knowing that the calls is a champion are impossible -- the causes that they champion are impossible. despite the fact the this administration has deported more latinos than bush, despite the fact that there are vicious laws being put on the books like places -- in places like arizona, despite the fact that any moment they could be snatched away or their mother or father could be snatched away and sent away from this country, despite all that discouragement, stepped forward and said i am an undocumented child, but i want to be here. i want to be respected, i am on documented but i will not be afraid. look at the courage of that. [applause] can you imagine being a child,

knowing no other country but this one and knowing that the only way you get to stay is to be silent, is to be quiet, is to be cynical and to believe the worst about the country and never break bread to say who you really are, just be quiet, just a cynical, don't believe in america and you get to stay. if you speak out and believe it is a better country, you may be sent from here never to see your friends or your family, to live in a land you don't know. look at the courage of these young people. look at their belief in who we are as a country. they step forward. when it was hard, when nobody wanted to cancel them to do it. -- council them to do it and move to the president, moved the nation.

so now you have an example. look at these young people. can be as wise -- can we be as wise and courageous as these young people? this is the hopes of a planet be destroyed by a do nothing obstructionist congress that still has not moved on climate change or toward clean energy and has been stuck on stupid, afraid of science for three or four years. they said the big folks can't move congress, the big environmentalist's folks come to congress, maybe we should do something else, they said no. look at these young people. they said we're not going to let temporary hijab this dirty needle of a pipeline into america. we're not going to take the dirty as energy ever created and stick it into this country. we will stand-up and we don't care if anybody will help us.

they broke the seal august of last year. on civil disobedience against as white house, nobody a year ago was saying it is time to do civil disobedience against the white house. the young people said the future of this planet is too great. they went down in the heat of august -- [applause] they sat in and thousands were arrested and the media tried to ignore the message was sent. for their courage, the project was derailed, the fight goes on. look at these young people. they have transformed the discussion on lesbian-day, a transsexual, and care ricebird look at their courage, culturally, politically. look at the young people rescued

america last year, coming out of that horrible august when the tea party put culberson a headlock. -- put a padlock on the congress. the whole town trembled in fear and gave in and said we will create a super committee to do super damage to the american people. and some young people and some struggling folks, no pollsters, a lobbyist, no big grants went down with some sleeping bags and some tenths to the scene of the crime against their future and occupied wall street and turns this country upside down. [applause]

suddenly you can talk about economic inequality. the super committee never met. he had contempt for the young people. telemessaging was not that great. what was their agenda? i've got an agenda. and a grant. [laughter] and 501c status -- these young people -- they obliterated the entire idea that we were going to add to the image of this country to put our thinking caps on. we have a responsibility now to be as brave and as courageous and as determined as these young

people who have shown that if you struggle you can win. if you fight, you can make progress. we haven't made enough? we have struggled enough. there is a lesson trying to push through this catastrophe. there is some hope on the horizon if we aim for it. we have to do three things going forward -- first we have to win in november. part of the reason we have to win in november is because we have to also win in december. the lead me in the white house for about six months. [laughter] i took some notes.

i learned a couple of things. one of the things i learned is there something called the lame- duck session. you could win in november and lose in december because it is december 1 the most important battle of the past 20 years and of the next 20 years will take place. it is december, not just november, that progress is -- progressives have to rally for. that is the reason we have to get off our hands and began to mobilize the people because it is december that the bush tax cuts expired and they will either give the rich more of a break and put more pain on the people or we will finally move toward some kind of justice. it is in december that the pell grants run out and low income

kids going to college will be shut down for a generation. it is december that every can that was kicked down the road, we will deal with that after the election. after the election has a name. it is called december. it is in december that a wrecking ball will probably come down on our heads or we can follow the lead of the young people and stand and fight. let's take advantage of the media that we already have. there is a great documentary about who's told the american dream. we have independent media makers who can begin the checkmate of this right-wing media machine. number two -- a fight in december will be over economics. we can fight now on economic

