other candidates. after, wallace loh. "washington journal" is next. >> good morning it is debate night tonight on c-span. our 2014 coverage to bring you more than 100 debates for control of congress and the state. debate, virginia senate on c-span2 you can watch the , andn you senate debate chewed into c-span3 if you want to watch the message use its governor's debate, and at 9 p.m. will show you the north carolina senate debate.

we will begin with campaign 2014 and the tone of this election cycle. what is it like in your state? >> you can send us a tweet or join the conversation on facebook. start dialing in now. "the national journal" has this headline on their website. not, politicalr ads have been more negative than ever. a recent study shows that an u.s. senate races, 55% of ads over the last two weeks were onlyive, which means they criticize the opponent, another 17.5% were contract ads, ads

that mentioned both the opponent and the sponsored favorite candidate. as for gubernatorial and house races over that. frome than 40% negative the new york times this morning, evidence suggests the democrats have an edge in the battle for the senate. column" bye upshot nate:. hen.ate coe writes, the party is benefiting from running more effective campaigns. democrats have an edge on the air with ads, with one notable exception, and a significant advantage on the ground contacting voters in some of the years most crucial contest, according to the most recent wave of data.

whether recent advertisements made them more or less likely to spur a candidate, whether they have been contacted by either campaign or whether what they had heard or read made them feel better or worse about candidate. those are questions for you this morning. what is the tone like in your state. what are you hearing? do you like the ads? upshot column they say, by these measures, they're fighting in iowa, kentucky, louisiana, and georgia where neither party has a decided advantage on the air or on the ground. republican campaigns appear to be underperforming either on the ground or in the are in michigan, north carolina, kansas and colorado. jim in delaware, republican, what is it like?

caller: good morning. in delaware you don't realize there is a campaign because we don't have local media. " is wilmington news journal not even in the state anymore. there is not that much coverage. we don't have any tv stations in delaware. that i findadio difficult to listen to. host: what is that mean? caller: delaware is a one-party state in recent years. everybody thinks like chrysler, gm and dupont will come back and , and people jobs tend to vote democrat of the northern part of the state and suffix county where they vote republican. newcastle has such a majority of in the sayvoters

white race, since we only have one representative it always goes democrat. it hasn't created that much attention. chris coons is running for reelection. and a guy who lives -- runs down the street from me is running again against them. as a republican and a repot -- are dominantly democratic area district, are you motivated to vote? vote, but iways ,now that in delaware, lately you are stuck. there are only one or two republicans in the state assembly and the state senate. everything toted do away with the republican state senators that we had. in histle enclave i live republican and most of my

friends -- friends are republican so we feel like we are here and there are more than one of us. democrat and a columbus, ohio. what is it like? the problem here is the people are kind of jaded. you have long lines and everything. people just come out and vote for the president. it is hard to get people to want a reversed there is depression thing where they are cutting back voting days. we have turner running here for secretary of state, trying to tackle that problem, but trying to get people to turn out. you get excited about what is going on. some things don't change no matter who you vote for. and theyd for obama

won't go out and wait because obama is not even on the ballot. seeing on the you ground to get people to turn out and vote? what is a democratic party doing? caller: i haven't seen nothing on the ground. columbus, ib of haven't seen nothing on the ground. i'm very political, i watch c-span, and i don't see the average person -- even in the out. people are just tuned host: as a democrat, do you think president obama is a drag on the other democrats? i think the media has been complacent in letting people that down talk obama --

all these conferences and all these things, it is amazing how the country has turned around since obama has taken office, but the media are complacent and letting the people drumbeat all the bad news and try to put this guy down because they don't want him to be president. it is hard to explain, i think will look at we this in history as the dark age of american politics and people in history won't think it's because of the color of the president, but the complacency that has come over american politics. and the end of respect for the presidency. of you, are asking all the tone in the campaign of your state, what is it like? a lot of negative ads, what sort of ground game are you seeing? we want a feel for that across the country. with four weeks to go, for

control of the congress. the senate is up for grabs. this is from the pew folks -- gallup excuse me. the vote is similar to 2010. voters, use of the midterm election, are they sending a mac shouldn't -- a message to the president. said in these midterm elections that they will send a message of support to president obama. 32 percent sent a message of opposition and 40% said, not sending a message at all to this president in the election. kathy in california, republican caller. race is pretty much a blue state, so there hasn't been a lot of campaign commercials that have been terrible, but you guys air them and it is sad. i think the reason they get away justit is that americans

don't think on all sides of issues or really think deeply about things and that is why they get away with these negatives. like the one with my call -- mcconnell and grimes? host: yes. caller: there is one where she was accusing him of voting to cut 20% of medicare, but the truth was it was a procedural vote in the time, it was in the house and the a final vote and it got two or three pinocchio's -- anyway, if people could look at all sides of things, another example is that i watch you guys all the time, and mostly everything will show, a few people calling and talk about well, the republicans got whenher and they all said obama got elected, we will do everything to stop his plans -- then they call with this appalled voice.

you think about someone having that kind of emotion, your appalled if there are razor blades and candy with halloween coming up, or something along those lines, but in order to have that emotion, when that -- some that those guys of the leadership got together and said that amongst themselves , in order to be appalled, that means you're not thinking it through. that means that you believe that in the past when reagan was in and bush was in, that the democrats in congress didn't get together and say to themselves, while let us halt as much as we can of what reagan wants to do. on the campaign ads, you refer to the kentucky senate race, recent polls show that grimes is up over mitch mcconnell.

i'll show you the recent ads from that state to give you a flavor of what people are seeing. here is a mcconnell at attacking his opponent. [video clip] >> i am mitch mcconnell and i approve this message. >> would you serve for four years if you win? >> sound familiar? broke their grimes promises to campaign for higher aomises area do each had little experience and stopped showing up for work. grimes still takes her tax year -- taxpayer-funded salary. allison grimes, and add from mitch mcconnell attacking her and her record. here is her ad attacking mr. mcconnell. [video clip] >> i approve this message. first we learn mitch

mcconnell skipped hundreds of community meetings. he didn't show up to vote on true funding and the v.a. but found time for a lobbying fundraiser and two tv shows. he skipped the meeting on rural jobs but took the chinese vice president for great achievements. the rest of the time he created -- gridlock. 30 years is long enough. host: that was grimes at against mitch mcconnell. living you an idea of the tone and that senate race. for more of our coverage, go to the website www.c-span.org. of you to getll an idea of what it is like in your state. to show you from "the washington times" this morning. this is coming from a video released by project veritas.

features party and coney based campaigners for mrs. grimes saying, once she is elected she won't be beholden to the coal industry which is treasured in appalachia. i really don't think her heart is 100% and backing coal, but she has to say she is because she will not get a huge number of votes in the state if she doesn't. she has got to get in there first and say what ever she has to say, that is the way the political game is played. mrs. grimes has gone to great lengths to be that claim. she will not stand up to president obama or the epa. the video itself includes a clip of mrs. grimes offering to stand up and fight for what keeps the lights on in kentucky. goes on to say that the campaign could not be reached.

kentucky continues to ignore the poll that puts her up by two points with four weeks to go until election day. what is it like in louisiana? caller: it is crazy. it is wild out here. her opponent is attacking her because the ads are crazy because they say she supported barack obama on everything, and my thing is, what is so wrong with supporting the president? together to get something done, what is so bad about that. it is crazy out here. it seems like it is getting more dirty. host: four weeks ago go, how many ads are you seeing? caller: every day, they are bombarded the television. a lot. host: does it help you decide?

you're calling on the independent line. caller: i have already made my decision, i'm going with mary whichare because i know you has done and i've seen her felt thed i also impact of what she has are ready done for the state. she has my support 100%. this other fellow can go on and quit. thank you so much i have never been on c-span before. kentucky, republican caller. caller: we are seeing a lot of races -- commercials like the ones between senator mcconnell and allison grimes. one thing that is disturbing isut this race between them

that she and her supporters continue to bring up china -- a thing that sheof is doing because senator mcconnell is married to a woman who is a successful woman, but came from china as a refugee. i am getting sick and tired of minorityrats champion rice playing this racist game against senator mcconnell. it is unworthy of them. has been congressman promoting this and he is a disgrace. host: you think it can work in kentucky? caller: i think they think it -- they think kentucky is 93% white and they think they can play up to that, but people respect her service to her country as a former labor secretary, and senator mcconnell

-- if allison grimes's father is a former convicted felon -- if we want to keep going back-and-forth about people's relations we can do this all day long. michael, michigan, and color. what is it like? caller: basically the same as the rest of the country. the same. we the people have the power to stop this yet we are too preoccupied with our pets, with our iphones, with our professional hate media on cable-tv that divides us. that divides us into directions left and right when we have more in common than they want to admit. we have given away our power and given away our democracy and to the childish theatrics. you are calling on the

independent line, have you decided? caller: sadly i have and it is a sad choice. i'm going to vote for the democrat gary peters because the republican is taking millions of dollars from the koch brothers. what you think she will do if she gets elected? pollution,pport more more tax benefits for the rich and how much more are we, the middle class, going to put up with? timesfrom the new york upshot column, the republican disadvantage on the air and darkest in is it's michigan and kansas. voter say that what they've learned over the last few weeks has made them think worse of terry lynn land, the republican by a 22 point margin.

they say recent advertisements have push them toward mr. peters. democrat.iowa, caller: how are you today? host: go ahead. caller: it seems pretty ruthless here. you get the commercials and the ads on tv and then they get the robo calls. but i think here in iowa with the seasonal corn growing it will be a good race. i think i will go with the republican. host: you're going with joni, what do you like about her. a better opinion about the overall scope of how washington works. it is nice to have a small perspective but overall you need the big picture. republicans can be encouraged by data suggesting that democrats do not have a large advantage and voter contact and iowa, estate were

republicans lead in the balance of recent polls and where democrats are counting on strong mobilization effort. that from the new york times about iowa. like forou think it is the kentucky senate race and house races in your state? i don't think it makes much of a difference. saying, better to be the king maker than the king. behind -- the same money is behind both candidates, and i feel like the voter doesn't have a say so in much of anything. money and the people in power behind the candidates control who is going to get into office. the art of war says divide and conquer, and that is why they

pitch democrats against republicans. like jesse ventura said, they come before the cameras and liker, and argue and act they are sworn enemies, but behind the scenes they're going their dinner and getting act down -- you think there is no difference between senator mcconnell at his opponent? caller: they come on camera and make you think that. voter to think that they have a choice when they don't. the powers that be really control who will get an office. it doesn't matter who they put before the cameras. host: how will you vote? caller: i won't because it doesn't make a difference. there is a candidate in one there is all kinds of

evidence in voter fraud and the media won't pick it up, i can't recall which state it is, but it was so obvious it is not funny. in other news this morning, i want to go through headlines on same-sex marriage and what the supreme court decided not to do. the high court stepped aside. rather than make a ruling a allowed rulings in lower courts to stand. that means in virginia, indiana, wisconsin, oklahoma and utah, five states for which federal appeals courts had struck down gay marriage bands, gay marriage is legal. the justices knew there decision would have greater repercussions. probablyeks, it will be in these other states. that will bring to 30 the number of states where gays and coveringcan marry, 60.3% of the u.s. population.

