bureau of investigation. tariche. is reynaldo journal" is next. the wall street journal is reporting that the federal reserve is unlikely to alter its course when it comes to a bond buying program because of the release of yesterday's job numbers. also, for the first time since 1995, the u.s. military has sent advisers to somalia. good morning. it is january 11, 2014. this is a three-hour program today. we will start with dennis rodman. he has spent a lot of time in the news over his exhibition in north korea. statements that he made about the american missionary being held there.

he even sang happy birthday to the country's leader. he has defenders, including jesse jackson. he says that it encourages diplomatic relations. members of congress say the trip does nothing of the sort. overall, we want to get your reaction. what do you think about his antics and his basketball diplomacy? was to trip a good idea or a bad idea? cannumbers on your screen be used to reach out to us this morning. host: do you think it was a good idea or a bad idea? you can reach out to us on social media as well. we are on facebook and you can always and as e-mails too. the story in the daily news wraps up the concerns around the trip.

he made statements on cnn. he says he is sorry he was drunk. he apologized on thursday for his incoherent, drunken rant that implied that kenneth bae deserve to be held. he says he wants to apologize. seeings one day after happy birthday to his best friend, north korean leader kim jong un. he says he takes full responsibility for his actions and it was a stressful day. his teammates were leaving because of pressure from family and business associates. his dreams of basketball diplomacy were falling apart. by the time the interview happened, he was upset that overwhelmed. it is not an excuse, just the truth. the statements were made in light of a basketball game that was being played -- a diplomacy, exhibition game, in north korea.

getting some reaction as well. jesse jackson weighed in. he made a couple of tweets. he says that, referring to china, think on diplomacy -- ping pong diplomacy works in china. he also says congratulations to dennis rodman on the efforts in north korea. in,ou want to weigh basketball diplomacy, what you may have taken away, here is how you can do that. 202-585-3880. -585-3881.s -- 202 you can also use our facebook page or twitter or send us e-mail.

not only is jesse jackson weighing in, don mccain is criticizing it. in the washington times, on january 8, the headline is that john mccain called him a dangerous idiot. more in the piece says that he has always been a wacko. he and his friends are giving good propaganda for this brutal dictator who had his uncle killed and ex-girlfriend shot. it helps this two bit dictator. that is the statement from senator john mccain. the numbers will stay on the screen. if you want to weigh in, please call us. host: the first call is from

david in arlington, virginia. caller: good morning. i just think that is a horrible thing what he has done. unless this is a secret diplomacy with the u.s. government -- going out there and singing happy birthday to kim jong un, whatever his name that and having a basketball game is wrong and horrible. alwaysthat dennis rodman prides himself on being a bad boy. that guy or whatever. -- bad guy or whatever. i think he has gone over the

limit this time. host: what makes it wrong in your mind? caller: it gives respectability has got to beo the world's worst police state. father sentenced people to death. north korea can have its own napalm. he supports all sorts of terrorists. he keeps a horribly brutal regime. that is lifted right out of "1984." was remarked in 2000. host: that is david from virginia. here is maryland on the republican line. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call.

i think that dennis rodman is really a full. -- fool. it is unfortunate that someone who cannot control his liquor or his words is being put in a position where he is close to such a dictator. i do think that if a medic diplomacy is important. it is just the wrong person. him iny felt bad seeing that interview. i felt that for the gentleman -- his teammates there. they were supporting the efforts. i do not know how they can continue on when they have to be part of it was someone like him. this basketball diplomacy or soft diplomacy, you would think that those things are valuable? caller: i do think that those things are kind of valuable. the previous caller mentioned

the ping pong in china. it opens lines of communication. in our country, we do not always see information that is accurate from the government. i am not saying it is true there. citizens see this gentleman coming in from the united dates. he is being friendly with their leader. that might be a positive thing in some ways. -- dennis rodman is not a representative of the united states in my opinion. host: here is susan from roseville, california. independent line. caller: hi. i just wanted to say that this is -- as the last lady said, mccain said more damaging things than dennis rodman. rodman is rodman.

you have a senator, a u.s. senator saying disparaging things about korea. how damaging was that? host: what do you think about his trip overall? caller: overall, i think that he is a drunk. he went there and i am sure he had good intentions. he cannot hold it together. otherwise, i do not have anything to say about it. saying atter ways in, simple i think he should be prosecuted. if you want to weigh in on twitter or put something on our facebook page, you can do so. give us a call on the phone lines.

here is great from fort washington, maryland. caller: good morning. i think the trip to korea was very positive. it was a small step. it should be emulated by others who are more respected by people in the political and social class. he is a basketball player. he made a courageous effort. host: what do you think are the positive aspects? caller: it put attention on the u.s. or lack of u.s. policy. most people ask what is our foreign policy toward north korea? most americans have no idea. unfortunately, our media has not helped us understand that. the u.s. government is failing. north korea is a small country.

there is no big threat to u.s. interests. they can barely generate electricity. yet, people seem to think that they are a threat. if there was some other serious effort toward diplomacy, it might be surprising how much positive movement could be made. phoenix,yd from arizona. republican line. caller: hi. i am an army veteran. i just cannot believe how naïve some people are. i truly believe that dennis rodman was giving aid and comfort to the enemy. i cannot say it any other way. the war never ended. it was more or less a cease-fire. we still have 38,000 troops protecting south korea. he is a brutal dictator.

host: in your mind, when it comes to your statement about aid and comfort, how so? caller: he is promoting north korea's positive entity. i think that his passport should be remote. wouldn't gocitizen to north korea. it is dangerous. he brutalizes his people. there is starvation there. political prisoners. people just need to wake up and understand what it is all about. the previous caller said these trips bring attention to what is going on. even more so than -- the ability of raising people's interest around the country. caller: i do not believe that. it was all about dennis rodman. we did not learn anything more about north korea. we did not tour the prison camps

or see people starving in the fields. the whole focus is about dennis rodman and his basketball game. it was nothing about north korea. host: glenn in lakeland, florida. democrats line. caller: i watched that cnn interview. he was interviewed with his teammates. i look at iting, from a standpoint that he is not a politician. he is a basketball player. his teammates are basketball players. this is not his first trip to north korea. he has been there three times before. anytime he actually goes to north korea, the media takes attention. the problem here is, after watching the interview, i noticed that the person from cnn was trying to get him to do those things.

person, talk about the in prison. that is not a basketball player's job. they are there to plate basketball. if you want to talk about the person in prison, that is the state department. that is the secretary of state in the white house. it is not their job to do that. he was getting dennis rodman to do those things. on the one hand, you criticize them for going home to north korea. at the same time, you want him to be a diplomat and a politician. that is not what he does. if that needs to be done, then the u.s. government has to take care of that. areh korea and south korea like east and west germany. that is the problem that we have. people in south korea protest all the time because they do not want to elect him. it is not the people. american citizen

currently under arrest in north korea -- part of that interview on cnn. there is a follow-up from the family reaction. mr. rodman reacted angrily to a question about whether he was helping kenneth bae. accusationsd on that he attempted to topple the government. rodman suggested that he had done something wrong. the reaction from the family -- his sister says that the comments were shocking and outrageous. the married father of three suffered serious health problems and has been transferred to a hospital. stories go on to say that rodman did apologize for his statements. he says he was drunk when he made the statements. we're talking about the trip

overall and the diplomatic efforts. is with theritics house foreign affairs committee. he is the ranking member. he talked about the trip and criticized on tuesday. here's what he had to say. [video clip] >> thank you, mr. speaker. dennis rodman of nba fame has announced that he and 10 or so basketball players are going to north korea. he is going to visit his friend, the notorious which are and dictator, kim jong un of north korea. bringing american basketball to north korea, a state with nuclear weapons, which starves its own people and imprisons , bringing american basketball there and sitting down with a dictator like mr. kim would be the equivalent of

taking adolf hitler to lunch. terrible thing. a terrible idea. it makes us gloss over the terrible suffering of the north korean people and just ignore it or it they say we're going to play basketball and make the sky look legitimate. host: again, you heard from mr. engel and we have heard from mr. mccain. the state department weighed in on this. now it is your turn. do you think it is a good idea or a bad idea? the numbers to call our on your screen. host: you can also reach us on twitter and facebook or send us an e-mail.

the bergen county record from new jersey is following up on chris christie. scrambling to keep the lid on is the headline. placeliberations taking among the aids stretch from the weeks before september, and are punctuated with full garrity's aimed at the media attention between new york and new jersey officials. -- story goes on here is stand to talk about dennis rodman. caller: good morning. i'm kind of conflicted on this whole issue. dennis rodman is not a politician. is to bedman, if he taken seriously, he has to act seriously. he goes over there and sets up these meetings. i am all for that. however, you have to know that kim jong un is a brutal

dictator. not only brutal, but somewhat insane. if the reports out of the chinese newspaper on december 24 -- he fed his uncle and three others to start dogs, that is worse than a maniac. to shine any publicity on that idiot is not a good idea. finally, this is my last statement. to, as a country, take north korea seriously. we do not have a whole lot of interest there. they are developing nuclear bombs. that is dangerous. that is my thought. us fromhn is joining decatur, illinois. republican line. caller: good morning. dennis rodman is a single individual. nixon did the same thing by going to china. dennis rodman is going to north

korea to get paid. look into his bank account. i bet he got paid good money. nothing about diplomacy. it is about dennis rodman getting paid. thank you. host: a couple of stories about health care. the washington post is leading off with a contractor for the healthcare.gov website. they have been dropped. the administration has decided to jettison the i.t. contractor, cgi, which is responsible for building the online health insurance marketplace. they are immersed in the work of preparing. there is a story in the internal paper about a house full looking at federal websites. here is the headline. the house will to secure health care websites attracts 67 democrats.

democrats joined to approve a measure that would require notification of a potential breach within two business days. a follow-up to that story in the that says that cms said there had been no successful attack on the website. no person or group has accessed personally identifiable information. the site undergoes testing on an ongoing basis. going to the new york times, a little bit about this week's issues with health insurance. in interviewst with executives, newly insured people have faced challenges of verifying coverage. -- a surge created

backlogs. as a result, many have yet to receive insurance cards, policy numbers or bills. john in georgia. caller: i think dennis rodman is a citizen of the world. he has a right to go anywhere he wants to go. it is nobody's business where he goes. anybodyt a slave or that other people can control and tell him where to go. the news media have no business interviewing him about anything to do with politics. he is there to make money, just like everybody else. he is free to do that. people need to shed up and get a life. host: what about the diplomatic aspect? caller: he is not a diplomat. why do they ask the somatic questions?

ask him about basketball. that is what he does. host: tom in detroit, michigan. caller: give me a few minutes here. the united states of america does business with a communist country. that is china. along with these corporations going over there -- they are abusing their workers over there. they're treating their people worse than north korea. but when dennis rodman goes over there for basketball, it is a bad thing. i think it is a good thing. the president of the united states loves basketball. nixon went over there to china and had those pandas. that broke the ice. rodman going over there and playing basketball could break the ice. in the news media, they are following him. why are they following him? leave him alone and let him do his thing.