questions. student loans -- the student loan struggle. if we don't make congress act, the interest rate on the student loans will double. to 6.8% taking $20 billion out of the pockets of the next generation of students, 8 million students will cough up an extra $20 billion because congress is missing in action. we need to get excited about young people's issues and stop them from doing this to these young people. [applause] we can fight right now. another issue that is coming up front of this congress which is the question around home ownership and home mortgage -- we have 1/3 of american homes that are under water right now. there is a bill and from congress -- in front of congress that would let homeowners

refinance even if they are under water, give them the tools to refinance and take advantage of these lower interest rates. it would save $10 billion per year for about 14 million households every year going forward. those of the kind of fights we can not relent on because congress wants to play politics with american people. these are real-life struggles for the american dream that is on the table. we need to continue those fights going forward but the last thing we have to do is this -- put our thinking caps on. the other side is not playing tic-tac-toe. they're not playing checkers. they're not playing chess. they are playing 3d vulcan chess. these guys are not stupid. here's what they do to us --

they will have their congressional delegation right now on their knees signing pledges to grover norquist saying that will never raise taxes, what happens to america. they're doing it right now. no matter how many wars, when they go into negotiations, they will save our hands are tied. they will say you have to give us what we want. our hands are tied. i got me some education. it is a smart move. it reminds me of a disused - odysseus. he put itself in peril going past the sirens. he said tiny to my mast. -- tie me to my mast so i won't

give in to the siren's call. i remember that from 11 to grade. he said time my hands, tie me to the mast so i was given to the siren call. they have been doing that for a long time. i think it is time for us to make just one demand, just one demand of this president -- when demand of this white house that we are not stupid. we're not going to lay down and let tea party run america. we will fight. we will fight in november and december, too, so you need to do something to help us when the real fight goes down. in december. we know this president is a good family man. he does not like to use rough language. i understand that. he does not like to use dirty talk. is a good family man.

we have a request -- we need to call in as president to use one four-letter word when it comes to these bush tax cuts for the rich, just one four-letter word. he can do one four-letter word. with regard to the bush tax cuts, a four-letter word from this president, a vow to veto, to veto the attempt of these republicans to give this country over. [applause] we want him to veto any bill that comes before him that will let the rich walk away with another extension. it is tarp for the wealthy people of america to pay american back. they have gotten the benefit of the tax breaks, the bailout, the

bonuses and they left us with a grand bargain which is neither grandin nor a bargain. it is ham and eggs justice at best. i learned that from reverend jackson. ham and eggs justice -- the farmer said it is time for breakfast. we will be fair to everybody in the barnyard. he turns to the hand and says give me one of your little eggs and he turns to the plate and says give me one or two of your legs. that is an injustice. that is the grand bargain. it is a tiny contribution from the rich and a devastating body blow to working class, middle class, and poor people. we say no, there's nothing grand about that. that is not a bargain. this tarp for the wealthy people in this country -- it is time

for the wealthy people in this country whose achievement we're probably did not make it by themselves. we won a great country where they can do well pretty used to be that if you did well in america you can do well by america. we call on this president to issue a veto toward that end, thank you very much. [applause] [applause] >> we have one more? thank you very much. [applause]

>> i thought we had another thing nearby and we are done. thank you much and let's get working. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> yesterday, senator john mccain called on the united states to lead a military coalition to help the syrian operation -- opposition. that is next on c-span. on this morning's "washington journal," we will talk to two members of congress from texas about the immigration policy.

sheila jackson lee and louis gomer will join us at 7:00 eastern. the discussion today about the 2012 election and we will hear from the cook political report and a former virginia republican tom davis as well as the former texas democratic congressman. live coverage from the national journal at 8:30 eastern on c- span 2. on c-span 3, the head of j.p. morgan chase, jamie dimon, will testify about the company's recent trading losses and live coverage will be from the house services -- financial-services committee at 9:30 eastern. friday, supreme court justice ruth better ginsburg talked about the card's current terminal curb health-care case th. >> no case has attracted more attention. the ticket line outside the

supreme court was a line that formed three days before all argument commenced. some have described the controversy as unprecedented and they may be right if they mean the number of press conferences, prayer circles, protest, counter protests going on outside the court while all argument was under way and set them as she talked about press reports on the decision expected this week or next. >> though our deliberations are private, that has not dissuaded the media from publishing a steady string of rumors. my favorite among press paces wisely observed -- at the supreme court, those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know. [laughter] >> what the rest of her comments from the american constitution