"the washington post" reported this, a gay marriage move is riling conservatives. a potential tea party senator called the court's tragic and indefensible. he goes on to say in the oppose same-sex marriage or preparing for the political equivalent of hand-to-hand combat. as a likely to act motivator of socially conservative voters in the next 29 days. "the washington post" goes on to say this, many conservative activists say they expect the high court to come down directly in favor of same-sex marriage, a possibility they compare to the roe v wade ruling in 1973.

taking these appeals from the states that are deeply conservative states is to kick the can down the road. there would be only one reason to do that. a statement put out by the organization reads, for candidates running in 2014 and those running for president in 2016, there will be no avoiding this issue. the supreme court planning a rove he weighed on marriage, it will reap a political whirlwind. today"is morning in "usa marriage ruling will affect 2016 but not 2014. millertement from martha in "usa today." and "the new york times" today, they will soon rule on other marriage bans including the united states court of appeals and the ninth circuit in san francisco which has jurisdiction

over nine states, five of which same-sex marriage bans. if that court rules in favor as expected, it will be allowed in 35 states. earlier effort to stop same-sex marriages in utah and virginia -- issued statements allowing them. sayingtorial page is "the same-sex marriage, washington post" says is another step toward equality. new york times says one step closer to marriage equality as well. they call on the court to take to make this affirmative one way or the other. "the wall street journal" says more marriage model in their editorial. they see the justice scalia has predicted events more accurately

in the chief justice. about 2014r calls and the tone, what is it like in your state? good morning bill what is it like in illinois? area, we get bombarded with negative ads with the governor and the candidate, and one representative. nothing but negative, negative ads. my thing is, since illinois is one of the worst financial states in the nation, i plan on voting against every incumbent in the state of illinois. i am sending a message of term limits. 70% of people in the united states want term limits. just vote out the incumbents. hampstead, north carolina,

democratic caller. what is it like? caller: the ads are very negative. i am a democrat and i tend to vote for kay hagan. the ads from tom tillis tend to think, maybeive, i because she is a woman and just a gentler person. her ads don't seem quite as bad. of ads attacking kay hagan. i live in a very republican area, so i'm careful with what i say, but i do try to support think thatbama and i democrats have done a good job with the economy and i think we

are not speaking often about that. host: are you getting out to help? to ar: yes, i have been calling bank, and an event, i work in the booth and people just walked on by. host: what is it like when you call people? caller: we only call democrats. i got positive reactions from democrats. what about independence? host: -- caller: no, we only call registered democrats in the campaign i've been working on. host: that is north carolina. by the way, the senate debate airing tonight on a clock p.m.

-- 9:00 p.m. this is one of the key races to see who controls the senate. tune in tonight to c-span. these debates having an impact on the races. host: high grade. republican caller. caller: the race here in kentucky has gotten pretty nasty. everybody wants term limits but the majority of what we are hearing set on the side is that people would probably vote for grimes if obama was in president. it seems like everybody thinks the democrat party is coaching her on what to say about the issues, and she rarely speaks publicly about it. party,t the republican cs have redesignated

$20 million for mitch mcconnell, i would say the as will get uglier. do you think there are some people who want to vote for allison grimes but it is a protest vote against obama? caller: i guess you could consider it a protest, it is more deciding they do not agree with anything that obama has done for the coal industry and our state. it feels like mitch mcconnell hasn't done enough for our state what they are scared to death that the dems get it and that more of us will be voting for whatever obama puts up his flagpole. how often, or had he been contacted at all by the republican party? host: -- caller: i've not been contacted one time by either side. host: just television ads then? caller: no mail programs or

anything like that. no phone calls. host: no mail? caller: no. host: this is the wall street journal this morning, senate race getting an infusion of cash. --ublicans have clear legs leads in three states held by democrats. they are defending seats of their own in georgia, kansas and kentucky. --reases in campaign can't contributions for senate republicans extends to individual races as well. in colorado, the republican senate candidate representative cory gardner raised about $4.4 million for the quarter that ended in september. it was able to finance last-minute campaign ads. television airtime is increasingly scarce and pricey. investmentsped up

in turnout, senate republicans say they will need outside groups to pick up the slack on some key battlegrounds. we will be talking to two of those outside groups coming up. "club for with .org"h" and then "moveon after that. robert, we just spoke to a republican from iowa, will you vote? caller: i already voted for bruce bailey. host: early voting? caller: yes. i am concerned about the country. has been bankrolled by the koch brothers. they don't live in iowa and they're using that money to get her elected. in america what we need is a living wage, and she believes we

should have a sub minimum wage. repeal healthould care -- obamacare and that is crazy. it is a stupid idea but from what i see they have stupid ideas and say i'm going to get the president. she says they should privatize pensions, and that is crazy because what would happen like said you might be able to have a 3% -- return that is notstment, even adjusting for inflation rates. you'll be going in the hall. she has a pension and i haven't say -- heard her say about -- that theyon should put taxes on those pensions -- or anything like

that. she's also against the epa and the department of education. she is wrong for the state of iowa. i hope people wake up, get out there and vote. we let these people in and we will be suffering for decades from what they will be able to do in the next six years. host: you said the koch brothers, their group is called "americans for prosperity." there is a piste in the washington post this morning about what they are doing in iowa. americans for prosperity are spending big on technology and outreach. voters, hitting the streets and going door-to-door to try to get voters out in that senate race. afp, which is expected to spend $125 million is expected to funnel have more than half of

its resources into ground organization with field staffers positioned in pivotal races across the country. ofspoke with the president afp, tim phillips to get an idea of the ground game and what they are planning here for this election cycle, go to our website in case you missed it. other news this morning. we will start with ebola. the u.s. is going to boost screenings from travelers to detect a bolla. president obama resisted calls for an all-out ban, but there will be a beefed up effort at u.s. airports to screen for travelers coming from those countries. fighting a bolla, researchers at protein sciences in connecticut, opened a refrigerator and pulled out genetic leftovers from a four year old project to create a vaccine for ebola.

they said funding dried up years ago but those refrigerated proteins jumped to the center of attention when national issues of health asked them to restart the work on a vaccine. that is happening in connecticut. that nurse in spain? that contracted ebola? the new york times reporting this morning that she was infected by a patient who would come from sierra leone. a priest. at --iest to die two da's two days after being flung back from spain and the nurse entered his room all the twice. including once after his death. that is the latest on ebola. [video clip] it is very important for estimate sure we are treating this the same way that we would treat any other significant national security threat. that is why we haven't all hands

on deck approach. health, to our development assistance and science teams, everybody is putting in time and effort to make sure we are addressing this as aggressively as possible. i know that the american people are concerned about the possibility of edible outbreak, and ebola is a serious disease. of people who are infected to carry that across borders is something that we have to take extremely seriously. time, it is important for americans to know the facts. the is that because of measures we have put in place, as well as our world-class health system and the nature of the virus itself, which is difficult to transmit, the chances of an outbreak in the united states is extremely low. yesterdayident obama

on the ebola outbreak and what the united states is planning to detect travelers coming from west africa. in other news you've probably heard about leon panetta's new former secretary of defense is expected to do rounds of interviews starting today as his book to her kicks off. it says in the new york times this morning, that it becomes the latest headache for a white house, that like other second term administrations, finds itself fending off friendly fire. vice president joe biden pushback when asked about the book gearing -- during his appearance. he says that it is inappropriate, at least give the guy chance to get out of office. that mr.n to say panetta sent a copy to the white house but only after it was finished.

he went through separate with the cia over classified information. the cia engaged in a vigorous tug-of-war and mr. panetta agreed to take out some of what the cia objected to but said that the tone and the story were not changed. >> that is from his book and you can expect more when he starts his rounds of interviews. in north carolina, what do you make of that senate race? -- we have kay hagan who according to the tillis commercials is in the pocket of the big pharmaceuticals and the medical insurance industries, she is a corporate puppet and her commercial say you can vote for tillis but he is the koch brothers. ands a mudslinging contest it is extraordinary.

we don't know, i guess we will just not vote. host: william in kentucky, democratic caller, what is it like? caller: let me start off by year coalt i am a 30 miner. i worked 30 years underground, and first of all those people that mitch mcconnell stands around in his commercials, those people are not all minors. you just don't get in the coal mines looking like that. something else i was wondering allison's parking spaces, does mitch even have a parking space in kentucky? someone is thing, going around taking down allison signs as fast as you can put ridiculous. it is

it shows you they will do anything to win. if we don't get mitch mcconnell out of there, kentucky is doomed. host: as a retired coal miner, what do you like? part,: it is not the cold t, i live on a fixed income and i wouldn't care to have the next for $10 on my electric bill if it would be spent cleaning coal to burn. i am against mountaintop removal and i think there should be deep care to payi don't extra, because my grandson will need water to drink and air to breathe. people need to get up and think about stuff like that. it is not just, make this dollar today. hell with tomorrow, we will make this dollar today. around here, i live

in a republican county and they vote against their own interests. it is disgusting. have been a lot of calls from some of these key battleground states. kentucky, iowa, we appreciate the phone calls. an idea of what is happening in colorado between the incumbent democrat and cory gardner the republican. this is "the denver post." women and the on u.s. senate race the sequel. if it were a movie, the set would be a gynecologist office complete with an exam table and a set of stirrups. pill.hood, abortion, the women's health issues have dominated the race ever since cory gardner gave up a congressional seat for the chance to unseat mark udall. the criticism that they would

outlaw abortion and ban certain forms of birth control. look at this yet -- add by senator mark udall. [video clip] >> i am mark udall. there is a reason women and families are front and center in this campaign. it is not just about respecting fundamental rights and freedom, it is that everyone deserves a fair's shot at it success. with affordable student loans, equal pay for women, and equal treatment. i approve this message because you have the right to make your own choices. you deserve your opportunity to succeed. that is the incumbent democratic senator mark udall in that race. take a look at his republican cory gardner's recent ad. [video clip] >> i'm cory gardner and i will tell you something you have never heard in a commercial. mark udall is a real nice guy.