they have giant corporations in china that are taking all of our good jobs. they're sending our jobs all over the country. we should be focusing on those giant corporations. instead of focusing on dennis rodman. bring the jobs back to america. that is what the news media should be focusing on. host: the justice department announced that those 1300 marriages conducted in utah before i hold was put on the process will be recognized by the united dates. that was written about this morning. it is a new twist in a fight for individual equality, against states defining marriages. it has added to the legal confusion about companies married and a brief window after a federal district court judge

struck down utah's ban on same-sex marriages. nuptials down further for the duration of litigation. in pennsylvania, republican line. this is jay. caller: this is really hilarious that we are even talking about this. i remember saying something in the paper about the time that he left. uncleng un had his executed, i believe, maybe you can verify for the audience, pedro -- host: somebody else made note of this morning. caller: i was probably getting a cup of coffee. they actually cannibalized him. that is part of their country. -- culture. is, what i dog

not like is that this team looks like they are all black grid a do not represent me. i thought they were supposed to look like america? host: massachusetts, independent line. here is right. caller: i think he is an idiot. you do not see jordan over there. you do not see the wall or anybody else. -- bill walt or anybody else. let him stay there. host: tell us why you think the trip -- caller: he is there to make money and get drunk. how he hasout nothing to do with the people. he is not there for politics. over here, he talks about politics. he sticks his nose over here. over there, he does not want to do anything. he wants to get money. let him stay there. do not come back. we do not need him. host: the facebook page that we talked about this morning -- if you want to make comments, there

is also a poll. you can tweet us or e-mail us. you can also make your thoughts known on a poll. do you think the trip was a good idea or a bad idea? 11 people weighed in this morning. seven set a bad idea. another person says that he has done as much as anyone. the same thing should be done in cuba. --er from illinois democratic line. caller: hello. host: you are on. thinking i dojust not have a problem with dennis rodman going over to see the guy. he is no different from the founding fathers of this country. i do not see any problems with them. i see statues of those guys, for

example. their pictures are on currency. they owned slaves. we have the nerve to put that like we doer there in other countries. problem withe a darker skinned people all over the world. whether it is vietnam, iran, syria -- everyone all over the world. that is my opinion. host: we are talking about dennis rodman's basketball trip to north korea. you're seeing a little bit there. talking about diplomatic efforts and the results of statements made. we are catching it in the terms of whether this was a good idea or a bad idea? you can talk about the trip itself or the idea of the diplomacy behind it. the phone numbers will be on the screen throughout the morning.

if you are familiar with the book or movie "black hawk down," you probably will be familiar with the story follow-up. for the first time, the military has established a coordinating cell in somalia to advise the government and forces fighting there. involves only a small number of military personnel. it is the first time in nearly two decades. 1994 -- joint forces in with true forces in 1994. the last personnel left in 1995. new jersey is on the republican line. caller: good morning. actually, i have been following dennis rodman. i think he is making a complete fool out of himself. when you see what he is doing --

i saw thes there, interview that he did on cnn. he was pretty angry. he also said he had a couple of drinks. that is pure embarrassment for this country. he -- i do not know what he is accomplishing. he is not doing anything for us. host: tell me about what drives your interest in following the story. --ler: i know that the media i do not see why they are following him. i do not get it. anything oring giving back anything positive. i do not see why the media is interested. i do not see anything positive that he is doing. of soft far as the idea

diplomacy, what you think of that idea? caller: i do not think the basketball diplomacy is offensive. if you look at the interview he did, if you look carefully and saw the guys in the back behind him. they all look like a deer in headlights. what is going on here? they were all clueless as to what dennis rodman was trying to accomplish. host: that is debbie from new jersey. if you follow politics, you probably know the name terry mcauliffe. he is the governor of virginia, being sworn in at noon. you can watch that here on c-span. talking about the weather conditions involved, rain or shine. more our website for information about that swearing in ceremony that will take place 100 miles south of here in richmond, virginia.

there is the u.s. capitol. we're talking about dennis rodman this morning and his trip to north korea. do you think it was a good idea or a bad idea? minnesota on the independent line. caller: good morning. andve been listening watching the polls. dennis rodman is his own guy. nobody says anything about politicians going over there. what they want by how they vote. there ase going over an american citizen, trying to get diplomacy, we have world olympics with north koreans evolved. why can't we have more people get involved instead of sitting back and watching the world go to hatred? host: are there larger messages about the united states? caller: other than the fact that

dennis rodman had a few drinks, i think that as far as the trip itself, there were good points behind it. -- he could have chosen anywhere. why did he choose north korea? we probably do not know at this point. i think it is a good idea. it is what he believes in. we are all trying to be friendly here. america just needs to see that. host: a new unemployment rate of 6.7% was released yesterday. according to the wall street journal, that will not change the idea that the federal reserve will do a bond buying program. the december employment numbers changed any notion that the fed might reduce any bond buying program.

is falling rate because people are leaving the labor force. that reduces the number of people counted as unemployed. the jobless rate is a perplexing indicator of the job market slack and vigor. radcliff, kentucky on the democrat line. caller: hello? of -- calling about dennis rodman. he did a good job. he is there to make money. this --t any worse than then what is going on here. cutting benefits and stuff. he is trying to make money. host: you said he is doing a good job. is it diplomacy or because of making money? caller: it is for the best for

the basketball team. they get to know each other. keith in metairie, louisiana. caller: hi. in miami, she is a waitressed on dennis- i am not sure if rodman is down there all year long. he spends most of his time and sell florida. he frequents the restaurant. several times a week. he is usually there after the bars closed. they cannot serve alcohol until 8:00 in the morning. it is a 24-hour diner. he is in there at 6:00 in the morning. he will make a big stink with a couple of his friends and tell them i am dennis rodman, i want a pitcher of beer. you have to serve it to me because of who i am.

i can do is i want. he was good as a basket while there. as a human being, he has a drinking problem. he is the last person that the united states needs going to any country on our behalf. you have a hard time taking care of himself. he goes there because he needs money. host: american hero also says that north koreans relate to rodman. meek it is this -- his intellect. at least he is trying. democratic line, hello. caller: i think we should report that he has left the country. just let him be. we have enough problems here.

we're taking food stamps away from kids. we have our little kim jong un here. host: you say this is not a new story? caller: it is not. host: why? caller: just let him go to play bass guitar. you have enough basketball games going on here. let him go over there anywhere he wants to go. just forget about dennis rodman. host: the american missionary that we spoke about earlier -- there was a political cartoon that appeared in the pages -- it appeared earlier this week and also in the washington post. this is in the sacramento bee. it shows dennis rodman and a basketball pose. he is holding in annville -- anvil, and anchor that is attached to the missionary being held there. he apologized for his statements. that is a political cartoon from the sacramento bee. this is rate in, florida.

republican mine. caller: good morning. how are you? host: fine thank you. go ahead. caller: i wonder why dennis rodman it's not in harlem or detroit. there are less privileged children there that really could use a man to show them how to live, what to do. who to be. i think that nothing -- dennis rodman is great, what is the word? it will be good stuff for saturday night live. i cannot wait to watch saturday night live and with a are going to show me. let's talk about the marijuana laws instead of people that go to other countries and help other people. let's go talk about ourselves.

host: that is betsy. marijuana will be the topic in a couple of minutes. mary and alabama, independent mind. caller: hello. i do not know if i am more upset dman and the ron surrounding -- surrendering to a grotesque person like the north koreans, whatever his name is. how he mistreats his people. we have celebrities going across the world, from rihanna, to be on say, to usher -- who have entertained khadafi's sons. they take money from these tyrants and they glamorize them. it is beyond my mind.

to know that people can go to these people and glamorize them, when they are butchers. people defend them for that? ,hen they condemn our country like one call came in? what he called our founding fathers? do they not know what this country is? they would not be able to cull through on a phone in north korea. they would not have a phone to call out this morning. i am really more upset at the callers than i am a dennis rodman. we have some very dumb callers. they need to sit down and read some history. start to understand who says what and when. todaye people still alive that gave so much. we do not even honor them. host: that is mary from alabama.

here is reid, rockville, maryland. caller: it upsets me that dennis rodman, a man, who like me, is my age and from the south, cannot see that the north korean leadership sees this as entertainment. shelbyville, from indiana. independent line. caller: yes, sir. good morning. i would just like to make a comment. i think it is a terrible idea for dennis rodman. he goes over to the united states and put his stamp of approval over a dictator who murdered his own uncle. he put him in a cage should be torn apart by dogs. that is not a stable mind. i believe that that man would push the nuclear button.

he is not a stable mind. people are calling in and saying there's nothing wrong with him. if the question was reversed and it was their family, their family who got murdered by a dictator, would they still support them? host: here is an e-mail. you can participate by e-mail this morning. it says that, this is ryan, from roanoke, virginia. he says dennis rodman has done much more than any diplomat has done. we are not dealing with an old man anymore. this kid his age -- a gen x'er who obviously responds more to rodman than the state department. open, thisation is might be an inspiration to action. marion is our last call from could serve -- pittsburgh, pennsylvania.

caller: hi. i think that dennis rodman is a disgrace representing the united states of america. i think that john kerry should be the one trying to help him get kenneth bae out of north korea. i want to know what the state department is doing to get the rest of our prisoners out of these foreign countries that are dictators. host: what do you think that the media has spent a lot of attention? caller: it is a waste of time. there are stories that are way better than the story. host: by the way, the state department -- we heard legislators weigh in. they got some attention in washington. i know that a lot of people are wondering about the media attention. rodman was a good basketball player. that is about it.

