what they were doing that they sat around in vienna talking about if a hollywood mov ie was made about this process, who would play each of them. it was decided -- i'm not making this up. ted denson was going to play john kerry. javier barred them was going to play secretary moni's. and meryl streep would be playing the part of wendy sherman. i thought they had it terribly miscast. they should have larry, curly, and moe. [applause] one of the things that has happened this week because of the pope's visit, we have had unleashed on us weapons of mass distraction. whiche this is a week in people were only talking about a

portion of what the pope said, rather than talking about the fact that hillary clinton conveniently used this week and all the news going on to quietly say she would not support the keystone pipeline. which is one more gut punch a workers in this country and one more gut punch to consumers in this country. we ought to be working on not just exploring the energy that we have under our feet, hundreds of years of it, but we ought to become the number one exporter of energy and put putin, the iranians, and the saudi's out of the energy business. we ought to be supplying europe, africa, and asia with energy. [applause] mr. huckabee: because in doing that, we not only upset the balance of world power and make it where they don't have the money to move into crimea, ukraine, and build nuclear devices, and teach terrorists

how to fly into buildings, but we start making it possible for americans to have those energy jobs and not some saudi prince getting filthy rich off of it. happens,er thing that we make it so that a lot of americans get the pay raise -- the best a raise they've ever had. some single mom who straps kids into car seats and drops them off at daycare and then has to go to work, if we could permanently get the cost of her gasoline from three dollars a gallon down to a dollar a gallon, we've just given her the biggest pay raise she's ever had. [applause] and theabee: 84-year-old widow living in south arkansas on a hot august day won't have to swelter in the heat. she can turn on her air-conditioning and get it down to 72 and enjoy a nice, comfortable day because her

electric bill will finally be affordable. this is the kind of agenda that america needs to have, but hillary clinton has decided to side with people who are into agendam and a radical that would bankrupt a lot of poor people in this country. i know something about the clintons, because i've been fighting them all of my political life. the past 25 years. [applause] every election i've ever been involved in, they have been involved in. from the time when i first was elected lieutenant governor, iran against their hand-picked candidate, who had been former chief legal counsel in bill clinton's office. all of his money was raised right out of the basement of the white house. they were so excited when i won because that never was supposed to happen.

republicans didn't win. i was only the fourth elected in 150 years. first in 25 years. when i got to the capital, i was the only elected republican in the building. they hated me so much, this is no joke, i would get on an elevator and people would get off. that video you saw about the door being nailed shut, that is not a story. i got sworn in, i went to open the door, and the door is nailed shut. "the wall street journal" was flown down to see if it was really true. it sounds preposterous. the door was literally nailed shut. it stayed that way for the first 59 days. hillary's former law partner called the capital and said, let's make this guy feel welcome. i'm telling you. you're going to hear a lot of people tell you they are ready to take on this election. there's only one person on that stage who has consistently

challenged the clintons, defeated the clinton machine, and lived to tell about it. [applause] mr. huckabee: when i got into office, corruption was rampant. i had the most lopsided legislature in the country. you may think it was massachusetts or oregon or washington state. it was not. it was arkansas. more democrats, fewer republicans than any state in the country. 90% elected democrats to 10% republicans. about half those were kind of suspect to be honest with you. but i knew the political machine of the state had chewed people up and spit them out. we went to work to stop the

corruption. i opened up a toll-free number and said, call if you want to report some fraud, waste, or abuse. we had over 1000. we hired a former fbi agent to sift through what people were giving us. over the next couple years, over 15 different elected officials were indicted, convicted, and many carted off to jail. you can't fight corruption if you don't take it out of the body. it is a cancer to our constitutional form of government. i want to come to washington not to be part of it. i want to come here and do here what i did in arkansas. that's go to work at burning down that which is corrupt and building back that which represents our constitutional form of government and we gave it back to the people where our founders intended it to be. nothing less than that is a worthy goal for the next president.

something,o tell you i'm out on the campaign trail every day and i understand people are angry. i tell people it's not just anger out there. it is a seething rage. this guy worries me. i'm only kidding. i love you, brother, because i agree with you. angry, iink you're want to tell you who else is angry. i'm angry. i went to 37 states last year campaigning for republicans because i thought if we got the majority in the senate and the house, we would have people who would stand up and do something. i thought people would come and defend the constitution and exercise the role of the legislative branch as a check and a balance over the executive.

i'm angry because i wasted a lot of my time last year to get people elected and after a few months, i realized they are not doing anything differently in the majority than they did in the minority. it's time we get this country back on track. [applause] mr. huckabee: ladies and gentlemen, the easiest thing in the world is to take a can of gasoline and a book of matches and burn the whole thing down. requires no skill whatsoever. none. a kid who is 11 years old can do that. skill toquires some burn down that which is rotten and to build back that which makes for the kind of government you want to give to the coming

generations after us. i've got five grandkids now. i would love to show you some photos if you have the time. iphone.ave 3216 on my people ask me every day, they ask my wife the same thing, why are you doing this? the answer is always the same. as my dad used to tell me, if you tell the truth, you don't have to remember what you said. [applause] mr. huckabee: so here's the truth. i've been blessed with this country. i'm grateful to god i was born in the united states of america. this country has been awfully good to me. i've been able to do things that my parents and grandparents could never conceive. i grew up like probably some of you, dirt poor, and my dad never finished high school. his does didn't and his dad

didn't. i'm the first male in my family to ever do that. i've lived the american dream. i didn't just read about it. i also know this. unless we make some significant, serious changes in the way we govern this nation -- and i'll be walking my grandkids through the charred remains of a once great republic called the united states of america and say, here you go, kids, $22 trillion of debt, a country that no longer follows its own constitution, a government in which people are so committed to their own nest feathering -- the fact is, the bottom 90% of america's workers have had stagnant wages for 40 consecutive years. most american workers in this country have been punched in the gut by the economic policies that have happened whether it's democrat or republican because

re's all about making su those in washington and wall street get their cut. i say it's time to quit taking a punch in the gut and give this government a kick in the butt . that's what we need to do in america now. [applause] mr. huckabee: i hear people say we've got to have a fighter. i agree. but, folks, you've never seen what a fight is until you've had to fight the clinton machine every single day of your political life, not only to get to office, but once there, to have to fight it every day because you inherit 100% of people in your boards, agencies, and commissions that have all been there as loyalists to the clintons. every election, bill and hillary one,on get off air force

campaign for your opponent. that will bless you. i understand what a fight is. but i understand that a fight means that you fight to win, not just fight to fight. i've never had a washington, d.c. address ever in my life. i've never had a paycheck from this town. people say, we want an outsider. well, you can have one. because i've never lived here, i've never worked here, i've never had a paycheck here. but i do understand that simply making a speech is not leadership. simply proposing a piece of legislation is not leadership. i can say i'm going to introduce a bill, propose an amendment. unless you bring it to the point where it gets signed and implemented, it's nothing but talk. leadership means you get the job done. we must begin to get the job

done. i've heard enough speeches in america. i want some real leadership to change america. [applause] mr. huckabee: i know one of the biggest battles going on in this city right now and it's a worthy battle. defund planned parenthood. [applause] when i hear people act as if if we could just defund planned parenthood, we could break our arms patting ourselves on the back, i just want to remind you of something. for 42 years, we have lived under the notion that it is a human right and privilege to take the lives of an unborn child. here's what i'd like to propose. that we do something far bolder

