112 congress. then john gizzy talks about the conservative view of the candidates in the 2012 presidential campaign. and later, shirley malcolm discusses the $80 million in new public spending for a program to boost math and science programs in the united states. "washington journal" is next. .

screen. you can also e-mail your comments. also today in washington, cpac, the gathering began yesterday. you will hear from a number of speakers, including former alaska governor, sarah palin. let's look at the "wall street journal" coverage of washington.

a number of organizations weighed in with their opinions about this change. the united states conference of catholic bishops came out it is today saying --

house speaker john painter briefly weighed in. -- john boehner briefly weighed in. he said -- others had a more positive reaction. nancy pelosi said -- let's hear what you have to say. maryland and joins us on the democrat's line from columbus, ohio. good morning. caller: good morning.

i think this whole thing has been blown out of proportion. the president does not have award against religion. -- howff a war against religion. why do the catholic church and the right-wing fundamentalist church have the right to go to the government to go to -- to have them legislative laws that infringe on our religious or non-religious beliefs? they're always talking about the government intruding? -- intriguing. -- they are always talking about the government is intruding. you do not have the right to use your religion to tell the whole country they cannot.

and try to shut down planned parenthood and things like that. and the church also used their religious beliefs to stop sales of liquor on sundays. the was a catholic thing. from rhey inear pittsburgh, independent caller. good morning. caller: good morning. any time anyone saw steps out like this and says that insurance companies will provide this for free, i think he has overstepped his bounds. it will not be for free. i am not a catholic. if you can required to provide contraceptives for free, that one of require car conveys to give a car to a person for free?

-- car companies to give a car to a person for free? this is not a right issue. this is a response ability issue. a woman can choose not to have sex, and thereby not need contraceptives. host: here is a statement made by cecile richard. other organizations are saying that they are pleased with this decision is because women will still be covered. other organizations, more liberal ones are also saying they are pleased because this takes the decision away from religious affiliations and directly. let's talk about this on the campaign trail, and asafa cpac

-- also cpac in washington. joining us from washington, aaron blake. morning. guest: good morning. maine.et's talk about guest: it is a bit of a our case in maine because they hold their caucuses over a week, starting march 4. we will get an idea of who performed well in the caucasus, as with minnesota and colorado, which held their caucuses on tuesday, it is a blow to an hour event. and because of the format is a less important -- it is a low turnout event. and because of the format is a less important event than in another state. somebody like ron paul could perform very well, given the of

odd nature of the report race. -- of the race. host: your paper rights that ron paul as the big question this weekend. he is not participating in cpac this week. tell us about what he is doing on the ground and what it means if he wins or does not win in maine. guest: you pretty much as a delegate focused strategy. he is campaigning in states where it is cheaper to campaign. he is campaigning in states where there are caucuses there are a bit more accessible to a campaign that is running a thrifty campaign. states like minnesota and colorado are important to that, but also states like maine. especially given that his opponents are now focusing on the state's very much. we think of maine as a democratic state with not very

many delegates at stake. but republicans won the legislature. ron paul could credibly make the case that he is benefiting from some of that anti- romney sentiment out there and make himself a competitor for the rot -- for the long haul out there, which he said is all about being a delegate for the national convention. host: the straw poll and cpac, tell us about that. guest: that has been dominated by dhanapala in recent years, but he is not there this year. -- by ron paul in recent years, but he is not there this year. i would expect some of his supporters to be there. it is really the most conservative element of the party at an annual conference of

is dominated by a social conservatives, college republicans, the most social active part of the party. i think we are all looking for tonight is, how does mitt romney do in the straw poll? i do not think anyone is expecting him to win. given that this is dominated by the most conservative of conservative. the question is whether he can have a respectable showing or whether he still has liabilities with the conservative base. host: and what would be the big headline? not that you can see the future for us, aaron blye, but if there are numbers the rahm expects to hit and he does not hit them, that would be big news -- the mitt romney expects to hit and he does not happen, that would be big news. guest: i think just by the tenor

of the response to the speeches that were given yesterday -- you know, both santorum, gingrich, and romney spoke before the crowds. gingrich was probably the least well received. judging by? -- judging by that, romney at least has to be to gingrich and have a respectable showing next to santorum. i do not think anyone expects him to win. if he winds up getting beaten really badly here, the story line is going to be unhelpful for him and that he does not appeal to the conservative base of a party. host: and lay out how the straw poll works. can everybody participate? guest: everyone can buy tickets. it is not cheap. it is limited. there are a few thousand people

here. what has happened in the past is that sometimes a candidate will register people for the straw poll, will bring them in a, where they attended the rest of the events or not. as in the iowa straw poll, there is a way to gain the system. i'm not sure that there have been any of those events happening this year. this straw poll has been of less significance just because ron paul keeps winning them. and in iowa, michelle bachmann 18 and finished sixth in the iowa caucuses. -- nichelle bachmann won and finished sixth in the iowa caucuses. blake, thank you so much. guest: thank you.

host: we are also talking today about the white house and the shift on contraceptive policy. let's see what the president had to say. >> today, we reached a decision on how to move forward -. the core principle would gains. but if a woman works for a charity or a hospital that has an objection to contraceptive services as part of their health plan, the insurance company, not hospital, not the charity, will be required to reach out and offer the woman contraception free of charge without copays and without hassles. host: that is the president speaking yesterday on twitter -- at the white house. joe weighs in on twitter --

we will talk about the details, but first, amy in collinsville. caller: i think it is terrible and i think the insurance companies -- just to say that your honor will pay for it, i have no desire to participate in the sins of other people, particularly abortion. host: we are talking about contraception in this case. caller: no, all three things are included in that bill, that is, forced sterilization, contraception, and the abortion pill. and the morning after pill is a morning murder pill. it is not contraception. host: let's talk about digging into what they mean. our caller talked about how they

pay for it. here is the answer. they may not have an alternative, but eventually insurance companies may figure out how to pass on the cost. michael is in new york on the independent line. good morning. caller: good morning. i am a professor and one of the things that has not been brought out about mitt romney is, you know, i think it is nice that

the mormons have coffee or tea, but the real question is that it is an all white religion. i do not see any lot americans, asians, african-americans -- latin-american, asians, african- americans. i would like to hear his ideas on this because he was and still is a bishop in the mormon church. i think that is something that has been left out. thank you so much. have a wonderful day. host: let's hear from barbara, manchester, new jersey. -- margaret, manchester, new jersey. caller: to the man who said that

women could refrain from having sex in lieu of using contraceptive pills i have a simple comment, i cannot wait until in male contraceptive pill is developed and then let men give up having sex in lieu of taking the pill. according host: let's -- host: let's look at what the seven write-in on twitter -- lisa right spin on twitter. independent caller, janet. caller: i think this is scary. it reminds me of this part of the problem with germany. i'm surprised there is not a walk on a washington. host: what about it is scarce use a much? -- what about it scares you so much? caller: i cannot understand what you're saying.

host: why are you scared? what is it that scares you? a caller: what is this leading to? host: what are you saying? caller: whoever heard of anyone saying what is going on in the churches. it is just ludicrous. it does not happen, but it is now. host: let's go to michigan. caller: the president is sidestepping again. this has nothing to do with being a baptist, a mormon, or anything else. it has to do with who is going to pay the bill and the infringement on our rights from the constitution. why is our constitution being allowed to be shredded by this president? when need to have someone take over the allies -- we need it to

have someone take over that will realize that the government is not free. it is my tax dollars, your tax dollars. someone is going to pay for it. my insurance rates are going to go up to cover somebody else's birth control, somebody else's abortion. you have to be kidding me. this has to do with our country and what it was founded on and what it will bion unless we get someone in their the clean on e -- what it will budie unless we get someone in there to clean house. it is not just a personal thing here.

newt gingrich and mitt romney and others have done it. i am a christian, you bet. and i do not plan on having my insurance rates go up to pay for deadbeats who will not get a job. imagine 90 weeks of freebies. host: we are talking about different things here now. you are talking about unemployment now. use rideoutte with this idea of ensuring -- you started out with this idea of insuring birth control and covering organizations and whether they are to require a. here's a comment on twitter. the "new york times" diggs into the behind-the-scenes of what happened here.

the fight was never against catholic bishops, but rather part of the plan. mr. kiam had told the white house that the new rule, part of the health care law, went too far. i thought he made a bad decision and i told him that. i told the staff that. i felt they had made a bad decision on principle, and politically, it was a bad decision. and it had the potential to threaten the future of health reform. where do things stand now?

the question is, how is this being met now by sister kecoughtan and others. that is much more of a measured role in their opinion. before making his announcement, mr. obama on friday called of three people, sister keehan, ms. richards who runs planned parenthood and archbishop dolan. the archbishop acknowledged a grudging -- offered a guarded acknowledgement, but it was the first step in the right direction. let's hear what jim thinks from oklahoma. welcome to the conversation. caller: two points. first of all, do not of the catholic church -- basically, what they are asking is to let the catholic church

discriminate, to step all over women with their policies. secondly, these are the same people that are throwing viagra out there like it is candy. it is the most abused and recreational drug out there. i do not hear the bishop saying, let's cut that off. when god tells you cannot have whensir, i don't get -- god tells you you cannot have sex, sir, don't go get a bill. host: next caller caller: i have one question of the president. who does he think he is? does he think he is king obama? this was not just men for the catholic church. this was meant for me, one single america, to have the right to my freedom of conscience. now my company has to go out and

find cocotte an insurance company that will obey the edict -- and find an insurance company that will pay the edict. it is crazy. if he can do this, then what can he do? next it will be every american have to buy a gm car. after all, it will help the economy. host: thanks for calling. we want to your where you have to say about the white house changing the contraception

policy. here are the editorials weighing in. moving on to some of the other papers --

one of our tweeters direct as to the op-ed page of dale collins. it is called "the battle behind the fight." it is not really about birth control, she said. tom is in detroit on our democrats line. hi, tom.

