the country five times. this is his sixth. you know him and have seen him all across the news. he is a great spokesperson for the tea party movement. mr. lloyd marcus >> i am not an african-american. i am lloyd marcus, american, thank you very much. guess what, it is 2012. it is the year. ♪ ♪ patriots -- listen up ♪ start spreading the news ♪ i'm telling you today ♪ we are taking back america in 2012

♪ this socialist nightmare is going to come to an end. ♪ i promise ♪ because we are going to vote them out in 2012. ♪ i want to wake up in my america -- ♪ without acorn thugs breaking my knees. ♪ my harry reid blues have melted away ♪ now we have taken the house now it's time to take the senate in 2012.

♪ and when we stop them there their agenda just doesn't have a prayer. ♪ it's up to you and you, and you -- november 2012. ♪ have you had enough of the obama regime? ♪ lord knows, so have i. ♪ thank god it is 2012. ♪ i just want to wake up in my america where i can still speak my mind. ♪ i want o find my freedom restored. ♪ harry reid is out. ♪ no more obamacare. ♪ obama -- he's gone. ♪ my obama blues.

♪ they are melting away. ♪ brothers and sisters, we have to take back our country come november 2012. ♪ and when we crush them there this socialist nonsense does not have a prayer. ♪ it's up to you and you and you in 2012. ♪ [applause] thank you. god bless you.

>> thank you. he always does a fantastic job. [applause] the tea party express would never be the same without him. we have a surrogate speaking on behalf of canada it rick santorum. -- candidate rick santorum. scott? >> thank you everybody. i see a number of people here, over the last couple of years i have been able to work with and give your help on the health- care freedom amendment which will be in the state of florida. thank you for your help with that. i think we will send a strong message when we tell president obama that floridians do not want what he is selling. we fight back against the individual mandates both state

and federal. i first became aware of rick santorum 10 years ago. i saw a speech on the senate floor. it was on the life issue. flipping through c-span and i saw it. i stopped to listen. i was captivated by the elegance of this man articulating the issue. a lot of politicians do not want to speak boldly about that because the ruffles some others. this is a band that spoke boldly about something he believed in regardless of the political peril. i watched his career since then and i have watched him make decisions that were sometimes politically unpopular. he made them recently, including friday when i was talking to him about an issue. i said, that might not go over so well in our state. he said, that is what i believe and that is what i will say. do you know how rare that is in tallahassee and washington?

we need a man who will stand up and do the right thing regardless of political consequences. we have seen enough politicians that will pander to various elements. not creek santorum. i am a legislator. there are things i would like to take back, believe me. but, you know, in this election, one of the most important issues that we have to face is the intrusion upon our liberty in these health-care mandates. let's face it. they're all kinds of issues out there. we differ. we see the various campaigns here. but there's one issue that i believe stands above all because it ties into almost everything else.

we have a president that wants to use the federal government to force us to buy a product from a private company as a condition of living and breathing in the united states. what you think about that? i think a policy that forces people to buy a product against their will should offend everyone that loves liberty. and i will say this -- i think we are on c-span and i think it will get me in trouble, but i will say it anyway. it is an americanunamerican. our founders would roll over in their graves if they knew that we had a president that was forcing that legislation. i have watched rick santorum. for the bailout, no part of them. cap and trade, i am the sponsor here in florida. we are repealing the charlie

crist cap and trade statute here in florida. so he stood against bailouts, against cap and trade, and he is the only one of the candidates here in floor that is campaigning on a " a play against the individual mandates. he is the only candidate the stands with all of us for florida's amendment 1, the health care freedom act. and if the other candidates are here, i would like to ask them how they stand on amendment 1, the health care freedom act. individual mandates, whether it does state or federal, are both wrong. so stand with rick santorum. this is a family man. he is one of the few people that i know -- i have six kids, he has seven -- that has more kids than me. but this is a guy that, for the last number of decades has stood on principles and not

wavered to the left or the right. with some of the other candidates, with some of the policy baggage out there, i think we need a guy that will stand firm in this clash of principles against barack obama and a clash between these two -- we do not need to moderate to beatour views to be barack obama. let's move this country back to conservatism and away from that and put americans back to work. thank you for being here and thank you for letting me speak today. >> thank you, scott. patricia? >> i want to thank you all for coming over here and being part of the rally. the rally will continue. i know they have some great entertainment. if you'd like to go ahead and follow me though, as promised, i am ready to lead you to do that.

if you want to come back out and participate, please feel free. what a great opportunity to have the tea party express bus rolling through winter park, standing for freedom liberty for our opportunity to make the choice. and if i may say so, a choice against the establishment. [applause] so thank you so much. i look forward to the forum that will be inside. that will start at 3:30 p.m. thank you so much, again. they not only god bless america, but may we be a blessing to god. thank you. [applause] >> patricia, you know what i say to the establishment? bring it on. we're not going away. and thank you for joining us here today at this whistle stop, the tea party express whistle stop. i want to bring on a dear friend of mine that i met through this

movement. that has been one of the greatest things about this movement, the friends we have met. he is right here in your own backyard orlando, florida. this is jason hoyt. i am sure you have seen them all across the airwaves. >> thank you, amy. thank you so much. i want to thank the tea party express for coming through central florida and pointing out how important the i-4 corridor is. how many of you find yourselves members of some local tea party group? all right, not every hand is raised. there are some awesome groups here in central florida. we all know how important this election is. it is time to get plugged in. it is time to find a local group. it is time to get outside your comfort zone and do things you have not done before. go knock on doors. go talk to your family or friends or neighbors. there is the west orlando t party, the orlando tea party. there is 80 party on lake nona

the north lake t party. there are so many groups out here. do i hear another one? do i hear northlake? i just want to encourage everybody. and even a ribbon on c-span to find a group in your area. do not wait for -- i even wantand even the viewers of c-span to find a group in your area. do not wait for the were to be done for you. i am all in. i want to encourage your buddy here to do the same as well. thank you for being here. thank you, amy. [applause] .>> sorry. i got caught. the next person and one to bring up, she has been on the of airways, too. she is a freedom fighter.

