the speaker pro tempore: on this vote, the yeas are 357, the nays are 60. 2/3 being in the affirmative the rules are suspended, the senate amendment is agreed to, and without objection the motion to reconsider insider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that when the house adjourn today it adjourn to meet on monday, march 2 2015, when it shall convene at noon for morning hour debate and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered.

the house will be in order.

the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leave of absence requested for mr. is a plan of the northern mariana islands for march 2 to march 30. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the request is granted. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house be adjourned. the the speaker pro tempore: the question is on the motion to

adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair the ayes have it. the motion is adopted. accordingly, the house stands adjourned until noon on monday next for morning hour debate. >> an active evening in the house passing a seven-day extension for the homeland security department. that means they will be back here again within a week to try to pass further funding. earlier today, they failed to pass a three-week extension for homeland security department spending. the senate earlier tonight doing the seven days and then passing that measure. we are taking your phone calls and your reaction to what we have seen both in the house and senate tonight. and we have a special line for people that work in the department of homeland security. we will get those numbers up for you. for republicans -- democrats can join us at -- independents and others --

and that line for people who work with dhs, give us a call and let us know what you are thinking, feeling. that there is funding for the department, that number is -- we will take a look at some tweets as well.

again, passing a seven-day extension to fund the homeland security department. and we are taking calls on a separate line that -- for those of you that do work with the department of homeland security. >> thank you for taking my call. i wanted to ask if maybe you could answer a question for me. what is the difference between them voting now and in two weeks? >> that is a good question. go ahead, mike. >> i just wanted to know if they could enlighten me on that because i don't see a difference. and if you say we are going to come back in three weeks, it will cost another million dollars or so to get the vote again.

>> three weeks, that was part of the topic for discussion at some point and decided that unless the senate took a step that the house wanted, they would be extending it for one week right now. a one-week extension for the department of homeland security funding. on the line for democrats, scott. go ahead. >> i think we have bigger problems than what they are talking about. i have several friends out here that say they are not thinking this through. the republicans can go pick all the fruit and vegetables in california. and they keep the mexicans down. they've had it. i think boehner better put his genes on and start taking in california. -- picking in california. apricots, cherries, all of that

comes off. i have lived in california 44 years and i know a lot of hispanic people. they are not thinking this through. >> is that related to the immigration -- the executive action on immigration? >> exactly. i used to be republican and i switched to democrat. >> thanks for the call. a call here from ohio. go ahead. >> i think republicans have done the right thing. president obama has overreached his authority for millions of immigrants. i thank you for your time. >> on to california now. oh elizabeth on the line. >> antique up.

>> manteca, go ahead. >> we go through this every year when they go to fund us and we always seem to be collateral damage for their political agenda, whatever it might need. it is nerve-racking because all they give us at the end is a letter to say, dear creditor, we are sorry if this caused you any inconvenience. when they foreclose on my house because i can't make a payment i don't think it's going to do us much good. let's pass a bill clean, get it through. get it done. >> go ahead. i was just going to ask, other people that you work with at immigration, what are the thoughts that you guys are talking about together as employees?

>> the biggest part of my agency , only two of them have to go home. the rest have to go to work without pay. these people put their lives on the line every single day. they still do search warrant and have to go out and catch bad guys. they put their lives on the line every single day without pay. we are on such low morale anyway. and this kind of thing happens -- you don't want to go to work with that hanging over your head. >> another seven days in place. >> we will just do this again in seven days. we will be watching c-span wondering if i'm going to go to

my job and have my paycheck come in or not. it's nerve-racking. it's like waiting for a baby that's never going to get burst -- birthed. there are all these false alarms. you are nervous. it you can't sleep. >> thanks for the call and for sharing your story. los angeles, california on the democrats line. you are on the air. >> i feel strongly about this homeland security thing. we know how to govern. we don't have anybody.

and we should be taken care of. if that doesn't happen, that will be good. i feel very strongly about this. the republicans don't do diddly squat. >> taking your calls for a few minutes. people who work with the department of homeland security. ron, go ahead. >> what i don't understand is that a federal judge in texas said that part of the bill, that part with immigration was supposed to be put on hold. how can congress vote for a bill with that part in it. that is illegal. it has no force of law.

it is supposed to be on hold. if they took it out. could you explain that to me why it's a legal vote when a federal judge put a hold on it? >> a number of things active on the house and senate floor. the house failing to pass a three-week extension and the senate passed a full rest of the fiscal year extension for funding the department of homeland security but the house never took that bill up. it did not have provisions to block president obama's immigration executive action. so what the senate and house did instead was to pass seven days for them to come together, and reconcile their two versions of what they want to try to do with this funding. jason is a dhs employee and

living in san francisco, california. >> i don't have a political bone in my body. both sides have arguments. i would ask folks to consider who is recruiting here. dhs is trying to recruit the best and the brightest. this is not a good recruiting tool. we are not recruiting good folks into dhs when we're struggling to pass a budget. all the organizations we are working against, they are doing an excellent job of recruiting but this sends a terrible message to folks who would want to join. i think we need to consider that and what we are recruiting right now and the message we're sending to the american public on how we value dhs. i think we need to extricate the

budget from the presidential directive and the executive order. have the judicial branch decide that and let dhs continue to do the work that we are doing. >> someone in immigration and customs said morale is low. part of the dhs employee -- >> what we do. secretary johnson is a beloved secretary. we all unite behind him and he has direction and focus. we love secretary johnson. please extricate the politics from our budget and let us do our job.

by the executive order and the judicial branch. please don't take that away from us. >> gilbert is on the line for republicans. >> why are there two different agencies separate? why is immigration involved in homeland security to start with? those should be two different things. homeland security needs to be dissolved. all these things that they claim to do needs to be left under the fbi and the cia. the people qualified to do it. it's just another democratic bureaucratic type of government. too large. two of the homeland security officers stopped in illegal

alien driving normal, being drunk. when they realize to he was they let him go because they said that they were told, don't full with that because that is not our department. if they don't have a department dealing with illegal aliens in this country, they have no right. it's not their job to handle that. i think they just need to be totally dissolved. >> thanks for all the calls tonight. we will have the phone lines backup for more on the homeland security department funding. the house and senate passing a seven-day extension to fund the department of homeland security. he will be taking it up again by next friday. on washington journal tomorrow we will be hearing from tom shoup, the vice president of the media executive group. talking about the latest developments and the legal and political status of president

obama's executive orders. and we will hear from anna galland from moveon.org, the efforts to recruit elizabeth warren to run for senator -- president in 2016. and talking about the conservative movement's legislative and political agenda. earlier tonight, we were at cpac with mike pence. we had to leave him to join the house for the boat. we will show you his keynote speech from cpanc in its entirety. [applause] >> thank you.

thank you, john. thank you for that warm introduction. good evening to you all. it's an honor to be with you in front of a large group of so many americans. men and women who represent the bulwark of the leadership of the conservative movement in the united states of america. i appreciate that kind of introduction but the introduction i prefer is a little bit sure old -- shorter. a christian, a conservative, and a republican. in that order. [applause] there's an old saying when you see a box turtle on a fence post. you know one thing for sure. he didn't get there on his own. that is certainly true of my life. other than my faith, my family, my beloved wife who is with me tonight, and my fellow hoosiers, i rise to pay a gratitude to all of you. i oh so much. and to cpac.

