i like his answer better. comingk you again for today. thank you especially to our very special guest of honor. we are adjourned. [applause] [applause] >> a quick pogrom update. the justice department plans to open a broad inquiry into

possible misconduct into the ferguson, missouri, police department. will on this afternoon we bring it to the mccain institute for international leadership where they will talk about the war on terrorism this afternoon. among the speakers, former counterterrorism officials from the bush and obama administration at 5:45. later on tonight, a look at the rising childhood obesity. here is some of what you will see. that is what they prefer. they like sugar even more. you give the child the choice to have sugar or vegetables, they will pick sugar. we have to be the adult in the

room. you just don't get kids the food they want. you have to teach them how to eat well for their whole lives. that takes leadership, determination, creativity. i love the fact that you told your school district, take three colors every day. my children when i was teaching them about nutrition, that is how we did it, how many colors can you put on your plate? they loved that. because i fed them steamed vegetable as kids they only like steamed vegetables. fruit at been eating every meal since they were babies. ,o my kids as a consequence they prefer healthy foods. so a lot of these kids are not getting healthy foods at home. they are getting refined carbohydrates at every meal. a typical meal will be berger and fries.

we have to do more. yes come it is easy to have flexibility. refineds not serve foods at lunch. let's actually push them to eat something healthy that makes them healthy and reach the full potential. he cannot concentrate in class. often made fun of. he has low self-esteem. does not reach will potential. you haverateful all of thought outside the box for figuring out to dig outside the box and meet nutrition standards. let's figure it out. we can figure it out. >> more from this and agricultural hearing and childhood obesity coming up this evening at 8:00 eastern on the and. later tonight, more campaign

2014 coverage, the california governor debate. jerry brown faces his republican challenger, neil cosh kari -- neel kashakri. >> withday,ere is a message from one of the c-span ato student cam winners. >> what does it do? hard to answer the question before the to thegress leaked them public. these documents show the full extent of the nsa surveillance on americans. >> the full collection of american e-mail. it is not reminiscent in scope to terrorists, find two people they have probable cause to omeieve type of crime. double collection of data of american e-mails. >> the nsa is very controversial . the only way to resolve the

conflict is if congress puts it at the number one issue in 2000 14. >> join us next wednesday for the theme of the 2015 c-span documentary competition. john kerry hosted a ceremony wednesday. during the half-hour event the secretary talked about his department's mission of uniting religious communities and the challenges that accompany this effort. >> good morning. my name is sean casey, special advisor to secretary kerry for to the special occasion. d want to welcome all of you as we celebrate the appointment of the new special representative to muslim communities. we are honored to have secretary kerry here today and will be aching first. then i will close the gathering at the very end. at the beginning of the 10 year clear thations were you wanted to bring a more sophisticated approach to the

engagement of the department of state. today we have concrete evidence you are making that a reality with the appointment to this crucial post. you are building a team committed to collaborating with departments inside the department as well as a vast array of external partners to partner with people of goodwill in the hard work of building sustainable development, promoting human rights and mitigating conflict and building peace around the globe. i want to thank you for your leadership, vision and support team assemble a religious for the department of state. please join me in welcoming secretary of state, john kerry. [applause] >> thank you very .

>> thank you for joining us on this exciting occasion. it is my opportunity to welcome and announce at the same time our new special representative of muslim communities. and yes, well. [applause] and i am especially happy to and fatherparents and his wife with their lovely sophia and, daughter alicia. thank you. thank you for being here. when he started drafting the religious draft on faith leadership and engagement, he began with religion matters.

our mantra inthat foreign policy. day him every single and i particularly see it in my multiple engagements in the far east and far central asia, africa,ast, north sub-saharan africa. let me be really fair. as a starting point for today's conversation, the real face of islam is not what we saw yesterday when the world for witness again to the unpatentable brutality of a i isil terrorist murders when we saw the american journalist to left home in florida in order to tell this the of rape people in middle east, we saw him brutally taken from us in an act of

medieval savagery by a coward hiding behind the mask. for so many who worked so long to bring stephen and other this iss home safely, obviously not how it was meant to end. our special operations forces bravely risked a military operation in order to save these lives. have reached out diplomatically to anyone and everyone who may be able to help. continues and our prayers remain as they always are that families of the hostages remain trapped in serious today. now barbarity, sadly, is not new to this world.

neither is evil. i cannot think of a more graphic description of evil than what we witnessed yesterday parents before that and what we see in the unbelievable brutal mass executions of people because of their secretary and or religious affiliation. we have taken the fight to this kind of savagery and evil before , and believe me, we will take it again. where doing it today terrorists have murdered citizens, the united states held them accountable in a how long it took. those who murdered james foley and stephen saw off need to know the united states will hold them accountable no matter how long it takes. [applause]

but here today what is really important, and i want to take advantage of this podium and in ass moment to underscore powerfully as i know how that the face of islam is not the butchers who killed the journalist. that is isil. [applause] islam is not then ems who know only how to destroy , not to build. masked cowards whose actions are an ugly insult to the peaceful religion that they violate every single day with their barbarity and whose fundamental principles they insult with their action. real face is a peaceful religion based on the dignity of all human beings.

it is one where muslim communities are leading the fight against poverty. the one where muslim communities are providing basic care and emergency assistance on the frontlines of some of our most devastating humanitarian crises. and it is one where muslim communities are advocating for universal human rights and fundamental freedoms, including to most basic freedom practice one's faith openly and freedom -- really. these are sources of strength for all of us. they are an essential part of our national fabric, and we are committed to deepening our partnerships with them. we are making the efforts to unite religious communities and core religion here at the state department. that is what sharif is leaving as the special representatives

to muslim communities. that is what our special affiliate. and that is what david cap her neck is leading when confirmed for new ambassador at large for international freedom. that is what my friend is doing in his special job in order to an interface office here at the state department itself. people ask me why you go why now have we made this such a mission at the state department? engagement at a time when world events for some people seem so hopelessly divided along secretary and lines. the answer is very simple. it is a delusion to think anyone can just retreat to their own safe space. not when people of all faiths are migrating and mingling as never before in their own

history. the reality is our faith and fates are linked, and that is we must do this now because they are linked. our faith -- fates are linked on an any number of things we must confront and deal with in policy concepts today. our fates are linked on the environment. for many of us respect for god's also translates into duty to protect and sustain his first creation, earth, planet. before god created man he created heavens and earth, confronting climate change is in the long run one of the greatest challenges we face, and you can see this duty for responsibility laid out in scriptures clearly. beginning in genesis.