she is fighting for our constitutional freedoms every day. she has a sensational story. she is a floridian. >> i think ford is a great state. what do you say? -- i think florida is a great state. what do you say? i am just the common girl. i do not even know how i got here accept god changed my plans in the middle of my life's dream. and i have met such wonderful people. i'd thank god every day for where i am and what i am able to do. i just want to be the purveyor of hope. today, do we not sometimes get a little discouraged? right? but we have to remember that we did a very amazing thing in 2010 did we not? we told the united states -- we told the world that america is still an exceptional nation and we will fight to keep her that

way. but you know what has happened. we have seen, through the course of events, that men and women are subject to human nature. have we not? we should not be discouraged by that. we should be reminded that we do not find our savior in a politician. we do not find our savior in a party. we the people of america, must take back this nation. we were billed as a nation of the people by the people, for the people, and it is only through us that we will return this nation to its constitutional foundation. in 1790, john philip qurans said that it was a common fate for the idol to see their liberty taken by the active.

the condition of liberty as a gift from god requires eternal vigilance. and when we stopped that, when we fail to be eternally vigilant, the consequence is servitude. that is our punishment for the crime. ladies and gentlemen, we are charged to be eternally vigilant. what does that mean? that means that you must remember that you're the boss not the politicians. you hire them to do a job for you and, first and foremost, that job is to protect your liberty. and if they fail to do that job it is your responsibility as the boss to fire them. i do not care what they have behind their ninth -- behind their name, a d or an r. i do not care if they are 80

party candidate. if they fail to do their duty we as a nation, we must say you have failed to do your job and you must go home. thomas jefferson said that it is the people -- that if the people fail to pay attention to what our politicians are doing, he says this in a letter, he says you and i and congress and assemblies and judges and governors shall become ravenous wolves. he said that it is the law of general human nature in spite of individual expectancy. it is our job to be eternally vigilant so that we do not have a nation full of ravenous wolves. and how do we do that, ladies and gentlemen? we follow the advice of patrick henry. patrick henry said what would

gentleman wished? what would they want? if is life so dear and so sweet to be paid for by the price of slavery? i know the course that others may take. but as for me, give me liberty or give me death. what he was telling us, ladies and gentlemen, is that he did not want to consider a live anywhere on this planet without liberty, know where. but what else was he telling you? he was telling you that, ap do not have liberty, if we are not focused on liberty every single thing we do will get us nothing but chains and slavery. even our best efforts will be chains and slavery if we do not put liberty first. ladies and gentlemen, this is our task today. this is our task forever. it took 700 years to write the

constitution and the declaration of independence. we have been moving away from it since 1913. this is not a sprint. this is a marathon. and it is about time that we stood up and said, hey congress hey president we are the boss. you're the employee. stop whining. stop making excuses and do your job! will you stand with me today and as responsible employers for this great and most exceptional nation and say we will not except political bordering any more? principles of our party principles of our personality because america deserves better. ladies and children, -- ladies and gentlemen, our children deserve better. do not and let -- do not let anybody tell you that we are going away. we are the heartbeat of america

and we're here to stay. god bless america. >> thank you. she is amazing, a she not? and she is a veteran. thank you for your service to your country. there are many people in this movement. we have truly been blessed. i want to bring up another person that has traveled with us across the country on a number of occasions. he was there from the beginning always stirring up trouble. mr. joseph phillips of tea party nation. he is not a floridian. he is from tennessee. >> hello, florida. just in the interest of full disclosure back in september new to gingrich was polling at 5%. and i endorsed him. look what happened to him. i am just saying. i am here today because i want

to see something great happens in florida. i am old enough to remember my history. i remember, in the 1980's, there was a guy named mr. ronald reagan. there was a guy helping ronald reagan named newt gingrich. and in the 1980's, there was another guy who is just a wall. in 1992, reagan was gone. newt gingrich was helping the conservatives elected. there was another guy who was out there. he was voting for liberal democrats and contributing to liberal democrats. in 1984, newt was helping conservatives take a hold of congress and support the reagan legacy. this other guy, he was running from reagan. in 2002, as a private citizen newt gingrich was out there advancing conservatism. in 2002, this other guy was announcing i am a progressive. what is up with that? from 2003 to 2007, newt started new businesses.

he helped advance the conservative cause. this guy was the most liberal republican governor in the country. what is up with that? now he wants to be president. here is a dirty secret about that guy. he talks about all of the little things that he did and he blames it on massachusetts. i had to do it because it was a liberal. here is a seeker. in december 2005, mitt romney decided he would not run for reelection. the reelection effort for him look like custer's last stand except a custard would have feared a little bit better. so he ran for president instead. but in 2006, he implemented romneycare. then he gave massachusetts cap and trade. in 2006, he advances the welfare state. he does not need to seize

massachusetts, but he does it anyway. down in florida, mitt romney has been lying. let me tell you something. i am a lawyer. i know something about lying. if rick santorum lies about newt gingrich or rick santorum one more time, the bar association will open an investigation against him for lying. we need to ask ourselves how well this worked out for us last time? or we could choose is conservative and put a conservative up against a liberal and put a conservative back in the white house. in my opinion there's only one choice. let's put a conservative back in the white house. let's take obama possibility. let's save america and let's bring america back. thank you so very much. god bless florida.

