♪ ♪ is that your prayer this

morning? [applause]

[applause] >> c-span's washington journal live every day.

discussing religious freedom laws in several states. republican presidential candidates efforts to woo unbound delegates. be sure to watch c-span's washington journal at 7:00 tomorrow morning. this weekend the c-span cities tour takes you to long beach california. the literary culture of this port city. learn about the contributions to world war ii.

author of rosie the riveter in long beach. a place that we would need to build aircraft. just steps away we have a wonderful airport. one of the first airports that takeoff and landing in different directions. douglas went into full production mode. turning out planes 24 hours a day. war and the off to women came to work here. it was employing 45,000 people every day. about 48% of them were women.

visit report of long beach and discover the importance of the nation's second busiest container port. we are a little over a hundred it was a lumbar terminal. in 1940 we had the u.s. navy. the long beach naval shipyard. they were here until the early 90's. unfortunately through the base closure process the middle complex shutdown at that time. it turned into one of our modern container terminals.

we're not sitting on the most modern and sustainable container port. >> hillary clinton campaigned in new york today. today included a political rally at the apollo theater. she visited a local bakery. over one hour. hillary: how are you doing? thank you.

[laughter] don't identify where we are. charles rangel: this is where it all happens. it is fantastic. hillary: i am going to get some charlie wrangle: who was doing the serving here? hillary: happy birthday.

[inaudible]

"heat wave" by martha and teh he vandellas charles rangel: i have always been with you. hillary clinton: hi there.

charles rangel: i am here with the next president of the united states.

[inaudible] charles rangel: i was in the house for 46 years.

if my life depended on it i couldn't think of another issue besides the banks that sanders was talking about. and like to get involved in primaries. we were desperate for a candidate here in new york state, i was thrilled to hear the hillary clinton, who was a national and international figure was going to run for that senate seat.

when obama selected u.s. that has to state be the number one thing. when he verified my initial thoughts by selecting you, he went up in my book. i don't expect hillary clinton to comment on my remarks. new york city's contribution to is donaldatic party trump. of the hatredrica that exists inside some people in this country.

he's kind of negative approach is not what the people want. i was born and raised in harlem. knowing if issues that affect my constituency. discrimination, health care, the equity. this is not planned. i assume the voters want to hear from her. thank you and welcome home. [applause]

hillary clinton: it is great to be home. here in new york with my friends. someone who i have the great privilege of working with. to have a chance to talk to my former constituents and my friends and supporters. depth ino that some the speech at the apollo in a little while. it is always enjoy campaigning in new york. we're going to cover the city in the suburbs. and upstate. i want to talk to this people who took a chance on me all those years ago. running here was one of the best

i canons i ever made area imagine a greater honor than having representative charles rangel board. -- as a supporter. i'm going to have some coffee and cake. get a little sugar charge before i give my speech. >> ladies and gentlemen, please

welcome to the stage senator charles schumer and hillary clinton. song" plays [applause] >> hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! [applause] senator schumer: good morning, harlem! good morning, new york! it is so great to be here and i

am so privileged to be able to have the honor of introducing my friend and colleague, hillary clinton -- [applause] who frankly needs no introduction, especially here in harlem. [applause] as new york senator for eight years, the people of harlem know her well. and they know her family. when president clinton had the world to choose from to locate his presidential offices, where did he choose? harlem, usa. so, hillary is no stranger here. she is no stranger to the people of new york. we know her. we love her and we cannot wait for her to be president. [applause]

>> hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! senator schumer: let me share something with you. senator is the only job we have that is occupied by two people at the same time. hillary and i served together for eight years as senators from new york. so, i got to know her well. when you work with someone not closely, you get to see a person's real soul. what makes them tick. hillary understands in both an

intellectual and heartfelt way, the biggest problems affecting our country. the stagnation of wages and income that has middle-class people, families, struggling to make ends meet. keeping down the millions more who are fighting to get into the middle class. she knows that, she lives that. it is deep in her. more than any candidate in this race, hillary has proven time and time again that, not only does she know this, and feel this, she internalizes the concerns and fears and problems of everyday americans, and then effectively moves to action. getting something done to help. [applause] she instinctively turns her concern and anger at the plate

of the middle class to action. that is what we need. [applause] that is what the people of new york no about hillary clinton. that is what i know about hillary clinton. she delivers. [applause] now, she may not always talk like we brooklynites talk. when she speaks out, she changes minds, she changes hearts, she moved to action and she changes outcomes. [applause] charlie rangel remembers, i remember, when she first came to new york as a candidate, she started out with a listening tour and it opened her heart.

she took what she learned and moved effectively to create change for her constituents. that is the magic of hillary clinton. translating heartfelt concerns into actions and that's how she delivered for new york state. [applause] a record of a hard-working, effective, tenacious, progressive champion speaks for itself. i remember these things. as first lady, i remember. families who had children caught in a tough circumstance. not eligible for medicaid. the parents cannot afford health care. i saw the passion on her face when she heard about these things and talked about these things.

what did she do? she translated her passion into action and we got the chip program that has helped millions of american children. i saw her sit down with first responders and union workers who worked on 9/11 when no one else was listening. no one was listening when they said i was feeling sick from the poison that was in the air that they briefed in as they rush to the towers to try and help. they told her stories of lung disease, cancer, their friends were developing after breathing those toxic fumes at ground zero. she did not just listen, she made their fight her fight. she became the champion of the 9/11 health insurance act.