caller: good morning. i want to mention a couple of things about this abortion issue. i do not have any problems with the catholic church not one in to supply contraceptives. if they want to force their voice to pay some insurance company to get a few economists or something, i guess that is their right. -- a few condoms or something, i guess that is their right. abortion is the -- there was something written by the cambridge press. it gives a detailed account in clinical language, doctors language, like you would read in a textbook -- excuse a chemical account of what an abortion, in particular a partial birth abortion is all about. my opinion is that i do not like it. i think it is a grizzly thing, a

part of our society that is necessary. i'm sorry, it is necessary. there are a lot of people who make babies. they do not know how to have sex with, making babies. host: what you think about the contraception issue? the change in policy. our caller: do not have a problem with it. ordaz -- caller: i do not have a problem with it. if the people who do not know how to have sex with ... making babies, let's give it to them. ordaz -- without making babies, let's give it to them. host: i think that is the point of contraception. that is why it is a preventative measure. but go to a response to the president's announcement yesterday. rick santorum was at cpac weighing in. [video clip]

>> after many concerns over the loss few weeks, as well as many concerns, about making this into a political football -- host: that was the president speaking. let's go on to rick santorum. we do not have that. let's go on to david on the independent line in detroit. your the second detroit caller in a row. what do you think about this issue? caller: i think this opens the door for getting vasectomies out and hysterectomies. i think people can cut ties with paying a lot of bells. host: all right, next caller in bloomington, illinois. caller: nancy's was absolutely correct. let's pass the bill so we can see what is in it.

and this was in it. i am a catholic. i am pro-choice, but what i am having the middle class have everything. when you say it is for free, president obama, it is not for free. everything is always passed down to the consumer. whatever the manufacturing product is, or the service, we will pay. and the people that are paying are the people that are working, the people paying taxes. the bottom line is, the democrats have a much easier package to sell. and that is why the media picks it up all the time. in conflict with the republicans who have the package to sell of we need jobs, we need tax payers. we do not need people on the

dole in every aspect of life. my father told me, god rest his soul, 10 years old, there is no free lunch. mr. obama once richard -- redistribution of wealth because that gives him more power. host: let's go to the next caller is spring field, ohio. caller: the republican party politics itself in so many ways because they are like, the lord gives conception. they are against abortion and they do not want to provide that, but after a child is born

there will not give them no food stamps, no welfare. what are these children and women supposed to do when they do concede? ?- conceive because they're going to do it. they will conceive. it contradicts itself. on the web -- on the one hand, they want to take away a woman's rights, but after she has the child, they will do not want to provide any thing for the trial. -- the child. the state should not be giving money to the church. the church is sustained by faith and trust. that is where your types and offerings go. -- tithes and offerings go. i do not pay my taxes to provide for the church.

i have my own church. host: let's go on to a comment from facebook. then he writes in and says -- you can join the facebook conversation by looking for c- span on line. next up is brandon in california. caller: i am a 19-year-old independent and i have known for a while that president obama as saying one thing and doing another, just like he did with the defense authorization act. he has done this since he was elected. he said he was not going to sign the sopa act. who knew what would have happened if it had gone through? he says he is for religious

freedom, but somebody should not have money taken off them to give to somebody else. you should get a job. this the way this country was founded. it is the greatest country in the world because about. host: let's take a look at what risk -- mitt romney has to say in response to the president's announcement. [video clip] >> my presidency will be a pro- life president to provide our will insure that planned parenthood and organizations like that will not get our support. [applause] and i will reverse everything go, legislation that attacks on religious liberty and trends in is a life in this country. host: president brahney yesterday at cpac. -- paul mitt romney yesterday at cpac.

let's go to our next caller from mississippi. caller: our government subsidizes everything, from corn to everything. but somehow this issue has been presented died suddenly this is the first time the government has taken anything from us. this has been happening since we have been in america. this is an issue that has been politicized, but as all. -- that is all. also, we can feel this when it is happening to individuals. we do not feel it when it is at .arge groups critica

this is definitely another way the government is helping. host: let's hear from james, republican caller in south carolina. caller: i disagree with that caller. but anyways, the guy that spoke a few minutes ago from michigan and said something to the effect that the ladies are going to do it, in other words, conceived -- granted, that is going to happen. but then he said, and the republicans going to give them this or that? no, they can conceive. that is their right. but they have to support their own children. please don't cut me off. about the thing that obama and them are doing, it is a valid point, and yes, he stepped in it. but it is an attack on religion and the first amendment, of your

right to live the way you see fit. and furthermore, the treatment that women are trying to get, it is an expensive thing. but anyway, but the thing i want to say to you and to c-span is, a little while ago when you said you were going to go to santorum, first, you had to play a clip of what the president said, and of a sudden you did not have sent from trebek could have been an error. i understand technical -- have santorum. that could have been an error. i understand technical difficulties. but when you go to the newspapers, you go to the "washington post" which is very

liberal and other very liberal papers. why don't you ever read from something like the "washington times"? host: we do. caller: it is always the new -- the "new york times" and the "washington post" which everyone knows, and you should know, are very liberal newspapers. host: thank you for your call. the reason why we look at the papers we do is we want to share with our viewers what people in washington are reading. when members of congress wake up, what are they reading and what are they sharing? but we certainly try to have a bounce of stories that we read -- a balance of stories that we read on the air. and you are right, you got us in a technical glitch. we will be talking about cpac and many of the candidates who

have attended this week, how they have weighed in and what they have to say. we will look at that in just a little bit. looking at the "l.a. times" -- 9 also here in the "washington post" -- we would bringing that to you on monday here on c-span.

a number of stories in the papers looking up the budget plan. the open crosstree journal" says the budget will call for taxes on the rich, a jobs program, and innovation. a couple of other stories in the news, the power milwaukee's -- al-awalakis are linked to the underwear bomber.

to's hear what george has say in inverness, florida on the policy weighing in on contraception. caller: i would like to start out by saying i think c-span does a great job covering the news. host: thank you. caller: as far as the contraceptive deal going on, isn't it far cheaper to supply contraceptives and then having families have so many more children than they want and that they cannot afford and have the government have to give them money to raise their family and buy them food? i think it would be better to just paper the contraceptives. every family cannot walk or run with 10 kids. thank you very much. host: the tir web maryland in

st. louis has to say. democratic caller. caller: i want to put a different spin on contraception. i am in my 40's now, but i have chosen not to have intercourse for at least five years. and my doctor -- i have adult fibroids and i have to break through bleeding, and my doctor chose to give me contraception to prevent break through bleeding. i have been on the pill. i have not had any more bleeding. also, i have begun to have hot sweat. i no longer have them. i have no desire to have intercourse, because that is another health issue for another show. host: you are saying that of control has helped you medically. caller: it has helped me medically. and i want to remind people it is not always about intercourse. it is a little deeper than that in some cases.

host: we mentioned earlier that rick santorum weighed in on this issue at cpac. let's go to what he had to say. [video clip] is not -- >> he is not telling the kappa church that they are forced to pay for things against their first amendment rights. against their basic teachings. here is what it is forcing them to do. an insurance policy that force them to pavers of the net cost just a few dollars. is that what insurance is for? and the foundational idea that we have the government telling you that you have to pay for everything as a business, things that you do not really need insurance for, and still forcing on something that is not a critical economic need. when you have economic distress that you would need insurance, but forcing them even more to do it for minor expenses. ladies and gentlemen, this is

the kind of coercion that we can expect. it is not about contraception. it is about economic liberty. it is a our freedom of speech. it is about freedom of religion it is about government control of your lives, and it has got to stop. host: that is ricks cent from yesterday in washington. kathy in dallas joins us. caller: i think this is a bunch of nonsense. and that may explain why i say that. like the lady that called earlier and she said that it helped hermetically, well, -- it helped her medically, well, i feel that if the catholic church as a business to mai, if they accept money from the government, then why shouldn't the government have mandates on them? if you do not want the government in your business, as we always say in the private

sector, i just think this is so ridiculous. then they say the government is trying to tell you this or that. but look at all of these cities, like detroit, where the republican government is shutting down the places that were elected. that is government takeover. president obama, then he caved in. but i'm saying that all of these catholic priest, or whoever they are, if they do not want government in their business, quit taking government money. host: but go to savannah, ga., independent caller. hi, doug. caller: good morning. i'm a first-time caller. host: 08, welcome. -- oh, welcome. caller: this is not about

freedom of religion orszag any of that. this is about one of -- freedom of religion or any of that. this is one of president obama's show gains. -- shell games. what is about is about him taking over everything. unless the american people wake up, and the news media starts reporting on this, it should not be him requiring health care insurance companies to provide this for free. host: mandy write-in on twitter and says we should ask men to take contraceptive pills and the full responsibility of bearing children. and this by c-span junkie --

but he had a final couple of stories in the news this morning, -- looking at a final couple of stories in the news this morning, this is about syria. the "wall street journal" writes about how there is a mounting pressure in washington to give aid. even as diplomats from both countries are weighing in about the conflict. this is about what is happening in greece. here is how the "wall street journal" covers it. coming up next, we'll talk about the environmental records

of members from the league of conservation voters with gene karpinski. it will be right back. >> when i first started the book, i also thought this must be an american story, about a country that worships self- reliant and individualism. this is in the legacy of thoreau. but it turns out it is much more common in other countries, and

even more common in iran he talks about adults choosing to live alone and what that means for the country. also tonight, the former secretary of state -- the sister of condoleezza rice, connie rice. and at 8:15 p.m., bonnie morris on her one-woman play and a book of the same name, "revenge of the younwomen's studies professor." >> subscribe to youtube. sad,ere was this a very tragic episode in beaumont. a race riot broke out here a, on

june 15, 1943. there was a story about a black man having raped a white woman. when this story spread through the shipyard, several dozen of the shipyard workers, some say at least 2000 shipyard workers came out of the shipyard and came downtown to the city hall and to the police department to try to find a person who had allegedly committed this crime >> there are hundreds of videos to choose from on line. "washington journal" continues. host: gene karpinski is president of the league of conservation voters the. billy of conservation voters have come out with this annual scorecard of congress and their votes.