than simply cut out the funding for one agency that provides abortions. as important as that is, it doesn't end the nightmare, the scourge. it does not end this horrible, uncivilized, savage behavior. it just moves it over to let someone else do it. that as i've said president of the united states, i will raise this question. is the unborn child a person or is it just a blob of tissue? i believe with all my heart, the answer to that question we all know, it is a person. none of your daughters and daughters-in-law -- [applause]

mr. huckabee: none of your daughters and daughters-in-law called you up and said, congratulations, guess what, i'm going to have a blob of tissue. they called and said, i'm going to have a baby. i saw the pictures of my grandkids, something that didn't even exist when my wife and i had our three. we've been married -- so here's the fact. i'm tired of hearing us say, maybe one day we can get a constitutional amendment. i've got a better idea. since it is a human being, we already have the constitutional protection. it's called the fifth amendment, that says there will be due

process before you deprive a person of life or liberty. invoke thet, we will fifth and 14th amendment. we will protect human life. [applause] and let it be known, and i know that i'm held in contempt and ridiculed for it, but i've read the constitution, something i think a lot of ivy league lawyers never did. this much i know. a law.rts cannot make i want you to know, and i serve notice today, that as president of the united states, i will keep the oath and will not surrender the entire executive branch over to the judicial, or

the legislative, because i believe there are three branches of government, equal and therefore the checks and balances to each other, and kim davis and people like her will never, ever go to jail one minute if i'm president of the united states. [applause] mr. huckabee: ladies and gentlemen, if you want someone who just wants to burn it all down, i'm sure there are plenty of people that will be able to do it. you want somebody who just will introduce some bills and make some speeches, well we've had a president for eight years made a bunch of speeches. but if you want someone who from day one understands what the job of being the chief executive is and is prepared to do it, has

had experience in fighting the corruption, the very corruption we are most likely to face in this election, then i offer to you an option, and i hope with all my heart you give me the opportunity to serve this country, to serve you. one day, i want to walk with my grandkids, not through the charred remains of a once great country. i want to walk into the best this country has ever been and say, it took a lot of hard work, but we are leaving it in better shape than we found it. god bless you. thank you. thank you very much. [applause] ♪

dr. carson: thank you. thank you so much. thank you. thank you. thank you very much. thank you. i love enthusiastic crowds, you know? it makes up for my low energy. [laughter] dr. carson: you know, i got to tell you something about america. i've visited at least 57 different countries -- [laughter] mr. huckabee: -- dr. carson: i'm always so pleased when i get back here. america has been so good to me. i was born in pretty dire circumstances, grew up very

was ahad a bad temper, i terrible student, all the things that probably would have precluded success in most other places. america, the opportunities were there, even if you didn't have a silver spoon in your mouth. you could go to the library and it didn't cost you anything to go there unless you turned your book in late. you know, those are the kind of opportunities that i want to preserve for other people. i really get irritated when people complain about america and say that we are a terrible place and we are the source of all evil in the world. if we were so bad, why is everybody trying to get in here and nobody's trying to escape? that's craziness. thing as thesuch a

american way. we should be proud of it. have you noticed that there's no canadian way? there's no french way. there's no egyptian way. there's no other way except america. let's be proud of who we are. [applause] really one and it's of the reasons that i come off for one, am not interested in giving away all of our values and principles so that we can be politically correct. that is a bunch of craziness. some people, when you say things like that, they say you're bigoted and you're racist, because you don't want other people to import their way of life, and we should be willing to accept the way that other people do things.

anybody is welcome to come to america as far as i'm concerned. as long as they meet all of our criteria. but they don't get to change who we are. that is a very important concept. [applause] i deeply believe in compassion and being kind to other people. i think we're in a very good position in america to be kind to other people. i think about what's going on in a nation like cameroon now where some major american companies have gone over there and are helping to develop millions of acres of incredibly fertile land and getting record crops, making a lot of money i will admit, but also developing the

infrastructure of that nation and providing jobs and teaching them the ag business so they can do that on their own to a much better extent. that is the kind of thing that is a win-win situation. it's making friends for us and we are not borrowing money from china. that's the kind of thing that makes sense. that's the kind of thing we also should be doing in south and central america so that they won't feel the need to come here. the other thing we need to be isnking about in that regard sealing our borders. the fact of the matter is, having gone down there recently and looked at how -- anybody could get through there. the fences they have would barely slow me down when i was a kid. there's no border guards.

the border guards are all 70 miles inland. why are they called border guards if they are not on the border? and when they capture people, ice tells them to release them. a lot of those people are not from honduras and mexico. somalia from iraq and and russia and many of them are hardened criminals. it seems like our federal government is actually fighting against the sheriff's and these people who are down there and look in -- i sat with some of the families and they told me the horror stories about how frightening it was. they are some incredibly brave americans to do that. we need an administration that will back our people up and not the people who are trying to invade here from someplace else. [applause]

i've already done some interviews today which you will be seeing on television over the next couple days. i am so tickled with the media. i mean, these guys, they are like, they just don't get it. is, theresting thing media is the only business in america protected by the united states constitution. there's a reason they were protected. it is because they were supposed to be on the side of the people. they weren't supposed to pick and choose which side they were on because that distorts the entire system. we should hope and pray that one day they come to understand that as the nation goes off the cliff, they are going off with it. maybe they will wake up.

begin to understand what's going on. i went back and forth with one commentator. but you said that somebody who is of the islamic faith or a muslim could not be present -- president of the united states. i said, go back and read the whole transcript. before that, i said anybody from any faith, from any belief system who comes to america, becomes an american citizen, embraces our american values and principles, and is willing to subjugate their beliefs to our constitution is somebody i have no problem with. but he then comes back and says, but what about a muslim? in the context of maybe somebody who didn't fit in that category. .hey can be a christian

if they don't fit in that category, i'm not going to advocate that they be president of the united states. [applause] dr. carson: and by the way, not advocating that they be president of the united states in no way precludes them from running. the last i checked, we all had the right to decide who we wanted to advocate for. we don't have to in any way say that you must say this or you must say that. political correctness is ruining our country and we need to stand up for what we actually believe. this is ridiculous. [applause] you know, the big problem, the big problem with the media is, they are always, you know, going off into these

tangents because they don't want to talk about the real issues. you know, we have some serious problems in this country. you know, our fiscal irresponsibility is ruining the future for those who come behind us. and as a pediatric neurosurgeon who spend my entire career working on the welfare of children, i cannot quietly sit by and watch us ruining their future. we have a national debt of greater than $18 trillion. what a ridiculous amount of money. i mean, a million is a lot. a billion is a thousand million. and a trillion is a thousand billion. we're talking over 18 trillion. to pay that back, it would take you over 5000 years.

that's what we are putting on the backs of our young people. that's the good news. it's actually much worse than that. the fiscal gap. this is something that no politician will talk about. but i'm not a politician so i'm going to talk about it. -- and please look this up when you get home or read about it -- it's the amount of unfunded liability that we have as a nation. social security, medicare, medicaid, all the departmental programs. there's 645 different government it is absurd for top that leads to a tremendous amount of money.

those numbers should be almost identical. if in fact, you are responsible. however, when you are not there is a gap. today'sbring that up in dollars and you are talking a fiscal gap. that is over $200 trillion. it is a staggering amount of money. i mentioned the fiscal gap in my announcement speech. he does not know anything about economics. even knows what that is? he is just trying to frighten people full top and the next day , forbes came out with an article. 1200 professors of economics agree with carson, it stated [applause] that kind of took some of the wind out of their sails.