--before we go, abc news and cnn are reporting that ariel sharon, the mastermind ,ehind the invasion of lebanon has died after suffering a massive stroke that left him comatose for the rest of his life. he was 85. he was running for reelection when he suffered the stroke in 2006. it caused significant brain damage and left him in a vegetative state. he lived the rest of his life under long-term care. that is abc news reporting on this morning. the death of ariel sharon. jared in ohio, independent line. caller: i'm calling about dennis rodman. he is an entertainer.

we saw him when he played basketball. we know who he was. --is not we know him for who he is. michael jordan, larry bird. we know him for who he is. expecting dennis rodman to be a diplomat of the united states? why? why is the camera on dennis rodman? for the camera. the camera went to dennis rodman. ashley. houston, texas, democrat line.

wow, dennis rodman is not a diplomat. he is an athlete. he is a basketball player. he is doing what he does. representing the united states, he is not representing the united states. he is playing basketball. the congressman went on the floor and compared kim jong-un to hitler. i mean, this is nonsense. nobody gave him the right to go there. he went there because he is an entertainer. it is like the other people that have gone to foreign countries to entertain. the problem is that they are all black. that is the real problem. host: the next segment will look at marijuana laws in the united

states, especially with colorado of allowing the sale of recreational marijuana. he will discuss that and other and kevinh dan riffle sabet. later in the program, "foreign policy exiting," -- magazine "report of the primary function of the fbi has changed. renaldo he joins us -- reynaldo tariche joins us. " continues journal after this. ♪ >> i think there is a way in which we have set up this, sort of, impossible series of

expectations, especially for presidents, but elected officials as a whole, that they will come in and save the day and when it does not happen, we give congress a 9% approval rating. the expectations have to be lowered. that is what is amazing about the american founding. it is not the founder said do not expect much from government. it is that government is not going to be the main driver of our liberty. civill be several -- society. the federal government exists to do certain things and if it does not do them well, other things will not be well situated. in the election of local officers and the carrying out of duties at the local and state level -- even in that there is a measure of modesty, recognizing that it is not possible for

people from washington, d.c., to run a nation of 310 million people. on "humility," sunday night at 8:00 p.m. on "q&a." >> it is discouraging for us to see the deterioration in iraq. i spent a lot of my life over there. 2 2010 ase for 2006 we continue to reduce violence. we left it in a place where it was capable of moving forward. we have not seen -- now seen the security situation devolve into something that is in my mind concerning. this is not just iraq. we have to be on the of what is

going on in syria, lebanon -- cognizant of what is going on in syria, lebanon, the building of conflict between sunni and shia, and the exploitation of nonstate actors like al qaeda will try to take advantage. staff generalof ray or deanna looks at the security in the middle east. span2, political lin andists mary mata james carville. tv"american history prohibition and the rise of the gangster. "> "washington journal continues. host: for the next level we will talk about marijuana laws in the united states, especially

because of changes that occurred on january 1 allowing the recreational use of marijuana. we will be joined by "the denver " allison sherry. since january 1, can you give viewers a broad sense of what has been happening on the ground in denver or colorado overall? guest: i have not been to denver since the law has taken effect, but one my colleagues and i have shopsot s since have opened, it has gone smoothly. there have been some arrests and little things, but it has gone smoothly. i think colorado has gotten

national kudos for pulling this off in the least disruptive way possible. host: for those they're taking a long-term approach to see orther there are results unintended consequences. guest: there might be unintended consequences, and there are laws in place for driving with g hg levels in your blood, laws for not having pot on national parks, monuments, and there are rules still being worked out, and there may be unintended consequences, but it has only been 11 days. a couple of spinoff stories stemming from the decision, looking at this one, from colorado legislators look at the financial background.

can you tell us what is going on? problems withthe colorado and other places that have medical marijuana dispensaries is the dispensaries cannot open commercial bank accounts because it is under the controlled substances act, and under federal law still illegal. it used to be there were a lot of local banks, but now they are federal banks. chase like wells fargo or will not allow a marijuana retail shop to open a commercial bank account. that means most of the shops in colorado and i am assuming elsewhere, although i have not done the reporting on that, are operating on cash only, which is dangerous for the employees and stores themselves as targets for burglary. legislators are

working on trying to get that fixed. there is a long ending in the house of the -- pending in the house of representatives that is not gone anywhere. yesterday, a number of them send a letter to the department of treasury and the department of justice seeking guidance on how banks could help these businesses. i think the banks would be fine, but they do not want to face federal prosecution. host: allison sherry, one of the stories you wrote on this topic recently looks at the other states that might be considering changes because of what is going on in colorado. could you give us a snapshot of what you found out? guest: colorado and washington were first. washington is not implemented their laws quite yet. you will hear later from someone from seattle. there are other states pushing

for it. 20 states and the district of columbia have medical marijuana pushes tothere are alaska,n the ballot in which might be the next day to have recreational marijuana. -- state to have recreational marijuana. host: allison sherry, correspondent with "the denver post," giving us an update on what is going on. the wife. guest: t -- thank you. guest: thank you. host: we are joined by dan riffle with the marijuana policy project. quickly, what is your organization, and the approach you take when it comes to marijuana laws in states?

guest: regulated somewhat like alcohol. our view is the prohibition of marijuana has enriched mexican drug cartels, drug dealers and other criminals, and the smarter move would be to put marijuana in the hands of licensed taxpayers. us.: kevin sabet joins he is the cofounder of smart approaches to marijuana. tell us about your group and the approaches you take. guest: thank you. smart approaches to marijuana was cofounded by myself and former congressman patrick kennedy, because we believe though people should not be criminalized for low-level marijuana use, at the same time we thing going for a policy of legalization is more than just a bridge too far. essentially, we are worried about creating a business like

the tobacco industry, advertising and promoting marijuana at a time when we know about the harm to the adolescent brain. we have been joined by concerned physician groups that really do not want to see this spread because we are worried about the effect on society, young people. host: what you base those worries on as far as it becoming a bigger industry? guest: well, the worries are it is already grown exponentially with medical marijuana being moved to de facto legalization. there are multimillion dollar private holding groups. investors from wall street investing millions of dollars in a future marijuana industry. a former microsoft executive from right around here in seattle is teaming up with

former mexican president vincent fox and they are forming with it themselves call big marijuana. there are those that say they want to be the marlboro cigarette of marijuana, or the anheuser-busch. this is not just about the right to smoke a small amount in the privacy of your home, but it is about a lot of people making a lot of money, and the problem is just like we have had the tobacco industry and other addictive industries, they do not make money off of casual users. the alcohol industry, the gambling industry, they do not make money off of people that once a yearvegas for his birthday. the casino industry makes the vast majority of profit from heavy gamblers that basically destroy their lives, often times. the same thing is for any

addictive industry, and it will be for marijuana. you have to increase profit, and you have to start young. it is why we had joe camel for so long, these industries targeting young people. it is the only way to make money. it is the same thing with marijuana. i do not mean we need to imprison people. i get that. let's work on something that is more than middle ground, not overburdened law-enforcement, but there is no reason to legalize marijuana and open the door to big tobacco, which is what we would do. your if you want to give thoughts on what is happening in colorado or other states, or concerns you might express, here is how you can do so. we have divided the lines differently.

you can also send tweets and e- mails expressing those concerns. riffle, your response to what kevin said that said. thet: kevin mentioned possibility of a lot of people making a lot of money. there are a lot of people making a lot of money, but under prohibition, those people aren't met -- are mexican drug dealers and cartels and street terminals. we think the smart approach is to put the industry in the hand of taxpaying, licensed, regulated business. prohibition is enacted under the controlled substances act, and the irony is it prevents us from doing just that, controlling substances. withyou regulate

whom iting bans, about can be sold to, and a classic example is drug dealers do not check id. the regulation control, who makes the money, when they make the money, and acting smart rules about where marijuana is sold. sabet?evin thet: if we think underground market is going to disappear because the legalize marijuana, we have another thing coming. these are criminal organizations making money from things like human trafficking, cocaine, methamphetamine, kidnapping, extortion. they will change their tactics. undercut the legal price. tax it, says we will and that means we will have an

underground market that will exclusively target young people because under the laws young people still cannot buy marijuana, and by the way, it is the same for alcohol, and i think we can all say people under 21 can easily get alcohol. the other thing that has been said is that this will help with budgets, and i am sure there are some that think in good faith that we could help our ailing public education system or health system. what we should know from alcohol and tobacco is that for every dollar that we gain in alcohol us $10acco tax, it costs in social costs. the idea that we will pay things -- four things because we are taxing citizens, i think it is a pipe dream. host: your response, before we go to calls. mentioned a kevin call.

one alcohol prohibition was repealed, we put away people bootleggers.e and we do not see people growing hops and barley in national marijuanaway we see being grown. people do not hang out on street corners selling sixpacks to kids. the other thing kevin mentioned, to $10 ratio, i think it is apples and oranges to compare marijuana to alcohol because alcohol is associated with about eight times more per user in health-care care costs, where's marijuana is not associated with violence or reckless behavior. you cannot overdose and die from consuming marijuana. you can't overdose and die from using -- you can overdose and die using alcohol.

there are one is a safer substance. to say will have the same social costs is a false comparison. host: we will get your thoughts in a second. i want to get to a caller. zach is up first. springfield, is very. -- springfield, missouri. zach, tell us where you stand as far as legalization concerned -- is concerned. caller: i think it is something that is going to happen, but not with the federal agencies we have to contend with when you look at the fbi, these are large entities not concerned with what the laws are and they will do what they want to do this on what their agendas are. so, whether or not it actually becomes a federally legalize substance, i do not think that will happen for probably another 30 years because of those however,s,

legalization, why will we take the moral high ground now on marijuana when we watch people die and we allow legalization of alcohol?ke cigarettes, water here.dy rifle, we will start with you -- mr. dan riffle, will start with you. guest: there has been a cultural shift. alaska and oregon will have issues on their ballot. nobody expects this change overnight. this is the first jurisdiction in the world to regulate marijuana. it will take time. as these laws change and congress changes, we see more members in favor of regulated markets and the good that can do. as funding priorities shift and

other attitudes change, we will see that change. sabet, the call about that we still have organizations like the dea involved. have: the federal agencies not been concerned with low- level use for a long time. if we look at statistics, we are looking at drug trafficking, but we should not undermine the costs low-level arrests could have. that is why we should reform the system. mentioned asings it is true, wes, have a multimillion dollar marijuana lobby that gives a lot money, and they have an industry association on k street and they will be powerful. this is exactly the corporate, special interest scenario we

should avoid, not add another special interest that will say things in contradiction with the science. the american medical association , the american society of addiction medicine, their point of view from the science says it is true that we should not talk about reefer madness, or if you use marijuana today, you will use heroine tomorrow. it is not extreme things, but evidence show that one in six 16-year-olds who try marijuana addicted, it doubles your risk of a car crash, contributes to millions of dollars of health care costs in problems, ag reduction in iq, and one of the heardsting things we have

and you are probably aware of this, our people on the left like tina brown who say we will not be able to compete with countries if we are stoned out with reductions in iq and health problems. i think we need to press pause the four we go on this freight train and think that -- before we go on this freight train and think about the country we want to have, and are we willing to live with another disaster like alcohol and tobacco. i see those as an example of what we do not want to do, we do not want to create this industry, many more users. the member, there are many more users of legal drugs like alcohol and tobacco than marijuana. 50% of americans drink, 27% smoke cigarettes, and 8% use marijuana. why would we want to bring that 8% up question mark -- up?