i love your sunshine, by the way. >> c-span road to the white house takes you live to events and florida leading up to a gop primary. >> i hope you people have a great deal of concern. they are very concerned about global warming and things of that nature. they're concerned about humanity. i hope they understand that, if they take one of these drugs being smuggled into this country that they are partially responsible for deaths. i want them to understand the tens of thousands of people who have been killed by virtue of drug use in this country. it is time for the united states of america to take responsibility for the pain and suffering and torture and murder that is going on throughout latin america. we are not a good example in this regard. if i am president, i will campaign in a very aggressive way. stop taking drugs because you are killing people. . >> he says openly and publicly

that he is our enemy. i am prepared to accept that. there have been few administrations filled with embarrassment. i just think that we need to understand that when chavez and ahmadinejad asget together and say they want to harm the united states, they mean it. we need an aggressive strategy, and non-military strategy, an aggressive strategy to replace chavez and give the people of venezuela a real chance at freedom. >> live coverage continues

tomorrow with a new to gingrich rally in the village. we will also show you mitt romney at a campaign rally at 6:30 p.m. eastern. that is tomorrow here on c-span. >> in his weekly address president obama talked about ending political gridlock in washington and money and politics. then the republican address by florida senator marco rubio the contrast. he accuses of the present of pitting americans against each other -- the president of pitting americans against each other. >> on tuesday, in my state of the union address, i laid out a blueprint for an economy built to last an economy built on american manufacturing american energy, skills for american workers, and a renewal of american values. this week, i took that blueprint across the country,

and what i saw was people who work hard and believe in each other. they believe in the america that's within our reach. but they're not sure that the right thing will get done in washington this year, or next year, or the year after that. and frankly, when you look at some of the things that go on in this town, who could blame them for being a little cynical? just two days ago, a senator from utah promised to obstruct every single american i appoint to a judgeship or public service position unless i fire the consumer watchdog i put in place to protect the american people from financial schemes or malpractice. for the most part, it's not that this senator thinks these nominees are unqualified. in fact, all of the judicial nominees being blocked have bipartisan support. and almost 90% percent have unanimous support from the judiciary committee. instead, one of his aides told reporters that the senator plans to, and i'm quoting here, “delay and slow the process in order to get the president's attention.”

this isn't about me. we weren't sent here to wage perpetual political campaigns against each other. we were sent here to serve the american people. and they deserve better than gridlock and games. one senator gumming up the works for the whole country is certainly not what our founding fathers envisioned. the truth is, neither party has been blameless in tactics like these. but it's time for both parties to put an end to them. i'm asking congress, both democrats and republicans, to stop this kind of behavior by passing a rule that allows all judicial and public service nominations a simple up-or-down vote within 90 days. we should also stem the corrosive influence of money in politics. the house and senate should send me a bill that bans insider trading by members of congress, and i will sign it immediately. they should limit any elected official from owning stocks in industries they impact. and they should make sure people who bundle campaign

contributions for congress can't lobby congress, and vice versa. during my address on tuesday night, i spoke about the incredible example set by the men and women of our armed forces. at a time when too many of our institutions have let us down, they exceed all expectations. they're not consumed with personal ambition. they don't obsess over their differences. they focus on the mission at hand. they work together. if you agree with me that leaders in washington should follow their example, then make your voice heard. tell your member of congress that it's time to end the gridlock, and start tackling the issues that really matter -- an economy built on american manufacturing, american energy, american skills and education and a return to american values. an economy built to last. thank you, god bless you and have a great weekend. >> as you know, earlier this

>> as you know, earlier this week, president obama delivered his fourth annual address to congress. it was an opportunity for the president to talk about his accomplishments over the last three years and to lay out his plans for the year ahead. and he missed on both counts. you didn't hear much talk about the success of his administrationand that's because there isn't much. yes, this president inherited a significant national debt, but over the last three years he's made it worse. our national debt has grown by nearly 50% since he took over, and now, for the first time since world war ii, our national debt is larger than our country's economy. yes, this president inherited an economy where unemployment was too high, but over the last

three years he's made it worse. today our unemployment rate is higher than the day he took office. in fact, since he took over, it's been stuck over 8% every single month. this president didn't talk about his record for one simple reason; he doesn't want you to know about it. but you do know about it, because you feel the failure of his leadership every single day of your life. the bottom line is this president inherited a country with serious problems. he asked the congress to give him the stimulus and obamacare to fix it. the democrats in congress gave it to him. and not only did it not work it made everything worse. president obama has a year left in the white house. so what are his plans now to make things better? what does he plan to do now that he didn't do before? well, we got our answer tuesday night. he plans to divide us against each other. to pit americans against other americans in the hopes of generating enough votes to get re-elected. he tells americans worried about their jobs that the way to help them is to raise their bosses' taxes. he tells those who are hurting

that the only way they can be better off, is for others to be worse off. he tells all of us that the only way for some of us to climb up the economic ladder is for others to be pulled down. this divisive rhetoric this effort to gain political support by convincing some that they will be better off if we punish others, this stuff has never worked anywhere it's been tried. people end up fleeing countries who adopt economic policies based on these flawed principles. and more often than not, they come here. they come here because this is not who we are. americans have always believed that all of us can succeed. that those who have made it fairly, can stay there. and those who are trying to make it will have a real chance to join them. this is what has made us different. this is what has made us prosperous. this is what makes us exceptional. and now, for the first time in my adult life, we have a president who's asking us to abandon our economic heritage.

to become like the countries people come here to get away from. to become like everybody else. yes, people are hurting. yes, there is a growing gap between the rich and the poor. but the way to solve it is not to embrace the 'trickle up poverty' economics of other nations. the way to solve it is to embrace the american free enterprise system. no economic system is perfect. but the american free enterprise system has empowered millions of people in the past. i know, because i saw it with my own eyes. my father was a bartender. and i thank god every night that there was someone willing to risk their money to build a hotel on miami beach and later in las vegas where he could work. i thank god that there was enough prosperity in america so people could go on vacation to miami or las vegas. where people felt prosperous enough to have weddings or bar mitzvahs and, by the way could leave tips in my dad's little tip jar. because with that money he raised us. and he gave me the opportunity to do things he never had a chance to do.

