citizens in this country and we should not in the workplace either. let's make sure women earn equal pay for equal work and have a fair shot at success. to takeserve to be able time off to take care of a new baby, an ailing parent or take a sick day for themselves without running into hardship. let's make sure all americans have access to paid family leave. pregnant workers deserve to be treated fairly. even today, women can be fired for taking too many bathroom breaks or force on unpaid leave for being pregnant. that is wrong. we have to choose policies that ensure pregnant workers are treated with dignity and respect. new parents deserve quality affordable childcare. there is nothing like the peace of mind that comes with knowing your kids are safe while you are at work. the benefits that children get can pay off for a lifetime. in many states, sending your kids to daycare costs more than

seven them to a public university. let's start demanding pre-k for our kids. when most low-wage workers are women, the congress has not paste a minimum wage increase in seven years, it is long past time that women deserve a raise. about 28 million workers with -- will benefit from a minimum wage increase. more than half of those workers are women. the local businesses where workers spend their money will benefit as well so let's do this. let's give america a raise. all of these policies are common sense. all of them are within our reach. we just have to speak up and choose them because it will build a stronger america for all of us. thanks and have a great weekend. >> hello, i am senator mitch mcconnell. the promise of every generation is to leave a better country for the one that follows.

through war and strife, we have long kept that charge. it is one of the most remarkable things about our country. yet, this long-standing commitment has never seen more threat. millions of our neighbors remain out of work. for those who do have jobs worry constantly about the future. costs always seem to go up but wages an opportunity is never keeping pace. even the president admits that wages and incomes have been stagnant during his time in the white house. working moms and dads find it almost impossible to balance the demand of work with the needs of a family. it seems to be spinning out of control whether at home or abroad with no one in the administration possessing real handle on what to do next. in difficult times, the american people expect real leadership from washington. what they don't need is more unworkable ideas and that often make the problem worse. thatn't need a health law cancels policies and too often makes health care even less affordable for you and your

family. they don't need a failed stimulus that plunges us trillion dollars deeper into debt. they don't need an ideological war on coal that friends not to meaningfully improve the environment but increase the squeeze on that a class families. it is no wonder that nearly seven in 10 americans believe our country is headed seriously off track. or that so many of the middle class c a government in washington the works for itself and not for them. president obama and his democratic party have held power in washington for almost six years now. for a long time, they were able to enact nearly anything they wanted. obamacare, the stimulus, higher taxes, more complex regulations, record levels of debt. they got the chance to pass everything their ideologically would allow. six years on, their policies

have not gone the country moving again. it is clear more of the same is not going to work. this unfortunate reality has caused the to abandon trying to fix the economy in order to focus almost exclusively on protecting their control of congress seemingly at any cost. that is why the democratic majority blocks nearly every commonsense idea, including reforms of job bills that enjoy significant, sometimes overwhelmingly bipartisan support. they blocked it from even coming to a vote. they want to protect the president from having to may politically difficult decisions about whether to sign or veto bipartisan legislation. legislation that might excite one segment of the democratic party, but infuriate another. we think it is time for the president to start doing the job he was elected to do. he should worry less about massaging egos in his party and worry more about healing our country. if the american people choose to

send a republican majority to congress this election, we can finally help ensure that he does. a new republican majority would mean we would be able to get everything you want from washington but it would mean we would be able to bring the current legislative gridlock to a merciful end. it means we would be able to start sending bills to the president's desk again just as the american people expect. focusa new majority, our will be on passing legislation that improves the economy. and makes it easier for americans to find jobs and that helps restore americans confidence in their country and their government. we want to ease the squeeze on working families. we want to improve economic opportunity. we want to make it easier for families to join the middle class. we want to increase career prospects for college graduates. a new republican majority would work towards insuring those kinds of policies start getting a vote instead of succumbing to the current gridlock.

if our friends on the other side have a common sense idea, we want to hear it as well. we are aiming for common sense solutions, not large or complex bills no one reads and few understand. we want to engage members from both parties in the legislative process to get our democracy working again the way it was designed. already, there are bills everyone knows will pass congress with bipartisan support if only a vote were allowed. that is why democrats have not allow those votes to happen but we will. there are other good policies that might not pass with a broader majority but did this -- they deserve congress attention. we will fight for those as well. i think we will be able to work with the president to ensure solid, pro-middle-class ideas are signed into law. he may veto some but that is ok. for theve it is better representative people to have their say and vote even if the president disagrees with the policy.

that is preferable to the democratic majority's of blocking bills from both sides of the aisle and shutting down debate. congress should not be in the business of protecting the president from good ideas. we think on this should be in the business of getting good ideas to his desk instead. ideas back can help ensure the next generation enjoyed just as many opportunities as we have had. that is our charge and that is our focus. thank you. c-span video competition is underway open to all middle and high school students to grade a five to seven minute documentary on the three branches. showing how policies, law or action by the executive, legislative or judicial branches have affected you or your community. there are 200 cash prizes for students and teachers totaling $100,000. for a list of rules and how to started, go to studentcam.org.

the c-span cities to work takes book tv on the road traveling to u.s. cities to learn about their history and literary life. we partner with comcast to visit colorado springs, colorado. >> in 1806, it was set into the american southwest to explore the region very similar to lewis theclark who were sent to northwestern part of the newly acquired louisiana territory. pike was sent to the southwest part of the territory. from his perspective, when he came out here he walked off the map. he went into an area that was unknown. he thinksrst sees it, he can reach the top of it in a few days. it really takes a week to approach. he believes it is a lower mountain called mount rosa. he turned around and that point, he wrote in his

journal that given the condition, given the equipment he had at the time, no one could have went to the peak. the inspired the palm that became america the beautiful. coloradohere to springs to teach a summer course at colorado college in 1893. the view down to the planes from the top of the mountain inspired the poetry, it inspired the images that are captured in the poetry of the united states. >> watch all never events from colorado springs throughout the day on c-span2 book tv and sunday afternoon at tw2:00 on c-span3. here on c-span, the communicators is next with aneesh chopra, discussing his book innovative state -- how new

technologies can transform government. that is followed by a discussion on the current state of the economy. later tonight, the funeral service for former washington post editor ben bradlee. c-span, crated by america's cable companies 35 years ago and brought to you as a public service by a local cable or satellite provider. >> aneesh chopra, in your book "innovative state" the first three words are "government doesn't work. why do you say that? >> i think it captures the spirit if you ask the american people in general if they are satisfied, we are saying the number is at an all-time low. the perception is that it is not working. even early days of the obama administration, we saw some of the more challenging launches of services that really we should not expeod