you look at that amount of money and the only reason we can sustain the amount of debt is we can print money. which we are doing in a very irresponsible way. tostop coupling the dollar the gold standard back in 1971. it is our good name faith in credit. it is not all that good to be honest with you. it is a house of cards that is ready to collapse and what are we doing? continuing to increase that level of debt. and in fact, i would say, if you are representatives, and i don't care if they are democrats are republicans, if they continue to vote to increase the debt and to and raise the amount of money we are going to spend at the expense of those coming behind us, any to find out who they are, or throw them out of office. that is absolutely imperative. [applause]

now, i never like to raise a problem without offering a solution. there actually is a solution to our incredible fiscal problems. we are in possession of the most powerful and dynamic economic engine the world has ever known. --is just that it came cannot function. we haven't tried it with so many regulations. nothing can work effectively anymore. and that dampens the enthusiasm for people to take risks and to invest capital. and what people do not know is every single federal regulation costs us money in terms of goods and services. it increases the price of everything. who gets hit most by that?

the middle class and poor people. that is one of the things driving the income gap. bernie sanders would have you believe it is because rich people exist. let me tell you something. you take every dime from the top 1% and you will still have a gigantic problem. that is a mess and it is a political sham, and we need to reject that and teach people what the real issues are that are going on in our country. [applause] and then, when you look at the trilliondebt, of $18 plus, it forces the fed it to keep suppressing the interest rates. what happens if they allow the interest rates to rise to normal levels? with that level of debt, the debt service on that would be billion-$900800

billion. that is ridiculous. and thinkve to do is, about what the result of that is, by the way. for years, traditionally. money in oure make society. friday butcher, every put 5% of his paycheck in his savings account and he watched over the next three decades so when he retired, he had a nice nest take. he is not incentivized to do that anymore. that is problematic. putting money in the bank, bonds, things like that, which allowed the average person to develop some degree of financial security, those things have not existed for almost a decade now sto.

the only place to make money is in the stock market. do that, you have to have risk tolerance. rich.that, you have to be the driver of the gap, again. people fromtop being deceived that it is the wealthy people among us causing the problem. that is not who is causing the problems, it is the socialists among us causing the problem. [applause] and we can, we can solve that problem quite effectively. you know, the other thing they don't want us to focus on is the weakness of our military. you know, it is record lows. you know, our navy, our air force. corps, whene marine

they spoke about the nondeployed units and how a state of readiness existed. largely because they are not getting the support they need. it is not because of the men and women. the men and women in our military service are tremendous people. like donald trump said, they are tremendous people. tremendous people. [applause] look at what we're doing also i weakening our military and not taking care of our veterans. the recruitment of our veterans is down 14%. this is hurting us. the morale is down. 22-23 veterans committing suicide every single day. i mean, and that is the tip of the iceberg. it shows that we are not committing our support to them. what we need to be doing as far as i am concerned, is the day to

be alsoroll, that he to enrolled in a support system that will take care of them all the way through their military their dnd a year before should have people working on their integration back into society so there is gap. and they should have a health savings account that is subsidized at the government which allows them to go to any hospital or any clinic and we should be happy to take care of them. [applause] because if they are willing to lay their lives down and their limbs to take care of us, the least we can do is make sure that we take care of them when they come back. [applause] when we are talking about our

values. what are our values? one nation. unity. let's stop letting the purveyors of the vision to bite us up. -- divide us up. they don't even care if you agree, as long as you shut your mouth and set down. i think it is time for us to and shutting our mouths sitting down. we have to stop allowing the progressives from driving got out of our land. [applause] to stand upilling for it because as they drive him out, look at the direction we are going in. it is a downward spiral. it was thomas jefferson who , theythe american people

would become less vigilant. they would stop paying attention. as a result, the government will grow and grow and infiltrate every aspect of our lives and it will begin to control and dominate to the people. he said, just before we turn into something else, the people will wake up and they will once again take control. i say, now is the time to wake up and take control. thank you. [applause] ♪

>> thank you, very much. thank you for the warm reception and generous introduction. the strangest thing happened backstage. was herenald trump earlier and i guess he brought a copy of the bible he was given as a child. but he left it backstage. [laughter] knowing how close i am to donald trump, one of the organizers gave it to me and asked me to get it back to him. i took a look at it and this is very different from my bible. i'm not sure what translation you use, but this is a very different translation. "the artdoes not say of the deal" on the front cover and is not have a picture of donald trump on the front cover. i will have to make sure to get that back to donald. y'all to talk and i know have heard the news that john

boehner decided to step down. [applause] a reporter asked me what i thought about that and i said, that is good, that is one down. that is 434 more before be are done. folks, it is time to fire everybody in d.c.. the reason i am saying that is, right now we have a choice between honest socialist on one side and lying conservatives on the other. the left is honest and will tell us what they are going to do. they will expand socialism. they say they are conservative in a campaign, but do not govern like it at all. here is my message and what i say in response to speaker john boehner stepping down. mitch mcconnell, it is now your turn. [applause]

in senator mcconnell is not willing to fight for our conservative principle, he needs to follow john boehner's example. the caucus needs to surrender their gavels and turn them in. i will say something that may surprise you. i am angrier with the republicans than with the democrats. [applause] republicansunch of that don't even do the things they say they were going to do. remember when i said you have honest socialist. you have guys like bernie sanders fighting for socialism. why don't our side fight half is hard for freedom and for america. [applause] on issue after issue, all they know how to do is give up. they told us, give us the majority and we will get rid of obamacare and amnesty. we did our work. we voted. we donated money, time. we wonder majority and we still have obamacare. we still have amnesty.

i am the only candidate with a plan to get rid of all of obamacare. i'm not trying to be cheaper democrats. let's restore freedom to americans health care system. not socialism. [applause] we could secure the border in six months if we were serious about it. let's be honest. democrats to want to secure the border and republicans, we are becoming the party of big business. they want amnesty, they want, core. clownsime to fire these again been out of the way and secure the border, once and for all. [applause] but they are no better this year. so now, mitch mcconnell, before the fight even starts says we cannot to defund planned parenthood. tell you something.

if the republican party cannot defund planned parenthood, if we cannot make protecting innocent human life a winning issue nationally, what good is the republican party? it is time to start a new movement. [applause] i will tell you what we did in louisiana. we are not talking about defunding planned parenthood. when the first video came out we launched an investigation with the fbi. then the other videos came out. the canceled their medicaid contracts. they are getting a taxpayer dollars in the louisiana state. [applause] they decided to come protest at my house in baton rouge. have a constitutional right to do that, but we are southerners and mike to provide hospitality. [laughter] we put big projection screens

and cameras out there and i showed those planned parenthood videos over, and over, and over. [applause] just so you know, it acts like insect repellent. you want to keep pests off your yard. they didn't like that. the obama administration joined them in court. he does not have time to launch -- to watch the videos but he is time to send his lawyers to baton rouge. i have a message to president obama. save your breath. you will not intimidate us. we will fight for human life in the state of louisiana. [applause] now we have got this awful iran deal.

the iranians conned president obama and president obama conned the republicans. go she anyone, except for -- you cannot negotiate anyone, except for congress. now it takes a two thirds vote to reject the iran deal. every senate republican voted for this bad deal, except for one ful. including those running for president. this bad deal for and now is the time for the senate republicans to stand up full top if we are not willing to use the nuclear option to stop iran from becoming a nuclear power, what good are these senate republicans? if we are not willing to break the senate rules -- [applause] folks, it is time. it is time to fire these career

politicians. it is time to get legislators who live under the same rules. it is time to clean shop in washington dc. [applause] now, i will talk to you directly about this presidential campaign. i will be honest with you. i don't have a famous last name. my daddy was not president. i don't have a reality tv show. this is what i have got. the backbone, i have got the bandwidth, i have got the experience to give us through this. why is that important? 16 odd, i don't mean they are all odd, well, some of them are odd. they are running for president on the republican side and they all talk a great game. here is the problem. we have got a great talker in the white house today. talk is not enough. we do not need a great talker, we need a doer.