the namesake of this dinner, the inspiration and opportunities i have been given. it is good to be back at cpac. the conservative gathering in the united states of a character. administration paralyzed by ideology. and stifling our nation's economy. the challenges we face are daunting, the challenges we must make to meet them are not. 50 years ago, ronald reagan helped birth of our movement with his iconic time for choosing speech. today, i believe we come to another time for choosing. you either choose to view america as a shining city on a hill that inspires the best of all mankind, or you don't.

the either want america to stand by her friends and stand up. you are for limiting the power of the federal government or you're not. you're either for protecting the unborn and the religious liberty of every american, or you aren't. after winning both houses of congress, more state than ever before, electing 31 republican governors in states like maryland and massachusetts. the american people have made their choice. we are on the verge of a great american come back. i believe that because i believe in this movement.

while we actually started in politics in the great state of indiana. i served 12 years in the congress and i love to say if i only had 12 years left to live, i would want to live it as a member of congress. because it was the longest 12 years of my life. [laughter] the truth is, we haven't had a government as good as our people in washington dc for some time. but it's worse today than ever before. they are almost too numerous to recount. whether it is the government takeover of health care or the internet, the unconstitutional

executive amnesty. this administration's policies are shopping national vitality and threatening our prosperity. most americans understand you can't improve health care by forcing everyone to buy it whether they needed or not. you cannot change the laws of this land by executive fiat and you cannot build an energy policy by raising the cost of electricity on working americans. it should go without saying that obama care must be repealed. the fcc ruling must be reversed. the executive action rescinded. and the epa war on american energy must and. -- must end. [applause] tonight, allow me to offer some advice. some advice to the rising

generation of leaders who are gathered here and looking on from across the country. of how we might confront the challenges we face with renewed focus. submit that 2016 could be the first foreign policy national election since 1980. sadly, this administration has reduced our army to its smallest size since 1940. the navy has fewer ships and our air force has its smallest tactical fighter force in history. history teaches you cannot reduce our military strength without provoking our enemies. weakness arouses evil. as we speak it is across the world. the president says jobs are the

answer to violent jihad. mr. president, jihadi john doesn't want a job. he wants to see paradise. and i think we should help him get there as quickly as possible. [applause] and with the growing threat of homegrown terror, it's important to remember our first line of defense is the right of self-defense. now more than ever, the right to keep and bear arms must not be infringed on the american people. but violent jihad is not our only threat. in asia, china is massively expanding its military. the pentagon admitted that the china satellite and ballistic missile technologies are rapidly approaching parity with our own. and as we gather here tonight a

new iron curtain is descending down the spine of europe. modern russia seeks to draw the map by force. unlike the former soviet union that respected the strength of the west, president putin supports rebels in ukraine with impunity. and if we didn't know enough about the threat we face, the heritage foundation index of military strength lists it as "by far the most significant security challenge facing the united dates and its allies and its interests in the middle east." our most cherished ally will come to washington dc to warn congress and the american people of the gathering storm he believes will strike his country

. traveling to israel trying to force a settlement that would have compromised israel's security. i saw firsthand the resolve and determination of this courageous leader. who stands to often alone in times of great peril across the middle east. speaker boehner was right to invite president netanyahu. israel's cause our our cause and israel's enemies are our enemies. america stands with israel. [applause]

you cannot command the respect of the world when he spent years apologizing to our enemies and abandoning our friends. lecturing the american people about the crusades while refusing to cause islam and militants by name is an abdication of leadership. calling for the defense of the united states is the chief responsibility of our national government. with everything happening in the world, i believe, my fellow conservatives, i believe it is imperative that conservatives, again, embrace america's role as leader of the free world and the arsenal of democracy. [applause] i believe the time has come to dramatically increase defense spending to confront the noble -- knowable and unknowable threats of this new century.

no strategy or innovation, no matter how brilliant, will be sufficient to protect the american people and the sovereignty of the united dates. among other measures, we could revive the future combat systems of the army and the marine corps. revive the f-22. and rebuild our navy. a safer and more secure america is a stronger and more prosperous america. [applause] of course, our strength begins at home. our families, communities businesses, states. second, let me suggest our movement also put the promise of federalism and state-based reform back at the center of the conservative agenda in the 21st century. as president reagan said, it's important to be reminded that

"the federal government did not create the states. the states created the federal government." our states are not territorial out posts. i should know. i come from a state that works. [applause] in indiana, we have balanced budgets and have a aaa bond rating. that is better than washington d c. we has the largest tax cut in indiana history. we have the largest voucher graham and america. -- program in america. i am proud to say indiana was the first state to withdraw from common core. we have stood without apology for the sanctity of life. the importance of marriage.

the freedom of religion. it is working. unemployment has dropped from over 8% to 5.8%. we have seen 100000 private sector jobs created and we led the nation in manufacturing jobs. graduation and test scores are up. life is winning. abortion is in decline for the fifth straight year in a row. [applause] i didn't come here to brag on indiana. i didn't just come here to brag about indiana. i came to encourage you each of you with the progress that is being made in indiana and other republican-led state. urge you as leaders and activists in this movement to take encouragement from the results conservative policies

are achieving in states across this country. after 12 years in congress and two years as governor, i am more convinced the cure for what ails this country will come more from state capitals than it ever well from the nation's capital. [applause] let's put state-based innovation and reform back at the center of the national agenda. let's look to the example of republican-led states balancing budgets and crafting solutions to the most intractable problems facing our nation. it includes getting runaway federal spending under control. when it comes to most public assistance programs, state are better equipped to innovate. manage anti-poverty programs in a fiscally responsible way. states cannot print money. during my years in congress i never recall anyone focusing on revenue forecasts we passed a spending bill.

in indiana, where we have balanced budgets, this year's budget will only be completed when we get the final revenue forecast to make sure the income meets the outcome. states are better equipped to innovate and reform those programs. we ended traditional medicaid for all able-bodied adults and replaced it with consumer driven health care and savings accounts. [applause] we have expanded access to health care, not through government mandates and taxes, but market-based reforms. on education, because we believe all honest work is honorable, indiana is crafting plans to be the first date in america to make career and vocational education a priority in every high school again. let's empower the states with renewed flexibility to develop positive alternatives. give each other room as a movement to try new ideas and

innovate without reflexively rejecting policies that break new ground. that's wean ourselves off the idea all problems must get solved in our nation's capital. some say the next nominee should be a governor. i am sympathetic to that view. all kidding aside, what i am looking for is not somebody that says, send me to washington dc and i will run the capital the way i ran the state capital. for those of you who served in the city, you know. it is not a state. literally or figuratively. i am listening for someone who says, send me there and i will make it more possible for the next person running my state to run it with more freedom and flexibility. that is the constitutional way. [applause] when we take back the white

house and reelect a republican congress, let's make it aim to reduce the size and scope of the federal government by restoring the states the freedom flexibility, and resources bears under the cut touche and -- that is theirs under the constitution. finally, as we strive to be the party of solutions at home and abroad let's be relentlessly positive. i have said for years, i am a conservative i am not in a bad mood about it. we need to be cheerful partisans. happy war years. lord knows, we need a little optimism -- warriors. . lord knows, we need a little optimism. a man walked up to me with sad eyes and a weary look. he approach me to say, he supported everything i stand