muslim majority countries are among the most honorable. our response to this challenge ought to be rooted in a sense of stewardship of earth. for me and many of us here today , that responsibility comes from are linked ins promoting economic opportunity and justice. when you look at the world today there are whole countries where there are 60% of the population under the age of 30. 50% under the age of 21 and 40% under the age of 18. we know all of these young people in today's interconnected globalized world with the media -- look at the numbers of sub-saharan africa with young people walking around with smartphones. they do not have a job or education that they are connected. we know all of them are as a

opportunitynding and dignity. we also know extremists, people like isis are just waiting to seduce these people into accepting the dead-end. the people -- when people do not and a job or education voices are silenced -- we have all witnessed the instability that follows from that from the .ack of dignity and respect to meet the demands of these population for dignity and opportunity frankly rude buyers new and creative partnerships. that is why sean is here. that is why we are here today. need to reach beyond government to include religious leaders and face communities, entrepreneurs, civil society groups -- all of them working together to invest in the future

that embraces tolerance and understanding, and yes, even love. also linked in the flight for pluralism. thatow beyond any doubt the places where people are free, not just to develop an idea but to debate different are the those society most successful. not occasionally, but always. opportunityjob of that the recruitment strategies need to exploit. they are just as content to see and oligarchy and resource exploration fill the vacuum so they can come in and pray on the frustration and anger of the young people who were denied real opportunity. make no mistake, when you go back and study major faith

traditions, there is one thing that really does leap out at you. speakprivileged enough to at a interfaith event at yale significantetween groups of 70 or so evangelical from across the country including dr. robert shiller and others and a group of imams who had come from around the world to join together in a discussion of interfaith initiative. i remembered then as i thought about my comments and what to talk about how it it leapt out at me that there is a commonality in the face and in all faiths and all philosophies a way of life and thinking, even isive americanism and that

every single one of them contains a fundamental basic .otion of the golden rule the importance of charity, compassion and human improvement. , which is was asked the greatest commandment in the , first you shall love the lord your god, and second, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. and everything. do unto others as you would have them do to you which is the lord and profits. each profits? mousa. or he was talking about abraham or and ultimately talking about shalom. peace. as the taliban says of profit

approached him and challenged him to teach the meaning of the torah while standing on one leg. without missing a beat, holding isone foot he replied what hateful to yourself, do not do to another. that is the whole of the torah. the rest is commentary. said ofhet mohammed loving your brother, not one of you truly believes until you wish for others what you wish for yourself. use it to treat and not others you would in ways find hurtful. let hinduism proclaim, this is untoum of duty, do not do others what would cause pain if done to you. our faiths teach us we are more than the sum of our differences.

we share a moral obligation to treat one another with dignity and respect, and i am so proud that at the foundation of everything that this department and our foreign policy tries to do are those fundamental values. today we need to draw on that common faith in what must be our common hope to work for peace and put our universal commitments and universal beliefs into action. that is the road ahead, and i am privileged to share the road with all of you. thank you. [applause] >> i want to thank secretary

great wordse very and for the time to be here today. i wanted to express what he said and expressed my personal condolences. that remind us and when you look at the suffering it reminds us what we are up against. i want to from the very beginning recognize that. i was very privileged to have secretary kerry here. by his effortsd to promote economic growth and and empower individuals across the globe. it is really a privilege to be part of the team. and my parentser are here today. decision my father ever did, apart from marrying my mother of course was to accept a job in the united states almost

37 years ago. it was not an easy decision for my parents but a choice that along with hard work and love and support has provided an opportunity we never dreamed possible. the smartest decision i ever made was to marry aisha. everyday i am thankful for her and our two daughters. so i would like to thank my family, friends, colleagues who are here today. so i would like to thank my family, my friends, my colleagues who are here today. to my colleagues in the federal government and civil society, in the arab, muslim, sikh, south asian, and middle eastern somali communities, this is a link to work together to take civil rights and liberties and empower people and keep them safe and secure. in assuming this role i fully intend to build on the work over the past decade. i look forward to collaborating with you in the years ahead. in particular, i would like to thank dr. shaun casey, who has been my biggest supporter since joining the department.

i'm looking forward to working with him, and a special monitor to combat anti-semitism, as well as the -- and hopefully the new ambassador david saperstein, as part of a broader approach to engagement. next year represents 2 important anniversaries. it is the 20th anniversary of the srebrenica massacre in bosnia. we are discussing how to bring jewish and muslim and other faith leaders together and seek insight on what we can do to prevent future tragedies. it is easy to be human, it is hard to be humane. speaking of predecessors, it is important to knowledge the

important work of the special representative, acting special representative, and senior adviser, who have made an enormous impact in his office during their time. i clearly have very big shoes to fill. finally, let me welcome members of the diplomatic corps, many of whom i had an opportunity to meet. i look forward to sitting down with you in the months and days ahead. i could not agree more with what secretary kerry said. partnership is incredibly important. my role is to drive secretary kerry plus vision for engaging muslim communities around the world based on mutual interests and support of shared goals. as secretary kerry said eloquently, we are facing enormous challenges, from environmental degradation to poverty to violent extremism and pervasive human rights violations. what should we focus on? muslim communities by and large care about the same things everybody else does -- peace and

security, a clean environment, growing economy. the department's engagement efforts should reflect this commitment and be mindful never to engage muslims or any other community exclusively through a single lens. a broad approach allows us to take advantage of the range of opportunities that exist, while having the space for the focused conversations that are necessary. my efforts will be consistent with the department's broader priorities, secretary kerry's broader priorities, protecting the oceans and environment, advancing entrepreneurship. there are 1.6 billion muslims around the world, a quarter of humanity. the question is how can this can national maintenance -- how can

this role make an impact? simply put, i have to be a pen, a highlighter, and a crayon. as secretary kerry stated, religion matters. the world is a religious place. shaun and i will prioritize engaging religious communities, making sure that our colleagues have the skills they need. this is a sound investment and it will impact our office and help our colleagues throughout the department. together with my colleagues, i will focus on attacking the rights of religious minorities, including muslim communities but also non-muslims. i will also work to address shiite-sunni sectarian conflict. the highlighter refers to my role in leveraging resources that may benefit others. for example, we have a robust capacity to address oceans and environment, an issue that

directly impacts muslim committees around the world. it is no coincidence that secretary kerry gave his speech on climate change in indonesia, which is particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels. in support of our broader environmental agenda, we will highlight efforts to conserve oceans and promote a healthy environment around the world. this is important, not just environmentalists, but religious leaders believe that protecting the environment is an article of their faith. finally, there is the crayon, which in my household is visible for creativity, as we can attest with numerous marks on our wall. our office is going to continue to punch above our weight and look for smart investments in innovative programs. as the world witnessed with the murders of james foley and steven sotloff and the slaughter of millions elsewhere, violent

extremism is a challenge across the globe, including the muslim community. the majority of the victims of terrorism and violent extremism are muslim. it presents an opportunity for increased action, which we must take. governments obviously have a role, but community and religious leaders play a greater role. this is not to say they are to blame or that they have done any wrong, but when it comes to countering ideology that calls itself a religion, the efficacy of government is limited. these faces cannot go unchallenged. we must find creative ways to provide appropriate support to communities that we know, we know are willing to take ideological fight on in ways that government simply cannot or frankly, should not. but as i said, we need to focus broadly. for many muslims, economic concerns are paramount. the arab spring arguably had its roots in economic hardship.

moreover, there is a youth bulge in many parts of the world, including the middle east, africa, nations, and jobs are essential. while there is no easy solution, there is no question that the enormous promise of entrepreneurship in providing skills to women and others provides the tools they need. for example, i was struck by the statistic -- the average time an individual spends in a refugee camp, 17 years. in addition to providing basic assistance, you must provide refugees livelihood assistance and entrepreneurship. we will explore entrepreneurship initiatives while also supporting those threatened by climate change. stories and culture matter. because of that, we will improve

the capacity of muslim film makers and artists and revive training and skills in shooting a frame and developing a script. we will support creative autonomy in muslim communities. i was doing research and i came across a report that was telling -- the creative economy is one of the most rapidly growing sectors in the economy, and a highly transformative one in terms of income generation, job creation, and export earnings. please note that with all these initiatives, whether it is a highlighter, a pen, or crayon, my focus is on results. the challenge is facing us are immense. this is a time to come up with solutions, to identify and steps towards progress. but i need help. this is true of my colleagues in government and civil society, but it is particularly true with respect to american muslims and muslim communities across the globe. the past few years have taught me that governments have an important role and continue to do that. the most innovative solutions come from local communities.