now, we had help along the way. i had student loans and grants from the government to help me get my education. and i went to our public school system. that's an important role for government to play. and so i also thank god that we had an economy prosperous enough to afford to pay for these things as well. so, i'll just close by saying, i hope this year will be the beginning of our work towards a new and prosperous american century. because i know that this idea of a nation where anyone from anywhere can accomplish anything, it's not just something i read about in history books. i've seen it in my own life. and there's no reason why we cannot continue it here, if only we do the right things. may god bless all of you. may god continue to bless the united states of america. >> april 15, 2010, i had arrived in paris. i walked into the hotel lobby.

i met general mcchrystal for the first time and he looked at me and said, so you are the rolling stone guy. i do not care about the article i just want to be on the cover. >> if michael hastings wrote about the commander of u.s. and nato forces in afghanistan in the june 2010 edition of rolling stone. >> i said it was between you and lady gaga. and that was a joke, not knowing she would be on the cover. the general said, i just put me in her in a heart-shaped tub. and i thought this was a different kind of general. >> as a result of the article general mcchrystal was fired. he continues the story and talks about his book sunday night at 8:00 eastern on c-span. >> now a preview of the primary and florida from the "washington journal." it is just over 45 minutes.

host: but the florida primary our topic for the next 45 minutes. joining us, the university of south florida political science professor. susan macmanus thank you for joining us. >> thank you for having me. >> in the days leading up to next week's primary, what particularly are you looking at as far as science about who will win and who will be victorious? >> a lot of people do not like to talk about polls as being meaningful, but they are, and we have seen a shift in momentum since the campaign came to florida, and mitt romney is a little bit on the up right now. newt gingrich lost a little ground. this week it will be critical for some of those undecided voters. candidates are combing the state as fast and furiously as they can, and the ads are running 24/7. news coverage is at all-time peaks, so there's plenty of opportunities for floridians to be swayed in these last few days. >> tippet -- is typical retail

politics work in florida? >> it certainly does. our electorate is going to be primarily over 45 on election day, and it is often the case that if you go to an event there is a candidate in person, and you shake their hand and get a picture or whatever, the chances that you will turn out go up markedly, and so did the chances that you will vote for that person. of course, they are all trying to get the great photo opportunity, at this restaurant go to this little housing area whatever, trying to get the perfect place that sways a certain demographic. campaigning in florida requires a lot of focus group work and figuring out the slices that you have to, you know campaign towards, and this is a state where there are many slices, and they are all kind of different. >> give us a snapshot of what a conservative or republican voter is, and who they will leverage for.

>> there is quite diversity. one of the things that people do not understand about the difference between florida and south carolina is, for example just our racial and ethnic makeup. 11% of florida republicans are hispanic. some are cuban. some. some are puerto rican with a lot of other countries in the mix, but the politics can be different, depending on the time of arrival in this country, a generational divide its. even campaigning among the hispanic republicans is quite challenging. then, of course, you have a religious mix. south carolina largely evangelicals here. you have a sizable republican jewish community. a higher percentage of catholic republicans than in south carolina. even within the protestant mix fewer evangelicals and other

more liberal -- i would not say liberal, but moderate protestants. even there it is different. you have the three geographies of politics. parts of florida are extremely rural. those tend to be more of the social conservatives. then you have your large urban areas -- tampa, orlando, miami. but the key this time is probably going to be the suburban counties, which have experienced the highest incidences of home foreclosures and unemployment rates. florida is the microcosm of america. campaigning among four republicans is as challenging as campaigning among the entire electorate at large, including democrats and independents. >> august with us to talk about the florida primary. if you want to talk about what is going on in florida especially leading up to the primary, 202--- cullis.

journal@c-span.org, also. we have a floor resident line also. 202-628-0184 if you live in florida. and twitter and e-mail. you can also participate, too. "wall street journal" this morning shows a little bit of the strong sections that mitt romney had back in 2008. they highlight jacksonville, fort myers, and panama city, amongst others. big strings around orlando as well. do you indicate that those areas are just as strong for mr. romney this time around, or as mr. gingrich managed to steal some away from those sections? guest: i think always, there's inroads to be made, and you cannot quite compare 2008. i think there is a lot of difference because the economy is so much worse in florida than it was in 2008, even though there we had seen the

beginnings of the recession. the truth of the matter is florida is a state that is used to leading the country out of the recession. now, we have been lagging behind in recovery, so what you see in some of those areas is a tremendous amount of anger at washington. for some people, they like gingrich because he basically screams at washington. he is basically their megaphone. in other places, they prefer romney because he is more of a business person. if you look at florida's senior vote, which certainly in the southwest area you were mentioning, seniors are more likely to be invested in the market, a little bit better educated here than in some other places, and more cognizant of the economy in general invested, follow the world economy, and those voters are very much attracted to romney because of his private sector

experience and the fact that he is not a member of congress, but let's be realistic -- the florida republicans that are going to vote in this primary care about one thing -- that is the candidate that can carry florida in november because republicans across the country understand that if your candidate cannot win florida they will not be winning the white house. host: our guest until 8:30 to talk about these issues. the numbers will be on your screen. let's go first to ohio, we will hear from a republican. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you for the opportunity to speak. i have a question for you professor. i remember watching the house when all of the democrats were kicked out because of a fight between and ex-state patrolman -- do you remember that?

