the lungs of the workers and people around it. there is the earthquake zone in the middle of the country, where if we had an earthquake, which the united states geological survey is predicting as a if we have another earthquake at the level of the 1812 earthquake it would damage we missed the very beginning of what you said. it he worked at the department of energy? , the germangermany beer makers have come out against fracking because they do not want their beer to be destroyed by the voices involved in fracking.

host: i do not think we should do this if we are not doing it properly. we need stronger rules. we need better enforcement. to go away from this when it is creating jobs and helping as areolitically, they shifting from coal to gas. they are causing fewer health problems. i think we need to keep that big picture in mind as we figure out how to do this properly. on the keystone pipeline, as long as we are using a lot of oil it will be transported one way or another and there will be risks. need to cut off consumption so we are less exposed to the risks. blocking one pipeline here or there does not get rid of oil, it just creates a new exposure somewhere else.

thank you for being with us. guest: thank you. host: we continued the conversation tomorrow. congress returns to work this week. we will check in with jonathan strong, a reporter with the national review. will be with us. he will talk about the democratic agenda including a series of hearings on the irs. the director of transportation for america will be joining us. deemedan 600,000 bridges by the federal government to be structurally sufficient. is coming up in just a minute. jerry moreno is the head of the

campaign committee. thank you for joining us on this sunday. we hope you have a rest of weekend. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2013] >> next, "newsmakers" live with jerry moran followed by steve milloy, founder of junkscience.com. quacks on friday, president obama talk about student loan interest rates that are set to double on july 1 and actions congress can take to prevent

the increase. here's some of what he said. quackquacks federal student loan rates are set to double. that means the average student with these loans will rack up an additional $1000 in debts. it is like a $1000 tax hike. i assume most of you cannot afford that. can anyone hear afford that? no. this sounds like déjà vu, because it is. we went there it last summer. some of you were here. it was not as hot. i do not think we did this outside. we went through this. eventually congress listened to all the parents and young people who said do not double my rate. folks made their voices heard and they kept interest rates low. the only did it for a year and that year is almost up. we have to make sure they do not

double on july 1. house of representatives has passed a student loan bill. i am glad they took action. the bill does not meet that. it fails to lock in low rates for students next year. that is not smart. it eliminates safeguards for lower income families. the is. there. it could cause a freshman than if wehool more did nothing at all. the house bill is not smart or fair. house is paying attention to it but they did not do it a right way. i am asking him people to get involved. last year you convinced 186 republicans in the house to work with democrats to keep student loan rates low.

you made something bipartisan happen in this town that is a powerful thing. you were able to get democrats and republicans to vote for something that was important. your looks like representatives have changed their mind, you will have to call them up again or e-mail them again and asked them what happened. what changed? you are still taking of these loans. you are still facing challenges. a people that are help one another earn an education because it helps all of us. during the civil war lincoln had the foresight to set up a land of great technology. at the end of world war ii we set up the g.i. bill so people to come back and get an education. this created the greatest middle class on earth. was able to get the support she needed through loans

and grants even while she was working and raising two kids to get her degrees. because we got great educations. we did not come from privilege. sure the nexte generation has the same opportunities. that has been good for the country as a whole. it is up to us to care reform with that. higher education cannot be a luxury. it is economic necessity that every family should afford them with dreams. now is not the time to turn back on young people. cut theot the time to investments that help us. now is the time to reaffirm our commitment to you and the generation behind you. if we work together to generate ,ore jobs and educate more kid ,

america cannot be stopped. . am putting my faith in you let's were together. let's get this done by july 1. thank you, everybody. thank you. god bless the united states of america. majority leader harry reid also released a statement following the president's remarks. he said the will vote on a proposal to prevent the interest rate increase and that the house republican proposal that ties this "is a nonstarter in the senate because it will be middle-class families with the uncertainty of seeing their rates fluctuate year-to-year." bring you live coverage of the senate at 2:00 p.m. eastern over on our companion network, c-span2.

quacks joining us on "newsmakers" is senator jerry moran, republican and chair of the national republican senatorial committee. thank you for being with us. quacks and reid wilson. thank you for being with us. let me begin with the main question. seats tou get sick retake in 2014. what is your target? >> we want to increase the number of republican senators. i say that because i believe it is important for the country. this topicsted in not because i am a republican but because i believe the country needs a different direction. our goal is to make certain that we move in that direction. it would be great if we had more

than 50 senators. you do that by reelecting the incumbents, the republicans that are out seem to be in excellent shape. no incumbent republican senator faces a significant challenge in being reelected. is primary responsibility to make sure that those republican senators are reelected. you work in open seats and try to make certain that republicans gain in the elections for which there is no incumbent. tore is a great opportunity defeat a number of democrat senators who are up in 2014. about the numbers and they worked in our favor. >> we will talk about some of those. >> there are a number of races