in the weeks and months ahead, i look forward to sitting down and engaging communities, including muslim communities, around the world, and finding ways we can turn these words and the secretary's words into action. as the special representative to muslim communities, i will devote all my efforts to making sure that the united states and the department of state and our colleagues drive progress and achieve meaningful results by advancing our environmental agenda, rejecting extremism, and promoting pluralism, and advancing job creation and economic opportunity. thank you so much, thank you so much for sharing this tremendously with my family and me, and thank you all -- i mean this very sincerely -- for your support and guidance over the years. i want to thank secretary kerry and shaun for placing of trust in me in this role and i am

ready to get to work. thank you so much. [applause] >> again, i would like to thank all of you for coming today. congratulations, shaarik. it is great to have you on board. i am proud to be your colleague and friend and i look forward to working with you every day. this room is full of people who love you, support you, and wish you all the best, and i think that is the greatest testimony to how much you have already accomplished and how much you will be accomplishing in the coming days. let me simply before i dismiss you let him know that shaarik is going to stand out here and we

will have a receiving line in counterclockwise order. thank you for coming and we look forward to staying in touch. [applause] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute] >> follow this event from yesterday -- all of this available on our website. here is c-span, taking you live to the next justice department. expected to announce the opening of a broad inquiry into possible misconduct into the ferguson, missouri, police department. according to news reports, we will be joined by the acting civil attorney.

this marks a significant expansion. following the august 9 shooting of michael brown by darren which is why the department is conducting a criminal probe to determine whether office violated mr. brown civil rights. briefing announcement from attorney general holder momentarily at the justice department. he won to let you know we will be opening up phone lines and facebook page to hear from you. your thoughts on what the federal role is in ferguson following the shooting and investigations. let's coverage on c-span. it might be a minute or two until we hear from the attorney general. this morning taking you to the washington journal.

the first meeting from wales while we get a preview of this morning's washington journal. host: what are the goals of this nato gathering. guest: i think the original goals were hard to tell prior to the gathering in ukraine. i think the original goals was to talk about ukraine. -- first big goal is to ride is to get a coherent response to what is going on in ukraine. i think they want to send a clear message to present a united front. >> who is calling for what you folks will leader calling for

what kind of action? >> not quite clear. they have talked about a rapid reaction force. the big think the united states is calling for is greater contribution. the idea of who is ponying up for the alliance. there is a goal of two percent of gdp and only four countries are actually contributing that a of money.mount there is still not total agreement. i thought just recently france announced they will not sell missile ships to russia. so it seems like the europeans and u.s. are moving closer to a this.d front on >> what about germany and the german chancellor? >> germany is in a tough spot because economically they have ties to russia. she is a strong voice. the biggest wealthy country in europe. she will want to balance things. she has to be careful about hurting the economy back home.

what is a rapid response team at? >> they have not been successful in the past. i think they have a unit but say it takes 30 days to mobilize, which does not seem rapid. mostly to other european countries not the ukraine. countries like poland or estonia and put forces in if there was a russian incursion to send a signal they are ready to push back if they need to. russia view that? >> russia has already responded to say they would have to revisit the strategy. they recognize ukraine is in a different spot. estonia is a nato member. there is article five of the nato treaty that says for one has pledged to defend everyone else. would have totin

be careful about an incursion to a nato member. there was an announcement. i just saw the u.s. will send forces and for peacekeeping exercise. there are other military moves where their deploying additional aircraft to estonia. so in the countries other than ukraine, we are trying to shore up. we had agreement at the end of the cold war that we would not permanently ace forces in the eastern european countries. that was in agreement with russia. we are pushing up against that. there will be a rotating presence. the billionart of dollars president obama proposed in june that congress needs to

approve. >> what was the current situation with russia and isis, what does that say about the relevancy of nato today? nato is the most successful military alliance in history. enemy it was designed to fight went away. not with a bang but with a whimper. it was really in the midst of an identity crisis. what did it do? now with russia it has reaffirmed the relevancy and they have had to figure out it is still important. outside of the u.s. they are our real military teeth outside of the alliance. now,the way it works right the goal is everyone contribute 2.2% of gdp.

and estonia and greece are the only countries at or above two percent. everyone else is below the number. if you look at what it would take to get up to the two percent level -- that afternoon. i am joined today by the attorney -- assistant attorney general by the human rights division and the director of the community policing division or the cops office. we are here to announce the latest efforts and ongoing efforts to address the situations in ferguson -- ferguson, missouri in surrounding community. as you know, our federal civil rights organization into the august 9 shooting of michael brown remains open and very active. as they make clear, this investigation will take time.

the american people can have confidence it will be fair, the rope and independence. over the course of that visit i had a chance to speak with a number of local residents. i heard from them directly about taken distrust that has hold between law-enforcement officials and members of that community. in meetings and listening sessions and as well as informal conversations people consistently expressed concerns stemming from the edge of -- instances and the lack of diversity on the ferguson, police force. stories show the distrust in ferguson that has shown a great deal of distrust. as a result of history and other available data. there isetermined cause for the justice department to determine whether ferguson

police officials have engaged in a pattern or practice a violation of united states constitution or federal law. the investigation will be carried out by a team by the special litigation section, same of the same dedicated professionals that have achieved historic results that have achieved historical policing from coast to coast. past five years the civil rights division has prosecuted over 300 individual -- individual misconduct investigations. that is more than twice as many in the previous five years and enforcing 14 agreements to reform law enforcement practices at agencies large and small. with these agreements we have seen traumatic decreases in acceptable uses of force him at witty in the delivery of police service, including port measures

and most significantly increased confidence by communities in the law enforcement agencies. of a retired police officer, i know the overwhelming to geordie of the great men and women in uniform do their jobs honorably with integrity and often at great personal risk. several -- civil rights divisions are meant to ensure law officers in every part of the united states live up to those same high standards of professionalism. in ferguson the investigation will assess the police department's use of force including deadly force and will analyze stops, searches and will examine the treatment of individuals detained at the ferguson jail. and it russian to other discriminatory techniques and tactics that have been brought to light. we have met with the mayor, city manager and the least chief in

ferguson. they have will -- welcomed the investigation and have pledged complete cooperation. the investigation will be conducted rigorously and in a timely manner so we can move forward as expeditiously as possible to restore trust, understanding and to foster cooperation in tremont enforcement and community members. at the same time, i want to make very clear that as this investigation unfolds and devolves, we will follow the facts of the wall wherever they may lead. if that's any point we find reason to expand inquiry to forces additional police in neighboring jurisdictions, we will not hesitate to do so. in fact, i can also announced today above and beyond the investigation in ferguson, we are taking proactive steps to encourage -- engage the st. louis police department for what is known as collaborative reform effort.