for. he said, do you think the country is going to make it? he had all the telltale signs of excessive cable television viewing. [laughter] i put my hand on his shoulder and said, of course we are going to make it. we are americans. we always make it. we always find a way. [laughter] but that man and millions like him are worried, understandably, about our country. because of the failings of our national government. the national government does have all kinds of problems and flaws and weaknesses. america is not the american government. let's stop confusing the american government with the american people. ronald reagan said it best. we are a people with the government, not the other way around. [applause] i learned that lesson a long

time ago, back when indianapolis was hosting all the living recipients of the medal of honor. we were dedicating our memorial to those great men. i was a top radio show host at the time. i had the privilege of interviewing those heroes. jack lucas was born in 1928. he enlisted in the marine corps at the age of 14. pfc. lucas was so to coo determined to enter combat that he stowed away to read he turned 17 at sea, a few for landing at iwo jima. the day following the landing, he was crawling through a ravine with three men. two enemy hand grenades landed nearby. the teenager used his own body to cover both grenades to save

his fellow marines despite suffering injury. he was awarded the medal of honor by president harry truman. i had him on my radio show. during the interview, we talked about his experiences. he spoke with humility about his extraordinary courage. i estimate question. -- asked him a question. i said, you are part of the greatest generation. you are probably really worried about the country when you see young people these days. in that moment his continents changed. -- manner changed. he said son, you don't have the first idea what you are talking about.

i laughed nervously. this was live radio. i said, why don't you enlighten me. he did. he said, let me tell you something. growing up in the 1930's, we didn't have any more sense than kids do these days. we wasted just as much time and party to as much as read when the time came, we stepped up because we are americans. kids these days will do the same thing. [applause] as we say, i have been told. i did not know how right jack was until a few years later. a sunny morning in september, 2001. that day i found myself in my first term as a member of congress in capitol hill. sirens in every direction.

columns of smoke billowing from the pentagon. the next day there were lines outside every recruiting station in every city and town across this nation. jack was right. [applause] in the years that followed, in my trip to visit soldiers in afghanistan and iraq i saw the sacrifices of the new greatest generation. who stepped up and did what needed to be done. i say with conviction, the american people today despite all the failings of our national government the american people are just as strong and patriotic and generous and selfless and resilient and freedom loving as they have ever been throughout the history of this nation.

[applause] our nation deserves leaders who believe in the american people with an unshakable faith. fate is my final point. -- faith is my final point. because we are not in this alone. the bible says, where the spirit of the lord is, there is liberty. when we hold the banner of liberty high. and take up the cause of freedom abroad at home, we make his cause our own. we do not fight alone. my fellow conservatives let's be confident and have faith. faith in america's unique responsibility and the founder's vision of limited and constitutional government. faith in the boundless capacity of the american people to craft

solutions to be complex problems facing us. face in him who set this miracle of democracy on these wilderness shores. that he will fulfill his promise for this last, best hope. we have come to another time for choosing. i believe with all my heart, with your help and god's help, once again, america will choose freedom. thank you. and god bless you. [applause] >> was from c pack with former florida governor jeb bush -- more from cpac with former

governor jeb bush. he spoke for about half an hour. [applause] [applause] >> we have a packed house. how are you all doing? we are going to have a q&a with governor bush. [applause] i have to start with -- are you mad at your mom because she said i don't know if we need

another bush in the white house? >> i saw that on the today show. my mama unleashed this on national television. since that time, she has had a change of heart. that is all right by me. >> your dad and your brother you made a statement where you said i am my own man. i have to show people i care about my future. it can't be about my dad or brother. it has to be about the ideas i believe in to move the country forward so we can have sustained economic growth where more people have a chance at success.

more and more people don't think that system works for them. for conservatives to win, we need to give them hope that if we create the field of dreams people can rise up again. >> the last time you were at cp ac, you said to often, >> -- too often, we are associate is being anti-everything. to many people believe republicans are anti-immigrant women, science. >> the conservatives in washington have been as bold opposing the overreach. they have done a good job. the president jammed down the throat obamacare dodd frank the stimulus. we have fought in a principled way.

he is using executive power to carry out his agenda. over time, we have to start being for things again. what we need to be for is a strong national defense. committed to protecting the homeland each and every day. with new asymmetric threats that exist, they are real. not a joke. they don't just have an impact in the middle east or israel. it impacts us as well. winning too strong for a strong defense and the defense of the homeland. give people a sense that if we started growing the economy again, the middle would start having rising income again. what you would do to do that is offer compelling alternatives to the failed tax policies and regulation policies. making sure people know we are on their side. it is good to oppose the bad things. we need to start being for things. here's the deal. there are a lot of committed conservatives in this room. that is why it is such a

spectacular gathering. there are other conservatives that have not been asked. they don't know they are conservatives. if we share ireland doozy is in we will be able to get latinos and young people you need to win you get 50. [applause] >> every article i have read talks about you and a divide with the conservative movement over to bank issues. >> -- two issues. >> i read about it. >> it has to deal with -- it deals with immigration and common core. you said, they broke the law. it is not a felony it is an act of love. you said you support a pathway to citizenship. when you were governor, you supported driver's licenses for illegal immigrants.

you supported in-state tuition prices for those children of illegal immigrants. [boos] i want to give you an opportunity to address that. [applause] >> i wrote a book about this. instead of people pining about what i believe, they might want to read the book. and is called "immigration wars. " i talk about the need to enforce the border's permit a great country needs to enforce the borders. first and foremost, we have to do that. we need to narrow family petitioning so it is the same as on every other country. spouse and minor children. not the same -- broader definition which crowds out what we need, which are economic driven immigrants. those who want to come here to work, invest in their dreams.

create opportunities for all of us. that is what we need to get to prevent the plan also includes a path to legal status. i have not seen anybody, and i know there is disagreement here. some of these people are angry about this. i kind of feel your pain. i was in miami this morning and it was 70 degrees. the simple fact is, there is no plan to deport 11 million people. we should give them a path to legal status. where they work, do not receive an offense or break the law. learning laois. -- learn english. make a contribution to society. that is what we need to focus on. >> let me do a follow-up. we had senator rubio. i asked him the same question. we always hear about spending cuts, tax increases. we get the tax increase but never the spending cut.

congress has tried comprehensive immigration reform and it has failed. we have a crisis going on with the department of homeland security. my question is, why not secure the borders first? >> let's do it. >>instead of having a political argument about this, the president did use authority he did not have. the courts will overrule it. let's control the border. there's nothing wrong with that. that's what a great nation has to do. there's nothing that holds back the republicans to put a comprehensive plan in place to do that. the fact is, this nation needs to grow at a faster rate than we are growing today. we have a young and dynamic -- to be young and dynamic. for the young people in the crowd to get a job of purpose and meaning. change the subject to high, sustained, economic growth.

>> i want to go through some yes or no scenarios to read number 1, 0 agree with conservatives that say congress should not pass a homeland security funding bill that would fund the amnesty? >> i think congress ought to pass a bill that does not let him use that authority. >> and they should stand the ground? >> i don't know. it makes no sense that we are not funding control of our border, which is the whole argument. i missing something -- i am missing something. the president has gone beyond constitutional powers and the congress has every right to reinstate their responsibility. >> yes or no? 100,000 people came from central america. we watched over last summer. should they be sent home? >> i think they should have been sent home at the border. here is the deal. the humanitarian thing would

have been to consistently say from the beginning don't risk your lives crossing as young people. don't pay the gangsters in central america money from your family members in this country to come across and get into the country. now with our broken system, it may take 3-4 years to begin to process them. send a clear signal this was a dangerous thing to do and the wrong thing to do. it would have stopped the flow. we did that in miami, florida. that is exactly what bush 41 did as it related to haitians and it stop the flow of people. people did not lose their lives trying to come here. >> let me ask you this. i mentioned this earlier when i had an opportunity to speak to the crowd read at this point, at this moment in the country, we have nearly 50 million americans in poverty.