memphis,e is john, tennessee. good morning. caller: yes, i think marijuana should be legal. we have fought everywhere we can on poverty, drugs, and we have lost them. as the speaker said, all we have done is an rich mexican cartels. andve worked with a few, either you are a member of a cartel or you work in a restaurant. i smoked marijuana for 30 years. we should fight the war on crack, cocaine. these drugs are bad. alcohol and tobacco are the worst drugs ever. gambling is the worst form of addiction. it is the only form of addiction that can ruin your life in one hand. what about the point about

why focus on marijuana and not things like crack and cocaine? guest: we definitely should focus on that. federal resources, when you look at enforcement, dan and i would agree, they are focused on things like cocaine and heroine. the prescription drug abuse epidemic is another class of kwazulu legal drugs that was pushed by an industry, the pharmaceutical industry. i do not know why we want to create another industry. as far as bringing up other drugs, and this is not the case dan'san organization -- organization, but the big money , theyrom george soros have focused on legalizing all drugs. they said the endgame is not marijuana. they move on to recreational,

then harder drugs like cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. that is a real problem when you are enriching special interest groups. dan, i again, i know that is not where you are on this, but a lot of the money that has been funneled to pass these initiatives are tied to folks i want to see all drugs legalized. host: mr. dan riffle? guest: i want to correct something mr. kevin sabet said. withyear, 30,000 arrests , notor simple use trafficking or growing marijuana. heroin,s is on crack or when about half of drug sentences are for marijuana crimes, not harder drugs. there were more arrests for marijuana crimes that all

violent crimes combined. that is not where our focus is. we have predominant focus on marijuana. prosecutornd is as a , and when you look at clearance rates for rape, assault, burglary, arson, robbery, other violent crimes with real threats and victims, the clearance rate are below 50%. i think there are better things for law enforcement officers to do. behink the focus should protecting us from violent criminals, and not arresting people for using something that is objectively less harmful than alcohol. host: mr. kevin sabet? guest: i agree with you on a lot of those things. we need health interventions. need them.do not it depends on the level of their use. you and i would agree that we should think about our resources for arrest, but you are basing

those numbers on arrests, when it is imprisonment, jail, and other things that cost a lot more money than the arrest, and when you say half of the arrests are for marijuana, and that is because 95% of illicit drug activity is marijuana. it is very small, the number of people using heroin, cocaine, etc.. percentages, the numbers for trafficking, people in prison, not arrest, and i would agree with you on the imprisonment,ut we're talking about other drugs. the issue of criminal gangs, we know it is around 20% or less of revenues to mexican criminal organizations come from marijuana. it is not the vast majority. -- it is a significant percentage.

i happen to believe we still have an underground market in colorado and we will have one when it is further legal. to the point before from the reporter that this has gone ok, and people have been waiting in line and they have been no incidents, only a few arrest. tell that to the parents of the two-year-old girl who ingested a pot cookie because these are that are marketed to kids, frankly look attractive to kids, they are ingesting them, and a couple dozen went to the er because these two-year old brains are ingesting hc. these are the type of things we will see more and more as companies produce products targeted to kids. i would say let's not repeat the disaster of the tobacco industry, and let's not have to wait 100 years to make this accountable.

guest: some of the statistics speak to the disaster of prohibition. kevin says 95% of the non- illicit activity is marijuana, and that basically says anyone who wants to use marijuana can. the first place you would look is in a high school. of high school seniors say marijuana is easy to obtain, pretty much the same as it is for alcohol or tobacco. prohibition has failed to keep marijuana out of our kids hands. we should regulate marijuana. again, if they're regularly, they check id. drug dealers do not. host: we will get your response. george, brooklyn, new york, republican line. you are opposed to legalization. caller: good morning. i want to share a brief

experience. i used to have a stepbrother, a young kid, who was so smart, so terrific, and he started experimenting with marijuana. throughout the years, his intelligence was completely wiped away. that is the way he is. recently, in our neighborhood, we had four kids, two of them were experimenting with marijuana, and the other two did not. the two that were using got in the drug culture and their memory was beginning to erode, and they could not keep up and keep advancing in education. if somebody could look into long-term use of marijuana and what it is doing to the kids -- to boil itu had down, george, why are you opposed to legalization?

does somethingt -- to our future, the kids, robbing them of intelligence and creativity. dan riffle, why don't you start with that. this caller started with the idea of gateway drugs, and kevin is a smart guy and knows marijuana is not a gateway drug. there is nothing about the physiological properties of marijuana that causes people to go on to use other drugs. what a lot of researchers suggest is that marijuana prohibition is what makes marijuana a gateway drug. when you go to colorado to buy marijuana, you go into a regulated store that sells marijuana and nothing else. when you buy alcohol, you go to

a convenience store that sells alcohol and potato chips. buy marijuana, you buy it from drug dealers who have an inventory or access to methamphetamine, heroin, crack or other drugs and a motivation to sell you to other drugs and that is how marijuana cancer as --reat gash -- can serve as can serve as a gateway. host: mr. kevin sabet? the market is nonviolent, and dan is right, the vast majority of users are not going to heroin and cocaine, but the vast majority of heroin and cocaine users started with marijuana. we know there is an association with a mechanism that researchers are looking for. when people go to a marijuana store, there are other things

like cookies, snacks and soda marketed to kids. concern strikes the organizationsical agree on keeping marijuana illegal, and to focus on a book health intervention because we have research on long-term issues with iq. study,y the most robust i would say, ever done in the field of drug abuse in the last 15 or 20 years, has been a study of people born in the fourth- zealand, andin new people following them their whole lives, and they started when they were born, asking them all sorts of questions and checking in on them every five years. ,he last time they check in they found that the heavy, persistent marijuana users that started and used a couple of times a week, by the time they

were 38 they had an average eight-point reduction in iq, and that is enough to take you to in the globalrd economic scale, the difference between a job or a degree. with hisge was saying, experience of kids in the neighborhood, his brother, other people, it is true for some people. we all know people that have smoked marijuana that had not destroyed their lives. it is not one extreme or another, but the point is it increases your chances. when we are trying to increase public education, worker productivity, our economy, living a healthy lifestyle, why would you want to expose people to that risk, and there is a risk, even if it does not happen to everyone. host: you just heard from kevin of smart approaches to marijuana. he is the cofounder. he had several positions at the office of drug control policy.

he is also the author of the book on the subject. also joining us, dan riffle, andjuana policy project, you heard about mr. dan riffle's previous career in law. both of them are joining us to talk about issues regarding marijuana laws in the united states. if you want to weigh in, especially on what happened in therado and after that, numbers are on your screen divided differently here is somebody that is in favor. net. -- nick, glendale, arizona. caller: good morning. i figured it was time you had an expert. mr. kevin sabet, i have a question, you say you do research. have you ever smoked marijuana?

guest: i have not, but i think that is any relevant question. caller: excuse me. give me an opportunity to talk. i have limited time, you do not. here's the thing. when you talk about research -- i have been smoking marijuana. the first joined i smoked was with my scoutmaster when i was 11-year-old. i am a 50-year-old man. research is what i did, not what you do. i have been smoking for 35 years, and i spoke almost every single day of my life. i have five children, by the way. one just graduated summa cum laude from arizona state. guest: congratulations. caller: none of my children have smoked in marijuana, -- smoked marijuana, but i said when you

are 18, you come to me. i am not a hypocrite. i think it is a worthwhile drug, but having said that, it is illegal. there are people out there like kevin said that, who get paid by god knows who -- i would be aged to know who funds you. guest: i would be happy to tell you. caller: i am from the age when we had reefer madness. let me tell you something, sir. the reason marijuana is illegal, and all anybody has to do is do research. it has been racist. it is about hemp products that outlast other products like petroleum. host: we will leave it there. esther kevin said that, if you -- mr. kevinrt said that, if you wanted to -- sabet, if you wanted to start.

guest: i do not think anyone would say that a cocaine researcher needs to do that, or a suicide researcher has to do that. this is a polarized discussion. i think we need to turn down the temperature that is why it is nice to talk to dan and you, pedro, at 5:00 in the morning and not get all worked up. i do not deny that the origination of some drug laws came from places we should be shameful about, and frankly, i doubt the previous talk. thealler talking about minorities in his area that were either working in a restaurant -- inking in a restaurant a cartel, i found that racist. toicies are contributing

racism in terms of disproportionate arrest for minorities, lost job opportunities, or if you are arrested for any drug, you are denied a job, even if you're off of that drug. those are shameful. we need to repeal those, reform those and the kent police practices. i do not think anyone -- and look at the lease practices. i do not think anyone can say we are proud of the system. those are serious issues, but at the same time, i think it is that someone who has not tried that cannot talk about it. guest: i want to talk about the distortion rates of arrest. a study was released called marijuana in black and white, and what they found is that even though blacks and whites use marijuana at the same rate, blacks are three-2-8 times more

likely to be arrested. here, in d.c., we have the second worst disparity in the country. you can add that to the very long list of reasons need to stop arresting and prosecuting people from -- for using a substance just as harmful as alcohol -- less harmful than alcohol. host: let me get to a call. heater is not sure. he is on the independent line -- peter is not sure. he is on the independent line. caller: my question has to do with advertising. when alcohol became legalized, corporations were allowed to advertise. likewise with cigarettes. now, both of them have been in a restrictive form of advertising. mr. dan riffle, do you favor

that marijuana should be legalized throughout the united and be advertised? host: jodi on twitter talks about the same things -- advertisements like the beer commercial, i can see them now, sitting on a cloud, watching a rainbow. guest: if you hear the caller or kevin, you would say that people see commercials for virginia slims while they sit down to watch cartoons. i have nothing tobacco commercials in my entire life. there are reasons to think we can enact sensible restrictions. to further develop the comparison with tobacco. kevin talks about the disaster with our experience with tobacco and big tobacco, and he does a good job of comparing marijuana

to tobacco of the 1970s, but not tobacco today. we have a good approach today. we have reduced tobacco use among adults and teenagers. teenage cigarette use has never been lower than it is today, and we have not had to arrest 750,000 people every year to achieve that success. there is no reason to believe we cannot take those same lessons and apply them to marijuana. host: even though i know it is different, you see the commercials for the water vapor cigarette, and some people question the glamorization. an example oflso harm reduction. kevin talked about the damage to the lungs, and a study was published that said light to moderate use does not cause harm to the lungs, and we could actually reduce some of that harm.

guest: my inbox from groupon, the biggest ad, and did not mention marijuana, but that is what it was for, taking in these waxy contents. they are extremely dangerous. it blew up the foundation of the building in seattle. we are seeing that today's marijuana, let's be clear, is orremely different than dan my parents smoked in the 1960's or 70. we are talking about an average thc of smoked marijuana. there is a big difference. in terms of what the caller talked about with advertising, we are seeing that now. i wish everyone would have the, frankly, the sensei wish peoplee sense of dan and others who say

they want to restrict. it emerged where people are saying with reckless abandon they will use their rights under the first amendment, which the supreme court has argued commercial speech is free speech, they will use that right as far as they can to promote this. the only reason we restricted tobacco is after 100 years of misery. we cut a deal with the tobacco companies putting them out of business or they had to curb their advertising practices. certainly, they chose the latter. other addictive industries continue to advertise. the reason why our cigarette use teens is notng because it is illegal. the reason why levels are so low is we have a whole societal effort, a stigma, against smoking cigarettes. guest: you can have that with

marijuana without arresting people. guest: organizations like yours and others are saying it is safe. it is what the tobacco industry said for 50 years about questioning the science. you have the ama on one side and your organization on the other. guest: let me say categorically marijuana is harmful. no one is saying marijuana is harmless. our mission is to reduce the harm with the fact that prohibition is the greatest harm. the harm that can be done by using marijuana pales in comparison to the harm that can be done by being arrested for marijuana. host: let him finish. guest: kevin mentioned emergency room admissions and the fact that people are using concentrated forms of marijuana and have been admitted to emergency rooms. the sponsor of our medical route one a physician. he agrees with me that marijuana

is dramatically less harmful than alcohol. he knows that from his experience as an emergency room physician. he routinely sees people admitted for alcohol. in his career, yet seen two people admitted for marijuana. he said in both cases, e said to sit in the corner for 20 minutes and you will be fine. it is a fact that marijuana is less harmful than alcohol. why we would arrest people for marijuana and drive people to drink does not make any sense to me. guest: the studies about marijuana as he said to chew does not hold among arrestees and heavy users -- the studies about marijuana as a substitute does not hold among arrestees and heavy users. want is more harmful than the other so we want you to use a instead of b. that is like saying we want you to get breast cancer instead of

cervical cancer if there is a choice. there does not need to be a choice. alcohol contributes to violence in a bigger way than marijuana, but marijuana in many ways contributes to things like reduction in iq and motivation and lung issues in a way that alcohol does not. bear different drugs. --they are different drugs. deterred.should be we do not want to encourage one substance over another. they are both harmful. guest: i agree they are both harmful. we see discouragement of both. right now, we are discouraging use of marijuana by arresting 3/4 oh million people.