this is being led by the cops office working closely with officials to conduct a comprehensive assessment. the st. louis county police chief has voluntarily accepted the reform process and has also they conduct an after action report on their response to recent demonstrations. already with the cooperation of the st. louis county leaders we have identified priority areas for intensive review and technical assistance including racial profiling on the stops, searches and frisking cometh the handling of mass demonstrations by police officials and law thercement training at police department and continuing professional level. st. louis county administers training programs for officers including members of the police department. it makes sense to include the county police department as part of the comprehensible approach to confronting the challenge we have seen in the region.

i want to be clear, this is not a stopgap or short term solution. it is a long term strategy founded on community policing that will provide a very detailed roadmap to provide trust, bolster public safety, ensure accountability and change law-enforcement agencies implement policies and forge community partnerships. our track record proves such efforts to reform the leasing practices can be tremendously successful. the copsple, in 2012 office and las vegas metropolitan police department completed an eight month review similar to the collaboration policeith the st. louis department. the las vegas review resulted in 70 five findings and concrete recommendations regarding officer involved shootings and other use of force issues. to date, 95% of the beenmendations have

adopted. agencies and other jurisdictions are going through similar processes as we speak. when i visited ferguson two weeks ago i promised the united states department of justice would continue to stand with the people long after the headlines had faded. stay with our investigation into the police department and the reform effort in st. louis county we are taking significant steps toward keeping the promise. as these efforts unfold, my colleagues and i will keep working with the people of ferguson to and share -- ensure a fair investigation continues. to ensure lasting civil change that includes members of the public to bridge gaps and also tilde understanding. this will not do was be easy, but i know together we can and will meet the challenge. before we moved to questions,

there have been court decisions announced today in separate but very important cases for which i would like to briefly comment. first, we are pleased the district court in new orleans has found the largest oil spill in united states history was caused by bp's gross negligence and willful this conduct. the court findings will ensure that county is held fully accountable for recklessness. this case was vigorously pursued by the stellar legal team and the justice department continuing effort to seek justice on behalf of the american people for this disaster. we are confident this decision will serve as a strong deterrent to anyone attempting to sacrifice safety and the environment in the pursuit of profit. second, in ohio, the district for test held the plaintiffs challenging the state of ohio changes to the in person early voting rules likely will be able

to prove the challenges are in fact unconstitutional. the justice department has filed a statement of interest in this case. today's outcome represents a milestone in the effort to continue to protect voting rights, even after the supreme court deeply misguided decision in shelby county. am pleased to note today's decision and the analysis looks at some of the same reasoning that underpins the department's challenges of voting measures in texas and north carolina under section two of the voting rights act. as we move forward, my colleagues and i will continue to do everything in my -- our power to bring access and ensure every american can exercise his or her right to participate in assess,cratic unencumbered by unnecessary restrictions that discourage, discriminate or disenfranchise. with that, we would you more than happy to take your questions. attorney general, can you

give us a little more texture on why you decided to launch the investigation? you talk about review of documented allegations. give us the universe of what went into this. we looked at a number of things in our initial preliminary assessment and whether or not to open the investigation. it included not only discussions the attorney general had with residents of ferguson two weeks ago but also, other meetings of the civil rights division and other department of justice officials have had and we looked at department records and pieces of information that was available to make the decision this was an appropriate opening. metcivil rights department with city leaders yesterday and expressed a strong willingness to assist us and in fact, were extremely open to the investigation. so we will have cooperation from

residents. what public records? >> any number of pieces of information we looked at. public records related to cases that may have been filed by private litigants. any number of different things we looked at. >> mr. attorney general, what about your visit struck you to the point where you felt calm able to move forward with the investigation? and secondly, what do you say to supporters of the police that this investigation is premature and in fact, unfair? say as molly, the assistant attorney general said, the decision to go ahead was based not only on what i heard, which was fairly compelling, and there was a certain continuity in the similarities and the kinds of things i was hearing

with the traffic stops, revenue raising on the basis of traffic stopped. traffic stops that occurred in certain parts of the area, but edition to that and in response to the earlier question, there has been a review of documentary evidence indicating there are problems. i do not think there is any question that there is a basis to pattern of practice of investigation. so with regard to those that may be concerned that we are somehow being premature, all we are saying at this point is we are opening an investigation to see whether or not there are in fact problems. we havethe fact that pledges of local cooperation that there are issues felt at the local level indicating the need for us to work together to make the situation better. emphasize as i said in the prepared remarks, the vast who servef the people

the american people in a law enforcement capacity do so honorably and quite well. the vast majority of police departments do so quite well. but where we find problems, it is incumbent upon us given the statutory he sponsored ability to make sure we use federal law to make sure that in national curse. questionid there is no there is justification for opening it. it sounds like when we talk to people and read some stuff. but what specifically? are there cases specifically that predicated the opening of this? you sound to dismiss it when you say read a lot of stuff, but that is what we do. >> no question to you but for people who do not know what you read and what you look at, what specifically have you seen? getting into more specifics, but there are for

righty of documents that are contained in the public record that exists about the percentages of stop that occurred that involves certain ethnic group and whether they are consistent with the number of people who make up the population. >> i think it is important to note that these are just facts we have gathered. these are just investigations we started today. now we will do a lot of the evidence gathering in cooperation with the ferguson police department and city leaders, which will include any number of ways to talk to people and gather evidence directly from the police department, said today is really the first step in the investigation. what went into the decision to open a pattern of practice investigation against the police

department would not to do the same with regard to county police? center office has already been advising the county police for some weeks now, do you see potential for conflict moving forward with them looking and working with the county police? so over the past several weeks we have received a lot of information from residents and other places that cause us to think there was a potential pattern of practice of unconstitutional policing and that in combination with the local government to work with us cause the open pattern of practice investigation. that is not to say that if we determined there are facts of other jurisdictions nearby or to the county, we reserve the right to expand the pattern of practice investigation to other jurisdictions, including the county. at this point given the county is training given that ferguson

police department, we felt the assistance that the cops office provide would be an appropriate first step for the county. ron can speak to that. >> we have started the technical assistance a couple of weeks ago. the collaborative reform process is a form of technical assistance so we will build on that. we have initial consultation and how they engage in community policing. this allows us to have in-depth assessment, identify deficiencies and how to advance policing for the county. the county voluntarily -- the county does not want to participate because they provide counseling for not all of the agencies in st. louis county. this will not only benefit st. louis county but the 50 plus cities because the technical assistance we provide, part of the agreement was to make it open to not only st. louis

county but the police agencies and did my conversation with the highway patrol, to the troopers as well. this is really about advancing community policing, technical assistance in doing so in a manner that does have an objective of independent assessment so we know exactly what we're doing. >> how concerned are you that in regards to the timing of the investigation that it could inappropriately influence the grand jurors that are looking at evidence and the michael brown are announcing the beginning of an investigation. one should not draw an investigation between what we is in thetoday process of considering. investigationn going on into the shooting. i think these are separate matters. i work with the grand jury myself as a prosecutor. i know the grand jury has the capacity to keep separate those things that should be a part of

their consideration. i am confident this will not have an impact on the grand jury process. >> can i ask you since we are talking about the civil rights division about an investigation into another shooting, rasul -- racial incident. a big announcement you made arts ago about the trayvon and shooting. have you ever finished that civil rights investigation? are you ever going to finish that? >> that investigation is ongoing in anticipation of that question. where do we stand. that matter is ongoing. there are active steps we are still in the process of taking. there are witnesses who we want to speak to as a result of recent developments. that's matter is still under way. -- that matter is still under way. >> what day did that happen? seemsrguson police chief

