national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> if you have a saudi prince who is part of the royal family of saudi arabia who effectively dropped -- bought one of the biggest in the world -- bought into it, what are his motives? diana west writes about culture, politics, and the spread of islam in the entire world. >> i think there is an argument that they should have to register as a foreign agent in its structure. >> more with former "washington times" writer and syndicated columnist on c-span's q&a.

>> british prime minister talks about the latest unemployment figures. that is at 9:00 p.m. eastern here on c-span. >> i have never felt more strongly that america's best days lies ahead. we are a powerful force for good. with faith and courage we can perform great deeds and perform freedom's next step. we will. we will carry on the tradition of a good and worthy people who have brought light to where there was darkness, warmth to weather was cold, medicine to weather was disease, food to where there was hunger, and peace to weather was only bloodshed. let us be sure that those who come after it will say of us in our time, that in our time we did everything that could be

done. if we finished the race. we kept them free. we kept the faith. >> find a state of the union address is going back to 1952 online at the c-span video library. what president obama delivered his address tuesday night live on c-span. search, what, clip, and share. it is washington your way. >> some will say we are reactionaries. some will say we stand for socialism. there will be the inevitable cries. it is time for a change and so on. all those things and many more aside, but we will hear nothing that we have not heard before. >> as caddis campaign for president, quillback at 14 man who ran for the president and a loss. go online to see video of contenders who had a lasting

impact on politics. >> whether our opponents stand on the status quo while we seek to refresh the american spirit. let the opposition collect their $10 million in secret money from the privileged few and let us find 1 million ordinary americans who will contribute $25 each to this campaign. a 1 million member club whose members will not expect special favors for themselves, but a better land for us all. [applause] c-span.org/thecontenders. >> and joining us on "newsmakers" this sunday is congressmen james clyburn. thank you for joining us. >> thank you for having me. >> the chief congressional

correspondent for "the washington examiner." thank you for being with us. congressman, let me begin with the obvious. your reaction to the results in the republican primary yesterday. what you think it says about your home state. >> well, i think this result came about as a result of two conversion kind of situations. you had mitt romney, who one week ago was leading by 20 points, but not able to come clean with the american people, at least in their minds, as to exactly who and what he is. his answers to questions seemed to be filibuster's. he would never talk about that 15% tax rate.

in the way that people identify with it, he would never talk about his relationship with bain what it did to georgetown and outstanding communities here where jobs were lost. they just did not feel him. on the other hand, newt gingrich, from the neighboring state of georgia, learned something about the votes that would be cast in the primary that they are 60% evangelical. he went after the media in myrtle beach. he put people in their place. these were words and faces -- and phrases that he used. he called president obama a food

stamps president. these were reminiscent of richard nixon and the welfare creator by what ronald reagan. he understands all that. he played into it very well and did a masterful job of connecting with the republican voters. >> politics, all the things we want to focus on. >> let me follow up with you a little bit on what you just said. about newt gingrich and talking about food stamps and the poor. during one of the debates' he was asked about this. the audience was cheering when he talked about the idea about the port looking for jobs and not food stamps. you say that you have clearly found this issue degrading to the poor. it seems resonating with the voters of south carolina. would you agree you guys have an employer right after & and agree -- have an unemployment rate of

10% and agree that you generated the voters because he won the primary there? >> it resonated, not that it was true. the record is very clear. 49% of the people who are on welfare are white. we know that. but people think otherwise. we know that there never existed a welfare queen. the admission was made a long after ronald reagan. it worked. we welfare queen being created by ronald reagan. newt gingrich is seeing all this and decided he would create a food stamp camp. that is what he did. it resonated. but the fact of the matter is that nobody wants to be on food stamps. everybody wants a job.

people come back from iraq, afghanistan. there are no jobs to be had and they have children to feed. they will look to see those children. many of them turn to food stamps not because they want to but because they have to. the fact remains that president obama would never have expanded the food stamp program if only george w. bush had expanded the work force instead. instead, he cut back on jobs, to 1 million jobs in the three months running up to president obama's inauguration. it was up to the president to either leave those people on streets without food, expand the food stamp programs they can stabilize and feed their families. i do not think that is a bad thing. that is what our christian faith teaches us to do. take care of those who are less fortunate.