society on line at the cspan video library. arizona senator john mccain talked about the conflict in syria and the continued violence there. the ranking republican member of the armed services committee is calling for the u.s. to more actively assist the syrian opposition. his remarks are about 40 minutes. [applause] on a resident scholar at the american enterprise institute and is my distinct pleasure to welcome senator mccain was a ranking member of the armed services committee and a member of the senate committee on homeland security and governmental affairs and served 22 years as a naval aviator before entering politics. when it comes to syria, he has taken leadership on the issue

not only within the u.s. senate but with an the entire u.s. government. he has distinguished himself as the conscience of the senate on this and other issues. thank you for joining us and we look forward to your remarks on the way forward in syria. [applause] >> thank you very much and it is a pleasure to be here. i know this from the faces in the crowd there is a number of interns here who are spending the summer. i have always thought that if there is such a thing as reincarnation, i want to come back as an intern in washington. in the summertime. most of your spending a great deal of your time at the library of congress on the weekends as well. [laughter] it is a pleasure to be backed aei, one of the four most institutions in america and the world that i think has contributed so much to the

dialogue and discussion and decision making that takes place here. it is great to be back among many friends. i usually try to begin my speech is as i just did with a joke or some kind remarks. when you're talking about syria, it is too horrifying, to heartbreaking, and to exasperated. for 50 months now, the syrian people have faced a bunch of violence from the president. it is now estimated that as many as 12,000 lives have been lost. some success -- some suspect the figure is higher and there is no end in sight. to the contrary, assad appears to be accelerating despite the finish. amid this violence, it is important to recognize that the clear trend is toward escalation both in the nature and quantity of the killing. assad has gone from using

infantry and snipers to target -- tanks and artillery to turning with special units and plant closed militias to massacre men, women, and children. it happened last month. we are now seeing a rapid increase in his use of helicopter gunships. the opposition appears -- beside t --he assad regime appears to want to kill anyone who appears to be a threat. he will continue to escalate the violence with more massacres and more use of helicopters and perhaps worse weapons after that. meanwhile,assad and his forces continued to be rearmed by russia and iran. there are reports of iranian officers on the ground while russia continues to ship heavy weapons including, as secretary

clinton has stated, the very helicopter gunships that he is currently using to strafe and bomb civilians. whether these are no helicopters or old ones, is a distinction without a difference. they're now reports that russia has dispatched two ships and a unit of russian marines to reinforce their naval base. they are also deliver an anti- ship and anti-aircraft missiles to help the fed the assad regime. clearly, this is not a fair fight. amid all of violence in syria, there is human tragedy there. in april, thanks to the special efforts of the turkish government, senator joe lieberman and i visited syrian refugee camp in southern turkey. i have seen my share of suffering and death. the stories that the syrians

told still haunts me. men who have lost all of their children, women and girls who have been gang raped, children who have been tortured and none of this, mind you, was the random acts of cruelty that said the occur in war. the syrian army defectors told us killing and rape and torture is what they were instructed to do as a tactic of terror and intimidation. if i get a little emotional when i talk about syria, that is why. when it comes to the administration's policy toward syria, to say they are leading from behind is too generous. that suggests that they are leading. they're just behind. the administration now appears to be placing its hopes in the russian government to assad from power inmate yemen-like transition. this is the same russian

government that continues to provide heavy weapons and moral support to assad and refuses to authorize u.s. sanctions on the regime and even blames assad's recent slaughter on the opposition and foreign powers. the more basic problem with this approach is that the administration is has already tried it and moscow rejected and shut down the u.n. security council. what has changed to make things different now? what the president does not seem to realize is what bill clinton came to understand in bosnia.

