forbes, a virginia republican, and a member of the armed services committee. ♪ >> a live picture of the white house this morning. president obama and congressional leaders will meet today to discuss how to resolve the pending mandatory budget cuts. the cuts totaling $85 billion, also known as the sequester. today, march 1, was the deadline set, but the president must still formless on the cuts into effect sometime today if before midnight tonight. we will talk more about that. for the next three hours, we will focus on today's sequester deadline. we will have the two house legislators joining us starting

30.und 8:00 there you can give us a call until then. if you have called within the last 30 days, please hold off doing so. these are the numbers -- if you want to reach out to us on social media -- a little bit of the mechanics of what happens today are played out in the papers this morning. here's the new york times --

some more in the papers this morning about the mechanics. but at the white house you saw a live picture going into our program this morning, that's our the meeting will take place between president obama and congressional leaders. here to talk about that and other things, alexander balderson from the hill newspaper, their staff writer. olton.xander ba guest: they will discuss sequestration and how to avoid it.

expectations for the meeting are very low. this is seen as a meeting for appearance's sake. some republicans argue that it's after the deadline, that the midnight friday has already passed. so i guess that's another point of debate between the republican leaders on the hill and the white house. host: what time does the meeting take place and who's going to be in attendance? guest: it's between the president and the top congressional leaders. harry reid, nancy pelosi, mitch mcconnell, and john boehner. they are going to discuss the sequester, but there really is no chance of averting it before the end of march. there does not appear to be any sort of vehicle to get a sequester replacement moving. host: some of the papers talk about this discussion also on what to do to avoid a complete shutdown of the government's. guest: the next deadline is

march 27. that is when the government funding runs out, so congress leader has to pass a continuing resolution or an omnibus spending bill. the continuing resolution would be a stopgap measure where is the omnibus would give lawmakers some flexibility to change around the accounts. the house republicans will be republicansa cr perhaps with some special considerations for defense and veterans affairs at, whereas the senate democrats will be moving an omnibus, so they have not been able to pass appropriations bills in a long while. they see this as their opportunity to do that. host: in the papers today there was a quotation from mitch mcconnell on the senate floor yesterday --

does that kind of sentiments exist or do you think's that sentiment will exist going into today's meeting with the president? guest: foreshore. that is the republican argument. they said it's a 4% cut to the federal budget. many families have had to make that same belts-tightening move earlier this year when the payroll tax holiday expired. anyone who collects a paycheck knows they are collecting a little less because the payroll tax holiday expired. if the average american can survive the small drop or somewhat significant drop in personal revenues, the government can also survived the 2.4% belt-tightening. the thing that remains to be seen is are americans going to notice the sequester cusps? $85 billion over the next fiscal

year. wall street does not seem concerned. it is booming. host: as far as the political gamesmanship going on, are americans want to notice? what happens all republicans and democrats looking at that part of a story? guest: that is the big bet. the president is betting republicans will crumble and agreed to additional tax increases because of a public backlash over sequester. he feels americans will feel the cuts in various ways. the head of homeland security, , the countryano clermo is more vulnerable to attack because there will be less funding for security screeners and air traffic controllers. will people noticed the cuts?

we have not had sequestration ever before, so it is an experiment. host: on the senate side yesterday, two pieces of legislation designed to keep the sequester from going into affect. talk about what was presented on each side and who voted for these. there was crossover on each side about support. guest: the democratic plan would have replaced the sequester through the end of the calendar year. it would have cost $110 billion. the opsec would of been split evenly between spending cuts and tax increases. $55 billion in spending cuts. keenan lee divided between eliminating the agriculture subsidies and reducing defense programs. the bulk of the tax revenues would have come from implementing a floor, a 30% effective tax rate for families earning above $5 million,

individuals as well. the republican plan would have given president obama more flexibility to manage the cuts so he could have impacted -- so he could have mitigated the impact on airport screeners or air-traffic controllers or meat inspectors, the most vital government services. the democratic bill had several defections. mayor chealander, mark pryor, kay hagan were the democrats who voted against their party still. mark pryor said he did so not because he was worried about the tax increase but arkansas is a farm state and he did not support cutting farm subsidies. the republican bill had more defections. various republicans thought that this bill would have given too much power to the president by giving him extra flexibility and it would not have done enough to

protect defense from cuts. host: from your perspective, what is the most important thing to watch out for in this process over the next few days and weeks? guest: the most important thing to watch for is will there be a public backlash for the sequester cuts to be dealt wit? there's a real question as to whether the public will notice. the barometer is going to be the stock market. as it has been in standoffs in the past. the 2008 tarp vote when the house voted that down, there was a strong stock market reaction and congressional leaders scrambled back to the drawing board. if the market thinks the u.s. economy is fine with the cuts, i don't think there will be much pressure on republicans to go to the negotiating table. host: that is alex bolton joining us to talk about today's deadline on sequestration and what goes on today and moving forward. thanks for your time.

guest: thanks for having me. host: only two guest this morning. one at 8:00. another 9:00. the bulk of the morning devoted to our viewers can and get your thoughts on the sequestration deadline, getting your perspectives, are you paying attention, do you care or may be nice. here's how you can contact us today -- virginia beach on our republican line -- caller: we need to do away with

the national income tax and replace it with a 10% national sales tax and an equal 7.5% import and export tax, because right now american companies have to pay more than twice the amount of import -- export tariffs as foreign companies have to pay import. the majority of companies pay absolutely no import tariffs in to this nation. host: ron, taxation has been part of the conversation. what about personal taxation? should taxes be applied upon taxpayers in order to meet the shortfall is we have in our budget? caller: no. we could go to a national sales tax on everything. host: where has that worked? if it works in the united states

-- caller: the u.s. had no permit in thumbtacks until 1913 and we supported our government would import and export tariffs. -- the united states had no permanent tariffs until 1913. we need to eliminate congress' housing expenses and per diem. host: jackie is next. ie and i'm name is angel from cameroon. i have been an observer of the american politics in the last 12 years. what i have noticed is one thing that is pretty consistent.

in the seven years of republican action, i have seen republicans send the whole country into van unfunded wars and they paid the contractor's too much money. we need to control welfare. the fact that the republicans sent people to war and they come back and are unemployed, people to college and they are then unemployed for five years, seven years, that is genocide, because these people cannot have children. they cannot build wealth.

they are desperately going to jail or any kind of situation. they are receiving less and less support from the republican government -- host: the lead ask question. what are your thoughts on this day as we had this deadline that all politicians knew about it? what is your thought of the government and we have actually reached the deadline when it comes to budget cuts? caller: my thought is that this should not have even been on the table. we should not have reached that point. the congress should have acted long time ago. congress focused on spending time criticizing the government and every policy the government

is putting forward and the government cannot do anything without the understanding in the way. host: louisville, ohio, independent line, rick. sequestration takes place today. caller: the budget cuts is $84 billion. there's no sequester or whatever you guys are calling this. it was revealed, it's a known fact apple is sitting on $200 billion. the walmart family is worth $250 billion. that lady just talked about employing the returning veterans. they got caught employing people in india for 18 cents an hour. host: how does that relate? caller: i am telling the people that are listening that the walmart heirs are sitting on $250 billion. there are 100 families and

corporations sitting on $10 trillion in this country. it is all being filtered overseas. the los angeles dodgers and fox news just signed a contract worth $7 billion for advertisements for the dodgers. when you have hedge fund managers making $5 billion a year, they don't pay taxes. host: tell me exactly what you are thinking that means for budget cuts? should they be taxed more? caller: growing up in detroit, corporations were taxed at 90%. to take this a step further, we can break this down into the ropes states. the state of texas is where the last five wars have been started. that's where oil companies are and where illegal labor is. in new york state, that's where wall street is. in connecticut, that's where the insurance companies are. i can break down this last 15

years. prior to bush getting in office, we had a balanced budget. but the state of texas with their oil and wars and nafta and their illegal immigration and than wall street with their hedge funds and derivatives and then you have jews that run the media. host: we will leave it there. on twitter -- a little bit about the mechanics, this is the washington post --

so that's about the mechanics for workers here in washington. you may be directly affected.