50 million on food stamps. the lowest labor participation rates in the 1970's. i want you to connect it to immigration to rich shouldn't americans have the opportunity for those jobs first? you say, go to the back of the line. >> here is the deal. you either believe the pie is static. that is the left point of view. many in the right don't agree with that, but by their policies, they imply it. someone's benefit is someone else's detriment. what we ought to be focused on is growing the pie. growing and at a rate that looks more like the 1980's in america. growing it closer to 4%, not 2% to rick if we stay at this anemic rate, your argument he comes valid. if we grow at 4%, there will be opportunities for all. that is not how republicans and

conservatives think. we don't think it is about the government divvying it up for us to get the crown. we believe we should pursue our dreams. the more people doing it, the more economic growth will take place. >> my last question on immigration. as governor, do you stand by the decision and driver's licenses? did not happen. in-state tuition breaks. >> i do. in-state tuition was passed this year by one of the most conservative state legislatures to a conservative governor signed into law. >> the second big issue. when you read about governor jeb bush. the issue of common core. you were the first governor to

institute vouchers in the country. it was eventually overruled by the supreme court of florida. you either first governor to allow a voucher system. a lot of conservatives believe in couches. address common core. >> i will do with in the context of comprehensive reform. high standards, if there is no accountability or consequence between mediocrity and failure or excellence, the system will not move forward. we took a comprehensive approach. we did have the first statewide voucher program. more schools twice -- school choice than any state in the country. the largest virtual school. largest corporate tax dollar program. 30,000 students, if there child has a learning disability, they can take the state and local dollars and send them to any private school of their choice. that has improved public schools.

we eliminated social promotion and third grade which was difficult. we raised standards. i believe our standards have to be high enough. a student going through our system is college or korea ready. -- or career ready. >> is common core a federal takeover? >> here is where conservatives and myself, we are all deeply concerned with the president. the department of education. there is a risk they will intrude. what we should say in the reauthorization of the law and to give may have been on the floor today. the federal government has no role in the creation of standards, directly or indirectly. no role in the creation of curriculum and content. the role the federal government, if there is any, to provide

incentives for more school choice. take the title i money. if states want to innovate with their own programs, give them the money to create programs. that is a better approach. >> [applause] i want to give you the opportunity to talk about your record as governor. as much as you privatized jobs, you vetoed $2 billion in spending in eight years to cut taxes $19 billion. you ended affirmative action. i went to give you a chance to explain, for those -- you are mentioning candidates. i want to give you a chance to talk about your record directly to the people. >> for those of you that made a -- i am marking them down as neutral and a one to be the second choice.

here is the record. it may be hard to imagine because it is one of getting things done. taking conservative principles, having the courage to say, i want a statewide voucher program and we should cut spending. we created a world class business climate. 1.3 new jobs news in the years. don't tell rick perry, but more than texas in those eight years. we made florida business friendly. they came and created jobs. the economy grew by something like 3.9% when the rest of the country was growing at 2.6%. we have reform the education system. it was not just the fight that mattered. we have led the country in rising student achievement. kids in poverty are the leaders in florida. they outperform their peers in

most of the categories in other places. florida is a place where conservative printable's have helped not just republicans but everybody. we limited -- we have eliminated affirmative action. i limited -- i a limited -- i got writ of affirmative action. there were a lot of people upset about this. but we created a system where there were more african-american and hispanic kids attending than prior. i left the state with $9.5 billion of reserves. no drunken sailors. they called me veto corleone he. he left my successor to billion dollars of cash for a rainy day. then we had the financial meltdown. conservatives need to be focused

on not spending everything they have. cutting taxes to stimulate growth so more revenue comes in. the government gets their fair share as well. >> you think you can lower taxes with 18 trillion dollars in debt? >> you can lower taxes and create more economic opportunity that will generate more revenue than any of the most exotic tax plan barack obama has. yes,. [applause] >> let me ask you national security national defense. your brother predicted unfortunately with accuracy, what would happen if we left iraq too early. now we have isis. people being beheaded and a burned to death. coptic christians, beheadings. what would you do as the commander-in-chief to defeat isis.

>> mitt romney was right in the debate about putin. he was right about a lot of the things the president left off. our position be to reengage with a strong military. we can't disengage and expect a good result. as we pull back, voids are filled. where to from here? we have to reestablish relationships with countries we have managed to mess up relationships with almost every country including canada, which is hard to do. jordan, the king comes asking for support. i have yet to see anything. israel. turkey. all these countries have doubts about america. we need to be engaged, build a coalition to isolate and put isis around a noose. that can be done not by

ourselves unilaterally. that has to be done with american leadership. >> how would you do it? what would be your first up? >> i like the idea senator corker is talking about. setting up a safe zone for a free syrian army. i like the idea of not putting conditions of boots on the ground so we can have the intelligence capabilities and special forces capabilities to make a difference. i like his ideas but all of them require we engaging with the neighborhood so they consider it a high priority. the negotiations make -- with iran make this more complicated. the idea that we are going to be finding a deal creating an unsafe world. legitimizing the ayatollah and the nuclear capability is troubling. >> all reports is the deal being negotiated, the negotiations

going on, the mullahs of iran who have threatened to wipe israel off the map will be allowed to enrich uranium. as president, what would you say to any deal struck before you took office? >> i hope the congress acts on this and requires this deal go back for approval in the u.s. congress. as the first tstep. so we don't get where the president is forced to undo that by executive order. we need to be clear that there should be no -- other discussions as they relate to iran need to include their strategy of using surrogates to to stabilize the region. simply focusing on whether or not they have a weapon, and then negotiating down word that we are going to regulated is bad policy. >> what is your reaction to a

president that cannot acknowledge radical islam? >> if this is just about jobs. >> a jobs program for jihad ease. -- jihadis. >> a total misunderstanding of the islamic threat is dangerous. it does not allow you to have the right strategy. we need a heightened awareness and to be honest about it. that is why prime minister netanyahu is important. the american people are going to reject what resident obama is trying to do in iran. >> i have asked every candidate i have had the opportunity to interview -- >> boxers >> that was not a question. >> just the question -- just checking. >> i will leave that for nbc

news. what are your top five priorities in the first hundred days? >> undoing by executive order what the president has done. using the authority he does not have. creating a regulatory reform agenda that allows for investment to take place in our country. presenting a congress -- to congress a plan to reform taxes. we need to get back to high sustained economic growth and send a signal to the rest of the world we are going to be their partner for peace and security. >> a lot has been written about terri. you used to have a license plate that said, choose life. >> we were the first state to have a choose life license plate that helped with

pregnancy crisis centers. i am pro-life. i believe the most honorable need to be protected. he was a woman who was vulnerable and the court because of our laws, did not allow her to be starved to death. we passed a law which was ruled unconstitutional. i stayed within the law but acted on my belief that the most moldable should be at the front of the line -- vollmer will should be at the front of the line. >> are you changing your position on gay marriage question mark x no, i believe in traditional marriage. -- gay marriage? >> i believe in traditional marriage. >> i describe myself as a reagan constitutional conservative. >> i would describe myself as a practicing reform minded