if great speech was enough, we would be on easy street. every republican will come up. tell you they will cut government spending and shrink the size of the government. sounds great. but here is the difference. only one candidate has actually done it. we had seven former governors running and only one has actually cut government funding and you are looking at him. no other governor has cut government spending. [applause] have four senators running for president to have never cut anything in d.c.. they give great speeches. i'm glad they have got big , but that does not qualify them to be president. we have already got a first-term senator in the white house. more yearsfford four of on-the-job training. the next president will be across the table from an ayatollah or a putin.

we better hope he does not need a teleprompter to get through that meeting. [applause] we have cut our government spending in louisiana by 26%. 30,000 fewer state bureaucrats that the day i took office. eight credit upgrades. that is what we need in d.c. we don't need to slow the growth of government. you either go government spending, or the american economy. we do not shrink it, it will swallow was full. i will say something that is politically incorrect. if you are looking for someone to manage the slow decline of this once great country, go vote for somebody else. if you want to vote for someone who will say and do the things you're not supposed to do and say, we're asking you to join our cause. we will say something politically incorrect, but true. the idea of america is slipping away right in front of us. what do i mean by that?

most 45ts came here on years ago in search of freedom and opportunity. the were coming for american dream, but that same idea of america is slipping away. to me, americans take it for granted. we could never take it for granted. $18 trillion of debt. hammered selling baby parts across the country. we have got a president who declared war on trans-fats and a truce with iran. [laughter] [applause] we've got a president who will not save the words radical islamic terrorism. to keep godpeople out of the public square. we of the left side trying to change the american dream and european nightmare. we have more americans on food stamps than ever before, record low participation in the workforce. given epa trying to regulate the water in our backyards.

we have the government reaching new programs we cannot afford. the idea of america is slipping away from us. you, we don'tell have a moment to waste. it is not about tomorrow, or next week, or next month, it is about right now. we have to fight to save the idea of america. and d.c.,hose fools giving away the idea. shame on us for letting it happen. as long as i have got breath in my body, or blood in me, i will give everything i have got to save the idea of america. createdof america has more wealth than any other civilization in the history of the world full dot it has done more to fight for the defenseless and freedom than any other simulation -- any other civilization in the history in the world. we have got a once in a lifetime, once in a generation, opportunity to apply our conservative principles to save for idea of america.

that is why, when i came to this town, and you have seen, a gave and criticize donald trump. some of you may have liked it, and some of you may not have. it doesn't matter. tell the truth. i love the idea of donald trump. i love the outsider, i love someone who is politically incorrect. i thought donald trump was entertaining. i thought it was great when he gave out lindsey graham's phone number on national tv. i thought it was funny when he showed people falling asleep in jeb bush's rallies. i thought it was good when he gave helicopter rides at the state fair. i thought it was fantastic. here's the problem. the idea of donald trump is great, but the reality is different. the reality is, he is not a conservative or liberal, republican, or independent. he is a narcissist. [applause]

he gets criticized. misses the point. he does not care about policy. we as conservatives have a choice to make. are we going to turn to a man that police and nothing but himself. i think it is great that he took the reagan statement about making american great again. he is not interested in that. he is interested in making donald trump great. he said his favorite book was the bible, but he cannot name one verse that had an impact on him. you know he has not read the bible because his name is not in the bible. [laughter] [applause] about,s, this is not this isn't about donald trump, this is about turning to our conservative principles. once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to save the idea of america.

they finally put him on the down, and had him them fired. we should tell him he has been entertaining, but we have enough of it. i'm not embarrassed, i'm not ashamed to tell you i am a christian. [applause] i was not born, i was not raised christian. it took seven long years for me at the age of 16 to give my life to christ. i accepted jesus as my personal lord and savior in baton rouge, louisiana. [applause] why did i tell you that? we need somebody who is willing to fight for us. christians are under assault all over the world. our christian values are under assault right here at home. make no mistake about it.

the left wants to take god out of the public square and redefine marriage. right now, if you give away our nations classified secrets, mishandled classified information, you can run for president. you don't believe in gay marriage, a lock you up in jail. that is what is happening in america today. we don't just talk about christian values in louisiana. pro-life, six years in a row. we have fought to get rid of common core. i will say this slowly so even the left understand this. the united's of america did not create religious liberty. religious liberty created the united states of america. that is why we are here today. [applause] folks, i'm not here to just ask

you to join a silly campaign. i am here to ask you to join a cause. it is time for us to believe in america again. when i was young, my dad taught me americans could do anything. i believe him then and i believe him now. i think you believe that in your heart as well and have been frustrated for the past seven years. you want to believe in the idea of america and want to know the best days are ahead of us. you want to know we continue to live in a exceptional country. you want to know we live in the greatest country in the history of the world and i know we do, and we can get the idea of america back. i also know this. four more years on this path, we will not recognize this country. we do not have a moment to waste, we don't have an ounce of energy to waste. i'm asking you to believe again, join our cause. i'm going to give everything i have got to save the idea of america. with your help and god's grace. we cannot do this alone.

with your help and god's grace, it is not too late for us to rescue the idea of america. join our cause. it is time to believe again. let's take our country back. god bless you! and thank you very much for fighting for the idea of america. [applause] ♪ much.you, very [applause] republican presidential candidate carly fiorina made a campaign stop in south carolina. while there, she spoke with the greenville republican women's club and took questions from the audience. this is just under an hour. carly fiorina: thank you very much it is wonderful to be with you. thank you for the warm introduction.

and the warm escort. i am so honored to be sitting between betty and vivian. [applause] fiorina: whereas you like to say, miss betty and miss vivian. i am happy to be known as miss carly. i think you'll all eat lunch while i speak. do not be afraid to eat while i talk. i will hopefully talk for not too long and take as many questions as you have. you know, yesterday, or maybe the day before, donald trump announced he was no longer going to be appearing on fox news. [applause] ms.fiorina: and i guess it turns out, apparently, he was particularly upset by something that a commentator said on fox news. now, it is true that not everything reported in the media is really accurate.

shocking. but in this particular case, i read a story that says mr. trump was not going to appear on fox news anymore because a commentator said i had managed, and i believe i'm quoting, to "snip off his --" with precision during the debates. [laughter] [applause] ms.fiorina: you know, if i quit talking to all the people who attacked me, i would have crawled under a rock a long time ago. it is part of what it takes to be in the arena. you have to take criticism. you have to be able to stand up to a fight. in fact, since the last debate, i have been engaged in a couple fights.

one of them is with the letter liberal media and planned parenthood who continue to say i , am lying about what is going on in planned parenthood clinics. it is interesting. i was at a pregnancy center earlier today, a wonderful center where women who are facing a difficult choice get to learn something about all their options. they are encouraged to have the courage to bring their children into the world. i was never able to have children of my own, so i know in a special way how precious a gift life is. here we are with planned parenthood saying i am wrong about the videos. no one is denying that babies are being butchered in order to sell their body parts. by planned parenthood. i bring this up because part of running for president, part of leading, is to be able to survive criticism and an onslaught of attack. when i met eddie post, she said,

she said, carly, you must have ice water in your veins. no, i do not. i just know how important this is. i know how important this is. i want to talk about what i think is at stake. i think the possibility of this nation is at stake. the future of this nation is at stake. the defense of this nation is at stake. and i think the character of this nation is at stake. you can applaud. it's all right. [applause] let me start with the character of this nation. it does not matter whether you are pro-choice or pro-life. i am pro-life. i know many women do not agree with me, but it does not matter if you are pro-choice or pro-life.