you may live in a state that's directly affected. we're getting your input on sequestration, the deadline that takes place today sometime once it is signed into effect. in missouri, robert is on the republican line. hello. caller: i am here. i am retired military, sir. i don't understand what is going on with our government. we have a president and we are supposed to back our president. i know. i was retired military. all he is doing is running around the united states of america shaking people up, telling them what will happen if the sequester does not go through. i don't tatarstan that. thta.on't understand how much money does it cost to

lift that plane into the air to run around and scare people. that is not a president. our president needs to stay in that office and get those leaders into that office and get this thing taken care of. host: what should come from the leaders themselves, republican and democrat? caller: you have a democrat leader that all he does is when the republicans send a bill up there and it has been brought out many times on this show, because i watch your show, i'm retired, i watch your show every day. every time anything that is sent to his office from the republican side, i am told, it is stuck in a drawer, the bill is stuck in a drawer. how will the world can our government work? we've got people coming back

hurt, mamed from afghanistan and they need help. and they got this waste in the government. it's nothing but a waste. who cares where a shrimps swim or rare bird flies? -- or where a bird flies? host: have the republicans done enough? caller: they are just as bad as the democrats. there's no difference. they cannot get together. host: let's leave it there. mark is up next in brooklyn, new york, democrat. caller: i am kind of wondering why it is so easy to cut programs here in america and we put all kinds of money in that war. we always said in the 1980's

that if the gun control of oil before the russians did, that would control prices. but that did not happen. i think it was a lie from beginning. host: we're talking $85 billion in budget cuts. what do you think should be done now? caller: the oil industry made all that money. they should try to work with congress and put the money they're making. they're making all kinds of money off the american public. why are they not putting the money in instead of keeping it for themselves? host: during the course of the morning, while we are talking to the viewers at home, and you can participate on facebook and twitter if, we will read some of those comments and will show you what was said on capitol hill leading up to this moment, the sequestration set to kick in today. from congressional leaders and others. let's start from the house side, speaker boehner earlier this week, yesterday at a press conference in washington, d.c.

he spoke about the discussions, what goes forward, but particularly he was asked about the revenue side and how republicans will exceed revenues by new taxes. [video clip] >> mr. speaker, the clock on all the debate over debt reduction did not start at christmas time when the president did get his cabin started a couple years ago. the overall debt reduction that you all have done has been roughly 2 to 1 spending cuts to revenue. so why is the revenue discussion closed? " the president got his tax hikes. american economy will create more tax revenue this year than any year in our history. we don't ever been a problem. we have a spending problem and it's time to get serious. >> you are up 2 to 1. >> you are asking how much more money we want to steal from the american cpeople to

fund more government? i'm asking for no more. host: there's a look at the u.s. capitol. there have been debates and discussions over the sequestration that will take place today. bob is from michigan, independent line. caller: good morning. they need to quit giving tax money away to people. they pay six under dollars but they get $8,000 back on their tax return. how can you get back more than you pay in? come on? host: is it a matter just reaching out? is it just the taxation issue or are there other things? caller: there are other things as well. it is just one small spending they need to cut back want. i think that's part of it. there is subsidized housing and all that.

that needs to go. you cannot keep having kids if you cannot support them. host: as far as the process has been going, and it's been your reaction? and when you talk to other people, are they as interested in this topic as you are? caller: yes, i believe so. i think they should run for the sequester. somebody has to make these cuts. there's no gain without a little pain. host: chuck joins us on the republican line from maryland. caller: the sequester has already happened for my family. my wife works for a private company that provides services to the government. everybody is talking about how government employees could lose out. private companies have to anticipate -- they get contract on the government to build certain products or do certain kings, so they have already

anticipated. my wife lost her job a week and a half ago. private companies that provide services to the government throughout the whole government are letting people go already because they are expecting not to have that contract or to lose that money. you might want to keep an eye on the unemployment, because i think it's going to be a lot bigger than what everybody is saying. host: are there many people will live around you or in your social circles that work for the government or dod work related to the government? caller: just my wife that time close to. i've heard two friends of mine saying a different company laid off some people, but i'm not sure. host: go-ahead. caller: wednesday fired my wife, they gave her a letter to center for congressman stating that her job loss was because of sequestration. -- when they fired my wife.

host: tell us more about what she did. caller: i don't want to go into much of the details, but it was information gathering. host: for a branch or agency here in washington? caller: several different agencies. host: talk a little bit about the way you are watching this and one has been going on, i suppose you are looking at it through a different lens than most people. caller: i don't own a house. i rent/ my wife was the person who brought in most of the money. we're not going to keep renting bissau's because we cannot afford it. now the venture is not making his money and the area i am at, everything i purchased in the area as far as food or electric or anything else, i will move back to where my family is from. -- the renter is not making

m at. in the area i an so i will not be spending money in this area. host: we will hear from a representative from maryland and one from virginia later on regarding the deadline hitting today and what will happen. those discussions in about an hour from now. the caller mentioned his wife's experience with a company related to government and what happened to her. george on twitter -- if you are federal employees and want to give your perspective on this, you can choose the line that best represents u.s. you give us a call this morning. related toare this. or if you are outside the d.c.

metro area and you have a different take on this, you can call and give your perspective as well this morning. give us a call, send us a tweet, or post on facebook. we will hear mamany from our callers or guests. new hampshire.mpshir caller: i'm wondering how much money is allocated to humanitarian aid? also, why can that not be eliminated? host: i don't know the first. i'm interested in your thoughts on the second period caller: all

this money that is being shoved into other countries to take care of their disasters, why we cannot do that in our own country, specifically with this budget problem and all the other problems that go on in this country? why is it we have to show so much money on to other people and yet we cannot even take care of what's going on within this country? so why is it -- i am very interested to know how much is allocated to humanitarian aid and why it cannot be eliminated? host: humanitarian aid to other countries specifically? caller: correct. host: what benefits would come by taking that money away, in your opinion? and would be enough to settle or start to settle the long-term budget issues that we have? caller: i think -- first, i

don't know how much it is, but i would like to know. i'm sure it's a lot. it is something that could help us out as far as balancing the budget. any penny helps. by the way, i am a humanitarian. i work in the social service field. but enough is enough with helping other people. we have not helped ourselves. even if it's a temporary thing, why is it that particular thing cannot be cut? host: social services, public or private you working in? caller: public. host: will you see any effects of sequestration on what you do? caller: i have already disaster. i have already lost everything. it bothers me. there's another part of this that bothers me.

i am specifically interested in this particular thing. host: what is the other part? caller: i don't understand why i can buy of 50 cent screw and hardware store, but the government pays $50 for the same screw. i wonder why some of these things cannot be cut. nickel-and-diming things, which is where i think a lot of money gets wasted. in my own budget, previously when i was doing well, those day-to-day things are things that were wasteful. i have been able to cut out all that stuff in my own budget, which had created quite a deficit in my own budget. but that is a separate issue. what i want to know about is the humanitarian aid. host: aside from that, i'm interested to know what you would cut if you had a tool to do so to cut things from the

federal budget aside from humanitarian aid. caller: i am not quite sure. i'm just interested in this. host: ok. christina in massachusetts, independent. caller: i will go both ways. i agree with the first caller as far as if we have to pay to ship our stuff out, then they have to do ship to come in. i'm not going humanitarian. then't want to pay for pakistan military or afghanistan or egypt and all that. no. if they want an army, pay for their own. they have oil. they have money. we can balance our own budget. we have three -- what do they call it -- the senate has not

passed a budget in four years. i don't understand this. host: do you approve cuts to our own defense budget? caller: yes, because there's a lot of waste. get in there and do your job. we have got to get in there in our homes and figure out where we are wasting. so why aren't they? host: $26.4 billion in discretionary nondefense is part in the sequester. that is from the wall street journal this morning. rosedale, maryland, alex on our republican line. caller: good morning, sir.