guest: i am sorry, i am not hearing you well. caller: that is all right. my other question is the gridlock we are having now -- we want someone who can pass bills and would have some influence. i remember speaker gingrich having that. host: the ability for a candidate to work on both sides of the house and avoid gridlock guest: believe me, americans are looking for that person because they are very distraught with congress. that is why congress has a record low ratings right now. certainly, as your caller points out, it is the case that gingrich is making much of the fact that he was able to do that. that is one of his loudest claims that he is making on the stump. on the other side, opponents are pointing out that there are a lot of people who served with him, republicans, that thought that he was not the best of

leaders, so there you go. that is exactly why you are seeing this split vote among republicans over these two front runners. people have different perspectives of the power of each of them to actually get something done in washington, but i can tell you that people across the country are clamoring for somebody to put this country together and get the economy moving. host: the unemployment rate in florida is 9.9%, compared to 8.5% on the national average. columbus, ohio, clark on the democrats' line. go ahead. caller: yes, hello, professor. on those psa's that need to be aired, i will call the federal communications commission because what is happening is all this money rolling in because of that one bill that was passed or supreme court, etc. -- i'm sure you could comment on that -- show that

unfortunately, the public service announcements are not put into those roles on a daily basis, and these communications stations are cashing in on all this money running in. one of the problems with the endowment funds was the crash for the colleges. you teach there in south florida, in tampa? guest: yes. caller: number one for all these colleges is football moneymaker, and then the teaching hospitals. host: let's leave it there. there are figures out about ads, which the caller referenced. this is from the "washington post."

host: with that in mind, tell us what you have seen this cycle not only with the amount of ads you have seen, but with the nature of them. guest: it is very expensive to campaign in florida considerably more than a lot of other states. we have a network in almost every market. secondly, it is true that people are very frustrated with the amount of money going into ads. at a time when people are suffering, they look at this and they think -- i hear a lot of people come up to me and tell me, look at all the good that money can do. the truth of the matter is -- many people tell me look at all of the good that money could do. the truth of the matter is that to get your message out to people, you have to use television. that said, the bulk of the ads have the by the -- have been by

the super pacs. people are just becoming aware of what a super pac is. unlimited contributions and not a lot of transparency at this point. so far, most of the super pac ads have had a very negative tone, because they have been contrasts, and most of the candidate ads have been more positive. you could hardly turn on the television around any news cycle where any programs which have large senior listeners and not be bombarded. you get when gingrich-related -- 1 newt gingrich related -- ad, the next one is romney, and back and forth. mute buttons are worn them in florida right now. host: for the super pac ads which adds on each side, what stands out? what stands out as a person who

observes these things? guest: a lot of it has to do with their backgrounds. florida voters have a little bit longer memory of some of these things. they are calculating all of the time when they see these ads which one of these candidates can carry florida. not only that, if they are thinking which one of the candidates can't win over independence? -- can win over the independents. in our state, roughly anywhere from 1/4 to 30% of people will self identify as neither democrat or republican. in past elections, the independent vote has been split. selected in 2008, obama handily won that vote. floridians know you must win that independent vote. they're looking at these vulnerabilities as if they have not seen enough of those in the debate. they are putting the two together, and measuring carefully which one seems to be the one and done overcome this

-- can overcome this negativity. and still win the white house. host: a cure from e-mail says -- as you were e-mail says -- a viewer e-mail says florida could be the national benchmark. that alone makes it the most interesting primary so far. guest: absolutely. we're the biggest, largest, most diverse state. with 29 electoral college votes, the same as the state of new york, two more than we had in the 2008 election, and we are diverse in terms of religion race and ethnicity, ideology geology, and the most -- geography, and we are the most competitive in terms of the democrats against republicans. this is the first primary that only republicans can vote in. vote in. the caucuses ahead of us could have been dependent roads. here, you have to be registered

29 days ahead of the election. host: surely on our republican -- let's hear from a florida resident. shirley, on the republican line. good morning. caller: i am a proud alumni of usf. i'm where you were down at tampa for the debate last monday night. from some friends, we understand that maybe a couple of thousand friends showed up for dr. ron paul. isn't it amazing -- he is pulling 14% in the polls right now, that he is not even campaigning here? to what do you attribute this amazing spirit, and the people willing to come out and shot for -- come out and waved signs and show up for dr. ron paul? we think it does more to do for liberty and constitution.

guest: ron paul has a tremendous following on college campuses. i was outside broadcasting with the local nbc affiliate, and i heard shots where ron paul -- shouts across the way, where ron paul supporters were banging drums and colin l. professor macmanus the excitement is very much -- calling out professor macmanus. so there must have been at least one of my students over there. the excitement is very much related to the intrusion of government, and the concern about privacy. that is one reason ron paul has a lot of following. i attended a debate at the university of north florida, and it was the same thing there. it is a common pattern. to put things in perspective one of the reasons he is by passing florida, besides the cost of television, frankly was that he was humorous in the debate -- that was quite needed,

but also, in 2008, ron paul only received 3% of the republican vote. he would prefer to go to states where they have caucuses because his supporters are so passionate they will show up in great numbers, then he feels that he could secure enough delegates that he will have a lot of influence on the platform and pushed the candidates toward some of his ideals. host: professor macmanus, off of twitter, and john in north carolina asks --

guest: excellent question. that is one of the things that has pushed around me a little -- pushed mitt romney a little bit in the plus column since the south carolina primary because the polls in magic's between the -- in matchups between the president and both gingrich and romney show that romney does better in the matchup against obama, but not surprisingly, it is a dead heat here in florida. that is exactly why we are the nation's premier battleground state in 2010. we are bright purple. where are not red or blue. we are really very competitive. >> lettuce across the state -- host: that is across the state or an overall state? -- overall sense? guest: statewide polls show romney polls better against obama than does gingrich and that is on the mind of florida republicans. i keep coming back to the point and i cannot stress enough, electability is on the minds of republicans because they know the importance of florida on the national map, and in recent

years, no one has won the white house without winning florida if you are a republican. host: we hear consistently the i-4 corridor. what is it? guest: we call it the highway to heaven for republicans. -- for politicians. this is where you win or lose, come florida. is the huge stretch that stretches between the tampa, saint peter's big -- saint petersburg area, to dayton area. together, the tampa and orlando media markets have 45% of all the registered republicans in the whole state living there. in a general election it is the most competitive part of the state, with an almost equal divided between republicans and democrats. the me give you a sample of the tampa bay market. it has one fourth of all of florida's registered voters and is the largest market in the state. as we speak, 30% are registered