he is a nice guy who never change the senate, he is the senate. he isrs in politics and two cousins your senators to. his dad even ran for president. my dad sells tractors just like my granddad and i am proud of that. let's shake up the senate. a little bit of the flavor of what colorado voters are seeing. a lot of attack ads by both sides in that senate race. we are getting your thoughts on the tone of campaign 2014. time for one more call. go ahead. i want to call and expressed my concern about getting kay hagan out. democratshearing wanting to vote somebody in and she has done nothing for the state. i don't know if it is the

liberals coming from up north to change the outlook on how it is been at how we've always stood on ground of working hard and it is time to do something better, but i think that tom tillis and washington and even myself as a i sit here and, i watch kay hagan on the news and i don't know how this woman think she can relate, anywhere or in any sense. host: are you going to watch the debate? caller: i definitely am. going back to last debate, tom tillis through a ballot point. kay hagan is lost her route and lost her outlook on what the state stands for. she follows obama on every issue. host: we will have that debate live at 9:00 p.m. eastern time on c-span. ,t will follow debate night

several different debate starting at 7:00 p.m. eastern. c-span with the west virginia senate race, c-span2 at 7:00 p.m. for the virginia senate race. if you're interested in the massachusetts gubernatorial race to into c-span3 at 7:00 and then c-span2 at 9:00 p.m. the arizona second district debate and the north carolina senate debate, 9:00 p.m. on c-span. 2014 onampion www.c-span.org for more details. coming up will talk with chris chocola about their efforts in this election cycle. then we will talk with "moveon.org" secondhe north carolina congressional district rene elmer and democrat clay aiken met for their first and only

debate with a spoke about the u.s.'s fight in the fight against isis. here is a little bit from last night. [video clip] >> we never ended the war on terror. this is an extension of it. >> can we end it? that is the question. we're talking about radical islam and jihadists. we're talking about those that believe this is the plan for the future. place sinceen in the beginning. we have to make sure that we are doing everything we can to keep our ally safe to working with our allies and working with those countries to make sure that we have a presence and we are working. when we leave, when we draw down, when we say we are victorious in a land that we are not, that is when these groups merge. i see the point of the president . we will be doing everything we

can to support the president on this issue that he has got to stop telling our enemies what we will do and what we will not do. it is not a plan for a strategy. there are several things about her answer that concern me. first, a few weeks ago she spoke out and said that she was not in support of sending ground troops into the region. few days ago, the speaker of the house john boehner changed course and decided that he believed it was important to send ground troops to the region and now we hear congresswoman elmer saying she would send ground troops. but man it women of our military should be attacking the united states on our soil. to hear her change her tune because the party leader has changed his tune is concerning. she went on the record not too long ago saying john boehner is her boss and you don't want to upset the boss. i understand that is her mindset, but people of the

second district are her boss and the military right now is overwhelmingly against sending ground troops, so i am not going to change my tune. i said i don't believe we need to send men and women into harm's way to protect another land. there is a threat and when we have seen credible evidence which military leaders and intelligence leaders tell us there is not an incredible we canto u.s. soil, reconsider it. which sending our men and women into harm's way because our party leader tells us is not a viable reason. >> one more note. about the arab allies. can we depend on them? we have to work within those groups and show support. i do want to go back to what mr. aitken had said. may be the speaker of the house but the people of are my boss. that is why we are here today. >> i wanted to speak to your quote.

want to clarify, maybe as an entertainer you're not aware of, that these things are fluid. when the president asks for support he asks for in a certain way. we gave him that support. i think there was much debate and botch concern that that wasn't quite enough. and i agreed. andat the time we voted came together unified as a bipartisan fashion to support the president on this initiative. i do believe there will be much more that we need to do. >> "the washington journal continues." is back at oura table this morning. let's talk about 2014. it is a long process. we have been participating in this process for eight election cycles since the club was founded in its current

iteration. what we do is try to find champions of economic freedom. we have an and the research process. a lot of elements have to fall into place and a lot of elements have to look like we can recommend endorsing candidates. theyve 100,000 members and want to participate in the political process by supporting candidates financially. do thely on us to vetting process and to make recommendations for fiscal conservatives. we just do economic issues, that is the basket of issues that we make decisions on. takes somecess that time. we don't endorse a lot of candidates. our goal is to endorse the best candidates. we've had a pretty good track record. host: who are your members? we are people from all 50 states. people that column cells republicans, democrats and libertarians.

they believe that pro-economic growth policies are the foundation for a prosperous country. we don't do social issues we don't do foreign policy, but they all tend to agree on pro-economic growth. like tax reform -- things that result in a strong economy and wage prosperity. open secrets.org put together this graphic for your group. this is the money spent against candidates. they spent more money against republicans than you have for them, why? guest: we participate in primaries. we are not a fiscal conservative group. we don't think all republicans are equal. the unfortunate thing is that a lot of republicans run on the same thing, they say the same thing. what i do is challenge republicans to say, and the last

20 years, when have republicans done the things they say they are for. whenever we had meaningful tax reform? whenever we had reform russian mark more debt rather than less that? when we find people like that we support them in primaries. against incumbent republicans who are been in washington a long time and say things but do things. we're looking for people that have firmly held beliefs and will use those beliefs to guide them if they are elected. they'll challenge the status quo in washington which needs to change. host: where are you playing now? the primaries are over. guest: we're four competitive general election candidates that we are supporting. two senate races, arkansas and alaska. those are very competitive races that will be instrumental in who controls the senate.

then we have two competitive house races as well. guy namedporting a sack. louisiana has a unique election system whether primary is actually general election day. he is running against an incumbent republican as well and new hampshire as well, we are supporting a candidate name to garcia running against an incumbent democrat. we think they are both champions of economic freedom. and six other races that we were involved in in the primaries but they are not competitive now. they're republican seats in the nominees will more than likely win so we have not had to spend a lot of time or resources on those races. host: let's talk about the arkansas a race. president bill clinton was there today doing campaigns for the incumbent to my credit, we will

show viewers what he had to say. [video clip] to do whatot afford their opponents want. they want you to make this a protest vote. all three of these races they are saying you may late these guys but you know it you have to do both against the president. it is a pretty good scam. give me a six-year job for two your protest. that is my prior opponents message. yes i voted to cut student loan loans yes i voted to raise the interest rate, yes i voted against the violence against women act, i will never vote for equal pay for equal work, but i will give you one more protest vote. to do it you have to give me six years. for a protest that will be irrelevant in two. he is obviously talking about tom cotton.

a fiscal conservative and a great american who is served his country in the military. he is a great candidate. no clinton is bill clinton. he is popular in arkansas and a great politician and a great messenger for democrats. probably the best they had. host: concerned he could sway voters? guest: this will be a close race. the thing is, being an incumbent anywhere is difficult, beating an incumbent in arkansas is really difficult because the prior name transcends politics. mark pryor has been in washington for a long time. tom cotton is an extraordinary candidate and i think he will win that race because he has a good message. that is the first time i've heard this six year term for a two your protest, i'm not sure what that means. these principles and these policies are for a lifetime. that is what tom cotton is

talking about. how do we put our country in a better place for all of us for years to come. debt and austainable lot of problems that we need to address. tom cotton is the candidate that will do that. be a tightay it will race. what will you do to help tom cotton? will you be on the ground? what is the game? a grassroots not organization, we don't do things in the ground. we're supported tom cotton financially through our members. we supported him when he first ran for the house in 2012. our members know tom cotton well and have supported him for a long time and will continue to do that. we bundle contributions to our members and together and make contributions to the campaign. we've also done independent

expenditures for a long time. in 2013 we ran ads in that race. thosel continue to do types of things that put him in a position where he can win. contributions are nearly 2 million for this election cycle and you're outside spending is over $7 million, how much in the and will you spend? you ranked 12 out of 121 for outside spending. guest: that is hard to say, we do what we need to do when we need to do it. we are not one of these organizations that say we will to spendunch of money a bunch of money. we will only spend it where it is effective and needed. we don't ask for members to support our efforts and thus we know they will be the determining factor in the outcome. we look at that every single week, we analyze every race we are in and the resources we need to put in. of fact is there are a lot

people supporting people like tom cotton. that is good. in these races people say there is 2 -- too much money in politics. these races are expensive and they require a lot of resources and they will be there for tom cotton. host: what about other republicans? they're defending georgia, kentucky, kansas. a republican not organization and just electing republicans. we are in the business of trying to find champions of economic freedom who will support program policies. host: so none of the republicans are that? west: we have a select group think are the best. we support those candidates. we do not pretend we could play in every race. ask members to support our efforts that we think really matter when we band together and tried to enter a race.

everything we do is not about politics. it is about policy. we understand you can affect policy through the political process. we are looking for people to come to washington and go to the building behind you and say, we have talked about tax reform for 20 years and we are actually going to do it and we will stand up and espouse principles here in washington. very few do that. republicans get control the senate, the republicans support senator mitch mcconnell? what we do is we figure if we elect enough champions of economic freedom, they will elect one of their own as leader. not get a vote so we do not comment on it. it is a numbers game and a headcount. the more people you have, the more likely it is they will elect their own. >> host: let's go to stephen in

indiana, you are up next. i asked my father about politics when i was younger, i asked about republicans and democrats. a said he would smack democrat and punch a republican. that is my little comment. i have got a question. taxes, are you just for people who are real rich and want more money? here, ceos make a 300% increase while employees had a 30% discount. same price cuts. guest: tax reform certainly involves marginal rates. when you actually lower tax rates, which lowers the burden

on people making investments and growing the economy, the economy grows and we are frankly not against revenue to the federal government because we think if you have a progrowth tax house he, federal revenue will grow because the economy will grow at a faster rate. you are the smaller slice of the high becomes bigger. it is not about any person making more or less money. it is about growing the economy and everyone benefiting from that and enjoying prosperity. what process do you think of tax reform? a good question. the chairman of the ways and means came out with a progrowth most republicans criticized it. we came out and said, this is not perfect but directionally correct and a great step to get started. the problem is, once again, both have a habit of saying

one thing and not always going through on it. we hope republicans have the house in the senate, that they will make good on their promise forecast reform. even the president says he wants to have tax reform, especially corporate tax reform. it is not about corporations getting a tax break. it is about putting the united states corporations in a place compete.nopy -- can tax in an industrial world which of the country. it is about jobs in america and corporations being competitive so they can compete, grow here, and employ more people here. the wall street journal this morning, "why the senate loss may be a win for obama." both parties will be forced to compromise.