i just wanted to say i truly believe that there should be a 10% flat tax across the nation. that would help out a lot. also, -- host: before we go further, the deadline that takes place today, would you think about that actually coming to pass? caller: it is kind of sad. you cannot see people in the government work together. it's harmful. horrible. they need to get rid of those lawyers on both sides. democrats and republicans trying to win and destroying our country by doing so. that's a big problem.

like dr. benjamin carson said, i think they need more doctors and scientists and engineers in the government, not politicians. host: when you look at the amount of money that our debt entails, when you look at the projected cuts, you suggest a flat tax, why do you think that is a way forward? caller: it makes everyone happy, for the most part and it does all problems. it cuts down on the cost to the nation. i think it really works well. host: where did you come upon the idea of a flat tax? caller: i read the bible as well. god talks about it. and benjamin carson talk about it.

other people have talked about it on the republican side and some democrats. cys virginia beach, virginia, jason joining us on the independent line. we are talking about sequestration taking effect today. caller: how are you? host: fine. caller: i'm curious why our country does not work like other countries and why we're not run like a business. a lot of our taxes and money spent and discount given to large businesses and they are giving overseas or unions or workers who can benefit outside the united states. why is our country not treated

more like a business when it comes to importing, exporting, and collecting taxes? and when is the government, whether republican or democrat, when are they going troops realize we're in this together. they need to fix the problem one way or another. it's for everybody, not just one side or the an aside. host: are you affiliated with the military? caller: i am a military veteran and am in the real- estate business. i definitely will be impacted because of the people's jobs and you have the shipyard here that will be impacted. a lot of navy deployments that are being impacted. just like some people have mentioned, governments -- our government has a lot of reckless spending.

if we would treated more like a business, hire some accountants instead of politicians. host: when it comes to the defense department, would you treat that like a business as well, in cost effectiveness? caller: it needs to be treated like a business when it comes to spending. there's a lot of careless and extra spending with things in the government. host: military specifically? caller: i would not say the military. i would say government as a whole. i know firsthand from being in the government that there is money spent wastefully on things that are not necessary. on the same notes, look at our government and look at the people running the senate and congress getting paid large amounts of money. they are not taking any kind of budget cuts of their own or taking any kind of deduction and pay or trying to sacrifice anything to help out. it's a bunch of people having a

pissing match. they're just trying to push each other around. host: jason talked about congressional leaders, set to meet with president obama sometime today at the white house to have a discussion now that the deadline is taking place, sequestration take place sometime today, once the orders are signed into affect. that's the topic of our discussion this morning. we still have plenty of time for you to weigh in on our phone lines -- copy did mention congressional leaders. you heard from speaker boehner. we will go to the senate side and hear from harry reid. he talked specifically about republicans and their dedication to not increasing revenues through taxes. [video clip] >> this really takes a lot of

pizazz for house republicans to say they're waiting for democrats to do something. they have done nothing. they've not even allow democrats to have a vote on nothing. they have held back on something we passed in the last congress. we're going to the white house tomorrow, the four of us will be there with the president. what i would hope is that the republicans, both of them, would agree with republicans around the country that we should have a balanced approach to get rid of this and i llook forward to the sequestration the 27th of next month, getting it all done at once. there are things they have agreed on in the past to get rid of some of the tax loopholes and doing things of that nature that would have a balanced approach. >> there's been no way to find 60 votes? it all starts tomorrow?

>> nam le by this point, democratic and republican leaders would have gotten in a room and at least tried to work this out. why did they not do that this time? >> it's not as if we have not talked about it. i have had meetings with a speaker. we have had lots of efforts made by my individual senators and republicans in the house and senate. the republicans want to sequester a to go forward. they have said so. any reasonable approach to this, they will not let us do it. >> they say you are only working to pass the bill one day on the day the sequester is going to kick p.m.. -- kick in. >> we have a balanced approach to doing this. on tuesday the caucus said their

proposal is we're going to cut off three fingers and we want the president to decide which finger goes first. they will not budge on anything dealing with revenue. host: we are hearing another perspective in the pages of the washington times this morning. this is senator rand paul -- here's a little of what he had to say -- that is senator rand paul, the

senator from kentucky, a member of the senate foreign relations committee and homeland security committee. back to your calls , kentucky, bill on the republican line. caller: that's one reason reelected rand paul in kentucky. he's a good man. six years since i have talked to you guys. on the sequester, 2 since out of the dollar, we will starve to death in kentucky. we cannot afford that. that will kill us all. just to get something to eat it, 2 since on the dollar, we will never be able to make it, pedro. host: anything else you want to add as far as what you have seen over the last few months? caller: i have seen nothing on the democratic side. we send a bill and he is sticking its in a drawer somewhere.

how is he working with anybody? host: tim is on the democratic line from new york. hello? one more time. mary, good morning. your next from kingston, pennsylvania, independent. caller: as a proud american, if we have to pay a little more in taxes, even from the lowest worker to the highest paid worker, it's better than having no jobs where you could not afford anything. you can manage to cut corners and put an extra potato in the pot, but how will you survive if you don't have a job at all? host: as far as paying taxes, should anybody pay equally or should some pay more? caller: you cannot pay the same. if you are making $10 an hour or

making $500 an hour, so that is a little ridiculous. however, if you have to raise the taxes on everyone, as horrible as it may sound, 55%, just to break even before the fiscal cliff. the sequester does not make any kind of sense. if you are going to cut jobs, all you will create is more people than are crippled. my son needed a walker. i bought it and i had to pay $50. i tried to get it back from my insurance company. when i called the company to find out what was going on, they said they had built the insurance company at $150. i said how can you justify that? they said we just build them and they pay whatever they have set aside. that is absolutely ridiculous.

if i paid $50 for something, they should only be able to build $50 for something. there are many places that spending can be cut. cutting jobs does not make sense. we are already in so much trouble with people not having employment. and females will be devastated. i'm in the nursing field on home care. if a patient does not have insurance or cannot afford it, what happens to them? there has to be some kind of moderation. i think the republicans and democrats need to get their heads on straight. they need to be sequestered in rooms and not let out until they come to some kind of realistic solution. host: that is mary from pennsylvania. how long have you been watching this process? caller: honestly, this year is the first time i have ever watched anything about this. i did not even know what

sequestration was until last night. working as many hours as i do, it is not something that's on the top of my list. i happened to put c-span on this morning and was like what is going on? so i've been watching all night. this is appalling. we cannot cut jobs from an already crippled economy. people are earning over $200,000, if they want to tax them more, everyone has to ship in -- chip in. if you have a family member was not doing well, the rest of the family, the ones who can afford more, do. if you have more money, then why would you not want to give a little more? why would you be so upset if they want to take a little more? if you earn more, you should have to pay a little more. host: pennsylvania is one of the

state's that will face cuts because of today's budget issues. mary is joining us from pennsylvania in health care industry. where would you apply changes on the spending side? you talk about the tax side and you inferred cuts could be made. what areas of the government should see those? caller: the president is on the right track. i have faith in the fact that he's where he is for a reason. we all elected him. we put our trust in him. i believe it if he is given the opportunity to do this, that he will be able to make this and be able to help the entire united states, our whole country. i don't have any agenda or any idea of what cuts or things should be given and taken. all i can tell you is this -- without allowing him to do his

