understand for our agencies to prevent and protect them that it comes with a price. and this debate is about what that cost might be and what we're willing to accept. we cannot separate the world based upon whose domain domestically and who is domained in foreign countries. yet, that's the beauty of the internet. it really doesn't matter. but if it wasn't important to locate the united states, we would have little manufacturing because most customers are overseas, but they are here. they're here because we have in our foundational structure things that they find important. and at the top of the list is rule of law. and that point to what one tech chair,said, as the vice and i launched the encryption debate to the level it is today. we can't trust a judge on the bench to hear from the

intelligence community or law enforcement and understand whether somebody's met the threshold that they need to reach to access communications or data. well, let me say today, if we've gotten to a point where we don't trust a judge on the bench, we have just gutted the rule of law in the united states. this to me is about so much more than encryption. this is about whether the united states is going to be the innovator of the world for the next 50 years. it is about what the next generation has in opportunities. and oh yes freedoms, protection , and prevention of terrorist acts. if we can't prosecute criminals by a district attorney or by a u.s. attorney because they can't gather the information they need thenke the case in court,

talking about orlando. we'll talk about the crime in every community across the country, because we will have individuals that walk and live next to us every day. so i used the platform to do that. i don't think i find disagreement from you or others in law enforcement. but i really believe that we need to take it to heart. that what we do affects the intersection of the rule of law in technology in the future and we're so much bet tore that have that -- we are much better off to have that debate today. and the pendulum swings too far. post 911. -- post we did some things that 9-11. we thought what was right. we wouldn't do them again. we all agree. this is an opportunity to get this one right. not to go too far but to go to the right place, the right point. director, i want to thank you

for your testimony. i want to thank you for the resolve of your workforce. i also want to highlight the professional staff of this committee. i think they're incredibly talented, dedicated. they travel to very unpopular spots where your officers are on a regular basis. they did it not to gain knowledge points, but they do it to live up to the mission of is themmittee, which oversight of your agency and the , rest of the intense general community. on behalf of the united states senate and for the american people, we are the that testify ones and certify that you do things within the letter of the is thiswhen you do, it committee's responsibility to report it. so they deserve credit because they don't get that credit very

often. please pass on to your employees are sincerest gratitude for the work that they do. to seeing youd again. it may be disappointing to the audience. but we will do it in a much productive way. thank you mr. director. hearing's adjourned. >> coming up, bernie sanders

delivers a video message to supporters. republicans discuss their proposals. and president obama meets with 'families intims orlando florida -- in orlando, florida. tomorrow, the former chief prosecutor at guantanamo bay will speak at the national press club. he will talk about his lawsuit against the library of congress, which fired him after writing pieces critical of the treatment of detainees. we will have live coverage at 10:00 eastern time. and at 11 attack, the discussion about margaret thatcher and next

week's referendum on britain's membership in the european union. you can watch live coverage here on c-span. ♪ >> c-span's washington journal, live every day with issues that impact you. friday morning, larry press, the executive director of gun owners of america, will be talking about the groups position on new gun-control measures in wake of the orlando gun attack. and talking about the orlando nightclub shooting and what concerns his organization had when it comes to attacks on the gay community. and an afghan ambassador to the u.s. will join us and share his perspective on the shooting in orlando, the future of afghanistan, and the war on the taliban. be sure to watch the washington

journal, friday morning. join the discussion. this american history tv, saturday starting at 1:00 p.m. eastern, we will be live from gettysburg for the annual civil war institute's summer conference, as professors and others explore refugee camps, reconstruction of the north, and as grant. granted and at 10:00, with the approach of the anniversary of the space museum in july, railamerica will show a series of films. this weekend, we will look at the sum, science reporter. film, science reporter. , thise we have the suit is the mercury suit, we had gemini. similar.is a suit very

in fact, identical, one -- worn in the extracurricular excursions. >> it looks different from the gemini suit. >> this is an earlier model of the apollo suit. >> tracing the development of the suits, and on american artifacts, we take a tour of the space museum to show some of the one-of-a-kind artifacts in the quest to go higher and other in the first century of aviation. miles in 33600 hours from new york to paris muslim by bloomberg who was in on -- flown by charles lindbergh emma who was an unknown pilot. -- bloomberg, who was the first unknown pilot. that was incidents for this flight, but what it represents

in the history of aviation is part of the telling of the airplane and a transportation -- transformation of what the wright brothers created and how it changed to what we call the modern airplane. >> for the complete weekend schedule, go to www.c-span.org. bernie sanders spoke to supporters through an online video feed them away he discussed the future of his campaign and his role in the democratic party. this is 20 minutes. sen. sanders: good evening and thank you for joining me. revolutions continue every day, every week and every month, in the fight to create a nation of

social and economic justice. that is with the trade movement is about, the civil rights movement, that is what the women's movement is about and that is what the gate movement -- gay movement is about, the environmental movement, and that is what this campaign as than about over the last -- year. and that is why the political revolution must continue into the future. real change never takes place from the top down the or in the living rooms of wealthy campaign contributors. bottom,occurs from the up, when tens of millions of people say loudly and clearly, enough is enough. and they become engaged in the fight for justice. that is what the political revolution we helped start is all about.

and that is why the political revolution must continue. aen we began this campaign little over a year ago, we had no political organization, no money, and very little name recognition. the media determined that we were a fringe campaign. nobody thought we were going anywhere. well, a lot has changed over a year. during this campaign, we won more than 12 million votes. we won 22 state primaries and caucuses. we came very close, within two points or less, in five more states. in other words, our vision of the future of this country is not some kind of fringe idea. it is not some radical idea. it is mainstream. it is what millions of americans believe in and want to see happen. and something else extraordinarily important happened in this campaign, that makes me very optimistic about

the future of our country. something that, frankly, i had not anticipated. that is that in virtually every state that we contested, we won the overwhelming majority of votes of people 45 years of age or younger. sometimes, may i say, by huge numbers. these are the people who are determined to shape the future of our country. these are the people who are the future of our country. together in this campaign, 1.5 million people came out to our rallies and town meetings, in almost every state in the country. together, hundreds of thousands of volunteers made 75 million phone calls, 75 million phone calls urging their fellow citizens into action.

together, our canvassers knocked on 5 million doors. together, we hosted 74,000 meetings in every state and territory in this country. together, 2.5 million people made over 8 million individual campaign contributions. more contributions at this point that any campaign in american history. amazingly, the bulk of those contributions came from low income and working people, whose donations averaged $27 apiece. in an unprecedented way, we show the world we could run a strong national campaign, without being dependent on big money interests, whose greed has done so much to damage our country. and let me give a special thanks to the financial support we

received from students, struggling to repay college loans. from seniors and disabled vets on social security. from workers earning starvation wages, and even from people who were unemployed. in every single state that we contested, we took on virtually the entire political establishment. u.s. senators, members of congress, governors, mayors, state legislators, and local party leaders. for those relatively few elected officials who had the courage to stand with us, i say thank you. thank you, and we must continue working together into the future. this campaign has never been about any single candidate. it has always been about transforming america. it is about ending a campaign-finance system, which is corrupt and allows

billionaires to buy election. it is about ending the grotesque levels of wealth and income inequality that we're experiencing, where almost all new income goes to the top, were -- where the 20 wealthiest people own more than half the population. it is about creating an economy that works for all of us, not just the 1%. it is about ending the disgrace of native americans who live on the pine ridge, south dakota reservation, having a life expectancy lower than many third world countries. it is about ending the incredible despair that exists in many parts of this country, where as a result of unemployment and low wages, suicide, drugs, and alcohol, many americans are dying in a

historic way, in an ahistoric way, lower than their parents. it is about ending the disgrace of having the highest level of childhood poverty on almost any country on earth. and having public schools in inner cities that are totally failing our children, where kids now stand a greater chance of ending up in jail, than ending up with a college degree. it is about ending the disgrace that millions of undocumented people in this country continue to live in fear and are exploited every day, on their jobs, because they have no legal rights. it is about ending the disgrace of tens of thousands of americans, dying every single year from preventable deaths.