it would not have happened without hillary clinton and now we provide health care and dignity for those who rushed to the towers. because of this person. [applause] she listened to residents and naturalist who worried about the pollution choking our rivers and oceans. she became a champion of cleaning up long island sound year in, year out. she delivered quietly without fanfare but effectively, resources to protect and clean up the pollution in long island sound. was she a fighter. when george bush in 2005 wanted to privatize social security -- [boos] she worked so hard to prevent the senior citizens hard-earned benefits from being risk in the

stock market. she knew social security was one of the most successful anti-poverty programs we ever created and fought to shut that down, and she did this on camera and off. let me tell you one story, hillary knew of the devastation in our communities. communities like this one, the wrong people were getting their hands on guns and killing children. she knew the power of the nra and was undaunted, and i was the sponsor of the brady bill. many people, even in the administration, were afraid, they called me to a meeting at an office late one night. they said, chuck schumer, you are going to hurt us if you push for this brady law. we should not do it, even though it may be the right thing to do.

all the big shots. only two people stood up and said, we have to do this, it is the right thing, one was leon panetta and the other was, the loudest, strongest voice that we had to do the brady bill was hillary rodham clinton. [applause] >> hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! senator schumer: because of senator clinton, tens of thousands of people are walking the streets alive today because of the brady law prevented them from getting guns.

she listened, she spoke up, and she changed the lives of millions in her career. we know that hillary delivers. we also know she is not finished delivering yet. [applause] she knows that unions have been the most effective vehicle in american history for raising people into the middle class. she knows the hard right wing wants to get rid of unions. she is fighting to help. she is fighting for an increase in the minimum wage. she is taking on those who are attacking those against family leave. you better believe that if mr. cruz or trump got to pick the next court justice they would get rid of unions.

they would undo the voting rights act and what allow poisonous money to cascade into our system and ruin it. it is a reminder of the stakes in this election, not just fun and games. this is the future of america. the supreme court hangs in the balance. we have to ensure that hillary as president so we have a good, strong supreme court. [applause] we cannot have the vision of the other party. >> madam president! madam president! senator schumer: i want to conclude by comparing those of us in new york and hillary to the other side.

the other side is peddling a divisive, nasty strategy. real americans are being hurt by other americans, the others. people from other religions, shores, colors, creeds, income levels. they think that by dividing america, pitting one against the other, their party will conquer. hillary knows that america is the only america when we celebrate our diversity rather than censure it. -- that is when we are americans. it is not only deep in her bones, it is new york. [applause] new york is a microcosm of people from all over. every country, every creed, every walk of life.

you do not have to leave harlem to see it. we see it everywhere, in every corner of new york. hillary knows you can walk from one side of 125th street to the other and meet people from every continent on the face of this earth. you can start your day with chicken from sylvia's and finish it with autos out of san juan and eat a bagel for lunch. hillary knows that america is at its best when we all walked together. that we are stronger precisely because of our diversity, not weaker. she is infused with this bedrock new york value, an american value. e pluribus unum. out of many, one.

one new york, one america. hillary clinton in the white house, every american, black, white, latino, asian, christian, jew, muslim, immigrant, nativeborn, every american will have a progressive champion in the oval office listening to them and fighting for them and delivering for them. [applause] >> hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! hillary! senator schumer: she did it as new york senator and she will and can do it again as the next president of the united states of america. i give you hillary rodham clinton. [applause]

>> hillary! hillary! hillary! ms. clinton: wow! thank you. my goodness. i tell you what, it is a thrill to be live at the apollo with all of you. [applause] it is wonderful to be back home in new york. it is extraordinary to stand here and look out at this crowd, please be seated. you can jump up again from time to time. [applause] i am sitting here -- standing

here looking out and seeing so many friends. so many people i have worked with, i have had the privilege of knowing. it is a special treat to have my former colleague and partner, someone who i hope and expect will not only be the leader of the democrats in the senate but, if we do our part, he will be the majority leader of the senate. [applause] i am so grateful to chuck, we had eight years working side-by-side, dealing with problems and opportunities. that experience was one of the great honors of my life. i want to acknowledge longtime friend, the person i give credit to for starting main on this starting the on this journey. that is congressman charlie rangel.

i see the manhattan borough president, gale brewer. and to all the other elected official, friends, supporters, i love coming to harlem. this community has made me and my family feel like a part of your family. i am so grateful for your support and friendship. with your help we are going to win the primary here on april 19. [applause] and then we are going to win the democratic nomination and the election in november. [applause] let me give you a short summary of where we are.

i have competed across our country. i am honored to have received nearly 9 million votes. [applause] that is more than a million more than donald trump has received. and 2.5 million more than senator sanders. we are on the right track. [applause] but, i do not have to tell you, this is a wild election year. i am not taking anything or anyone for granted. we will work for every vote and every part of this state just like i did when i ran for the senate. because new yorkers took a chance for me and i will never forget that.

you have always had my back. i have always tried to have yours. when i think back to the eight eventful years that i serve you, there were some hard times. but we pulled together. none of us who lived through 9/11 and its aftermath will never forget the lives lost. lower manhattan in ruins. toxic dust and debris raining down. and the many examples of heroism we saw, the firefighters and police officers who risked their lives to help save others. the construction workers and emergency personnel and volunteers who spent long hours on the smoldering piles searching for survivors and months more clearing the site.