>> from the washington post. >> thank you for joining us this morning. staying on the topic of race and presidential politics, it seems like a four years ago those toppers can together in the democratic primary. when bill clinton made comments that many interpreted as downplaying president obama in the race, saying his narrative was a fairy tale. why do you think that these comments seemed to come up around the time of the south carolina primary? what you think of president clinton now four years later? has he done enough to prepare -- to repair when he made those comments? >> quite frankly, i do not think president clinton ever broke ties. the fact remains, we all know that the south carolina primary is the first in the south.

they leave here today. in 10 days there'll be a primary in florida. very soon, around super tuesday, it will be mississippi, alabama, and georgia. these kinds of discussions are simply because south carolina is a first up in this part of the country. it is a different electorate here than the rest of the country. use the words and phrases being used to connect with voters the do not think plays well in other parts of the country. i love that south carolina is first because on both sides are democrats and republicans. you get a chance for the -- for the candid it to demonstrate --

for the candidate to demonstrate. four years ago, we did not. it gives the african-american community an opportunity to let its voice be heard. it was her very emphatically. >> mr. leader, speaker gingrich has talked about himself as a candid who can -- a candidate who can contrast himself best with president obama. as you know, he will be delivering his state of the union address to congress. what does he need to say to congress right now? it is a campaign year upon us. for a lot of politics are involved in what he is going to say. we have a high unemployment rate, particularly in your state. for what you think president obama needs to say to lawmakers? to the country on tuesday? >> he has to lay out the vision for the future. i am sure there will be a

contrast with one of the republicans. he has to lay that vision out and let the american people know that he believes what has started to happen, 22 million jobs created in the private sector -- i am sorry, 22 months of private sector jobs creation over the last 22 months. we will build upon that. the unemployment rate today is less than it was last month. which is less than it was the month before. the trajectory is in place. we are moving into the direction we need to move into. we are going to build upon that. i think the present will be showing us the way for it. laying out for us his vision of how we should go forward. he will do so without shredding the safety net. he will do so without getting rid of medicare. without privatizing social

security. without threatening educational opportunities for young people. if you look at that vision laid out by republicans, adopting the so-called "bryant budget," all that will be at risk. this president will not do that. he is going to move this country where it ought to be and do so in such a way that it will not put people at peril. >> a follow on that, on the city in coming up this tuesday. last year it you sat next to the house republican chairman and many other lawmakers tried to turn this into a sort of date night where they were emphasizing this message of by- partisan cooperation. this time around, it seems like some are doing that. but as we have seen over the past year, this did not end up under any kind of substances agreement. first of all, do you have any plans to sit next to someone

from across the aisle on tuesday? is there a more substance to this besides the fact it is nice to see members one day a year sitting next to each other in the house chamber? >> well, i am not making any plans to do so. i would not be opposed to doing that. jeb and i are very friendly toward each other. remember, we sat in the same room with each other for several weeks as members of the so- called supercommittee. the republican from the fourth congressional district in south carolina, tim scott, the first congressional district. we are very friendly toward each other. but you know, all of that style is good. but there is no substitute for substance. i will always go for substance over style. i tried very hard to look for

ways to have substantive interactions with the other side. lay out the programs that can be done. a commerce and down in kentucky, a conservative, we have laid out a vision as to how we could create jobs in the rural sector as well as conserve energy in doing so. i tell my republican friends to go along with that program. >> let me follow up on that point. why is it so hard -- and i know the blame game goes back and forth with everyone blaming each other, you have this 60-rule -- 60 boat rule. -- why can't both parties work together on some of the major issues? most notably, bringing down the debt and the deficit? why can't it be done? >> well, because we live in what i like to call a sound bite

environment. i think that people now played to the third or second sound bite. you have noticed from some of the callers into your programs this morning. they got all excited with newt gingrich when he put williams in his place. when he went after the media. that is all they have been talking about at this moment. i think that is what we have got to face. a lot of times when i go to the airport, people come up to me. they say things that clearly have no real relationship to reality. it is what they think. they have picked it up from some 10 or 15 second sound bite that it's looped over and over again. people tend to buy into that.

that is why it is so difficult. i think about that, newt was correct. it is very difficult to pass laws. it is very difficult to have a meaningful, substantive discussion because people make up their minds based on headlines they may have read or some sound bite they may have heard. >> from the washington examiner. >> you might also agree that part of the reason they cannot agree on anything is the two sides are so divided philosophically about how to move forward. this did you miss ago you mentioned president obama and entitlement spending, how he would not in tread on spending which i think republicans would like to do with the paul bryant plan. you knew -- you really need to for with this. there would be a cut in spending spirit you guys were not able to come to an agreement. at the time, you said that everything is to be on the table.

not just tax increases, but in time, spending, plants that would perhaps reduce the benefits or reduce medicaid, medicare, and social security. do you think that there needs to be some form of entitlement reform moving forward because congress will have to come up with these cuts in the coming year or they will take place automatically, as you know? >> sure. everything should be on the table. i have said that time and time again. but let's remember, when we did the affordable care act, the democrats in congress and the president laid it out. we reformed medicare to the tune of $500 billion. we did that. we extended the life of medicare by about 14 to 16 years. that was a fact. that got misrepresented to the american people.

it got looped into a 10 or 15 second sound bite over and over again. democrats lost the senior votes by 15 points simply because a seniors were made to believe that we did something we did not do. the fact of the matter is that every chance you get, we lay out visions that sometimes get misrepresented. then it all depends on which the news channel gives as to what happens to us. let me give you an example. all of us know that the overseas contingency account has somewhere between $700 billion that is being recouped and used, not to expand, but to cut taxes. it can also relief fund some of the educational opportunity programs. extend the tax cuts.

