♪ thank you. thank you, guys, for having me today. i am honored and privileged to be here today with the next president of the united states. and i am glad to be here in one of the states that is going to put him over the top. and tomorrow, tomorrow, you get to practice doing that when you turn out and vote. you know, all of the noise surrounding elections, let's never forget what these elections are. elections are choices. four years ago, this nation made a choice, one that i disagreed with. and i think that from what i

hear today, most of you do, but we made a choice, and the choice was to give barack obama a chance. he has this record as president. unemployment, which under his watch has gone up. unemployment, which has gone up. he is no longer a theory. barack obama is a reality. millions of americans today find it worse than it was three years ago. of course, he will make all kinds of excuses about it. it always is. for two years. his first years as president.

they give him a stimulus. they gave him a health-care law. they gave him regulations that were failing. and so, we get to choose again. these are the things that made america great. this is a testament to american greatness. i used to give speeches in my campaign. there are few places in the world where you can start a business out of your parents' garage. and one day, employee a bunch of people. that is what has been done. there is only one person running for president. there is only one person you understand that.

there is only one choice running for president who will help us with the things in this nation of ours. different from the other countries on the earth. his name is mitt romney, the next president of the united states. [cheers and applause] i know what you are so excited. we have got senator marquard rubio -- marco rubio here.

your vote in the primary. as senator was right. all sorts of dreams about to bring america together. dividing us one way or another. a bit of a report card. at the convention in denver, he accepted the party nomination. there were the greek columns. do you remember that? he will not be standing in front of greek columns, because he does not want to remind us of greece.

a measure of success. he says the measures of success about people having good jobs that can pay for a mortgage. he has been in office 3.5 years. unemployment has been up for 38 straight months, even though he said if we let him borrow billions, he would keep it below 8%. we read today that 50% of kids coming out of college cannot find work or cannot find work that is commensurate with their skill. unacceptable. with good jobs for american. and then he said good jobs that could pay for mortgages. 2.8 million homes foreclosed upon. a record number. he has failed on that. he also talked about incomes going up or going down.

they have been going down. the median income has dropped, $3,000 during this president's term. he also said the judge success by whether people had an idea would take the risk of starting a business, but during this presidency, the number of people starting businesses dropped by tens of thousands, costing jobs galore. this is a president who on his own measure has failed, and so now he is looking around for someone to blame. just as was mentioned a while ago, republicans did not have congress for the first two years. the democrats did. he is out of excuses. we have to make sure in 2012 that we put him out of office. [cheers and applause]

now, we sure hope things are getting better. we sure hope the economy is getting better. there are signs that it is getting better. and the president is going to stand up and say he deserves credit for that. no, if it gets better, it is not because of him. it is in spite of him. and i say that with some evidence, because you look at what he has done, and you ask yourself, or you ask sam here, or you ask anyone else who is in a business big or small, did what he do help or hurt job creation? and you go through them one by one. this was 3.5 years ago. that is not creating jobs today, and then there was obamacare. is there anyone who thinks this has created more jobs?

people i have talked to about business a they have pulled back. part of it is because of the cost that this would put on business, and then there were the regulatory interests known as dodd-frank. this was designed to keep the too big to fail banks from getting bigger. and the banks that got hurt, the community banks. the banks that loaned to small businesses to start businesses. that did not help create jobs. then there was the labor policy. stooges that decided that boeing south carolina. because it was a right to work. allowed the entrepreneur say this is a good time to grow and expand. he has been anti-growth. we're going to make sure that approach is over in the white house.

[cheers and applause] [applause] this is meant to be a town meeting which means you get to ask questions and we get to dodge with our answers. i am kidding. i want to say one more thing. this really is an election about the course of america. we are going to decide what america is going to be over the rest of the century. i had the privilege of speaking barbara bush, who said this is the most important election in my lifetime. we face challenges around the world. how are we going to deal with

those challenges and remain the shining city on the hill? i believe we will make the right choice. it is a contrast where president obama would take tests and where -- would take us and where i would take us. he has a belief that government our lives and the economy than it can free people. government gets larger and larger under his vision. right now government at all levels consumes 38% of our economy. will be almost half of the economy. if we consider all the regulatory efforts into energy and health care and automotive and financial-services, the government would control over half of the u.s. economy. we cease being a free economy. that is where he would take us. we should tap the scale at 20% in do not let it get larger than that and get government out of our life.

[applause] he seems to be willing to accommodate trillion dollar deficit. trillion dollar deficits. he has amassed five trillion dollars of public debt, almost presidents combined. by the end of his fourth year. this is something i find unacceptable. if i am president, capet and will get a balanced budget. -- cap it and will get a balanced budget. [applause] the president's vision for america is one where the government thinks it can do a better job than you can for your health insurance policy.

what treatments you could receive. we're going to repeal obamacare you. [applause] under the president's vision it is harder and harder to use the energy we have in abundance. he has made it harder and harder through regulation to take advantage of those resources. i have a hard time understanding what he means when he says he is for all of the above. when it comes to energy. and then, finally, i figured it out. he is for all of the energy sources from above the ground, the wind and the sun. i love the wind and the sun but i also like the energy from below the ground, oil, coal, gas, we're going to get them.

[applause] let me mention something about our military. the president seems to be of the federal budget, our military. i do not think the world is a safer place. i think as you look around the world, north korea, iran, pakistan, developments around the world, the world continues to be a dangerous place. we have a navy that is smaller at any time since 1917. 1917. can you imagine? our air force is older and smaller than its founding in 1947. the president wants to cut personnel even as they were stretched in the last conflicts we have had. my own view is that we should take shipbuilding from 9 to 17

per year, purchased more aircraft, more personal, and we should give the veterans that care they deserve. [applause] i subscribe to ronald reagan's view below -- which is that you have a strong military to be a will to prevent war. a strong, american military is the best ally keys have ever -- peace has never known. -- peace has ever known. and so this election is going to come down to a dramatic choice for the course of america. are we going to believe in bigger government, more and more intrusive and more dependent upon it, where are we going to return to the

principles of free individuals building enterprises and economic freedom, political freedom, religious freedom, that is the course i represent. the president wants to transform america. i do not want to transform america. i want to restore the principles that made us the greatest nation on earth. [applause] there is a nice sign a over there. romney believes in america. i believe i -- i certainly do. thank you. there is a question right there. i knowthey're going to try to get to a microphone. -- you a microphone.

if you like it, you can use it. it is going to turn on in a second. you do not need to touch it, it is the guy in the control booth. try it again. >> an oil company had to refineries operating in delaware county. konica phillips had a refinery operating until last september. this implied gasoline to the east coast of the united states. without these refineries, and they were based on the epa costs of complying with regulations as well as those matt, we are suffering because of that and because of the use

of corn, fruits, in our gas tanks, which makes our cars less efficient. what terry going to do about these things? -- are you going to do about these things? >> we like clean air and clean water. we're going to have standards that keep our air and water clean. we do not want to have standards with developing oil, that make it impossible for us to use those resources to. -- those resources. in some cases, the epa puts our regulations a cannot be met with correct technology. that does not make a lot of sense. sometimes they put these things in place to drive us out of business. try the sources out of business. -- drive these sources out of business. with the view that finally solar and wind will become economic. we have a long way to go for

them to be economic. i do not believe in driving out of business those resources we have an abundance and believe we have to not have regulators thepennsylvania has suffered for the decades. one of the reasons is that manufacturers have left. one of the reasons for that is thatenergy costs have become so high. we have to have a president that understands how business works and recognizes the importance of energy. i do not want to drive manufacturers to go to places like china where they use the call we have been mining and put the same pollutions into the air. they do not call it america- warming, they call it global warming. >> you realize this is the most

energy rich country in the world? do you realize that the american innovator has invented a way to access natural gas we never had a chance to get to? do you realize, at a time when the world needs more energy, we found more of pipeline. it can go toward china or us. which direction do you think the president shows? -- chose? america. -- choose? america. >> i said that if we cannot get the thing built, i would bill that myself. which is not easy to do but i will find a way to build the pipeline.

thank you. yes, sir? >> we are finding out in minnesota that there have been a number of illegal voting procedures. as a matter of fact, we lost a great senator because of 312 votes, people who were felons were allowed to vote in minnesota. in south carolina, the governor is finding almost a thousand graveside votes. votes that were illegally given through various means. what is your position on voter registration, a voter id, and why it would be a shame to have my picture taken as an american? [applause]

>> it is hard for our friends across the aisle to explain why they do not want to make sure that people who vote are legal citizens of this country. i do not understand their approach. we have it right to one person and one vote. when people cheat and perpetuate fraud, they are taking away from me and you and your constitutional right to have one person to 1 vote. and so, i support efforts -- and these are going out across the country. i support efforts that say we sure they are citizens of the united states and they have not voted multiple times or for someone who has passed away. doing that. we have the attorney general trying to keep that from happening. i just think we should have voter identification so we know who is voting.