you call this congress the most anti-environmental in the nation's history. explain. guest: it is sad, but true. i've been working on these issues for 30 years and lcd has been doing this for over 40 years. at seventh, it is true. r, there haveear c'mo been 200 votes and we scored 35 of those votes. this congress was the most anti- environmental and history. but the good news, most of those bills that passed the house did not become law. host: and what stop them? guest: almost every anti- environmental bill that was in the house, very close the allied -- closely allied with

other bills, those passed the house. the senate and president obama managed to defeat those and veto those. host: let's talk about the bills that the league of conservation voters find most distressing. but what is the top one? a guest: probably the biggest single attack is on the environmental protection agency. it has been around since 1970. it was set up by president nixon to protect our air and our water and public health. it has an incredible track record, saving lives, reducing health-care costs, making sure the public is protected with the air they breathe and the water they drink. that is what they are supposed to do.

the leader is very artistically, very forceful. he pays attention to science. and this epa in the last three your account -- in the last three years has made a number of proposals. that is what they're supposed to do. but the house has tried to block them from doing their job. for example, last december, the first proposal to cut mercury and other toxic pollution from power plants produc. it has been 20 years and then they -- in the making. but seventh, the house tried to block it. but the senate said that was not born to rock and and those proposals went into effect in december. -- ordaz was not going to happen and those proposals went into effect in december. host: let's talk about state representatives. let's talk about the state

representative that got the lowest score. there are quite a number that, low scores. guest: the previous house had an average score of 57. this year's is down to 45. host: what does that mean? from one to 100? guest: 12100, and 35 different roads, and if -- from one to 100. in 35 different votes. a very specific subset of the numbers in the last congress, their average score was 73. the average score of those who replace them, 15. a dramatic drop. that is the difference with this congress. host: before we go through some names and states, what does the league of conservation voters do

to prepare for the next election? guest: the score credit -- scorecard is put together by a lot of groups within the community. a number of states are part of the process. there also iran and help us shape which votes are taken. the scorecard is not -- they all sit around and help us shape which votes are taken. this scorecard is not an election tool. it is an educational tool. we also get involved in the elections. we endorse people who we think our champions. and we have a dirty dozen every year, who tried to defeat some of the worst anti environmental members. we are just beginning the process of getting involved in that.

george allen, that is an open seat. senator jim webb is retiring. george allen has a lifetime score. a sharp contrast between the 1%, and it live * corporate -- the lifetime scores. host: here are the numbers on our screen. but take us through why some of these members on this list. guest: that is across a number of states, south lake, from alabama to wisconsin and a number of states. it is about 20 states. what that means is that of the 35 votes that we had, they got no more than three of those votes correctly. from alabama down to arkansas

and texas and wisconsin. the most extreme example, in terms of numbers of voting, there were four members of the house but i actually got a 0. mendenhall 35 votes -- of the house, they actually got a zero. that means that of the 35 votes, they got all of them wrong. host: if you like to join the conversation and talk with gene karpinski, the numbers are on the screen. let's go to ashland, kentucky, where god is on the democrat's line. the -- doug is on the

democrat's line. caller: republicans want to destroy the world we live in. we start of the epa so our children in the future will have clean water. i know a little about this. these companies do not want to clean up their pollution. republicans say it destroys jobs. it makes jobs. it makes good paying jobs, but they do not want to pay, these corporations. we need to keep our air breathable and our water fresh. host: here is a breakdown of the house and senate in kentucky.

kentucky is read, that means 0- 19% in the ranking. and the house is in orange. guest: the senate minority leader, makan, savidge, is almost always in opposition to protection. -- the senate minority leader, mitch mcconnell, sadly, is almost always in opposition to protection. those who say these things are job killers, it is just not true. we save lives and create money and create jobs creating new technology. president obama and the senate blocked almost every effort to block the clean air and clean water act. host: someone asks, what is the

stance on nuclear-powerr? guest: it has been around for more than 50 years. we all agree it is a community we should not be subsidizing using taxpayer money. host: let's go back at the map, looking at how the members of congress rank environmental it. who are some of the high achievers? what are some of the delegations making environmentally conscious decisions? guest: the highest are connecticut, hawaii, vermont, rhode island, massachusetts, and the state of maine. those are leaders.

from some of those states have come the biggest champions on our issues. we want more champions. one example is ed markey. he is an important leader and champion. our job is to make sure we score the votes, and also give a shout out to the champions. host: republican line. marion. caller: i am very tired nuclear engineer, -- i am a retired nuclear engineer and i have been protecting the environment for over 30 years. mr. gene karpinski is not telling you that the epa is attempting to regulate the

water. i taught you the -- environmental law for many years. he is trying to regulate our sncc to less than what happens in nature. rsnic to less than what happens in nature. we have had the epa go as far to an attempt to make it almost impossible for small printing water systems to comply with these regulations. we have a system of people at the epa, and i like them a lot, that are trying to regulate industry out of existence. i am talking about small water systems in small communities. we probably have better water than most large communities, but our are cynic might not fall within the categories.

you cannot maintain it at less than what happens in nature, and that is what epa is trying to do. host: let's get a response from gene karpinski. guest: nobody wants unhealthy levels in our drinking water. in the clean air act, passed in 1970, amended in 1990, they said the job is to look at the science, the law, and the facts, then when you set your standards for pollutants, you follow the science. the scientists decide what level is safe. the epa bases it on what independent scientists find. what is how the process works. we need to not listen to lobbyists, but listen to the

scientists. follow the signs, follow the law. if you do it right, if you are creating more jobs, clean energy jobs. host: mary, in independent in warwick, rhode island. caller: i have to agree with the previous caller, as this the administration is looking to shut down mining in the u.s., yet they ok the russian state- owned miner in wyoming and texas. also, the chinese state purchased a controlling interest in it, -- coal-mining company

in wyoming. they have a deplorable record american -- record. american oil companies can not drill in the gulf of mexico. but president obama has rubber- stamped bp. he says he does not want american companies to do it. it seems we are seeing foreign takeover of u.s. economy. foreign polluters are ok. i care about the environment. i was 11 when i first learned about the environmental movement in school. this is not environmentalism. this is seeking to destroy the u.s. economy. thank you.

guest: when the epa sets standards for drilling on offshore oil in the gulf, it does not depend on their company of origin could the standards are set across the board. -- or jim. the standards are set across the board. most public polls say we are doing not enough because to many people are breathing air that is not healthy, or unhealthy water. we've seen new industries created to increase protection of air or water. we work closely with the american lung association. we work with the epa to make sure they follow the signs, and the law. the public deserves that. otherwise, the polluters will

make their case, but the epa has to police beat. you mentioned oil companies. right now, to the tune of about $4 billion the year, taxpayers subsidize the oil companies, at a time when they're making record-breaking prices and there are skyrocketing gasoline prices. that makes no sense. the 52 senators said we need to eliminate those subsidies. there are solutions to make sure our air and water is cleaner, but let's take away taxpayer subsidies for oil companies. host: on twitter -- host: yesterday, cs then set down with the chairman of the senate energy committee, and

let's listen to what he had to say to reporters about the chances of seeing energy legislation passed this year. [video clip] >> i think the truth is this is a difficult congress in which to pass substantial legislation. that is not just energy. that is in any area. that is what we are faced with. particularly, it is difficult this year because of the upcoming election. so, i'm not overly optimistic that we are going to get legislation through both houses of congress that is significant in this area. if we can get bipartisan cooperation to do some things, that would be great. >> no energy legislation? >> i am hoping we can pass some energy legislation, but we do not have a path forward yet.

host: we will be barry knapp tomorrow on c-span at 10:00 in the morning and -- b. here in that tomorrow on c-span. he says do not hold your breath guest: said the, he is right. host: he is retiring. guest: he is been a leader. he knows the difficulty. as we said, there is no evidence that they will support issues to make our air cleaner, our water cleaner. senator jeff bingham gets it, but steadily his colleagues do not. -- sadly, his colleagues do not. host: you have given the house a very low score overall. where are things going right

now? if things are gridlocked, if the chairman of the energy committee says we are not going to get things to test? guest: we want to make sure people know about scores. you can go to lcv.org and look at how people voted one goal is to make sure many of these bad bills do not become law. there is reason for hope. number one, we work with partners across the country. many states are moving forward stronger than the government lost to protect our environment, make green energy, prevent carbon pollution. in the states we are making progress. in washington, the congress is doing nothing, but the epa is

doing amazing work. lisa jackson is creating new standards. we want to encourage her to be as strong as possible, to follow the signs, and make sure when she steps which it sets the standards, like she did former. -- when she sets the standards, like she did for mercury, these are things the epa, the department of interior, the department of energy, the department of transportation can do. we can make progress. palm beach progress in many states and that the epa -- progress in many states and in the epa. host: rod in college station, pa.. caller: two callers in a row talk about how bad the epa is,

and one gentleman said excessive regulation is killing jobs. we hear them as a talking point from a lot of conservatives. if you go back to the 2008 republican national convention, the speeches made on this, and the chanting of "drill, baby, drill," and then fast-forward to the bp or oil spill, many republicans were yelling at president obama. how hypocritical can you get? secondly, i would like to say a lot of people are sickened by smoke stack industries. they need some type of

regulation. kohl plans throw pittsburgh and a lot of other cities -- coal plants throughout pittsburgh and a lot of other cities. a lot of women are getting cancer, and they did not smoke. more and more people, especially women. these are serious consequences. finally, many of these same individuals who try to talk about job killing, are actually blocking renewable energy, as it happened in pennsylvania and a number of other states where 30% of the tax incentives are being blocked by state government, and the current congress, the gop-

dominated congress is blocking renewals every stage. host: ron, how important is environmental record to you when you go to vote? caller: it is very, very important. it is not necessarily the number one. i look at the economy and other things, too, but it is in the top three. host: let's look at pennsylvania before your address the question, gene karpinski. pennsylvania, in your break down, has a 50% voting record, going to environmental half the time, and in the house is a lower number, 30%. guest: you have a sharp contrast between two senators appeared --

senators. senator pat toomey has 9% in its first year. there is a 91% by senator casey. there's a big contrast. ron makes an important point about what we need to do to protect air and water. we had one of the most outrageous disasters in terms of the oil spill, and i do not think we handled it very well, yet this house of representatives tried to weaken standards for drilling in the future, and refused an effort to begin to make the oil companies pay more to reduce taxpayer subsidies for their work. what we should be doing in the wake of the disaster.