would you support some sort of compromise on tax reform? i do not know were compromise means. spending,nment, more more favors, more corporate welfare, no. we do not think that is a good place to start -- to start. what republicans ought to do is invite president obama to their agenda and see what he does. i suspect they will not do that. they will not challenge president obama to veto some of the policies they long offered. will be a tough year for republican senator is because there are so many up for reelection. they will probably do relatively small things like the keystone pipeline. they are good things, but they

are not bold leadership. i hope we are surprised. an aggressive program of tax and reform. republican caller, bill, new york, go ahead. caller: good morning. i would like to make a few comments. ago, when president george bush became president, the first thing he did was cut taxes on the wealthy. the second thing he did was cut the revenue he sent to the states. now the states cut the revenue sent to villages and towns. now towns had to raise property taxes to payschool for school taxes, and now we are talking about cutting corporate taxes and our military around

the world protecting to keep free-trade moving. .ow you will pass that cross alexander hamilton, the first thing he did was tax all coming into the country to pay for the coast guard and military. you now want the american people to pay for the tax and let all of these american corporations that george bush senior, when he was the ambassador to china under richard nixon, he is the one who started this trade with china. >> ok. i will have him respond. guest: going back, the government does not have any money that comes from the people in those states in the first place. history is history. this is not really a partisan thing. it is just math here in if you go back and look throughout history when you have tax reform

nec marginal rates lower, you see federal revenue actually go up. so, it is not an ideological thing. it is an observance of history and it is math. we will talk about, lower the corporate tax rate and that will cause a problem, the problem is we have a high corporate tax rate and they are leaving the united states to seek out more friendly tax environments. with this whole in version debate, it is not about being patriotic or not. it is about growing your business where you can, most successfully, in the marketplace. you cannot put around our borders -- every time, we have suffered for it. it is history, learning the facts that have worked and not work and we try to support those who -- those that work. charles in california,

independent caller. caller: yes, good morning. i like the program and i learn a lot. was shook by a comment he .eeps making we have examples in history where we cut taxes and the economy group euros wondering if you give us an example. i am just looking at the economic issue of the country. the taxes were cut and the national debt doubled under the reagan administration. if you have a simple example of we cuttion that somehow taxes and the economy just booms. there are examples in

history. the kennedy tax cuts, the reagan tax cuts, and the bush tax cuts in 2003. notdebt and the deficit are necessarily related to the task cuts. it is about spending. revenue and spending are two different things. cuts,3 after the bush tax the revenue hit an all-time high. the reagan economy group. we can all point to the 80's and 90's where we had a robust economy and it prospered from that. the facts are there and the economy has grown and we had a more competitive tax structure. it is about giving people incentive. when people feel like they can benefit from good investing and working benefit from more and harder, they tend to do it. people are very good at understanding their own self-interest. when you reward people for doing

those things, they do them. it is just history. but do not confuse federal revenue. it should be connected, but it is not always, because the more the government takes in, unfortunately, the more they spend. they always spend more than they take in. host: we are talking with chris chocola about progress candidates as well as the fiscally's death fiscally conservative agenda they would like to see. with your questions and go tots, dial in and we marry in tennessee, a democratic caller. hello. >> hello. i just hope america is paying attention to what this fellow is saying. because he is doing the same thing grover norquist is. this is just ridiculous that we are not raising taxes.

the democrats are just the cowards, not fighting and not exposing. the only one exposing any of this corruption is bernie sanders. the economy will not grow without taxes. host: i will have chris chocola jump in. guest: the facts are these. we have an unsustainable burden that we know we have. take a number. one hundred trillion dollars, promises we made to americans in the future through our social security, medicare, and medicaid. other spending that we have no idea how we will pay for. property,nfiscate the just take every car in every house in every bank account of every american in america and you would be 30% short of meeting the financial promises we already made. enough not taxed people to solve our problems. it is just impossible. the only answer is reform.

we have to reform tiedemann programs and get control and find ways to have a smarter and more efficient government. to get economy incentives to grow so we can fix problems. testing people more will not solve the problem. >> on spending, one way both parties tried to deal with that is the budget control act and they said, if we do not get the spending down, om -- automatic cuts go into place. sequestration across the board. i want to show you what a republican senator had to say yesterday about that in washington. will depend on november elections. i hope harry reid will retire and i hope nancy close and -- nancy pelosi will not still be speaker. when it comes to defense cuts, a mistake. , then you addop

the impact of sequestration, nearly $1 trillion reduction to what was the last responsible assessment of what the pentagon actually needed. would arguetes, i he did not go far enough in his proposal. i would argue that is the last time there was a reasonable threat analysis. it is remarkable to me that in the space of a speech, the president would throw out his own secretary's work, and pick an arbitrary number and on top of that, congress would propose arbitrary reductions on top of those reductions. it was a mistake for republicans to accept sequestration cuts. i think we announce -- we need to allow the cuts and another portion of the federal government to continue. when it comes to defense, i think the sequestration cuts were a mistake. if they were honest, even the administration would admit they played a bad game of chicken with the nation's defense and we all lost. host: he says he's calling for a

in a certainse amount of years. >> sequestration was a game of chicken. well, could do their job so they all thought they would challenge each other to do the unthinkable and it got done. and then they gave it all back. we were actually in support of the sequester numbers. spending wasfense ok. the bottom line is we have got to find where we will spend less somewhere. for republicans, the sacred cow is military spending. democrats have a lot of other social spending. both sides will have to find ways that they can spend money in their pet areas.

the sequester was actually working and it limited the size of government for the first time in over a generation. it was not really last, it was slower growth. it was something i think is relation --that was relinquished. host: in 2012, you were recorded as saying, we do not care where we get the cut. it was a mistake for the louisiana governor to say that. jindal, however he views the situation, he can describe it that way. support ad you candidate who said that? guest: there is more to it than just that. the bottom line is, if it is a mistake to cut spending that much, we have to figure out where to cut somewhere else. i guarantee you we spend where we should not spend and there are so many crises right now we kind of forget about other things, like the v.a..

v.a., spending money on but not services people deserve. a lot of money on the irs but it is not functioning in a way that instills trust on the american people. is focused not on bigger government, but better government. how do we find ways to manage our government better that we provide a return to the american people who are paying for it. that is all we are asking. host: talking to chris chocola about where they're spending their resources into thousand 15. outside million and spending, a little over 7 million. michael, hello. caller: good morning. first, i would like to say i do agree with your outside spending, a little over 7 million. on at

number of issues. i do think the u.s. needs to, basically, reorganize or overhaul the tax code in the united states, maybe going to a back tax. i think it would be more efficient and it would probably help the poor and the middle-class. onanother issue i grew tomatoes the fact the government has gotten far too large. you have seen the states asserting state rights, everything from medical marijuana, to even immigration. states are crafting their own policies. the one area i do have a another issue i grew tomatoes the fact the government has gotten far too large. you have seen the states asserting state rights, everything from medical marijuana, to even immigration. states are crafting their own policies. the one area i do have a question is on entitlements. they have seemed to have lumped with medicaid. critical -- it is critical to support our seniors and i wonder what chris's use are on this. we see people who are currently in the baby boomers transitioning, it may impact the economy. it will be less money for them to spend to help us keep the

economy humming along. >> the only way we are certain we will see a large reduction in entitlement spending is to do nothing. it is just math. all you have to do is look at it all. another issue i grewany governmy independent economic analysis will say, we cannot afford what is currently designed. fall off a cliff. so we have a responsibility. if we really care about our seniors and we really care about people with lower incomes that legitimately need help from our government, then we ought to be serious about reform. there are good reform ideas out there that make this sustainable and put them in a position, they serve for a long time, because they are not in that right now. there is a lot of emotion in these things. that is understandable, but not

helpful when we ignore the facts and we ignore the math. we have to reach for these programs in a way that they will be here to serve as they are intended to serve for generations to come. saying we cannot touch them is the greatest disservice we can do. host: san diego, a republican caller. caller: good morning. i never hear any of the democrats or republicans talk about inflation, and particularly money supply inflation. if new money is being created, where is that going to first? it seems to me it is first going to banks and the banks are getting the new money. they're the ones getting richer. are no longer in an extension type of economy. . sustainable

economy. when will someone address the inflation issue in the money supply? big issue.a monetary policy is critical. we have seen the fed has been very generous in their creation of new money and trying to pump it into the economy to sustain the economy. we think there are problems with and they stop with the consequences will be. it is fitted do is to have fundamental policies in place that will sustain and create growth in america. we think what is happening now is artificial. it pumped up the stock market near the banks are supposed to make this money available at cheap rates some people will borrow and make investments. but it cannot go on forever. we are concerned when forever comes to an end. served on achocola

leadership council since 2007, ran for congress in 2002 and served two terms for indiana's second congressional district. taking your set -- your questions and comments this morning on midterm elections as well as the fiscally conservative agenda for after november. carl, independent caller, virginia. caller: my comment is about the corporate tax rate for corporations. payink the tax rate they only increase because being an american corporation, you get a lot of benefits you do not get in other countries with low tax rates. all the craziness going on. if you have a corporation in america, you have a safe it -- safe and healthy workforce, infrastructure to move your goods about, a great customer base. things are pretty good if you have a corporation here.

unfortunately, corporations with record-breaking profits, i understand they want more, but it should not be at the cost of the country, you know, that is even more than they are already going with astounding growth. they want the cdc to protect them. we want the government to be smaller and yet we want the cdc. it seems like the club is for worker growth and not corporate america. we are for economic growth and corporations are part of our economy. corporations are a group of people who work together to do something. the more they grow, the more jobs they can create. we are very much against corporate welfare when there is a bank issue that we're leading the charge against. but we like a growing economy. beings is not being about

for or against anything, other than something that results in good things. you can talk about it is a big break for corporations to pay less in taxes but it does not matter what we think. what matters is the opportunities presented to corporations and they will go to where the opportunity is the greatest. they make decisions based on the business and legal environment, the stability of the economy in places they go. apparently, they're making decisions that things are just fine where they compete more effectively. it is is the cost of doing business. if you raise the cost of doing business to a company, it will seek a lower cost somewhere else. about if you like something or do not like something about a company. we just like program of policy that results in the most growth and the most opportunity for the most people. the export import bank is a

70-year-old government program put in place to assist companies export products outside the united states by providing low-cost financing to their customers. the reality is 80% of that financing goes to boeing and ge. these are huge corporations that can find financing all on their own. it is the american taxpayer being put at risk to support these profitable corporations. they have other alternatives. they even said if it was not there, they could survive just fine there it is a government slush fund. the bank has got several charges of corruption in their practices. it is a corporate welfare program we simply cannot afford. there is a moral aspect to this. if republicans say they want to reform social welfare, but then they have to have the kurdish to say they want to reform corporate welfare.