[applause] and those states working on laws like this are trying to find ways to make sure they do not frighten anyone away by saying -- come into the clerk's office and we will give you an identification. so if you do not have a driver's license, you can still come in and vote. let's make it easy for people to register but we have to have that kind of system. one of my favorite jokes about this -- the former senate president of massachusetts says, tongue in cheek, that he was being investigated by the fbi irregularities in his district. he had across from his home a apartments on top of each other. they normally hold three families. they said him, all we noted that the triple decker across from your home at 257 votes cast from it. they said to him how do you

explain that? he said simple, the top floor [laughter] mr. senator, any comments on voter identification? >> a week ago, i bought an exercise bike because my wife said i was looking too senatorial. you know what i mean? you know what the cashier asked when i got on the plane thisso what is the big deal. what is the big deal? should we not -- that is -- [applause] >> here is one behind you. if not, i will give you this one. see if it works. there, that works. >> i have an easy one for you. a political favor. [laughter] if in november you win the presidential election, i got a

baseball signed by five presidents and i would like to [applause] here's my phone number and my name. [applause] >> that is a promise i can keep today, right. he? >> i have been using it. >> i am concerned about obamacare. i have a husband who is ending his career in medicine, a daughter beginning her career ini know that the wheels of obamacare have been turning. what are you going to do about what is already happening? >> those things that have already happened are now in the

past and there's not much we can do about that. there are new taxes that will be applied. medical devices and instruments and alike are being taxed not as as of their revenue, of their sales. profitable will have to pay tax under obamacare. i am convinced that under obamacare, you will see more direction from the federal government as to what kinds of insurance you have to have and allowed to have. it. they did something extraordinary in massachusetts -- they elected a republican senator to stop it. yet the president went ahead anyway. if i am elected, i would everything in my power to stop obamacare. let me tell me some of the things i will do. waiver from obamacare to each the president has been doing

that to his friends. he grants waivers to various unions and so forth. i will grant that to all the states. repealed altogether. to get it repealed, the american comes next. there are some features in our health-care system that need to be fixed. for instance, an insurance company should not be able to drop someone because they get sick. if someone is working at a -- if someone is working at a business like this, for sam, and the family decides they are going to move to arizona. let's say one of the family members has a serious condition insured for 20 years than they insurance company will pick them up. that is not fair. i say if they had been previously covered with to get covered again. make. and then --

[applause] here is something -- have you ever thought about why it is that your employer purchases your insurance for you? they do not buy your life insurance or your car insurance. they do not buy your home insurance. why do they buy your health insurance? there is history as to why that has begun. for you that has been done for companies. if companies buy the insurance for you, they get a tax purchase it yourself, you do not get a tax deduction. i want to eliminate that discrimination and allow them -- individuals to purchase their own insurance and take it with them. [applause] we get the best health care in the world. there is just no question. obamacare threatens that. not just for the people who practice medicine are for those

receive health care. we have to do it. thank you. there is a gentleman back here. yes, sir? >> thank you, governor. governor and senator, we are honored to have you here. we are so honored. god bless you both. [applause] i am wearing a veteran for mitt romney sticker, navy way back when. [applause] i have a son who is a doctor but most importantly, i have seven grandchildren. i am terribly afraid that the constitutional republic that existed when i was born and was growing up is in dire straits of being ruined as these -- slipped administration.

[applause] it is so important. this is the most important election in my lifetime. 74 years. for entitlement. we came here for the opportunities. to take on responsibility and the opportunities and most importantly, the rewards for effort. honest effort. that is what we stand for as americans. [applause] our nation has some very serious fiscal problems. we do need tax reform and yet we need to save what has been possible for us as citizens,

deductions. we contribute to the needs of others. we are a compassionate people. we need to preserve that but we need to have meaningful fiscal reform and i would be very interested in hearing what your [applause] >> thank you. >> your question strikes a chord with me. first of all, let me tell you how honored i am to be hereit would have been unimaginable -- [applause] half a century ago, my parents came to the united states. they did not speak english. they did not really have much of an education. they both grew up poor. they did not know anybody here. it was hard for me to imagine what life was like then to read my parents were not rich but i was privileged because i lived in a strong, stable family andif

my father were still alive watching, it would not have been imaginable for me to stand here today. why am i here today? why have by the privilege to have opportunities they did not? it is it not because i am smarter or worked harder. i had something they did not to read the privilege and honor and being born in the single history. [applause] in a place where anyone from anywhere can accomplishdo you know why we are different? i do not remember growing up my parents ever sang to meet you know why we are not better off? because those guys are doing too well. they never said to me if only we took something away from them and they gave it to us, things would be better. i do not ever remember my parents teaching me [applause] i do not. in fact, would point to people

who made inspiration. if they made it, you can as well. [applause] and now, we now have leaders, a leader in this country that wants to take that from us. he is telling americans the too well. the way they can climb up the ladder is to pull other people down. if we do that, we become like every other country in the world. the cannot do that. -- we cannot do that. if we are that, if we become that, that the american inspiration will be gone and there will be nothing the rest of the world can look to hopefully in the hopes that they too can have what we have. this is who we must remain. but we will not if barack obama is president and another four years.

[applause] >> we get one more question with all of you but i want to underscore something. we need to have a president who will stop apologizing for success here at home and stop apologizing for success abroad of this great country. [applause] yes, sir? >> thank you so much for coming in a month, i would join the united states air force. [applause] i am very proud. my question to you is i am so glad that in your opening remarks you bought of national defence and our veterans. while the economy is very important, without a strong

economy, we do not have a strong anything. my question is on an issue that may take a bit of a back burner which is national defense. my question for you and for the senator -- are you prepared to assure us today that whatever option is required, you will not allow iran to have a nuclear weapon? [applause] >> i recognize that the american people are very tired of the conflicts we have been in. time. when people hear about an option with iran, they say oh boy. we have to tell america what the consequence would be of iran with a nuclear weapon. if they have fissile material, they sponsored terror throughout the middle east, europe and latin america --

hezbollah. one of their surrogates in latin america, supported by them. if those groups are able to get fissile material, it could find its way to our shores. there can be a dirty bomb. or any other kind of atomic weapon. it could not only blackmail america but could kill hundreds of thousands. we cannot have a nuclear iran. [applause] and therefore, we -- one of the president's great failings -- we have a long list of things to talk about that he has failed on of these -- that we sometimes do not get around. he should put crippling

sanctions against iran. he should move to indict ahmadinejad. he gave russia their number one foreign-policy objectives and denied get them to agree to sanctions against iran. there were voices to the streets in tirana. he had nothing to say about that. unthinkable. he has been acting like he is more concerned with israel -- that israel might take action to get rid of nuclear weapons that he is about having iran develop nuclear weapons. [applause] if i'm president, i will take whatever action necessary to prevent iran from having a nuclear weapon and threatening ourselves and our friends. senator. >> national security is the number one obligation of the

federal government. what the governor has already outlined is the risks iran poses to the world. we are in a world at a time when global problems require global solutions. that means one nation alone cannot solve problems any longer. but who will lead to tackle these problems. only the united states can do that. we can put together coalitions that will confront threats like iran. the world is begging for american leadership. not an america that leads from the side or behind an america willing to take the lead because the world understand that only began and we must. you have outlined the great threat that iran poses, not just to america but to the world. and the idea iran having any clear weapon is so horrifying that literally there is no price to large to bear from preventing that from happening. [applause]

train to go back to washington. i appreciate him coming here to be with us today. thank you, senator. [applause] >> thank you. thank you, guys. lucky to have him as their senator. are they not? yes. you guys, you're still standing. i will take that as a standing invitation to tell you these few words. we need to get you to work over the summer time to find out how difficult this is to make sure we can do the greatness of america, which preserves the

principles of the declaration of independence, that we are entitled to life and liberty and to the pursuit of happiness as we choose it, not as the government directs. this is a free nation. we are going to keep it strong and take back america. thank you so much. great to be with you. [cheers and applause] >> ♪ i was born free born free free, like a river raging strong chasing dreams steve, let the grandest canyon

-- steep. you can knock me down and watch me believe -- bleed but you can keep chains on main -- me i was born free, i was born free, born free ♪ ♪