all of the new yorkers who lined up to donate blood, who reached out to families in a million quiet, decent ways. they projected a sense of strength and unity that comforted the whole country. as the dust settled, new yorkers rolled up our sleeves and we got to work. like former fire commissioner nick scoppetta, who we lost last week, a great leader. a champion for his firefighters, for children, and for the city. new york wanted to rebuild so chuck and i fought for the federal funding to get it done, and we can see the results. lower manhattan has risen higher and more magnificently. when first responders and others

started suffering adverse health effects from 9/11, a lot of people in washington did not want to pay attention. i kept raising the alarm. i held a hearing that try to get the attention of the epa and the bush administration. to get our first responders and others the health care that they needed. it was really important to me and i am so grateful that these the drug a act is now ensuring that people who did so much for us are going to be taken care of their entire lives. [applause]

but while all of this was going on, republicans, led by george bush, started squandering the surplus they had inherited from my husband's to terms on massive tax cuts for the wealthy. they set a reckless fiscal and regulatory course that eventually tanked our entire economy. trickle-down economics made life harder for working people here in our states. [applause] so, we had to get creative, didn't we? we worked with small businesses to help them use technology to reach customers. to attract high-tech research projects to create more good paying jobs. i connected chefs and restaurant owners to farmers and winemakers in the hudson valley and finger lakes. we were looking for anything that would create more jobs,

more markets and more opportunities. more support for teachers and schools so that all of our kids could get a good education, no matter where they live. [applause] children in every borough of the city deserve the same chance to succeed as children in westchester, or on long island, or anywhere else in america. [applause] because for me it's really simple, when we invest in our children's education we invest in our country's future and in a stronger economy for all of us. new yorkers have always believed that if you work hard and you do

your part you should be able to get ahead and stay ahead. that is how i saw my job is your senator. my job was to help make that possible for as many people as i could. boy, did i learn a lot serving the people of this state. now, i am once again asking for your confidence in your vote. -- and your vote. [cheers and applause] [chanting hillary] you know -- [chanting hillary continues] you know, i think -- i think the easiest way to describe what my campaign is about, it's about breaking down the barriers that are holding people back from sharing in the promise of america.

here is what i believe. anyone running for president this year faces three big tests. first, can you deliver results that improve the lives of people? [applause] second, can you keep us safe? [applause] third, can you bring our country together again? [cheers and applause] every candidate should be judged by these tests. making it a real difference for people and families comes first. americans everywhere are hungry for solutions. we can create more good jobs with rising incomes by investing in manufacturing and small business. infrastructure and clean energy. enough clean energy to power every home in america in 10 years.

we will make companies that shift jobs overseas give back the tax breaks they got here at home. [cheers and applause] if they try to move their headquarters to a foreign country to skip out on that tax we will slap a new exit tax on them. then we will put that money to work in the communities and the people that were left behind. we can break down the barriers holding back the people in this economy. isn't it time for quality affordable childcare, early childhood education, and paid family leave? isn't it time for raising the minimum wage nationwide? [applause]

and isn't it time finally to guarantee equal pay for the women who work? [cheers and applause] [chanting] you see, i think we are lucky in new york. because these are goals that the governor and the mayor are fighting for and achieving here. i will fight for them as president. you know, republicans always say when i talk like this that i'm playing the gender card. my response is pretty simple. if fighting for equal pay and paid leave is playing the gender card, then deal me in.

[chanting " deal me in"] you know, i also think we can break down the barriers holding back on young people. especially the burden of student debt that makes it so hard for them. [applause] under my plan, you won't have to borrow a dime for tuition at any public college or university. you will be able to refinance the debt that you already have, just like a mortgage or a car loan. i've been told of this has listed millions people thousands of dollars.

we can break down the root -- the barriers of systemic racism. we can invest in communities of color, reform our broken criminal justice system, replace the school to prison pipeline with a cradle to college pipeline. [cheers and applause] we can reject discrimination against lg bt people, like the shameful law passed in north carolina. [cheers and applause] we can defend our rights, our civil rights and voting rights, workers rights and women's rights, gay rights, rights for people with disabilities. we are not going to let the republicans turn us back and rip away the progress we've made.

that starts by standing with president obama and demanding that republican senators do their job and vote for a nominee on the supreme court. [chanting "do your job"] so, i believe -- i believe we can break down all these barriers and more if we stand together. if we work together. for me it's all about getting results. you know, when i joined with parents, doctors, and community leaders to take on the epidemic of children's asthma right here in harlem, it wasn't about making a point. it was about making a difference. as your senator and in every job i've ever held i have worked my

heart out to even the odds that have often been stacked against too many people. some folks may have the luxury to hold out for the perfect, but a lot of americans are hurting right now. they need the good and they need it today. you know, when you get knocked down like you do in life and in politics, you have to get back up and keep on working to make people's lives better. when the insurance industry blocked the push for universal health care for every american, as chuck said, i partnered with americans and democrats to create the children's health insurance programs. that helped a lot of kids and families here in new york and 8 million children across america. so, when any candidate comes before you, that candidate owes it to you to be clear about how we are actually going to deliver.

my opponent and i share many of the same goals. but some of his ideas for how to get there won't pass. others just won't work. that means that people won't get the health that -- the help that they need in deserve. that is what it is supposed to be about. my opponent says we are not thinking big enough. well, this is new york. nobody dreams bigger than we do. [cheers and applause] this is a city that likes to get things done. a president that will help to break down the barriers holding down americans. not just some. i take a backseat to no one when it comes to taking on income

inequality. i know how important it is to close that gap. to rebuild the middle class. but i will tell you this. it's also important to take on racial inequality and discrimination in all of its forms. [applause] [chanting "hillary"] and it's important to stand up to the gun lobby and fight for common sense gun safety reform. [cheers and applause] i remember that meeting. i remember the meeting that chuck was talking about. people were getting cold feet. folks talk about all the powerful lobbies in washington. look, there are a bunch of them.