because they either lack health insurance, have high deductibles, or cannot afford the outrageously high costs of the prescription drugs they need. tens of thousands of americans dying needlessly. it is about ending the disgrace of hundreds of thousands of bright young people, unable to go to college because their families are poor or working class. while millions more struggle with suffocating levels of student debt. it is about ending the pain of a young single mother in nevada, in tears, telling me she does not know how she and her daughter can make it on the $10.45 an hour she earns. and the reality that today, millions of our fellow americans

are working at wages that are much, much too low. it is about ending the disgrace of a mother in flint, michigan, telling me about what has happened to her child's development as a result of the excessive lead in that community. where people in california are unable to drink the polluted water that comes out of their faucet. in america, in the year 2016, in a nation where the infrastructure is crumbling before our eyes. it is about ending the disgrace that too many veterans still sleep out on the streets. that homelessness is increasing, and tens of millions of americans, because of the lack of affordable housing, are now paying 40%-50% or more of their limited incomes to put a roof over their heads. it is about ending the disgrace that, in a given year,

corporations making billions of dollars in profit avoid paying a nickel in federal taxes because they stash money in the cayman islands and other tax havens. this campaign is also about defeating donald trump. the republican candidate for president. after centuries of racism, sexism, and discrimination of all forms in our country, we do not need a major party candidate who makes bigotry the cornerstone of his campaign. we cannot have a president who insults mexicans and latinos, muslims, women, and african-americans. we cannot have a president who in the midst of so much income and wealth inequality wants to give hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks to the very, very rich.

we cannot have a president who, despite all of the scientific evidence, believes that climate change is a hoax. the major political task that together we face in the next five months is to make certain that donald trump is defeated, and defeated badly. and i personally intend to begin my role in the process, in a very short period of time. but defeating donald trump cannot be our only goal. we must continue our grassroots effort to create the america that we know we can become. and we must take that energy into the democratic national convention on july 25 in philadelphia, where we will have more than 1900 delegates. i recently had the opportunity to meet with secretary clinton and discuss some of the very

important issues facing our country and the democratic party. it is no secret that secretary clinton and i have strong disagreements on some very, very important issues. it is also true that our views are quite close on others. i look forward in the coming weeks to continue discussion between the two campaigns, to make certain that your voices are heard and of the democratic -- and that the democratic party passes the most progressive platform in its history. and that democrats actually fight for that agenda. i also look forward to working with secretary clinton to transform the democratic party. so that it becomes a party of working people, and young people, and not just wealthy campaign contributors. a party that has the guts to take on wall street, the pharmaceutical industry, the

fossil fuel industry, and the other powerful special interests that dominate so much of our political and economic life. as i have said throughout this campaign, the democratic party must support raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, and create millions of jobs rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure. we must ensure that women will no longer make $.79 on the dollar compared to men, and that we fight for pay equity. we must also fight to make certain that women, throughout this country, have the right to control their own bodies. we must protect the right of our gay brothers and sisters for marriage equality in every state in america. as the recent tragedy in orlando has made crystal-clear, we must

ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons, and the gun show loophole, and expand instant background checks. we must defeat the transpacific partnership, the tpp, and make sure that bad trade deals you -- do not get a vote in a lame-duck session of congress. the tpp must not come to the floor. we must resist all efforts to cut social security. and in fact, expand benefits for our senior citizens and disabled veterans. we must understand that the greed recklessness, and illegal , behavior of wall street has to end. that we need to pass a modern-day glass-steagall legislation, and that we need to break up the biggest financial institutions in this country, who not only remain too big to

fail, but who prevent the kind of vigorous competition that a healthy financial system requires. we must aggressively combat climate change, and transform our energy system, move to energy efficiency and sustainable energy, and impose a tax on carbon. it means that, further, we must protect our water supply by banning fracking. we must compete effectively in a global economy, by making public colleges and universities tuition-free, and substantially reduce student debt. we must join the rest of the industrialized world and guarantee health care to all of our people, as a right, not a privilege. we must end the disgrace of having more people in jail than

any other country on earth, and move towards real criminal justice reform, at the federal, state, and local levels. we must pass comprehensive immigration reform, and provide a path towards citizenship for 11 million undocumented people. we must take a hard look at the waste, cost overruns, and inefficiencies in every branch of government, including the department of defense. and we must make certain that our brave young men and women in the military are not thrown into perpetual warfare in the middle east, or other wars that we should not be fighting. but the political revolution means much more than fighting for our ideals at the democratic national convention, and defeating donald trump.

it means that at every level, we continue the fight to make our society a nation of economic, social, racial, and environmental justice. it means that we can no longer ignore the fact that sadly, the current democratic party leadership has turned its back on dozens of states, and has allowed right-wing politicians to win elections in some states, with virtually no opposition, including some of the poorer states in our country. the democratic party needs a 50 state strategy. we may not win in every state tomorrow, but we will never win, unless we recruit good candidates and develop organizations that compete effectively in the future. we must provide resources to those states which have so long been ignored. most importantly, the democratic party needs leadership, which is

prepared to open its doors and welcome into its ranks working people and young people. that is the energy we need to transform the democratic party, take on the special interests, and transform our country. here is a cold, hard fact that must be addressed. since 2009, some 900 legislative seats have been lost to republicans in state after state, throughout this country. in fact, the republican party now controls 31 state legislatures, controls both the governor's mansion and statehouse in 23 states. that is unacceptable. we need to start engaging at the local and state level, in an unprecedented way. hundreds of thousands of volunteers helped us make political history during this

last year. these are people deeply concerned about the future of our country, and about their own communities. now, we need many of them to start running for school boards, city councils, county commissions, state legislatures, and governorships. state and local governments make enormously important decisions and we cannot allow right-wing republicans to increasingly control them. i hope very much that many of you watching tonight are prepared to engage at that level. please go to my website, berniesanders.com/win to learn more about you can effectively run for office, or get involved in politics at the local or state level. i have no doubt that with the energy and enthusiasm our campaign has shown, that we can

win significant numbers of local and state elections, if people are prepared to become involved. i also hope that people will give serious thought to running for statewide offices in the united states congress. we need new blood in the political process. and you are that new blood. and when we talk about transforming america, it is not just about elections. many of our republican colleagues believe that government is the enemy, that we need to eviscerate and privatize virtually all aspects of government, whether it is social security, medicare, the veterans administration, the environmental protection agency, the postal service, or public education. i strongly disagree. in a democratic civilized society, government must play an enormously important role in

protecting all of us and our planet. but in order for government to work efficiently, we need to attract great and dedicated people from all walks of life. we need people who are dedicated to public service, and to -- and can provide the services we need in a high quality and efficient way. when we talk about a medicare for all health care program, and the need to make sure all of our people have quality health care, it means that we need tens of thousands of new doctors, and nurses, and dentists, and psychologists, and medical personnel who are prepared to practice in areas where people lack access to the care. it means that we need hundreds of thousands of people to become childcare workers and teachers, so that our young people get the best education available in the world. it means that as we combat climate change and transform our