job, without putting our faith in him -- and the senate and house committees, without them coming together, there's not going to be any kind of answer. there's only going to be told devastation. we have to take local -- maybe not as much as $85 billion from the military, but instead of taking that much, take a smaller portion. you can take smaller portions from everywhere including from the taxpayers. i would rather pay even out of every paycheck, dollars more out of every paycheck rather than have no paycheck to use. host: how you plan to educate yourself about this process going forward? caller: it is ironic. when the inaugural speech -- when the president spoke, this

was the first time i ever watched. time 48 years old -- i am 48. it was the first time with president obama and the belief i have in him. i don't know enough about any of this. i am ignorant when it comes to anything going on in the government. i am trying to learn more. i read everything i can on the computer now. i watched every debate and was appalled by the republicans and very grateful president obama got in. i am very proud of him. i don't feel we need to go back to any kind of republican economy. i think that was total devastation. the sequestration, from what i understand, was only put into effect in april or maybe july as mortgage, pay your if you go to two payments

without it, they will foreclose and send your foreclosure notice. this is the same. that was married in kingston, pennsylvania, watching the process. we invite your comments through the phone lines and twitter and facebook. macon, georgia, a dependent -- pardon me, democratic line. caller: as for the sequester, i don't know what it's all about, but my daughter is in virginia beach. she's retired military. she works for the federal government. she has been informed with this sequester that her pay will be cut by 20%, which means it's a possibility she will lose our home and she's a single mother. the republicans don't want to

help the president do anything. they don't want to help him because he's black. aside from that, they work 160 days out of the year. before i retired, i had to work every day. they have just come off a 10 day vacation and now they're going on a long weekend. why are they not working? they talk about the president's leaving. the president takes office with him even to the bathroom. they talk about people being on food stamps. i'm in my mid 60's. i took in two young boys that did not belong to me and i never got food stamps. they told me i was not entitled. i had to feed these children. -- can't the republicans when have they ever asked any other president for a birth

certificate and their word about where he was born? they never did this before. it's all because of the color. host: that is audrey from georgia and talking about how her daughter will be affected in virginia beach. the washington journal on how the cuts will take place throughout the country --

we invite you to participate over the next remaining time of the show. munster, indiana, independent line. caller: good morning, sir. marriage is like a collective bargaining agreement. they all get paid very well with benefits and some retired millionaires. they are paid to serve the american people. i cannot understand why they cannot find a gray area in between the black and white. it makes no sense. i would start cutting oil -- the

welfare as far as what they are doing. that will drag the economy, the price of a barrel of oil, too. it goes down to paying stockholders. they say they have to pay their stockholders. maybe not soil profitable for stockholders. drive down the price of a barrel. i would like to see both parties get along and negotiate. that is what they are paid to do. all i have to say. thanks for your time. host: the president earlier this week talked about the long-term effects of sequestration once it takes effect. [video clip] a cliff, but iteclipse is a tumbledown worked. it's conceivable that in the first few weeks or the first month that, unless your business

is directly related to the defense department, unless you live in a town that is directly impacted by a military installation, unless you are a family that now is trying to figure out where to keep your kids during the day, because you just lost a head start slot, a lot of people may not notice the full impact of this sequester. but this is going to be a big hit on the economy. both private-sector as well as public sector economists are estimating that we could lose as much as 0.5% of economic growth. that means hundreds of thousands of people will not get jobs that otherwise would get them, potentially. it means you have your customers with money in their pockets ready to buy your goods and

services. fewer customers. the global economy will be weaker. we are doing significantly better than some of the other developed nations. the worst part is it is entirely unnecessary. it's not what we should be doing. i have said this before and i will say it again and i suspect i will be repeating it during the question and answer session. but if you look right now at what our economy needs, taking $85 billion out of it arbitrarily, indiscriminately, without a strategy behind it, that is not a smart thing to do if we're serious about making sure that america grows and that our middle class is thriving and that our opportunities in the middle class. host: the wall street journal

has a timeline of what happens after today.

sequestration takes effect today appeared that's what we're talkingsequestration takes effet today. baltimore, maryland, is next. dorothy, democrats' line. guest: good morning. listen. this sequester means, if you don't pay your bills it will constantly piled up. republicans they had to pay two wars and the medicare thing. and they want to put all of this at one time. that is not right. everything went up but people's salaries. i saw it coming. i am 66 and i am retired but i saw it coming. every time you look, raising the price of brent. but raising food is ridiculous. your check, your salary never did move. i don't know what to expect the -- but the republicans need to get it together and not stopped

-- i could not go in all my job and come home and still have a job. it is time for them to make rules and regulations up in there. if they got them, they are not playing the game fair. host: off of twitter -- up next is george from shelby, ohio, republican line. hello. caller: good morning. host: what are your thoughts on sequestration taking effect? caller: the president wanted it all along. he started the sequestration two years ago. then he set up the super committee with an equal number of republicans and democrats so there was no way to break the tie to make a show. and he wants this sequestration because he wants to cut defense. so he will get what he wants. people need to wake up to see

who this man is but anti- capitalist trying to bring this country down. people complaining about the price of going up. he is doing everything he can to make prices go up -- devaluating the dollar -- host: what do you think about the republican role? caller: they tried it -- they said to have a bill to the senate and the senate has not acted on it and the senate has not had a budget for over three years. host: house speaker and republicans voted for this on the house side. do they take responsibility, then? caller: i don't think so. not very much. host: george from ohio. just to let you know, again, our first guest join just at 8:30, we will continue to take your calls. most of you calling in from various parts of the united states. we are going during the course of the morning talk to reporters from select states, not the large sense but what is happening in their state and what preparation have to be made. those will take place during the

morning as well. joining us for the start of our discussion via skype is jerry, with the buffalo news, washington bureau chief. guest: good morning. host: your publication is based in new york state. generally how does new york state prepare for something like today? guest: i think there is a preparation to be made. it is a matter of watching and waiting to see what happens. the reason i say that is the potential effects of this are very fast, and they affect all sorts of different elements of life. let me just speak to a couple that are particularly important to the buffalo area. first and foremost, we are a border city. we border canada. the way things work up there, canada is almost like crossing a river for us. it is something people do all the time. there are people who live in canada and work in buffalo and go back and forth.

if the number of border guards and customs agents is reduced because of furloughs, there could be huge lines at the bridges. this will probably evolves over time. i don't know if it will happen today. it will be an immediate impact. beyond that, a lot of the impacts are more longer term. buffalo city schools would be hit very hard in terms of education funding. as schools all across the state. and also military facilities will be hit and military spending would be hit. in buffalo, already the pentagon has said it is not going to go forward with an expansion of the niagara falls research station. there could also be cut at fort drum, the most major military establishment in the state. all of this will take time. it will not all happen today. host: as a person based in washington, d.c., have you been able to talk to the delegation about the impact of what is your reaction if you have a chance to do so? guest: of course, i have.

the reaction is very much split along party lines, as are these calls. when you talk to democrats, they are aghast that this is going forward, these cuts, which were really intended to never happened, really are going forward. they blame republicans for, once again, refusing any kind of new revenues. if you talk to republicans, you get a very different story. ok, this is going to happen, this is what we wanted. we wanted the budget to be cut in a substantive way, and that is what is happening here. what the republicans say -- what you are hearing out of the white house is really nothing more than scare tactics at this point in time. as you can see, even in this micro level of congressional delegation from the buffalo area, it is a big, big split and there is not really room in the middle of this point in time. host: i know you are here in washington but your governor there in the state and other things, how are they reacting?