nothing, no one is more powerful than the gun lobby. i understood why some members of congress were saying -- my gosh, we can't do this. some folks in the white house and the administration were getting nervous. i thought then and i believe now, whatever we can do to save lives, we must do. i remember how hard it was to get the brady bill passed. my opponent voted against five times, as i recall. he has sided with the nra on the important votes of the last 20 years. this isn't a single issue country. we need a president who can do all arts of the job. because the second test is keeping us safe. at a time when terrorists are plotting new attacks and countries like russia, china,

and iran are making moves to protect american net -- making protecting american national security cannot be an afterthought. our next president has to be just as passionate. i will do both. when you vote on april 19 in new york, you are voting for a president and a commander-in-chief. [chanting "i'm with her"] let's face it, let's face it, on the republican side what we are hearing is truly scary. when donald trump talks casually about using torture and allowing more countries to get nuclear weapons, or when ted cruz calls for treating american muslims like criminals and racially

profiling predominantly muslim neighborhoods, that doesn't make them sound strong. it makes them sound in over their heads. you know, loose cannons tend to misfire. in a dangerous world that's not a gamble that we can afford. but the test of the republican candidates fails most spectacularly when we get to the third test. because instead of bringing us together, they seemed -- they seem determined to divide us even further. their entire campaigns are based on pitting us versus them. one of my personal heroines, my said -- she has done a lot that is worth remembering, but she said this -- when someone shows you who they are, believe them.

[applause] these republican candidates are showing us exactly who they are and what they would do as president. and we should believe them. just listen to donald trump. he plays coy with white supremacists. he says demeaning and degrading things about women. he wants to round up millions of latino immigrants and kick them out of the united states. a nation built by immigrants. he wants to ban all muslims from entering america. a country founded on religious freedom. it cynical, it's wrong, and it goes against everything new york and america stand for. [applause] one of the great joys of my time at senator was traveling across

this city and state. new york is home to 20 million people. we don't all look the same. we don't all sound the same or worship the same either. but we pull together. when a candidate for president says that we can solve america's problems by building walls, discriminating against people based on their religion and turning against each other -- well, new yorkers know better. >> that's right. [cheers and applause] ms. clinton: our diversity is a strength, not a weakness. new york represents the best of america. together, we can face down the worst. look around you, you will see a rising generation of young people more diverse, tolerant, and connected than any we have ever seen.

[cheers and applause] we should build on that spirit. not squash it. i believe with all my heart that if we reach for love and kindness instead of bluster and bigotry, there's nothing we can do if we put our minds to it. [cheers and applause] let me leave you with one story that says it all. mohammed solman was born in pakistan and moved to america with his parents when he was 13 months old. they were like any other new york family. mom was a middle school teacher. dad owned a store. mohammed grew up, studied biochemistry at queens college. got trained as a paramedic and became a cadet with the nypd. he wasn't sure what he wanted to do with his life, but he knew he

wanted to help people. he was just 23 when terrorists flew planes into the world trade center. when he heard the news, he didn't hesitate. he grabbed his medical bag and headed straight to the site. like so many others, he died trying to save total strangers. body was buried deep under the rubble, neither his family nor the police department new what had happened to them. for months he was considered missing. some wondered at this young man with a muslim name and a background in science could have had anything to do with the attacks. he wasn't a terrorist. he was a hero.

new york gave him a hero's funeral with full police honors. because, as his mother said -- [applause] as his mother said, this cadet and paramedic ran toward the burning towers as everyone else was running away. mohammed was an immigrant, a new yorker, in american -- an american, and he died trying to make sure others could live. it is our job to make sure that he is and so many others' sacrifice still counts for something. we do that by standing up against bigotry in all its forms and by doing our part to serve

others and make our communities better and stronger. that is what countless new yorkers do every day in one million quiet ways. we're going to stand up for the values that make new york great and make america great. forget, don't ever forget, this is the greatest country on earth and we are going to fight for it, fight for our future. please join me in this campaign. hillaryclinton.com . let's have each other's backs, lift each other up, and break down all the barriers. thank you all so much. thank you, new york. god bless you! [applause]

♪ ♪ i still believe

♪ songplay my fight and i don't really care if nobody else believes ♪ i've still got a lot of fight left in me a lot of fight left in me ♪ this is my fight song

take back my life song ♪ out to the ones in need

this one goes out to the sinner and the cynical ♪ ♪ we weren't born to follow come on and get up off your needs ♪ you have got to hold on to what you believe. you have got to stand up for what you believe ♪

♪ when life is a bitter pill to swallow you have to hold on to what you believe you have to stand up for what you believe ♪

♪ remember you and me november everything we shared

remember unity neighbors without expecting favors ♪

look at me now look at you now look at me again we are not so different we're throwing things outside our window dreama if we all just believe, this is all we need ♪ do you remember at all

if we could throw away the hate ♪

could you imagine it all >> during campaign 2016, c-span takes you on the road to the white house as we follow the candidates on c-span, c-span radio, and c-span.org. c-span, we look at the issue of opioid addiction with the white house national drug control policy director. then, committee chair mike rogers on national security threats.

then, washington journal. two presidential campaign events on thursday to tell you about. cruz's eastern time, ted wife heidi and former candidate carly fiorina and the phones in wisconsin. watch live coverage here on c-span. tomorrow evening, bernie sanders campaigns in new york city. you can watch live coverage of the rally in the bronx at 7:00 p.m. eastern on c-span two. our bus continues its travel throughout the country to visit our winners from this year's student documentary competition. oklahoma tostop in recognize the student winners, including the grand prize winner, olivia, about her video on the national debt. attended the ceremony.

the bus also visited winners in oklahoma and the dallas, texas area this week. it will visit winners in new mexico and texas. through the week, we have worked with our cable partners to coordinate these community visits for the winners. cam.org.isit student every weekday, during the month of april, watch one of the top 21 winning entries at six and -- at 6:50 a.m. eastern after washington journal. >> this is my first election to be involved in. i know it is important to be involved, especially without an incumbent. i had a friend who went to the polls on tuesday and said it was as crowded as it has ever been.