to believe you are investigating as well the hiring practices. unless i missed it, i do not see it anywhere in your statement. are you looking at hiring practices? >> that was part of intake over the last several weeks. the pattern and practices investigation will cover four areas. one will be use of force, excessive use of force. the second will be stopped searches and arrests. we will look at the manner in which the ferguson police treated detainees in jail. >> so hiring will not be part of that? >> not part of our initial assessment, but we can include that if we find there are potential issues there. >> why would that not be a logical complaint, given that

the community is 2/3 black? >> those numbers do not prove there is discriminatory policing . it is one of the factors we will consider if we need to expand the investigation. >> can you talk about the general timeline? >> what can you tell us about the investigation into the chicago police department? many investigations of police departments. what can you tell us about one, both about police shootings? the fbi is involved, civil rights. can you bring us up to date on what is going on in chicago? to mydo not -- understanding, we do not have an open investigation into the chicago police department. >> what about other police investigations by the department of justice? any opennot have

investigations into the chicago police department as far as i can do. >> do you have a response to the shooting that would make that part in necessary for a civil rights investigation? the cops office review in terms of training and whatnot. was there anything that would drag any of the police response to the protests into the pattern and practice investigation or is that not on the table? practicettern and investigation will be in the four areas i outlined. we will examine all the facts we find, including the response to the protests and although it is important to note the county afterted and provided an action review of the demonstrations and responses to demonstrations. one clarifying point, if i

may, before the next question. you mentioned about training aspects. it will go after more than training. we will look ating to officers, community member summit leaders, which will be more conference it. along the way if we something that needs referred, we will work closely with our system components and will pass the information forward as necessary. this was at the request of the st. louis county police chief. >> hold a minute. one thing to make clear, as i -- we willthe fact let the facts and the law take us where is appropriate. in response to the question, that was raised about diversity, if we have a basis to believe that part of the issues out there is a lack of diversity on the police force, that is

something we will look at and make recommendations with regard to. this is something we have done in other jurisdictions, and this would not be something that is off the table in our examination in ferguson. >> [indiscernible] >> how long in terms of the length.e-- average decree the desired end result to the investigation, or there are other outcomes? >> the timing can vary depending on the level of cooperation we get with the jurisdiction. historically, they have taken months, not weeks, sometimes longer than months. but there is no set deadline and there is no standard time period. it depends a lot on the level of cooperation we received from locals, and in this case at the atset they have expressed

willingness to be corporative. in terms of remedies, the consent decree is one remedy that could be achieved, but there are any number of from these that also are available at the end of an investigation. >> general holger, as you know there was discussion about the timing of your visit to ferguson. do you think you would have arrived as quickly to this decision without that visit? >> it is an interesting question. i think the trip was invaluable from my own perspective to have obtained in a very personal way a sense of what the situation interacting with residents of ferguson, by speaking to the investigators who are involved in the ongoing investigation. i think that is certainly at least for me, sharpened my own

sense of what was going on there and the potential need for that which we are announcing today. so i think that this it certainly influenced the decision that we made today and are announcing today. >> the next question. --in your discussions with one thing you heard is there are a lot of different jurisdictions around the area. you walk a couple blocks away where brown was shot -- likely, but there is a certain, i feel certain that we will be doing an examination in some form or fashion with regard to those other police forces. whether or not the pattern and practice thing expands into other jerks addictions, we will have to see. there are still questions that

in some fashion we will be at what those police departments are doing. >> doesn't make sense having som many municipalities in that area? could there be a potential for united police force under one shield? >> we will have to see what what ouron -- examination uncovers and what recommendations we're going to make. i am sure given the interest that those people on the local scene have expressed, those are the kinds of questions i would assume they are asking themselves as well. >> we had the brutal killing of another american journalist this week. we are one week out from the 9/11 anniversary. with all the activity in syria, foreign fighters, questions about al qaeda, how would you assess the current threat in

front leading up to 9/11? ofwe are not in possession any credible information that would evidence a threat to the homeland. there also cognizant of situation as it exists in the middle east now, threats that have been made and that our allies in the u.k. are dealing with and we are very sensitive to that and to the extent we find anything, we will take the appropriate action. we are not in possession at least at this point of any specific credible threats to the homeland. >> one more question. do you have an indication of how many americans could be denied the right to vote coming the midterm elections? >> i think that is hard to quantify. but in light of the fact that one of the -- the primary reason for these new voting -- what i

would call voting restrictions, to be put in place is the notion of voter fraud. given the fact there is no quibble indication that we are dealing with that kind of problem, the question really becomes why put these measures in place. not opposed to all kinds of voter identification, and this notion that somehow we think people can walk up and vote -- no, it is a question of making sure the voting identification provisions that are in place to not discriminate, do not inhibit people's ability to do that which is most fundamental to this country. but it is hard to quantify exactly what the numbers are, but we have certainly should show in two cases we have -- certainly shown in cases we brought in tdistrict before they decision, that these kinds of measures have a negative impact

on the ability of certain communities to cast ballots. >> thank you. >> a couple more. >> the verdict from the virginia governor, bob mcdonnell, trial, he has been found guilty on multiple counts. do you have any reaction to share with us? >> i only heard about the fact that there was a verdict as we were coming in. i only found out that it was a guilty verdict on the basis of what he said that it was a case that was well tried in the eastern district of virginia and a case that was a properly brought. >> regard to isis there is a concern about americans going over there to join the fight its. iraq. is it that the u.s. knows the identity of the americans to have made it over there and left come back to the u.s.? guest: the fbi uses a variety of techniques to determine who is

here and interested in going to the middle east, syria, iraq, other places. we take -- we use a variety of techniques to identify people who are there. our best estimate is there are now 12,000 foreign fighters there, about a thousand europeans, maybe as many as 100 americans or so, and we're pretty good handle on who is there and also a good handle on who potentially might want to visit. we have brought a number of prosecutions, we have a number of ongoing investigations in that regard. and we are doing everything that we can to ensure that anybody who is intent on supporting isil, either from the homeland or to go to the middle east and potentially to come back and do harm to our country, is monitored, is held accountable, and is prevented from doing so. >> the investigation of the

what is being done regarding these two journalists that were as given by isis? can you give us a sense of what the government a response is, the fbi, the brothers sense -- the broader sense? what can be done given the chaotic situation over there? >> there is an ongoing fbi investigation that had been when these journalists were hostages. so now that has been transformed. been investigations have obviously been transformed into homicide investigations, what we are working with the intelligence community in the united states, with our allies to try to determine who the we saw ons were who the states. i am confident we will be able to make identifications in that regard, and then people that were involved in those instances and who are presently engaged in holding americans or citizens of

our allied nations are going to be held accountable. i want to be very clear. i speak a member now as a national security team, not as attorney general. we look take those legal steps that we can, but we will use all american power we can to hold people accountable. that means using the resources from the department of defense as well as the department of justice. since attorney general, you are here talking to us journalists, i want to ask you about another fellow journalist. the continuing to prosecute that case where you said you do not want a journalist to do jail as long as you are attorney general. why not drop the case? >> i do not want to comment too much on what is an impending case, but i will say i think the case was appropriately charged. it is a case that we intend to cease through to the end -- to