♪ oooooh calm, facing danger lost, like an unknown stranger grateful for my time with no regrets close to my destination tired, frail and aching waiting patiently for the sun to set and when it is done, believe that i was yelling from the mountain high i was born free i was born free

i was born free i was born free ♪ i was born free born free oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ oh, oh, oh, oh, oh oh, oh, oh, oh, oh oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh oh, oh, oh, oh, oh oh, oh oh oh ♪ ♪ ♪ >> ♪ driving down the street

today, i saw a sign for lemonade they were the qb's kids i have ever seen in this front yard as they handed me my glass, smiling to myself what a post card this would be of america ♪ [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> primary voters go to the polls tomorrow. 231 total delegates are at stake in five contests. for more information, go to c- span.org/campaign2012. now, remarks from the presidential candidate for the constitution party. a former virginia congressman. the constitution party was founded as the u.s. taxpayers

party in 1991. the party officially changed its name to the >> let me call the meeting to order. he hails from rocky mount, virginia. he was born in richmond va., october 17. i am sorry, 1946. he received his ba from the university of richmond and his jd from the university of virginia law school. he served in the virginia army national guard. he is an attorney by trade. he was elected -- he served as a legislator in virginia, the general assembly, the virginia state senate, and he served 12

years as a u.s. representative in the u.s. congress. he is married to lucy. they have a daughter, catherine. i would point out that his 12 years of service in the u.s. congress, he served in federal office longer than barack obama or mitt romney combined, and so with that, for his acceptance speech, please welcome virgil. [cheers and applause] >> thank you.

under the constitutional party label. when you win by one vote, you know that every vote counts. i want to say to those that also ran for your nomination that it was an honor to be associated, and i want to think again joan and derryl for all but they have done over the years for the constitution party [applause]

[applause] robbie wells. thank you. [applause] the energy and enthusiasm exhibited by robbie wells on this campaign has been tremendous. if he will continue to work with us, if we do not get to the top of the hill this time, we will get to the top of the hill in 2016.

[applause] i also want to recognize susan and thank her for her campaign and for sharing with us her life story, which every person should listen to because it is a true pulling yourself up by the bootstraps story under the free enterprise system. thank you so much. [applause]

i am not sure if laurie is still here, but i want to express my appreciation for having the presence that a radio talk-show host has. i hope i can call her up and get some pointers for jazzing up and going with a few well- placed reasonable zingers that will television. [applause] ron from california, i have to really thank ron. he allowed the california delegation is to vote for me. thank you very much. thank you for standing for

traditional marriage and for your speech yesterday. [applause] our party offices have worked very hard in bringing about this convention, getting persons here from all over the country. our staff persons are in the background, getting little recognition. i think we should give them a round of applause. [applause]

our party chair is not running again for chair. know i do this on behalf of all of you -- for his personal contributions to this party. he and several others have been mainstays in providing funding over the years to the constitution party. you got to have some funding just to keep the doors open. jim, thank you so very much. [applause] i will not list all the party officers, and i know they have

all worked hard, but i do want to mention specifically our treasurer. joe. [applause] joe has done work in the detail that is needed to have treasurers' reports that are informative, but also comply with all the federal election commission regulations. joe, thank you for keeping us out of trouble. [applause] are you ready to take on mitt romney, barack obama, and the d.c.?

if you are, say yes. [applause] jim mentioned that i served in the u.s. house for 12 years. i did. peter from louisiana asked me, i know you cast a lot of votes and a lot of them i agree with, but tell me one or two that you may have cast wrong. you remember that, peter? and i did. i made some mistakes. it is not too difficult to do.

for the patriot act. i know that most in the room are very much opposed to that measure. i want to say that my association with the constitution party over the last three years has given me a better perspective in analyzing legislation from a constitutional viewpoint. and i want to say that i made a mistake in voting for that measure as it applied to u.s. citizens in this country and to legal permanent residents. i do not favor, although this may not comport with all federal court decisions, extending constitutional rights

to persons illegally in the united states. [applause] as president, i would work with applications of the patriot act as they apply to u.s. citizens. [applause] i also voted for support for the troops in afghanistan. i never favored rebuilding the country's with u.s. taxpayer money. like many, who voted yes on those actions early on, i

suspect in the u.s. house and senate, you would have very close votes in extending the war in afghanistan. it is time to come home in an [applause] we can talk about some other issues. in most instances, i was right in line with the thought of this party and with a significant number of american citizens. i have a pro-life voting record. [applause] that distinguishes me from president obama, who has one of the most pro-abortion records and positions ever for a

president and certainly during his service in the united states senate. over time, my pro-life voting record is better than that of mitt romney, who has converted more recently to our position. [applause] with regard to marriage, i have always supported the proposition that marriage should be between one man and one woman. i was in the virginia senate, the u.s. house of representatives. if you look closely at president that he is moving ever slope directly in a direction of pro-civil unions and pro-

homosexual rights. if i am president, i will veto legislation advancing the cause. second amendment issues, i have always consistently supported the right of the individual to keep and bear arms. one of the first amendment's that i proposed in the u.s. give that right to citizens of washington, d.c. when we were in the apartment of there, it was against the law for us to have a firearm in our apartment for self protection. thankfully, that has been

changed in d.c., but we need someone in the executive office of this country who has a history of supporting the second amendment and who you know you can count on one and comes to the right of your cells to defend yourself and have a firearm for protection of your person and property. [applause] in the u.s. house, i was one of the democrats who did not go along with the democratic leadership. time to vote for our budget resolution. the republican leadership would come by and say, you know, sometimes you just have to vote with us on these on balanced budget resolutions loaded with

deficit. i would not go along with them. that was not liked by the senior leadership in either party. now we are in a situation where our debt is $15.70 trillion and a deficit, under the obama budget, is $1.30 trillion, and under the ryan budget, it is $600 billion. with the constitution party is philosophy and viewpoints, with which i agree, we need to cut now and balance now. [applause]

we must have the courage to cut. from the department of education no child left behind to the department of education and general, we could go on and on, and i would say, look at obama's record and mitt romney's record. just on those two issues. education, no child left behind, and foreign aid. i am for slashing and cutting, and they made before taking a paring knife and slicing off just a thin layer of cheese at the top. obama is not even for that. he wants to throw them out another ream of cheese. go to it, gang.

i was honored to be in ron paul's liberty caucus. i support and audits of the federal reserve. i do not think you will get barack obama or mitt romney to even mention the issue. [applause] another area, a big distinction between us and the republicans and democrats is illegal immigration and legal immigration. i cannot thank the national committee of the constitution party enough for having the courage in the face of political correctness to say, we stand with arizona in support of their legislation.

if i am president, you would not have eric holder as attorney general. our attorney general would go and be of friend-of-the-court to say let's uphold what arizona and alabama are doing to control their immigration. [applause] i said during our campaign, i want to thank robbie wells for having this position, calling for a moratorium, with a few exceptions, on the continuing issuing of green cards when we have unemployment between 8 and

9%. last year, 1.2 million green cards were issued. a significant number work to working age individuals. one we have american citizens that need work, you should not be bringing an so many from foreign nations to take jobs that our citizens have longed for and indeed so they can get off the unemployment line before we extend the benefits of this country to those from other countries. it is time to put the american worker first. [applause] in the house, i was always a supporter of ending diversity visas. 50,000 persons per year that can come in on a lottery system.

you can be from the middle east, africa, asia, where ever. even though you are nowhere near the front of the legal immigration line, you apply for the diversity visa pool, and you get into that lottery system, and they pull your number, in you come. why bring in so many persons, many of you are working age, when unemployment is so high? it is the wrong course for the nation. if i am president, i will sign an work for the legislation to end those of diversity visas. [applause] and other big distinction between myself and president obama and likely candidate mitt

romney, i do not support automatic birthright citizenship for the children of illegals in this country. [applause] eliminating automatic birthright citizenship would also significantly help the budgetary situation of the united states and of several other states. you should not be able to comment, have a child in this country, get food stamps, get public assistance, medicaid, and some other type of public aid, all that is being paid for by long-term citizens who are paying taxes.