are based showing some concern? -- are they showing some concern? guest: the governor has a lot on his mind right now. i have not seen reaction. does not mean there has not been any. what we are mostly hearing from our people in that congressional delegation. what is interesting is a lot of municipalities, school boards, etc., will be affected. i am not seeing as much reaction from them as might be expected. the school board passed a resolution condemning sequestration, saying it could mean larger class sizes and program cuts, etcetera. but other than that, i think to some degree perhaps, people have to knock out to these perils of pauline budget crises washington gives manufacturing. and until we actually see the impacts of these cuts, i think we have a -- may have a little more muted reaction local level as you might expect. host: here is the front page of

"the buffalo news," and associated press story on the senate side, effort and the senate rejected yesterday. going forward, what is your interest and what will you be paying attention to when it comes to this topic? guest: what i will be doing today is a story about what happens today. i will be working with a reporter in buffalo who will probably go to the bridges and see if there are long lines trying to get into canada. we also have a local member of congress up their having a press conference at the air force base that i mentioned. we will have someone on the ground they're talking about is there any local impact. i will be down here and talking to members of congress again about what they are seeing on this first day of sequestration. let me add just one thing -- the impression i have been getting, which will be reflected in the story, is the real deadline is march 27. that is the day when the continuing resolution expires in of less we have another one to carry us through the end of the fiscal year, there will be another partial shutdown.

that is kind of hammer hanging over lawmakers that seems to have inspired them to come to deals. host: from the buffalo news service, washington bureau chief. the buffalo news headline -- newsuem papers that it offered to us. thank you very much, sir. one of several reporters we will hear from over the course of the morning. george, ohio, independent line. caller: how was it going? host: it goes well. what are your thoughts? caller: dingo what? this is really a sad thing for the american people, period. my thoughts is that if the senate, congress, president and all the elected officials cannot do their job, they need to get out of the way, they need to hire an independent consultation group to come in, put everything on the table just like a man and

a woman who is married have problems with a budget, and start cutting things, period. what frustrates may is of the fact that they are going to give all of these poor countries millions and billions of dollars in what other kind of aid to get their countries by, but yet when it comes to our own country, they would rather see homeless people, kids who can't go to school because of lack of books and pencils and everything else, but yet give everybody else millions of dollars to get their countries by. host: that was george from lebanon, ohio. there is a story this morning, when it comes to this topic, looking at interest rates and how they will react. here is the headline from "usa today" this morning. you can find an online if you want to. but some of the story says --

march 27, you heard our reporter reference. willie, good morning. new york. republican line. caller: it is sad, if we cannot cut $85 billion out of $3.60 trillion budget, then it is unbelievable. and then the president and the

democrats, they want a fair share. didn't they just get their tax increase? host: you say it is unbelievable, yet here we are. caller: i mean, didn't they just get a tax increase? and it is already spent. he wants more taxes so we can spend more. we have a spending problem, not a revenue problem. look, the gao report, they say all of these overlapping programs they had in the government -- the government is just too big. don't you think so? host: you are saying cutting the government will resolve the issue? caller: they got their tax increases, right? host: sure, you said that. the caller: look at all of the overlapping spending that is in the government. i mean -- host: you are saying cut government and that will solve

the problem. caller: well, the government is just too big. $85 billion -- that is what it was back in 2009. that is what we were spending, $85 billion less. isn't that true? host: is there a starting point -- your opinion government needs to be cut? caller: 19,000 new irs agents for the so-called health care law. they got to do something about that. but got to reform all of these entitlement programs. that is the big problem there. don't you think so? host: i will leave it to your opinion. but i will show you some facebook comments to see what their opinions are this morning as we talk about sequestration. there are about 200-plus

comments a little while ago. you can add your thoughts to there and twitter as well, c- spanwj. elizabethtown, indiana. democrats' line. caller: i am on disability. you know, every month i have to decide whether or not i am going to bite my medicine, by my groceries, decide whether i can afford to go to the dr. ruth. i've got a brain tumor. i've got a lot of medical problems. if i don't have my medicine -- they raise my medicine -- we got a $20 raise at the first of the year. i get $14 on food stamps. of $550 spend it down i have to come out of my pocket every month. i have to make a decision whether or not i am going to have heat.

i keep my heat on 55 degrees and i said ron all winter and freeze to death because i cannot pay my bills. when you get assistance, the great patchy because, you got to pay this. well, you only make so much. i had to have a sleep study. i had to have it because, you know, i am not breathing right when i sleep. you can die of a heart attack or a stroke when you have sleep apnea. how do you make all of these medical decisions? might as well just lay down and die because you can't pay everything. host: you are having medical tests. do you have insurance? caller: yes, i have insurance. but my spend it down is $550 a month. i have to pay all of it out of

my pocket before medicaid will pay anything. i have not been to the dentist in 20 years. do you know how i take the plaque of my teeth? with a pair of tweezers because i can't afford dental care. i go to a clinic. there are so many immigrants. i went to the clinic last month to get my medicine. and i don't go to the doctor but every three months to get my prescriptions because the doctor told me i had to come every three months to get a check up, so i can keep getting my medicine. i went in there and there was only -- that place was packed and only two white people in their. all the west of them were immigrants -- rest of them were immigrants and every one of them have 3 or four kids and the wife was pregnant again. host: your message to congress

going forward now that the deadline has hit, given your own experience? what is your message to congress on how spending and taxation should go forward? caller: they need to get some of the people out of the country that don't belong here. i am not prejudiced, but you know what, we have to take care of the people who are here. host: madeleine from elizabethtown, indiana. norma from twitter -- a story about a slightly expanding economy. saying the output expanded in the economy and an annual rate of 0.1%, basically in distinguishable from no growth at all --

relating to sequestration this morning, the story goes on to say -- we are talking about the sequester, which takes place today, march 1. the president signed it into effect some time today. the president will meet with the white house -- at the white house with congressional leaders. here is a shot of the white house, where the meeting will take place. many reporting, including our guest this morning, saying not much expected from the meeting but a meeting takes place in nonetheless. we will talk to you as far as your thoughts on the sequester, what happens going forward.

legislators joining us from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.. ron from connecticut, independent line. what are your thoughts? caller: first of all, this discussion about the sequester is really a bunch of bs, because how many times have we been through this? i remember in the 1980's we were talking about government spending, everything else. but my main point is this, it is that, you know, to all of those people out there who say that because us white full creek -- not agree with obama because we are prejudiced. how many white people died in the civil war fighting against slavery? how many people died fighting for the rights of minorities? yes, we have another fight. we have to fight -- if you believe in freedom, that the least freedom for everybody in a matter who you choose to love.

but this baloney is republicans are evil, the democrats -- all you have to do is look at what president obama said from day one. he has not kept one single promise. host: talk about the republicans and democrats role specifically in sequestration? how you think they have played this out as it is going on for several months? caller: again, it is a moot point because we have been playing this out forever. this has always been a discussion. this has always been a problem. always something -- we are wasting money, we are spending too much money. we got to follow the bouncing ball. there is a bigger picture to what is going on, whether it is republican or bring democrats. if people think that the president, he is in charge -- the senate -- you know, that is not the way it really runs. ok? sure, we've got to close tax

loopholes like ge, like the president's economic adviser, the president of ge. ge pays no taxes, ok? the thing is this -- we got to start looking at each other as human beings. host: steve is next from scottsdale, arizona there republican line. caller: good morning. i was thinking, you know the different levels of government. there are things we can do to help our financial picture. simple things like get rid of the hov lane on the freeway. are you familiar with that? most cities have that. 6:00 until 9:00, only people who can be and that late are people with one person and their vehicle. if we got rid of the like that, it would allow more people to get to work quicker. it would help the financial picture at the common man's

level. another idea is let the -- let the loggers go in because of the fires we have had an arizona, loggers might as well went in and got the wood and we would have that money. they need to just legalize marijuana. legalize it and get revenue from that. simple, common man and things they can do to raise money and is that of all this arguing and bickering. they need to just go to but -- they need to start making money. we have to start making money. we can't just move money from one account to another and all that. we have to hurt the environment a little bit, and it is just too bad, but better than letting china taking over the environment. host: focus on car lanes, logging, and marijuana. i guess you think about the aunt -- is a lot cutting costs or