americans do not what babies to sell their body parts. [applause] ms.fiorina: and how disappointing, after working hard to return a historic republican majority to the house. i worked hard on that. a bunch of you worked hard on. after returning a republican majority to the senate, how disappointing that here we are at the end of september, and the unborn child protection act has not been passed. [applause] ms.fiorina: this is not just good policy. it is good politics. the majority of women, the majority of young people, the majority of americans agree that abortion for any reason at all after five months is wrong. why don't we passed the bill? we haven't. that is about the character of our nation. here is another thing that is

about the character of our nation. remember 18 months ago, when the scandal of wait times at the arizona v.a. burst into the public eye? we learned of veterans were dying waiting for appointments. and the pressure was so intense on the political class, on politicians in washington, that they got together and managed to pass in three short weeks a bipartisan bill, which the president signed without a peep, that says you can fire 400 senior executives at the v.a. if things do not get better at the v.a. about a month ago, we learned that over 300,000 veterans had died in the last year, waiting for care. you don't hear a people out of

peep out of washington. one person has been fired from the v.a. when we do not care for those who have served us, this, too, is about the character of our nation. [applause] ms.fiorina: when we no longer can speak the truth about the evils around the world and the evils here at home, when we call accept terrorism "workplace violence," when we do not stand up and acknowledge that christians are being persecuted, crucified, and driven from their homelands around the world, this to us about the character of our nation. [applause] ms.fiorina: this election is also about the defense of our nation. the defense here at home and the defense of our nation around our world. i said many times that the world is a dangerous and tragic place when the united states of america is not leading.

terrorism is on the rise, not on the wane, as the president would like us to believe. look at any statistic. our hearts are broken when we see pictures of the syrian refugee crisis. there are probably 43 million people, according to the u.n., on the move every year, being driven from their homes by violence. the world is a tragic place. when we are not leaving. human trafficking is on the rise. sexual slavery is an epidemic around the world. we have enemies like isis that use rape sexual slavery, as a , weapon to subdue populations, not to mention beheadings and all the rest. the world is a tragic place when we are not leading. here at home, when we have officers, police officers, assassinated merely because they wear the uniform and try to keep

our communities safe, and our president is silent, that is about defense of this nation as well. [applause] ms.fiorina: the world is a very dangerous and tragic place when we are not leading. and a so, i will make clear to the world on day one in the oval office that the united states of america will lead once again. we will stand with our allies and confront our adversaries. [applause] ms.fiorina: and i will do that by making two phone calls. one to my good friend, bb netanyahu, to reassure him that we will stand with israel always. [applause] ms.fiorina: the second phone call will be made to the supreme leader of iran.

he might not take my phone call. i am not his cup of tea, but he will get my message. and the message is this -- new deal. i don't care what deal you signed with the president of the united states. new deal. the deal is this. unless you open every military and nuclear facility to anytime, anywhere inspections by our people, not yours, we will make it as difficult for you as possible to get money. we must stop of the money flow. the iranians are using the money. [applause] ms.fiorina: the iranians are using the money to build their military capabilities, their nuclear capabilities, to fund their proxies who sow conflict threat the middle east. we know from the supreme leader himself he has no intention at all of following the deal.

those two phone calls are critically important and send a message to every ally and adversary we have that the united states of america is back in the leadership business. [applause] ms.fiorina: you know how important our military capability is. south carolina is home to so many men and women in uniform. so many veterans as well. you know as i do that we must, the next president of the united states, like ronald reagan, must rebuild the military capability of this nation. [applause] ms.fiorina: and that means we need about 50 army brigades. 36 marine battalions. somewhere between 300 and 350 naval battleships. and we need to reinvest in all three legs of the nuclear triad. we need to care for our veterans, and we also need to reform the pentagon and the bureaucracy that sits in washington dc.

[applause] ms.fiorina: this election is about the character of our nation. this election is about the defense of our nation abroad and here at home. finally, we have to secure the border. a nation that cannot secure its border cannot protect its sovereignty. how long have we been talking about immigration? with all due respect to mr. trump, he did not bring this up. we talked about it in 2012, 2008, 2004. the truth is, we have been talking about this for 25 years.

it takes money, manpower, technology, and most importantly, it takes political willpower and leadership to actually get it done. [applause] ms.fiorina: we worked hard for the republican majority. i have encouraged the leadership of the house and the senate. why don't you pass a border security bill? ask president obama why he will veto it. pass a border security bill. but no. this nation is about our character. this nation is about the defense of our security. this nation is about the possibilities in our country. when i was a little girl, my mother on a sunday morning said to me what you are is god's gift to you. what you make of yourself is your gift to god. those words landed in my life because i did not feel gifted. as a young girl, or a young

woman. and lived, and worked, all over the world. i have done business, charity, policy work. i have learned over and over again that everyone has god-given gifts. every life is filled with possibilities and potential. and so, it is worth thinking about. things haveat more been more possible for more people in more places here in this nation than anywhere else on earth? had morehis nation possibilities? i think it is because our founders knew what my mother taught me and what i have learned. our founders knew that everyone has god-given gifts. everyone has potential. everyone has possibilities. they founded a nation on an idea, a visionary idea.

the idea is that, here you have the right, they describe it as a right. you have at right to use your god-given gifts to fulfill your potential. that is what they meant when they said the right to liberty , life, and the pursuit of happiness. they said that right comes from god. it cannot be taken away by man or government. i ams and gentlemen, running for the presidency of the united states because i believe we have come to a pivotal point in our nation's history where the possibilities of too many americans, indeed, the potential of this great nation, is being crushed by a government that has grown so big , so powerful, so costly, so complicated, so inept, and so corrupt. is a professional class that refuses to do anything about it.

[applause] ms.fiorina: and i am not alone in this belief. if you think i said something that you have been thinking for a long time, consider this. 75% of our fellow citizens, 75% of our fellow citizens now believe the federal government is corrupt. [applause] ms.fiorina: gallup has been tracking this for decades. it is the highest level they have seen. 82% of citizens believe we have a professional political class that cares more about the protection of its own power and privilege than getting anything done. [applause] ms.fiorina: so what does that mean? that means that democrats, republicans, independents, young, old, people of every ethnicity, the vast majority of

americans, are losing faith in their government and in their political process. perhaps that is why so few americans vote now. i have talked to a lot of women out there who stopped voting. when i asked them why, it is not that they do not care. they think they do not count. that it will not make any difference. ours was intended to be a citizen government of, by, and for the people. when citizens lose faith in their government and in their political process, that, ladies and gentlemen, is a pivotal time in a nation's history. [applause] ms.fiorina: and why do such huge numbers of americans feel this way?

because it is obvious. pick a festering problem you hoped would be resolved by now. take your problem, pick your cause that you have worked hard for. is it border security? tax reform? the veterans administration? reform of social security? you pick an issue that we talk about election after election and what happens? nothing. we talk and talk in politics, but we never get it done. this reminds me of the difference between managers and leaders. do you know what managers are? managers are people who do the best they can within an existing system. they do not challenge the status quo. they accept the status quo. they operate within the status quo. when you operate within the status quo and do not challenge the system, guess what? all you can do is dance around the edges of problems. all these special interests in washington dc, when you have big powerful, complicated, corrupt government, what happens?