conservative. i have actually done it. >> marijuana in colorado. good or bad idea? >> i thought it was a bad idea but i think state should have the rights to do it. >> hillary clinton? >> foreign fundraising. we're supposed to do a word association? >> you did good. bill clinton. >> bubba. [laughter] >> that's pretty funny. i do an impression. how are you doing? i would to say hi to the cute chick in the back. stay away from tv and radio talk host. barack obama? >> failed president. [applause] >> there has been said to a big debate about the issue of american exceptionalism -- there

has been such a big debate about american exceptionalism. do you believe america is exceptional and deal of this country enough to go to the tribulations of running for office? >> i do believe in exceptionalism. i get to be the chairman of the concert fusion center. it is a museum in philadelphia. i fell in love with the constitution being there in its presence. the president has traveled over the constitution. whether you like his police or not, i imagine no one in the room does. -- beliefs or not, i imagine no one in the room does. the fact that he is disrespecting our nature and country is disturbing to me. restoring a love of our country anyway that draws people confidence that they can rise up and live the american dream has to be one of the primary

responsibilities. >> governor jeb bush. thank you very much. [applause]

>> kentucky senator rand paul was another speaker. he talked about a number of issues including health care the role of government, and texas. his speech is about when he minutes -- 20 minutes. [applause] >> thank you.

thank you. thank you. [applause] there comes a time in the history of nations when fear and forgetfulness cause a nation to hesitate to waiver and perhaps even to succumb. when that time comes, those who love liberty must rise to the occasion. will you, lovers of liberty, rise to the occasion? when politicians accept censorship. when politicians accept imprisonment without trial. when politicians except torture even of the innocent, as

necessary, then lovers of liberty must rise. [applause] we must rise and stand with our forefathers who stared it down the king. we must rise as free men and women and reclaim our birthright. we must protect and defend the constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. [applause] our freedom is at risk from a supreme court that fails to protect liberty. in the mistake of the century justice roberts affirmed the power of the government to force you to buy insurance. he argued we must presume obamacare constitutional. i've got a better idea? why don't we presume liberty?

[applause] just as we are presumed innocent so too we should be presumed free. president obama's promised that if you like your doctor, you can keep him was a lie. obamacare at its core takes away a patient's right to choose. i promise you this. as a doctor, i will take it and make it my mission to heal the nation. reverse the course of obamacare. repeal every last it of it -- b it of it. [applause] we must remember that our rights are unlimited. given to us by god. don't let anyone tell you otherwise. the ninth amendment says those rights not listed are not to be

disparaged. you do have a right to privacy. your rights are who you are and what you are. they are in your dna and the government can quite frankly get over it. [applause] to defend our country, we need to gather intelligence on the enemy. but when the intelligence director lies to congress, how are we to trust them? are we to trust them to collect and hold every american's phone records? i say your phone records are yours. i say the phone records of law-abiding citizens are none of their dam business. [applause]

from within our freedom is threatened by a government that regulates everything that moves. we borrow a million dollars a minute. the president says he doesn't know where to cut. how about we start with the $2.4 million they spent on origami condoms. don't tell me there is no place to cut. our freedom also threatened from outside our borders. we must protect ourselves from jihadists without losing who we are as he people. we must think before we act. we must promote stability, not chaos. in the middle east, one form of tyranny often replaces another. chaos ensues. radical islam grows stronger. hillary's war in libya is a

perfect example. it made us less safe. they swim in our swimming pool. her war in libya allowed thousands of surface to air missiles to fall into the hands of radical islamists. as she was declaring victory ambassador stevens was pleading for more security. when i asked secretary clinton if she read ambassador stevens's cables, she answered currently, no, as if she had more important to do. i believe her abdication of responsibility and refusal to provide a defense for benghazi should preclude her from higher office. [applause]

it is time for hillary clinton to permanently retire. [applause] isis has become a threat to our immensity in baghdad. they grew in a safe haven created by arming islamic rebels in the syrian civil war. when i voted against this, i warned these arms might end up in the hands of jihadists. we might be forced to go back to fight against our own weapons. within a year, that prediction came true. we must defend ourselves and interests against this.

it troubles me we must now fight against our own weapons. we need a national defense robust enough to defend us against all attacks. moderate enough to deter enemies. nimble enough to defend our vital interests. we also need a foreign policy that encourages stability not chaos. conservatives understand the government is the problem, not the solution. [applause] but as conservatives, we should not succumb to the notion that a government and at that home will somehow he come successful abroad. -- inpet at home will somehow

become successful abroad. that a government that can't even deliver the mail can somehow create nations abroad. we must be strong and defend ourselves. i envisioned in america -- n america with the national defense unbeatable and unencumbered by nationbuilding. [applause] i envision a national defense that promotes, as reagan put it, peace through strength. we must realize we do not project strength by borrowing money from china to send it to pakistan. [applause] it angers me to see mobs burning our flag and chanting, death to america, in countries that receive our foreign aid.

[applause] i say it must end. i say not one penny more to these haters of america. [applause] at home, our nation needs new ideas and new answers to old problems. martin luther king spoke of two america's. he described them as different experiences that exist side-by-side. in one america people experience the opportunity of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. in another they experience a daily ugliness that dashes hope. i was born into the america that experiences and believes in opportunity.

but my trips to ferguson and detroit and atlanta and chicago have revealed what i consider to be an undercurrent of neds. -- unease. liberal policies have failed our inner cities. [applause] liberal policies have failed poor communities. the poverty gap continues to widen. it is time for a new way. those of us who have enjoyed the american dream must break down the wall that separates us from the other america. the president's answer is to raise taxes again. i propose we cut everyone's taxes from the richest to the poorest. [applause]

in the coming weeks, i will propose the largest tax cut in american history. a tax cut that will leave more money in the paychecks of every worker in america. [applause] my tax plan will be the -- get the irs out of your lives and out of the way of every job creator in america. my plan will cut spending and balance the budget in five years. [applause] to fix washington, we cannot have business as usual. often bills are popped on our desks with only a few hours to review. no one is able to read what is in the bill. i propose something outrageous. congress should read every bill. [applause]

congress should also live under the laws they pass. [applause] i have a constitutional amendment that says congress shall pass no law that exempts themselves. [applause] finally, if they will not listen, we should limit all their terms and send career politicians packing. [applause] while we are at it, maybe we ought to limit the terms of out of control federal judges as well. [applause] we need to return to our founding principles.

stand up for the entire bill of rights. our future can include a road back to prosperity. it should include a balanced budget. a government that protects your rights and security. it is time for a new leader. when you can trust. one who works for you. above all, it is time for a new president. [applause] >>thank you. i believe america has much greatness left.