despite the strong russia's reputation in the arab world, the russian government has a a withssad for 15 months. what makes us think that president putin will change course whenassad is still the dominant power on the ground? we're approaching a major point decision. plant has been a failure for months. the head of the u.n. monitoring mission in syria has suspended its operations for security reasons. use ofs increasing helicopter gunships calls for a no-fly zone and russia is on likely to ever supported policy of regime change in syria. the administration's approach is being overtaken by events. furthermore, the opposition inside syria is increasingly

forcing the hand of the civilized world to intervene on their behalf because they are growing more effective militarily. this is no thanks to us. public reports suggest that some our friends in the middle east are now arming rebel groups in syria. this makes a point some of the recent reports that opposition forces have been able to destroy hissad's tanks and prevent forces from holding key terrain. some will try to interpret these developments as evidence the united states should maintain a hands off approach to syria. this is wrong. first, the fact that the opposition and syria is doing better militarily thanks to external support seems to validate what many of us all have been arguing for months that opposition forces have an organization to be supportable and that our support and help them to further improve their organization and command and

control. this is an argument for doing more, not less, to aid rebel fighters and syria. second, while it is good that some foreign military assistance that seems to be -- the opposition in syria, this alone will not be decisive. it will not be sufficient to end the conflict faster. it may even just prolong it. nearly every syrian i speak with tells me the same thing. the longer this conflict drags on, the more radicalized it becomes, and the more it turns into a sectarian civil war with an escalating spiral of violence that series alone -- a series alone cannot stop. the opposition the snow that the united states stands with them and that we're willing to take risks to support them when they needed most. our current inaction only denies us the opportunity to have influence with the forces in syria who will one day inherit the country. ceding that

influence to foreign states. that are hostile to us for our lack of involvement answer is not preventing the militarization of the conflict or lessening the risk of sectarian violence or countering the appeals of extremist groups. all of these defense are just happening without us. and without our ability to influence them. in short, the main reason the united states need to get more involved in syria is to help the opposition in the conflict center while they can still secure an outcome that is consistent with their goals and hours. we should do so not simply for humanitarian reasons but because it is in our national security interests. and the words of the commander

of the central command, the fault assad would be the biggest blow to iran in 25 years. yes, there are risks to greater involvement syria. the opposition is still struggling to get organized, al qaeda and other extremists are working to hijack the revolution and there are already reports of reprises kidding -- killings. these risks are real and serious but the risk of continuing to do nothing is worse. if we fail to act, the consequences are clear -- syria will become a failed state in the heart of the middle east threatening both our ally israel and our nato ally turkey. with or without assad, the country will develop into full- scale civil war. al qaeda and its allies will occupy it. violence and radicalism will spell more into lebanon and iraq feeling sectarian conflicts that are still burning in both countries.

syria will turn into a battlefield between sunni and shia extremists back by foreign powers which will ignite sectarian tensions from north africa to the gulf war risk wider regional conflict. this is the course we are on in syria. we must act now to avoid it. the u.s. action i envision would not be unilateral. it would be multilateral. we would work closely with arab and european allies especially turkey and their partners in the gulf. as in libya, there would be no boots on the ground and would only intervene at the request of legitimate representatives of the syrian people. there would be no boots on the ground, and we would all intervene at request of legitimate representatives of the syrian people. our goal would be to help the

opposition change the military balance of power on the ground, and thereby creating conditions for the end of the violence, the departure of assad and his cronies, and a transition as quickly as possible. we first have to help them establish safe havens inside the country. this is essential for a number of reasons. it is constantly said that the syrian organization is disorganized. that may be true at the national level but is much less true at the local level. to the contrary, revolutionary councils and local coordinating committees are in cities across syria, increasingly sophisticated and effective. i met some of their members and representatives, and they are among the most impressive figures i have encountered in the syrian opposition. nonetheless, if the syrian opposition is to succeed, it means an effective and unifying structure of some kind. it is unlikely that such kind of structure can be formed in syria until there is a safe haven, a place where they can emerge from hiding, gathered together in safety, select leaders, and organize themselves

as an alternative governing structure, not just for the purpose of giving him from power today but to prepare for the challenge of the administering and securing the country once he is gone. this is what the national transitional council was able to do in benghazi. it is less difficult to imagine today how safe havens can be established in syria. indeed, some analysts suggest the opposition may already be creating some areas of de facto control in the country, for example in some areas north along the turkish border and in eastern syria. it is quite possible led the opposition could declare parts of syria to be liberated and

then ask for external helped, support in defending the territory. this is exactly what we should be helping the opposition to do. rather than insisting that we cannot act militarily without a un security council resolution, as the secretary of defense recently asserted, we should follow president clinton's example. we should refuse to give russia and china beach power over our actions and instead work to shape a coalition of willing states with a legitimate mandate to intervene militarily in syria. many of our allies are willing to do much more. as one regional official told "the wall street journal" last weekend, they are looking for, quote, the ironclad backing of the u.s. and others.