we need to end that practice, whether it is by statute or by constitutional amendment. i do not know of another country in the world that is that liberal with regard to illegal aliens having children in their native country. we have one of the most liberal immigration, may be the most, in the world. we need to turn that upside- down. if we do, our budget situation will be enhanced. most importantly, as my campaign literature says, we need to save america by focusing on the fact that citizenship should matter and should count for something. [applause]

the last thing i want to mention, as a key distinction between myself and candidates romney and obama, is campaign fund-raising. they are hawks and they are adept at getting $10,000 out of couples for the primary and general election. and really sharp at getting the money from big pacs. i am not taking, besides a few leftover campaign funds from congressional races and donations from immediate family, no donation over $200 and no pac

contributions. it is time that the average citizen had the same voice in government as the oracle of omaha, the head of grew will -- of google, facebook, all of those entities. let's stand up for the citizenry. he liked me and the constitution party ticket in 2012 and we will give america that change that is needed. it will not be the barack obama change in -- of 2008. [applause] >> this year's student cam competition asked students what part of the constitution was

important to them and why. today's selection selected the 19th amendment. >> the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote in the united states. >> women's suffrage went from 1848-1920. >> the 19th a regiment -- amendment, tennessee is the last date. >> they were arrested. >> how early did american feminism start to appear? >> abigail adams was writing letters to john adams saying, remember the ladies when you start putting together this country. at least it goes back that far. >> elizabeth stanton, the crucial mott, and jane hunt held

the first women's rights convention in seneca falls, new york. >> when i held the convention in 1848 and they had subsequent conventions, they were not just talking about the right to vote. it was not until after the civil war that the focus of women's rights became narrowed to break the suffrage. >> it picked up steam as attracted attention from the media. many joined the movement and many more conventions occurred. many more thought it was a ludicrous idea. it went against everything that society had been taught for generations. after she meant stanton, susan b. anthony joined the cause as well. together, that would make a significant step towards women's rights. >> how did the civil war affects women's rights? >> it comes directly after the anti-slavery movement. there were not for a northern

victory and an apostle of victory. in turn, they would receive their due rights as women. that did not happen. at the end of the civil war, the 13th amendment was passed that ended slavery. the 14th and 15th amendments gave citizenship to former slaves and established civil rights but nothing was done for women. the women supported the north and the north did not support the women. >> in 1872, and devoted. she argued the 14th amendment enabled her to vote. she was later jailed and her trial received national attention. she was charged with illegal voting. if she had one, women would have been able to vote under the 14th amendment. it did not only not include women, but specifically excluded them. the word men appeared in the constitution but women argued that it referred to people as a species. in the 14th amendment, the word male appears, which undeniably

refers to the genders. >> the women's movement was largely diverse. they did not have a unified voice, they did not work together. there were differing opinions and different personalities. >> susan be out -- susan b. anthony and elizabeth stanton formed the women's suffrage foundation, seeking voting rights for an amendment to the constitution. henry blackwell for the american women's suffrage association. his strategists -- his strategy was to amend individual state constitutions. this would be followed by 16 other states and territories in the next 49 years. >> giving women power. helping them gain an equal footing with the establishment.

>> the national women's suffrage situation merged to form the national american woman suffrage. >> susan b. anthony was tireless in promoting women's rights and women's suffrage. she never managed to get it on the agenda in washington. paul came along and arranged the first big demonstration. >> alice paul joined the national american woman suffrage association and was immediately appointed as the head of the congressional committee whose goal was to obtain women's suffrage for an amendment to federal constitution, the association's secondary goal. in 1913, despite little

findings, she executed one of the most famous marches which was held on the day of woodrow wilson's inauguration. >> she organized a parade of 30,000 women marching on pennsylvania avenue. woodrow wilson, who was arriving to be inaugurated, wondered if the crowd were to greet him at union station and he was told there were over on the avenue looking at the ladies. >> the tactics of this party in achieving a federal men were more extreme. >> women were holding demonstrations, chanting outside the white house. >> no more the meek and mild, subservient and sweet. we are fighting for our rights militantly.

never you fear. >> courageous women marched, chanted, and they were arrested. >> it became popular because of the brutal treatment of the women in prison. president wilson pardoned the women and thought it would go home. instead, they went back and stood on the picket line in front of the white house again. he finally recognized that this was a societal push that will not go away. he packaged it as a war measure. he had made a promise that he would not submit anything to congress that did not have to do with the war effort. his argument was that women were on the frontline. there were supporting the men. they deserved the right to vote. >> you have to think about it. some of the first states to ratify the amendment were states with women party having the

right to vote. women were voting in the election and they put people in the state assembly, the house of representatives and senate that would be inclined to ratify an amendment like this. >> the 19th amendment ratified with the 36 state, tennessee, the last date to make it three- quarters that were needed. tennessee was on the spot and it was the perfect 36 that gave women the right to vote. >> do you think women still suffer from sexual discrimination today? ok. while women might not get parity with men, they can vote, giving them a voice in the country and

the ability to enact changes. >> go to our web site to watch all of the videos. and continue the conversation on our facebook and twitter pages. >> tomorrow, the bankruptcy investigation into the mf global collapse continues. we will hear from a trusty and the head of the trading commission. senator tim johnson is the chairman of the banking committee and senator richard shelby is the ranking member. live coverage starts at 10:00 a.m. eastern. this week, james murdoch, former chairman of news international, and his father, rupert murdoch, will testify under an investigation of the british media. coverage begins tomorrow morning with james murdoch. rupert murdoch will testify wednesday and thursday mornings. >> next, a conversation on

foreign war and conflict reporting. we will hear from reporters, photographers, and new york times executive editor jill abramson. this one hour and 10 minute event is hosted by the american society of news editors. >> hi, everybody. i want to thank reuters for the foreign correspondents that have died in the past year. loren could not be here today.

she had a sudden illness and her family and we wish them well. susan bennet, our moderator for lives on the lines, started her recording career with upi in memphis, where sikh -- she covered the death of elvis. as a reporter, she traveled 50 countries covering arms control, the collapse of communism, the persian gulf war, and the middle east. she became an editorial writer for usa today and it worked for 13 years at the newseum. she is now a senior consultant. she edited "running toward danger," a book about those who covered 9/11. three weeks ago, a heartbreaking photo of a syrian boy in anguish after his father was shot by a government sniper dominated front pages of the new york times, the washington journal, the washington post, and others around the world.

a few days later, the photographer who shot the photo wrote eight gripping account of escaping from syria. "explosions illuminated the night as we ran." "tank shells slammed into the city's trees behind us. snipers' bullets whizzed by our heads. we are all going to get killed, a syrian activist told me, collapsing into tears. he has worked for the ap since 2003, covering the war in afghanistan, the earthquake in haiti, and continuing conflicts in the middle east and around the globe. christopher shivers is one of the outstanding reporters and writers of our time. a marine infantry officer in the persian gulf war, his work has been cited in two pulitzer rise efforts of the new york times. he has won the prize for

national reporting, a national magazine award, and the michael kelly award for the fearless pursued an expression of the truth. his national magazine award was for the school, a description of the second worst terrorist attack ever, and attack by chechen rebels against schoolteachers, their teachers and parents on the first day of school. that store was one of the seven greatest stories ever published. he also cover the worst terrorist attack ever, september 11. he spent two weeks at ground zero virtually without sleep. his dispatches from iraq and afghanistan were selected by new york university's as being one of the decade's top 10 works of journalism. tyler hicks was also part of the times team, along with chris shivers, that won the 2009 pulitzer.

he has been named newspaper photographer of the year in the international pictures of the year contest. he covered conflicts and disasters in coast of chechnya, iran, iraq, afghanistan, syria, and libya. he was taken captive in libya by forces loyal to muammar gaddafi. their 21-year-old driver was killed. he wrote about what happened in the march 3 times, saying, "and he felt it was essential that journalists get into syria many people had been killed because of world you." that mission is what we're here to talk about today. i would like to introduce it jill abramson, the executive editor of the new york times. [applause] >> thank you so much.

what you have been watching as you have gathered in this room are the pictures of 14 journalists and colleagues who have been killed so far this year on top of a terrible 2011 where the number reached 46. this panel, which includes two of my most esteemed colleagues from the times is here to discuss the fundamental questions of why we still go and why bearing witness to conflict and war is indeed a calling for them and others who proudly call themselves foreign correspondents. tyler was with anthony, as many of you know, when he died trying

to cross the border from syria back to turkey. and tyler was also with antony and two other of our colleagues about one year ago when they were taken into -- in captivity in libya. tyler has been a hero to many of his colleagues and never, for one minute, tried to save anthony and brought him across the border to safety. he wrote a terrific piece about their trip to syria, the reporting part of it. anthony was incredibly excited about it. for those of you who new entity, he was just irrepressible in his joy of being out, covering with his own

eyes and ears the most important stories. friends have described is pure joy when he finally got to tahrir square. he told the editors and the times, his colleagues, that this -- that the trip to syria had been one of the best he had made. what made and any special was his fluency in arabic, his miracle prose, his eye for detail, and his dedication to telling the stories of ordinary people. ordinary people caught by conflict, instead of telling the stories of war through the eyes of political leaders and those waging the battle. bill keller, my predecessor as executive editor, who hired anthony at the time, said

something quite true about him. which is if with a media -- if wikipedia had an entry for a foreign correspondent, it would simply say his name. he won two pulitzers for coverage of iraq. his father, buddy, told me that a distant memory of his when i was chatting with them in beirut after the tragedy, he said, "antony would win whatever prize was available. he started doing this when he was 10 years old at bible camp." his new book is a gorgeous meditation on identity and the tug of family and covering war. in it, he writes, he is writing

about his oklahoma city large, extended family. he says, "it is a big, sprawling clan, together even when it is a part." the journalists on this panel are part of that plan. i would like to think that antony's words applied to journalism broadly as well. thank you. [applause] >> sometimes, when one is asked to moderate a panel, i worry about, how can i fill the allotted time? in the case of this panel, the case was, how can i possibly get in all these questions? these three journalists have had such amazing careers. i will died in with my questions. at any point, if you like to ask a question, please feel free to do so. there is a microphone in the middle. this is a free-for-all.