we are moving in the right direction. the majority leader said he was for letting the bank expire. the chairman of the financial services committee said he is the bank authorization expiring. moving in the right direction. it is a relatively small thing but a big thing from the standpoint of whether republicans can say we will reform corporate welfare. host: it was reauthorized temporarily? guest: until june. that was a small victory in a sense that last time it was reauthorized, a 40% increase in their level of funding. we will see what happens in june, but we have got important members of the republican leadership taking the right position on this. this is an easy one. it is small. the chamber of commerce and the national association of manufacturers say they want to cry wolf and our jobs we will lose. i think these corporations can

find the ability to sell their products elsewhere and not at the taxpayer -- expense. this continuing resolution, the economy agreed to fund the government until mid-december. you called it a key vote. the washington post says, then you blink and back down on the funding bill. they put the ice is issue into that, the character of the vote changed. when we do key votes, we wanted to be a revealing wrote on economic policy. when they included the isis spending, it changed the character of the vote. a revealing vote on people's economic views anymore. it was really more a foreign policy vote. we voice our opposition to the continuing resolution. we think lame ducks are dangerous and the reason people are not allowed to go back in the office when they are fired is because they do distractive things.

we have lawmakers coming back to cast votes that have a long-term impact on our country. we were not in favor of extending the authorization, even temporarily. we want to see it expire. the authorization of the bank did expire in september. we thought doing nothing, something congress is usually good at, but they were not good at this time, just let it expire by doing nothing. oppose those certain elements, but the character of the vote changed. deborah, manassas, virginia, democratic caller. >> good morning. please do not cut me off. let me make my point. first of all, social security is solvent. we just need to take the cap off of rich people. they can just being in debt paying in for every dollar they have got like the rest of us but that is not my point. my question is, why are we paying $3 billion a year to

israel when they are committing war crimes and not only that, they have the most legionnaires and millionaires on the planet. why are we doing that? do you agree with foreign aid for israel? guest: on social security, if you take the cap on earnings where people pay their entire earnings above that limit, it sounds really good, but that will not solve our problem. the math does not work. you could do that, but it will not solve the problem. do not do foreign policy and a lot of foreign aid is related to or in policy. we do not generally take a position on that. host: a lot of reaction on twitter to what we have been talking about. mylan, who says, --

guest: there is a lot there. xm bank and small businesses. -- lobbyists are making a lot of money right now trying to tell a story about xm bank. i had a real job before i got into politics. utilizedess actually the program. 40% of our sales are outside the united states. not one job was reliant on that program. companies use it because it is free money and why would they not? we do not blame any kind -- any company for using it because it is there. we blame the policy makers for making it available. we never sat around in our business saying, our budget is reliant and our targets are reliant on the xm bank here never. there is other financing available. but if it is not, is because the

risk is too high. if the risk is too high, why should taxpayers in america be the ones online for risk? it sounds like that fight will continue in june of next year. guest: is the corporate tax rate or zero, there would be companies from all over the world going to the united states. it is just a fact. because it is the best place in the world to do business in a lot of respects. as is the greatest leader -- legal structure, the greatest almost everything. but we have a high cost of doing business. you lower the cost, i guarantee you, people will come here. that's if republicans get control of the senate and they keep control of the house, what is first on the republican agenda? that is a good question. reformk they need to obamacare.

i am coming up to my anniversary date where i do not have insurance and i am going to the process of trying to find it. this is an ongoing situation where people will find themselves in difficult situations. name lawyer mandate will take effect. they have to find a way to deliver health care in a market oriented way where people can get what they want in a competitive rice, not being imposed on them by the government. would like to repeal obamacare, yes. we think it is bad policy and bad law and results in not good and if not affordable health care for america. my deductibles now will be $7,200 a year. that,eople experience that is a big increase in the cost of the level of their health care costs. find a better way and

i think republicans have a responsibility. they talked about enough and now it is time to deliver. host: for more information, you can go to the website. thank you so much and we appreciate your time. coming up next, we will talk to been, the washington director of , ben wikler. we will be right back. ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> our campaign 2014 coverage continues with a week full of debates. tonight at 7:00 p.m. eastern on c-span, live coverage of the u.s. senate debate. also at 7:00 on c-span two, live coverage of the virginia debate

and at the same time on c-span three, live coverage of the massachusetts governor's to date with all five candidates, including the democratic state -- rney general then at 9:00 p.m. eastern wednesday night at 7:00, live coverage -- at 730 -- 7:30 p.m. eastern -- and later at 9:00, live coverage . and friday night live at 8:00 eastern, the wisconsin governors debate.

night -- and sunday, the mission -- the michigan governors debate. more than 100 debates for the control of congress. washington journal continues. we will talk in just a role. about moveon.org's we want to first show you an advertisement describing their efforts. are doing their best to buy american democracy. they and their billionaire to spend- cronies plan an unprecedented billions of

dollars. their 1% cash cannot overcome our people power so long as the same progressive voters who powered president obama's wins turn out and vote. is the director for moveon.org. why the focus on the koch brothers? thank you for having me on. i'm excited to talk to you and c-span viewers today. he looked election and you compare it to 2000 well for 2008, there are a couple big differences. the first is the presidential elections, 130 million people came out. in midterm elections in 2010, 90 million people. a huge difference. in a midterm election, it is all about who decides -- decides to go to the polls. at the same time there is much less interest and awareness in what is happening in this election, there is a flood of

dark money, of tax money, of money from the likes of the coat others, often flowing through largely unregulated clinical entities, so you cannot tell where it is coming from, that is essentially trying to tell people their votes will not matter. the effect of negative ads has not persuade them. they tend to be much more voter suppression and people do not want to turn out to the polls. sometimes, people vote against, but more often, they just do not show up. we want to make sure people know the stakes and know that their votes count. there are states that determine which party matters. people who voted for the president who did not vote in 2010 come if they know what is going on in turnout, they can make the difference between a democratic and republican senate in 2015. >> a pollster did a survey for democrats, the

headline, democrats may not show up this fall because they do not know the senate is up for grabs. >> yes. folks in washington dc, for many c-span viewers come in mighty hard to imagine people do not realize which party has a majority in the senate. but in our polling of people who did not vote in 2010, we find many people have no idea which party is in the majority and senate appeared all they know is there is noise and obstruction from congress. they also do not know the control of the senate is in balance this fall. the third thing they do not know is there specific say -- state, like i was in colorado, like their states could determine whether republicans or democrats have a majority in the senate. once people know those facts and they know what is at stake if the republicans take over the senate, they go from being unlikely to vote to highly motivated to vote. view, this is of an information problem. we want to make sure they have all the information they need. we are trying to give them the information they need so they can act on their values and

turnout this fall. >> what about the role president obama is playing? gallup put this together. look at the role of democratic leaning people they polled who said they would send a message of support for the president in the 2000 election. 38%, down from the last midterm elections, when it was 45%. are you concerned the president is a drag on the midterm elections? >> what we found in our polling statesle in key senate that will determine the control of the senate, they do not really look at this as a referendum. the thing that is most motivating to vote is a message about what would happen if the public -- if the republicans are in control of the senate, , as we they will extend described, the one women, access to birth control, whether they will vote to cut education funding, and whether they will have another government shutdown. it is all about who has the

power in congress. we think that is is a -- that is on the ballot. >> what about the decision of the supreme court to not make a decision on same-sex marriage? >>, to be good news. we would prefer if they took up questions around gay marriage national ruling that recognized a constitutional right for everyone to marry the person they love, but what the supreme court did by not making a ruling this time and allowing all courts that of reached the thatconclusion, which is bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional, what they did is in effect legalized same-sex in a range of states. today, there are people in utah and wisconsin and virginia who are finally getting marriage licenses. what you see over and over is when the doors open and when people are able to marry the person they love and there is no disaster and not a catastrophe and it does not disrupt other families, people's views change quickly. they're finally able to legalize relationships. for people scared by the

prospect of marriage equality, it is more the prospect of it than the reality of it. what we will see is a more rapidly shifting cultural landscape where people recognize another family's happiness does not affect their own. 'sst: where is moveon.org advertisement playing in what states? guest: there are five states where we are focusing our energy. 8 million per person progressive grassroots community. so it is a very broad election of people who are united by a certain set of fundamental values and fairness and equality in the united states. when we look at the election, we look at laces where members can wholeheartedly poor in there and where they energies can help save the senate from republican control. our five key states are michigan, looking very strong, both in, and iowa,

positive territory, north carolina, the most promising potential opportunity for retention in the red states, and then in kentucky, where moveon members both in kentucky and across the country see mitch mcconnell as an icon of republican extremism and obstruction and as the person who has done the most to block a vote to increase the minimum wage, the person who has promised more shutdowns to come if the republicans take the senate, moveon members would like to defeat mitch mcconnell this fall. those are the five states we are putting our energy. a couple of states like alaska, we would love to see mark wynn. he has been wonderful with social security, not just opposing privatization, but supporting an expansion of privatization. he was one of the democrats who voted against that on background checks for gun sales.

he voted against closing the loophole. before that though, we consulted our membership and made an announcement that is democrats voted against common sense safety measures, almost all gun owners as well as non-gun owners support, if democrats voted against that, they would not be getting an infusion of members support this fall. when we say something like that, we mean it. alaska and in in arkansas, we hope that they win their races, but that is not where we will focus our attention this fall. >> the total spent is $5.7 million in this cycle. where does the money go and how do you spend it? >> we have done a lot of research and we have been working with social scientists and analysts to figure out what the most effective way is to stretch a dollar to win an election. it turns out it is not in negative advertisements flooding the airwaves.

overwhelmingly, the most powerful thing is individual conversations with people who believe in what they are saying. it is not paid phobic -- phone bankers going door-to-door, but volunteers. what we're doing is investing in state-of-the-art, cutting-edge, voter to voter contact program. the goal is to make 5 million phone calls to drop off democrats in key states this fall. we are connecting across the country with democrats through technology, and auto dialer. you pick up the phone and it calls and once it connects to someone, it connects you to them. you do not sit there and wait and listen to answer machine after answering machine. if you are a volunteer in this election cycle, you can make dozens of phone calls as a volunteer. call, you can talk about what is at stake and talking to people about control of the senate.