we should provide it for them. we should make u.s. air power available. along with that of our allies, as part of an international area to defend safe areas in syria and to keep assad's forces from harassing them, as they will do. these will become platforms for increased deliveries of food, medicine, doctors to treat the wounded, and other nonlethal assistance. it can also serve as staging areas for armed groups to receive battlefield intelligence, body armor, and weapons, including antitank weapons, and to train and organize themselves more effectively, perhaps with foreign assistance. the goal would be to expand the reach of the safe havens across more of the country. as a final part of this strategy, we must think about the situation in syria in a broader strategic context. unfolding from lebanon to syria

to iraq, this is all part of one connected story. we must be thinking about how we can capitalize on the fall of the assad regime in syria, to strengthen the sovereignty and independence of lebanon, to support the reconciliation of sectarian conflicts with politics, not violence, to increase the government in iraq to roll back its situation and to share power more democratically in the region. in all of these efforts, the united states and turkey share common interests and values, and we need to be working more closely together, but most of all, what is needed most is american leadership. if there ever were a case that

should remind us of our interests being in the visible from our values, it is syria. a few days after the massacre, "the washington post the" interviewed a man who survived genocide in 1995. this is having looked at the ongoing slaughter in syria. quote, "it is bizarre how "never again" has come to mean "again and again," he said. what is happening in syria today is almost identical to what happened in bosnia two decades ago. he could not be more correct. serious debate is indistinguishable from bosnia in the 1990's with one exception. in bosnia, president clinton finally summoned the courage to lead the world to intervene and

stop the killing. it is worth recalling his words about the military action in bosnia in 1995, and i quote, he said, "there are times and places," president clinton said, "where we can defend our values as a people and serve our most basic strategic interests. there are still times when america and america alone can make a difference for peace." those were the words of the democratic president who led america to do the right thing and stopping the mass atrocities in bosnia, and i remember working with my republican colleague, bob dole, to support president clinton in that endeavor. the question for another democratic president today and for all of us in positions of responsibility is whether we will again answer the desperate pleas for rescue that are made

uniquely to us as the united states of america, and whether we will use our great power, as we have done before, not simply to advance our own interests but to serve a just cause that is greater than our interests alone. thank you. [applause] >> thank you very much. senator mccain has also graciously agreed to answer some questions. please come to the microphone and make your questions brief after introducing yourself. >> hello, john mccain. my name is -- and i am with the green youth policy in sweden.

while kofi annan is a very wise person, and he has worked really hard for finding a diplomatic solution to the situation in syria, what he means is that you should always primarily look for a nonviolent solution to conflict, and i was wondering whether the united states was working for and implementing more diplomatic pressure against the assad regime. thank you. >> do you have any ideas to support them diplomatically or kofi annan? i would like to hear it. certainly, this administration has. but the fact is that it is being knowledge even by kofi annan that his plan has failed. u.n. observers have just gone back to areas where they would not be subject to attack.

it is widely acknowledged that the plan, as some of us predicted, has failed, so if you have any ideas on how we could be more active diplomatically, i would be more than encouraged to hear. the fact is that this is a brutal dictator who was willing to massacre his own people, and his people have reason to try to overthrow him, and i believe the only way for him to leave is if mr. assad believes he cannot stay. they do. -- thank you. >> hello, my name is -- i am an undergraduate. i was interested the dimensions, obviously, how do you feel about a syrian regime change?