it's called do you see the irony there the way republicans -- host: do you see irony there? guest: sure. the hypocrisy is outrageous. one of the things we look at is where contributions come from, and those who consistently have the lowest scores are the ones that receive the largest contributions from big oral company it -- biggest oil companies. the future is in a clean energy. we need more wind, solar, and g.o. for month. those are the jobs -- geothermal. those are the jobs of the future. we need to invest in those technologies and stop subsidizing dirty energy. host: gene karpinski is president of the league of conservation voters, and we're looking at their annual scorecard. let's go to louisiana.

jim, a republican caller. caller: i would like to ask mr. gene karpinski, who pays him? i hope it is in the debt -- is not the taxpayers that he gets his money from. it's all our important our environmental issues -- -- host: how important is environmental issues -- caller: i have another question. guest: there is no taxpayers subsidy. host: hall important our environmental issues to you? caller: well, i will tell you about these environmentalists.

they have almost torn up the earth. the people cannot do anything. people cannot do their jobs. another thing i would like to know is he is always talking about mercury. you know what they put in those new light bulbs, do you not? they put in mercury. i want him to explain to us why mercury is so bad -- its mercury is so bad, why do they put it in the light bulb? guest: the biggest dangers for mercury pollution are from power plants going into the air and getting into our water. many of the lakes, rivers, and streams, you cannot fish and eat the food.

mercury contaminated the fish you try to take out of those waters. it is primarily from power plants that creates that air pollution that either gets in our water and people breathe as well. that is the biggest challenge with mercury. host: untwitter -- lcv.org. guest: thank you for asking. host: maryland, democrats. caller: i am so concerned about the the water did. i want to address the river keeper. they are important people in this country. can you also show a map of north carolina.

my parents live near the river. in maryland, i am near the person river. i want you to address the river keeper, and whether or not bp help the river keeper's along the gulf coast when they had the oil spill. host: i will show the east coast here, and you can see maryland getting a high score north carolina, lower. guest: let me give a couple of shout outs -- both senators from maryland had 100%. north carolina averaged 50%. 100% and 9% of river creepers do

great work. there non-profit organization. -- 9%. river keepers do great work. there are non-profit organization working on the basic fundamentals to clean up our rivers. it is a network of organizations that check our water quality of work hard locally and nationally in maryland, one of the big issues is -- nationally. in maryland, one of the big issues is the chesapeake bay. one of the votes in the house wanted to cut the money to clean up the chesapeake bay. that simply made no sense. we need to invest the resources keep our air and water clean. host: let's talk about some of the worst offenders according to the league of conservation voters. what state did it come from? who are we talking about? guest: there are a couple of

different ways to look at this. in terms of the lowest house delegations, you have states like montana, idaho. a couple of states had 0, indiana and kansas. other states, mississippi, texas, wyoming, the war all under 10%. in those cases, both those senators were less than 10% debt is some of the state-specific. -- 10%. that is some of the state- specific eric cantor from virginia -- state-specific. eric cantor from virginia was under 10%. he had penned must-pass bills that he claimed about jobs -- were about jobs, seven of them were about the epa. he went to block them from protecting air and water under the false claim that it was

about jobs. there also people that take a leadership role. host: what about the congressperson from wyoming. you mentioned her as someone that is offered amendments. guest: she is key committees. we scored several amendments amendments over the last several years she has proposed. she is amendments that are anti -- she is a leader in offering amendments that are anti- environment. host: the lowest scores are in the central u.s., the northern u.s., states that are looking at development and using public

land. guest: some of those states, north dakota, south dakota, they might only have one or two members. the state of montana, the congressman to go lifetime's court is 5%. -- the congressman's lifetime score is 5%. the state is in sharp contrast. host: georgetown, mass.. dan, independent line. caller: good morning. i think the environmental people need to step this up. i have tried to apply common sense to a lot of things. when i see the oil companies'

pumping the oil out as fast as they can, and basically not paying any money to do it, and even being subsidized to do it, they're actually should be a value put on while as it sits in the ground. -- put on oil as it sits in the ground. common sense says that in the history of the planet we started off as a "piece of rock with molten lava everywhere, and over time, this material is broken down. coincidentally, over that same time the plan that has become more stable. this oil has a lot of value other than burning and releasing carbon. the oil is our planet's blood. host: let's get a response from gene karpinski.

guest: i think every president in the last 40 years have talked about reducing dependence on oil and foreign oil, and the good news is president obama just proposed the strongest fuel economy standards to cut carbon pollution and to make cars go further on a gallon of gas. while is a precious resource. we need to shift to cleaner energy. we should use the technologies available to reduce our dependence on oil. we need to stop subsidizing oil companies. it makes no sense, billions of dollars a day time when they're making record profits. -- billions of dollars a year, at a time when they're making record profits.

it's called a question from twitter -- -- host: a question from twitter -- did any republican states get a high score? after seeing your website, it appears you're not been forthright. the cult our organization has republicans on the board -- guest: our position as republicans on the board. environmental issues are bipartisan issues. teddy roosevelt the fourth was a former chairman of our board. the epa was created in 1970 by a republican president, richard nixon. i have worked in washington, d.c., for more than 30 years. you cannot pass legislation without bipartisan support.

said it, leadership in the republican party today, and the president of candidates as well, has become very anti- environmental, to close from our perspective to the big oil companies and other polluters that fund their campaign. leadership has been terrible. there are new members of congress that had the highest scores like mr. bass from new hampshire. on a relative basis they were among the highest in republicans. there are republicans. historically, a lot of republicans understood this issue and our real leaders. sadly, most recently, in the congress there are not as many people, and the leadership in both houses has been anti- environmental. we need republicans to support these issues.

host: looking at a story last fall in "rolling stone" that highlights 10 things obama must do to protect the environment. president obama said future generations would remember his election as lending climate began to kill. environmentalists are -- that the indictment begin to heal. environmentalists have been disappointed. are you supporting president obama? guest: there are things we have been disappointed in. we supported him in 2008. we supported him in 2004 when hardly anyone ever heard of barack obama. his middle lot of progress and a lot of issues. -- he has made a lot of progress

on a lot of issues. the challenge of addressing climate change has not been as easy as we want. passing more bills in congress is impossible. that is why the job that epa has done to begin to cut carbon pollution from our cars and power plants is critical. the next critical step we're working closely with him on is an effort to cut carbon pollution from power plants, and that is a significant step forward. it is early in the process for us to get involved. we have applauded the president for blocking the keystone pipeline. we have applauded the president for backing up the epa. we're looking at pending proposals the sad part is republican presidential nominees

have called for abolishing or cutting back and the epa, and all the leading candidates are basically deniers of the problem of global warming. that is anti-science. george bush and john mccain understood climate change was real. the candidates today have gone backwards. their global warming deniers and skeptics. that makes no sense. host: ruby, a republican, from virginia beach. caller: i am a 74-year-old grandmother. i love the environment. a protected the environment all my life. this thing about carbon dioxide, it is not a green house guest. it was not classified as a greenhouse gas. congress use the epa to do it.

if you take stones and put plans in, and feed them with 100% carbon dioxide, the plants grow. we humans take in oxygen that we get from plants and we breathe out carbon dioxide. carbon dioxide is really a nutrient. some scientists have said it is an insulator in our atmosphere. you are trying to throw everything out of balance. this mercury thing, as a little girl i had about 50 cents worth of mercury that i collected from thermometers, and i would throw on the floor and play with. is it not interesting that our governments, whether they are republicans or democrats, when they went to drill the oil in the golf, they selected bp, who

had 600 violations against it, when they could've taken conoco, who only had one. defendi'm not going to bp. the supreme court 2007 said carbon dioxide is under that definition. the epa made a finding that carbon dioxide in dangers of public health. those that suggest that carbon dioxide does not cause pollution and is not a contributor to global warming does not square with the effects. many years ago we used to sit tobacco did not cause cancer. -- say tobacco did not cause cancer. the 2% of scientists disagree on

carbon dioxide -- sadly, their voices are louder than they should be. floods, droughts, the warmest years on record -- all the signs are very clear that we are threatening the life of this planet. it is a serious problem. carbon dioxide is the main pollutant that causes global warming. host: she was incredulous about mercury pollution. guest: mercury goes into our air, pollutes our water. is that mercury pollution, which is what the epa decided to regulate. that is air pollution from mercury and other toxins from power plants. host: gene karpinski, president of the league of conservation voters.

we're talking about their annual scorecard. you can find it on there website. it calls the 112 house of representatives the most anti- environmental session of the u.s. house in history. thank you for being here. next, we will talk about conservatives and campaign 2012 with john gizzi of "human events." we will be right back. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] ♪