energy system away from fossil fuels, we need scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs who will help us make energy efficiency, solar energy, wind energy, geothermal, and other developing technologies as efficient and cost-effective as possible. it means that as we rebuild our crumbling infrastructure, we need millions of skilled and well-trained construction workers, of all time. -- of all kinds. it means that when we talk about growing our economy and creating jobs, we need great business people who can produce and distribute the products and services that we need, in a way that respects their employees and the environment. in other words, we need a new generation of people, actively involved in public service, who are prepared to provide for -- the quality of life the

american people deserve. let me conclude by once again thanking everyone was helped in this campaign, in one way or another. we have begun the long and arduous process of transforming america. a fight that will continue tomorrow, next week, next year, and into the future. my hope is that when future historians look back and describe how our our country moved forward into reversing the drift towards oligarchy, and how we moved forward crating a thateating a government represents all of the people and not just a few, that they will note that to a significant degree, that effort began with a political revolution of 2016. thank you all, very much. good night. >> ahead of the national

convention, the doc platform committee meets tomorrow in phoenix to craft their agenda. watch it live starting at 1:00 eastern time. and in into c-span on saturday for continuing road to the white house coverage of the platform hearing. with the political primary season over, the road to the white house takes you to the political conventions. watch the republican national convention on july 18, with live coverage from cleveland. >> we will be going into the convention no matter what, and i think that we will go in so strong. >> and watch the democratic national convention on july 25, with coverage from philadelphia. >> let's go forward and win the nomination and in july, let's return. fight then we take our

for social, economic, racial and environmental justice to philadelphia, pennsylvania. >> every minute of the republican and democratic national conventions, on c-span, c-span radio, and c-span.org. >> as part of a series of presentations called, the better way agenda, as posted by paul ryan, republicans presented their visions of the powers of the executive branch and increasing oversight of the government. they spoke about the proposals at a briefing in the statuary hall.

mrs. mcmorris rodgers: welcome to statuary hall. our history fills this chamber, our story as americans. it is a story that's told in part through the statues that are around us. farmers, inventors, war heroes, who stood up for what they believed and dared to dream big. for them it wasn't about title, it wasn't about job descriptions. it was about writing their own individual stories about their own individual pursuits. because they were all characters in a much larger story. a story of america's promise. what is america's promise? it is the promise that every man woman and child in america , should have the freedom to pursue. a promise that no matter your background, your walk of life, you are free and empowered to choose your own unique version of the american dream. it's not a promise of perfection

or a life without challenges. but it's a promise that you aren't limited to where you finish because of where you start. that is the promise of america. we see this promise through the sculpture, architecture and artwork all around us. after all, this is where the people's house of representatives first made its permanent home. where many of the early chapters of our great experiment in first government was written. even this place right here endured one of the earliest struggles to fulfill the american promise, when it was engulfed in flames during the war of 1812. you see, there's always been a challenge to america's promise. it is a fundamental struggle between freedom and power that started the very day our declaration of independence was signed. a struggle between trusting people to make the best decisions for themselves or a government that decides for them.

it's not a republican or a democrat struggle, it's an american struggle. and it touches the very core of who we are. men and women who have written a story for more than two centuries about how together we the people win this battle to form a more perfect union. at that moment in 1814, when our struggle was seen through the burning timbers and the thick smoke in this room, it appeared that the promise of america had failed. that history had shown representative government was too weak to survive. that people couldn't govern themselves. but out of the ashes rose our capitol. a temple of liberty where that promise continued and people through their elected , representatives were central , to its fulfillment. our capitol is the home of the greatest inheritance our western civilization has to offer. the greatest inheritance because it starts with people.

here in congress the people write the laws, assert the ultimate power over their government, and express their consent to be governed. for thousands of years prior, the power to make law resided in pharaohs and tribal chiefs, ceasers and dictators, kings and queens. government was the realm of a few privileged powerful people operating beyond the reach of the masses who were ruled. but then came the united states of america where a new start was made, a rag tag group of believers seeking freedom from those who were trying to dream for them. we rejected the idea that the law is an instrument of special classes of people that are better or wiser or more powerful rulers. what started as a little promise of the people, by the people and for the people grew into a great one. but today americans are anxious. seniors fear retirement.

parents worry about the future success of their children. students stress about finding careers to pay back their debt. hard workers can't compete with the tangled web of taxes, one-size-fits-all regulations and arbitrary rules. the reason they're so anxious and frustrated is because their voices aren't being heard. they're afraid, they're losing representative government. and the country they have known and loved. over time, presidents have come to legislate by executive order. over time, courts have come to make laws from the bench. and we, congress, and our desire to avoid complexities and have ceded power in , order to simplify the process of law making. so here we find ourselves again, in the age-old struggle, a contest that will determine whether we shape our dreams or whether others shape them for us. the people's house is the seat

of representative democracy. no other institution has such power. because no other institution is as accountable to the people. presidents can veto, supreme courts can strike down, but congress has the exclusive seat of law making power. not some guy in the basement of the labor department. we must assert that the people speaking through their elected representatives is the best way to keep us free and protect our liberty and to make sure the promise of america exists for the next generation. what you'll find throughout history is that not much has changed. it is the same historic reoccurring struggle between freedom and power that the abraham lincolns, the john quincy adams, the daniel websters all faced. it's the struggle between fulfilling the promise of america or breaking it. they knew the torch one day would be passed, where it resides with us.

a daughter of a cherry farmer from kettle falls, washington. a nurse from tennessee. a businessman from texas. an air force chaplain from georgia. an author from utah. a combat surgeon from ohio. it is about this generation's responsibility right now to cherish, to embrace, to protect the fragile, carefully crafted american promise that puts people in charge through their elected representatives. it's our call to put aside any personal ambition so the next generation can have their individual power protected, to freely pursue their version of the american dream. let's use the power of the purse to make government bureaucracy more accountable to the people

and less arrogant, so the i.r.s. can't target free speech and the e.p.a. can't regulate mud puddles. let's do our job of reviewing, rethinking and possibly eliminating government programs that are running on auto pilot without oversight or authorization. so agencies like the v.a. operate their hospitals more like cleveland clinics. let's hold unelected bureaucrats accountable when they interfere with the next innovative startup being created in a garage or with a scientist working to cure cancer in a lab. let's make agencies more transparent and closer to the people. a government that operates more like uber and amazon and less like the d.m.v. and most importantly, let's give people a voice through their elected representatives so a 19th century institution can actually solve 21st century problems. so today i am grateful. i am grateful for the efforts of my colleagues, chairman bishop, chaffetz, goodlatte, rogers and sessions, who spent the last six

months thinking through how the people's house can accomplish these goals on behalf of the men and women we represent. and i am inspired by my colleagues who have joined me this morning to answer the call from the people, to restore their voices in government, and protect what our founders conceived. the most just system of government the world has ever seen. our dreams and aspirations belong to us, not the government. only we can push the heights of our imaginations, not the government. we know the power of our ideas, not the government. that is why freedom is so important. it isn't about political parties, personalities or power. it never has been. it is about making certain the promise of america is never breached and knowing the only ones who can preserve it for the future and future generations are we the people.