>> the reason why i decided to vote in this primary election is because this election season, for most people, has probably been the most captivating ever. is important to be represented in the election process. this election in extreme racialhe disparity and economic inequality, it is essential we choose a president that will represent all of america. c-span's issues spotlight, the growing problem of addiction to prescription painkillers and heroine. the drugs are known as opioids. more than 2 million americans are addicted to them. nih says the amount of opioid deaths have tripled.

over the next three hours, we will take a look at the problem and what congress and the congressional branch what to do about it. we start with a visit president obama made last fall. obama: when i came into office, i started studying these issues of what is called opioids . i was stunned by the statistics. more americans now die every year from drug overdoses than they do from motor vehicle crashes. do from motor vehicle crashes. more than they do from car accidents. the majority of those overdoses involve legal, prescription drugs. in 2013 alone, overdoses from prescription pain medications killed more than 16,000 americans.

one year. --on't know what to tell you as is a terrible toll. the numbers are big, but behind those numbers are incredible pain for families. thisvirginia understands better than anybody, because the state is home to the highest rate of overdose deaths in the nation. addiction is not new. 99, sales of89, pain medications have skyrocketed by 300%. million 259 prescriptions were written for these drugs, which is more than enough to give every american adult their own bottle of pills. their use has increased,

so has the misuse. some folks are prescribed these medications are good reasons, that they become addicted because they are so powerful. at the same time, we have seen a dramatic rise in the use of heroin, which belongs to the same class of drugs as painkillers. the class of drugs known as opioids. heroin, four in five new heroin users, started out by misusing prescription drugs. then they switched to hair when. heroin.this really is a gateway -- prescription drugs become a gateway to haieroin. relatedber of heroin- deaths in america nearly quadrupled. although the number of heroin related overdoses is still far exceeded by the number of legal

prescription drugs. lives, crisis is taking it is destroying families, it is share -- it is chattering communities and that is something about substance abuse -- it doesn't discriminate. from celebrities to college students to soccer moms, to inner-city kids. white, black, hispanic, young, old, rich, poor, urban, suburban, men and women. it can happen to a coal miner, a construction worker, a cop who took a painkiller for a work-related injury, it could happen to the doctor who writes the prescription. have ishe problems we too many families suffer in silence, feeling like they were the only once struggling to help a loved one. and let's face it, there is

still fear and shame and stigma that too often surround substance abuse, and often prevents people from seeking the help they deserve. when people throw around words like junkie, nobody wants to be labeled in that way. is tof our goal here replace those words with words like father, or daughter, or son, friend, sister. then you understand there is a human element behind this. this could happen to any of us, in any of our families. would we replace a word like junkie with recovery coaches, specialists like jordan? epidemicfight this without eliminating stigma. that's one of the reasons i'm so proud of michael, who is the first person in the job of

dealing with drugs in america who actually knows what it is like to recover from addiction. he shares his own story as a way to encourage others to get the help they need before it's too late. my problem is that there are elected officials in the state who have told their stories about what is happening in her family, and to themselves, in order for us to start lowering keep peopledes that from getting help. i've made this a priority for my administration. we are not new to this. in 2010, we released our first national drug control strategy. we followed that up in 2011, with the prescription drug abuse prevention plan. we are implement and this plans, we are partnering with communities to prevent drug use, reduce overdose deaths, help people get treatment. and under the affordable care act, more health plans have to

cover substance abuse disorders. congress wouldnt invest in things like state overdose prevention programs, preparing more first responders to save more lives and expanding medication assisted treatment programs. we have to make those investments, rather than spending billions of dollars, taxpayer dollars, on long prison sentences for nonviolent drug offenders. we could save money and get better outcomes by getting treatment to those who need it. [applause] >> and we can use some of the savings to make sure that law enforcement has the resources to go after the hardened criminals who are bringing hard drugs like heroin into our country. with no other disease do we expect people to wait until they are a danger to themselves or

others to self diagnose and seek treatment. every other disease -- you have a broken leg, diabetes, some sort of sickness, we understand that we have to get you help. we also understand, when it comes to other diseases, that if we don't give you help and let you suffer, other people could get sick. this is an illness, and we have to treat it as such. we have to change our mindset. [applause] this is one of the reasons the dea the cleared a national prescription drug takeback day, a day when americans can safely of conveniently dispose expired and unwanted prescription drugs in their community. most young people will begin misusing prescription drugs when they get them from mom or dad's medicine cabinet. and today, we are also announcing new actions.

first, we are ensuring that federal agencies training federal health care providers who prescribe opioids. it's a commonsense idea that you are already implementing in west virginia. congress should follow that lead and make this a national priority, and we work forward to looking with governors in the medical community as well. second, and joe and i were talking on the flight over, there is evidence that shows medicaid-assisted treatment, if done properly in combination with behavioral therapy and other support and counseling and 12 step programs and things like that, can work, and can be an effective strategy to support recovery. but it can't adjust be replacing one drug with another. it has to be part of the package. we are going to identify any exist thatat still are keeping us from creating more of these treatment facilities, and incorporating them into our federal programs.