you talked about the lessons we learned from tobacco and the public health success story. let's apply those same lessons to marijuana. host: we have a caller from north carolina who is opposed. go-ahead. another nail just in the coffin of the united states and the world. you know, it is a drug. you get out on the highway smoking it. is pretty simple to me. .t is just another drug that is the comment i would like to make. host: why are you opposed to it? caller: if it isn't illegal drug, it don't make no difference. you talk about alcohol. what happened to it over the years? so, you know, you get arrested for it.

it is still an illegal drug. you cannot get arrested because it is a legal drug? that is a joke. guest: he makes a great point. host: let's give mr. riffle first. any response? guest: like the caller said, it is a harmful drug. kevin said we should discourage consumption because it is harmful. eating cheeseburgers is harmful but we do not arrest and prosecute people for that. we do not arrest and prosecute people for being obese. there are smarter ways to enact public policy measures to encourage drug use or healthy behavior. guest: i agree there are smarter ways. let's reduce the arrest rate. let's look at this more from a public health point of view. we do not need to go to legalization where we will have this industry that will put it in people's faces and does

target kids. the caller's last point was very nuanced about, are we really going to reduce the number of arrests even if we legalize something? what is the number one jug police work with in terms of their time and the number of arrests a year? it is alcohol. 2.7 million arrests, not for violence related to alcohol. i am talking about regulatory laws like public consumption, selling to minors, driving while intoxicated. it is double all illegal drugs and three times marijuana. the reason is you have more users and more laws to break because they're all these regulations being created to reduce the harm as much as we can. alcohol drives more people to the criminal justice system than marijuana.

want to reduce arrests and criminal justice involvement, there are smarter and better ways than following a model like alcohol. it has been a public health disaster and been the cause of three times as many arrests than marijuana today. host: what is the best model? guest: the best model focuses on prevention, early intervention, treatment and finds when necessary. keep it illegal. arechoices in drug policy bad. there are no perfect choices. drug policy is obligated. there are trade-offs and consequences depending on which trade-off you're happy to live with. division is not perfect -- prohibition is not perfect. we want to reduce those harms as much. when you balance it at the end of the day, i am in alignment

with the house minority whip that came out against with theion yesterday ama saying at the end of the day, it is better to keep it underground and have another tobacco and alcohol, which is the inevitable result. the idea we will control this in a safeway, that is what voters were promised in colorado. in denver, they are throwing the rules out the window. you can have a store within 1000 feet of schools. you can smoke in public when it affects other people. there have been reports of secondhand exposure to marijuana. the promises it would be regulated and controlled get thrown to the side when the industry and lobby which stands to make a lot of money gets their own rules in, which is essentially no rules. rather than have that scenario, let's fix current policy. hoyerhe mentions steny

going on the floor of the house with his concerns. we have a bit of that speech. let's listen and get your response. [video clip] >> a long time ago, there was a mayor of baltimore who had been a state prosecutor and suggested the legalization of marijuana. my initial reaction was a positive one. as i talk to people who deal with drug abuse issues and rehabilitation issues, i became convinced marijuana was a threshold drug and would lead to the use of harder, very harmful drugs, so i am not a proponent of legalization of marijuana. host: apologies. "newsmakers"our program. guest: he called it a gateway drug. we have had that discussion already. agree it is not

a gateway drug. them prohibition that puts in the hands of drug dealers is what makes it a gateway. you have to obtain it from a drug dealer who has access to other drugs. host: the next caller is from colorado. joe, good morning. caller: i want to get in the conversation because i think we are overlooking the issue of thective personalities, stress of being in the ghetto. there are a lot of things going on in our country. marijuana in colorado is getting so much advertisement. wasre bombarding society something the voters in the united states chose to do in colorado. it is not that we have a giant problem here. we have crack cocaine, ski resorts, a lot of things we offer to citizens of our country. i do support legalization of marijuana, but i do not support

to the extent it is something we have to vent about. you guys are not talking about people being locked up for marijuana right now. you are not talking about addictive personalities in america, stress based environments, and what we do in this country, and how it affects other people in this country. host: mr. riffle? guest: the caller mentioned addictive personalities. let's look at what gets people hooked on certain drugs. lookedtitute of medicine at various drugs and what percentage of people who use those drugs go on to be addicted. with marijuana, it was about 9%. with alcohol, 15%. cigarettes, 30%. statistically speaking, marijuana is one of the least addictive drugs. kevin mentioned this notion of stressing treatment and

prevention. i agree, but i also think we can regulate marijuana. the difference is i do not see why those are mutually exclusive values. i think by regulating merriman -- marijuana, we can use that to fund prevention and treatment systems. when it is regulated, we do not have dealers that also sell harder drugs and have an incentive to get you addicted. guest: nobody in treatment or prevention would say --from alcohol -- would say those revenues are getting to them. for every dollar we gain in alcohol and tobacco revenue, it costs us $10 in social costs. the last time i checked, the lottery which was passed in the most every state to help fund and fix our ailing public education system, i think we would all agree it is not going well. it is because we get promises for revenue and they never

materialize. daniel has been on the show before, on this network. he talked about reasons we repealed alcohol prohibition. the chief reason they got behind it was because they were promised no more need for a federal income tax. we have been promised this revenue for so long. it has not materialized. i have to correct something dan said on the addictive rate of different drugs. we can quibble on some numbers for adults. we are concerned with adolescents. alcohol and marijuana are equally as addictive for adolescents. one out of every six kids that begin using marijuana or alcohol will become addicted. if you start at age 14, it is one in four. that is because the developing brain is developing who it is going to be until about age 25 or 28, so those drugs can affect

you that way. is it less addictive for kids than tobacco or heroine? thisbut it is like saying kind of cancer is less likely to kill you. both are not desirable. as long as we start legalizing marijuana and this agenda to legalize all drugs, we're going to have kids start earlier and are going to produce the kind of addiction that will cost society financially and in terms of the kind of country we are. host: let me give both of your thoughts on public perception issues. did a saying 55% said the use should be legal. numbers tell you as far as public perception of the issue? guest: clearly, dan and i would agree there has been a shift in

the last 15 years in favor of legalization. no one will deny that. forget five states previous to colorado and washington defeated legalization. one of them being or are gone in 2012. it somehow does not get mentioned. in the two states where it passed, both states outspent their opponents. when the message is out there this is safer than alcohol and will give you revenue, a lot of people think it is worth trying. we should be able to grow a plant in our backyard. i should be able to possess it and not go to jail. so public perception changes. a lot is based on shaky information that does not comport with groups like the ama. poill is the rasmussen poll that only showed 42%. the gallup poll is more in line with the cnn poll. rasmussen poll is more in line with other traditional polls.

we are seeing different polls showing very different numbers. clearly there is a trend upward. dan and i would agree on that. one of the most useful gauges that i do not believe has come out comes from the general social survey, the survey academics use is a much more accurate barometer of attitudes and behaviors in america. for 2012, it was around 43%. we do not have 2013 numbers yet. alaska and oregon may be the two that will vote on it next. to think a lot of people are saying how things are going in colorado. they are noticing the advertising and marketing. people may have second thoughts when they thought they were andng for personal liberty not creating an industry. time will tell. guest: the notion we were able

to outspent our comments 61, there is a reason. that is because we do not have many opponents trade i do not know many people interested in defending a policy as disastrous as marijuana or liberation. ratesback to addiction and the idea marijuana is so addictive to young people, we should focus on public policies aimed at preventing usage for young people. 80% of high school seniors say marijuana is easy to obtain. i want to go back to tobacco. the monitoring the future survey released every year shows teenage use rates for alcohol and other drugs. the findings last year showed more kids were using marijuana than tobacco. that says we reduce tobacco consumption to below our marijuana consumption rates. what that says to me is the model we have for tobacco, which discourages advertising, which

promotes honest education to our kids and encourages parents to talk to their kids, has been effective at reducing tobacco use rates among our young people to the store close. we have not had to arrest 750,000 people a year to do that. that is a policy that has been effective. i think it is a smarter policy to pursue. host: let's get one more call. this is danger from london, england. she is opposed to legalization. guest: my question is for dan riffle. is moremarijuana dangerous than alcohol. legalizing it mean more people would use it, particularly the .oung to compare it with alcohol is a diversion.

it is more apt to compare legalizing pot with increasing human trafficking and slavery. he has not read the headlines. it is untrue marijuana does not cause violence. there are people who have murdered. their school shootings and massacres by people on marijuana. it is also known that whether you believe marijuana leads to schizophrenia or not, it is absolutely true to many people with schizophrenia will not take the drugs they need when they go on pot. guest: the notion marijuana leads to violence is absurd. when i say marijuana is not associated with violent behavior and alcohol is, i'm basing that thehat i've read from department of justice and my expense as a law enforcement official. when you look at other countries with more permissive attitudes, in the netherlands, sales of

marijuana have been tolerated for decades. a smaller percentage of teens use marijuana in the netherlands than in the united states. portugal legalized all turks a few years ago -- all drugs a few years ago. fewer teenagers use there. to a has decriminalized up couple of ounces and has the lowest teen use rate in all of new england. the state with tougher laws has higher rates. evidence to the notion by regulating marijuana we will have more teen use. host: mr. sabet. guest: portugal has not legalize any drug. you said legalize. you corrected it.

they have a version of decriminalization. the netherlands has always had lower -- every country in europe has had lower levels of these things. that did not change. when the netherlands became more permissive, youth tripled 300%. have not talked about is the connection to mental health. the reason why the mental health association, national alliance for mental illness, someone like patrick kennedy has joined -- you are giving me too much credit to say i am the only one opposed. i am joined by almost every and amedical association broad coalition of folks who have seen the research regarding schizophrenia and psychosis, depression and anxiety.