you have tons of people working really hard to make sure the status quo never gets challenged because people benefit from the status quo. the status quo always has huge power because people benefit from it. it is always hard to challenge the status quo. and yet, that is what leaders do. leaders challenge the status quo. in order to solve problems and produce results. it reminds me of something of great hero of mine once said. margaret thatcher once addressed her people, her citizens, at a pivotal point in her nation's history. she said i am not content to manage the decline of a great nation. [applause]

ms.fiorina: well you know what, ladies and gentlemen? we have been managing the decline of this great nation quite long enough, thank you very much. i am not content. [applause] ms.fiorina: i am not content either, but i am prepared with your votes, your support, your prayers, i am prepared to lead the resurgence of a great nation. [applause] ms.fiorina: this election is about our character. our defense and our security. it is about our possibilities and our future. it is about leadership and citizenship. a leader challenges the status quo.

but there is something else very important about leadership. i learned it long ago when i was a young woman and i did not understand the lesson i was being taught at the time. it took me a lifetime to understand it. when i graduated from college with a degree in medieval history and philosophy, i went to law school, hated it, and went back to work as a secretary to put myself through college, typing and filing. for all of us secretaries and previous secretaries, yay. [applause] i was hired by a nine-person real estate firm to type and file and answer their phone. about six months into that job, two men came up to my desk and said, we have been watching you and think you can do more than type and file. do you want to know what we do? that was my introduction to business. but it was my introduction to

leadership as well. those two men saw possibilities in me, saw potential in me. because they did, suddenly, i saw new potential in myself. for a long time after that, i used to think leadership was about whoever had the big office , whoever had the title, the parking space. but i know that leadership is not about your title. leadership is not about the size of your office, the size of your airplane or helicopter. it is certainly not about the size of your ego. leadership is about service. [applause] ms. fiorina: and, in fact, the highest calling of leadership is to unlock potential in others. it is the core of leadership in every setting. now, we need, i believe, someone who can win the job and someone who can do this job. to win this job is going to

require a fearless fighter, someone who is not going to shirk or hide under a rock and quit talking when he gets a little mean and people call you names. ladies, i will not falter. [applause] ms.fiorina: and this is a fight about many things. it is a fight about our possibilities, our future, our character, our security. it is a fight to remind the american people why we are republicans, why we are republicans and why our values and principles work better. several months ago, i went on the show "the view." i think it is important to talk to people that do not know they agree with us. [laughter] we are on the show, having a good time. one of their hosts said to me, i really like you.

why are you a republican? you know the way people can ask that question sometimes. that is a really important question. we need to be able to answer that to the american people. here is what i said. because i know, no one of us is any better than anyone of us. everyone of us has god-given gifts. every one of us has the capacity to live a life of dignity and purpose, and meaning. i know our policies work better to live everyone up, regardless of their circumstances. that is the argument we must have. [applause] ms.fiorina: we also need someone, and i will close with this, we need someone who can do this job. because the job needs doing now. we cannot tinker around the edges of our problems. we finally have to start getting some important things done. and so we need a president in the oval office that understands

how the economy works, who understands -- [applause] ms.fiorina: -- that the job creation engine of the nation has been and will always be, the small business, the community-based business, and we are crushing them. we crush too many opportunities for too many people. [applause] ms.fiorina: our president must understand the world and who is in it and how it works. and having been all over the world for decades, doing many things, knowing as many world leaders as i do, i know it is vitally important that our country stand with our allies and confront our adversaries. i know only this nation can lead in this world because only we are an exceptional nation with the character to say we will never conquer territory. we will only liberate people.

[applause] ms.fiorina: our president needs to understand bureaucracy. because it is only if you understand bureaucracy what it takes to cut it down to size and hold it accountable. our government has become a vast, bloated, inept bureaucracy. we must cut it down to size and hold it accountable. [applause] ms.fiorina: she must understand technology. technology is a great tool. it is also a weapon being used against us. no, mrs.clinton, you cannot wipe a server with a towel, which is maybe why the fbi is pouring over 30,000 e-mails about her yoga classes. [applause] ms.fiorina: most importantly of all, we need a president in the

oval office who understands what leadership is. the highest calling of a leader is to unlock potential in others. and now i believe i am positioned to be a president of the united states that will work with the citizens of this great and blessed nation to unlock the potential of every citizen. thank you so much, ladies and gentlemen. [applause] >> thank you very much.

i think we are going to hear a couple rules for answering questions. she's very open to answering questions, but we also have a lot of media today. they are not going to be able to pick up your question. if you do not have a microphone in front of you. we've got two people on this side and on this site. they're going to be handing mids mics to the person with the question. at that time, they will come to you. be sure that the microphone is at your mouth. ms.fiorina: so there's some back there. another is one, yes sir. how about you go ahead while they are getting the mic? since you are brave enough to show up in a lunch room full of ladies, we will give you gentlemen's privilege. >> thank you. it's a pleasure. as you look around to select the members of your cabinet and your security staff, what is the

principal attributes you're going to be looking for? ms.fiorina: the principal attribute i'm going to be looking for his leadership. what does that mean, really? i want people in every position to understand their job is to challenge the status quo and produce real answers. [applause] in other words, the job isn't a reward. the job isn't a perch. the job isn't an opportunity to go along to get along. the job is to lead, to solve problems, to produce results, and challenge the status quo. every single one of these departments have lots of status

quo that needs to be challenged. people need to have the courage to know that they are going to make some enemies. that is what you do when you lead. you make enemies. the second thing that is very important is, i need people with the courage to challenge me. all leaders do best when they are surrounded with people who are smart enough, experienced enough, brave enough to say, you know what, i don't think you're really thinking that through. i think you are wrong and we need to have a good debate about this. i don't need a bunch of yes people. i need people who will stand up and challenge anyone, including me, when necessary for the good of the nation. [applause] >> you talk a lot about the political class and the inadequacies of those actually ruling and getting something done.

can you talk about your plans debacle we go tax through every april 15? in fact, i could not do it april 15. i just filed yesterday. ms.fiorina: there you go. yes. how long have we been talking about tax reform? for how many years, have we heard at the beginning of almost each congressional session, there's a bipartisan appetite for tax reform. yet what we have today is a 73,000 page tax code. you don't think about this. americans understand this in their bones. if something is so complicated that you can't understand it, you are getting taken advantage of. that's just the way it is. [applause] ms.fiorina: a 73,000 page tax code advantages home? i'll tell you who it advantages. when you have something so

complicated, so big, who is advantage? the big company. i used to lead one. the big company that can hire those of accountants, lawyers, and lobbyists, the wealthy, the powerful, the well-connected. because only the big, the powerful, the wealthy, and the well-connected have the resources to hire all the people to tell them what this means, or perhaps even more likely, to take advantage of all that complexity and all those loopholes. so, we have to go from 73,000 pages to about three. why three? because three is about the limit of what somebody can understand. the rule needs to be, you've got to be able to understand it. you don't have to hire somebody to understand it. think about what happens when we take all that complexity out. first, the way you level the playing field between the wealthy, powerful, the well-connected and the big, and the small and the powerless, is simplicity.

if it's the same for everybody, you don't have an advantage because you're big and powerful. but what else happens when we go from 73,000 -- i the way, how do you get there, lower every rate, close every loophole. it has to be really simple. what else happens? you don't need a lot of people at the irs, do you? [applause] ms. fiorina: let me say one other thing. there's some really nice words appear and they are all true. yes, i'm a conservative. yes, i'm an outsider. i try every day to be a leader. there's one word missing here that applies to every single one of you as well. that word is citizen. ours was intended to be a citizen government.

in order to go from a 73,000 page tax code to three, i must as president of the united states rally the citizens of the united states. citizens have to be prepared to help me put pressure on the political class to actually move, so that instead of talking about tax reform, we are really doing it. let me tell you how i'm going to do that. how many of you still own a flip phone? [laughter] ms. fiorina: ok, you must upgrade. you have 18 months to do so. let me tell you why you must upgrade. because technology is a tool that i'm going to use to harness, to channel not just the frustration and anger of the american people, but even better, the common sense and good judgment of the american people. once a week, i'm going to ask my fellow citizens, please take out your smartphones. i'd like to ask you a series of questions. do you think it's a good idea that we got from 73,000 page tax go down to three so you can understand it. press one for yes, two four no.