we must believe in ourselves, our founding documents, the economic system that creates more stuff for more people than in any time in recorded history. american innovations have changed the world for the better . america is an idea factory. there are ideas yet to be born. you and your friends create those ideas. you are america's greatest hope, our dream. the best days are ahead. what drives us is the dire -- desire for freedom. the history of man is the history of men and women striving to restrain the power of government and expand the realm of freedom. will you stand with me? will you fight for freedom and vote for freedom? [applause]

let us rise. let us rise as one and shot from the top of our lungs for freedom now. to make america the leading light for freedom and prosperity. thank you. god bless you. god bless america. [applause] >> senator. >> thank you. >> senator. >> thank you. >> senator, i am here standing with rand to ask you a couple of questions which have come from the audience in the hall. are delighted to have you here. we are delighted you are taking the time to answer these questions. what do you think republicans have to do in order to win over

libertarians, moderates, and independents? >> good answer. i think as republicans we do a great job defending the second amendment. everybody knows that. i am a great defender of the second amendment. we have to defend the whole bill of rights. to defend the second amendment, you have to defend the fourth amendment. if the government can come in your house without an appropriate or judicial war and, we do not have protection of the second amendment. you need the first amendment to protect the second amendment. if you want to talk about people who have not been concerned about being a republican or listening to a republican, the fifth and sixth. wish to have speedy trials. -- we should have speedy trials.

there is a 16-year-old boy from the bronx accused of a crime. he was sent to rikers. he spent three years there. he was never tried. he tried to commit suicide four times. if you asked him or his mom or anybody that lives around him in the bronx whether or not the bill of rights is being defended he lives in that other america martin luther king talked about. if we want to get new people into our party libertarians and others who believe in privacy we have to say to people like him that the government is not only a problem as far as regulations and taxes. it is a problem as far as not giving justice to those who deserve it. >> summoning to the answer you were going to give. they sent us this follow-up question. if you could have just one constitutional amendment, what would it be? >> term limits.

[applause] >> what is your biggest criticism of congress right now? >> that they are dysfunctional. even when we agree on things, we cannot get anything done. i had a bill with the majority leader and could not get it done. couldn't even get a vote on it. there is a dysfunctionality. we go week after week and do not get things done. one of the biggest problems we have in our country is the debt. we are bell learning -- borrowing $1 million a minute. it continues to grow because congress does not do their job. we are supposed to have 12 individual spending bills. we lump them all together. we lurch from one deadline to the we go one deadline to another. then we go hurry up. either the government is going to shut down or pass all this spending in one package.

why don't we do our job? why don't we spend each individual spending bill on its own and control the power of the purse? >> time for one quick one and then a quick followup, senator. how do you respond to some conservatives and republicans who say you aren't tough enough in your stand on foreign policy? >> i think the question of foreign policy is a valid and very important one. when i look at government i think that the most important thing we do at the federal government level is to defend our country. without question, bar none. national defense is a constitutional function. it's the most important function we have. when i look at spending, when i look at what we should spend money on, this or national defense, or this or that or national defense, for me the priority is always national defense. when we get to foreign policy, though we're not all the same. not all republicans are the same on foreign policy. there is a spectrum. on one end, there are people

who believe we should never be anywhere outside our borders. on the other end, there are people who believe we should be everywhere all the time. i think really in the end what we should do is obey the constitution. the constitution says that war when we go to war should be declared and should be initiated by congress. >> final question, senator. and we appreciate your being with us in the time limits you've kept is naturally curly hair the greatest attribute the good lord could give. >> my only comment on that is people keep saying is that really his hair? can it be that bad? so one time i was at a rally in litchfield, kentucky and a woman came up and grabbed me by the hair and she said, oh, i just wanted to see if it was real or not. >> thank you, senator. >> thanks, everybody. [cheering and applause]

>> more from cpac with businessman donald trump. he spoke at the conference for 25 minutes. >> thank you very much. it's such an honor to be here at cpac. we've done this before. the response has been so great. i love you people. you're really my kind of people. you're conservative. you work. you love the country. it's very simple. so a lot of people -- >> you're fired! >> you're fired. [laughter] a lot of people think i'm doing this for fun. they think it's good for my brand that i'm here and i'm doing that and a big successful guy. i'm not doing this for fun. i'm doing it because we have to take our country back. our country --

[applause] -- our country is in serious, serious problems. we have a president who is either incompetent which i think he could be or he has his own agenda which i know he does. he does definitely have the agenda. washington is totally broken. and it's not going to get fixed unless we put the right person in that top position. it's just not going to happen. now, the problem i have, i'm not a politician. thank goodness. politicians are all talk, no action. i've dealt with them all my life. the king of zoning, the king of -- i deal with politicians. that's what i do. i deal with people in this country our politicians are all talk no action. now, i'm a conservative. i'm a republican. but i look at what's going on with the republicans.

i'm almost more disappointed with the republicans. and you can go right now. i mean, right now they're sitting over there and they're going to make a decision on whether or not to fund, and i guarantee the answer is we'll fund we're going to fund, we're going to keep doing it. our president broke the law when he did what he did. and you're going to have to take a tremendously strong action or you're going to have people just flowing into this country worse than it's ever been. they're coming in now by the thousands and it's going to only get worse. so the republicans have to toughen up. they have to toughen up on the i.r.s. they have to toughen up on benghazi. they have to toughen up on everything and, most importantly, perhaps other than immigration, they have to toughen up on obamacare which is a total lie and which is a total and complete disaster.

[applause] and when it gets in, because it really kicks in in 2016, when it kicks in, you are going to see some catastrophic result. people are getting out of business. companies are closing all because of obamacare. so they have to do something about that and they have to do it now. now, when was the last time you heard something good about our country? we won. we beat china. we beat mexico. we beat somebody. we never win. you don't hear good news about this country. we are in a position where we just never win. and that's because of our leadership. you need somebody perhaps that wrote the art of the deal. one of the great business books of all time i might add. now, you know, a little example somebody said i can't believe you got the old post office. you know, right down the road meaning on pennsylvania avenue.

i wish it were right down the road. right down the road, pennsylvania avenue. i got a building the old post office. great building. everybody wanted it. g.s.a. gave it out. we are doing an amazing job with it. it's under construction now for six months. the g.s.a. gave it out. obama gave it out. trump got it. now, is that good negotiating? it was in the history of the g.s.a. one of the most sought after properties ever. and trump got it. people said to me how the hell did you ever get it when obama is in charge of the g.s.a.? but that's the way it goes, folks. and maybe that's what we need some of. so it's really, really important that we have people in that top position that know, because the country has such tremendous potential. unbelievable potential, and we just are not using it. now, on isis, nobody if i decide to run and win, nobody

would be tougher than donald trump. nobody. [applause] i would hit them so hard and so fast that they wouldn't know what happened. i would find a general. remember the old days of general macarthur and general patton and these great generals. we must have somebody in there. but i laugh as i say and it's laugh through tears, as you say, look. they're announcing when they're going to attack the other side. how often do you see that in two weeks from now we're sending soldiers over here to attack this. general mcarthur is spinning in his grave. when he sees what we do. so you got to hit them hard. you got to hit them firm. you can't play games. you got to go hard and fast and firm. and there's somebody there that's going to do the job.

now, we have a thing, beau bergdahl. we sell. we make a deal. beau bergdahl for five killers. five terrorists who are right now out there trying to kill us. this is the kind of thinking. you don't even hear anything about it anymore. people forget. it's like the one-week schedule. they forget. the beau bergdahl deal is emblematic of what's going on in this country. all our deals are like that. and we can't let it continue to happen. now, iran. they cannot have a nuclear weapon. we must protect israel. we must protect israel. as far as our borders are concerned we need strong borders. we need a wall. i will tell you, the king of

building walls. nobody can build them like trump. that i can promise you. i can promise you that. executive order. we've got to knock it out. we've got to knock it out fast. common core is bad. bad. [applause] second amendment is good. now really good. now they want to take away your bullets, folks. i don't know if you've been seeing what's been going on. they can't get the gups. now they want to go after the bullets. but the common core, look. i came down very hard on mitt romney because he let us down. he really let us down. that should have been an election that was won. that was an easy election to win. i actually think probably easier than the next one coming up. there was no excuse for not winning that. i came down very strong. jeb bush. he's in favor --