we will go whenever you want to say anything. tyler, i hope that everybody has read your story about antony's last day in syria. in your piece, you talk about how you spend months with antony, planning his trip and how to stay safe. can you talk about that? >> sure. this type of trip, especially in the wake of what we have seen happen to our colleagues over the past year, a lot of people have been killed in syria and libya, some people we were very close to as well. it just seems that there was a lot of luck with these journalists up until, considering america has been involved in two wars over the period of a decade, so many journalists going, people being hurt and killed along the way,

it has really been concentrated in the last year and made us focused italy on it. especially, in our case, just one year before planning this trip, having been captured and nearly killed in libya. anthony and i and the new york times took extra steps to make sure this trip would go smoothly. those were not just our own preparations but largely the context that antony had inside syria. we made sure we were working with people who we could trust. this is not just about charging into a country, which is really the worst thing you can do. there is a feeling that you have to be there first, you have got to get there. we did not feel that. antony, as he explained it to me, said, this is going to be a long war. this is going to drag on. this is only like to get worse. let's do this right and let's do

this safely. that included taking a lot of precautions. which border would recross? who were recross and when? what contacts, who have worked with in the past? a lot of things about these people and who they really are. you depend on them. your life is in their hands. really, the local contact your working with -- your life is in their hands. really, the local contact you were working with and make sure that you have the time line, which carry an emergency + the paper where we are at any given time, you push a button. we carry medical kits. unfortunately, at the very end of the trip, it was very unexpected in a lot of ways. >> all of you are veterans of covering conflict, but chris, what advice do you give to editors sending somebody into a

conflict for the first time? is there something they can do to prepare the reporter or the photographer for this kind of action? >> as part of your normal supervision, make sure that whoever you send has excellent judgment and someone that is in touch with you regularly. we were off satellite phones and sometimes only through e- mail. communication back and forth with the best means to be really rich and as constant as you can make it. i don't think you send someone who you don't think their judgment was solid, but there is a practical skill that everyone should have and far too few people have. he should not send someone who has not had the basic trauma care training. it is essential. when you're traveling with the

american military, most everyone around you have that training. it is likely there will be tourniquets and basic skills and knowledge available. in libya or syria, you'll be astonished at the number of people out there that don't have any skills. you have just minutes to save someone's life. the show can come in and you may have to work on them. that doesn't mean that you do vascular surgery, but you have to treat for shock, to a basic riyadh. it is very important that journalists have this fundamental set of skills. a friend of ours by the of the lead loaned -- a leg wound. the friends were holding their hand, providing comfort but not first day. people were taken from that

scene that were wounded less seriously than them by the only available,. -- available car. i am not saying this gentleman would have survived his wounds, they were severe. we know that the aid was not administered and the tree of wasn't followed. -- triage wasn't followed. it would be nice to know that they have that very basic skill set. you can give them an emt cours. i think that is essential. >> b-picture that george mentioned on the front page of the new york times, the washington post, and others was syria and rebel soldiers

grieving over some of their dead comrades. you wrote about your dangerous trip into syria, and he said it may not have been your best photography, but it told people a lot about what was going on in syria. is it important to take those kind of pictures as well as the ones that you think might be a prize winner? >> yes, when we were, we are never thinking that far. [inaudible] that picture is more emotional. i would picture what is going

on, also with the civilians. i think the risk is to show that, not only to show the fierce fighting. people are in the middle of that. they are suffering every day. [inaudible] he was living his normal life. i think it is important to show the daily life of the syrians right now. it means a lot of amazing pictures, more dramatic. it was so dangerous sometimes, i was risking my life like

every minute. we try to tell the story without being in the middle of the bombs. they were bombing from far away. if you are in that place, you are there. we had a camera guy with a lot of experience. i am trying to do my best in those places. he said, rodrigo, we can't be here now. it's too dangerous. and here people that really know the weapons -- [inaudible] i have no idea what these weapons are.

>> for the non-photographers, you also confronts major chaos. riots, a mass funeral, how do you focus on that one image whether it is in grieving or something that you think it tells the story. are you looking for that in particular? >> is one of the things i have observed through the years, watching other photographers that i have always admired. being in the scene, whether it is a funeral or a protest, whatever it is. i would be shooting everything in every direction. i looked at the picture, and they completely -- they got this amazing shot.

i got all this garbage, these busy pictures. i think that this still isn't so much just going and photograph everything, but knowing what your looking for when you go into that situation and having the ability to focus and tune out. it is like hunting for birds. you have to aim at one, not a flock. >> rodrigo? >> for me, it's really important to be calm in that situation. when the situation is really a chaotic, you can start running everywhere without taking a picture. because you know what you're

doing. you're trying to find a picture that illustrates the story. it is difficult. [inaudible] the situation was completely more dramatic and more chaotic than my pictures. you're calm, you have experience, you can deal with the emotions without drama, people crying, people running. it is difficult, but we try to live through >> and some members of the military have trouble with adjustments when they come home. they have come from an area

where driving down the block can be an imminent explosion, everybody carrying a backpack can be a suicide bomber. how do you go between the world that you cover and what we call the real world? >> i think about this a lot because i have five kids, my wife is here. i come back to a pretty busy life that is my real life. it is not my job. in a strange way, some of these places have been horrible weather is ground zero or the day to day in libya and afghanistan or iraq. it makes you appreciate your own good fortune. you come to a place where you don't have to worry about your community. i don't resent that, i appreciate it.

you try to get some perspective that you don't always succeed at it, because when you come back, your in your regular life. you can't really tried to superimpose one over the other and you have to leave the other one for your work situation. these guys were talking a minute ago that i would add, it might have to deal with the personality that does this year in and year out. close at the dark, five the tourniquets. they shared something that is very similar and i will air them out. some of these guys, you might be the same type, you may have a little bit of perverse personality. when things are really good,

they can be unmanageable. [laughter] and when things are really bad, you can be calm. i'm not saying that they don't feel fear, they do. if they tell you they don't, they are lying. but they manage it, they channel it, they concentrated and are very calm. they are bouncing around the inside of the tent because it's calm. when they are out there in the middle of that, i work side-by- side with photographers, i work from the field. it can be so busy and intense that is very self-organizing. you are not in those sorts of situations when your home. when you get stuck in traffic, you are just a guy stuck in

traffic. it is not so bad. >> i agree. i agree with chris a lot, you have to be able to separate as best you can what you do in the field that what you have at home. people manage that in different ways, they have different ways of coping with the stress being in the field. i heard about this with journalists at with veterans. -- and with veterans. you can see it in the field, the stress, the anchor, the fighting, all of these things that can happen. i think chris and i both have very good ways of managing those two things.

what has happened to me in the last year, this past year has been the worst year of my entire life. captured in libya, lost a very good friend in syria, i had to witness his death. and worse than that, seeing how badly it affected so many people, his family, friends, a widow, his son, his daughter. it is one thing to see something in the field, but there were these long-lasting things that really need attention. whether it is a correspondent for photographer, they think you need to be very sensitive to the level that they are coping with. it very well may not be on the surface, i know that the paper

is always offering help. somebody to talk to, and the thing. you don't even always think to ask for it yourself. he sure that you offer it to people, even if they don't think it was that bad, it is really important. >> this really affects the families. i remember when he stepped on a mine a few years ago. how is he doing, is he going to make it? there is sort of this expanding and blossom in conversation. -- and blossoming conversation. he was 2 years old in the back

seat of my pickup truck, i took the additional call. he can only hear one side but he consents by distress. what did your friend is that bonn -- step on? there were times that i was coming home, and he'd look at me and say, how come you're not hurt? what my wife goes through and my kids go through when i am away, it makes you feel like you have to worry about your universe. not just how he is doing in this room. -- in the newsroom. you can get your way around the

pain of that. a little bit. but take a good look at the families, this is a real burden. it is like what the soldiers go through or the victims that are caught up. they may not be right there seeing it, but they are living it. they can sense things we are not saying when we come home. >> you have a different circumstance that you don't cover conflict all the time. you might be taking pictures with a box camera that you found in afghanistan one day. how do you deal with covering peaceful topics and then going back to war? >> i live in central america, i cover haiti, mexico.