[applause] ms. fiorina: this is technology that exists, ladies and gentlemen. how many americans would vote? i think a whole heck of a lot. i think a lot of americans would vote for the question, do you think someone should be held accountable when 300,000 veterans die without health care? [applause] ms. fiorina: do you think it's important that we know where every single dollar of your money is being spent? that means we have to go to some sort of zero-based budgeting. [applause] ours was intended to be a citizen government. citizens, we must take our government back. [applause] >> thank you. everyone appreciates you spending time and you're a phenomenal speaker.

my name is tony clark. i'm a local advocate here to fight against a strong battle we have a here, not locally only, but throughout the united states. 6 million children are being abused in the united states. what can we do to start changing the stats? ms. fiorina: first, i'm sure that you know all about this subject. one of the things that i have done all my career is ask people who know how to solve a problem how to solve the problem. so you have a lot of expertise. others do as well. but, we need to stop the scorch of -- the scourge of human trafficking. we are actually, and it's all related to sexual slavery, abuse, it a big circle.

we need to invest in treating drug addiction. i lost a daughter to drug addiction. this is an epidemic. drugs are ravaging families. they are ravaging communities. we have to lead a fight against drug addiction, mental illness, and human trafficking. we are really not doing any of that. [applause] ms. fiorina: we have to do it globally, by the way. human trafficking, sexual slavery, drug trade, it's all global now. i also think that, when i talked about the character of our nation, i think it's so important. tone is set at the top. it is really important that we talk about the impt that a family can make, that an impact family can have. we need to talk about the value of each life.

we need to remind people that every life that is wasted, however it is wasted, makes our nation a former place. -- a poorer place for all of us. and i would just say one other thing. we need criminal justice reform. what we are doing today as a nation, by the way, we have the highest incarceration rate in the world. and yet two thirds of the people in our jails are not there for violent crimes. they are not there for human trafficking. they are there for some kind of drug-related or mental illness related problem. they are nonviolent offenders. we are not helping ourselves and we are not helping them.

we ought to be putting in prison the real bad guys like the human traffickers and treating and caring for those who are armed by the score just -- scourges of addiction, mental illness, or sexual slavery. >> question from up here in the balcony. hi. we're up here. >> my wife and i enjoyed immensely voting for you when we lived in california. looking forward to that opportunity here in south carolina now. it seems like the minority is really the government in the u.s. senate these days. do you have any ideas on the filibuster rule and what we ought to do about that? ms. fiorina: i agree with you. a lot of us work really hard to return a problem can -- to return a republican majority to the senate, and it seems like not a lot of things are

happening here. i made three very specific suggestions. if leaders can't produce results, they need to set aside. [applause] ms. fiorina: there are three things that i think -- and i'll come to your filibuster question in a moment -- there are three things i think the leadership ought to be doing now. pass the unborn child protection act. pass it. pass the reins act. the reins act gives -- here's a thought -- the reins act gives congress the authority to oversee a regulation so that it just doesn't get rolled out by a bunch of nameless, faceless bureaucrats. do you know how many rules we are ruled by rules now -- it's not the rule of law anymore. it the rule of rules.

the epa, the fcc, all of the hhs and obamacare, all of these regulators elected by no one, accountable to no one, past on a purely partisan basis, are choking our economy. the reins act would say, congress, you are in charge. i said already that congress needs to pass a border security bill. to your point, the democrats used the nuclear option, change the filibuster rule in order to get through their judicial nominees, and yet republicans, when faced with the most consequential deal, the deal with iran, in the last 60 years, let it go by. if ever there was a time to play the game the democrats have played with us, it was to stop this deal. [applause] ms. fiorina: i am all for

playing by the rules, as long as the other side does. but i am also all for saying, let's keep things in perspective here. sometimes, the right thing has to be done. and sometimes, the rules have got to be changed to get the right thing done. >> yes, thank you for coming to south carolina. appreciate you being here. my question, i don't think i've ever heard you talk about gun rights and what you believe is the purpose of the second amendment. and what will you do if you become president to protect those rights? ms. fiorina: the second amendment protects an individual's right to bear arms. period. [applause] >> and from tyranny of government. ms. fiorina: that's right. in each and every one of the

cases where a tragedy occurred, including here in south carolina, democrats immediately rushed to the microphone to politicize a tragedy and talk about the need for gun control. and yet, of course, what they do not tell you is in virtually every case, the things they propose what have made no difference at all. [applause] ms. fiorina: south carolina actually as you know better than i do has relatively stringent gun-control laws. more stringent than a lot of other states. it turned out in the tragedy in charleston that actually what happened is, somebody didn't quite do their job. someone who shouldn't have gotten a firearm got one. nevertheless, democrats said, we need to act new laws. here's what i say.

we need to actually enforce the laws we have, which we do not do. that is why you see in state after state after state, with some of the most stringent gun-control laws in the nation, also having the highest gun crime rates in the nation. chicago would be an example. the second thing i say is, we must invest more in the treatment of mental illness. in every single one of these cases, what you have at the core is someone who is deeply troubled. and in many cases, you have situations where people around them knew something was wrong. and yet, nobody said anything. or they couldn't say anything because of hippo rules. it's very hard. i know this from personal experience watching our daughter go through her addiction. it is very hard when someone is above the age of 18.

if they are trouble, the loss so protect their privacy, it is hard for people to get to them and help them. so, we have. we don't need any new gun-control laws. an individual has the right to bear arms in this nation. democrats ought to quit politicizing every one of these tragedies. we need to care for those people who need our help. [applause] ms. fiorina: i have time for one more. a lady waving right there. yes, you are the last question. no pressure. >> my question is, if you are elected president -- ms. fiorina: not if. >> what is your plan to help grow small businesses? ms. fiorina: it's a fantastically important question. just to review, it is small business that is the job creation engine of this nation.

i started out in that nine-person real estate firm. my husband, frank of over 30 years, started out driving a tow truck in a family-owned autobody shop. it is how most people start. small, new, family-owned, community-based businesses and farms create two thirds of the new jobs in this country. we have come to a place where we are destroying more businesses than we are creating. think about that statistic. for the first time in u.s. history, we are destroying more businesses than we are creating. why? because, as government gets bigger and more powerful and more complicated and more complex, what happens? the small can't survive. you have to go through licensing requirements, the 73,000 page tax code, a regulatory thicket. small businesses can't handle

it. i have met more small business owners who say, i just can't do it anymore, i just want somebody to buy me out, and how many people have the courage to start one now? not enough. unless we level this playing field that i keep talking about, unless we reduce dramatically the complexity and the power of government to rule through regulation, to tax through an incredibly implicated tax code, through government agencies that have gotten bigger and bigger for 50 years, and all those bureaucrats are doing something, and all those things they're doing are impacting people in real ways. let me give you a real example of what i mean by this. dodd frank. remember the financial crisis? who started the financial crisis? fannie mae and freddie mac.