[booing] -- he's in favor of common core. he is weak on immigration. now think of it for a second. in favor of common core, weak on immigration. remember the statement, they come over for love? that was his stance on immigration. i don't see them winning. i don't see any way. you people have to make your own choice. who knows? we have to rebuild our infrastructure. i go throughout the world. i'm all over the world and i see china and i see abu dab ue, places you wouldn't believe. you go to qatar. you go to saudi arabia. you see bridges and tunnels and airports and just roadways that are so magnificent. they're paved in gold. and then you come home and you land at laguardia. or you land at l.a.x. in los angeles or you land at kennedy airport in new york and they're

like third world places. our roads are crumbling. everything is crumbling. we're rebuilding china. it's got to stop. we have the cards. remember that. we have the cards. social security. i'm the only republican that's going to say this and i don't know if people are going to love it or not but we've got to make this country rich again. we can do it with smart leadership. and when we make it rich, we can save social security, medicare, and medicaid, and not cut it like almost every republican wants to do. let's cut social security cut medicare. now you go after the fraud and abuse but you don't cut it. we make the country rich again. we take back the jobs from china and other nations. and you're not going to have to cut social security, medicare, etcetera. nobody else is going to tell you that. we're 18 trillion in debt very soon going to be a lot more than that and we're going to reach 24 trillion dollars.

that's a sacred number because it's a number from which there is almost no recovery. we better get going and we better get going fast. i just want to leave this with you. to be a winner you have to think like a winner. our country hasn't been thinking like a winner. we're totally on the defense. we're being laughed at all over the world for our stupidity. we're giving things away. isis, you know we leave it for iraq and isis comes in and takes it. i see these trucks and beautiful tanks all american tanks. we have to use our head. we need brilliant leadership. we can make america great again. there is tremendous potential in this country. and my whole concept is make america great again. we can do it. thank you. thank you. thank you. [applause] >> thank you.

thank you very much. now we have sean hannity. where's sean? come on, sean. get out here, sean. give it up for mr. donald trump. you all doing okay? >> thank you. thank you everybody. >> they have chairs. or do you want to stand? >> we'll stand. let's stand. >> okay. first question. it's great to see you. >> nice to see you. >> don't read into this. this is a donald trump -- do not take that as an indication that i am committed. i still haven't made up my mind. >> very well. >> i'm going to get fired in a minute. all right. you know what the first question, many of my friends ask, okay. you kind of flirted with running before -- >> primarily. i did. i thought romney could do it and he let us down. i did. i love what i'm doing. look. i love building. i'm building all over the world. i love it. more than anything else i love it. but i love this country.

my children have grown. they are very, very esconfidenced in the company. i have great executives. i can let them run things and i have no problem. when you're building it is very hard for a person like me to run because i have a lot of things happening. a politician, they run. what do they do? they run, they run. they lose. they win. they run. with me i give up a lot. i already told the apprentice people. nbc wanted to renew and i said i'm doing something else that is very important to me. i'm doing something very important. i am looking at it very seriously. i don't want what happened to mitt romney to happen again. that was a tremendous blow for this country. >> okay. if i have to ask you on a scale of 1 to 100 where are you on this scale in terms of where you think you are in deciding to run? >> 1 to 100 i would say 75 and 80. i am really inclined. i want to do it so badly. you know, i have the theme. it's my theme. make america great again. that's what i want to do. we can do that in this country if we have people that know

what they're doing if we have people that are confident. >> let's talk about -- i just had an opportunity to speak to this great crowd and i talked about the economic problems we have. you're known for being a businessman. >> correct. >> 50 million americans in poverty. 50 million close to it 50 million americans on food stamps. 92 million americans not working. we please don't count them but they're not working. >> as i said we don't count them. we have they say 5.3 and 5.6%. i think it's over 20%. >> how do we get them how would donald trump as president get these people back to work? >> you have to take the jobs back from china. you have to take the jobs back from mexico. mexico in iowa companies are leaving for mexico. you have to -- they give incentives to leave our country and go to places like mexico. by the way mexico is the next china. mexico, folks, is not our friend. i hate to tell you this. but mexico, and i'm not just talking about the border.

mexico is ripping off the united states big, big league. and we better do something. but jobs going to china, to mexico to brazil they're going everywhere but here. we've lost our manufacturing and lost our manufacturing base. sean, you hear about as an example apple. sure it's based here but they do all their work, make all their products in china. a wonderful place. wonderful. i have tremendous experience with china. i've made a lot of money with china. i had some pretty hard times with china and i was the one that came out on top. believe me this country can come out on top. >> okay. let me ask, i think everybody's got to have a vision. if i were to ask you, if you become president your top five agenda items, what are they? >> well, i start with isis. you have to just hit them and hit them hard. get rid of that whole situation. if you want to ask me that question two years ago, three years ago probably it wouldn't

have been the first thing on the agenda but right now it has become so severe so bad. i always said take the oil. they have the oil. isis first. obamacare, i would repeal it and i would get something that would be so much better than obamacare. so important. you look at every aspect of government. you look at regulation. the e.p.a. you can't move. you can't do anything. everything you want to do is stopped. you have to do that. i would build a tremendously strong military. our military has been -- [cheering] -- has been let go and it's been let go badly. being in the real estate business all the time i get these listings for army bases for sale. they're selling everything. i said aren't we going to have any army bases left? all the time so many bases for sale. i say what are we going to do about it? i would straighten out the whole mess. these vets are great people. amazing people. i would straighten out that mess like you wouldn't believe and be in there really fast and i would be working on iran and

i would be helping israel big league. there wouldn't be speeches made behind my back. i would be helping out israel big league. because they deserve the help. and iran has very, very bad intentions. when you look at, this is negotiating 101. you look at a president who's negotiating and he drops the sanctions. now i would have said, triple up the sanctions. so now they're not doing anything. they're not coming to a good conclusion. i hear the deal is terrible. so when he comes here it will be very interesting what happens. but we have a president that truly doesn't know what he's doing. >> with isis, specifically -- let's get specifics here. we see what the jordanians are doing and the egyptians are doing. what would specifically, you do to, a, stop iran's nuclear program and, b, defeat isis. i don't hear you saying degrade them i hear you saying defeat them. >> i just hit isis really hard.