see through to the end. and we will do with the issues that you raised in an appropriate way. and consistent with what i've said on a number of occasions, on which he just spoke. >> with regard to ferguson, just a second, we've had the trayvon martin shooting, this incident in ferguson. as you look over your tenure in in unitedof policing states, give us your sense of what you think about race and policing in this country. where do we need to go on that issue? iswell, i think that there the need for -- and we always say this -- i have said this starting in 2009, i think maybe, in the great hall, talking about the need for a conversation in this country about race. i think there's still the need. but we need to go beyond that. and we need to come up with arerete ways in which we

going to move this country forward and deal with these issues. understand that there are communities who feel discriminated against. they are bases for that sense of alienation. we have to come up with concrete ways in which we're going to do with that. and law enforcement is just a part of the larger society. now, there are flashpoints that, thatvery now and again i think point to problems with to do with, but i want to make clear the vast majority of people who are in law enforcement, leased departments do their job in a way -- police department do their way in the job we expect. to the extent there are problems we as a society need to have the guts to say we are going to identify this as a problem, this is a deficiency in our country, and we are going to make it better. that is what makes this country exceptional. the fact that we recognize issues, deal with them, and move r to thentry close

ideals that founded america in the first place. >> all right, thank you. thank you for coming. eric holder answering questions on a broad range of issues. specifically announcing a justice department probe into the missouri -- ferguson, missouri, police department. we are opening up phone lines on c-span to hear your thoughts on what the federal role is in the aftermath of the shooting of michael brown on august 9 in ferguson, missouri. here's how to join the conversation. you can join us on facebook as well and on twitter. comments on facebook. stick a couple of those.

he this is one -- this is one from rosie. among the other issues the attorney general was asked about, there is a verdict in the corruption trial of former virginia governor bob donnell. here's the headline on "the washington post" this afternoon. but donald guilty of 11 counts of corruption. the reporting says if federal jury today found former virginia governor robert mcdonnell and his wife maureen guilty of a public corruption, saying they had a message selling the office

to a freespending richmond .usinessman an more on that later. let's get your thoughts now on ferguson and the federal role in the aftermath of the shooting as doj announces a broader investigation into the police department. go ahead, democrats line. my question concerns what we know to be a fact in there isis that institutional racism throughout america. this is an employment, and interest, in judicial verdicts, and many other areas. why is it that we as a country cannot come up with concrete solutions to resolve these issues? i mean, this problem just did

not arise in ferguson. from 1852k at history from frederick douglass to many, manye are instances, thousands and thousands of instances of racism here in this country, and yet still everybody walks around like there is nothing like it's nothing. host: some thoughts on that from twitter. what is the federal role? end racism. democrats line, go ahead. you're on the air. go had with your comments. hi.er: from maryland, this is liz from the independents line. caller: hello. i'm grateful that the attorney

general and the federal government are doing a good job in looking into the ferguson situation. actually, these types of police discrimination is an occurrence in every state throughout the country. it is not just ferguson. he goes on everywhere. most of the incidents are not reported because a lot of these counties, as in ferguson, they do not have oversight or any type of civilian boards where the actual citizen can go and complain about issues with the police harassment. also, i have been complaining for years about these government surveillance programs which really is the major benefactor in a lot of this police arrests, recent police arrests, because they have these suspicious activity reporting programs that target, unfortunately, minority communities, and that is a

complaint on c-span. host: thanks for your call. here is what the justice department is doing. department move marks a significant expansion of the national -- a federal scrutiny into please contact in person them following the august 9 shooting of michael brown by darren wilson. the department is conducting a probe to determine whether the officer violated mr. brown's right. now the civil rights division will begin a probe that a single action probe will be investigated, and it will cover the entire police force. clio, democrats line, hello. caller: hello. yes, sir. i believe that the role of the federal government in ferguson max.d be totally to the we need to get some more justice

in ferguson, not only for what happened to michael brown, but there are complete -- but their complete revamp the way the is -- the way it is administered in person. our mayor has taken a different approach on police over the last couple of years. i think it is working well, working better than i have ever seen it. host: what is your mayor doing in birmingham? caller: he has got a community policing program for us. , citizen onols petrol programs. we police our own communities. i think that resonates with the community. host: this is illinois, independent line. watched the i ferguson rampage, whatever you want to call it, and i think if sharpton, jesse jackson, and

holder kept their noses out of that we would not have the problem. we have people stirring up the mess, and then do not doing anything that is sitting in mexico, the sergeant, and they do not do nothing. out government does nothing to bring him home. out tocan get one run five of our worst -- out of guantánamo for a deserter, but we cannot save one soldier in mexico. what to doto do in in the wake of ferguson, with the justice department, announcing a broader inquiry into the ferguson police department. on twitter, lance says to find out why these folks trash their own neighbor heard when they are angry, it is not investigating the police. this one with a picture of the attorney general, and ferguson,

on one of his recent visits, holder announces a civil rights probe of the first employees. north carolina, democrats,' line. caller: how are you doing? host: fine. thank you. caller: i've been listening to all of the rhetoric that has been going on. the most important thing is even though a federal probe was -- came out there is all the things that have been going on for many among many years. this light at the end of holder's interview, the question was, what did he actually think about it, the thing about it is this has been going on for many, many, many years, and now all of a sudden, that everyone is starting to pay attention to it, which they should be because we have african-american president, i was concerned about it. a lot of people did not understand when you are in a certain community, the black

community, white community, it does not matter. at the end of the day, right is right for them to investigate the actual shooting is what should've been happening for any, many years. that is how i look at it. host: it sounds like the federal government, department of justice is investigating the shooting as well. today they are announcing a broader inquiry into the police department in ferguson. the best case scenario for you, what would you like to see come out of this federal investigation? caller: what i would like to see is first of all transparency. everybody letting know that notched because of a black community or the arab community with mexican community, it should be transparency throughout the police force period and throughout any justice system period. host: congress will be looking into the so-called militarization of police forces. a headline here from the st. louis post dispatch. mccaskill calls a hearing on

police militarization, blunt seeks aid for ferguson. california is next, they'll on the republican line. caller: it is interesting how quickly holder comes to the butue on a racial issue, have we heard anything on benghazi, the investigation, or the irs or fasting periods? -- or fast and furious? those potentially be to the president. it is interesting he has gone on tv and this is how we do with it, and he does not want to call it meant that to comment on ongoing investigations. host: the attorney general was asked about the murders of the two american journalists by isis. here's the independent in new york. caller: thanks for taking my call. i'm glad you pointed out the militarization of the police. i think that is one of the largest kings that the

government should be looking into. why was the pentagon supplying local militaries with armored humvees, with assault rifles, and my personal opinion is there is no need for that. the local police department has the kind of weber neary -- ta care of a peaceful protest. i would like to see the federal government starting up some educational programs for local police forces, how do you deal with peaceful protesters, how do we avoid tear gassing large groups of people, including children, civilian areas, things like that. want to see the shooting investigated, and it was an awful thing that happened to michael brown, and my condolences to his family. but even more so than that, i think that we need to be looking into why the police were militarized, why they received armored humvees, my the -- with this post

of force and why are the police not being educated without the the dealing with theseithout violence. host: mccaskill announcing the hearing on the ninth of september. stay close to the network or schedule information. a couple of tweets here, some congressional reaction. this is from new york city, commending the justice department for initiating a full investigation into the law-enforcement practices in ferguson. another saying i just got off the phone with the police chief who says he is looking forward to the doj probe. a few more calls here, waldorf, maryland, democrats line. caller: thank you for the call. host: go ahead. caller: yes. my wife and i, we were in st. louis on a national association of counties, county