things you'll come to watching government in action? caller: it is just common sense. there are so many things we can do to help of the common man. get rid of that hov lane, they can put two more lanes in there. one lane off to the side, and the body to go it did the rest of the day but in the morning when people are trying to get to work it is all back up of the one lane is going through. if the gas is so dang expensive -- here's another one. get rid of the oxygenated fuel that makes the gas more expensive. we all have catalytic converters and all of the emissions control in our cars, so, we don't need all the extra stuff and a fuel. they just -- we have the big problem in the gas -- with a gas in the past. remember, when the gas went way up when the pipeline broke in arizona, the government backed

ban, janet napolitano, she listed -- lifted that and it is of the gas could be made cheaper. hell, the gas is back up to $4 a gallon and they need to get rid of the oxygenated fuel and let's start drilling and make gas cheaper. to make life a little easier for people at this level. host: you follow this pretty closely, from what i understand. you took time to call us. what about the social circle of people -- family and friends. are they paying attention to what is going on in washington particularly when it comes to things like sequestration? >> i think everybody is just working really hard and try to pay their bills. i am the karaoke king, by the way, karaokeking.com, if you want to listen to free karaoke music, just go to the website. my friends are barely getting

by. they talk about getting taxed to death. they cannot ever do anything fund. dirt biking or anything, because there are getting taxed to death. host: when did you start paying attention to politics? caller: years and years ago. i have been calling in quite a bit. host: steve from scottsdale, arizona. kerrey of peking, he called themselves, joining us to talk aboutk this talkaraoke king, he calls himself. proposition 8 --

clifford, cape coral, florida. democrats' line. caller: how are you doing this morning? i'm really discuss the. i am 66 years old and vietnam era veteran and i believe the whole problem with the system is that the term limits should be on the congressman, too. they stay in office to the point where they have to take care of the special interest groups, and nothing can get done as long as they are obligated to the people who keep them in office. host: to the point we are talking about today, as far as the sequestration deadline taking place today. talk a little about that.

caller: this is toll brought on by their own self -- totally brought on by their own self. they are just taking care of themselves and be reelected. they don't care what happens to the country, as long as they get their job next year again. host: you are calling us on the democrats' line. does it apply to democrats and republicans alike? caller: it is both of them. they have all been there too long. i have been watching politics all my life. and the people have been there for 50 years, they did not understand what is going on in this world today. everyone. this is the richest country in the world and we cannot feed the hungry kids in this country? that is a disgrace. a total disgrace. host: one more thought via

twitter this morning -- twitter, facebook, and call comments, too. for about an hour and a half we have been taking calls and talking to various people about what happens this day of sequestration. one thing we wanted to do is focus on states across the united states to see how individuals in those states welfare and how programs will fare. joining us on the phone is steve from "the tampa bay times," tallahassee bureau chief to talk about florida. a first and foremost, thank you. tell us a lot of bad about how your state is preparing to date. guest: good morning, pedro. a florida is preparing. governor rick scott was in jacksonville yesterday to warn about a possible affects the sequester could have on our preparation and readiness for a natural disaster, because florida is very reliant on the

national guard. let's talk for a second about the pillars of the florida economy. they are all tied directly or in directly to federal spending. defense, tourism, in direct -- international trade, and agriculture. the big concern, in addition to the national guard, has been concern about the affects cutbacks in the military could have. military installations all over the state of florida, and a number of them are in the panhandle and the jacksonville area where rick scott was yesterday. host: aside from those, talk a little bit about other areas. social programs -- i know the military may have an aspect of florida's economy. talk about that. guest: let's talk for a second about higher education, because "the tampa bay times" noted one of them less obvious affects is college kids losing their work steady jobs in some cases. we have some of the biggest

universities in the united states and florida. university of central florida, florida, of course, and florida state. services provided to people with the developmental disabilities. and in the tourism area, you know, orlando is what of the biggest tourist destinations in the world. it is march. we are coming really into the nicer part of the year as far as the weather. there are lots and lots of people who take international flights to the orlando airport to go to the disney complex and the other attractions. there have been reports there could be longer delays on the tarmac because there will not be enough customs agents to deal with all of the international passengers. host: steve bousquet, your state is preparing. what are you paying attention to the next couple of days as the story plays out question of guest: the next thing to look for is what steps, if any, the governor, rick scott, and legislative leadership takes

particularly in regard to the affects of the economy in areas heavily dependent on the military. it is an odd coincidence of timing. our annual legislative session is about to begin. it will begin next tuesday. a major development here where governor rick scott, who is a republican, who has come out in favor of the expansion of medicaid under the affordable care act, and so, now we face this situation, florida does, or cuts in federal programs could have the economic effect. the economy here has gotten better, and rick scott has taken a lot of credit. in the unemployment rate has dropped by more than 3%. florida is heavily dependent on retail sales and construction. and we were in a terrible morass' economically for a long time. we are still not out of it. but things in this state are getting better and this could have a negative affect. host: the business community in florida, have they weighed in at

all? caller: not that much. -- guest: not that much. again, i think of course the question is how long the sequester will last. it is at last a week or 10 days at the most -- if it lasts a week or 10 days of the most, it will not have a huge effect on floridians. if it lasts longer than that and you have sort of the congealing of gridlock in washington the but then i think people will be really concerned. the test will be whether or not the governor and legislative leadership, all of whom are republicans, can't come up with a consensus approach to have some state -- it can come up with a consensus approach to have a state response. host: tallahassee bureau chief. there is the website if you want to check out his riding on this and other topics. it thank you. joining us right now to talk about the sequester from a congressional viewpoint,

representative don edwards, serves as a fourth district representative. welcome. what happens now as far as both sides? guest: many of us, including legislative operations, are waiting for a sequestration order from the office of management and budget to really figure out how it will be implemented through the federal government. i know that our leadership obviously, the house and senate, are meeting with the president today. we are on recess, so does not look what we will get a piece of legislation through and i look at the legislative calendar next week and it does not look like we have anything on the calendar to deal with a looming and drastic cuts. host: what does that mean we are at this point? guest: i think it means all sides need to come to the table. the democrats have put forward a balanced approach that includes spending cuts, revenue increases, growth, it includes job creation. i think it is time for us to sit down like adults to figure this

one out. in the washington area, i represent a district in the washington suburbs. we have a lot of federal employees, federal contractors. they will feel would direct impact of this sequestration, including possibly furloughs. some companies have already announced layoffs in a time when the economy is starting to grow. >> -- host: looking ahead, march 27 being a date everyone talks about, of the resolution that has to be decided upon when it comes to spending. what is the chance the result could come by then? guest: i heard discussion that there could be possibly a combination of a resolution relating to a continuing resolution, but the discussions i heard suggested that the continuing resolution would continue operations, but at the level of cuts in the sequester. that, again, is very, very damaging to our economy. of course, to the american people, who are going to begin

to see over the course of the month the ripple effect of these pretty drastic cuts. host: our guest joins up until 9:00 to talk about the sequester is taking place today. representative don edwards with the maryland. langley park area. if you want to talk over and ask her about not just for specific. you come from maryland but others generally, here is how you can do so this morning -- we have set aside a special line for maryland residents -- what are you hearing? guest: our phones have been ringing off the hook. we have a lot of households who are two income households, where one person works for the better government and the other a small business contractor, and they are all concerned. we did a telephone call hall

meeting last night and had about 8000 people on our phone lines talking through programs that are exempted versus what is included in bill sequester to try to allies some people -- allays some people's concerns. the agencies, many of them will give 30 days' notice. the department of defense will give 45 days' notice. that notice already went out so furloughs could begin at dod civilian employees as early as april 5 or 6. host: about 186,000 federal employees who live in maryland, according to research we have done, this is overall about 340,000 in the washington d.c. metro area, virginia and maryland. a lot setting that number is too big, but number of employees that takes to run the federal government. guest: i would say in fact because of drastic reductions over the last several years, we have people who are doing the jobs that two or three people used to do years ago.