they are not easy countries, but it is not open war like libya. but i think that i don't know if i can go and do this like six months a year or nine months a year covering wars. early, i am more fresh going to these places. coming back, i am doing a project about by and women -- mayan women. i don't know any other story. when i go to pakistan, it's in a different way. not always the world. so i am not tired. i am never tired of going

because i spent the early part of the year doing trips, and a normal life. other stories. that is good. my mother says all the time, why are you not going to the olympics? why haiti? [laughter] talking about family, they don't really understand why you go to afghanistan. i think it is important to do it. a good thing working for -- [inaudible] you are not just working for one newspaper, you are working for all of them. sometimes our pitchers are

published everywhere. it is important to do it, to do mixed stories. if i work hard and latin america, nobody cares. >> chris, you are a bit of a hybrid. before you were a journalist, you were a marine. as you cover the marines as a journalist, but you find that they help or a hindrance --do you find that a help or a hindrance? do you tell people up front that you were in the marines, or do you wait and see what the situation is? >> i don't have a choice with that anymore, before you show up, they know a lot about you and they have read what you have done. at this point, there is no

lowballing that. mostly it helps. helps a lot. there are things that got drilled in the by dna what i was young that you can't get rid of -- into my dna what i was young that you can't get rid of. but what i am walking patrol, i am hyper vigilant. i usually set of the patrol order beforehand, i can sometimes anticipate things that are happening before they happen. it puts you in the right place and keep you safe, and it helps me make a good risk assessment about whether i wanted to this particular patrol. i will shoulder risk for readers, but i will just go out there and what the patrol because i want to. there has to be a reason or a pursuit. you have to come back inside the wire, as they say.

but sometimes, it hurts. i will give you an example. there was a patrol the i was on, it has happened a few times, where your state of knowledge is high. you come to a point where the patrol is not behaving the way they you think it should be. in one case, a patrol was taking the left just short of the canal and i thought that they should scoot over the bridge. i thought there was a building over there that was dangerous. i wanted to be on their side of the canals of that you can sweep the building. there was a boat in the canal, i knew it was he. if we end up in the canal, we will drown today.

but i did not say anything, it is not my job. you're not there to take over the patrol. if someone gets hurt, from that minute forward, you own that casualties. you have to be quiet on patrol. the tyler and i were a lot of patrol a couple weeks ago, and they were bunched up. these kids have never been shot at. you know when you are moving with a group that has had a lot of combat, of this particular day, i decided not to say anything. i almost said, you might want to scoot over to that side of the bridge. we got shot at from the building, got shot through the spine. not like i was withholding information from the patrol, i just had a hunch.

every time you have a hunch, you can't interfere with the patrol. but this is where it hurts. i think about the patrol, i will say every day, but every week. -- won't say every day, but every week. >> the navy is conducting a study in the military troops that they sometimes get a sixth sense or spidey sense for danger that's imminent. does this come from experience? >> i think that comes from experience in the sense that specifically, if you talk about control and afghanistan, you can feel when something is going to happen. that often comes from experience.

when you send people out, they are going with trained soldiers and marines, they watch them. they do what they do and follow their movements. that is something that i have always tried to keep in mind. if something happens unexpectedly, the most unusual and unexpected thing usually happens. because, as chris was saying, you are attached to that. if you suddenly go running off in the other direction, they will have to go and get you. you have to go where they go, sometimes it is not where you want to go.

sometimes they want to go right into the fight. there are certain courses offering training for these kind of things. the real field experience, that is why is important. about to jump into the big and complex right away, to start off with lower level complex and at least get some of that experience and awareness about how these things work. >> a lower level conflict that i covered was a vote of rest. i was with -- was civil unrest. i smelled something, it was embers in my hair. i said to the photographer, they

pay you to get close, they paid me to get the story. so i went to talk to the fire fighters. how much is too much? when does a good picture take over from saving your hide? >> reporters, we need to be there. very near, sometimes. that is more risky. but you're asking when we feel it's really dangerous. in syria, days before the army launched a big attack. they were very concerned about not showing their face, they want to cover their faces. it was dangerous, but calm.

they forgot about you. i took all the pictures.

.

one of the president's great failings -- we have a long list of things to talk about that he has failed on of these sums time -- that we sometimes do not get around. he should put crippling sanctions against iran. he should the mood -- moved to indict ahmadinejad. he gave russia their number one foreign-policy objectives and denied get them to agree to sanctions against iran. voices to the streets in tirana. he had nothing to say about that. unthinkable. he has been acting like he is more concerned with israel -- that israel might take action to get rid of nuclear weapons that he is about having iran develop nuclear weapons. [applause]

if i'm president, i will take whatever action necessary to prevent iran from having a nuclear weapon and threatening ourselves and our friends. senator. >> national security is the number one obligation of the federal government. what the governor has already outlined is the risks iran poses to the world. we are in a world at a time when global problems require global solutions. that means one nation alone cannot solve problems any longer. but who will put and lead -- to tackle these problems. only the united states can do that. we can put together coalitions that will confront threats like iran. the world is begging for american leadership. not an america that leads from the side or behind an america willing to take the lead because the world understand that only began and we must.

you have outlined the great threat that iran poses, not just to america but to the world. and the idea of a man having a nuclear weapon is so horrifying that literally -- iran having any clear weapon is so horrifying that literally there is no price to large to bear from preventing that from happening. [applause] >> the center -- senator is getting on a train to go back to washington. i appreciate him coming here to be with us today. thank you, center. -- senator. [applause] >> thank you. but those guys in florida are lucky to have him as their senator.

you're still standing. i will take that as a standing invitation to tell you these few words. you will help get me the support i need tomorrow. this keep -- the key support i need is the work over summertime. get your friends to look at how critical this election is to make sure we maintain the greatness of america which flows from our people, not our government and preserves the principles of the declaration of independence. we are entitled to life and to the party and to the pursuit of happiness as you choose it, not as the government chooses it. we will take back america. thank you some much. great to be with you. [applause]

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♪ >> republican presidential primary voters go to the polls which today.

for more information on c-span's road to the white house coverage, go to c-span.org. president obama announced a plan that would allow the u.s. to impose sanctions on foreign entities for using technology to carry out human-rights abuses. he made this announcement during the speech at the annual commemoration of the holocaust at the u.s. holocaust memorial museum in washington. he introduces the present at this 40 minute event.

mr. president,fellow holocaust survivors and their families, the families of officers steve jones, who was gunned down by a murderer here in the museum, director sara bloomfield, and ladies and gentleman, i stand before you today as a proud american. the in to -- jew in may is infinite the proud to be with the president of the united states in this museum, together to celebrate jerusalem, the greatest in the world and most important of all.

this country, the united states of america, has welcomed the great majority of survivors of what we call the holocaust. it is a place of redemption, a place of unity. presidents of both parties, from jimmy carter to george bush, have spoken to us here, and now we are honored that president barack obama is with us today. it is also a place of questions. some of them, many of them, disturbing questions which remain challenging. it is about the possibilities of power, suffering for victims, about the massacre of children.

these questions, of course, are relevant. why did america open up its doors? why did not the allies bomb the railway going to auschwitz? in those years, hundreds would lose a lifetime. 10,000 were guests every night bombing the allies which would have at least stopped that process for a while. from the very beginning of this institution, we attempted to confront the already distant past with this terrible tragic truth and the questions that we are compelled to ask.

the jewish people's commitment to memory to israel. we had a problem that we did not know how to deal with. so much suffering, so much evil, which meant so much power. never has won people been condemned by another people to total annihilation. what are the questions, who are we to remember? the perpetrators, bystanders, a multitude of victims? all of them jews? it became clear to us from the beginning that while not all victims were jewish, all jews were victims, young and old, rich and poor, teachers and

students, those from the city's and populations. all were targeted. and the children, why the children? and the old people, why the old people? was the enemy it afraid of the future, of the children, for the past, the old? now we know that this tragedy, we know how it was done, but we do not know why it was done. know why it is metaphysical, but physically, we do not know why did it happen? what are the conclusions? one thing that we do know, it could have been prevented. the greatest tragedy and history could have been

prevented, had the civilized world spoken up, taken measures in 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942. each time, in berlin, they always wanted to see what would be the reaction in washington and europe? there was no reaction. they felt they could continue. in this place, we may ask, have we learned anything from it? if so, how is it that assad is still in power? how is it that the holocaust no. 1 denier, mahmoud ahmadinejad, is still in power? he here threatens to friends to use nuclear weapons -- he who

threatens to use nuclear weapons. we must know, when the eagle has power, it is almost too late. preventive measures are important. we must use those measures to prevent another catastrophe. whenever communities are threatened by anyone, we must not allow them to do what they intend to do. of course, one more question to the believer and god in all of this. what does it mean? was god fed up with his creation? however, auschwitz did not come

from the heavens. human beings did it. human beings. the killers were human beings. auchwitz was conceived by human beings, implemented by human beings. so what is it about the human psyche, fascination, that could allow human beings to become inhumane? mr. president, we are in this place of memory. of course, i remember when you and i traveled together. we spoke about all kinds of things. i hope now you understand, in this place, why israel is so

important, not only to the jewish people, but to the world. we cannot not remember. and because it remembers, it must be strong, just to defend its own survival and destiny. mr. president, you spoke and quietly, elegantly gave me the last word. today, the last word is yours. ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct privilege and pleasure to give you my friend, the president of the united states, mr. barack obama. [applause]