democrats, -- 38% are registered democrats, 38% are registered republicans and the rest are independent. you have a similar profile in the orlando area. it is a slice of everything. racial and ethnic diversity a large porter rican population, a cuban. every kind of race religion, geography, rural urban suburban all along this highway, which is why it is canada's come -- to florida they have to go to one -- candidates come to florida, they have to go to one end of this corridor. then they would jump to south florida and occasionally up to jacksonville. if you hit those areas, you have the bulk of the republicans. host: florida, troy. independent line. caller: i've been noticing that dr. ron paul keeps distancing

himself from the pack. i'm wondering how his platform of abolishing the federal reserve and the irs is really going to appeal to republican constituents, and how that has to be, and if florida is not a matter, is that a situation he will have to deal with in many other states? guest: dr. ron paul has already said he is not going db -- going to be competitive in florida rather than appealing in the debates -- appearing in the debates. those were widely watched by republicans in florida as well as republicans elsewhere. he does not feel that he will do well here. a lot of it is his views on some things like the federal reserve do not resonate with florida as much as other places.

certainly, his stances on security are really out of sync with a lot of republicans here, because we have a lot of military retirees and active duty military. he realizes his message, i yield him a lot of votes, but -- will not yield him a lot of votes, but certain portions, like opening up to the, that is a -- opening up cuba, that is a popular stance, because flights have just begun from tampa to cuba. sometimes he does resonate with florida, but to win florida, and we are a winner-takes-all state, he has simply not got the support to do that. he recognizes that, and as for -- focusing elsewhere. it chilled in louisville, kentucky, bill, republican line -- host: louisville, kentucky, bill, republican line. caller: good morning, susan.

[unintelligible] i am from bard's town kentucky, and i do not see how anybody can vote for anybody other than a republican. whoever wins the republican ticket. i've got one of the major concerns. i have called washington for the last 34 weeks over this 2% social security raid of my paycheck. to call up the payroll tax cut. i have called about this to% pay check. this is 2%. the hundred billion dollars has now for the first time in history been transferred from the general fund to pay 44 million unemployed averaging $1,089 a month to go. [unintelligible] if anybody remembers, when bush was in office, he wanted to do the same thing, and everybody said they would eliminate social security. i want someone to tell me why this is not eliminating our

social security. we have $100 million. this cannot be extended more. host: we will leave it there. to the point about social security, one of those issues of concern among florida voters, particularly among senior citizens? guest: it is interesting to point out that when people look at florida they think seniors are the ones most interested in social security and medicare, but the truth of the matter here is the group really focused on these issues most are the baby boomers nearing retirement, and that is the glut of the florida electorate. they have had to think about the retirement they were going to take -- working a few more years, worrying about medicare and the health-care system --

there is anxiety about these issues. the gentleman's comments have received attention here among groups that are focused on that, concerned that reducing taxes simply takes away from social security. it is a fairly sophisticated argument that a lot of people, frankly, do not get, but one that a lot of senior groups are articulating. host: off of twitter, a hypothetical question -- guest: well, of course, jeb bush is extremely popular among for the republicans and he has been outspoken lately, cautioning for the republicans and candidates about two things -- one is the taliban, the belligerents and the fierceness the state are going -- that

home the belligerence and the fierceness they are going after each other. that is not a pill -- that does not appeal with older floridians. they are already concerned about the demise of civility in this society. i believe that as one of the reasons the debate here in canada it had the rhetoric toned down. -- candidates had their rhetoric tone down. subsequently, gov. scott as well. the other thing jeb bush has cautioned about is a hard line in immigration. he is fluent in spanish and has warned the party not to get too far down the line on this one because we want to be a welcoming party. you saw the candidates in the thursday debate tone down the rhetoric on immigration. in each case, you can see the hand of jeb bush cautioning the candidates.

host: almost every paper when talking about florida politics mentions marco rubio this morning. guest: he is also almost universally loved among for the republicans because he is seen as the young generation, the one that can force the party to move in the right direction on immigration. he is seen as a rising star. i can tell you truthfully the most common conversational game at any get the rain is rubio as a vice-presidential candidate. there is one school of thought that says why would he settled for number 2? in my ultimately win the party's nomination and be president. the other school of thought is

the party will appeal to his concern about representation of latinos on a national ticket, and the opportunity for republicans to show a more diverse face. at any gathering you will see about half and half on the question. only marco rubio. -- knows. host: he gave the republican response to it. here is a bit of it. [video clip] >> this president inherited the biggest national debt, but he has made it worse. our national debt has grown cent -- by 50% since he took it over. for the first time since world war two, our national debt is larger than our country's economy. yes, this president inherited an economy where unemployment was too high, but he has made it worse. today, our unemployment rate is higher than the day he took office, and since he took over it has been stuck at over 8% every single month. the president did not talk about his record for one simple

reason, he does not want you to know about it, but you do know about it because you feel the failure of his leadership. he inherited a country with serious problems. he asked the congress to give him stimulus and obama-care to fix it. the democrats in congress gave it to him, and not only did it not work, it made everything worse. president obama has a year left in the white house. what does he plan to do now that he did not do before? we got our answer. he plans to divide us against each other, pitting americans against other americans, in the hopes of generating enough roads -- votes to get reelected. host: a bit from marco rubio. talk a lot the fact that he has not endorsed anyone, nor hasjeb bush. guest: very pragmatic politicians.