private sector partners are helping out to help fight this epidemic as well, and it want to give them some credit. more than 40 medical groups, from the american medical association to the american dental association, are committing to concrete actions, and we need to work with the medical community, because they are the front lines on prescribing this stuff, and there has got to be a sense of responsibility and ownership and accountability there. we have to expand prescriber training. naloxone. the use of i want to make sure i was browsing that right. naloxone. this is something that they first responders have it can often save, quickly, the lives of somebody who is having an overdose. we want to make sure that first responders have a supply of this. we want to make sure we are

getting more physicians certified to provide medication assisted treatment. we then have broadcasters providing airtime for education and awareness, and groups like the nba have committed to running psa's about drug abuse. that's just an example of some of the private sector partnerships we are forging. the point is -- and i will end with this -- we all have a role to play. they people like jordan, remind us, these are our kids, not somebody else's kids, our kids. not somebody else's neighborhood, it's our neighborhood. and they deserve every chance. we have got to make sure we are doing right by them. we are taking this seriously, and the goal today is to shine a spotlight on this and make sure we walk out of here, all of us, committed, whether we are a safe leader, an elected official, in law enforcement, a private

citizen, a business, we all have a role to play. you understand that here in west virginia and we want to make sure the whole country understands how urgent this problem is. host: after president obama's remarks, he sat down for a discussion with people personally affected by drug addiction. one of them was kerry dixon, whose son is in prison, where he is undergoing treatment for opioid addiction. >> i spoke this morning to a good friend of mine who was calling me to wish me well today, to encourage me in this endeavor, and this friend of mine lost her daughter to an a half years ago to drugs. i don't take this charge as being here lightly. i realize that i am here to represent families, and i am grateful for the opportunity. do want to say that as i am speaking to you, i am sharing my story, time-sharing the stories

of so many other family members that are in this community and in the nation that has this issue. and this also is important to know -- for the sake of time, i'll try to make this concise -- this is the tip of the iceberg of what families experience and endure when they love someone with an addiction. we raise our children in loving homes; we teach them morals and values; we teach them the difference between right and wrong. we wonder what is happening in the great start slipping, when things that used to be enjoyable for our loved ones no longer interest them. as to the cause of the personality changes that we see in our loved ones. we're shocked when we hear of that first dui. we are fearful when our loved ones are taken to jail for the first time. embarrassed when holidays approach, and family members are

coming in from out of town's, and loved ones can't interact because they are under the influence of drugs. we dread the next phone call. we can't sleep because we haven't received a phone call. we don't take vacations for fear of the next crisis. we come back from vacation because there is a crisis. bute sad and angry, most importantly, sentimental items are missing from our homes, only to find out that they are at upon shop or in the hands of drug dealers. relieved when our loved ones acknowledge that they have a serious problem, and understand they need help, and we are devastated when we help them seek treatment only to find out that there is a month-long wait, or that there is no insurance coverage, or that there is a big requirement for money up front for treatment. and uncomfortable when

someone asks us about our loved ones, and we are even more sad when they ask about every other member of our family, and don't mention our loved ones. we neglect our marriages. we neglect other children in our homes, who are thriving. because all of our attention is focused on addiction and substance abuse. we disagree endlessly about the right way to handle this problem. and after experiencing years of turmoil, we rest better at night when our loved ones are incarcerated, because the place you never dreamed your loved one would ever see, a jail or prison, is safer than them being on the street, interacting with drug dealers pushing a needle into their arms. the ones who are fortunate, we layaway get night and we plan our loved ones funeral. the ones who aren't fortunate,

actually do plan the funeral in reality. this is where addiction has taken us. this is where substance abuse has taken us. all that being said, there is hope. that's probably the most important thing to remember here. , to people inful recovery helping others. we are grateful to the mayor, who has so tirelessly and endlessly spearheaded programs to help our community recover. made itue, who's possible for people to receive treatment in our communities. important,cation is and i was fortunate enough to find a group developed by a man named ed hughes.

it's a seven-week series that provides education and support for family members, for those who care about those with an addiction. program, week of the we get to speak to people in recovery. they speak to our group of people, and it inspires us, because we know that recovery is possible, that it can happen. for too long, we have been silenced, and i think this is going to answer your question -- as parents and family members, because of the stigma and this of this disease, we have been silent, and i think that is holding us back. we need to open our voices so that people don't feel ashamed. this is a disease that is a sickness. but education, educating ourselves as much as we can, and speaking out to raise awareness, is i think critical in this situation. i'm almost finished.

people in 12 step recovery groups and different groups rely on a higher power. in myperson of faith, faith has helped me navigate this journey that we have been on. i just want to share with you a verse that i hold dear for my own family member, who is sick, but also offer to others. jeremiah 29-11. "the plans to prosper you, to give you hope in the future. " i believe that every person in the throes of an addiction and substance abuse needs hope in the future, and i believe this for their families as well. thank you so much. [applause] host: opioid drug abuse was also

a topic on the campaign trail. new hampshire is the first in the nation's primary state, and overdose deaths in that state have doubled in the last two years. days before the new hampshire primary, texas senator ted cruz spoke about his sister's addiction and her overdose death. the senator was introduced at the event by a recovering crack addict. >> witell, that all sounded really great -- is chief bartlett here? hey, chief. in putting this deal together, all that sounded great, but chief bartlett said to me -- i lived in florida for 26 years, in new hampshire in the 1980's, and when i called him up to put this together, he said, you know, i used to be an undercover drug agent in manchester. were you living here in the 1980's? i think i know you. [laughter] >> all that sounded really good, but what it was was someone

trying to woefully get their way s any recovering alcoholic or addict will tell you, if they have read their 12-step program carefully, we never quite finish anything. we get tight at all the wrong times. i used to do that. i was born in massachusetts, not far from here, in the central part of massachusetts, a little town called charlton. i went to the hospital when i was five. when i came out of the hospital, -- i'm having a hard time today. most of my family was gone. our store was gone, our home was gone, we got wiped out in a flood. luckily, my mother had taken my siblings out, but i lost my dad and my grandparents and my uncle. we didn't have a home anymore. the grocery store was gone, and we were behind the dam that

