of a cure my view of thinking we ought to be looking at this from this perspective because people's lives could be at stake or we have an obligation and a duty to be good stewards of the resources that the public in trust us with. sometimes you have to be courageous in a meeting when everybody's heads are going up and down. >> marsha anderson on her life and career as the highest ranking female african american in the history of the united states army. >> wednesday, mark the 70th anniversary of the japanese attack on pearl harbor. senator daniel inouye talked

about his experiences on that day and the impact on japanese americans. he lost his right arm during a battle of german forces in italy. his remarks are just over 10 minutes. >> today is december 7, 2011. seven years ago, something happened in pearl harbor. i shall never forget that day because it was a sunday, and like many americans, i was prepared to go to church. i was putting on my necktie and having a good time listening to a delightful hawaiian music. suddenly, at about this time, 7:55, the disc jockey in charge

of that program began screaming, yelling through the mic, and he was saying, "the japanese are bombing pearl harbor." he kept on repeating that. for a moment, i thought it was a replay of orson welles, a program that was a hit in the united states. well, he kept on doing this for about five minutes. no music. just screaming. i decided to take my father out on the street and look toward pearl harbor. you could see these black puffs. they were anti-aircraft shells. then you knew what was happening. suddenly, while watching these

black puffs of explosions, you could hear a rumble overhead. there were three aircraft, pearl gray in color and red dots on the wing. i knew what was happening. and i thought the world had just come to an end. just about 2400 american sailors and soldiers and non-combatants died that morning. i was a young man of 17 at the time. but i was also a volunteer medical aid man. we had a little aid station, a temporary one, set up at an elementary school. so, i rushed there to respond to

the call of duty. i stayed there for about a week. taking care of the wounded and the dead. because we also maintained a morgue on our school premise. i became familiar with the cost of war, not the full cost, but i knew what was happening. was much more than blood and guts. mr. president, we have an extraordinary constitution. we have an extraordinary set of laws. but throughout the history of mankind, not just the history of the united states, but the history of mankind, war has

always provided some justification to leaders to set aside these laws. for example, on just about christmas eve 1941, about three weeks after december 7, the united states government made a decision and that decision was to provide a new designation for a japanese residing in the united states. citizens and non-citizens like my father, and the designation was 4c. mr. president, 1a means you could put on a uniform. 4f meant there was something wrong with you. 4c is the designation of an

enemy agent. just imagine that. enemy agent. this was used as one of the justifications to round up over 120,000 japanese, most of them americans of japanese ancestry, and placed them into these internment camps. there were 10 of them in the united states in a very desolate areas. arkansas, arizona, utah, hot in the desert. their crime was that they were enemy aliens. none of them committed any crimes. no espionage. no assault. nothing. but they were rounded up and placed into these camps which

were described as concentration camps. yes, it was unconstitutional, but our leaders felt the war was a justification to set aside the constitution, to set aside the laws. well, many of us, especially the young ones, were very eager to demonstrate to our neighbors and to our government that we were loyal, that we wanted to do our part in this war. and if necessary, put our lives on the line. we petitioned the government. finally after about a year of petitioning, president roosevelt issued a statement, saying "it

is not a matter of color. americanism is a matter of heart and soul." a volunteer group was formed. we trained in mississippi. and we did our best. the 100th battalion, the 442nd regimental combat team were assigned to do our battles in europe. we fought in italy and france. we started off the war with about 6000 men. at the end, over 12,000 had gone through the ranks. you can imagine the casualty rates. we had about 10,000 purple hearts. for all the wounds they received. and we were told that these two

units became the most decorated in the history of the united states. yes, the bombing of pearl harbor 70 years ago began a. in my life when i became an adult. i hope a good american. it is something that i will never forget. it changed my life forever. something of interest at this moment. 20 years ago when we decided to make it a national event, the 50th anniversary of the bombing of pearl harbor, on that morning, the president was there, the secretaries of

defense, secretary of war, the secretary of the interior department, state department, all of the important people of the united states were in attendance at. in preparation of this, we took a poll about six months before december 7. the poll was among high school seniors, well educated young boys and girls. the question was a very simple one. "what is the significance of december 7, 1941?" mr. president, i am sad to report that less than half could respond. most of them thought it was a birthday of some president. or some historic date of some nature, but they could not recall what it was.