we can argue on the policy and come out on different sides. the idea of questioning the hasnce and what evidence shown and what major medical groups has said is more than a bit disingenuous. this is something we need to have a much more accurate, honest conversation about in terms of whether we should legalize marijuana or not. right now, it is the medical groups and scientists on one side and a lobby that stands to make a lot of money on the other. go, i want toe get your quick thoughts on what is next. now that we have seen colorado, what do you look at next personally as far as the topic is concerned? mr. sabet? guest: the next couple of years, we will be looking at colorado and washington. it may take a while to see the a time whenfects at there are billionaires pumping money into other states to legalize. we will see what happens.

we are watching alaska and oregon. legalization just failed in rhode island the other day. there was no mention of that. i do not think on the state level there is a serious effort, neither on the federal double. lobby gohave the state-by-state. i think it has quickened a lot of people who normally would not be engaged in this issue. now they see it as real. they see the advertising. even the caller from colorado who agrees with it said he is bombarded by the advertising. i think that will wake up people and they may have second thoughts. i do not think it will be as easy as we are hearing from some proponents. guest: a lot of other states will follow the path colorado and washington voters have been. we will see initiatives in alaska and oregon to tax and regulate. we will see it in california.

to address one of kevin's concerns about the idea the scientific and medical community is universally opposed, the california medical association supports taxing and regulating marijuana. other states that will pass laws to tax and regulate. kevin said legalization had failed in rhode island. that is not true. the governor questioned whether he would support it or not. the legislative session is just getting underway and there has not been a vote yet. new hampshire, delaware, hawaii are also states looking at this in the state legislature. we will see more federal officials change their perspective and come out in favor of legalization, as has happened in the last couple of years. host: dan riffle is the federal policy director of the marijuana kevin sabet,t and

cofounder of smart approaches to marijuana. i hope you both come back and talk with us about this. coming up on the program, we will look at the fbi. the primary mission has been law enforcement. however, there has been a change. i will discuss that change with washington's will --"washington journal" continues after this. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] nancy reagan was the first sitting first lady to address the united nations and the first to address the nation in a joint appearance with the president. >> to my young friends, life can be great, but not when you cannot see it in open your eyes colors and see the vivid god gave us as a precious gift to his children, to enjoy life to the fullest, and make it count.

the rest of your life. when it comes to drugs and alcohol, just say no. reagan asady nancy our series returns monday night live at 9:00 eastern on c-span, c-span3, also c-span radio and www.c-span.org. >> there is a way in which we have set up this impossible series of expectations, especially for our presidents, before elected officials as a whole, that they are going to come in and save the day. when it does not happen, we give congress a 9% approval rating and the president a 39% approval rating. expectations have to be lowered. that is part of what is quite amazing about the american founding. it is not that the founders said, do not expect much from government. it is, government is not going

to be the main driver of our liberty. is going to be civil society. the federal government exists to do certain things. it had better do well. if not, nothing else will be properly situated. the main area of activity will be in the private sphere, in civil society. in the election of local officers and the carrying out of duties at the local and state level. even in that, there is a measure of modesty, recognizing it is not possible for people from ., to run a d.c nation of millions. the deadline is approaching for the competition answering the question, what is the most important issue congress should address this year?

there is $100,000 in total prizes with a grand prize of $5,000. entries are due by generally 20. -- injuries are due by january 20. >> "washington journal" continues. host: our guest joining us from new york, rate to reach a. -- ray tariche. he is the president of the federal bureau of investigation agents association. tell us about the agents association and what it is. the association is comprised .f 12,000 active fbi agents we have three pillars of our organization. we advocate for our agents internally in the fbi and also upon the hill when it comes to dealing with congress. our second pillar is we offer legal services to our agents in

whatever needs they have with regards to their duties as fbi agents. the third pillar of our organization is we have a charitable wing that raises money to take care of members in need. deceased agents are provided scholarships from our memorial college fund. host: would you identify yourselves as a union of some type? guest: we are not a union. we do not operate under a collective bargaining agreement. we are a professional association that advocates for fbi agents and the fbi externally and internally. we do charity work and provide legal services, but we are not a union. we are a professional association. host: we asked you on because there was a story that appeared recently that deals with the idea of the fbi's mission.

it comes from a fact sheet part of a freedom of information showing that the primary function is law enforcement. recent fact sheets now say the primary function of the fbi is national security. what do you think about the changes in that language? guest: i reviewed that foreign policy article. i believe the fbi's mission is costly changing. if you look at the history of the fbi, when we live from the gangster era to investigating current post-the management arech constantly evolving what our mission is to protect the american people against both criminal and terroristic threats. i am not sure where that fact

sheet comes from that the foreign policy article references. i do know our fbi is constantly evolving as the criminal networks are evolving. they are trying to do damage to the united states. i believe it is important for us to stay in front of terrorist and criminal threats. host: what does it mean if it is national security the fbi focuses on? those that mean it is cutting back on law enforcement capabilities and efforts? guest: i do not think so. i think the national security and criminal investigation piece are complementary to each other. the number one priority of the fbi is terrorist threats followed by counterintelligence and cyber threats. the criminal work we do, followed by a priority basis of public corruption and other

investigations we do, including crime,collar transnational criminal investigations we investigate. their concentrate. -- they are complementary. investigation techniques we use are complementary to each other. we think they are complementary and work together. host: if national security is a focus, does that mean resources from white-collar crime are being shuffled over to these efforts? what does that do to investigations that were the primary focus of the fbi? guest: that is a great question. recently as we have faced budget demands, we have seen the fbi will have to prioritize certain investigations. case,s a white-collar third tier level would have to not be investigated to keep resources pushed to priorities

of keeping the american people safe from terrorist threats and criminal threats of a higher nature. that is a great question. aced upon budget concerns, we came up with a report, "voices from the field," which targets what you are talking about. but we will always do what is necessary to keep the american people safe from terrorist and criminal threats. this.a spokesperson said what does that mean for agents you hear from as far as the changes? how well adapted are they to change their focus? guest: after 9/11, the world

changed. the fbi changed its mission. i am a criminal investigator in the fbi, as are many members of the association. but our members come from counterintelligence, counterterrorism, criminal, and other parts of the fbi. we are all dedicated to our mission and fiercely loyal to our mission, which is keeping the american people safe. whatever the demands are based on the threats is where our mission goes and where we go. a good example is during 9/11. not only the 9/11 weretigations, not only the terrorism folks and counterintelligence folks working, but all of the criminal surged toors were to help inigation the terrorist investigation. host: ray tariche here to talk

asus about the fbi mission use are reflected in those sheets. ou can asking questions about that. -- you can ask him questions about that. the first call is from florida, democrats line. good morning. go ahead. theer: i just wanted to ask guy, what has the fbi done to enforce the law that is a federal law concerning marijuana in colorado. host: that may have been left over from our last segment. is the fbi involved

in drug enforcement? does that get affected if there is a shift in mission? guest: with regard to that question? very recently, the department of justice issued a directive to the fbi and other federal law enforcement agencies with guidance with regard to the marijuana laws of colorado. despite the fact the state of colorado has legalized marijuana, marijuana is still subject -- marijuana traffickers are still subject to investigation and enforcement from federal law enforcement. allen, good morning, scottsdale, arizona, republican line. caller: i would like to ask the gentleman, are you still an fbi agent? guest: yes. caller: with regards to 9/11, why was there not any stop by the fbi in terms of the most obvious thing, when the guys

knew there was a possible attack buildings, that you did not go to different airports to alert the airports, especially the guys training people in flying airplanes? i do not think that is an accurate assessment of what occurred. we are constantly vigilant in balancing the civil liberties of people and what our investigative responsibilities are. evolved, asfbi has i said earlier. many of the things we are doing now are in an effort to try to get in front of terrorist threats and criminal threats. host: athens, tennessee, on our independent line. this is paul. you are on right now. informants bei

incomed to divulge their as an informant on child support cases? informants and cooperating witnesses are strictly managed through our policies and department of justice policies. i'm not aware of their use in civil matters. in 2014, a little over a billion dollars that covers 13,000 special agents, 3000 intelligence employees, and 18,000 professional staff. ask about those resources part of national security efforts. guest: yet he i budget is a little different -- the fbi budget is different from other federal budgets in that we have

a military and defense part and civilian part of our budget. one of the challenges we faced is we were subject to mandatory defense spending cuts as well as the regular cuts being enacted at the end of last year. we were on the hill speaking to leaders from both sides of the house and senate on this matter. we requested then and continue to request that we be funded at a full operating level so that we can do our mission, to of america people against criminal and terrorist threats. we are happy they have come together in a compromise. the devil is in the details. i know they crunching this weekend through the next couple of weeks to get the final appropriations number done. we would hope we would be funded at that level. , one of ourriche

folks on twitter says we have the nsa for national security needs, why pile on the fbi? guest: the nsa has a different mission from the fbi. by statute, we are directed to do terrorist investigation. on top of the criminal world we work in, we also have to do counterterrorism investigations. they segue with each other. we have the dual mission. host: what are the investigations like? guest: the investigations are not like television and the movies. our investigations are very thoughtful, within the law, and strictly guided to preserve the balance between civil liberties of american citizens and protecting the american public

from terrorist and criminal threats. process with which we conduct our investigations is starkly monitored internally -- strictly monitored internally and through the department of justice, and in the federal courtrooms of the united states of america. that is how we operate our protection of the american people. host: new orleans, democrats line, nathaniel. good morning. caller: is it legal for the fbi watchetor the videos we on our personal computer? if that is legal, it isn't that a case of big brother? i will hang up and listen to your response, ok? guest: i do not think what you're saying is accurate. in order for the fbi to monitor your video activity, we would

have to go through a legal process which will include our internal policies we have, strict oversight from the department of justice, and in a federal judge agreeing whatever activities you are doing are a threat to the american people. then and only then would we be allowed to see what you were looking at on your computer. host: what fbi activities are involved in monitoring the internet? guest: for the fbi to monitor your activity on the internet, you have to be under investigation for violating federal law. if that caller is not in violation of any federal law, it is impossible the fbi would be looking at whatever he was looking at. if that caller was involved in terrorist or criminal activities

and rose to the level to be under the scrutiny of the fbi, been through a legal process we would attempt to gain access to what he was looking at in furtherance of protecting american people, his neighbors from whatever nefarious activities he was involved in. the fbiy tariche from agents association. matt, good morning. watcher of c-span and a listener to a show called "no agenda." they bring up an interesting point in their deconstruction of the media and what is going on with the federal agencies. they bring up a good point of every six weeks almost on the dot, there is some kind of fbi bust that goes down. it has been explained it is

possibly a cycle they like to have because otherwise, they cannot keep the american people scared. i was wondering what your comments were on that. also, is it legal to entrap people like those guys in ohio who did not have the capability or means to detonate or set up a bomb on a bridge but were arrested and thrown in jail? the last one was just trying to fight for his life. host: we will leave it there. mr. tariche? guest: the fbi investigates .housands of cases with proper media attention to the cases, we like to show the american people what we do to keep them safe and also try to show criminals and terrorists that the fbi is out there. i am not aware of any six-week cycle you're talking about. i am not aware of the facts of