-- onsioners, and we were the trip. before we got out of there, people were telling us watch your speed in that area because the cops will pull you over. host: tell us, where was this? farm, at the national associations of counties, county commissioners. going to the grant farm, and as we were writing, i was telling my wife, i said, watch your speed. she was going about the speed limit. we were going 25. the cop turned all the way back around and pull us over, asked my wife for their license. we had a rent-a-car, and we gave him the license and the rent-a-car certificate, and we

said, well, you got to follow us? we were not speeding. he took the wife's license. area,lowed us around this and i panicked, and my wife panicked, and where are we going? he took us to a police department and it looked like the trailer. if you've ever seen the andy griffith show, it looked like that. a little local jail? yes.r: i said what if -- my wife said what if we didn't have to pay them money to pay the $75 ticket and he said you would have to go to jail. the young lady i'm the counter said you don't need your license will stop you need the license for the flight act home. she said you wouldn't need no license and i'm getting upset

, everybodystion is has been talking about st. louis. st. louis has that problem. we just got back from new orleans for the national association event. it seems like everything takes lays there. you can see the young lack man hear people you talking about the same thing, the racial profiling, how they're not being cheated -- not being treated fairly. we are going to take one more call from james on the republican line. how are you doing today? it looks bad when eric holder spends tens of thousands of dollars to go someplace and i

feel sorry for the family's son who got shot. ongoing investigation and everybody wants an answer today. everywhere you go, it takes time to get the evidence together and it looks awfully bad when he's in there with nothing but that family. what about the police officer and his family? he has been convicted already in the public eye. he has been convicted and he's going to have to move. his family is not safe and they don't even have the evidence altogether. racist, him look like a it absolutely makes it look like he went down there to join jesse jackson and al sharpton. we need to move on. i remember morgan freeman on tv one time talking about racism asked morganace

freeman -- is there racism in mississippi and he says sure. he said what do you think we need to do to help curate and he said quit talking about it. in and rubbing it rubbing it in and making it worse than what it usually is. host: thank you for your comments about the comments this afternoon. your comments continue to be welcomed on our facebook age. the news from richmond this afternoon about the corruption trial of former virginia governor of mcdonnell -- here is the headline. mcdonald guilty of 11 of 13 counts and his wife nine of 13. we will hear more about that later. later this afternoon at 5:45 eastern, we will take you to a discussion on the war on terrorism which will feature a host of former counterterrorism advisers from the george w. bush administration and obama administration from the mccain

institute for international leadership. more campaign 2014 coverage coming up tonight -- this is the california abutters debate between governor jerry brown and neil cache kari. that live here on c-span. we continue with campaign coverage from connecticut next on c-span, debate between incumbent dan malloy and ambassador tom foley. the debate was moderated by ray hackett and touched on a number of issues including ethics, guns, and crime. the poll currently has the ambassador up by a couple of points over the incumbent governor. >> let me start by just saying welcome governor malloy and tom

foley, please. [applause] it is hot. if you want to remove the jackets, we can. wetleman, before we start, ladies and gentlemen, this is a very important part of the program. each of you have 25 minutes to use at your discretion and each of you will have your own timer. andrtunately joe biden chris christie were unavailable tonight. so we have a couple of bullets and colonists for timers. he will be your timer and will keep you abreast of what your time is. ambassador foley, he will be your timer and he has cards to keep you abreast of how you're

doing on your time. with that said, good evening, gentlemen. let's get started. we are not going to decide this race tonight. what i would like to do tonight if possible is set the framework by identifying those issues with what will be the framework and the tone of this campaign. note, does character count? you have suggested in the past that ambassador foley has not always been truthful. ambassador foley coming you have said the appearance of unethical they veer on the part of the governor. question. do you believe ambassador foley is dishonest and ambassador believe theu governor is dishonest?

>> i think that records are important. what people have done in the past in their professional and political lives is important. the the voters decide what is most important. i think lots of things get commented on, but in connecticut, we are making progress, we are moving forward. we should be proud of that. i'm proud to talk about connecticut a strong fashion, how far we have come and how far we have yet to go. people will make predictions based on our recor and i

suppose it will be discussed. >> i think is extremely important, both truthfulness and integrity, which is related to ethics. state, ther of any governor of connecticut is the single most important person having an impact on the people's lives in the state. i think it is critical to that role and to leadership that the a person who is trusted both in what they say, that what they say is factual, that what they say does not missed represent the truth or misrepresent the situation. i have talked about malloy math because i think the governor and his staff have repeatedly tried to distort what is going on in the state and we will talk about that tonight. ofhink that is a lack truthfulness that discredits a leader. i think ethics is extremely if thent because

citizens don't believe their government is serving their interests and representing them well and there are deals being done for pals and money is being spent for insiders that the take policy and the government is not serving the interests of ordinary everyday citizens, that lack of public confidence compromises someone's ability to leave. i think both are absolutely essential. i don't recall the governor say that i thought -- they thought i did not tell the truth. i have questions for the governor ethically. i think they will be important issues to the campaign. >> let me remind everybody there are three of us on the stage and only one of us has violated the law in connecticut with respect to elections and paid a fine this year because of that.

i think you are absolutely right. history is a precursor to the future. with respect to the issues we will debate back and forth, i want to be very clear that i don't think you have told the truth about it. you never did and i don't think you're telling it as of today. >> let's move on. this race is gaining national attention. quite a bit of rest in the back row. largely because of the gun issue. i would like to spend a minute or two looking at that. here is a question i have not heard either one of you address. in february of this year. 200 citizens reminding them or informing them that their application to register their assault weapon or high-capacity magazine was rejected.

we have a list. names, addresses, we know how -- what weapons and how many. we also have a law that says if you're in possession of unregistered weapons, it's a felony. are we going to enforce that law? >> i think we are enforcing the law. a number of those issues were resolved. i did not know you were going to ask that question and i don't have an exact number for you. >> 208. >> let me be very clear. i believe no person with a felony should be able to buy a gun in connecticut. i believe that everyone should be subject to a background check. if i can't get on a plane without someone doing a background check on me, i don't think that should be having

people have background checks -- buying guns without background checks. some of those folks have mental illness, some of those folks have recent -- this is unbelievable. they have recent domestic orders against them and they were trying to buy a gun. i believe we save the life and i think that legislation is important. what we've done is make connecticut safer. i can point to real statistics. crime is down. homicides are down. only the fourth time in 45 years that homicides have been less than 100 and they are at 83. and this very year we are sitting on the stage, we are running at the same rate we were last year.