[applause] mr. goodlatte: i'm bob goodlatte, chairman of the judiciary committee. the constitution is clear, it's the role of congress to make all laws. the judiciary to interpret the laws, and the president to enforce the laws. this system was wisely set in place by our country's framers over 200 years ago because they knew firsthand that the concentration of power in the same hands was a threat to individual liberty and the rule of law. in recent decades, however, presidents of both parties have aggrandized their power and usurped congress to legislate from the oval office. this is not a republican or a

democrat issue, it's an american issue. and touches the very core of our system of government. so today i am pleased to join with speaker ryan and conference chair mcmorris rodgers and my other colleagues in unveiling our republican plan to re-establish the system of checks and balances created in the constitution by our founding fathers. to reassert congress' authority we need to start where the constitution starts. asserting congress' authority over law making. the very first sentence of the very first article of the united states constitution begins, all legislative power herein granted shall be vested in a congress of the united states. key pieces of our agenda include reforming the administrative

procedure act, ending the chevron deference doctrine that currently gives bureaucrats the benefit of the doubt when they interrupt statutes. requiring full and fair disclosure of the administration's regulatory agenda, and reasserting that congress is the ultimate decision maker, regardless of whether they occur by statute or regulation. fully half of the vetoes of this president has come of the congressional review act resolutions disapproving of his regulations. when the president to this degree is blocking the will of the people through their elected representatives, it is clear that congress, under article one, must strongly assert its constitutional powers. today's federal administrative state is an constitution -- an institution unforeseen by the framers of our constitution. it is rapidly mushrooming out of

control. this overgrown bureaucracy is tipping our system of checks and balances away from the legislative and judicial branches and toward a stronger, emboldened and overreaching executive. our republican plan takes commonsense steps to protect our system of checks and balances and preserve liberty as the framers intended. [applause] mr. chaffetz: hello. i'm jason chaffetz from utah. i really do appreciate the vibrant discussion we've had with our colleagues. i appreciate cathy mcmorris rogers, our conference chair, who has led us through this process, along with the speaker and majority leader. to really put forward a vision of where we should go and what we need to do. there's three things that i would like to just briefly touch on. this is truly the people's house. and if it is truly the people's

house, we've got to maximize the sunlight. i believe sunlight is the best disinfectant and it allows people the access they need to their government. they pay for it and we're here because of the people. to execute on that in today's modern world, i guess we'd call it crowd sourcing. and if we are going to do our job we have to make sure that , they have the information at their finger tips. there are several ways we can do that. one is we have to strengthen the inspectors general. these are the nonpartisan folks, the career people who are able to get in and look under the hood. we have roughly 72 inspectors general that employ between 13,000-14,000 people. they have to have unfettered access to the executive branch and be able to follow through. you shouldn't be able to, for instance, just be able to quit your job as a federal employee and then the investigation's over. that happens time and time again. so we need to strengthen the inspectors general. we also need to strengthen foia. we did pass out this week the senate version of the foia, the freedom of information act, proud to do that in a bipartisan

way. in a good way. that bill is now on the way to the president's desk. i assume that the president will sign it. but it is incumbent upon all of us to make sure that that promise is actually fulfilled. and then the other thing we have to do is strengthen subpoenas. the congress has the right to see documents to understand what the executive branch is doing. and we need to be able to strengthen and expedite the process by which, when we issue a subpoena, it's not optional, folks. it's not an optional exercise. you come to congress and testify, you got to tell the truth, when you're issued a subpoena, you must comply. and part of the game plan is to make sure that this is strengthened as well. thank you and it's an honor and privilege to serve and i look forward to serving with my colleagues to make sure that we can make this country the best it can possibly be. thank you. [applause] mr. bishop: i'm rob bishop, chairman of the resources committee. on behalf of the church group in

washington who is denied their annual permit to have a picnic in a national park because the park land manager thought it would disturb the semblance and the serenity of the rest of the park, or the nevada family whose murdered son they were not allow ed to search for the body until they came up with a $1 million bond to reimburse the park in case something happened, or the new mexico rancher who is denied a grazing permit because he gave a speech critical of the land agency, or the utah ranch who rancher who had to take out a water pond he built with his own money on his own land because it was attracting too much wildlife from federal lands who thought the drinking was good, or the female outbackers in wyoming who were photographed by b.l.m. as they were going to the bathroom as they were trying to come up with evidence of trespassing, or the senior citizens who are allowed to go into yellowstone in the lockdown because they'd already paid for the rooms but were locked into the hotel and couldn't see old faithful and then the armed guards as they're

leaving on the bus refused to take xers because that would be recreating and they couldn't get off the bus for two hours, because -- those are the people of why we're doing this. this is not simply a battle between executive and legislative branch over power. this is an issue of what happens -- the executive agencies were designed to make decisions without dealing with that nasty concept of what people want or they need. congress on the other hand has to run every two years. which means we have to talk to people, we have to understand what they are talking about. that's the nexus of what this is all about. it's the effort to find a way of actually empowering people. we will, among other things, this is the first step of a lot of steps, make sure that every committee that authorizes, goes through a plan of re-authorizing, every committee, every organization so , we can look at what it does, and its powers -- we will self-police ourselves with this document so no longer will we get language that gets carte blanche to the agencies. we will establish what the parameters will be. we will put in language that will insist that there's coordination between the

agencies and local governments, so locally elected officials by the people can have their voice also being heard. if we don't do this, if we don't insist that the rules and regulations have to be reviewed with us before they are implemented, not after, if we don't do that, people are going to be harmed. and if we do do it, citizens are going to be empowered. that's the goal of this document. it is a better way. [applause] >> good morning, everyone. it is great to be here to talk about our proposals for a better way in america. mr. rothfus: i'm keith rothfus. you're going hear it repeated today. every american high school high school learns there are three branches to our government. legislative, executive, judicial. the legislature makes the law, the executive enforces the law and the judicial adjudicates disputes arising under the law. over the last number of decades there's been a dramatic shift in law making power away from the people's representatives to unelected bureaucrats. the proposals being present here

-- presented here today cannot come soon enough. they can't come soon enough for the farmers, minors, consumers and power plant workers i represent in western pennsylvania. people like a dad i met last december. he has three kids, aged 5, 3 and 1, he had a solid middle class job that he could take care of his family back in december. he lost that job. he was in the coal industry. and he wants to know why congress could not stop the regulations that stole his and his family's livelihood. his story is repeated by millions of americans who have been hurt by the so-called experts in washington who continue to churn out red tape without accountability. those americans want people from their area, their representatives, making the laws, not the bureaucrats who live in a far-off capital. this idea goes to the heart of self-government and what we're pursuing here today. 35 years ago president reagan said, quote, "from time to time we've been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule. that government by an elite group is superior to government

by, for and of the people." "well, if no one among us is capable of governing himself," president reagan asked, "then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else? it is past time for a return to self-government through the people's elected representatives. note well, restoring congress' law making role through initiatives such as the reins act will not end regulations. if a member makes the wrong decision, the people can correct that at the ballot box. that's what self-government is all about. thank you. [applause] mr. hill: good morning. i'm french hill and i represent the second congressional district in arkansas. this is a day we get to remind ourselves that 50% of the words in the constitution relate to article one.