and so, what has not been factored in this is the consideration that in fact the federal government has actually shrunk by operations. many agencies have not gone through what hiring in order to try to accommodate for these cuts without having a devastating impact on existing employees. and so, i think of several government has axed done a lot to tighten up operations over the last several years -- actually done a lot to tighten up. air traffic controllers, those are things we cannot do without. the food inspection, safety officers. maryland's it, it hit particularly hard in education. we have the distinction in maryland having the number one schools and the nation for five years running because of investments we have made in the state level in education, but that has been coupled with resources we received from the federal government. so, we will take the nation's number one school system and then hit head start, early

education, funding for students with disabilities, pell grant students, all the things that it actually takes to grow your economy for the 21st century. i just don't think it makes sense and that is what i am hearing from constituents. host: our guest serves on science, space, technology, transportation and infrastructure. do those areas get hit? guest: radically. i was meeting with the nasa administrator, and there will be a huge impact in terms of operations going to the international space station, conducting research. national oceanographic administration that handles all of our weather satellites and forecasts, they will take a big hit as well. it would not be able to launch satellites on schedule, so we might see gaps in coverage. so, a tremendous impact. we do need to fund infrastructure. this is another thing president obama and democrats in congress

actually put forward a proposal to help us make investments in rebuilding our roads and bridges and all of the infrastructure in the metro area. our metro system, the subway system. because that is how you grow an economy and create jobs. you do not do it by taking a sledgehammer to the federal budget. host: representative don edwards joining us up until 9:00. the numbers will be a -- a special run for maryland, 585-3883. indiana, you are up first on the republican line. this is the max. go ahead. caller: yes, my name is max, i am from indiana. i know we need cuts. i am not agreeing the sequester is the right way to go but we definitely need massive cuts. talking about our infrastructure -- there are other ways. we could quit giving money overseas and planes to people

overseas. egypt does not need our planes and tanks. people need to get up and get a job. no free rides in america. we give out too many now. host: i appreciate the sentiment. the question is, how do you reduce the short-term deficit, long-term debt, and grow the economy and how you do that in a responsible way by looking line by line at the federal budget and then making irresponsible cuts. what is happening but the sequester is it is not that at all, so it does not reflect our national priorities. the sequester, and in fact, goes across the board, drastic cuts, without looking at functions or efficiencies or what makes sense in terms of national priority. most of foreign governments will buy military equipment pay for that military equipment. we do not give it away. and so, there is a little bit misnomer in the public in terms of how much we spend in foreign aid, which represents about 1%

of our budget. we are not going to solve our budget problems by cutting that 1% in foreign aid. that does us all well across the world. at the same time, we have always -- always had a tradition, our parents in a region invested in roads, bridges, dams, and infrastructure, and it helped us grow the economy over a period of about 70 years. we need to do the same thing for future generations. we have about 70,000 bridges in this country that have received a failing grade and are falling apart. you can see all of our infrastructure. we need broadband infrastructure, much like our highway system across the country, because that is how you develop a competitive economy for the 21st century. host: hite is no, maryland. democrats' line. dee is online -- hyattsvilee, maryland. caller: donna, i hope you do

take up the issue of the infrastructure because the bridges are falling and everything. my daughter just got laid off yesterday, and she is in crystal city and the building i worked in in rockville, maryland, across the hall they had a lot of contractors for defense and a lot of them moved out the building or either got laid off january 31. the end of january, they left our building. so, a lot of people who have property in the area who have tenants, they are going to be losing out, too, because they serve as defense and other areas. host: thank you so much for your comments and your perspective. i am sorry to hear that your daughter was laid off. but that is the ripple effect through the economy with these kinds of drastic cuts. in fact, for some of our agencies, and for some military facilities out across the country, an entire economy

survives on it -- coffeeshops, dry cleaners, all of those residual small businesses that cater to the facilities. and so, the impact is not just the 13% cuts that are going to come into the department of defense operations, but it is the ripple effect throughout the economy. fed chairman bernanke just said the other day that this really could cause another recession. this will have a recessionary impact on our economy. just not a way to do business. host: desoto, texas. anna on the democrats' line. caller: representative edwards. i guess i am a little bit confused. we have known for 18 months that the sequester was coming. you all were off about two weeks ago for about 10 or 12 days. you work about 59% of the year. i know speaker boehner is the

speaker of the house. i don't think it is just a -- and you knew the republicans, after the president was elected, because they were still angry, they were not going to make this easy for him. so, the democrats, i think have fallen just as short. you have not done your fair share of it. we are talking about infrastructure. we have been talking about infrastructure since reagan was president. and we keep talking about it. when are you all going to take action and do your jobs and go to work? because if i worked 59% of the time, i would be fired. host: you know what? i actually happened -- guest: you know what? actually happen to agree with you. we do not have work days nearly as many as we had when democrats were in control. we what often days and then we

came back this last week with the sequester looming. what did the republican leadership do? a couple of adjournment votes, journal vote on the calendar, we renamed a space center at the same time we will close the operations of the center. we did not get any work done. i think this is a shame. we ought to be in session. we should not be home now, but the fact is in a house of representatives, the majority rules. and the majority right now is a republican majority. the gavel is controlled by speaker boehner. can college in or call us out. right now we are out. host: constantly in -- he constantly refers to the two efforts yesterday in congress. guest: would one congress opens -- closes, another opens and you start all over again. and there has not been a bill in this congress. we are supposed to be the ones who originate the bills to deal with spending. we have not done that.

i would say to speaker boehner, bring us back in town. but a bill on the floor. let us amend it, let us work together to get this done for the american people. but you certainly cannot do that if you have gone home for the weekend. look, i work for a living and i certainly did that before i came into congress. there is no way we should be working three and a half days in a week and taking off for a weekend. it is unacceptable for the american people and i say to the speaker, bring us back to washington and make as work through the weekends and evenings if we have to to come up with a balanced approach to deal with our nation's problems and make the kinds of investments we need, but not have these severe, drastic arbitrary cuts that are going to have a deep impact. host: what does a balanced approach to look like? guest: it includes both investments in revenues. we are still subsidizing oil and gas companies for their operations when they are making

record profits. we could remove those tax expenditures, subsidizing special interests. that would be a tremendous step forward. we could make reforms to some of our spending in our agencies that is about a scalpel approach, going through and saying what we want our prairies to be. if we want our priorities to be investment in education, we have to make it a priority, but we can't do it by cutting 9% or 10% out of the budget. host: if you want to make scalpel cuts, why not make a broad cuts if it saves more money? guest: it is sort of like your home budget. if you have to cut back on your budget, you do not do an across- the-board cut. you look at your budget and use a, you know what, i don't need the extra cup of coffee at my local coffee shop. i don't need to go to the movie theater every week. we can cut out going to dinner. but you do not say we will stop by -- stop buying groceries for kids. the approach we are taking now,

groceries and the kids is the same level as the extra cup of coffee. host: susan, ones -- from westminster, maryland. caller: i wanted to mention my husband and myself both work for department of defense, both looking at possibly being furloughed. how do they expect people to make their bills and payments? i think congress and the president should take a cut in pay along with the department of defense workers and that comes up for, which i know they make a lot more money and will not suffer as much as we are. and i am tired of people saying, you work for the government, you make this and that and you have this benefit and that benefit, but it was not just a free ride to get and a government job. we went to school, went to college, we have student loans, and we worked hard to get where we are. and this is what we get. if my husband is furloughed, 20% cut, i am farlow, 20%, there is no way we will be able to meet the bills. and we do not live lavishly. host: what areas of the