get 5 million phone calls through to voters and make sure they turn up on election day. polling,ot turn up in but they can move the needle a couple of points in election day. a topic like this one, it could mean control of the senate. >> we will go to greg in san francisco, a democratic dollar. good morning to you. you're on the air. go ahead. >> good to talk to you, then. -- ben. i wish you could've called that guy out who was just on who said he lost his insurance because of obamacare and in the next sentence, he brought up, his deductibles went up because of obamacare. insurance do not have and now he talks about deductibles going up. i about fell off my chair, i did. but here is a -- what i want to

talk about. republicans deny science like the medicinal value of cannabis. we see all these people helping them deny these people the same treatment. a war onu, if there is christianity in this country, it is being waged by right wing, republican, conservative christian evangelical types. i cannot imagine how you would sit there watching someone going through all this pain knowing there is something out there to help them and as a person with aids, i can relate to this. if it were not for canada's, i would've him dead in 1995. a doctor agreed with me. i am so worried republicans will come in and tried to do what bush and reagan did in 1983. that is, tried to go to our institutions and remove the literature pertaining to the medicine from our shelves so no one can know about it. >> it is interesting.

thank you for your call. i am glad you are alive and getting the care that you are. it is interesting with medical marijuana and access to cannabis. this is something republicans used to use as a wedge issue. it used to be republicans would compete to become as tough on drugs as they could possibly be to throw people in jail. what happened in the last few years is a natural seachange. it has been a lot quieter than equality, a marriage but similar insignificance. what we see now is a growing coalition of people ready to partner with progressives and democrats and reform our drug laws, to be serious about medical marijuana and potentially and the mass incarceration of millions of americans their the question is, if republicans take a majority in the senate, will they advance these things or merely stop using them as a platform and elections? when you look across the country, it is more likely it will stop, as opposed to things actually moving forward.

issue, i amicular kind of encouraged. i think if the indication of the kind of change still possible even in a polarized and divided country like the one we have got, if you have goodwill on both sides working together on an important issue, there is a chance. that is not to minimize the states, especially for health care, if you think one year ago today, the united states government was shut down to prevent a bill that allows millions of americans to access health insurance, to make sure no one would be denied insurance due to a pre-existing condition. if republicans had their way with the last shutdown, millions of people would not have coverage today. that is the kind of shut down there talking about doing again. host: we are talking with ben wikler, the washington director

for moveon.org, talking about the progressive agenda they would like to see. rob, independent caller, good morning to you. caller: my voice might sat -- might sound bad because i am home sick today. ethanol, greatly increased prices, malnutrition, and old number was 28 million people per year, a major factor in deaths of people. that is a lot of people. now,umber may be smaller but ethanol, i think, should be banned. .ens of millions of people it also takes a lot of carbon

dioxide from the heating of aluminum, to make the so they are not carbon free. host: energy policy. guest: it is absolutely on the ballot this november. there are enormous questions around a whole variety of different energy sources. i also think about natural gas, the amount of methane lost in pipeline systems that could swamp they reduce carbon footprint of natural gas is pure and simple. the most important thing is that to figurep research out the cleanest and most effective energy sources for the future, and move away from fossil fuels. one of the central questions in the election, one of the central thing that will be determined by who gets the majority in congress, is whether or not the isis congress does all it can to block the president's climate change policies from moving forward. this is something mitch mcconnell essentially the vowed

to do. provisions to gut the environmental protection agency's new regulations on power plants there if that happened, the president will either have to veto spending bills and shut down the federal government, or allow the air andections to be gutted potentially signal and acceleration of climate change and the deaths of thousands and thousands of people due to increased air pollution from power plants. choice,a terrible something we should not be choosing between as a country. it is literally what he wanted to do, is republicans take the majority in the senate. relative from georgia. caller: just two things because this guy is all over the board. anyway, number one, he started talking about money. is reallyzation

george soros's money. he keeps mentioning koch brothers like it is a code word. is, just thent other day, grimes in tennessee, who is running against mitch , her staffn kentucky was caught saying that voters are suckers and she is really against coal, but she's pretending she is for coal just showed -- just so she can win. she cannot win if they find other truth. now they found out the truth. all the.org money ain't going to help her win. you will see a big change in the polls when people realize that she is lying. i think these were volunteer supporters of her campaign that made those comments. we will take up the issue. guest: thank you for calling.

about washington journal that there is a chance for all of us to participate, regardless of our backgrounds. we are entirely member funded. the average contribution is $19. it is true in 2004, george soros made a contribution. that was to help elect john kerry and defeat president george w. bush. neither of them have been on the ballot for a long time. we actually do not accept contributions over $5,000 from anybody, which is a rule we put on ourselves. significantly lower than the threshold the present -- federal law requires. we are independent and grassroots funded. to the question about grimes, that was a volunteer and the essential question in the election is if mitch mcconnell should come -- should come back to the senate. if you ask in kentucky, they are sick and tired of mitch mcconnell representing them. they believe he had been in

washington so long, he represents lobbyists and corporations now and not the people of kentucky. country, volunteers calling, that is what we are focused on. we think mitch mcconnell has an uphill battle to convince people he is on their side when he promises policies that will benefit the 1% buy your friends, the koch brothers, and people who want to hold on the minimum wage rather than increase it. host: georgia, democratic caller, you are on the air. caller: i want to join .oveon.org i was googling it and i saw the black guy in missouri, the tea party saved his life and you all cover that up. you are all supposed to be for the poor and the blacks. there in missouri, have to death. in the tea party, bob and them cents out -- to beat him to death. are you following what

he is saying? guest: i think you are referring to an incident that happened for a number of organizations. i can tell you there are 8 million moveon.org members. our members are a peaceful and democratic people who want to make a country to work for everybody. i hope you will join and see what it is like for yourself. there are counsels in cities across the country. you could go to their meetings and see whether you like people there. what you will find is moveon.org abouts are civic and care what happens in our country. i hope you get involved and spread the word. host: henry, independent caller, new jersey. caller: unemployment extension and was taken out last year

it has not happened since 97 and just got reinstated. i was wondering if it is going to be reinstated. it happened in the senate and the house and it is kicked around. the other thing is with ebola. why can't they slot or take a blood sample? come intoanes that europe from the u.s.? it is a simple fix, i think. host: let's just take unemployment. guest: i think all of us hope that everything that should be done is done to make sure ebola does not reach the united states. with unemployment insurance, this is another one of those things that should not be put up football. it should be a consensus issue. people are laid off and cannot find another job through no fault of their own. they're looking for another job and suddenly, they're not getting the support that would help them move on to the next job. republicansthing are steadfastly blocking. it has turned into a partisan issue thanks to a republican party issue. mitch mcconnell said is number one priority was preventing

president obama from being reelected. it is president obama's second term, and as far as we can tell, his number one priority is preventing anything good from happening if he can do anything about it. unemployment insurance is one of the things republicans are unfortunately blocking. we hope after the election is over, ask -- after the dust has settled, hopefully with a democratic majority in the senate still, we can past -- pass an extension. when republicans take the senate, there are no guarantees. i think it is more likely they would try to block insurance and blame president obama, then to pass it and help our country. want to seeo you them bring up first if they pass the senate question mark -- senate? guest: if democrats take control, block bills on how spending. the second thing is immigration reform. this is something republicans in the house, they were almost ready to pass it, and then they

shied away because they were looking at this fall and were concerned about primary challenges from the right. we would love for the house to pass immigration reform, as the senate was done, and get this signed into law. the other thing the senate can do is confirm federal claimants. republicans in the senate have basically done all they can to jam this process up. last few years, this is something a republican majority would almost guarantee, basically a stoppage of people vacancies and now crossed the federal government and the judiciary, that is something that would be a crucial priority for a senate majority -- excuse me, for a democratic senate majority, something that is very much in the balance right now. host: jim, a republican caller. caller: good morning. i would like to voice my full ben's group as a

former republican who is desperate to get rid of mitch mcconnell here in kentucky. host: you called on the republican line. you have got to have everybody respecting the rules here. if you are a democrat, call on the democratic line. republicans call on the republican line. presidentou said obama is not on the ballot. this is not about him, but he himself last week said, my policies on the ballot this fall. take a look at what senator mitch mcconnell is doing with what the president had to say. >> allison grimes says this is not us about -- not about support for president obama and failed policies. but obama's -- obama himself says a vote for allison is a vote for him. >> make no mistake, these policies are on the ballot,

every single one of them. >> obama needs grimes and kentucky needs mitch mcconnell. guest: those things are absolutely. it when you look at polling with the affordable care act, you find support in both policies for detections against people with pre-existing conditions. those have broad support. andedward obama to it support plummets. you can say that obamacare is on the talent. you can say coverage for birth control is on the ballot and those things are true. ,f you vote for mitch mcconnell you are voting for someone who will do his best to repeal the law that guarantees access to birth control. people will have to make that choice. caller: hi.

i would like to go back a couple of collars ago when we were discussing the deductible for the health care. what people don't realize is when you have a five or $7,000 deductible on an insurance, most people cannot afford that. you know who get stuck with that bill will be the doctors. i work in the health care field. the doctors cannot afford that kind of lost. bottomboils down to the line. without any doctors or hospitals, it won't be good to have insurance. >> we'll move on to bill in chicago. i've gone to the polls

on moveon.org. there is a petition for social security. those to receive social security income can benefit. it lets recipients have an advance equal to one month of their income. repot --eplaced with the advance must be repaid before another can be given. no credit check is necessary. host: what about his idea? caller: i appreciate the call. i appreciate the use of the petition platform. we thought about how the model worked for a people powered grassroots network. we created petitions and let

people sign them about policies people wanted to see. we opened it up so anybody can start a petition. there are hundreds being started by citizens across the country. this is one of many petitions on the website. anyone can go on and start a campaign about what they care about. we will send it to people in your area and see if they supported as well. this speaks to what i think is one of the most astonishing changes in our politics over the last decade. republicansa lot of called for cuts in social security. the conventional wisdom was that it needed to be slashed. this would somehow balance the budget of a program that is fully funded until 2040. exitedhe grand bargain

stage left from the political scene, people started looking at the retirement situation and realized that the slashing of pensions with the uncertainty of the stock market, some people just don't have enough to be able to to have a basic standard of living. rely on social security for half of their income. expand talk about how to the safety net to ensure that seniors have enough to live on as they retire. the petition is part of that debate. senators a range of and we would welcome support on the republican side as well to expand so security and making sure that it is fully funded. every senior should retire with dignity. they need to live with dignity for the rest of their lives. host: shirley is on the line for republicans. caller: thank you for taking my call.