clearly the founders considered the legislative branch the preeminent branch, the first branch. and as james madison said in federalist 51, though, all three branches are in competition, and when one gets a little too ambitious, the others need to counter that ambition. and today's project is all about countering the ambition of the executive branch. as a businessman for over three decades from arkansas, i've seen firsthand the negative effects of an executive branch that bypasses congress to either propose their own rules or to enforce laws in ways that were not intended. all without input of the american people. one example i've seen recently is dumb founding to me and that's the waters of the united states rule. in arkansas it was enjoined with nine other states from being implemented. but implemented it is being by

the coercive effect of federal representatives to make private landowners incorporate the wotus rule into everything they do now. even though it's not the law of the land. that is federal overreach. in his last final state of the union address, the president made a point to characterize too much regulation out of washington is too burdensome on the american people. mr. president, the wotus rule is an example of that the law never intended micromanaging streams and ponds on private land in arkansas. these are the types of situations we need to tackle in this congress and as congress follows our proposals today for a better way we will , successfully reassert our authority under article 1. i congratulate cathy mcmorris rodgers, proud to work on this project, and wish all the best for its success. [applause]

mr. collins: good morning, i'm doug collins from georgia's ninth district. i come from the northeast georgia mountains and poultry is our biggest industry. in fact we're the poultry , capital of the world. and it's a thriving sector, and we're striving to meet the demands of america and the world. but somewhere in many cubicles across washington they determined that's not good enough, and they are continually putting things in the way, putting costs and increasing the burden on our poultry industry. somewhere along the way the executive branch has forgotten it's their job to enforce the laws, not make the laws. if they would like to make the law, i encourage them to put their name on a ballot and run, and not do it the wrong way. as a whole, the executive agencies seem to be more concerned with a political agenda than enforcing the law. osha, who is tasked with the basic health and safety of workers, a common and noble cause, is continuing putting into practice things like a wall-to-wall inspection of

poultry plants. this is not done for safety reasons, but simply for a policy agenda. everyone can agree we need to ensure worker safety this does little for safety. it hurts jobs and productivity. these inspections d do more harm than good because they simply slow down the facility, hindering them from doing what they're supposed to be doing. then also sometimes you have to smile. not because something is right but because something is so , ludicrous. recently, the usda issued organic rules for comment. these rules were meant to have little to do with food safety and are meant to address consumer perception. according to these new rules, chickens need sizable outdoor space for enrichment activities. the pastoral image of chickens roaming around the yards is well and good in theory, but in practice it's a costly change that would drive up costs to consumers and put grocery stores at a disadvantage.

it is so amazing that i was asked, what would happen to chickens in cold weather states? would we have to give them jackets when they were outside? no one seems to know. the usda's policy also puts people at risk because it contradicts avian influenza precautions we have put in place that would be devastating to our economy and our nation if we put our food source at risk. this is not simply about is congress better than the executive branch. it's about doing our job and doing it in the way the constitutional founders said to do it. when we all do our job the way we're supposed to, the people are protected, the people are served, and our country is stronger for it. thank you. [applause] mr. ratcliffe: my name is john ratcliffe, i represent the fourth congressional district of texas.

the view i have of the american system of government is that every american is intended and meant to have a say. laws are developed and voted on by the people that are chosen. those are then interpreted by the courts and enforced as is by the executive branch. but in recent decades, the executive branch and its bureaucratic agencies have stepped far beyond the carefully designed balance of power, by creating rules and regulations that have the same impact as law but go far beyond the scope of any existing laws. to this point, it's no secret that texas will be particularly hard hit by the environmental protection agency's clean power plan. these regulations are anticipated to increase retail power prices in my home state by 16%. and when family budgets are --

can'thed too thin, they afford this rate hike. the local coal-fired power plants in my district have already announced that they simply can't afford to remain open if they're forced to comply. this means a loss of jobs, it eliminates an affordable source of energy for the folks back home, and it saddens me to see a circumvention of our constitution by a ballooning administrative state have such a crippling impact on the american people. that's why i introduced legislation to address this ongoing problem and why i'm now teaming up with my fellow defenders of the constitution here in the house to establish a strong plan aimed at restoring the balance of power that our founders intended. texans and people all across this country deserve to have their voice restored.

they deserve a better way. after all, we're here to serve them. it's not the other way around. thank you. [applause] mr. bishop: good morning, my name is mike bishop, i represent the eighth district in the state of michigan. i want to thank the task force, the chairman and members of the task force for their hard work on this important subject. and i want to say that the constitutional crisis that we're talking about today is really the primary reason why i decided to run for the united states congress. every year, unelected bureaucrats create thousands of onerous rules and regulations. that in many cases supplant years of existing legal precedent and have full effect of law. without ever being publicly

debated, discussed, voted on, by a single elected official. and without any input from the very people that they will directly impact. one specific example of the many is the department of labor's overtime rule. the rule doubles the salary threshold under which employees qualify for overtime. i'm concerned, members of the task force are concerned, and people we represent are concerned that this was pushed through without consideration of the obvious known and very negative consequences. not surprisingly the final rule will likely lead to fewer jobs, less workplace flexibility, and fewer opportunities to climb the ladder of success. it impacts everybody, from the individual to the small business owner to our abundance of outstanding colleges and

universities that serve students across my state and across this country. to know the schools have to work, to worry about that -- a decision that was made miles away from them without any input, in many cases over their objection, may force them to cut hours and raise tuition is not how the american system was meant to work. michiganians and the people across this country have a right to be concerned and frustrated, and they are. i'm uniquely aware of the concerns raised by parents across my district as a father of three. i'm -- i worry about every day the growing cost, skyrocketing cost of higher education, as do many of you. and in general the higher cost of living. and under no circumstances, no circumstances should any government agency be making it

harder and more costly for families, parents, students, or people of any walk of life to realize their dreams. this rule i'm talking about right now is just one of many. and it's symptomatic of a far greater problem that's facing this country today. it's snowballed in recent years. it's time for a better way. it's time for us to enforce the constitution. article 1, section 1, and section 8 of the united states constitution affirms the role of congress very specifically, very directly, and unambiguously. it is responsible alone to legislate and pass laws. it couldn't be any more clearer. that's exactly what the frames of the constitution intended, to avert the style of government that they left, to protect the american people from a top heavy and tyrannical government. i'm proud to be part of this task force and i'm proud to be part of its mission.

together we are going to give the voices become to the people that we represent and restore the powers of the constitution as our founding fathers intended. thank you. [applause] >> it's great to be with you this morning. i want to thank my colleagues. mr. wenstrup: i'm brad wenstrup, i represent ohio's second district. our constitution is not broken, it's not an outdated document that's to be ignored in this century. it was carefully and deliberately crafted based on a guiding principle of we the people that set limits on the government, not the other way around for the government to set limits on us. our founding fathers laid out a specific framework for our federal government that was balanced on three separate but equal blanches to ensure that we the people were heard and properly represented.

but now we're at a point in our history where a largely unconstitutional fourth branch of government has taken root. it's an unelected bureaucracy. and the sprawling network of federal departments and agencies is churning out rules and regulations at an unprecedented pace. these rules carry the force of law but have never been voted on by the people's representatives. so what happened to we the people. that's the question we have to ask. in ohio's second district, i'm hard pressed to find anyone who hasn't felt the effects of our bureaucracy, especially when it comes to businesses. for example, take sealcorp industries in my district. thanks to the recent overtime rule they're facing a quarter million dollars in compliance costs. for them that means little growth, higher product prices, and for many of their employees, that means a demotion from a salaried position to hourly positions. what we have seen is an

executive branch that issues orders they say they don't have the authority to issue but do it anyway. we see a department of justice that decides which laws they want to enforce and which hay -- they don't. we see a supreme court that changes laws rather than sending them back to congress to be changed. and of course we see agencies that carry the rule of law. ladies and gentlemen, if we truly want to put america on a better way, we need to restore the constitutional balance and put legislative power back where it belongs, in the hands of we the people, and that would be your hands. thank you very much. [applause] mr. flores: good morning, i'm bill flores, i represent the 17th district of texas. i'm also honored to serve as chair of the republican study committee. hard working american families are frustrated and they're angry with the government oh overreach coming out of unelected, unaccountable, out of control washington bureaucrats. and today we're putting forth

our plan, a better way to restore constitutional authority. in 2012, the waco tea party contacted me to express concern about invasive informational requests regarding their application to become a 501-c-4 organization. the information the i.r.s. was seeking would have been logistically and financially impossible to fulfill in the very short time period that the i.r.s. gave them to comply. and this was after an extended period that the i.r.s. set on their application. our investigation revealed that the i.r.s. was inappropriately targeting conservative groups like the waco tea party all across the country. i.r.s. bureaucrats led by lois lerner were abusing their power by putting politics and ideology above the law to threaten the freedoms and the liberties of hardworking americans. this is unacceptable. the federal government must be