on the 70th anniversary, i just wonder if that poll was taken again, what would be the outcome. well, i hope that we will remember december 7. i hope will work -- i hope we will remember 9/11. that was just a few years ago. but people are beginning to forget 9/11. just as well as for getting december 7. if december 7 is going to teach us anything, it should be that we must remain vigilant at all times. not just to avoid war, but vigilant among ourselves so we do not use this as a justification to set aside our

most honored doctrine, the constitution. i hope it will never happen again. mr. president, i think you very much for this opportunity. i yield the floor. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] >> december 7, 1941, a date that will live in infamy. >> this sunday for 24 hours, "american history tv" looks at the japanese attack at pearl harbor including the anniversary ceremony. call-in programs with world war ii historians and author. throughout the day, first-person account. this week's national park conference, a core of

the visitors center, and footage of the attack and its aftermath. sunday on c-span3. >> part of the point of the book is to change the way we think about change and make us much more aware of the potential suddenness of disintegration or collapse, to make us realize that what happens to the financial system in 2007-2008, what is currently happening is the kind of thing that can happen to any system. it can suddenly malfunction. >> this weekend, an economist and historian on how western civilization came to dominate the world and its possible decline. also this weekend, the japanese attack on pearl harbor and the subsequent reaction by the american government, military,

and public, tonight at 9:00. also, a journalist and former judge on bipartisan politics are hurting the country. today at 3:30 p.m. and sunday night at 11:00. every weekend on c-span2. in his weekly address, president obama criticizes republicans for blocking the nomination of a former ohio attorney general to head the consumer financial protection bureau. house speaker john boehner delivers the republican address and talks about the keystone of oil pipeline energy project that members will take up next week. >> today, america faces a make or break moment for the middle class. after the worst economic crisis of our lifetimes, someone to

return to the same policies that got us into this mess. part of a philosophy that says we are better off when people are left to fend for themselves. i have a different vision. i believe we are greater together then we are on our own. i believe this country succeeds when everyone thougdoes their fr share. in order to ensure fair play, last year we passed the toughest financial reform in generations. the rules were not the same on wall street as they were on main street. risky bets were made with other people's money. it was wrong. this irresponsible behavior on the part of some contributed to the worst by natural crisis since the great depression and

bank this reform refocuses the financial sector on what is really important. getting capital to entrepreneurs and getting financing to millions of families that want to buy a house or send their kids to college. a consumer watchdog was put in place, someone whose job is to protect american families from being taken advantage of. tens of millions of americans use these services, protecting them from unscrupulous practices an important job. that is why i nominated richard cordray. richard helped to recover billions of dollars on behalf of retirees and stood up to dishonest lending practices. he has the support of most attorney general's across the country. members of congress from both parties say he is more than qualified for the job and yet on

thursday republicans blocked his nomination. they refused it to come up for a vote. that does not make any sense. to republicans in congress believe our financial crisis was caused by too much oversight? of course not. i refuse to take no for an answer. financial institutions have plenty of high-powered lawyers and lobbyists looking out for them. it is time that consumers have someone on their side. republicans should stop the gaingames and extend the payrolx cut for millions of americans who will see their taxes go up at the end of this month if they do not. congress cannot end the year by taking money out of the pockets of working americans.

it is the time to do what is right for the american people. no one should go home for the holidays until we get this done. tell your members of congress to do the right thing for you and our economy. thanks. >> there is no more urgent task for washington then getting our economy back and creating jobs. no inns of americans are looking for work or have stopped looking all together -- millions of americans are looking for work or have stopped looking all together. we have promised to build a plan for job recreation. 27 bipartisan bills are now waiting for a vote in the senate. one of those initiatives is an act passed a few days ago that would require congress to review any new regulation that has a major impact on the economy.

nearly three years ago, a stimulus plan was promised with the promise that it would keep unemployment below 8%. if it did not work. the president has asked the congress to pass legislation to extend payroll tax relief for working americans. the house is going to do just that next week. it will extend unemployment benefits and cut government spending. there will be no tax hikes on america's job creators. this bill will include several bipartisan bill initiatives including a provision to continue tax incentives that allow employers to invest now in its new machinery and equipment to grow their businesses and create jobs and then another bipartisan provision supports the job-creating peaceful energy

process. the keystone energy process would create tens of thousands of american jobs and reduce our dependence on oil from the middle east. it has bipartisan support in the house and senate and backed by broad based coalitions to organized labor. you heard president obama say the american people cannot wait to take action on jobs. the keys to an interview process is the idea that the american people cannot wait for washington to take action on. canada may be forced to move for rif other customers, potentially china. we cannot allow that to happen. those jobs are too important. the president wants to put off a decision until after next year's election. he now says he will reject the jobs bill if it includes support

for this project. now is not the time for the same old theatrics'. it is no secret that democrats and republicans often disagree on the best way to create jobs, but we cannot be prevented from acting when we do agree. there is bipartisan support for extending unemployment benefits and tax incentives that allow employers to invest and expand. and there is bipartisan support for the keys to an energy project. we need to get these things done. americans cannot wait on the action. the keys to an energy project is a bipartisan proposal that the president ought to support. next week, the house will act to do the right thing for jobs and economic growth. economic growth.