it could provoke violence in some form or another. >> i think the first thing that happens is the connection between a land and hezbollah and their influence in lebanon is dramatically reduced. i think that the iranians have syria as really the only arab state like that remaining. i do not think there is any doubt with a loss of syria, they lose their connections to hezbollah. they lose their connections to lebanon. perhaps mr. maliki would think more about the closer relations he should have with iran, and with that loss, i think it may

put additional pressures on iran to cease their continuing to develop nuclear weapons, which, as you know, is a forthcoming crisis, unless the iranians abandoned their efforts to wield a nuclear weapons, which so far there has been no indication that they have. this is a key and central part of the entire middle east, and what happens here will have a dramatic effect on the entire middle east as well. thank you. yes? >> senator mccain, i am the daughter of one of the speakers. i am a syrian, a political refugee who came here with my family in 2006. we hear from policymakers in the current demonstration that the united states cannot afford intervening in syria.

as serious, how can we change that? -- as syrians, how can we change that? the people are dying. if that is the main excuse they gave. and we cannot see any change, and we cannot convince them, i totally agree with what you said. what can you give us? what can we do to convince them that we really need to end this dictatorship? thank you very much. >> i have to tell you that the political realities here in the united states, americans are very weary of wars because of our long and projected engagement in iraq and in afghanistan. a couple thousands of young americans have given their lives. americans see our economy in a

very bad situation, and that has tended, of course, to lead to a more inward view and a lack of a desire for involvement. i believe that the same arguments that you hear being made about syria today are the same ones that were made about libya, that we would get into a protracted conflict, that it would be overtaken by al qaeda, we do not know who they are. my friends on both the right and left have seen these arguments. if there is a basic principle. one is that no one i know of is advocating american goods on the ground or american military action. i do know for a fact that our allies in the region are crying out for american leadership, and no one that i know of once american boots on the ground or

once a unilateral united states action, and, frankly, they are the most immortal words in my view ever written that all of us, all of us are endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights, among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. the united states of america has shared its blood and spent its treasurer in all four corners of the world in defense of others freedom. many times it was in our interest as well. for a little encouragement, i think the administration is moving a little bit in the right direction, and certainly our allies in the region are picking up the slack. yes, sir? >> thank you, senator. my name is -- from a newspaper. about the repercussions of

arming the opposition and creating safe havens for them. we read reports that they're actually recruiting jihadists in jordan and kuwait and other places. would we have an afghan-like situation afterward? thank you. >> first of all, the afghan situation, we went to afghanistan because that is where the attacks of 9/11 began, and we should never forget that. the second thing is i have seen this movie before. jihadists are going to come in, and we are going to have an election, and 80% of the libyan people are going to vote. they are going to have an election on july 7. i hope to be there to observe it. the one thing i can assure you of, the longer this is protracted, the more likely it is for that to happen, that foreign fighters come in, and jihadists and others. because the frustration in the anger and the casualties of the

syrian people would experience, so all i can say is, all i can say is looking at the situation of a protracted, long, drawn- out conflict, where bashar al assad is being supplied with arms, equipment, artillery, and now we hear reports of even actual russian troops being possibly moved into syria, versus people who are basically without any real means to defend themselves. it is not a fair fight. it is not a civil war because all of the military strength is on one side and not the other. at least we have to give them a chance to have a fair fight. yes, sir?

our staff is on its way. it is a work release program. go ahead. >> many see the russians support of him as a losing alliance. while we have our differences with russia, is there any way to convince them it is in their interest to abandon support for him? >> i have been a bit puzzled, too. the russians are very intelligent. vladimir putin is a very smart man. lavrov is a very smart guy, but they are doing damage to their image in that part of the world. they are harming themselves, and i do not understand that. i do not pretend to get into president putin's mind, but there is some nostalgia for the russian empire, and this is

their last post on the mediterranean. this is in many ways a test as to whether this disease called the era spring will spread to other parts of the world, including places like chechnya, which was put down with, you know, incredible and an exceptional brutality. so i cannot fathom all of the reasons for the russian behavior as it continues to be. i hope that the president, who i understand is meeting with president putin today, will be able to bring about some change in their behavior, but in my view, it is also part of a pattern of putin's behavior since the elections, putting find on demonstrators, jailing people, etc., etc., and that does not mean that i believe the cold war is going to be