>> thank you. [applause] thank you. [applause] good morning, everyone. it is a great honor to be with

you here today. of course, it is a truly humbling moment to be introduced by elie wiesel. along with sara bloomfield, the outstanding director here, we just spent some time among the exhibits, and this is now the second visit i've had here. my daughters have come here. it is a searing occasion whenever you visit. and as we walked, i was taken back to the visit that elie mentioned, the time that we traveled together to buchenwald. and i recall how he showed me the barbed-wire fences and the guard towers. and we walked the rows where the barracks once stood, where so many left this earth --

including elie's father, shlomo. we stopped at an old photo -- men and boys lying in their wooden bunks, barely more than skeletons. and if you look closely, you can see a 16-year old boy, looking right at the camera, right into your eyes. you can see elie. and at the end of our visit that day, elie spoke of his father. "i thought one day i will come back and speak to him," he said, "of times in which memory has become a sacred duty of all people of goodwill." elie, you've devoted your life to upholding that sacred duty. you've challenged us all -- as individuals, and as nations -- to do the same, with the power of your example, the eloquence of your words, as you did again just now. and so to you and marion, we

are extraordinarily grateful. to sara, to tom bernstein, to josh bolten, members of the united states holocaust memorial council, and everyone who sustains this living memorial -- thank you for welcoming us here today. to the members of congress, members of the diplomatic corps, including ambassador michael oren of israel, we are glad to be with you. and most of all, we are honored to be in the presence of men and women whose lives are a testament to the endurance and the strength of the human spirit -- the inspiring survivors. it is a privilege to be with you, on a very personal level. as i've told some of you before, i grew up hearing stories about my great uncle -- a soldier in the 89th infantry division who

was stunned and shaken by what he saw when he helped to liberate ordruf, part of buchenwald. and i'll never forget what i saw at buchenwald, where so many perished with the words of sh'ma yis'ra'eil on their lips. i've stood with survivors, in the old warsaw ghettos, where a monument honors heroes who said we will not go quietly; we will stand up, we will fight back. sacrede walked those grounds at yad vashem, with its lesson for all nations -- the shoah cannot be denied. during my visit to yad vashem i was given a gift, inscribed with those words from the book of joel: "has the like of this happened in your days or in the

days of your fathers? tell your children about it, and let your children tell theirs, and their children the next generation." that's why we're here. not simply to remember, but to speak. i say this as a president, and i say it as a father. we must tell our children about a crime unique in human history. the one and only holocaust -- six million innocent people -- men, women, children, babies -- sent to their deaths just for being different, just for being jewish. we tell them, our children, about the millions of poles and catholics and roma and gay people and so many others who also must never be forgotten.

let us tell our children not only how they died, but also how they lived -- as fathers and mothers, and sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters who loved and hoped and dreamed, just like us. we must tell our children about how this evil was allowed to happen -- because so many people succumbed to their darkest instincts, and because so many others stood silent. let us also tell our children about the righteous among the nations. among them was jan karski, a young polish catholic, who witnessed jews being put on cattle cars, who saw the killings, and who told the truth, all the way to president roosevelt himself.

jan karski passed away more than a decade ago. but today, i'm proud to announce that this spring i will honor him with america's highest civilian honor -- the presidential medal of freedom. [applause] we must tell our children. but more than that, we must teach them. because remembrance without resolve is a hollow gesture. awareness without action changes nothing. in this sense, "never again" is a challenge to us all -- to pause and to look within. for the holocaust may have reached its barbaric climax at treblinka and auschwitz and

belzec, but it started in the hearts of ordinary men and women. and we have seen it again -- madness that can sweep through peoples, sweep through nations, embed itself. the killings in cambodia, the killings in rwanda, the killings in bosnia, the killings in darfur -- they shock our conscience, but they are the awful extreme of a spectrum of ignorance and intolerance that we see every day; the bigotry that says another person is less than my equal, less than human. these are the seeds of hate that we cannot let take root in our heart. "never again" is a challenge to

reject hatred in all of its forms -- including anti- semitism, which has no place in a civilized world. and today, just steps from where he gave his life protecting this place, we honor the memory of officer stephen tyrone johns, whose family joins us today. "never again" is a challenge to defend the fundamental right of free people and free nations to exist in peace and security -- and that includes the state of israel. and on my visit to the old warsaw ghetto, a woman looked me in the eye, and she wanted to make sure america stood with israel. she said, "it's the only jewish state we have." and i made her a promise in that solemn place. i said i will always be there for israel. so when efforts are made to

equate zionism to racism, we reject them. when international fora single out israel with unfair resolutions, we vote against them. when attempts are made to delegitimize the state of israel, we oppose them. when faced with a regime that threatens global security and denies the holocaust and threatens to destroy israel, the united states will do everything in our power to prevent iran from getting a nuclear weapon. "never again" is a challenge to societies. we're joined today by communities who've made it your mission to prevent mass atrocities in our time. ofs museum's committee conscience, ngos, faith groups, college students, you've harnessed the tools of the digital age -- online maps and satellites and a video and

social media campaign seen by millions. you understand that change comes from the bottom up, from the grassroots. you understand -- to quote the task force convened by this museum -- "preventing genocide is an achievable goal." it is an achievable goal. it is one that does not start from the top; it starts from the bottom up. it's remarkable -- as we walked through this exhibit, elie and i were talking as we looked at the unhappy record of the state department and so many officials here in the united states during those years. and he asked, "what would you do?" but what you all understand is you don't just count on officials, you don't just count on governments.

you count on people -- and mobilizing their consciences. and finally, "never again" is a challenge to nations. it's a bitter truth -- too often, the world has failed to prevent the killing of innocents on a massive scale. and we are haunted by the atrocities that we did not stop and the lives we did not save. three years ago today, i joined many of you for a ceremony of remembrance at the u.s. capitol. and i said that we had to do "everything we can to prevent and end atrocities." and so i want to report back to some of you today to let you know that as president i've done my utmost to back up those words with deeds. last year, in the first-ever presidential directive on this

challenge, i made it clear that "preventing mass atrocities and genocide is a core national security interest and a core moral responsibility of the united states of america." that does not mean that we intervene militarily every time there's an injustice in the world. we cannot and should not. it does mean we possess many tools -- diplomatic and political, and economic and financial, and intelligence and law enforcement and our moral suasion -- and using these tools over the past three years, i believe -- i know -- that we have saved countless lives. when the referendum in south sudan was in doubt, it threatened to reignite a conflict that had killed millions. but with determined diplomacy, including by some people in this room, south sudan became the world's newest nation. and our diplomacy continues,

because in darfur, in abyei, in southern kordofan and the blue nile, the killing of innocents must come to an end. the presidents of sudan and south sudan must have the courage to negotiate -- because the people of sudan and south sudan deserve peace. that is work that we have done, and it has saved lives. when the incumbent in côte d'ivoire lost an election but refused to give it up -- give up power, it threatened to unleash untold ethnic and religious killings. but with regional and international diplomacy, and u.n. peacekeepers who stood their ground and protected civilians, the former leader is now in the hague, and côte d'ivoire is governed by its rightful leader -- and lives were saved. when the libyan people demanded their rights and muammar qaddafi's forces bore down on

benghazi, a city of 700,000, and threatened to hunt down its people like rats, we forged with allies and partners a coalition that stopped his troops in their tracks. and today, the libyan people are forging their own future, and the world can take pride in the innocent lives that we saved. resistancee lord's army led by joseph kony continued its atrocities in central africa, i ordered a small number of american advisors to help uganda and its neighbors pursue the lra. and when i made that announcement, i directed my national security council to review our progress after 150 days. we have done so, and today i can announce that our advisors will continue their efforts to bring this madman to justice, and to save lives.

it is part of our regional strategy to end the scourge that is the lra, and help realize a future where no african child is stolen from their family and no girl is raped and no boy is turned into a child soldier. we've stepped up our efforts in other ways. we're doing more to protect women and girls from the horror of wartime sexual violence. with the arrest of fugitives like ratko mladic, charged with ethnic cleansing in bosnia, the world sent a message to war criminals everywhere: we will not relent in bringing you to justice. be on notice. and for the first time, we explicitly barred entry into

the united states of those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity. now we're doing something more. we're making sure that the united states government has the structures, the mechanisms to better prevent and respond to mass atrocities. so i created the first-ever white house position dedicated to this task. it's why i created a new atrocities prevention board, to bring together senior officials from across our government to focus on this critical mission. this is not an afterthought. this is not a sideline in our foreign policy. the board will convene for the first time today, at the white house. and i'm pleased that one of its first acts will be to meet with some of your organizations -- citizens and activists who are partners in this work, who have been carrying this torch.