broke. that was 1955. i think stuff like that -- i have come to realize, i've been able to get myself away from crack cocaine for about nine years now. [applause] >> and i had a hard struggle with that. for about 25 years of my life. was anf these things, i irregular but constant user, and i would mess up my life and never finish anything, as the book said. i don't know how my mother did it; we ended up moving to florida, my grandfather built a home in florida, and she took us away from all my dad's relatives, just wanted to escape. i don't know how my mother didn't become an alcoholic,

didn't become a drug addict, and i don't know how she did that. she is still alive, got lesser, at 94. -- god bless her, at 94. she lost everything she knew in her life. she grew up in a small town in massachusetts, 2000 people, 3000 people. 15 minutes after she walked out of her house, every piece of silverware, every picture, they found her mom eight miles away, two weeks later, because her diamond ring cop the sunlight in the mud. -- caught the sunlight in the mud. i have come to believe from being heavily involved in going to meetings, people get damaged a lot when they're children.

i call it abandonment issues. i don't know if it's an orphanage or molestation or -- i think it does something that allows -- i've come to believe in recovery. my recovery is all about spiritual recovery. i recovery is about the way bill w. wrote about in his group; what i have to do to stay sober every day. it's that i have to have a relationship with god. i work very hard to have that relationship. the big book says that i can stay sober, subject to the my spiritualof condition. i have been a master of the universe. i was 32 years old and i was a master of the universe.

ask me and i would have told you. and i went to a meeting with a couple lawyers in boston on the top floor of one of the 8th st.nce room and 60 stat they laid out some white powder that i never seen before. i never became addicted to anything, but i snorted this and i think it was the first time -- i was instantly addicted to cocaine. it ruined my life. a number of months after that -- ined, i got involved was all of a sudden hanging around the wrong people. i was very happened, close to senators and governors and lieutenant governor's, treasurers of campaigns, i was in the white house at 26, i had coached basketball in duke by the time i was 23. i had all these different things that i had done, that people

would work a lifetime for, and i never appreciated them, because part of having the damage that occurs to people that go through these abandonment issues is you live a life in low self-esteem. you cover it up with a false ego. to relatees it hard to people, and people can't relate to you. -- of the characteristics you tend to have friendships with the opposite sex. you are supposed to have friends of members of the same sex, but people that are in the program of recovery, before they recovered, they traditionally had relationships with members of the opposite sex. they couldn't get along with members of their own sex. and this is the spiritual disease at the big book talks about. -- that the big book talks about. and it is that. and --

i recognize, in getting sober, luke, it's also in matthew -- a house divided against itself cannot stand. when you get sober, you cast the demon out. that demon is searching for food and drink, finding none, it comes back to inhabit its old haunts. finding them swept and clean, it brings back seven demons stronger than itself. if you believe like i have come to believe through this program we're thery that w battlefield, those of us that are damaged goods are the battlefield, because the devil did not want to lose me. demonsants to send seven stronger than the last one to come get me; so i have to be very vigilant.

it, and i use of this event is just one example, is that i have become so vigilant that i have learned -- it's not a fake word. i have learned how to practice safe. i was really good at practicing basketball. i was really good at practicing the p&f and practicing drums -- practicing the pno is practicing drums. i never thought about practicing faith. you have to get better at it. when you get better, you get new words for what that means. the big tells me in step 11 that i will learn to have a sixth sense that will guide me, if i can stay in the present. imagine this. i was a master of the universe. at one time i was worth $11 million or $12 billion, and in homeless,ary, i was

penniless, clothesless, everythingless. some guy came over and picked me up in the middle of the night. he was a short control guy at the mayport naval base. i guess he must've had a room for rent advertised, and i knew i had to get out of this place where it was, and i just had to get out, and this angel picked me up in the middle of the night. i have nothing to do; i only had the clothes on my back. i had nothing else. words -- incomprehensibly demoralized. the people that you know that are drug addicts, that are incomprehensibly demoralized. i was sitting on a bus stop bench, and the lady looked at me and said, "i'm going to a meeting; you need to go to one." fare and i went

with her to the meeting, and i never left for seven or nine months. i really, really didn't leave. i was afraid to leave. and the third day i was there, somebody spoke at a saturday night meeting and i have us virtual experience with her's time since i could remember. i didn't feel alone anymore. and -- read the bigo book, and i realized it was a certain, five word sentence in the big book, and it was the only choice in the entire first 164 pages. it said, god either is or is not.

i'd done isn't. how did that work out for me? or 1983 ofrom 1982 being arrested, when i started hanging around the wrong people and i ended up in some sort of reverse drug sting. i wasn't even in the state when it occurred, but i have been around these people and i had gotten a few ounces of pot. i was the guy that made the news. i was such a mess that when they came and got me three days later they did a choke of me on saturday light five -- saturday night live. when you're at home really depressed and see saturday night live to pick you up and they do -- and i gotyou arrested for trying to buy crack, for a parking ticket in san francisco.

it's easier to get a ticket for solicitation than a speeding ticket in florida. that's san francisco, i guess. i got a parking ticket in san francisco for solicitation. through all the terrible things that drug addicts go through, that behavior that we have. here i am trying to get sober, totally lost and out of it. gave me an immense amount of talent and i miss used it and misused it and misused it. sudden you are standing with nothing. you start thinking about everything you did, you want to care yourself. if you start thinking about how bleak your future looked, there was no way anybody would let me work anymore or anything, you'd want to kill yourself.