government you work in broadly? caller: just defense department. host: both of you? caller: yes. it is going to be tough. what do you do? it is not like we can cut out going to the movies because we don't go to the movies. we cannot cut eating out because we did not do that. what is really telling us our student loans. host: have you received information, either you or your husband, on what days you will be furloughed? caller: not yet. everything is still, i guess, on hold. but we were told we will probably be working a four-day work week from now, maybe possibly until september. that is going to be a huge cut in our family. host: susan from westminster, maryland. guest: i have to tell you -- first of all, i want to say to susan and all of the federal government employees, i, too, am tired of people beating up on federal workers. they were incredibly hard. they do the nation's business. i have not met one slacking on

the job. i think what susan is reflecting is a frustration that, in fact, federal government workers have not received pay increases in the three years. they have taken the brunt when it comes to deficit reduction. they have contributed mightily to deficit reduction. and here we are asking them to do it again. as i described before, two- income earner households where both members perhaps will be furloughed and people already living on the margin. federal employees cannot make a lavish living. they work for a living. they work hard. but they have to pay their bills, too. that is the thing i think many but have not considered. so, i feel for susan and for all of our federal workers out there who are going to bear the brunt of what is going to happen beginning today. host: our next call is from herald, florida. republican line. caller: look, i have kind of a contrary statements. and i am listening to the young

lady -- and with all due respect, you are missing the whole point of everything. we are borrowing over 40 cents out of every dollar we spend, over 40 cents. we are borrowing over $1 trillion a year. we have record low interest rates. if the interest rates go up at all to normal levels, to historical normal levels, our payments are going to go through the roof. if you are going to see cuts and agencies, you will see them like no one has ever seen them. we will not be able to pay anything. that is where we are right now. you complain about a sequester, which is a few cents out of a dollar. if you don't do something drastic, you will see a catastrophe in this country like we have not even seen something close to a sense of the depression. it will make the depression look like a kindergarten party.

host:. guest: i appreciate the caller's perspective, but with all due respect to the caller and others, the fact is, you do not make budget cuts that are responsible by taking a sledgehammer to the budget. none of us doesn't individually or our businesses and we certainly cannot do it with the federal government. probably not a one of us, myself included, who does not agree that we need to make the cuts but also balance that with what revenue so we can grow our economy. the question is how we do it. i happen to think the sequester is an irresponsible way to do that. again, the impact on states -- i look at a state like florida, for example. florida is receiving a lot of resources from the federal government by percentage wise, not nearly what maryland receives from the federal government. we are a contributor state because we have had a strong economy that is a diverse

economy in our state. there are states that are going to see very, very severe cuts in things like health care, cervical and breast cancer screenings. women are actually the ones who are facing some of the most devastating cuts that they will experience because so many -- women, infant, and children programs, for people who really do live at the margin. and of course, for those households who are federal workers. host: sandy beach bum twitter sang -- isn't it true but cuts you are refering to are nothing more than a reduction in the amount of increase in the budget? guest: it is factually inaccurate. the cuts that agencies will face is roughly split evenly between department of defense and non- defense discretionary funds and then there are a number of programs that are actually exempt from the cuts, including retirement pay, social security,

even though the agencies themselves may face cuts in terms of their workforce. i think people should take a closer look at where these cuts will take place. i look, for example, in my state where some of our first responders, firefighters, law enforcement officers rely on adding an additional law enforcement officer, an additional fire fighter. we will see a significant drop because we will not able to receive the benefits of those grants to the tune of about $500,000. and when you look at small communities, that is a big deal. host: would you propose cuts to space and technology programs? guest: again, when you look at space and technology, exempting spaced -- exempting space and technology has a huge multiplier effect. for example, would you invest in research in state -- space, you get things like air bags in cars

and all of those who are ripple -- verbal attacks. i strongly believe and investing in research and development, and in -- if the united states does not do that we will fall further behind the battered economies. we have to invest in research and technology in places like the national institutes of health, and we have to grow our economy by investing in our infrastructure. people can sneeze at infrastructure all they want, but i tell you, a billion dollars invested in and destructor creates 35,000 jobs. host: arnold, maryland. brad on the democrats' line. caller: i just wanted to say -- this kind of goes to what the representative was talking about. i think it all wrong cuts might actually be a good thing because we obviously cannot come to an agreement. i am a democrat right outside of annapolis, small business owner. i did not understand why republicans and democrats cannot come to agreement on what to cut. if they can't come to agreement,

let's scare everybody and cut across the board and hopefully it produces some results and gets something done. guest: unfortunately i think the scare everybody is certainly working as a strategy, but i do not think it is very responsible. we need to be in town. you can't come to any kind of deal if you leave town. and we just leave town way too much. i had already seen already this year we have only worked about 17 days out of the entire year. how in the world, we figure out how to work as democrats and republicans if you are always leaving the job site? that is what is happening now. the speaker needs to call us back into session and we need to do the dirty work of sitting down and saying -- you know what, i understand from my perspective i am not going to get everything i would want in my budget. neither is someone else. compromise in this instance cannot be a dirty word for the american people. host: about five more minutes.

arlington, texas. bob, independent line. caller: good morning. i just want to say, i have been a cpa for over 50 years. i have a ph.d. from c-span university. i have studied the financial statements of the united states government issued by the treasury department for over 20 years. i of wondering if this representative has ever looked at that. it is very detailed and very specific. if you study the financial statement you will see how difficult the problem really is. you also will see how the government really works. it is available to any citizen. as far as what is going on now, this is reminiscent of clinton's deal 20 years ago when they tried to scare people will we have the same situation. the president's stand up there, spreads his arms during the state of the union, patting himself on the back, got well enough to go play golf with tiger woods and not with friend

ron kirk. it's so what is the question or,? caller: to scare people -- people standing up there looking like potted plants, it is just pure evil. i think the president is too lazy to get the job done. he needs to show leadership. guest: i think part of the problem in this environment is there is a way to much name- calling. i have great respect for all of our leadership, including speaker boehner. i think he has a really tough job ahead of him pulling together the republican conference. but that is the job of the speaker. and i think that if we were in town and we were working, we actually could come up with a responsible and balanced approach to dealing with these issues. and as to the financial management statements, in fact, i've seen them because they are produced by an agency in my district with tremendous federal

employees, all in landover, maryland. host: what about his criticism of president obama's leadership? guest: i did not think it is helpful to call the president names. the president put forward a set of ideas in the state of the union message when he came to address the joint session of congress. the president put forward a set of ideas when the sequester was put into place. keep in mind, this sequestered was put into place to avert another crisis of defaulting on our debts and not paying our bills. the president was right up the line, proposing some things that, frankly, as a democrat i did not agree with, with respect to some of our programs. he put that forward. it was rejected out of hand by republicans in the house and senate. two bills were passed out of the house that they knew would never go out of the republican house.

we have a new congress. time for a new deal. host: the caller mentioned the president's travel on the issue and there is a meeting just today, the day of sequestered. some say that as criticism of his leadership. guest: never too late for a meeting -- whether today, yesterday, or tomorrow -- to get over the next hurdle. everybody has to be a leader. speaker boehner needs to be a leader. our leader, of course, over in the senate, and the president has to be leader. it means everybody has to be at the table. the real leader in my view has been nancy pelosi, what of violence against women act passing yesterday. it was democrats who put it over the hurdle. if you look at every piece of major legislation passed under the republican leadership, it was not passed with republican votes, it was passed with a democrat votes. did not say democrats are not putting some but on the table. host: maryland, republican line. tony. caller: thank you for taking