going forward, we'll strengthen our tools across the board, and we'll create new ones. the intelligence community will prepare, for example, the first-ever national intelligence estimate on the risk of mass atrocities and genocide. institutionalize the focus on this issue. across government, "alert channels" will ensure that information about unfolding crises -- and dissenting opinions -- quickly reach decision-makers, including me. our treasury department will work to more quickly deploy its financial tools to block the flow of money to abusive regimes. our military will take additional steps to incorporate the prevention of atrocities into its doctrine and its planning. and the state department will increase its ability to surge our diplomats and experts in a crisis. usaid will invite people and

high-tech companies to help create new technologies to quickly expose violations of human rights. and we'll work with other nations so the burden is better shared -- because this is a global responsibility. in short, we need to be doing everything we can to prevent and respond to these kinds of atrocities -- because national sovereignty is never a license to slaughter your people. [applause] we recognize that, even as we do all we can, we cannot control every event. and when innocents suffer, it tears at our conscience. elie alluded to what we feel as

we see the syrian people subjected to unspeakable violence, simply for demanding their universal rights. and we have to do everything we can. and as we do, we have to remember that despite all the tanks and all the snipers, all the torture and brutality unleashed against them, the syrian people still brave the streets. they still demand to be heard. they still seek their dignity. the syrian people have not given up, which is why we cannot give up. and so with allies and partners, we will keep increasing the pressure, with a diplomatic effort to further isolate assad and his regime, so that those

who stick with assad know that they are making a losing bet. we'll keep increasing sanctions to cut off the regime from the money it needs to survive. we'll sustain a legal effort to document atrocities so killers face justice, and a humanitarian effort to get relief and medicine to the syrian people. and we'll keep working with the "friends of syria" to increase support for the syrian opposition as it grows stronger. indeed, today we're taking another step. i've signed an executive order that authorizes new sanctions against the syrian government and iran and those that abet them for using technologies to monitor and track and target citizens for violence. these technologies should not empower -- these technologies should be in place to empower citizens, not to repress them. and it's one more step that we can take toward the day that we know will come -- the end of the

assad regime that has brutalized the syrian people -- and allow the syrian people to chart their own destiny. even with all the efforts i've described today, even with everything that hopefully we have learned, even with the incredible power of museums like this one, even with everything that we do to try to teach our children about our own responsibilities, we know that our work will never be done. there will be conflicts that are not easily resolved. there will be senseless deaths that aren't prevented. there will be stories of pain and hardship that test our hopes and try our conscience. and in such moments it can be

hard to imagine a more just world. it can be tempting to throw up our hands and resign ourselves to man's endless capacity for cruelty. it's tempting sometimes to believe that there is nothing we can do. and all of us have those doubts. all of us have those moments -- perhaps especially those who work most ardently in these

fields. so in the end, i come back to something elie said that day we visited buchenwald together. reflecting on all that he had endured, he said, "we had the right to give up." "we had the right to give up on humanity, to give up on culture, to give up on education, to give up on the possibility of living one's life with dignity, in a world that has no place for dignity." they had that right. imagine what they went through. they had the right to give up. nobody would begrudge them that. who'd question someone giving up in such circumstances? but, elie said, "we rejected that possibility, and we said, no, we must continue believing in a future." to stare into the abyss, to face the darkness and insist there is a future -- to

not give up, to say yes to life, to believe in the possibility of justice. to elie and to the survivors who are here today, thank you for not giving up. you show us the way. [applause] you show us the way. if you cannot give up, if you can believe, then we can believe.

if you can continue to strive and speak, then we can speak and strive for a future where there's a place for dignity for every human being. that has been the cause of your lives. it must be the work of our nation and of all nations. so god bless you. and god bless the united states of america. thank you very much. [applause] [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012]

[applause] >> this weekend president obama will attend the annual white house correspondents' dinner. jimmy campbell will be the emirate -- the entertainer. he can see live coverage here on saturday at 6:30 p.m. eastern live on c-span. >> former vice president dick cheney spoke to students as today about his experience in washington and his recent heart transplant surgery. that is next on c-span.

on this morning's washington journal, a conversation on the medicare program. plus, a preview of tomorrow's supreme court argument on arizona's immigration law. "washington journal" each morning at 7:00 a.m. eastern. >> one of the things i remember, because my office overlooked a building at the plaza, was the plaza and the day care center. of course, some the children were killed and others injured. during the recess. there would always come play -- during the recess they would always come play. my son, a dear friend of his in high school, she had just graduated and was working at the social security office. her father was a good friend of mine. when i got home, i had three different messages. first, wanted to know what he could find out about his

daughter. second, it did not look good. the third message was when he was crying. >> watch our local content vehicle's next stop -- exploring the history and literary culture of oklahoma city with special airing as the weekend of may 5 booktv.h on c-span2's >> vice president dick cheney had his first public interview in washington since his heart transplant last month. he spoke at the washington center and took questions from students at this one hour event. [applause]

>> thank you, everyone. welcome to the spring semester internship program here in the lincoln auditorium at the washington center. 25 years ago, a four-term congressman from wyoming spoke to a group just like you. we're very honored to have him back with us today. to introduce him is his good friend, another congressman and cabinet level secretary, the hon. norman mineta. [applause] >> thank you very much. it really does give me a great deal of pleasure and honor for

me to have this opportunity to introduce our next speaker, the alan k. simpson norman mineta series of events here at the washington center and academic seminars. as all of you know, the washington center was founded in 1975 and has been the recognized leader in providing transformational experience for over 50,000 students through internships and special academic seminars. almost two years ago, my very, very good friend of 70 years, former republican senator alan k. simpson of wyoming and i, a former democrat, member of congress, agreed to lend our

names to this leaders series in order to present to washington center students distinguished individuals who have exemplified not only the high honor of public service but the ability to engage in the statesmanship that this country and the whole world so desperately needs in these very challenging times. this is a forum -- excuse me, for intelligent discussion on important issues of the day that transcend party affiliation and encourages the bipartisan solutions. now, i was just completing a stint as the secretary of commerce in the clinton

administration when i was asked by president-elect bush and vice president-elect cheney to join in their administration in an act of bipartisanship to service their secretary of transportation, so i know a little bit about partisanship. vice president cheney and i had a very special relationship, one that was cemented on that fateful, tragic day of september 11, 2001, during which i gave the first order in american history to ground all aviation in the united states. i was with vice president cheney in the presidential emergency

operations center, a day that i am sure neither one of us will ever forget. dick cheney has served his country with distinction as white house chief of staff, a six-term member of congress from wyoming, secretary of defense, and then as vice president. this represents a lifetime of public service, and we're grateful to him for honoring his commitment to speak here after what has been, thankfully, a speedy recovery from his heart transplant surgery. so please welcome steven scully from c-span and my very good friend, former vice president of the united states of america dick cheney.

[applause] >> mr. vice president, one change to the program. [inaudible] thank you very much for being with us. it has been a month since your surgery. the obvious question is, how are you feeling? >> well, i am feeling very well. very fortunate. i have been through living with coronary artery disease since i was 37, back in 1978. but gradually, over time, as is predictable in those cases, i eventually had five heart attacks and heart failure and so forth. so i got in line for a transplant, and i got that transplant just four weeks ago yesterday. and i feel a lot of emotion that goes with that, frankly.

one is great gratitude to the individual who donated, the family who donated the heart that i was privileged to receive. the fact that i am no longer carrying around about 10 pounds of batteries, which is what i operated on for two years -- i had a heart pump installed on my heart to supplement it. it had batteries and control elements and so forth that i wore 24/7. i do not have to do that anymore. i am not wired to the wall or wired to anything else. i am back to having a strong, healthy heart and some great doctors and nurses who took good care of me. and i feel better in terms of my overall health than i have in a long time.

>> walk us through a month ago or a month and a day ago when you got the phone call -- who called you? what was your immediate reaction? what happened next? >> roughly two years ago, i was at end-stage heart failure. there was not enough blood to serve my vital organs, my liver, kidneys, and so forth. that is when we installed the lvad. that was in july of 2010. at the same time, i applied to go on the waiting list for an actual transplants. the device that was installed was designed and has been used for the past few years to use it on people who have a need for a transplant, but one of the problems we have is we do not have enough organs to transplant. this buys you time, so i was

able to live with that for about