reignited. it is not, but i also think we're going to have to take a much more realistic view about our relationship with russia and our ability to do business with them. yes, sir? >> thank you, mr. centre. i am from norway. you said the solution for syria might happen outside of the u.n. system. is that a road that leads to less u.n. involvement in the world? and is that the road that the obama administration is feeling? could that be the reason for non involvement? thank you. >> the situation today is that russia and china in this case now have veto power over any united states policy or action that the united states might take. that obviously is not

acceptable to the american people. our actions cannot be governed by whether russia will or will not veto a u.n. security council resolution. i mentioned it in my prepared remarks. we want to cause of a without a un security council resolution, and we went there for the same reason why we should go to syria, and that was a coalition of the willing, as we say. so i respect and admire the united nations security council and the things that they do. the fact that is the united states national security should not be governed by whether russia will veto resolutions in the united nations security council. yes. you have been overlooked four times. please go ahead. [laughter] >> hello, my name is tyler o'neal with " the "washington free beacon."

with the act party successful last year, they seem to have a shift toward islamism. do you think their interest is coincidental with the united states and that would change? >> i believe that turkey is one of our strongest allies in the world, much less the region. last week, there was a breakfast with the u.s. turkey society. i continue to be worried about the gm of journalists. -- the jailing of journalists. turkey now has more journalists in prison than any country in the world, i believe. i have been worried about intimidation about opposition parties. i have been worried about consolidation of power in the

hands of the prime minister, a man who i respect and admire a great deal, but i also worry about tendencies in turkey that far transcends islamic or other religious reasons, and that is my big concern, and this jailing of hundreds of military officers is something that is really not appropriate for a functioning democracy either, and there are other reasons. yes? >> thank you, sir. my name is -- from sweden. all about syria, but i have a question. so many people died, and

peacekeepers were there. >> i think that other event was horrible, and they thought it could never take place. thousands of people, young and old, were taken out and ethnically cleansed. if there is any good news out of something like that, it did galvanize the world into taking action to stop further acts of atrocity from taking place. i think america and our allies should be very proud that we stopped that kind of butchery and ethnic cleansing that was going on there in that country. i think it is one of the prouder moments of our ability to work together with like- minded democracies to respect human rights. yes? >> the independent researcher. what is going on with them?

, the arab league? can they be more helpful? and what about saudi arabia? >> i have heard reports, published reports, that the saudis are assisting in some ways. the arab league, lebanon obviously is under the influence of hezbollah. i am trying to think you else. -- i am trying to think who else. there are a couple of countries in the arab league that have veto power which makes it much more difficult with concerted action in libya. i know there are members of the arab league who are much more actively involved, but whether the arab league itself, i am trying to remember. it may be very difficult to get a solid position out of the arab league as opposed to the situation as it prevails in libya.

as you know, probably the most unpopular person in the arab league at that time was moammar gaddafi, since he had tried to kill a few of those leaders of those countries, but i guess i have to stop. we have a very distinguished panel of leaders here. but i would just like to say, particularly there it is a lot of young people in this audience. you come from all over the world, and you are here i think to learn to listen. i hope you will go back in imbued with the thought that we live still in a very dangerous world and one that is fraught with challenges, but it is the next generation of leaders around the world that can change from a bleak picture in some cases to one that is much more optimistic. i believe that your involvement

in a cause greater than your own self interest is the future of this country in the world, and i believe that when i am associated with people like which are in this room, i am much more optimistic when i leave then when i came. thank you. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> will have a guest who has a passion for u.s. presidents on book-tv. he has written a number of books. join us live with your calls sunday, july 1 at noon eastern on book-tv on c-span 2.

the house comes in this morning at 10:00 eastern for members' speeches. this afternoon, debate on a land and water research bill and run barbara won a special election in arizona will be sworn in today. -- and ron barber will be sworn in today. we will hear from charlie "today edit o'clock 30 eastern. on c-span 3, the ceo of j.p. morgan it is, jamie dimon, will testify about the company's recent trading losses from the house the financial-services committee at 9:30 eastern. last week, president obama announced a new immigration policy. coming up next, we'll talk to texas congresswoman sheila texas congresswoman sheila jackson lee