♪ >> just so we all remember, here is the wonderful moment when senator lott revealed his nostalgia for the segregation in the south. >> when strom thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. we are proud of it. >> josh marshall on his internet and his websites emergence into the breaking news business. >> the media business in such a different world today than it was 10 years ago. things like that happen all the time now. i know there are certainly many big stories that cpm has had over the last decade more and more. we have an editorial staff of 20

people. we are breaking stories right and left. it has almost become commonplace. it is not nearly as surprising today as it was back then. >> more about george marshall sunday night, it added o'clock p.m. eastern and pacific on c- span's "q&a." >> when i first part of the book, i thought this must be an american story. this is about a country that worships the religion of self reliance. it turns out we are laggards when it comes to living alone, and it is much more common in european nations, especially scandinavia. in the "going solo "the growing trend of americans choosing to live alone. tonight, content -- at 10:00

eastern. also, the second cousin of condoleezza rice on her work to reduce violence in los angeles. and, a georgetown university's body norris -- body morris. >> "washington journal" continues. host: john gizzi, thank you for coming in. you are covering cpac. you were telling you cover this for over 30 years. guest: i have been with "human events." i have been going to cpac almost since i've been in

washington. host: what is the mood at cpac? guest: it is spiritually uplifting to see so many young people coming here, and so many people who say this is their first cpac. in part this is attributed to the new tea party mo koyfman -- tea party movement. at the same time, young people coming out of college campuses and want to be involved were a very conspicuous site. host: did any presidential candidate made a -- make a strong presentation, or get a strong reaction? we heard from rick santorum, newt gingrich and mitt romney. ron paul chose not to attend but as proxies. what was the reaction?

guest: the candidates were received with equal warmth, i felt. the real story at cpac was the excitement for two candidates who spoke to the crowd and were not running for president, but many wish they were. senator merkel rubio of ifrida, -- marco runbio and former governor mike huckabee, who is a colleague of ours with his talk show and another network. he did nothing short of electrifying the crowd when he some of the contraceptive controversy. host: i am looking at "human events."

the cover it is who for number two. the contest for veep begins. guest: marco rubio would be the odds on favorite if cpac could choose a candidate, but he made it very clear that he just wants to be a good united states senator and is not available. then again, after 32 years i've heard all of of that. host: let's listen to mitt romney talking about his conservatism. [video clip] >> i salute all of you in achieving your vision of conservatism. my path came from my family, my faith, and my life's worth. i was raised in the home that was shipped by and rooted in conservative values. the values that a lot my parents

to achieve their dreams are the same values they instill in my siblings and me. if they're not values i just talk about if. their values i live every day, my 42-year marriage with my wife, the lyceum built with our sons -- [applause] >> the faith that is part of our life -- these conservative constance have shaped my life. then there is business. in business, if you are not fiscally conservative, you are bankrupt. host: mitt romney speaking at cpac yesterday, and i am looking at a story in "the baltimore sun" talking about mitt romney described himself as a severe of the conservative -- severely conservative. what does that mean?

guest: in massachusetts, if one is a conservative, one is a severe conservative. they did elect the united states senator who was far more conservative than the last republican u.s. senator. mitt romney can say truthfully that he balanced the budget without raising taxes. he became a national figure for his fight on the marriage controversy in the state and his defense of marriage as the union between a man and a woman. again, these are not blue-state- like. host: what was the crowd's reaction at cpac yesterday? what were people talking about as they listened to his message? guest: he got a warm reception,

as the other candidates did. you can find anyone, and it is easy ed cpac because it is grown so large, you could find anyone who would prefer one candidate over another, and perhaps say something not-so-kind about one of the speakers. some said mitt romney was the establishment candidate, that he was the least conservative. and the other hand, i found a lot of people who said they would be very happy with him as a nominee. the light his values and business experience and they were going to support him. from joe on our republicans line in willcox, ariz.. caller: i am concerned that we are getting off track of the real issues by getting involved in this skirmish. first of all, where were the

republicans when pedophiles were victimizing people? how do we look when we speak out about contraceptives, but not the victim's molested by these people. we look stupid. host: joe, you are a republican? caller: i am. host: is there a candidate you are supporting? caller: i'm having a hard time with it because we have lost our values, letting things get in the way of what is really the problem. host: let's get a response from john gizzi. host: joe is right about getting off of issues. -- guest: joe is right about getting off of issues. i felt this to the different primary and caucus states, talking to voters and

candidates. there was so much invectives from against each other, it insults flew like shrapnel, and there was no more discussions about polls, money, and what was said that one particular point then there was about is substantive vision for the future. i think this is going to be a problem, and hopefully the eventual republican nominee will change it and offered a positive agenda. host: did you hear conversation focused on the economy or social issues? we sought a pivot in a lot of the coverage yesterday. guest: i think the timing was important. i have been other gatherings similar to cpac -- the pennsylvania leadership conference, and the california political action conference, and move -- almost all the talk was

on the economy in the debt. we heard a lot of that on cpac because the president was going to unveil his budget monday. that said, you are right. the controversy over who pays for abortion-related services and faith-based institutions really dominated everything, but there was a matter of tom keene look at -- timing. host: massachusetts. caller: i have been listening about the contraceptive issue. it seems that the conservative movement or cpac republicans, you guys have entered into this whole thing about tearing down

instead of saying what you are about. is the general statement -- the general statement is the flight, patriotism, and then you try to give this picture that everyone who does not believe exactly as you are are not patriotic americans. marco rubio made comments that were not called for in his address. some of it were silly. guest: what comments were those? i do not"know what they do in south africa -- "i do not know what they do in south africa." how does south africa get into the political attitude? i want you to admit there was a white nationalist person conducting a seminar at cpac,

and that -- is that something did you want to back? guest: all i can say about that is a saying from italy, that even if it is not true, it sounds good. i am not aware of anyone conducting a seminar like that, and if there is a scintilla of truth in what you are saying about it, it must've been a terrible oversight on the part of the planning committee. i was on the planning committee for speakers at cpac last year, and things like that were watched very, very carefully and taking care of early on. i would have to hear more evidence. as to your point of tearing down people and the statement from senator rubio, he said something that was injected by

justice ruth bader ginsberg, who said that some of the developing countries could benefit from south african law, and it was more epochal -- applicable than the u.s. constitution and american rock. by the way, i will not give in to the issue, but i've heard from people along the political spectrum that the american system, as winston churchill said, is the worst possible system, with the exception of everything else that has been tried. host: let's go to a question on twitter -- what was the turnout for cpac? guest: it was the largest ever, and we still do not have a final count. after coming to seize that -- cpac for so many years, i was held from being on time because

i was meeting with children of people that i have met at cpac. from newts hear gingrich referring to president obama and his interaction with the catholic church. [video clip] -- that is coming up in just a moment. guest: come on, newt. [video clip] >> this administration is waging war on religion, and so are the courts, so we need a movement that will change congress, the white house, the bureaucracies, and where necessary, the courts. this country was founded by people who came here in order to avoid religious persecution. the very basis of this country was religious liberty. our court documents as we are

endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights, and barack obama 6 to cut across those, and i do not care what kind of deal he tries to cut off. this man is deeply committed to wage war on the catholic church the morning after he is reelected. we cannot trust him. we should make sure the country knows who he really is. host: newt gingrich speaking at cpac. john gizzi, what is your reaction? guest: i may not have said it that way, but i understand where speaker gingrich is coming from. according to published reports, and as senator rubio mentioned, the president was urged by a number of people not to go ahead with his policy of contraception for fit-based institutions. vice-president joe biden urged him not to do it, among the

first people to come out against the policy were senators nelson of nebraska, lieberman from connecticut, and casey from pennsylvania -- democrats all. the president made this decision, and while i do not have firsthand evidence, i remember a candidate obama said in 2008 that he rejected the notion that you leave your personal beliefs at the door when you enter the public arena or the presidency, and he cited many examples, including those of william jennings bryan, the candidate for the party in 1876, who was an attractive candidate at the time. i do believe a president so open about that probably did make the decision on that, and i understand where speaker gingrich would come from.

host: george writes in by e-mail -- guest: just a second now. when mitt romney was governor of massachusetts, and remember, i qualified his conservatism, he had to deal with the state legislature that was not only in democratic hands with firm majorities but at the end of his term, at almost 8 2/3 bidault- proof majority, and that is how they -- veto-proof majority, and that is how they denied the governor to appoint a senator when they thought john kerry might wind and mitt romney might appoint a republican. just remember what he was dealing with in massachusetts. host: sort myers, florida.

pat, a democrat. caller: the catholic church, who made a fuss about this, in -- embraced a policy that was against their belief for 50 years. they paid for, circumvented the law, and apologize. they have had bishops against john kerry. they made a big thing about obama doing something to them. i really think that they are not living up to what they should be. that is all. guest: you are from 4 myers, you said, -- sort myers, you said, right? caller: i am.

guest: i want to know what you meant by 50 years. what was the policy? caller: you remember the scandal, right? the embraced taking priests, putting them from one parish to the other, not bringing any of them to the law. in my book is circumventing the law. if they embraced the policy because they did not give it up, and it was the until the scandal came out that they did anything, and that was an apology. so, why they're making so much fuss over this, which is simply contraception, and is in effect in 20 some the 20-some other states, and did not make anything about it. guest: let me give you a brief history lesson.

i think you are talking about two disparate issues. in the case regarding priests, which is a big embarrassment in the catholic church, it is true that many in the church hierarchy, including some archbishops and cardinals did simply transfer priests from one diocese to another, and whenever their motivations, i cannot say. that is up to god. on the other hand, when this became public and was known, the church did take action and adopted a zero tolerance policy. and remember how i applauded when the former governor was appointed to a commission that brought this all in the open in the united states, and recommended a zero tolerance policy. the vatican has since followed through on it, and yet his visit in the united states, but pope

benedict talk to families of people who had children abused by priests. dad said, the number of priests involved in that is a small number among those steps have chosen to serve god as priests. regarding the laws in the 20 states, it is true you have exemptions in many of those states for the churches, so they did not have to participate in the program that was a clear violation of their faith, and i do believe that is the direction the administration will go in. host: republican line. colorado springs. caller: are in 63-year-old woman, and i am resentful that we have this evangelical group that is part of this republican platform. i am hopeful we can find some other discourse.