your case. all it will say is the individuals you referenced were brought through a regimented legal process with a strict adherence to the constitution of the united states of america and a jury of their peers will decide whether they did what they are accused of doing. not the fbi. up next from odessa, texas, independent line. caller: you may have artie answered my question while i was calling. the fbi says they are changing from law enforcement to national security. where does that leave the nsa and homeland security? the fbi do not believe said they are changing from a criminal to a national security agency in anything i have seen in turnley or externally. has a dual fbi

mission. other federal agencies have their own mission. ours is both a national security mission and criminal investigative mission. host: there is news this week that the fbi is planning to send security to help with the sochi olympics. you may not be able to speak to but is thisfics, fall under the category of national security concerns? cannot speak to the specifics. but the fbi has expertise in critical incident response, and we have been involved in every olympics in the past since i have been in the fbi for 24 years. this is an example of the fbi operating in protection of national security of our athletes and assisting our international law-enforcement partners to prevent terroristic

acts and criminal acts in those particular olympics. host: chula vista california, rob, democrats line. [indiscernible] i'm a member of several associations that will remain nameless. if one is aware of a hacker, what should one do? for your call.u if you are aware of a hacker, you should report it to your local ebi office. you can get it through the internet or the phone book. we have a national computer where you can report computer crimes like that as well. don next from san francisco, republican line. caller: i wanted to make one

comment. thank you so much for your service. my father was in law enforcement. he never had a good time with the fbi. he was a parole officer. they would be investigating a parolee of his he was trying to keep out of prison, and they were trying to put him in prison, so they did not help them very much. anyway, kidnapping, bank robbery is a national security issue as well as someone driving a plane into the world trade center or blowing up a subway station? you thatagree with those things -- that falls under the second branch of what the fbi does on top of our national security mission. we are still doing the type of investigations you just referenced because all crime is important to the local victims

of crime. where our jurisdiction falls, we are fiercely committed to investigating those crimes so that we never forget the victims of those crimes who are many times forgotten. tariche, to follow-up on the foreign policy story, robert holly is a special agent in charge in chicago. that is one incident and one story. but does it go to the idea that if you're shifting resources, these other activities such as investigating crimes, they suffer? guest: that is correct.

which isrt we compiled true stories from fbi agents that have been sanitized go to that exact point. we were on the hill at the end of last year talking to leaders from both sides of the aisle. that is a great point. that is a great point the special agent brings up. that is why we have been asked to be funded at the full appropriations level, so we can continue to do our job that we are proud to do to help the american people. it is a good example, what the special agent in charge says, of the tough decisions that have to be made by our executive management when it comes to resource funding challenges in the fbi. host: thomas is next from fresno, independent line. caller: good morning, gentlemen. first i would like to say, god bless america.

we have the greatest country on earth. mr. tariche, how has it affected the fbi with eric holder being held in contempt for lying to congress about gunrunning and the agent brian terry who was murdered? those are both violations of federal law, by the way, as you know. who is the guy who made it out of fisa court with an 80-page judgment on how badly you people broke the constitution regarding that matter? there is only one from what i understand. give me some answers on that. thank you. of thei am not aware particular facts of what you are talking about, but i will tell you we adhere to a strict obedience to the united states constitution in everything we do. the internal regulations we have to follow in the fbi and with

oversight from the department of justice, and then finally ending up in federal court. i think on a day-to-day basis we can prove we do follow the constitution, and we do our best to always balance a threat to the american people with the civil liberties of american citizens. scott, good morning, illinois, republican line. caller: thank you for taking my call. i have two questions. where does the fbi draw the line on hate speech and religious civil matters under the first amendment? was foundedcountry under freedom of speech and freedom under religion. get involved in any investigations regarding freedom of speech or freedom of religion, we follow strict internal regulations which are

overseen by the department of justice, which has strict regulations as well. for any investigation to move forward against an american thezen, it would have to be scrutiny of a federal court. we adhere to the constitution was strict obedience. host: your second question? caller: how far can the fbi go to arrest a senator, congressman, or even the president? there are specific rules and regulations when it comes to arresting people from the legislative branch of the government. we have public corruption investigations involving politicians on the, local, and state, local,-- and federal level. they are subject to the same standards and adherence to the law as any other students in --

as any other citizen. they are tough investigations. but they are ones that we take on. through a legal process, we bring evidence forward. fbi orot the department of justice who decides. it is a jury of their peers who will decide if their actions, if the evidence supports their violation of a federal law. host: mr. tariche, off of twitter, they ask how many terrorists the fbi has caught in the years since 9/11. guest: i do not have that fact in front of me. as far as their efforts to bring these people to justice, what is the involvement of ing terrorism since 9/11? what does the day-to-day look like for the fbi? guest: our mission changed forever on 9/11. we are focused. that is our number one priority

in the fbi, to investigate national security/terrorist threats. there have been many cases in fbi websited on the the caller can look into and see specific cases the media is reporting on. it is our number one priority. i do not have a specific number in front of me. but i know the fbi has moved that to the number one priority. we will do everything within the parameters of the constitution becomere any terrorists to the united states are captured and brought to justice. host: michael from tampa, florida, independent line. caller: i have a comment and a question. i wish the fbi -- i know you have a cozy relationship with the military -- that you would start cracking

down on the fraud, waste, and abuse at military bases. there is a lot going on everywhere. contracts, compatibility, compliance with federal regulations. if you could comment on that and what people can do to initiate investigations? also, what is your stance and opinion on the militarization of local police departments where they are dressed up in more gear war weapons?ith is that a violation of posse comitatus? guest: we work with the military nationally and internationally. we also conduct fraud against the government investigations on a day-to-day basis with other federal law enforcement partners. abuse, and theft of

government property are things the fbi has investigated and will continue to investigate. especially now in the budget crisis, so we do not have people stealing and wasting money. with regard to the second part of your question, can you repeat the second part of your question? host: we will move on to diana. this is the last call. from california, independent line. caller: i would like to know why it took so long for the fbi to respond to the benghazi incident. i think it was 17 days. again not know for sure -- i do not know for sure. i feel that was a little much for protecting our people we have their. thank you. guest: as in any investigation, especially an international investigation in a hostile environment, there is a lot of

factors that come into when the fbi can be there. we would want to have been there immediately to help investigate that case and help the victims of that case, but that is out of our control due to the fact it was in a foreign country and there are other protocols involved other than the fbi just launching and landing in a foreign land. host: as far as the future when it comes to the budget of the fbi, what do you see happening in terms of its changing mission geared toward national security? iest: as i said earlier, think the national security piece of our mission and the criminal investigative piece our partners and our overlapping. i continue to see the fbi trying to get in front of threats internationally and domestically. as those threats change, we will

continue to evolve as a law enforcement agency to do what we came to do in the fbi, which is to keep the american people safe from terrorist and criminal threats. joins us fromche new york. thank you. coming up in the last half-hour, we will go to open phones to talk about topics in the papers. we will take the open phones as "washington journal" continues after this. host [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> it is disappointing to all of us to see the deterioration of the security inside of iraq. i spent a lot of my life over there. 2010, i6 to september

was there as we continue to reduce the level of violence when the sectarian violence was going on. i believe we left them in a place where was capable of moving forward. >> the security situation has devolved into something that is concerning. it is not just about iraq. we have to be cognizant as we look across the middle east. what is going on in syria and lebanon. what is going on inside of iraq. it is this sectarian conflict between sunni and shiite. that byoitation of nonstate actors like al qaeda and other organizations. we will try to take advantage of this. weekend, army chief of staff looks at the security situation in the middle east and the future of the u.s. army. this morning at 10:00. 2, maryy on c-span

matalin and james carville on their love and war relationship. that is 11:00. and on c-span 3 is american history tv. prohibition and the rise of the gangster. >> c-span, we bring public affairs of and from washington directly to you. putting you in the room at congressional hearings, white house event, briefings, and conferences. offering complete gavel-to-gavel coverage of the u.s. house. all as a public service of private industry. we are created by the cable tv industry 35 years ago and funded by your local cable or satellite provider. watch us in hd. follow us on twitter. >> "washington giorno" continues. call are onmbers to your screen for the remainder of the program.

host: you can also send us a tweet or in e-mail. the associated press is reporting about the death of ariel sharon. he died at 85. he was admired and hated for his battlefield exploits created he reshaped the middle east. he died after a stroke left him in a, from which he never awoke. he was 85. he was known for his bold tactics and occasional refusal to obey orders. he became known as the bulldozer. his critics were also capable of getting things done. he passes away at the age of 85. other things in the paper include messages and stories about the economy. also, you have probably seen other sources about target.

more civilians are at risk for information being received during that incident in december. 20% is the amount that they have reduced their quarterly profit. they sent -- some say this stems from the data breach. until 10:00. here is tony in new jersey. democratic line. caller: yes. i was trying to get a hold of your guest. he said we could talk about things that you talked about today. to talk about this national security thing with the fbi. completely to the ground on 9/11. this building came down symmetrically. full length and width. the collapse of this building clearly had to be due to demolition.

found featuresve that would make your eyes pop. is notr why the fbi investigating. there are 2100 architects. i am an engineer and we would like an investigation. host: john in crofton, maryland. republican line. caller: i understand it is open mind. i guess i have the wrong show. host: yes. that is on c-span 2. caller: i get upset about our government. they are losing trust every day. i will be 74 years old in a couple of months. i have been around since 1940. i remember the second world war. our member how people have always trusted the government.

the fbi was the number one organization. we adored j edgar hoover. crapthing has turned to today. there is no trust in government. at any level. especially not the white house. you have robert gates coming out with a book. you find out that they should people out-- ship whether they support the surge or not. i know that is old news. back, theyah coming are still telling us that al qaeda was not involved in benghazi. they come up with 6.7% unemployment. i have neighbors on food stamps. this is an affluent area. we do not get any trust from these guys. he goes on vacation for 17 days and bend $7 million. that is not enough. he has to leave the first lady there through the end of the month. host: ok. caller: he mentioned robert

gates. the second excerpt from his book appears this morning. it deals with the troop surge in afghanistan. he says on the day after thanksgiving, the president called at his home for a long talk. he was fine with the 30,000 troops. he would not agree to the request for 4500 and able or's. -- enablers. the total number was pushed to 37,000. the sunday meeting was unlike any he ever attended in the oval office. the group was gathered to go through the decisions and determine whether mullen and transfer on board. aeus were on board. joe biden said he was ready to

go forward. i am getting an order, the president said. i have never heard him explicitly frame a decision as a jerk order. -- direct order. nor has he ever heard any commander do this. it demonstrated the unfamiliarity of both men with the american military culture. that is part of several things he has written in his book. an excerpt found in the wall street journal this morning. mario from new jersey, democrat line. caller: to continue on the marijuana debate, one of the guests you had said that when marijuana is legalized, it increases the use. i wonder if that is the polling where people will not admit to marijuana use when it is illegal. they're are free to admit it when it is legal. that theentioned

american medical association and said that itists leads to mental illness. the other thing is that it is a chicken and egg thing. people have mental illness and they are using marijuana to self medicate. edison interesting question that i would like to see more research on. host: we asked people whether they supported or opposed it or not. where do you fall? i am for legalization and probably for all drugs as well. we have far too many people incarcerated for usage. think of the benefit of how much less crime you will have on the streets. not the ideal situation, but we can control it. it is a health issue, rather than a criminal issue. host: charlie from new york. republican line. caller: good morning.