making schools safer and teachers safer. >> you will not seek a repeal of this law and you see no reason to try to spend time changing it. so would be safe in assuming that if you get elected, you take the oaths of office and uphold the laws in the state of connecticut, you will enforce the law and get those guns? >> afore we answer that, let me talk about guns because this is important. we have a terrible tragedy in this state in the news around the world. i consider the state part of that community. we are deeply affected by that. there is a response from the

government and the leadership. i said to governor malloy, please respond to this, the needy citizens in the state that want something done. the governor did not do that. and he didn't do things to prevent another new town from happening. i don't think we are safer based on the bill that he passed. i don't know what his motive was for overreaching, possibly a progressive agenda he is trying to experiment with and maybe there are other issu at hand. this was so overreaching that it went way beyond what would have been an apsponse. you asked him about law-abiding

citizens that were interested in self protection. you say if you don't do something within two or three months, you will be a felon. what were you thinking? that aspect of the law i would change. law-abiding citizens were responsible people, and flip something on them so there is something they did in the past that turns them into appellant is simply unacceptable and is not good leadership and his grandstanding. >> you're only taking time away from the candidates will give you plenty of time to clap at the end.

there are 200 citizens sitting up there and they know they are on a list. they know that they can show up at their door at any moment with an arrest warrant. don't they deserve to know what you're going to do? maybe they are law-abiding. maybe they got rid of them. i am happy to get you an update on what those numbers are and if some of those folks have rectified the situation. i can't drive a car without a license. i can't sell insurance without a license. tom and i haven't had a conversation about this issue ever. so when tom says he's telling me something, he's not telling the truth.

if we had a conversation, i would have asked you should a person be able to buy a gun without a background check? should a person be able to buy a gun without a background check? yes or no. >> no. >> should a person with a mental illness be able to buy a gun without a background check? >> it would depend on theseveris and with the diagnosis was. >> what about someone who has a recent order against them? a protective order? >> you want to go over the whole bill? >> it's the first opportunity they have had to ask you. >> the things we say that we are interviewed in the press are available in the press. if you're not looking at it, your staff can tell you i did tell you this. >> you admit we never had a conversation? >> we have conversations all the time in the press. >> ladies and gentlemen, it's

about these two guys. it give them the respect and let them have this conversation so that we are better informed. >> to go one step further, there is an organization that has or is about to endorse tom foley for governor. on the basis of his gun position. the president of that organization said that they had that discussion with tom foley where he says they would sign an appeal of that legislation i have heard tom say that they would consider signing an appeal. let me be very clear. if an appeal comes to mean, i will never sign a repeal. i will have a discussion about how to make that law better and the discussion how to make it work easier for folks. it has led to lower crime, fewer homicides, safer schools, teachers, administrators, they will be very clear.

>> this is where you're twisting the truth again. what i said is that if the legislature handed me a repeal provision, i would sign it. that's not saying i would seek repeal of the bill. i have looked at what it would take to be able to pardon anybody who was pursued for one of these felonies and the governor doesn't pardon people directly but he appoints commissioners to the pardoning board. if i am governor, if anybody is pursued under this law for not having registered a firearm, i will make sure they are not prosecuted. >> you clearly didn't read the legislation that governs -- or the provisions that govern pardons.

you have to be really specific about this stuff. you should tell us about the other litmus tests that you have at some point. you accuse people of a career politician. that and jesus gave was a career politician answer. i don't know if it will get to me, but if it gets to me i will sign it. it get it done, have it get before me. which is a very different position. >> will you get your questions in today? the governor talked about crime rates. violent crime rates have gone down across the country. we have three of the top six

cities with the highest crime rates in the country. hartford and new haven. for the governor to be going around saying that crime is low and not a problem is insulting to those communities. we have to get crime rates down. people are afraid to leave their homes at night. young people are being shot and killed and businesses are being affected. the governor says everything is fine with crime. >> i did not say everything is fine with crime. that is why i was in new haven last friday with a mother who lost her son and her sister who had lost his son 10 years before.

that is why i am encouraging communities to be reinvested in community police. something that is leading to a larger drop in crime for the national average. that is why we rot project longevity which are leading in the klein -- the decline in the national average. we are down for the fourth time in 45 years and we are going to do it again this year by all reports. that is real progress and i am proud of it. we are proud of the efforts they are putting in to make schools stronger and make housing stronger. if you want to know what causes crime, it's the failure in many cases of public housing project that we are allowed to deteriorate to become really dance. -- dense. i get excited about the possibilities of connecticut. if you want to lead with the fact that those communities have

high crime, i understand that. but they're also dropping that crime very substantially. the mayor of new haven, the mayor of bridgeport, they should be proud. >> the governor describes progress which i would not consider progress. we're the only state that has three cities in the crime rate statistics. >> they were tops before i was governor. >> we can move onto the next one. education. i think i received more e-mails from people that wanted me to have you folks talk about education. you have criticized this administration for education funding based on a percentage of the overall budget over these

four years. if you look at the actual dollars being spent, it has increased each year. why do you feel that the percentage of education funding is more important than the actual dollars? >> it shows the commitment and priority of the governor. he has failed to do anything about state spending so it is skyrocketing. he squandered the tax increase that he put on connecticut citizens in 2011. we are already spending more than that. if they are slowing down in terms of the rate of growth, it is less of a priority for you than the things you're speeding up. i look at performance. in the performance in our schools is actually dropped. i was the one who started

talking about the need to fix schools in 2010. we have the largest achievement gap. it is simply inexcusable. the assessments used to measure the achievement gap, on one of them we approved -- improved and others we got worse. we have slipped. we will get real performance. they initiated real education reform and were eight best in the nation and we were six. since then, massachusetts is going to number one. we have lost further ground under governor malloy and this will be a top priority. the promise of america is fairness.

an opportunity. they are not getting a decent education. the level of funding has decreased. >> if your plan to control state spending is to keep funding level for the first two years, how do you correct what you obviously see as a problem of the percentage of money going to education? >> you have to have smarter policies. not all things that affect educational outcomes cost money.

some of these are policy related. he is doing things that basically don't work and we know from the experience of other states, they don't work. other things have been done in other states that do work that he is not doing. as a measure of the priority that he places. >> i sense that you have something to say. >> i do. we haven't heard a specific proposal on education. and we have this kind of convoluted argument about whether we are spending the same percentage or a higher percentage.

to get to the number you get to, you are including all of the additional money coming to connecticut. not for education, primarily medicaid, but 500,000 people that the state cares for because of mental illness because of age and disease. you are including all of that. in fact, the average increase -- we have found hundreds of millions of dollars to send to school districts. let me say what we are doing. we are working with the school to turn it around. the principles, the boards of education, a complete teacher bias. to make sure that school does things better and has the resources necessary to turn itself around. it is paramount for success in

school. we created a thousand additional spots. in the state of connecticut, they would not have a prekindergarten experience. we know what works in education. thousands and thousands of teachers and parents would've lost their jobs. last size would balloon. the new haven community that you say that you care about would be hit the hardest. we are doing things to turn education around. that is why we now rank number one in reading. that is why we now rank number one tied with two other states.

and the number of students taking advanced placement tests and their performance including 13.5% of those people that come from poor backgrounds. i am proud of that, i am proud i am proud of that, i am proud graduation rates have gone up every single year since i have been governor. i am proud of the progress we are making that the kids are making and that the administrators are making and that the board of education are making. this is important stuff. if you want to talk about economic development, it's not overnight. it's built line by line, career by career. school by school. that is what we are doing. >> let me stay on that point if i can. your education reform has had some serious pushback. how much of that do you attre