santorum is a religious fanatic. mitt romney wants to do away with planned parenthood. i support planned parenthood very strongly. we have focused on the family in colorado springs. politics are continually putting these personhood amendments that we have to vote down all the time, and apparently the end justifies the means because they do not tell the truth about a lot of things. i am resentful, and this might be the last time i called in as a republican. i do not know what your religion is. i want to know what you are doing for the country. it seems it always comes back to religion. i'm very angry. host: are you supporting any of the candidates? caller: for a while i was supporting mitt romney, and then he says he was to get rid of

planned parenthood. it is very easy to attack women. a woman that makes minimum-wage, and she needs help of her birth control. i come out of the south. i was exposed to a lot of that evangelical religion, and they would put on their cost plan outfits and show up to church the next day -- there could coquelin outfits and show up in church the next day. i thought i would get away from all that. here i am with focus on the family. it is an embarrassment guest: we have a federal system in 50 states. as one who has covered politics in just about all of those states, i have not yet been to alaska, a state that libbny used to live in, the political dynamics are different in all of them. it is true that the focus on the

family is influential in colorado and certainly has been involved in some of the initiative and referendum there. it is also true that colorado has a democratic governor right now and two democratic united states senators. again, i would question the degree of influence. i know a little bit about the republican party in colorado. the idea is that focus on the family has tremendous influence over the party just is moonshine. i would say that two things the lady said and i understand which remains -- rick santorum, links to this evangelical group, is a roman catholic. as for mitt romney wanting to get rid of planned parenthood, if that were true, that would be very frightening that a president of united states could outlaw a private group. what he said was he wanted to

get the federal dollars out of planned parenthood and it was not about any of planned parenthood's policies. i know members of congress on all sides of the abortion and cultural issue and say in times of debt that we cannot afford to fund groups like this. planned parenthood i'm sure will continue because it has a lot of private donors just as public television would continue if the government ever ended the federal subsidy. host: john gizzi is covering cpac in washington. you mentioned alaska and former governor sarah palin will address cpac later on today. tell us more about who is speaking and what is the level of anticipation? are there guests who will talk who attend these are looking forward to? >> one person making the rounds at cpac and will get a heroes

welcome is john bolton. , the former u.s. envoy to the united nations and he has always been popular with cpac crowds. i can remember stickers when he would address the crowd. i saw him at radio row talking to our colleagues in the talk radio area and and he was greeted as if he was eli manning after that game a week ago. sarah palin will get a warm welcome. my colleague tony lee is a big sarah palin and to resist and i turn that be over to him completely and she will close th events today. > host: c-span will be live at cpac at about 3:00 and you can find out more about our coverage on our website, c-span.org. we are expecting to hear from senator john cornyn and grover norquist and former alaska

governor sarah palin. there is a presidential straw poll. how influential is that? what are you looking to come out of that? guest: all stroke balls are influential but one has to remember that this will be -- all straw polls would are influential but one must remember that ron paul generates enthusiasm a young -- among the young people and does very well as troubles. and they turn out and vote and ron paul is not participating in the cpac. his son, centre rand paul of kentucky filled in as a surrogate and did a good job. he will be a force there. on the other hand, i don't think he has much put as much priority in this straw poll as others. host: we're looking at "the washington times" -- ky, ano to round hill,

independent scholar. caller: good morning. i've got a couple of points. item one a 100% disabled vets so i have not been around that long. i think we get away from the facts. the government is run by the president and senators and congressmen and we are in this shape because of their job and how they performed, not just one party. everyone of them up there and get everyone of those parties will get up and said i appreciate that jobs are tough but you don't want to do your job. we are in this shape because of all politicians, not one party and who is to blame for this? wheat, the people are. because we have allowed you all to get this country in this

shape and that is the fact i think the media should address -- we used to have walter cronkite and dan rather and people who sat down and addressed the issues and now we have news channels that put both sides on and have an argument and never really get to the fact and a point but it is good for ratings. what party says big business doesn't run government? guest: i was thinking of a quote by the late irish finance minister who said, as his country faded into debt and they required a belt out from the european community that all the parties were responsible. we were all partying. the same could be said of the members of congress. both parties are not without sin when it comes to spending tax dollars and not making hard decisions early. i agree with you on that host:

this is from spring hill, west virginia -- guest: i'm not sure about that. i would like to see a straw poll about that issue just to settle it. i hear that a lot and when i talk to people individually, i find that is not the case or is certainly is not as overwhelming as people talk about. the only thing i can talk about is that we have heard so much about this issue and it has been so discussed and so much of the mainstream media speaks about it as if it was already the law of a land which is not. as a result, people who are coming of age think it is acceptable and go along with it. again, i couch that by saying that i hear this a lot and i hear it anecdotally but i have yet to hear an exact voter poll.

every time that issue about marriage has come up in courts or in a legislative vote, it is -- it has one sometimes. every point time it hits a popular vote gets defeated. host: cambridge, new york, go ahead caller: i just want to clear the air i have been hearing coming out of the mouths of these people. let me point out the fact that there are many churches across the country of many different denominations that are very, very inadequate and the planned parenthood foundation was actually started by the nazis as a eugenesis program to kill people who had inferior genes. to a little research into planned parenthood.

we gave thousands of our tax dollars to target inner-city black children that were being born to young mothers so we could particularly take them out and a white wash them away. host: planned parenthood would take exception to that. guest: as i said before, it may not be true but it sounds good i do not have the facts in hand on that or the history but i tend to doubt it because it is so beyond the pale what you are talking about it is so outrageous that i think if that were an accurate history, it would be something that was a fairly well known fact by those of us who follow planned parenthood. host: a couple of our tweeters brought up the concern about white nationalists' attending cpac.

on yahoo! news, it is explained that there are people at cpac he takes concerned with. there is a race-baiting activist ha and. joining him -- guest: regarding peter brimlow and others -- the immigration issue and the english issue are certainly not about white supremacy or eugeneics anything like that. the issue about immigration is controversial but honestly, i

have heard complaints from other is that there are too many open border advocates on panels at cpac. i don't know about that. on the other hand, as for the english issue, there are several pro-english groups and i actually shook hands with robert vandervoor. when people are on panels at cpac, their associations and groups that work for are important. i can get personal testimony to that. on the other hand, no one does a background check and no one does -- goes back once history to see whether he or she can attend cpac. host: michelle, calling from carol, texas, independent line. good morning. are you with us? caller: they talk about religious freedom and under george bush, we had the 10 commandments in front of the courthouses.

under the prescription drug program, they gave child molesters of viagra. this upset me very much. i went from republican to independent. guest: wow! ok, i think what the lady means, and it is true, that terry schiavo was an issue under the administration of george bush and the issue of the 10 commandments in courthouses, and issue a coverage, by the way, came at that time. regarding the 10 commandments, that was primarily a state issue that emerged in a county court house and alabama. was not a federal issue and not something that president bush

would be involvedterry schiavo's sought to play out for many years sadly and the minister is in did get involved in it. to blame those things on the administration of george w. bush is just not true. host: ate i believe this is t a thisweeter. how much are people talking at cpac about how the candidates could do against president obama dax or rick santorum made a case just today to vote with your morals and vote with your heart and vote with do you want to see an office. vote for may versus someone you find to be electable. >> i find this absolutely fascinating that one of the leading candidate, one of the last candidates standing, so to speak, is someone who, in his

last trip to the polling place, was defeated for a lower office. that has happened twice before in the history of the republican party in the case of abraham lincoln in 1860, two years after losing the race for u.s. senator from illinois and richard nixon in 1968, six years after losing a race for governor of california. now we have someone who was defeated in a third term bid for the senate from the keystone state of pennsylvania, seeking the presidency and surviving passed a lot of candidates who fought stronger. can he win? i don't know. let's talk about that in october when we know a little bit more about the economic figures. as i have said all along, that will be determining factor in whether this president is reelected. host: from york, pennsylvania, republican, good morning. one last check -- we lost her.

host: where do we go from here as we look to the straw poll results that will come in later tonight c after we wrap laterpac, what is next? guest: the maine caucuses that will start tonight will come after the sarah palin speech and the closing of cpac will be big news. the next step clearly will be the primaries at the end of the month in arizona and michigan, a state in which mitt romney was born and raised and where his father was governor. i think they will be very key. this has been a roller coaster will ride. mitt romney was thought to be able to wrap this up and many candidates who did enter the race did not get into the race after all. governor christie or governor daniels and, of course, people who thought they had staying power stumbled and we have four

candidates left so anything can happen. look forward to arizona and michigan host: you can find out more about our coverage on our c-span.org website. . we will have information there about ron paul plans to talk in maine this evening at about 6:00 in portland and we will also be at cpac today at 3:00 really expect to hear from folks including senator john cornyn, grover norquist, sarah palin, and the results of the washington times cpac presidential straw poll. thank you so much john gizzi/ guest: it is always a pleasure host: we will talk about the president's goals next about educating american students in the sciences. we will be right back. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ >> subscribe to our youtube channel and we will notify you of the newest video posts including signature interview programs, road to the white house, and campaign 2012 plus our recent tour of beaumont, texas. >> there was a sad, tragic episode in beaumont, a race riot broke out here june 15, 1943. there was a story about a black man had raped a white woman and when this story spread into the shipyard, several thousand of the shipyard workers, some say at least 2000, came out of the

shipyard and came downtown to the city hall and to the police department to try to find the person who had allegedly committed this crime. >> there are hundreds of video to choose from online subscribe. youtube.com/cspan. >> here is that wonderful moment when senator lodge revealed his nostalgia for the states' rights segregation of the south. take a look very [video clip] when strom thurmond ran for president, we read -- we voted for him >> talking points memo.com . >> the media ecosystem is such a different world today. it is hard to believe that was 10 years ago. things like that happen all the time now. i know there is certainly many big stories that ppm has had

over the last decade more and more we have an editorial staff of 20 people breaking stories now. it has almost become commonplace. it is not nearly as surprising today as it was back then. moore >> about tpm and judge marshall at 8:00 sunday night on cspan's "qw &a." >> "washington journal" continues. host: surely malcolm is the education director at the american association for the advancement of science. president obama laid out a call this week of seeing 100,000 science teachers. how do you do that? guest: 1 at a time. i think that is an ambitious goal. you cannot do it by yourself. you have to engage universities