held accountable to follow the law and to adhere to the constitution. we have a duty to restore america's trust and their -- trust in their federal government. today house republicans are leading the charge to protect hardworking americans against government harassment by reining in unaccountable, out of control federal bureaucrats. again, we owe it to our constituents to follow the wisdom of our nation's founders to restore congress' constitutional authority by implementing a better way. thank you. [applause] mr. byrne: my name is bradley byrne and i represent the gulf coast of alabama. in the gulf of mexico we have a fish called the gulf red snapper. fun to catch, great to eat. we're blessed to have plenty of

gulf red snapper out there. and for most of my life we've been able to go out there on a summer weekend day and go catch some snapper. now you're limited to two per day but you can catch enough snapper, it's good eating, you don't have to worry about just having two. for most of my life you could d it all summer long. recently, the last several years a federal agency calls the national marine fisheries service has come forward and said we're going to start limiting your snapper season to nine days. this year that snapper season was interrupted by a tropical storm in the gulf of mexico. so let me tell you this federal agency has decided to take away from people that live on the gulf coast something we've done for years. now they do it because they say there are not enough fish out there. why do they say that? because our scientists at the universities of the gulf coast say there are plenty out there. here's why this agency says that. because when they go to count these fish, they count them on

sandy bottom. they don't count the fish on reefs. the gulf red snapper is a reef fish. if you go and try to find the gulf red snapper somewhere other than a reef, you won't find a red snapper. now we have brought this to the attention of the scientists that work for this agency and they say we can't figure out how to count them on reefs. but the scientists at the lesser funded state universities find them very easily and have shared their techniques with them and still this federal agency won't do it. here's the kicker. this federal agency receives $900 million. and it's an agency that has not been authorized by congress since 2000. there is a better way. there's a rule of the house of representatives that says we are not supposed to appropriate

money to unauthorized agencies. now, authorization is not just some superficial process we go through. it gives congress and the congress is the representative of the people of the country, an opportunity to provide real oversight to what agencies are doing and not doing. so if we provide that sort of oversight if we give the authorization process exactly the sort of attention it should get, then we can start reining in agencies doing things that they shouldn't be doing and making sure that agencies that have appropriate jurisdiction, that they do their jobs and do it right. if we do that in the case of the national marine fisheries service, then we'll be able to restore an industry on the gulf coast, an industry of charter boats and and people that supply things to people that go fish, we can restore that industry. but more importantly, we restore the liberty of the american people to fish in their waters. and yeah, maybe we'll also catch a few fish. there's a better way. thank you. [applause]

mr. newhouse: good morning, i'm congressman dan newhouse from washington state's fourth district. i'd like to applaud speaker ryan, conference chair cathy mcmorris and work with my colleagues to restore constitutional principles in our government. i'm proud to be part of asserting the people's voice at a time of executive overreach, when americans are frustrated with not being heard. the founders designed our system of government to be balanced. they reserved legislative authority to the people's representatives in congress. not unelected officials of countless federal agencies. in my own state of washington, we are seeing firsthand the effects of agencies pushing

their own agendas that go against the will of the people through their elected representatives, in this case, the e.p.a. awarded tax dollars for an anti-farm advocacy program attacking the agricultural industry in direct violation of the law. this kind of government sponsored abuse feeds a cycle of distrust and it shows what happens when the lack of federal government accountability. today, congress is stepping in to say enough. americans want to know that we will rein in these kinds of executive branch abuses. and exercise our oversight and law making authority granted by the constitution. we commit to a better way. to restoring the rule of law and the separation of powers that

are meant to keep the people in charge and their voices heard. thank you. [applause] mr. rogers: good morning, my name is hall rogers, i represent kentucky's fifth congressional district and chair the house's committee. the key to reclaiming the power is to reclaim the power they have purse. our founding fathers spelled it out in the constitution, quote, no money shall be drawn from the treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law. end quote. james madison described this power of the hurt purse as,

quote, the most complete and effectual way to obtain a redress of every grievance and to carry into effect every just and salutary measure. this is why it's critical for the congress to retain and tighten its power over federal appropriations. it's one of the most basic duties we have as congresspeople and one of our greatest responsibilities. so how do we bring back this power into the hands of the people? first, congress must pass all appropriations bills annually. anything less cedes authority to the executive branch, undermining the principles of our constitution. both the house and the senate must undertake internal reforms to remove any obstacles to passing these bills, including the 60 vote hurdle in the

senate. whatever happened to rule by the majority? next, we must address our nation's real spending problem, uncontrollable, automatic, skyrocketing, mandatory spending. that makes up 2/3 of our federal budget. that can be done through overhauling the budget process to allow congress to more effectively control spending on mandatory programs. third, agencies and bureaucrats must be held accountable if they spend any dollar not specifically directed by congress. such actions are violations of federal law and must be treated as such. this also means bring manage outside agencies within the congressional appropriations and oversight process. finally, we should aggressively

and strategically use the tools that we already have, including limiting and conditioning funds, to enforce congressional intent. the recommendations of this task force will help reclaim the constitutional power of the purse. it'll make sure that elected representatives who are accountable to their people and who know the needs of their districts the best are the ones to determine how federal funds are spent, not unelected bureaucrats. these recommendations will help improve the way congress functions. give the american people a more control -- give the american people more control over their tax dollars, and ultimately form a more perfect union as our founding fathers intended because the founding fathers saw this as the better way. thank you.

[applause] mr. stewart: good morning, i'm congressman chris stewart, i represent the most beautiful district in the country, utah's second district. i believe our founding fathers got it right. i believe they were inspired when they set up three branches of government, one to create the law, one to enforce the law, and one to review the enforcement of that law. they set up a presidency, not a king. and they never intended that our federal regulators would rule over us rather than serve the people. unfortunately, some of these executive orders and these rules have become muddled in recent decades. the executive branch pushes out rules and regulations and executive orders that have the same force as a law but without the input of the american

people. and these excessive rules and regulations hurt hard working american families. let me say that again. these excessive rules and regulations hurt hardworking american families. my district in utah is a great example of that. we have four national parks, two national monuments, millions of acres of beautiful scenery. that millions of americans come to enjoy every year. but because of some of these excessive rules and regulations it's made it impossible for those outfitters and guides, buzz of a mandate requiring a minimum wage, many of them are going to close. and it's going to hurt americans who want to enjoy the great american west because they're not going to have that option any longer. this increase in minimum wage will force many of these recklation a -- recklation -- recreational outfitters and guides to close their doors. let me read you a letter from one such constituent. we want to retain our commitment to the public lands. however the costs of compliance

created by this rule that it affects our business. we may have to cease running trips in national parks. what a tragedy that would be. if we actually close access or make it more difficult for americans to come and enjoy these beautiful places. this is just one example. and there are many more that we could talk about. repeated stories across utah, across our country where rules and regulations passed a as has been stated here many times, without accountable, do serious harm. and that's why i join with my colleagues in this effort to reclaim the power of article 1 in the constitution. i'll say it again, our founding fathers got it right. there is supposed to be a balance of power. the president and federal regulators have claimed power that they simply constitutionally do not have. it's time for the american people to reclaim that power. article 1, the intent of the

constitution, freedom, the people, that's what this is about today. so i'm pleased to be here. thank you for giving me this opportunity. [applause] mr. franks: it is a good morning. we are privileged to be in a place like this. i'm trent franks, i have the privilege of serving as chairman of the constitution committee. i'm especially gratified to cathy mcmorris rodgers and those who help her for this invitation an for this gathering. the united states constitution is the greatest manmade charter for human government in all of human history. it does not memorialize the rights of government as do most constitutions. rather, it proclaims and safeguards the rights of the individual and limits government.