i would like to make a comment on the affordable care act. before i do that, can i respond to the people who call me a racist because i oppose obama? may i? host: you can keep going. go ahead. caller: here is what i have to say. barack obama began his political career with a fundraiser in the .ome of domestic terrorists he spent 20 years in the church of an anti-semitic reverend who hates america. ,o say i oppose obama's agenda only because i am a racist, demonstrates the depth of your stupidity. host: as far as the affordable care act? caller: the affordable care act has not only destroyed obama's presidency, it is going to

destroy his legacy. what the liberal media does not realize is that it was them themselves who destroyed obama. they covered up all of his stupid things that he does. host: pictures in the paper this morning of reagan's warm press secretary, passing away at 74. public face of the reagan era. minneapolis, minnesota. independent line. caller: i would like to speak about the republicans not doing anything. group,ehner's right ryan, mitch mcconnell, newt --grich, said that they have they are god and religion gives them the right to lie, cheat,

and steal. george bush was asked about the lie of mass destruction and the war of the americans and the wounded in iraq, that he was the that had 3000 people on our soil massacred. this should be repeated over and over. thank you very much. host: robert up next from tuscaloosa, alabama. democrats line. caller: i wanted to get on earlier with your guest. on dennis rodman -- a lady called from alabama and talked about the founders of this country. if he were a european, no one would say anything. he is african-american. many europeans of this country do not want african-americans connected with other people. i want us to stay lost.

when we make connections, that is frightening to them. they think that other people think we are more than what they said we were. in reference to legalize marijuana, it is a good thing. now that people can get short marijuana, not that other stuff. -- pure marijuana, not that other stuff. the young boys will be better off in the future, in my opinion. they are flocked up all the black ways. -- they have locked up all of the black boys. host: ryan in indiana, republican line. of the i am tired african-american leaders in every country not addressing the violence that goes on with african-american communities. they want to focus on banning guns. the truth of the matter is that it is not banning guns.

it is educating people. get along with one another pretty tings like that. this president and african-american leaders are all failures for not addressing that issue. host: on the newsmakers program, which you can see tomorrow, our guest will be steny hoyer. also the house minority whip. he talked about a variety of things with reporters. he will talk about whether congress can get anything done in 2014. there will be a variety of talk it -- topics within that. [video clip] >> congress can certainly get something done if republicans are prepared to put on the floor pieces of legislation that will enjoy bipartisan support. they will not simply be built like dealt with last year. we're very hopeful that the insurance bill will get done. both short-term and long-term.

hopeful that we will address immigration reform. we think that can get done. evidence is that we get 60 votes in the senate. it is not like it was a partisan passed bill. it enjoyed bipartisan support. i think it will enjoy bipartisan support in the house as well. if it is put on the floor. we would like to see the minimum wage raised. income inequality has been focused on by the president. we are focusing on that as well. we think that is a real challenge to america. we have the gulf between the rich and the middle class. inis as large as it has been a very long time. that is not good. we would like this to and. end. and discrimination and employment. inend discrimination

employment. we think that would get bipartisan support. we have a significant number of republicans who would be for that. we would like to see a greater investment in infrastructure and job creation. the american public thinks that ought to be our number one priority. we would hope that those could be done. those are just some of the issues that we would hope would be addressed in this second session. that conversation is available on our "newsmakers" program. that is tomorrow at 10:00. if you miss that, you can see it at 6:00. next up, timothy and virginia. independent line. go ahead. you are on. caller: ok. the question about 9/11.

i just wonder if there was codes that were bypassed to build the tallest building. safety, when it hit, i watched it live on tv. it should've held up longer than that. that is my question. host: bill is up next in grand rapids, michigan. democrats line. caller: hello. follow-upu have any to the civil rights debate? --ave there was a special agent. it went through imd and -- host: you may be trying to ask a

question to our last guest. he is no longer with us. caller: the fbi guy is not there? host: correct. we are in open phone. caller: i wanted to make contact with him. makes anyway. host: you can forward a question to him. he has left us. this is our open phones until 10:00. keith in waterbury, connecticut. caller: i just want to make a couple of points. i will leave the phone open. the first thing i will comment on is the legalization of marijuana in colorado. i am african american and i have 10 convictions for marijuana possession. what i want to know is, will that the expunged from my record now that it is legal in certain states? thats it that -- why is

legal in a white state and nowhere else? it is not legal in new york city. i could still go to jail for having a nickel bag of marijuana. in a white state, it is street legal. i was a democrat, but i'm leaning towards being a republican. i will not give them credit -- they are starting to know who the democrats really are. the democrats are acting like they were for the middle class and the poor. the truth is that they are millionaires, just like the republicans. once the republicans start having compassion for the poor and the middle class, they're going to show who the democrats really are working for. my third comment, i will be quick, is about dennis rodman. he is a private citizen. he can go and do it he wants to do. i commend him for opening doors. i am sure north korea will think that we're as bad as americans think we are.

i give my hats up to the guy. host: 1300 marriages in utah are now being recognized by the justice department. in the new york times this that obama wasay once not in favor of gay marriage. more recently, he said that couples should be able to get married. the administration is edging closer to confronting a state government on the refusal to recognize those rights. kim, from wisconsin. democrats line. caller: thank you for taking my call. i believe that we should legalize marijuana. mandatory tests for jobs. that keeps people down from getting work. host: what is the chief benefit of legalizing marijuana? caller: it is prozac. you have a lot of people out here who have been

self-medicating with marijuana. it is just hurting us. it is a plant. it is an herb, a spice. it is a fruit. -- what isbert gates going on in iraq --he had a lot to do with this when he was working with the bush administration. i think that those people should still be helping to fix this problem. you do not hear from president bush or condoleezza rice. everybody is all right -- always bashing. they created this mess and they should help to fix it with obama. that includes all of congress. they created this mess by going in there with a live. -- a lie. host: virginia has a new governor today. he will be sworn in at richmond at noon. that is terry mcauliffe.

the festivities will take place rain or shine, according to the richmond times. you can watch that live on c-span at noon today. tommy, new york, new york. republican line. caller: hi. how are you? i'm calling to talk about this financial equality. as far as i can see, no matter what race, color, religion, you can do whatever you want to do. , the of people nowadays democrats and liberals just want to get handouts. dollars's is only seven per hour. i did not know those people's ambition to work there for the rest of their lives. that's like a summer job for kids in high school or people going to school and college and getting extra money to get by. they should go further in life. are getting more

support. this is a washington post writeup on the senate. the senate foreign relations committee and senator kirk introduced a proposal last year with 25 cosponsors. it would impose sanctions on iran. thad mcconnell and cochran joined the list of sponsors. another senate aide familiar with the talks says that the tally is in the mid-70's. don from california. caller: hello. i'm listening to these white folks coming on and talking about blacks and all that. that is all they always do. nobody thinks the democrats are all blacks. i am a democrat and i am black.

notk people in america are african-american. they are hebrew israelites and jews. they do not -- they are not americans. they never were. white folks have been trying to hide this for centuries. now, black people are beginning to find out that they are jews and they are not blacks. they are jews. host: sally from wilson, virginia. independent line. caller: hello. yes, i am a 72-year-old white woman. originally from upstate new york. i moved down to virginia. everyone wants to blame barack obama. i am in defense of him. he has no power of his own. any decision that is made, he has the house of representatives and whoever behind him. i think that it is a shame. it is not about race. it is not about whatever, it is about power.

i love barack obama. i am praying for him. host: jacksonville, florida. democrats line. caller: i would like to agree with the gentleman from california. we have to look at oklahoma city. we have to look at newtown. over and over. white folks -- the: unemployment rate is story today. this is from usa today. the headline is that an employment rate is still far from normal. the report writes that december's u.s. jobs additions show an economy that has healed. but the recovery is remarkably corporate ben bernanke and the federal reserve set a target of 6.5% as the unemployment rate and that should trigger an action to set higher interest rates. action, the fed sticks to the numbers, may come quickly.

the jobless rate is closer to five percent. recovery has substantial risk until that rate falls. texas interviewed a woman who gave context on the unemployment rate. this is what is talking about the unemployment rate of last december. it gives you context as far as what goes into determining at. especially when it comes to will or participation rates. -- lower participation rates. [video clip] >> the unemployment rates have fallen genetically. would you describe this as encouraging? is it a sign of a sustainable recovery? one, this is one month's number. we do not want to get caught up

in one particular number. most of the change in the unemployment rate, about two thirds of it, was due to falling labor force participation. >> people simply giving up on the market. >> the interesting thing is when we look at flows, they look like they were from unemployment. -- and ointment rather than unemployment. rather thant unemployment. it is not as robust. >> do you think that this drop is troubling? is it concerning? um, well, i guess it depends on the question you're asking. it is certainly not a sign of strength. that took place at the joint economic committee hearing on capitol hill.

if you want to see that in full, go to our website for more of that hearing. another story is taking a look at the federal reserve when it comes to recent unemployment numbers. the bond buying program is known as qe2 and it is unlikely to alter course. the unemployment report will likely put to rest the notion that they will put to rest -- reduce the bond buying program. the jobless rate is falling largely because people are leaving the labor force. the jobless rate is a perplexing indicator of job market slack and vigor. the last call is from jay in indianapolis indiana. caller: think you for giving me this opportunity.

i want to comment on the ridiculous, to earlier about african-americans. i do not consider myself african-american, black, just a dark skinned male. i grew up in gary, indiana. he said that our leaders failed. --m not sure that is far from the truth. our leaders are showing us the way. malcolm x and martin luther king on -- they took away and founded tangs. -- gangs. also, on mcdonald's. i used to work at mcdonald's three times a week in high school. there were a stack of applications. there were no openings. it is not a high school job. if someone has to feed their family, that is the way they

have to feed their family. host: tomorrow's program comes to at 7:00. our guests coming up will be a republican strategist and maria cardona, a political commentator. we will talk about politics and campaigns for 2014 and 2016. of8:45, an examination johnson's war on poverty. it is the anniversary. michael tanner and melissa boteach will join us. that will start at 8:45. we will also take your calls. "washington journal" comes your way at 7:00. we will see you then. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2013]

>> coming up next, the army chief of staff will talk about the u.s. army's future. after that, officials from the center for medicare and medicaid services will discuss health-care spending. 12:05, livet coverage of the virginia in not duration ceremony for governor elect terry mcauliffe. the firsteagan was sitting first lady to address the united nations and the first to address a nation in a joint appearance with the president. >> for my young friends, life can be great. not if you cannot see it. open your eyes to life. see it in the favorites coverage -- visit colors that god gave us as a precious gift to his children. enli