and colleges in a very structured kind of way in order to increase those numbers. host: the president announced $80 million in new government spending this week for a plan that would aid math and science education in the united states. how could the money best be spent? guest: in this particular case, the focus is on trying to bring about a new generation of science and mathematics educators who are trained very differently. we not only focus on the content that they might know but also on giving them the new knowledge that we all have about how people learn and incorporating those learning issues, the introduction of technology, and strategies for actually doing compliance at the same time we are providing them

with the content background. i think this new way is being reflected in some of the evidence-based programs that we have around the country. host: the president has this plan for stem education which stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. $80 million for teacher preparation grants and a teacher incentive funds to be used to improve pay for stand teachers and would include $100 million in the national science foundation to improve undergraduate programs and donations from private organizations. guest: the private organization donations begins to make it clear to people how important this issue is. when philanthropy and the private sector and corporations put their dollars on the table, it means they understand how critical it is to provide this generation of teachers who are

willing to be prepared to lead our young people into the knowledge and skills they need for the 21st century. host: the bill and melinda gates foundation plans to donate $22 million. guest: that makes the case. if you think about the basics of the wealth that the gates foundation has said, it has come out of technology so there is an understanding that for us to create the economy of the future, we will need those skills and to get those skills and young people, we will need those skills and the teachers. why do weley ,alc malcom, have so few science teachers, math teachers, engineers who are going into the teaching profession? guest: if you have a background in science and mathematics or engineering, you can make a lot more money by going into the

private sector. you can go into industry or start your own business and do many things that require those same kinds of skills. oftentimes, there are a lot less hassles that you encounter in the way restructure our schooling right now i think it should not be a surprise to anyone that the combination of skills really can be distributed in many, many different ways. you have to lead people to teaching -- to teaching and a life of teaching. host: lay out for us why there is this focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics? there has been so much news in the past year documented how america is falling behind. guest: that is an area where we

have bipartisan support, where the executive and congress agree, that we have a need. why? because science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are embedded in about everything we do within the economy. it is responsible for the growth of the economy over the past decade. it is important in national security. most of the mathematicians basically are scooped up by the national security agency. you think about the importance of technology to our business and finance or the importance of science in terms of our health and our health care and our research and discoveries. it is so embedded in the whole focus of our society that if we do not get this right and if we

do not have the people who can do this, then we lose on many different fronts. host: we will hear from william on the democrats' line in michigan. good morning. caller: i like watching your program this morning. i was reminded that the nedea act between 1958 and 1968 that this is the best thing i have heard. the only shortcoming i say is we are leaving foreign languages and culture behind. guest: foreign language is culture and a well-rounded education is a concern? yes, it is a concern and will always be concerned because the world is getting smaller and smaller all the time.

teaching a foreign language has really fallen off but i think one of the things that we will much remember is that perhaps there is less of an issue now than there was back in the nedea days. like it or not, english is becoming the predominant language of the internet, of the web, of a lot of culture. there is a need to support foreign language learning and understanding of different cultures and i think we have gotten into difficulties because of a lack of those kinds of skills. i would anticipate that, over time, we would begin to understand the need to work in that area as well. host: let's hear from asheville, north carolina, republican, good morning. caller: my grandson is in the

third grade here. i have had to move around a lot from florida to different parts of north carolina and it is amazing how different education is. he is a bright student and one county and was accepted into the gifted program but then you could not get him into math and science which is what he likes unless you're in the right neighborhood for the school for the math and science school curriculum. then they had arts and most of the focus was political something, something to do with international what ever. how does a parent figure out where to live and how to get their child the right opportunity? guest: that is tough because quite frankly, it should not have to be like that. one of the reasons that many of

us are advocating for a common course standards is around the same issue that it should not matter, it should not be an issue of which state or which county or which area, we should have high expectations for all students in mathematics and science and we ought to be able to provide quality education for all students in mathematics and science. right now, that is a scarce commodity. that is partly because of the lack of large numbers of well- qualified, highly effective teaching and because of very sporadic, i guess you would call it, different standards and different requirements in different places. i think a common course standards would begin to address some of these issues. host: let's take a look at president obama at the white house on tuesday.

"washington journ[video clip] >> i called for a all hands on deck approach to science, technology, engineering, and matt. let's get more kids studying the subject to make sure these field get the respect and attention they deserve. it is not just a government effort. the private sector has answered that call as well. i understand how important it is to their future. led by the carnegie corporation, a group of businesses and foundations is announcing a $22 million fund to help train 100,000 new science and math teachers. it is a coalition of more than 100 and ceo's is expanding programs across the country host: that was president obama earlier this week at the second white house science fair. what is your reaction? guest: he is basically saying

that we understand that the federal level, the need for science, technology, engineering and mathematics but we also understand in the private sector the critical business reason as to why we must invest. that is an issue we can have to keep hammering. host: here is a commentary piece from cnn.com --- we have to do a better job of training our own citizens. there are some jobs that require citizenship.

and i think that that is a major issue. but indeed, there are sources of talent are apparently unstable. if a country decides they're going to build their own economy, they're going to try to keep their people there. if we have an unstable national security issue that emerges, all of a sudden your pipeline of students can be cut off. so there's a issue of growing and nurtturg your own, which is really critical. >> bill ben it reminds us, when it comes to mads and science, we downtown just fail, we fail ourselves. only 26% of our nation's high school seniors perform at proficient levels or above. and when students do enter

college on a pathway toward engineering or students can go into college very excited and energized about mathematics and science and engineering. and those intro courses, those first courses in calculus or in fizzisms, and they're gone. it ought not to be about we'ding, it ought to be about cultivating. how you nurture students and help them be capable. caller: thanks for taking my call. shirley, my dad was a math educator down in chicago. and had a little statement for

anybody that misbehaved. he said, ok, if you don't want to learn just sit in the back, do whatever you want to do, just don't disturb my class. and i find that a lot of the times in school these kids are not paying attention to the education that they're supposed to be learning. how do the teachers control that? you know, you get more teachers, that's wonderful. are they going to be the sergeants in the classroom? has anybody sat in there and watched these kids how they react someso some of the kids don't belong there because they're trouble makers. i think you understand where i'm going. guest: i understand the phenomenon that you are talking about. but i challenge the assumptions about what causes it. engaged kids don't act up. when you are talking to things -- talking about thing that is

are relevant to them and that are interesting to them and that you can relate the science or the mathematics to thing that is they care about, you're able to capture their attention and hold it. before i had this job, i had been a high school teacher. i know how hard that job is because, quite frankly, students in some cases just kind of dare you to teach them anything. they have had this history of failure, this history of people assuming that they're not very smart. i had one young woman who was in the quote/unquote low group because they had already been partitioned into different track by the time i got to the school to teach and she was in the low group and i found out that she just hadn't been engaged and that she was one of the sharpest and smartest students that i had ever had.

and so the principal, when i -- when she got an a, the principal said you don't have to give as in this group. i said i didn't give the a, she earned the a. and she went on to take more science in the high school and she was the smartest in that class as well. so it really is a matter of the -- it's the responsibility of those of us as educators to find that thing that can spark a young person and to understand the way that kids learn and that different thingless excite them and to find that thing. and then provide them with the skills and knowledge that they need in order to be successful. >> shirley is the head of the direct rat for education and human resources program at the american association for the advancement of science. she also serves on several boards and is an honorary trustee of the american museum

of natural history. also a cochair for the national science board commission on the 21st century education in stem. of course that is science, technology, engineering and mathematics. our guest also holds a phd from penn state university. i want to look at this story that touches on something you've been speaking about, why students drop out of the stem track. this is from last fall. it talks about how students are weeded out. but it also just talks about why they're not engaged and how they're not getting sucked into the curriculum. it profiles a couple of students who say it seemed difficult and there were easier topics. what do you do? >> it's hard. so is basketball. but you get students out there shooting hoops at 10:00 at night.

i think that what we have to provide students is the road to understanding and that we have to show them that in fact even though it's hard, but it can be understood. and that it's a matter of engaging them and getting them excited. you talk about the science fair earlier and you look at students who are quite young developing quite amazing kinds of things because they got interested in it. the problems that they took on were hard. but in fact they were willing to work hard in order to achieve something that excited them. >> so is it a matter of making it fun? guest: it's a matter of making it fun and exciting. we've worked on programs doing science outside of the school hours and the school day and you find students totally engaged, you find them actively seeking this kind of

stimulation. i think that's what we have to do. we have to find the things that turn them on. host: maine, steven, republican. caller: thank you for taking my call. i think you're a very nice woman and i appreciate what you're saying and i agree with what you're saying to some extent. however, i have a great deal of difficulty in the sense our public schools are really crumbling and i think people are not really focusing on the fact that it's throwing money at any program is not the answer today. i'm originally from philadelphia. the school system, i taught in during graduate school is deplorable. it's not a question of kids learning, it's a question of kids staying alive or staying safe. i think our public schools are not focused upon what is actually going on. there is really very little education going on in public schools. >> host: what would you do to fix it? >> caller: i think you have to get

rid of the teacher's union. they're embedded in that and not teaching. they're just staying around to get their pensions and the pensions are ridiculous. so there's a huge amount. i mean, the superintendent of schools just left after getting a $1.4 million buyout. and that's deplorable. that's where the money is going to. the other thing i have a problem with is president obama is now taking the space program, which was really the key for people who want to go into science, to look forward to, and he's eliminating that and taking the mars programming and depleting it. so when you have situations where there's no real future and you have bad schools and nobody will allow vouchers to have good schools, the system is really not going in the right direction. and we spend a lot of money on education, i don't know what the figures are but compared to other countries we spend a lot on education and not getting much for our money. guest: i agree with you that there are problems within the system and quite frankly if i

would have any concern the teacher issue, it is that it only touches on one aspect of the system's problems that are out there. but i think that the unions issues are a convenient excuse. i know that there are teachers who -- there are teachers who need to leave either with or without our assistance. but in fact most of the teachers that i have met are not just sitting there basically collecting a check. they are working very hard. they understand that they are being asked to address larger societal problems that we have not gotten a grip on such as gangs or the fact that students don't have things to do in the after school hours or things like this.