they realize it is not helpful to pick sides during the primary. it is a rule of thumb some have forgotten. marco rubio was mentored a lot by governor jeb bush at the time he was coming up in politics and i am not surprised that neither endorsed anyone. it is really their style. host: chicago, ill., steve democrats line. go ahead. caller: good morning miss mcmanus, i'm enjoying c-span. my question is about your reliance and belief on the polls. in light of the last year or so, the media has been telling us that mitt romney is the prohibitive favorite tenet he has the money, the personality and the looks, and we heard that in every state primary poll and here again in florida. the professional pundits, and i

would include you in that, are again focusing on a reliance on the polls. the reality is the polls and the votes are coming in very different way. he lost iowa. what mitt romney has won his one small state that allows democrats to vote in the primary. the thing people are missing with newt gingrich is he not only defied the polls in south carolina, which i understand were getting tighter up until the primary, but he got 60% more votes than mitt romney in south carolina. host: we will leave it there. guest: i understand people's apprehension about polls. there are those that are right and those that are wrong, but i think the polls in florida have been pretty accurate over the last few years, and the trend line you see -- and you kind of

feel the momentum towards rodney -- but as your caller points out, the one thing polls cannot predict is turnout. that is why this last weekend before the election is so important. you have to get people to engage and ensues about going to the polls. there is a huge difference between florida and south carolina. if this state is much more diverse in every way. south carolina is much more homogenous when it comes to the proportion of people that describe themselves as very conservative. florida republicans are a little more diverse, and the seniors here, the bulk of the electorate, are much more inclined to vote for mitt romney than the seniors were in south carolina. some of that is because for the seniors are, as we say younger, healthier, wealthier,

and a little bit better educated and more informed on the economy. they like the rodney business experience, as opposed to -- the romney business experience as opposed to gingrich pointed congressional appearance. that is where the rub is coming down to, i think. could there be an upset? you never say anything -- never in florida. the polls at this moment have accurately projected the direction of the election. host: ocala, florida william republican line. caller: professor macmanus, thank you for your participation. i want to ask you, as a member of the liberal organization such as south florida university to you feel that this new class of students coming in since the 2008 election is in favor of obama and will help him carry the youth vote, or are they looking

at the deficit and thinking in another direction? guest: excellent question. i have a diverse group of students. i teach florida politics. i always ask for a show of hands as to their political leanings and i point out that one -- my mother was one party, and by father was -- my father was another. have everything in my family from bad as ministers to railroad union leaders. if i make them comfortable. truthfully, in 2008, there was tremendously larger numbers of democrats, but i am seeing an upswing in campus republicans and i think that is driven a lot by the economic situation. i think the youth vote in florida will go to obama but the question the obama campaign has is will this critical

cohort that his support of of all, be able to put the time into volunteering -- 4 obama, be able to put the time into volunteering? it was so absolutely essential for obama's factory in 2008. -- victory in 2008. college students are very strapped. they're parents and grandparents can not help them financially. they are taking any part-time job they can find. if they can find anything. they are trying to get through school fester now because of the economic crunch. many of them have pointed out that they still like the president but they cannot put the time into the volunteering and get out of both -- get out the vote that they did in 2008. host: florida, richard independent line. guest: good morning, pedro good morning, ma'am. i am and 80-year-old independent voter.

i've voted equally both ways just about. i watched all of the primaries and after listening to what gingrich and romney had to say about each other, who in their right mind would vote for either one of them? i voted for george bush sr. the first time, but not the second time, and i voted for his son the first time, but not the second time. host: why not vote for mr. romney or mr. gingrich? caller: i do not like either one of them. if you listen to what they bring out in either one of them i do not think they should be there. maybe rick santorum. i would even settle for paul. host: the caller mentioned rick santorum, who is in pennsylvania, but will come back to florida.

guest: santorum had a good debate tuesday night. -- thursday night. a lot of people appreciated his comment where he said let's stop this dissecting of these front runners experiences and financials, and talk about the bigger issues of concern to a lot of people in this state whose economy is not doing very well right now. i think santorum really resonated. that message really resonated with a lot of people, but he is not going to win this state, and he will get a lot of the voters that our social conservatives, and the votes of people like your caller who have simply been fed up with the front runners dissecting each other, which is exactly the message that both governors jeb bush and rick scott have made.

republicans are making it easy for obama to use the sound bites. host: newport news, virginia. republican line. caller: thank you for taking my call. i enjoy your comments. hello? host: go ahead. caller: what i wanted to comment on is yes, i am a republican and i have decided who i am going to vote for. it is going to be obama. i think the gentleman is doing a fine job and with the country. i look at him as a ceo. he is a ceo with just under four years. he has a hard job, and we have to give him credit for the job he's doing. just as the previous caller said, newt gingrich and mitt

romney are not showing anything. who is in the republican party to take this country forward? host: susan macmanus support for the president in florida. go ahead. guest: this republican caller also reflects what republicans in florida are worried about and some republicans look at the field, and think i really do not like either of them, and they like obama because they like him personally and think he has the concern of the country at heart. if they're willing to give him more time to get his agenda through. so, i think this simply reflects the divisiveness within the republican ranks, and that is a concern to republican leaders because any erosion of

support among republicans who are not the majority party in the country, and are dependent upon making inroads into conservative democrats, and independent ranks becomes a bigger challenges. host: do you think the forum's the gop have had really qualify as debates? not really policy talk. guest: that is really frustrating, and whose fault is that? it is the host of the debates and the questions that have been asked. that is why santorum, with his "let's bring it back to issues commentary" really resonated. particularly since that was the last debate before this huge primary on tuesday. host: next call, new mexico. bob, democrats line. caller: i think republicans have forgotten that the party

was a party oftwins -- 1 wingy been the -- one wing being the party of big business, and the other of the progressive. this is unfortunate because a lot of republicans have been affiliated with the more progressive wing, and i think a lot of republicans have reached the conclusion that really there is no choice. host: professor macmanus? guest: well, each party has its challenge with and perceptions about the washington wings of their party as opposed to the