it specifically guarantees the rights of life, liberty, and property, of which each individual cannot be deprived without due process of law. and from that foundation has extrapolated the most powerful, the freest, and most noble nation known to man. our oath of office, sworn before almighty god by members of congress, to support and defend the constitution, sacredly binds each of us to that noble task. yet certain rules and practices of congress, unconstitutional executive orders and legislating from the bench have become a mortal threat to the constitution. it has indeed threatened our article 1 powers of the purse. no one could possibly and more exquisite he articulate it than did congressman hal rogers this morning. accordingly, may we all both be inspired and admonished by the

words of the great daniel webster when he said, hold on, my friends, to the constitution and to the republic for which it stands. for miracles do not cluster and what has happened once in 6,000 years may never happen again. so hold on to the constitution. for should the constitution should fall there will be anarchy throughout the world. i hope this will be a morning when all members of congress will be deeply reminded of our sacred oath to the constitution and each of us will recognize the treasure that it represents to the entire human family. thank you. [applause] mr. sessions: good morning, pete sessions, representing the 32nd congressional district of texas, chairman of the house rules committee. when i came to washington, i

came to be a part of a grand experiment, of constitutional government that i considered to be a responsibility of balance, combined with responsibility to live with and for the united states constitution. you have heard today members of our body who are bringing together the ideas that they hear not just back home but really the pulse of a nation. we believe that the american dream is in question. we believe that the american dream should be reevaluated because what made america great should also be what makes us greater in the future. making government work for people is what we should be for. we not only look at the constitution as the guiding force but we want that balance

and responsibility. for nearly four months we have been working as a team. ideas put forth by speaker ryan made flesh in working by congresswoman cathy mcmorris rodgers, our conference chair. we've been working for four months on recommendations, by listening to our members, by taking advice from people back home, and understanding that if we work together as a team, we can be successful. our mission is to restore balance among the branches of government exactly as our founding fathers intended. by reasserting the unique constitutional role of congress. we believe that we must, as part of our responsibility, live up to our responsibility. said another way, we are here to say we are upping our game. to do the things that are within our, not just responsibility, but within the context of what the american people expect.

each two year well, put our name on the ballot, each two years we go and define not only what we stand for but the hopes and dreams of a grateful nation as we move forward. you have heard our members speak clearly about the things which must take place and i will tell you as chairman of the house rules committee, it is my job to work with our members to make sure that these ideas are put into law, that they are put into bills that can be understood by the american people with not only great intent, but purpose to make this great nation even better. you see, we believe there is a better way. [applause] mrs. black: good morning, i'm diane black, i represent the sixth congressional district of tennessee, and i'm honored to be here with my colleagues today to

talk about a better way, to give the power back to the people's house and therefore to the american people. almost every day i hear from tennesseans who come to me in frustration because their lives and their livelihoods are being impacted by a government rule. cobbled together behind closed doors, away from public view, by bureaucrats they can't even speak to on the phone let alone vote for. in fact this month, my office met with mayor dale reagan from clay county, tennessee. he manages a rural sparsely populated county that was already struggling in the economy and now they're going to get hit once again by the department of labor's overtime rule. mayor reagan tells me that this rule threatens to drain the county's education budget because it implements a new

overtime pay schedule for nearly every teacher they employ. i cannot overstate how upset they were that they had no say as this rule came to be. and i told them, i'm a as frustrated as you are because the constitution says that we in congress should write the laws. yet for the past few decades, bureaucratic agencies have been legislating with regulations and rules that have the same force of law. this is just unacceptable. instead of trying to stop bad rules once they've been announced, we in the people's house and as a result the constituents we serve, should be a part of the process from the very beginning. and that's what today is about. offering a better way to restore our constitutional separation of powers and to reform our rule making process so that the american people, folks like mayor reagan and the people of clay county have a voice through their elected representative. thank you. [applause]

mr. ryan: i'd like to start by thanking cathy mcmorris rodgers and the members of our tasks for -- task force for this very impressive work on this most significant work on our better way agenda. i thought i'd close by quoting one of the greatest supreme court justices, antonin scalia. he once asked, why do you think america is such a free country? what is it in our constitution that makes us what we are? well, most of us would probably say the bill of right the freedom of speech, freedom of press, right to bear arms, and true enough in those rights are very special. but justice scalia went on if you think a bill of rights is what sets us apart, you're crazy. every banana republic in the world has a bill of rights. even the soviet union had a bill of rights, he pointed out.

and it promised a lot more than ours does. but there's a reason we don't remember the ussr as a bastion of liberty. because that bill of rights was just, quote, just words on paper. close quote. as justice scalia said. what truly makes america free, he argued, is the separation of powers. those amendments to the constitution may enumerate our rights, but it is the separation of powers that protects those rights, that secures those rights. our country makes sure that no one person exercises too much power. i'm talking about the fact that we elect most of our representatives every two years. the fact that both houses of congress have to pass a bill before it becomes law. the fact that congress is elected separately from the president.

that means a lot of people a lot of different people, they have to agree for a bill to become a law. that means disagreemt, it means debate, it means compromise, and in the end it means good government. i also think it's very telling that when justice scalia talked about the separation of powers, he barely even mentioned the court, and he sat on it. maybe what he was trying to tell us is this. we can't rely on the court alone to protect our rights. because if you have to file a lawsuit, guess what? it's already too late. your rights have already been violated. being free doesn't mean you can get damages. being free means you don't have to worry about your rights being violated in the first place. that's why we need the other branches of government. especially the legislative branch to remain strong, so they

can defend our rights when another branch attacks them. that is what will secure our rights in the here and in the now. and that is why we are here today. our problem is not so much that the presidency under both parties keeps breaking the rules, though it clearly does. our problem is that congress, under both parties, keeps forfeiting the game. yielding the executive branch. giving the president a blank check. not even bothering to read the fine print in some cases. and as our members just told us, as we just heard a beautiful articulation of our cause, this means more than just out of control spending. it means more chaos at the border. it means not being able to live out your faith. it means not being free. that's why this plan is so important.

in fact, i would argue this is the most important part of our agenda. because we won't be able to fix our safety net, we won't be able to rebuild our military or pare back the red tape until we put the people back into the driver's seat. it's not enough to have an efficient or effective government. we want a free government. one of the most important principles that unites all of us as americans, that makes this a popular and inspiring nation is that we are a historically self-determining people. historically with a government by consent. that's what unites us. that's what makes us free. that's what makes us the beacon of hope in the world. we must reclaim and conserve this principle. we want a competent america where all of us are free. that's something that i think all of us can agree on. thank you very much.

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>> here are some programs coming up this weekend. from book expo america, the annual trade show in chicago. former nba player and author kareem abdul-jabbar discusses his upcoming book about the current political and social landscape. on sunday, a roundtable discussion about donald trump and the art of the deal first published in 1987. politico ander for a senior writer for the wall street journal. then at 9:00 p.m., afterwards, political science professor talks about his book "isis: a history."

>> this surge of isis was a direct result of the sectarianism and the civil wars in the air of the east. and the perception that somehow the arab spring, the collective action, could not change the existing order. >> go to book tv.org for the complete schedule. ought to say that 60 is not the new 40. it looks good. it is ok. people should own their age. we need not to talk about being over 50 p as aeriod of decline.