i read a book called "the and jesus commands us to stay in the present. i learned if i prayed all day long, if i prayed as unceasingly as they tell me to do, i couldn't think at the same time and pray and have fear at the same time and i couldn't pray and regret my life at the same time. i started to actually get intuition. i stopped being woeful, i just allowed my life to go wherever it took me. because i went so deep in the woods it took a long time for me to come out of them. did finally get hired by a real estate agent, a really big firm that used to represent me.

but i was blessed to get it. it took a long time. i had an angel that took care of me for a number of years and helped me get back on my fee. god didn't want me to get back, feet until he knew i was humble enough. i wasn't easy to humble. he already learned that because it took 25 years of humbling and then have nothing. i am so blessed that i did. putting this conference together turned out to be a miracle. i wrote them a note, saying god has gotten it taken care of. i go to church sunday and say do? what do you want us to

15 minutes with that call. they say we would love to put on this event. so that was just a blessing. was getting sober i had no money and as long as i was doing the right thing people in my aa club would come and give me five dollars, comment give me three dollars. they allowed me to come in to his place and have dinner and lunch. i would ride the bus or my bicycle. three months sober, the most important day of my life. somebody let me use the bicycle. that's how i learned to be last. that was the happiest moment of my life. three days, three months of walking.

i thought i was off to the races. that is how much i had to fall in order to rise again. about 18 months ago, and i don't know if senator cruz has been ready to come in or not. i will quickly move ahead. i was very blessed. i started praying about how could i not leave my daughter's this country that i don't recognize. allow med if you could to use the talent that you gave me that i have destroyed, that i didn't use properly, that i didn't use to your benefit, let me have one shot, let me help my kids so i can look them in the eye and say i tried. somewhere in march i turn on the

tv and senator ted cruz is announcing -- i called a guy that i knew was an acquaintance, . guy named rick tyler i knew him to be a godly and humble man. i knew if i called rick he would tell me what i should do. a fundraiser is tomorrow, we went and i met senator cruz. i met his wife, and met all the people around him. i'm -- -- have let me help they have let me in to help them. me despiteelcomed my past.hings in

and i'm so grateful to senator ted cruz. [applause] >> thank you for that powerful testimony. thank you for the powerful testimony. it is a journey every one of us understands. every one of us has seen people we love stumble and fall.

hopefully we have seen people pick themselves up again and turn around. you know this topic, drug and alcohol -- drug and alcohol addiction is an epidemic in this country. it's destroying lives. it's destroying lives nationwide. weree year 2014 there -- 47,055 drug overdose deaths. people than were killed in car accidents.

you see a terrible accident on the freeway and think about the people that lost their lives, -- every one those of which could have been and should have been prevented. ,n new hampshire in particular it is reeling from this plague. new hampshire in particular is .eeing the ravages of heroine new hampshire in 2015 had nearly 400 drug overdose deaths. there was a 17% increase from 2014. an 2014 represented a 73% increase from 2013. that doesn't bring it as real as the rather stunning stat that

48% of the people in new knowhire personally someone who has abused heroin in the last five years. one in two people in the state abusingly know someone heroin and adults under 35, it is 60%. nearly two thirds of adults under 35 know someone who has abused heroin in the last five years. that is stunning. it is stunning and heartbreaking. and it is something that is destroying lives. topic that itthis is something i know something about in my family as well. and i will share two stories, .tories of addiction one that ended well and one that did not. , mary, was nine

years older than i. the daughter of my father from his first marriage. and when she was a little girl my parent -- a little girl her parents divorced. she lived with her mom during .he year she lived with me and my other half sister during the summertime. as her baby brother i would play with her, she would let me pull on her hair. pull on her hair nonstop. she was a beautiful woman. she was very smart, very charming. talks about the consequences of abandonment, the consequences of a family breaking up. miriam herb whole life was angry. she never forget my dad for

miriam,g her mother -- her whole life was angry. she never forgive my dad her mother. for divorcing her mother. she stroked her whole life with drug and alcohol abuse. a teenager she partied hard. i remember as a little kid she would steal money from me. i would save money from my allowance and she would steal toey to go out and use it buy alcohol, buy drugs. she ended up marrying a man who had been in and out of prison. who ended up mistreating her pretty significantly.

joey.d a son, my nephew pretty soon miriam was a single mom. was in a car accident and had a back injury. and she got addicted to painkillers. the painkillers spiraled down from there. she herself went to jail. offenses,be petty thinks like shoplifting. i remember talking to her when she was in jail, crying how hard it was, how horrible the people were in their to her. i remember when i was in the 20's and -- in my late miriam took a serious turn for the worse.

she had gone mad of jail and had gotten with a guy that was a more serious drug addict than she. and they were living in a crack house. i remember my dad flew up from texas. was up in philadelphia. my father and i drove up, i was in dcf time. time.ve -- d.c. at the we drove up to try to get my sister out of the crack house. me tooker my dad and our watches and rings and wallets and left them behind. we didn't know if we were going to be robbed or shot or what was going to happen. and i remember pulling her out of there and we took her to a denny's not too far away. of us sat down with her there for four or five hours. trying to pull her back.

but she wouldn't listen. she kept going on and on. she was angry. she said, daddy you missed my swim meet when i was in high school. and i remember telling her, miriam, you have a son. a sixth grader, he needs you. but she didn't want to listen. she wasn't prepared to change the path she was on. and she wouldn't change. so i ended up, i just started a law firm, i was a brand-new lawyer. loans butn of student i ended up taking a $20,000 cash advance on a credit card, and using that money to put my school,n a boarding