common folks. that is what a lot of polls are good at, highlighting the perceptions of washington, as opposed to the laypeople worthy citizenry. i do not think either party is without criticism of distance between leadership and the average person. host: because you attended one of these debates another follow-up question about the format. guest: we have a clear contrast on that. the camp the debate test the audience not to get rowdy, and to let the candidates speak. it was not the kind of audience noise in the background. there was the contrast in

jacksonville, where they could. i was that both debates, and gingrich was very hopeful going into the jacksonville debate, which did allow audience participation, that that would help him, because in the previous debates where that has been the pattern, he has gotten energy out of the crowds, but it shows that ford is different than south carolina. -- florida is different than south carolina. this state is not as much pro- gingrich. obviously, in jacksonville, romney is the one that benefited from the applause, and some analysts say that was a little bit of setting to gingrich, and explained his disappointing performance. host: the primary is january 31. the polls opened at 7:00. 50 delegates are up for grabs. comment about the early voting, which is currently under way.

guest: it is two forms. it could be through absentee ballots. one-fourth of the people that have requested an absentee ballots have returned those. the other forum is where a person reform goes -- is where a person goes to the polling place. that stops today. we have a lot of people with mobility issues, and some floridians set i have made up my mind, i do not want to hear any more of these ads , and they cast their ballots in tune it out. it is a growing form. early voting. we are not the first state to have it. texas has had it for years. other states are going to adopt

it. it reflects today's society with busy people. it reflects disability communities to feel more comfortable going when it is not a crowded polling place. the real advantage, and why both parties like it is because you can't track who has returned their absentee ballot and who has voted. you can focus your last-minute get-out-to-vote effort. on people who have yet to come to the polls. it seems to be win-win for everybody. host: will they be tabulated early, or not until tuesday? guest: they are not released were tabulated until tuesday. i believe a loss says they cannot start physically opening the absentee ballots until election day. host: as far as the tabulating process, how has that changed since 2000? guest: in 2000 we did not have the optical scanning ballots.

we have the punch cards, which require different machinery, but there are a lot of people that always watch machinery in florida, and that is why you have early voting. if you have the equipment issues, and face it, computers do not work, but then you do not disenfranchise someone because they will still have an opportunity to vote. florida's equipment has definitely improved since 2000. we have no more hanging chads. host: as we head into tuesday talk about later this year when the republicans need in tampa

florida -- need in tampa florida. -- meet in tampa, florida. there was some talk to you could still see an open seat between the candidates? do you see that happening? guest: the idea of a brokered convention, where it is not settled, and the one hand it sounds exciting, but for others it sounds kay added. -- extremely chaotic. a lot of people think it might happen. i am not of that school. if no candidate gets a really large slice of the delicates -- delegates and that magic number it could go to a brokered convention, and that is why ron paul has that strategy, amassing enough delegates, and he would have a major influence over the selection of a nominee and the platform as well. host: this is dr. susan -- this

is professor susan macmanus. the university of south florida political science professor. thank you for your time today. guest: have a great weekend and thank you for having me, pedro. >> tomorrow on "washington journal" of political roundtable with carol lee aaron sharockman and. the role of super pac's and the political campaigns. david coleman talks about the release of presidential takes from the john f. kennedy presidential library and museum. aaron sharockman anne-marie slaughter -- -- anne-marie slaughter as well. live at 7 ams turn on c-span. >> former presidential candidate

herman cain has endorsed newt gingrich in the republican primary. he made the announcement at the lincoln day dinner at the palm beach republican party. we will show you the entire event in about two hours. here is his announcement. [applause] [inaudible] >> sit down because you're going have to get up again but some big surprises. tonight, we have as a surprise -- >> here to endorse newt gingrich, everybody's favorite,

herman cain! [cheers and applause] >> how are you? >> great, great. >> surprise, surprise. surprise, surprise. >> i think you should, on the stage and family members that are here. a big moment. [applause] [laughter] >> my pleasure. >> we love you, herman cain. >> is it my turn? [laughter]

>> absolutely. >> i had to wait until they gave me permission to take the microphone. [applause] thank you very much for this very warm welcome on this very special surprise occasioned. [applause] three very quick comments. the founding fathers got a right when they said we the people of the united states in order to form a more perfect union -- but the union is in trouble. the state of the union is not good, despite what you heard the other night. that is point number one. it is not good. even though our president has convinced 45% of the people that

it is, but you and i know that it is not. point number two. we have become a nation of crises. and is not going to get any better until we solve point number three, and that is a crisis of leadership in the white house that as our other big as crisis. [applause] and that is why am happy to be here tonight. because i hereby officially and enthusiastically endorse newt gingrich for president of the united states. [applause]

there are several reasons -- many reasons as to why i have reached this public decision. i had it in my heart and mind a long time ago. but there are several reasons. one of the biggest reasons is the fact that i know that speaker gingrich is a patriot speaker gingrich is not afraid of bold ideas and i also know that speaker gingrich is running for president and going through this sausage grinder -- i know what this sausage grinder is all about. [laughter]

i know that he is going through this sausage grinder because he cares about the future of the united states of america. we all do. [applause] allow me to leave you with this. allow me to leave you with this. i am inspired, you are inspired speaker gingrich is inspired because it is not about us. it is about the grandkids. it is not about us. it is about the grandkids. there are many issues that i will not get into in terms of replacing the tax code, energy independence, runaway debt -- let me give you just one specific, compelling specific for you to keep in mind as to why you do what you do.

your support is critical as to why we do what we do. in 1999, my first grandchild was born. in 1999, my first grandchild was born. and the national debt for every man, woman and child in america in 1999 was nearly $21,000. and remember the year 1999 can be stated another way. [laughter] the year 1-9-9-9. i am just saying. here is a bigger factor. january in new years day of 2012, my fourth grandchild was torn on in your state. before he took his first breath