which we should do. for middle income people. by extending the payroll tax cuts. we can do that and do that within 60 days. you can use the overseas contingency account. the money is there to do that. now my republican friends keep saying that's federal money. well if it is, why did they put it in the ryan plan? they put that in the budget as a way to go forward. but they want to do something else with it and give this big tax cut to millionaires and billionaires that we democrats are not inclined to do. 70% of the american people tend to agree with us on that. that is why we cannot get together. the lower 20% seemed to be expanding 15%, 60%, and that of ford sees a increase in their household income.

we want everybody to move together in an equitable way. i use the word equitable and not equal. >> we have a couple more minutes. >> out like to stir back to national politics for a moment. as we know, to be the first special election coming up on january 31 in oregon's first district. a.c. the democrats have held since 1974 now looks like it could end up falling to republican hands. -- a seat the democrats have held since 1974 nell's like it could end up falling to republican hands. >> i do believe we will hold that seat. the young lady who is our candid out there has a tremendous record. i think she is broadly in the center on political issues.

we have the republican opponent who has been revealed. he has some radical things in his record. i think we will be ok. you always want to win every election. but irrespective of what happens out there in oregon, i do believe that democrats are poised to do very well this year and in november. i fully expect for the house to come back into democratic hands and for the senate to remained so. >> follow on that point? quic>> quick follow-up, do you predicted they do take the house in the next election, and you predict that pelosi will be able to get reelected as speaker of the house? and a follow-up to that, what are your ambitions? would you like to be the majority leader, which like to

resume year-old position as the majority with? policy will be -- do you think that policy will be able to become speaker again? >> yes, i do. i think she is putting herself in the position that she is currently in. i think he is articulating a vision for the country. the president is laying out in a way that is helpful to the president. i do believe she will be speaker next january. by the same token, i do not know what the future holds for me. i am very pleased to be in the leadership of the party. i tried to do what i can to make sure that this party continues to focus on the family. if you please, do what is necessary. people's kitchen table issues stay in the forefront.

whatever the future holds, i hope to be prepared to receive its. >> president obama, as you know, this year has been ramping up for his reelection race. he has been positioning himself as something of a populist and try to appeal to middle-class voters who will be a key. yet when democrats made an announcement about the national convention this week, they noted that the present will be delivering his convention speech at the bank of america stadium in charlotte. t think the president is stepping on his message they're a little bit by holding his speech in the venue that is named for one of the banks that he has talked about on the campaign trail? >> i do not think so. i suspect you have to have a place that can hold all the people we expect to be there. i do not think he is walking away from his message or the party is. i think we're gonna open up on

sunday at the motor speedway. that is my understanding. it will not be an integral part of the convention. it will be a big family day. it will be a big kick off. i think that' these are symbolic things. i think it is what the a president says in that stadium and what he lays out. that is what is going to be important. not just where we are. remember, i always like to say, you do not just talk it. you have to walk it. i think that is what is going to be taking place in charlotte. a vision for the future that most americans can identify with.

i think most americans will respond very favorable come november. >> the democratic national convince the -- committee in announcing the convention says it uses as a vocal tool in the south. as a native of south carolina, can the president win at south carolina in november? >> yes, he can. question is, will he? i do not know if you will or not. but i think he can. a lot of that depends on us in south carolina doing what we can. organizing our voters and getting people to understand that the president is president and not keene. he has been present for only three years. we know from the independence is that what has happened in this country today was a 30-year journey. over 30 years.

a study was done and said we got to where we are because of policies still in place 30 years ago that all converged at a time. we have to get people to understand that president obama is not a magician. he is not keen. we should not expect him to do in three years what took three decades to do. -- to undo what took three decades to do. i believe is possible for him to win south carolina. it will be an uphill battle. if all democrats, independents, people of goodwill were to come around a good future vision of the country, yes, we can. >> question from susan ferrechio. >> the democrats were able to get the majority four or five years ago. if you managed to stay in the

majority for just two congresses. can you talk about why you think you were only able to stay in for 4 years. was this bad policy, bad politics, or bad luck? >> i do not think any of our policies were bad. i think our policies were as good as the environment within which you laid them out. they are also as good as the message that you lay out to further those policies. i believe that we, in 2010, failed the message and effectively. in 2010, our biggest and tight- of vote came from seniors. -- anti-vote came from seniors. they thought we did something we did not do. the difference in our winning

and losing was the senior vote in those instances. the reason we lost it was because we failed to explain to seniors what we had done to medicare when we put the affordable care act in place. again, the affordable care act, to me, is something that most americans think should be done. you have all these other guys rallying against the program say they will repeal it. they want to go back to insurance companies telling you to children going with diabetes, not being able to get on their parents' insurance policies. they want to go back to children not being able to stay on their parents policies once they go to college. these kinds of things are necessary to stabilize families. necessary to stabilize families.