i been listening to you. democrat ande a you what the democrats to stay in charge of the senate. me oneou please tell good thing that they have done in the last six years that was good for the american people. guest: i appreciate your call. and id guess that you will disagree on what was good and what wasn't good. i would call the affordable care act of most positive piece of social policy of my lifetime. i am 33. we have had job transition in my own family and we're been able to go on the exchange and buy coverage with a lower deductible and lower rates and we were paying with cobra after i left a previous job. many families are experiencing this. if some we has a pre-existing condition like cancer or surgery, they were living in fear that if they left their

jobs they would lose their insurance and they wouldn't be able to get it again. that is over. i have a three-year-old son and he will go his life knowing he will have access to health insurance no matter what happens with his employment. that will make a significant difference in his life. that would not have happened without the democratic senate and the house we had until 2010. that is an a compost but i will be proud of for the rest of my life. to joe inill go indianapolis on the independent line. you are on the air. caller: a couple of things. a george soros idea. a societyoverwhelm with immigration laws. it will overwhelm the constitution. fake corporations.

you talk about the environment. look what a windmill does. the whole food chain is disrupted by windmills. guest: moveon was founded in 1998. later, when a lot of people were concerned about george w. bush's reelection, george soros made a large contribution in one year. he is never been involved again. byare 100% member funded average donations of $19. no one can donate more than $5,000. we are proudly citizen powered. we welcome the exchange of all parties and all ideas. we hope that the values of

fairness and inclusion will win out in the end avenue -- as they have in the best moments of american history. hillary clinton and joe biden and martin o'malley have begun campaigning for democrats at a serious pace. guest: this is what i can tell you. when we pull members about the 2016 election, there is a consistent response. we ask who you support for president. the number one winner every week is it's too early.

the attention is in the 2014 elections. a three year campaign is too long for anybody. after the selection, we will see with the field looks like it we know there will be a primary. we hope it is one where progressive ideas will be debated. this is all about who controls the senate starting after this election day. our attention is so focused and making sure people understand the stakes and people turn out to vote in 2014 the way they did in 2012 pain elizabeth warned is -- working for that. what will be her role? guest: her strategy has been to be a voice for progressive values for the middle class. everybody deserves a fighting chance. if the races where these issues are front and center, economic

fairness and equality and supporting the middle class and not just giving tax breaks to issues are if those shown to have saved the senate, i think i think that will move the center of gravity of the democratic party. people recognize they need to support any increase in the minimal wage and protections for health insurance for women. they need to expand social security if they want to have a shot with the core progressive base of the party. that is the key part of what elizabeth warren is doing. we are excited to see that develop. this is a fundamental idea that the economy has to work for the middle class in a way that it hasn't for far too long. through, we will see this be the new common ground starting in 2015. host: eric is in alabama. caller: good morning.

about safe red states. races in thekey governorship and maybe three congressional races that are highly contestable with medicare expansion and people being anti-obstruction. having a possibility of a sweeping democratic win in african americans in the election cycle. 15% with raise that to voter turnout being so low, it could be a sweeping win for democrats. i want to know what your organization was doing to help out in some red states where the incumbents refused to debate and do anything or even campaign.

we had to look at our opportunities and make decisions about where to focus our energy. we did a lot of polling. our ultimate decision was to focus on saving the senate. few is the area where a thousand votes could make a difference for the entire country. a 26 daterking on campaign to ensure that the expansion of medicaid happens or if it does not happen carries a political price. governorsrepublican across the country that of refused 100% funding to expand health insurance to hundreds of thousands of people and millions across the country. those millions of people being denied health insurance that has already been signed into law, that is a political outrage. this is something that is

turning. there was a time when it seemed like a great way for republicans to score points with their base. voters are seeing now is hate the idea of refusing health insurance for people when it has already been paid for. they are moving to expand medicare. all of them are probably going to do it. alabama is one of the states were politicians realize a refusing to extend medicaid is a political disaster and do the right thing or get thrown out of office. targets.se are the top colorado, iowa, kentucky, michigan, north carolina. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. this affordable care act that if iteep talking about, was so affordable the price would've been lower. point is if it was

such a great program, everybody including obama and congress should of been a part of the program. host: we are running out of time. guest: congress is part of the program. that is part of the bill that went through. congressional staff have to sign up for it. the prices have risen less than was projected. the your member what happened to health care costs for the offender -- affordable care act? it went up double digits year after year. thatost were so high companies were cutting benefits for their employees. this is what most positive things. i urge you to take a look in your medical bills and a member what was happening before we passed the law. host: one more tweet comes from john.

we started talking about the koch brothers. guest: i appreciate all your hash tags. toould ask the koch brothers support the middle class and working people rather than ultra billionaires like themselves. i think we do need campaign finance reform. this is only top issues when we pull members. this is when the top issues across the board, no matter the political situation of the moment. i think the reason they become such a lightning rod is they have come to embody the problem with money in politics. worth $100 billion. they support policies that suppress the minimum wage and

make it harder for people to vote and harder for people to collectively bargain for better wages and benefits. these cold people down and keep people like them up. the power of billionaires to do that is what the reasons why money and politics is so disastrous. rather that no billionaires exercise outside control in our system. host: we appreciate your time this morning. guest: thanks much for having me. host: next we will talk with the president of the university of maryland. turkey's president says eight syrian town under siege by the militant group islamic state is about to fall. anmade the comments during address to syrian refugees at camp in turkey near the border with syria. british forces have been struggling to defend it.

the president went on to say that ariel of bombardments alone will not be enough to stop the islamic state group. aficials in pakistan say drone strike on a taliban compound has killed six militants. this was the second strike in less than toy for hours. saysestate data provider home prices went up 6%. that marks anticline from an annual gain of 6.8% in july. yearlyhad risen 12% toward the end of last year. the veterans affairs department has fired for senior executives. this is the first action taken since a law was passed that makes it easier for the agency to fire officials suspected of wrongdoing. among those fired are a top purchasing official at the health administration, rectors of hospitals in pittsburgh and

hospitalnd a regional director in alabama. those are some of the headlines on c-span radio. caman's student conversation is underway. this is for middle and high school students and will award $100,000 in prizes. minutea five to seven documentary. videos should include c-span programming and show varying points of view and should be submitted by january 20. grab a camera and get started today. "washington journal" continues. our: we are containing with series on university presidents. this morning, c-span is on the campus of maryland. this is about nine miles from

washington dc. joining us is the president wallace loh. thank you for your time. sat scores are raising worries about college readiness. fared nool graduates better on the college admission tests than their predecessors. what are you finding on this? arc high school students -- are high school students ready for college? guest: good morning. we are glad we are neighbors and the nations capital. what is important to know about standardized test like the sat is they are a predictor of college success, they are not the most predictor. what we have found is high types ofades and the courses taken are a much more significant predictor of college

success. when we admit students, we look at a variety of factors in deciding admission, not just primarily test scores. the test scores of our students coming to the university of maryland is very high. has that happened over the years? is that the trend, that you have looked less and less it test scores? i think people in the business of admissions and educational psychologists have known that the principal predictor of success are the courses you have taken and how well you have done in high school. the sat complements that. i don't know of any school that relies primarily or significantly on test scores. host: what about diversity? maryland is 30% african-american. the university of maryland is

15% asian and 12% african-american. do you go about trying to obtain diversity? we have a diverse student body. we have a very talented student body. our diversity is 44%. when i first came to this country, people of color were around 10%. immigration, of the demographic has changed. that is one of the great challenges for higher education, how to expand access to people from minority groups, many of whom come from lower incomes and are less prepared for college. host: how are you going about doing that? diversity a larger criteria for admission? one of about 24

criteria that we look at. it is a holistic assessment. the way we do it is aggressively go out and recruit. we go to high schools. we go to different community groups to encourage talented young minority students to come. we have some programs for them. we have college preparatory programs. we are expanding the pipeline. we are providing precollege experiences so that when they come to college, they are better prepared. we are talking with the president of the university of maryland. you don't have to have any ties to the university of maryland. we want to take your comments and concerns about higher education.

you have an extensive that in higher education. you have a phd in psychology from the university of michigan. what has that taught you about higher education? what does it bring to the table for you? guest: i think education is the great equalizer in a democracy. when people ask what educators do, i say that we are in the business of transforming people's lives. we are opening opportunities for them.

we are making a difference on major issues of the day by our research and educational efforts. this impact, it extends beyond the current generation. educators have an impact that lasts through eternity. that is the immortality business. let's talk about the university of maryland. your nine miles from washington. university take advantage of your proximity to the agencies here? guest: washington has the second-highest number of college students after boston. it is an incredible opportunity in terms of culture and internships for the students. research, wend partner with federal agencies and federal labs.

we are surrounded by intelligence and military establishments. we do joint research. we have contracts with them. the opportunities are immense. i think the university of maryland would not be the institution it is if or not eight miles from the nations capital. grants.u have federal what can of contract you have? it is $500 million worth. they are in all sorts of areas. we are engaged in unmanned spaceflights. with the cyber security of homeland security and intelligence agencies, we are strong in cyber security. we just got a huge grant to establish standards in new technology. we are working on climate

change. we have the largest concentration of earth scientist in the world. we are very strong because of our ties to the federal government in the area of languages. verye talking about esoteric languages. major emphasis on the study of terrorism. these have issues with national security and the economy. it is very closely tied to the agencies of the federal government. just in a student is an a, what sort of major does the university of maryland offer? these go beyond national

security itself. that's what we have expertise in language, flagship language security,cyber science and technology. there is an ormiston manned in those fields. continue our national supremacy in science and technology. we are also very strong in the performing arts. we are a comprehensive university. the access to the federal government and federal agencies in partnership with other institutions is broadly expanding the opportunities for education and research. the advisoryes board do? guest: i am sorry?

i don't know what it is. -- go there are lots of ahead. i'm not firmly with that advisory board. in 2005.was created it is 20 university presidents that meet collectively in d.c.. they consult with federal agencies. i am wondering, what does the federman get out of partnering with a school like the university of maryland? what is the attraction for the federal government? it is a partnership. i now remember this fbi group.

it deals with homeland security. there were a number of presidents of universities on that panel. the government gets joint research. they get graduates who can move your into the workforce. do not reach project together. the federal government needs partners just like we need partners with the federal government. we combine our resources. if you take the study of terrorism, we have 25 other universities and abroad who are working together to study issues dealing with terrorism. the same thing is true with our advanced that he of languages, which is funded by intelligence agencies.

thelatest grant from go with thean private sector and other institutions. we set up standards and protocols for cyber security. that isa grant renewable every five years for up to 25 years. the federal government needs universities and they need to bring in the private sector as well. thesees a team to address large issues. aboutwe are talking higher education with the president of the university of maryland. we have a number of phone lines open. we will begin with adam in north carolina. he is a student. caller: i want to ask two questions.

what things are being put in place for students that are nontraditional students. i have to work full-time. i have a family. maintain full-time student status. graduate schools and medical schools are looking for programs that people are involved in within the school. i don't have the time. i am matched up against these other students that have all these other extracurricular activities.