>> talking them of the health and financial challenges older citizens face. she is the author of the book "disrupt aging." >> the fastest-growing age sector is people over 85. when these programs put in place life expectancy was 67 or 68. are there more people in this system, but they are living longer. so we have to be able to look at these programs and make meaningful adjustments that will be allowing people to live with dignity for much longer. >> sunday night, on c-span's q&a. >> president obama and vice president biden traveled to orlando today to meet with families killed in the mass shooting at the pulse nightclub. while there, he talked to the press about gun laws in the fight to defeat isis.

this is 20 minutes. [inaudible]

president obama: four days ago, this community was shaken by an evil and hateful act. today, we are reminded of what is good, that there is compassion and empathy and decency, and most of all, there is love.

that's the orlando that we've seen in recent days, and that's the america that we have seen. this afternoon, the vice president and i had the opportunity to meet with many of the families here. as you might imagine, their grief is beyond description. through their pain and through their tears, they told us about the joy that their loved ones had brought to their lives. they talked about their sons or their daughters, so many young people in their 20's and 30's. so many students who were focused on the future. one young woman was just 18 years old. another, said her father, was a happy girl with so many dreams.

there were siblings there talking about their brothers and their sisters, and how they were role models that they looked up to. there were husbands and wives who had taken a solemn vow, fathers and mothers who gave their full heart to their children. these families could be our families. in fact, they are our family. they're part of the american family. and today, the vice president and i told them on behalf of the american people, that our hearts are broken too, and that we stand with you. and that we are here for you. and that we are remembering those who you loved so deeply.

as a nation, we've also been inspired by the courage of those who risk their lives and cared for others. partners whose last moments were spent shielding each other, the mother who gave her life to save her son. the former marine whose quick thinking saved dozens of lives. joe and i had the chance to thank mayor dyer, chief mina, sheriff demings, all who have responded in heroic ways, the outstanding police and first responders who were able to, through their professionalism and quick response, rescue so many people. we also owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to all the doctors and all the nurses who have worked day and night to treat the

injured, save lives and prevent even more anguish. as one of the doctors here said, after the worst of humanity reared its ugly head, the best of humanity came roaring back. let me get that quote more precisely. after the worst of humanity reared its evil head, the best of humanity came roaring back. now, if we're honest with ourselves. if, in fact, we want to show the best of our humanity, then we're all going to have to work together at every level of government, across political lines, to do more to stop killers who want to terrorize us. we will continue to be relentless against terrorist

groups like isil and al-qaeda. we are going to destroy them. we are going disrupt their networks and their financing and the flow of fighters in and out of war theaters. we're going to disrupt their propaganda that poisons so many minds around the world. we're going to do all that. our resolve is clear. but given the fact that the last two terrorist attacks on our soil, orlando and san bernardino, were homegrown, . carried out, it appears, not by external plotters, not by vast networks or sophisticated cells,

but by deranged individuals warped by the hateful propaganda they had seen over the internet. and we are going to do more to prevent these kinds of events from occurring. it's going to take more than just our military. it's going to require more than just our intelligence teams. as good as they are, as dedicated as they are, as focused as they are, if you have lone wolf attacks like this hatched in the minds of a disturbed person, then we're going to take different kinds of steps in order to prevent something like this from happening. those who were killed here were gunned down by a single killer

with a powerful assault weapon. the motives of this killer may have been different than the mass shooters in aurora or newtown. but the instruments of death were so similar. and now, another 49 innocent people are dead. another 53 are injured. some are still fighting for their lives. some will have wounds that will last a lifetime. we can't anticipate or catch every single deranged person that may wish to do harm to his neighbors or his friends or coworkers or strangers. but we can do something about

the amount of damage that they do. unfortunately, our politics have conspired to make it as easy as possible for a terrorist or just a disturbed individual like those in aurora and newtown. to buy extraordinarily powerful weapons, and they can do so legally. so today, once again, as has been true too many times before, i held and hugged grieving family members and parents, and they asked, why does this keep happening? and they pleaded that we do more to stop the carnage. they don't care about the

politics. neither do i. neither does joe. and neither should any parent out here. just thinking about their kids being not in the wrong place, but in places where kids are supposed to be. this debate needs to change. it's outgrown the old political stalemates. the notion that the answer to this tragedy would be to make sure that more people in a nightclub are similarly armed to the killer defies common sense. those who defend the easy accessibility of assault weapons should meet these families and

explain why that makes sense. they should meet with the newtown families. some of whom joe saw yesterday, whose children would now be finishing fifth grade. why do you think our liberties requires these repeated tragedies? that is not the meaning of liberty. i'm pleased to hear that the senate will hold votes on preventing individuals with possible terrorist ties from buying guns, including assault weapons. i truly hope that senators rise to the moment and do the right thing. i hope that senators who voted no on background checks after newtown have a change of heart. and then, i hope to house does the right thing and helps end the plague of violence that these weapons of war inflict on

so many young lives. i've said this before, we will not be able to stop every tragedy. we can't wipe away hatred and evil from every heart in this world. but we can, we can stop some tragedies. we can save some lives. we can reduce the impact of a terrorist attack if we're smart. and if we don't act, we will keep seeing more massacres like this. because we'll be choosing to allow them to happen. we will have said, we don't care enough to do something about it.

here in orlando, we are reminded not only of our obligations as a country to be resolute against terrorism. we are reminded of not only the need for us to implement smarter policies to prevent mass shootings. we are also reminded of what unites as americans. and that what unites us is stronger than the hate of those who target us. for so many people here who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, the pulse nightclub has always been a safe haven, a place to sing and dance, and most importantly, to be who you truly are. including for so many people

whose families are originally from puerto rico. sunday morning, that sanctuary was violated in the worst way imaginable. so whatever the motivations of the killer, whatever influences led him down the path of violence and terror, whatever propaganda he was consuming from isil and al-qaeda, this was an act of terrorism, but it was also an act on hate. this was an attack on the lgbt community. americans were targeted because we're a country that has learned to welcome everyone no matter who you are or who you love. and hatred towards people because of sexual orientation, regardless of where it comes from, it's a betrayal of what's best in us.

joe and i were talking on the way over here. you can't break up the world into us and them and denigrate and express hatred towards groups because of the color of their skin or their faith or their sexual orientation. and not feed something very dangerous in this world. so if there was ever a moment for all of us to reflect and reaffirm our most basic beliefs that everybody counts and everybody has dignity, now's the time. it's a good time for all of us to reflect on how we treat each other. and to insist on respect and

equality for every human being. we have to end discrimination and violence against our brothers and sisters who are in the lgbt community, here at home and around the world. especially in countries where they are routinely prosecuted. we have to challenge the oppression of women, wherever it occurs, here or overseas. there's only us, americans. here in orlando, the men and women taken from us, those who loved them, we see some of the true character of this country, the best of humanity coming roaring back with love and the compassion and the fierce resolve that will carry us

through, not just through this atrocity, but through whatever difficult times may confront us. it's our pluralism and our respect for each other, including a young man who said to a young friend, he was super proud to be latino. it's the patriotism of an army reservist who is simply known as an officer. it is our community, the outpouring of love so many across the country have shown to our fellow americans who are lgbt. a display of solidarity that might have been unimaginable even a few years ago. out of this darkest of moments, that gives us hope. seeing people reflect, seeing people's best instincts come oout. maybe in some cases, minds and hearts change. but it is our strength and our

resilience. the same determination of a man who died here who traveled the world, mindful of the risks as a gay man, but who spoke for all of us when he said, we are not we are not going to be afraid. may we all find that same strength in our own lives. find that same wisdom in how we treat one another. may god bless all who we lost in orlando. give comfort to their families. may heal the wounded. he bring some solace to those whose hearts have been broken. may hve