probably, a year ago you wouldn't have said it and nobody would like it. now everybody likes it. you may have to have some boots on the ground for a period of time until you get rid of the cancer. that is number one. you may have to have that. look. they're cutting off the heads of people, burning people at the stake. it's like we're living in medieval times. you have to do something. as far as iran is concerned, if they respected our leadership, they'd negotiate. if we put sanctions all over the place, they would negotiate. they were being very badly hurt by sanctions. now all of a sudden it's like they're not taking us seriously. with iran, sanctions all over the place. believe me. you can make a right deal if you have the right negotiator. part of the problem we have, sean, we have people that are diplomats doing -- they do nothing about negotiating. all they know how to do is keep their job. they know nothing about negotiating. if we had the right people, we could solve the isis problem and we could solve the iran

problem. and a lot more quickly than you think. >> you made a statement about immigration where you said i'm great at building things. i'm great at building fences. >> i would build a wall. it all starts with a wall. you have to build -- first of all it also has to go with mexico having some respect for our country. they don't respect us whatsoever. people are flowing through mexico. and what a lot of people don't realize the hardest country, one of the hardest countries to become a citizen of, you probably couldn't do it, is mexico. the people flow right through mexico. they shove them through our borders. we have no idea. by the way, you don't know where those people are coming from. they could have very, very bad intentions. and they don't necessarily have to be from the areas that you think they are. >> mexico puts them in jail. or they tell them to go home immediately. >> mexico is one of the hardest countries in this world to become a citizen of but they just flow them right through our border. i see it the other night on television i'm watching and thousands of people they just walk across the border.

you have guards standing there. they just walk right across. what are we, stupid? it's just hard to believe this can happen. >> there are so many young people in this room. obama has, well by the time he leaves office will have accumulated more debt than every other president combined. >> true. >> what do you say to them about how a president trump could balance the budget? >> i understand debt. i understand business better than anybody that's ever run in my opinion for office. nobody's had the success in a business sense that i've had. i know how to get rid of debt. i would get rid of that debt and i would do it quickly because it's sitting out there and it is a time bomb for this country. >> specifically though. this is important. i like the penny plan. cut a penny out of every dollar. >> fine. i like two plans. i like making the country rich again taking in tremendous amounts of money. stopping china from ripping us, etcetera, and also cutting costs. but not cutting them when it comes to the military. and not cutting them when it

comes to social security either. >> all right. i see -- i always, every time i'm up here it says wrap up now. i don't know why. real quick. a lightning round. real quick answers. abortion. >> okay. well i'm very pro life. [applause] >> feel strongly about it. with exceptions. life of the mother, etcetera. but i am pro life. >> rape and incestt, life and the mother. >> yes. life of the mother rape, and incest. >> gay marriage. >> i am for traditional marriage. i think it is a states rights issue not a judge issue. it is a voter issue but a states rights but i am for traditional marriage. >> colorado, marijuana, good or bad experiment? >> i say it's bad. medical marijuana is another thing. but i think it's bad. and i feel strongly about that. >> well hang on. what about the states right aspect of it if the people of colorado decide? >> if they vote for it they vote for it but they have a lot of problems right now in colorado. big problems. i think medical marijuana,

100%. >> let me mention some names to you. and just get a quick response. hillary clinton. >> like a one word response? i sort of think of benghazi. i think of a failed secretary of state. but benghazi was a disaster. amazingly, i don't think it resonated like it should have. but benghazi was a total disaster. >> we learned today in fact they knew from the first minutes of that attack that it was a terror attack which i think will become a bigger issue. bill clinton? >> nice guy. got a lot of problems coming up in my opinion with the famous island with jeffrey epstein. a lot of problems. >> barack obama. >> incompetent president. >> okay. [applause] >> you obviously, the american dream has worked in your life and your father's life, your family's life. i know a lot about your background. we're now talking a lot about american exceptionalism. in donald trump's mind what makes america exceptional and why do you so love this country that you want to be its

commander-in-chief? >> it's got a great fabric. they have phenomenal people like the people in this room. we have so much going. we need the incentives. we can't take away those incentives. but we have a country that can be so great again. we have a country that will be absolutely admired by everybody. right now it's not admired by other countries. and i deal with these countries. they talk to me, sean, and they say i can't believe it. chinese. they say, they're friends of mine. they say i can't believe we're getting away with this. in saudi arabia they say i can't believe we get away with this. they don't put up the money. we fight wars for them. they don't put up the money. i know these people. i have nothing against china. their leaders are just much smarter than ours. if we bring our country back to the grass roots, if we keep the incentives going, i'm telling you the potential of the united states is so incredible. if we do it properly. and if we have smart really smart leadership. >> one last question. you almost single handedly were

out there questioning president obama's background. you said how can you not show a birth certificate? >> right. >> i'm not bringing up that issue as much. you also wanted to see his college records. >> right. >> some people have criticized you for asking those questions. what is your response snverages i did want to say i still would like to see his college records. i'm not looking at his marks. i'd like to see where he put often. look, he wrote a book when he was a young man and it said born in kenya. blah, blah. blah. i would like to see his college records. i think it's important. now as far as the birth certificate, hillary clinton wanted his birth certificate. hillary is a birther. she wanted it. but she was unable to get it. john mccain fought really hard and really viciously to get his birth certificate. john mccain failed. couldn't get it. trump comes along. and i'm not a sitting senator. i'm not a sitting anything else. i'm a good businessman. but trump comes along and says,

birth certificate. he gave a birth certificate. whether or not that was a real certificate because a lot of people questioned it, i certainly questioned it. but hillary clinton wanted it. mccain wanted it. and i wanted it. he didn't do it for them. he did it for me. so in one sense i'm proud of it. all we have to do is find out whether it was real. >> all right. >> cpac, give it up. donald trump. >> thank you. [applause and cheering] >> thank you. >> now former pennsylvania senator rick santorum speaking at cpac. he talked about the economy and the obama administration's strategy against isis among other topics. this is 20 minutes. >> thank you.

thank very much. it is great to be back here in cpac. let me first do what i always do, which is introduce my family, who is joining me here today. my coauthor in life and our newest book "bella's gift" my wife karen who is down here. and the rest of our seven children -- everybody here but bella are here today. thank you so much for welcoming us and welcoming them. thank you. three years ago, i stood on this stage and my family was behind me. we had just come from a few days before having swept missouri, minnesota, and colorado in the 2012 primary election cycle. after that sweep "the wall street journal" editorialized about my economic plan saying it was a supply side economic plan for the working men and women of this country. i talked about, in this speech, that we needed to unite

america. with someone who was pro freedom, pro family, pro growth, and also pro worker. we have seen that wages over time have stagnated. the economy median income is declining in america. we need someone who can unite this country around a vision, an economic vision that can pull us together. a vision that's focused on working men and women who are struggling in america today. a vision that says we can restore our manufacturing base. we can improve our infrastructure. we can increase our energy development. all to help the people in this country who are lagging behind and feeling like neither party really cares about them or talks about them. i talked about the 70% of americans who don't have a

college education. what we need to do to restore vocational education in our high schools. to put parents back in charge not the government. back in 2012, i wasn't for common core. and today i'm still not for common core. [cheering] after the campaign i wrote a book called "blue collar conservative laying out the vision for how we can unite america" around helping those struggling in our society. i was doing a book signing in des moines at the republican state committee. i just happened to be in iowa passing through. and a woman dropped a book in front of me. i said who would you like me to make this out to? she said janice. i said it's nice to meet you janice. she said it's not my name. i said who is janice? she said that's my hair dresser. i said your hair dresser? she said yeah. we don't agree on anything but she loves you.

i said really. i got to ask you. why would your liberal hair dresser love me? without missing a beat she says because you're for the little guy. of all the workers in america only 10% owned their own business. 90% are little guys. pundits have often wondered how i was able to win 11 states even though i was outspent 4:1. they thought it was because i was simply the last man standing. they were wrong. i won because i stood for someone -- the little guy, the american worker. [applause] if we are going to win in 2016, we need to stand for the little guy, too. [applause]