nontraditional students that are trying to go back? on the focus of cyber security, my account has been hacked in the past. i am wondering what schools and universities are doing to step in and warned students about these cyber attacks were people are having access to their financial aid material, their student ids and can cause havoc? guest: on your first issue, i think knowledge is expanding so quickly that people are going to have several careers in their lifetime of working. and others are addressing lifelong learners. they are crafting special programs for them. one thing worth mentioning is the increased prevalence of online education and the use of online's. this is nothing compared to what it was 10 years ago.

this could be a game changer in higher education. issue, howress the to educate more students of all ages and educate them better and educate them more inexpensively. that is the safety $4000 question. combining online education with personalized education and adaptive software and personalizing education to fit an individual's needs, that is partly the future of higher education. especially for millennial's who are always on their internet things. partnk that is an interval of addressing nontraditional students. was a very major issue facing the country, cyber security. it is a national security issue.

have 50,000 students. the solution is you have to identify your sensitive information. is out offy where it the thousands and thousands of computers in the network. then you isolated by building defenses around it. then you encrypted and you also want to detect penetration of the boundaries of your network. costly, but this is not just about technical fixes, it is about changing the culture of how we approach cyber security. it has to be top down. you can't have different departments having their own e-mail systems. you can have individual people having their own websites. they have to be centrally

issues offor security. let's go to matthew, a student. caller: thank you for taking my call. how do you reconcile the phenomenon of six-figure salaries for colleges been us traitors while college professors work as part-time , they have to cobble together classes to get some kind of minimum wage level salary while they teach the students who are graduating with an average of $30,000 of student debt? how does that shakeout for you economically and morally? i think you are raising

several important questions. let me address the issue of student debt. this is around 30,000 nationally. it is rising and becoming an issue of national because state funding has gone down accordingly. that what we are seeing is a reflection of political and economic changes. we are looking at smaller government and lower taxes and less funding available for higher education. the expectation is students have to pay a larger share. this is a shift in philosophy to education. public education and the public good that serves all of society, or is it something that only

serves those who benefit from it? the state of maryland is fortunate that our tuition is relatively low. approximately $9,400, about $4000 less than the median. our state appropriations are relatively high. 40% is paid by the student and 60% is paid by the state. in other parts of the country, the proportion is reversed. that is a fundamental issue and it reflects political and economic and philosophical trends. the numbers of

adjunct faculty, we have faculty andy 4000 1500 are tenured. the rest are full-time research faculty in visiting faculty and lectures. abouthave some that teach $4000 a course. they tend to be people who have full-time jobs. they are lawyers who teach a particular law course. higher education does have the issue of individuals who do not have full-time employment. this is part of the larger issue. over the past 30 years, the has declineditions as a result of the decline in state funding for higher education. trends part of the larger .

this is increasing income inequality. this is job stagnation. these are larger issues that the nation must address. host: we have about 20 minutes left. are taking your questions about higher education in this country. this is from another viewer who says there are 20 division i teams at the university of maryland. question? take that we have 20 teams treat we

used to have 27 and it was a painful process to cut seven teams. we had to reduce the number because we were unable to support it. what makes us different is athletics is a self-supporting enterprise. there is no state funding for athletics. i think what is important to keep in mind is athletics in this country is very different than others around the world. there are professional club sports and people can go into clubs. here it is part and parcel of the educational system. it is a source of enormous school spirit and pride. donorsare very generous are energized by our athletic teams.

it is the front porch of the university. it is not the most important part, but for many people it's the most visible part. in terms of becomes the funding of athletics, it is important to have two things in mind. funds to not go to support athletics. on revenue that the conferences bring in. the other thing is institutional control. athletics should be in the service of the educational mission of the institution. us, a student athlete and they are students first, success on the field and in the classroom and in life.

those are the values that guide our athletic program. host: we have a few lines open. yourfree to call in with questions and comments. we want to hear from maryland residents. let's go to north carolina. jeff is on the air. caller: i just had a question. i apologize for calling in on the wrong number. thatestion is, do you find is so strict and being ethnically diverse and not everybody is cut out for college and we are trying to provide a platform but we are reducing the standards to get into these institutions? we are reducing the standards for graduating?

what the great thanks -- strengths is there many sectors. are the other big ten universities that are highly ranked. they are public flagships. they are among the strongest academic institutions. there are committee colleges. there are liberal arts colleges. there is a whole array of educational opportunities. what is important to remember is that we live in a knowledge-based economy. could yeton ago, you a decent middle-class job and have a middle-class life without going to college. that is no longer possible. only a generation ago, we lead the world and the proportion of college graduates. we are now 14th or 15th. in terms of science and engineering and math, we are

ranked 20th. are losing our supremacy in education and in science and technology. if we are going to win the future, if we are going to be the most vibrant economy in the we have to make that investment in education. there are different types of educational opportunities that meet people's needs. we are still the envy of the world. just look at the millions of people who come abroad wanting to come and get a degree from an american university. host: kenneth is an educator here in washington dc. caller: how are you doing today?

people coming -- to the united states, what is the percentage of foreign students at the university of maryland? you talked about statistically themajority are white, population of maryland was 44%. i thought that was a discerning type of statistic. can you go into that little bit? what was the 11%? host: he was referring to the 30% african-american in maryland and the university has a population of 12%. he was referring to those numbers. guest: i see. our number of students of color

of american residents is around 42% on average. in terms of international students, it is approximately 12%. about 77% of our students are from maryland. in terms of the international students that are coming here, i think it is important to emphasize there has been a dramatic shift over the last 20 years. we attract some the best and writers. most everybody stayed in this country. we are fighting that some the best and brightest are coming here and getting advanced degrees. safety percent of all engineering degrees are given to students from abroad. 60% of all engineering degrees are given to students from abroad. they are going back to their

countries of origin. 40% of to remember that all nobel prize winners came from abroad. this is a norm is talent pool that we have to retain this country in order to keep our supremacy in science and education and the economy. host: sheila is in maryland. he avoidedhink that the paytion as to why of the administrators and that of the teachers. host: the pay of administrators and teachers? if you look at what -- there are many kinds of administrators. there are directors of institutes here and there are deans.

the average faculty salary is $80,000 to start. full professors make around $250,000. the average salary of a dean is up to to hunt and $70,000. difference. host: mass, to make? my salary is around $480,000. go ahead. this is what he lowest salaries in the big ten. can you imagine that?

i have a couple of questions. i've heard that foreign students get a free ride when they come here. i think that is backwards. that it seems the more money a school gets, the more they think they need? think that the astronomical pay of these professors is catching up to them and getting to the point that we have to pay the pensions? if i can correct you on your first point, foreign who come to the university of maryland are not eligible for financial aid.

that 99.9% of them pay full freight. they are not getting financial aid. that is one question. i am not sure i understand of the two questions. maybe you could repeat those? host: she is not on the line anymore. we have other people who have questions. zach is in maryland. i have a question about the tuition at the business school. i am a maryland resident. around $80,000. this is a two-year program. if you go part-time, is about three years. i know the undergraduate school is less expensive.

i am wondering about the tuition. aboutyou're wondering tuition for graduate school? were you able to hear that? guest: yes. the tuition for graduate school varies significant way from college to college. undergraduate education is the proximally $9,400. at the graduate level, it is very different. a major reason why it is different is graduate students have teaching assistantships or research assistantships. that is part of the differential. there is no common denominator in terms of the tuition. , you areeducation pursuing a phd. it usually takes four to five

years. it could take eight or nine years. most of them are supported by part-time teaching or being part-time research assistance. that is a very different situation. we have about 10 minutes here. we have some phone lines open. we have a tweet from maverick. guest: the question of who can afford college implies that tuition that the student days as opposed to the portion estate pays is too high. that may be the case. whether it is affordable or too high, it has to be relative to some criteria.

but me suggest some criteria. is you compare the tuition at the university of maryland with the tuition of comparable schools. compare to other flagships. we have one of the lowest tuitions of institutions. we are at the bottom in terms of tuition and fees. is average of our peers $13,400. they are $4000 more. that is a 40% increase over what is charged at maryland. that may be too much for some people. that is a point of reference. 9400, 60% is at paid by the state, that is the sticker price.

we have $46 million a year than we give out in grants and scholarships. privatepartly from fundraising or state funds. approximately 62% of our students have some sort of financial aid. whether indicator of this is affordable is to look at the debt when they graduate. about 40% of our students graduate with debt. average $25,000. the national average is 72% of withge graduates graduate $30,000. it is affordable if you default on it. our default rate is 2.8%. the national average is 14%. the default rate on student debt in the state of maryland as a

whole is around 11%. another way of putting it is if , that is400 a year about $38,000. a high-end price of family car. to can either borrow $38,000 buy a car that he appreciates in $38,000 you can pay that will over the course of a $1.5 millioned more. you can decide whether or not it is affordable. if students get placed. is 85%.ement rate in engineering and business, it

is almost 95%. view college as an investment and not as an expense. we'll return over a lifetime. this is not to say that it is not expensive. have about performance i want to get in these last three phone calls. they're all from parents. this is henry in florida. i want to let you know that it is a shame not because of people not wait to get educated in this country, but because of the greed of corporations who hire foreign students because they get a cheaper price. host: i'm going to give that issue to president. earlier, mostid ford and -- foreign students

getting their degrees are now returning home. the economic opportunities are greater in some the emerging nations of the world. that is why we must win the future. the days when they would stay here because they had more job opportunities, those days are gone. i tell my students that when you graduate, you are competing not just against students from boston and baltimore, you are competing with students from beijing. caller: thanks for taking the call. does the tuition pay for the teachers salaries as well? does the government pay for salaries? pensions?es come with

do you see an unsustainable track of pensions and pay for professors which creates a need to raise the cost of education to the students? guest: no. respond withet me an example. our budget is $1.9 billion. comes from state appropriations and 25% from tuition. 25% comes from research and industry and tony 5% comes from other sources like philanthropy and so forth. , 50% of of education the budget goes to pay salaries and benefits. it does not include the cost of

facilities. that is a separate budget. that is not paid i the student. that is paid by the state and private donations. host: diane is in tennessee. is i wouldquestion high school.ck to school,hild enters high there are two curriculums. one is for those who are going to college and then those who they deem not college material. that my childnd was not going to continue his education. someone needs to look into this browne why the black and

enrollment is so low. host: ok. guest: that is what so great about education. if you go to europe or asia, they track students as early as high school. do that in thise don't country. the reason we don't do that is we want to create as much educational opportunity for everyone. there is a whole range of types of four years institutions and so forth. great exercise in democracy. , the answer for economic prosperity and growth.