but i think that there are opportunities within the science areas to show students a future, not only in space which i agree with you is very exciting and there have been wonderful programs that nasa has taken on to continue to excite students, such as the summer innovation. not only the space program but also around sustainability, around energy savings, around many, many things. so i think that we need to look at our communities and the responsibilities that we have as citizens to support what is going on with the schools in terms of trying to support our teachers in the work that they are trying to do. host: tmp j tweets in.

so how do you make sure that this money the president wants to allocate to increasing stem programs is spent quiesly and product illinois? guest: i think that the direction that is have been set out will likely lead to the kind of outcome that you want. and that is young people who are prepared differently, i hope, that some of them will also be invested in veteran teachers who need retraining. and will -- and who can bep fit from the new knowledge that is available to help them do their jobs better. and also, the undergraduate level to improve the quality of education that goes on in our colleges and universities. host: let's hear from dwayne in houston, texas, independent caller.

good morning. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. i taught science in houston for three years. i taught chemistry, biology, and i taught physics and the kids, they just want the bottom line, they just want the end results. they're not really concerned about learning the information. and also, teaching science is high di demanding because, first of all, you have your labs and you have the classroom work and one teacher trying to teach the lab in the classroom and there's not enough time to teach the objective. and with the no child left behind, you're forcing students to take subjects that they're not interested in and you also have special ed students who are taking chemistry who can't read at a seventh grade level

nor do the math at a seventh grade level. host: can you share with us your experience in education and how you got involved? caller: i got involved because i have a degree in microbiology and a minor in chemistry and i like teaching and helping people so i decided to go into teaching. just to be a part of, you know, keep myself into the sciences. and just to see how it is in public education. and it's really a joke. it's really a joke. more money won't help. the last school i was at, every student had a pc tablet and all they did was play games, music, facebook, and it was just one more task for the teacher to be playing the roll of police officer. so, and giving more money to the teachers, it will -- it attracted me to it but it wouldn't retain me because it

was too demanding and teaching is such a high liability job. if you fail a special ed students, you get sued. the parents of the students get mad at you, they want to sue you, get you fired. and i mean, they just really don't care about you. and they work, my first year teacher they were like we work for grades. host: lets see if shirley has any questions for you. implts well one of the questions is basically the makeup of your district. what was the demographics of the students in your school? caller: for the three years i actually taught at three different school districts and they were all like title one schools. but they were mostly blacks and hispanics. the last school i taught at, that had the pc tablets, it was in a district that had high income, high tax bracket level, so they were able to afford this. but the -- they cut -- the high

school itself was a title one school. but it was very diverse. so at each one of those districts i went to, it was the same thing. because you still, as a science teacher you still have to teach the lab and the state is requiring like so much percentage of your time be devoted toward labs. guest: i get that. that i understand. been there, done that. i think that the major difficulty you actually laid out the major problem and that is the students want to know what the bottom line is. we have in so many cases focused on testing rather than learning so that means that they're asking the right question. i mean, they're not crazy. they want to know what do i have to do in order to get out of here, not what do i have to learn. and i think that that kine of focus really has been a real challenge. one of the things about the

common course standards i am hoping is that the focus will be on learning and it will be on the important ideas. so the idea, the big ideas or the big concepts in science and math will be the bottom line as opposed to what is the grade. the new common course standards also emphasizes the doing of science, the doing of auts stick science, not just necessarily a prescribed laboratory where you pretty much know what the outcomes are but real inquiry where kids are able to ask questions that are of importance to them. i think that the bottom line for us is that the system has to be looked at in its entirety. people want to get technology and think that's going to solve their problems. but teachers have to be enabled to teach using the technology,

not just having the technology available in the class room and having it be relevant and supportive of the learning goals. host: we have this tweet. it sounds like you're saying it has to go a step further with i want gration how they can be used in the classroom. guest: absolutely. you can't just expect that that's going to solve the difficulties. but the other thing too is that we've got to get more adults in the classroom with those teachers. we have a program that runs out of our unit at aaas with senior science and engineers programs where they're trained and able to go in and work with being an assistant or teachers. and they come with science and engineering background but they don't take over the class. they are another adult who

happens to be there who can support the teacher in the work she or he is trying to do. host: democratic caller. hi. caller: hi. i'm very leap you are having this -- happy you are having this show. i have two comments. one is this. how important is it to educate i would say the parents, the care givers, and all that the media, the tv, the computers and all, they are also educators. and our young people are almost being sold down the drain in some of the things that they are watching on that tv. and i am a substitute teacher so i see the results of kids that have nothing on their mind except these negativities. that's the number one.

so i would like you to talk about that for a minute and i have one more. host: go ahead and give us your second question and then we'll go to shirley. caller: if the child left behind law is what i am seeing the results of something terrible is wrong, when you've been put in a child -- that should actually be in -- well, it's a child that is emotionally disturbed, and then you put them into a classroom of regular children and that child is screaming and yelling, because they're emotionally disturbed, something is wrong because in fact the other children now are being left behind because it is a total disruption and that child is seemingly having the right to be in the class with regular children something is wrong

with that. they should be separate classes for emotionally disturbed children that really need more medical care than they could even expect to get from being educated. guest: let me take your first question first. i agree with you that we need to engage with parents and care givers. if nothing more to say turn off the television. take the ipad away. that engage with them around the homework. get the work done. get reading done. i think that the media is very entertaining and exciting but it can also be edcative and we need a way of finding the good stuff in the middle of all of the other things that happen to be out there.

we have programs at aaas where we look for quality media quality television, quality books for example and try to direct people towards good material. and i think that the idea of not accepting that all things are either bad or good but finding the good is really a role that a parent and a care giver can actually have. and of course we're going to be competing with the education and the question is, to focus on the thing that is can actually support the learning rather than the things that just on the thing that is compete. with regard to your second issue, it is i think a misreeding of the law to say that a kid whose disruptive

must be kept in a regular classroom if that is what is happening. and i think that under those kinds of circumstances someone really needs to determine what is best for both kids, kids who are emotionally disruptive is not getting what he or she needs along with any other kid who may be in the class. host: south carolina, peter, independent line. good morning. caller: good morning. speaking of science education i was wondering, is america as a whole significantly behind other nations? and if so, what are those countries or nations doing that we aren't? and i'll just listen. guest: interesting. we are in the middle of the pack. i don't know whether you have ever seen tom freedman's book that used to be out and we

didn't used to be in the middle of the pack. and i think that's really what is bothering all of us that when you're used to being up front and sundayly you find out you're not, that's a difficulty. what are other countries doing? probably the exact opposite of what we are doing. they focus on their curriculum, they don't just have -- they're not just all over the place. the way that they work with their teachers, teachers have an opportunity to interact with each other, to understand how they can work together in terms of educating the students. i think that the difficulty we have is that we are not used to following, we're used to leading. but one of my colleagues pointed out that the things that many of these countries

are doing are things that we actually found out but we're just not doing what we know. and that sounds a little bizarre, but when you are driving yourself by needing some kind of a test score as opposed to supporting student learning, you can end up in places like that. we value what we can measure rather than measure what we value. we are not looking at the learning that the students are doing. we're not looking at what the students might need on a one by one kind of a basis, which is really what you have to do as a teacher. if you are going to really help students to be successful. host: we're talking with shirley mallcome about the white house announcement this past week that it wants to devote $80 million in a program to help with science math

education. currently about 300,000 bachelors and associates degrees are awarded per year and only about 40% of science technology engineering math majors finish with a degree. guest: yes. host: gets go to connecticut. earnie, republican. caller: hi there. i graduated with a phd in chemistry back in the 50's from northwestern university and i married a teacher, a remedial middle grade teacher. so i have had a little experience with teaching and a little bit with science. and i guess my point that i wanted to ask you about was today when i go back to when i grow up, you remember the idea we were going to get to the moon before the russians or something like that. we had a science goal. i think it was an aspiring thing to young people to get

into science, to work in science. what is the goal today? when we talk my party the republican party they seem to deny science they are talking negatively about climate change, they don't even want to talk about it or discuss it as a science or technological issue. so that's one of the things that concerns me that we don't on a national lovely we're denying science and at least part of our society. host: as a republican, what do you think about newt gingrich's vision of getting to the moon, getting on the moon? caller: well, it's not a bad vision. maybe just something we have to work out on the plans and so forth and so on. there's always some valuable concepts to planning things and looking at it. but i think right now the emphasis and mr. gingrich mentioned it early on, we have

to talk about climate change and now he has clamped up on that. but i think that's where the nation should be focusing on. and also the energy. and the goal of that should be inspiring the kids. the kids are interested in solar energy, they're interested in wind power. we have just got to bring that out on a national level and make it a focus. guest: i could not agree with you more. i think that we all earn for that put nick like moment. i can tell you that i came into science, i'm one of those pro-sputnik science people. that's what got a lot of us this of this current senior generation in the sciences, that's what brought us to science. so the question is what is our sputnik-like moment? i think the one that you proposed is an absolutely worthy one. looking at energy and energy

independence. and i do know that kids get excited about it. we have a program here in the district of columbia that's a part of our eye test grant and the thing that is really exciting is that those kids actually build wind mills and they work on developing solar power and things like this and they are so excited with this. so yes, you are right. we can do this. host: shirley mall come heads the american association for the advancement of science. thanks for coming in today. host: that's all for "washington journal" this morning. we will be following cpac here later on today, we'll join that live at 3:00. you can find out more at our website. have a good rest of the weekend. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012]