where it seems that you have to have a good challenger to get those 51 seats in the senate. michigan,, iowa, minnesota, colorado. it also includes oregon and new mexico. is no top tier candidate out there for your party. given what history looks like in terms of the sixth year of a president term and what we know about how the electorate is smaller in terms of its demographics in the off years, why is your party not recruiting better candidates for all of those states? >> jonathan, i would pushback on the sentiment that we are not recruiting good candidates. i also think the timing is such, americans and candidates prefer

shorter campaigns. this is not too late. we have plenty of time in which it to see a great candidate surface. asare working very closely compared to reaching down as the democratic committee does to select a candidate, the candidates they have sought in 2014 have said "no." we are not trying to do what they are trying to do. we are working with republican party officials, state legislatures, organizations, and asking the people with in the state to coalesce around a strong and viable candidate, one that cannot only when a primary but can also win a general election. they can only win a republican primary is of little and no

benefit to me. longer, more methodical process. those conversations are taking place every day. we have republican governors who are interested in helping sort out this process. i think generally americans do not like being told who to vote for. we are turning this process as best as we can. we are encouraging you to take place in state by people who come together and reach a conclusion that this is a candidate that we all can support and win and a general election. todd akin was is whe own worst enemy. they want you to be more reached down.use

if you do not do something like that you will wind up with more on your hands. with your disagree characterization of hands-off. we are not hands-off as t all. we are fully engaged in the recruitment process. i have been traveling the country, spent hours on the telephone talking not only to candidates but more importantly republican leaders, legislators, chamber of commerce, business groups, former members of the senate to ask of them this process is taking place. it is not hands off. if the senateces campaign committee said this is the candidate that would be a reaction by others that will not tell us what to do, i think this is a maturing process.

republicans clearly understand the value of not just selecting a candidate that may be their number one choice, they're perfect choice for them in.sonally, but cannot whe if you cannot win in november, if you do not appeal broadly to the people of your state, somebody that is nominated is of little value. >> reid wilson is the editor. >> thank you for taking the time. what is different from the last several cycles? a lot of your colleagues have said we are going to be public and do things differently and change the method by which you recruit candidates. i do not hear a lot that is different here. theare saying you want decisions to be made the state. that is what they were saying last cycle and it did not work out as well. what have you done differently

this time around? we areearly think that pursuing things in a different manner. .e have a different staff the entire management team of the senate campaign committee is different for the 2014 cycle than it was in the 2012 cycle. i have described the focus of how we're doing things. the real recognition, the topic we're are talking about, is critical. thinyou can raise a lot of money and organizations can put money in, it if you put that into a candidate that cannot win, it is a useless waste of money. ile we are clearly raising money, the focus is on candidate. it is the message that our contributors are getting us that do not expect us to

contribute to an organization that will not find candidates that can win. we are actively pursuing. the distinction i want to make is, we certainly have ideas about candidates that can win. we want to make certain the people of whatever state we are involved and understand the importance of this nomination and understand that we want them to help us bring people together to a particular candidate. in many states it is working. in some states it is difficult. let me say in regard perhaps to the last question, anyone who comes about getting the nomination, if they want money, they are now required to be men toward by another senator. we have a team in place. more importantly than that, any candidate who receives money nrsc is nrs see -- required to go to boot camp. our candidates are going to be

experiencing the necessary education and involvement in the political process that sometimes candidates do not have even though they're running for the senate. we are focused not just on on how to get the best candidate but to make sure the candidate we have has experience in responding to questions like you present to candidates, difficult question sometimes, and whether they have the ability to respond to the microphone in an intelligent way. we're trying to train a whole new set of campaign management directors. they can surround themselves with the necessary table expertise to have them be more successful. part of it is finding great candidates, working with states to do that, and making sure all of our candidates have the tool to be successful once they are a candidate. >> you are emphatic that the

committee will not be hands-off when it comes to recruiting candidates. you're also equally emphatic that they will not be imposing their will on the states. count me clarify. which is it? are you going to be trying to or are youndidate going to be deferential to whoever the states want? we are going to be emphatic in our efforts to encourage individual leaders within the state to coalesce around a great candidate. it is perhaps the hybrid of what you described. we are certainly not hands-off. we will have ideas and suggestions about what we will be-- involved in polling and providing that type of expertise as they sort through this. a is important that there be buy in. you use word "subtle."