by the way, this is how socialism starts. government creates a problem and then government solves the problem. this is what happened in the financial industry. government created a problem fannie mae and freddie mac. then wall street got in the game. the crash happened because everybody suspended common sense and good judgment and said, real estate prices can go up forever. what goes up must come down. right? when the financial crisis hit, there were 25 regulatory agencies in washington, d.c. that were supposed to be minding the store. none of them were, apparently. we haven't reformed fannie mae and freddie mac. we haven't reformed a single one of those 25 agencies. we created dodd frank and a vast new government bureaucracy called the consumer financial protection bureau.

by statute, congress has no oversight. think about that. so they are out there, this vast bureaucracy, going through credit reports, looking for fraud. they checked over 700 million credit reports. of all of us. what's the consequence of it? it's of vital importance to small business. 10 wall street banks have become five. even bigger, even more powerful. by the way, they helped write the bill. and hundreds if not thousands of community banks have gone out of business because they can't handle the weight of government. and community banks are where small businesses go to get their loans. and community banks are where a family goes to get it started. and community banks are folding. and if you ask anybody, is it easier or harder to get a small business loan today, much

harder. is it easier or harder for a credit worthy person to get a mortgage today? much harder. in other words, government created this problem and government is now solving the problem, and the consequences, less capital flowing to people who will build businesses and create jobs. it is why, ladies and gentlemen, this election is so critical. things can get to a tipping point. unless you fix it, then you don't have a chance. we must take our government back. and so, i believe this is a pivotal time. i believe in many ways this is a perilous time. i also believe this is a time

where we must be both courageous and optimistic. why? because every problem we have can be solved. every wound we have is self-inflicted. we have everything we need to solve every problem and heal everyone. what we need now is leadership and citizenship. i hope very much that i can count on your support, on your help. running for president is the biggest team effort there is. i need your votes. i need your support. i need your help. i need you to talk to everybody you know. do not be discouraged or disquieted or despair about the future of this nation. indeed, we have everything we have and we also know what we must be. and we know what we must be because lady liberty and lady justice tell us what we must be. think for a moment about those two powerful symbols of our nation -- democracy. think about lady liberty.

sheehan -- she stands tall and strong. she doesn't shield her eyes from the realities or the evils of the world. she is clear eyed and resolute about the world, but she also faces into the world, which is the way we always must, and she holds her torch very high because she knows she's a beacon of hope in a deeply troubled world. lady justice holds a sword because she's a fighter. she's a warrior for the values and principles that have made this nation great. she holds a scale. she reminds us all of us are equal in the eyes of god. so all of us must be equal in both eyes of the law and government. powerful and powerless alike. and she wears a blindfold. with that blindfold, i think she says to us that it must be true, it can be true, that in this

nation, in this century, it doesn't matter who you are, it doesn't matter what you look like, it does not matter how you start, it does not matter your circumstances, here in this nation, every american's life must be filled with the possibilities that come from their god-given gift. one nation, under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. god bless you, ladies and gentlemen. thank you. [applause] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2015] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

works donald trump holds the newspapers in new york city where he is expected outlined his next policy. water coverage serving 11:00 a.m. eastern on c-span two. >> all caps a long, c-span takes you on the road to the white house. unfiltered access to the candidates at town hall

meetings, news conferences, rallies, and speeches. we are taking your comments on twitter, facebook, and by phone. every campaign event we cover is available on our website, c-span.org. ♪ it is our annual documentary competition for students in to thinkx through 12, critically on issues of national importance by creating a five to seven minute documentary in which they can express those views. students toant for get involved because he gives them the opportunity and a platform to have their voices heard on issues that are important to them. byy can express those views making a documentary. we have a wide range of injuries. ntires. the most important -- of entries.

the most important feature is content, it is what matters and shines through. the response from students has been great. we have many different issues where they created videos, topics ranging from education, economy, the environment, showing a wide variety of issues that are important. would have many positive impacts to better serve the community and the businesses inside it. we definitely have come to the consensus that humans cannot run without food. >> prior to the individuals with disabilities education act or children were not given the opportunity of an education. >> this year's theme is road to the white house. what is the most important issue you want the candidates to discuss in the 2016 presidential campaign? it is full on into the campaign season.

there are many different candidates discussing many issues. one of the key requirements and creating a documentary is to include c-span footage. this footage should really complement and further their point of view and not just dominate the video. it is a great way to include more information on the video. the waterst bill is resources reform and development act, also known as werda. >> we have all heard the jokes about school meals, and growing up the bird fish sticks and mystery meat -- >> there is a vital role the federal government plays. it is especially vital for students with disabilities. >> students and teachers can go org,ur website, studentcam. where they can find more information on the rules and requirements, along with teacher tips, rubrics, more information about prizes, and ways to contact us if they have any

questions. the deadline for this year's competition is january 20, 2016, one year away from the next presidential inauguration. coming up next on c-span, john q sac talks about john boehner's decision to resign from congress and how it might affect the republican leadership moving forward. then some of the pope's visit to the u.s. of his last stop in philadelphia. with tomr conversation sherwood on "q&a." eastern. bob cusack is the editor in chief of "the hill," joining us to talk about the resignation of speaker john boehner. what is next not only for the republican congress but the house? guest: it was stunning. there was a lot of speculation

that this would be speaker boehner's last congress. as little as 10 days ago, the speculation and rumors were growing. the speaker said he was not going anywhere, and then 10 days later he was announcing his resignation. i think the timing is what surprised most people. clearly, speaker boehner has been eyeing his exit for quite some time. he confirmed the fact that he was going to resign had eric cantor not lost his primary election last year. basically, surprising, yes. overall, was this his last congress? most people in washington thought so. host: he mentioned this in his news conference on friday. i want to read part of his statement.

the comet was picked up from "the washington post" yesterday. they write that house speaker john boehner insisted on friday protectwas resigning to the institution of the house. they write that we respect his devotion, but a speaker's primary responsibility is the nation, not the house. what the nation needs is a congress willing to make compromise in the national interest, compromises that mr. may have favored, but rarely have the stomach. we had a number of callers with a similar sentiment. you think the devotion to the institution is something that the next speaker will be equally fervent about? guest: it is a interesting point. house, thee

camaraderie of the house. he mentioned that is something he will miss when he leaves. certainly that is an interesting debate of whether you are serving the nation or the institution. overall, you have to realize that there is a resolution hanging over his head that could be brought to the floor at any point. mark meadows, who we recently interviewed, said, i'm not sure if i'm going to bring this to the floor. speakerds on how when he be able to survive the vote? in all likelihood, yes. overall, that was an extremely moment for speaker boehner, who have gone through two coup attempts. host: what's ahead for the house and what is ahead for

congress? (202) 748-8000 for democrats. (202) 748-8001 for republicans. (202) 745-8002 for independents and all others. also on twitter at @cspanwj. do you think there was any sort of implicit deal, the speaker saying he would step down, as long as we pass a clean resolution without any planned parenthood attached to it. speaker boehner and mitch mcconnell said, especially mcconnell, said there would not be a government shutdown. portrecognized it as a strategy because they did not have the votes to get a bill to the president's desk. they wanted to avoid that. certainly this has minimized the chances of a shutdown in september. you can also make the argument that congress is doing what it doeses