we are not doing something under the -- >> never. >> they would make no sense for us to publicly say this is the person we want you to nominate because there has to be support for that candidate from somebody in the state. not from somebody in washington, dc. every state is different. there is not a one size solution that fits all the circumstances. the announced retirement by republicans in places like , how we and georgia conduct ourselves in a red state or georgia will be different in how we conduct ourselves in a more purple state like iowa or michigan. west virginia and south dakota. these are two open seats.

face aally you could republican primary in south .akota with the former governor let's talk about two specific states. how do you deal with that? >> we have a great confidence announced candidates in west virginia and south dakota. has served ads south dakota well, has broad support. there is the potential of others getting in the race. that has not happened i. in my view, as he does his job well in raising the funds, that state will sort itself out. it isless of whether governor rounds or another candidate, it is highly likely the republicans gain a seat and south dakota. shelley mooreia, capital has been a great house

number. she knows her state. she has brought support. she seems to be clearly on her way toward being nominated as the republican candidate in west virginia. it's aighly likely that state that republicans will gain as it switches from rockefeller the democrat to a republican senator. >> 23 days from now voters in massachusetts will head to the poll. we have seen a small investment from the senate committee, i think you sent for staffers up there. note aggressive commitment like there was in -- there has been no aggressive commitment like there was in 2010. can you win this seat? will you? seat is winnable. massachusetts is a difficult state for republicans but we saw do it.d -- scott brown

there is a great difference between the democratic candidate and our candidate, gabriel gomez. he came here with immigrant parents. it took a love for our country and became a navy seal, regulated from the naval academy, and became a successful businessman after and advanced degree at harvard. the difference between these candidates is significant. the polling information we have is just single digit differences, something between three and six point differences. we are not interested in our efforts in massachusetts. if i told you you would tell others or others would hear this. [laughter]

we are not interested in letting the other side know the nature of our involvement in that campaign. that thisly believe is a race the republican can win. >> did you want to follow up? >> no. >> speaking of primaries, there are a few folks already in the senate who could face challenges from within next year. i'm thinking about senator graham from south carolina, senator alexander from tennessee. is this committee prepared to aggressively defend your incumbent both financial and otherwise next year? >> absolutely. it is our primary responsibility. inc., and republican sisters are my constituents. we will do everything we can conceivably do.

i do not mean to make a distinction. both. therefore i think the premise is less efforts then at least the theory was months ago. to not seem to be having challenges in republican primaries. the incumbent republican senators you mention seem to be well on their way to republican nomination and well on their way to reelection in november. senator mcconnell put together a web video that included a reference to armor president richard nixon and compared president obama to richard nixon. did you find that unusual that a republican leader would take aim at a former public and president? lik>> i do not see the video. i'm kind of know what you're

talking about. , whether ithavior is a republican or democratic president, when we see misconduct, when we see potential illegal behavior, we ought to point that out and oppose it. people who commit crimes, people who break the rules or laws or act inappropriately, it ought not be about party politics. wrong is wrong. >> reid wilson. >> let's talk about some of the nrsc have competed against. what can you do to make sure any of the conservative outside groups based here in dc do not meddle in the states that you're trying to avoid. how do you make sure they are not picking candidates who

cannot win? there are restrictions nrsc with outside groups. in the time frame in which we have been able to have those conversations, we have done so. here is the point i would make. it is similar to what i said about our contributors to the senate campaign. those organizations are having their contributors deliver to the same message every day. if you want to check with me to support the cause of a republican senate, unique candidates that can be elected in november. those organizations are having the same experience. i have heard this time and time again. i am not giving any more money to that group until i see the

are going to rally around the cause. they areays, interested in trying to help get candidate that can win. is not just a passive view. there is a real maturing process. think the rallying cry is here. this has cause people who may have a more narrow view of what policy, politics the republicans should be to realize that in that narrow view, if that is all they are willing to support and makes it difficult for there to be a majority of republicans, 51 in the senate, that can help change the direction that the obama administration is taking. usjerry moran is joining from the campus of kansas state

university in manhattan. he is also the chair of the republican senate campaign committee. >> let me shift gears here and ask you about one policy or there may be some common ground. that is immigration reform. senators seem to be interested perhaps already supportive of immigration reform. where are you on the issue? how many states do you think both gop senators support immigration reform bill but fewer house members point it when it goes to the house side. the process we have been through in the senate, particularly as it involves senator rubio has been the opportunity to cause republicans

to pay more attention and be more interested in finding an immigration bill that can be supported. there is high regard for senator rubio. appealing not is only to the american people but to his colleagues. he has a particularly strong voice. that is not necessarily cause the republican senators to say they are voting for a bill that thes the gang of eight has represented. and think the attitude approach is that there may be something here following the amendment process that can be supported broadly by members of the senate including many republicans. it has been more difficult in the house. i think there is a different attitude or approach at the moment. i would guess that the house