not the physical effects whether it may have contributed to controversial comments. can you explain where you are in your recovery physically and mentally and how you will handle the rigors? sen. kirk: when you suffer something as difficult as a stroke you are going to fight fight fight for the people. moderator: is a senator's self a legitimate issue in the race? rep. duckworth: no. sen. kirk: we agree on one more core point. we believe the next governor should use a -- [laughter] duckworth: i think the senator's perfectly capable of doing his job. my concern is he is not doing his job.

he met with american garland but nothing has happened. it is october. i wonder about a senator who calls the president a drug dealer in chief or back in 2007 he said one of the best things we can do to combat illegal immigration from mexico is to send contraceptives free to mexico. these are not solutions that help and frankly even his recent vote, he voted against the equal pay act for women and called it the most sexist legislation ever. he voted against allowing students to refinance student loan debt and trouble to china and told chinese not to invest in america because we're not a good bet. these are not a hallmark of a person who is looking out for the people of illinois. the people need someone to fight for them every day. let me to you something, when i met was still workers in granite

city laid off two days after christmas they did not want to hear that there senator had gone to china and told the chinese not to invest in america. they wanted a senator to bite for them every day. i will be that person because i've lived their lives. i have lived on food stamps. i'm still paying a student loan debt. i know what that is like. we need a senator who does his job. sen. kirk: i would say, when we talked about drug dealers that i the 400 mane dollars ransom payment the president made in cash to the iranians even after he certified they are the state sponsor of terror. drug deal words are not mine, they are the words of the european union. remember the european union canceled the printing of the 500 euro note because they said most dothe $400 million -- if you the math, 800,500 euro notes were in that payment.

they canceled the printing of the 500 euro note because -- and this is quoting directly, the note was too involved in the drug dealing there. congresswoman duckworth will answer first next. >> you are facing a lawsuit right now from former employees who worked under you when you are director of the department of veterans affairs, they claim there was retaliation after claims of corruption and abuse were brought to light. you claim this is politically motivated. why should voters trust you can be an advocate for veterans after that? duckworth:: by the time i woke up in my hospital bed in walter reed i have been working on veterans issues. i met on-senator barack obama who is on the veterans affairs committee and i was calling him senator durbin saying, you're not doing right. you need to do more. everyday i wake up i look in the mirror and i do what i can for veterans. i will always honor the

sacrifices my buddies made to save my life. i will continue to work on my programs. ending better and homelessness. greater outreach to female veterans. i started the only veterans for metal health hotline. even before the ba had theirs. i open up the ovens for online communications do outreach to young veterans. you know, veterans are my life work. i will never leave my veterans behind because my buddies did not leave me behind. i am not going to let political stuff stop me from doing what i truly feel is my calling. taking care of my veterans. >> senator kirk, his is a political stunt? sen. kirk: no. i would say the record of my opponent and serving veterans is really questionable. we see right in the front row quiteeveral who have been critical of you. not in my words, their words. people who directly serve you.

to make sure, after 22 years of service in the veterans administration, she spoke up when the director of the facility went down to the public ask anybodyfice to who wanted to work for veterans and eight convicted felon was invited and even after being convicted. toreduced that veteran tears. these brave women said, we cannot let this person into the -- into the veterans administration and they should be commended and applauded not crushed. you fire them directly just because they said you were doing badly. i think that should not have been done. rep. duckworth: you know, senator, you and i both know that is not true. it has been blown out at least

two times. sen. kirk: let's not lie. the lawsuit has not been thrown out. the plaintiffs are right here. i just met with him this afternoon. they said they rejected the settlement. get myckworth:: do i time now? sen. kirk: when you're lying you do not get your time. -- roe: rep. duckworth:: reclaiming my time. been thrown up. sen. kirk: the litigants are right here. it is important not to lie directly to the people. >> let's give the congresswoman a chance and we will never be in a moment. duckworth:: as i said, the less it been thrown out of court two times daily. it has been settled. of the deleted

settlement. as i said, again, i am proud of my record for veterans will stop i will not let the threat of lawsuits or political commercials keep me from doing right for veterans. from the first woke up in walter reed, i have been working for veterans. they are my life's work. you can threaten to sue me as much as you want but if you do not do your job and you are a government employee, i will come after you. moderator: thank you. let's move on. -- kirk: >> senator kirk, you have committed past mistakes. including your admission you may not have been shot at while flying in intelligence missions over iraq and an overstatement of the case when you said you commanded the pentagon war room. as evidenced by your news conference with these women today, their statements about bad treatment of patients,

veterans issues are a key part in this race. given this, what would you say to voters concerned about your past misstatements. : my pastirk misstatements have been small and salvage and i only have myself, i did not a lot of who hadike my opponent veterans die while waiting on the waiting list. if you would like to know the people who witnessed that, they are right here. duckworth: [chuckling] i am proud of the fact that we added beds. perhaps folks in chicago do not pay as much attention to what happens down in central illinois and further down south in southern illinois, but it was important to open those 80 beds to take a veterans here in central illinois said they had a place to go because there were

long waiting list. i think with the people of illinois needs is a senator who will work with them. was going to serve them. was going to get up everything within work to make sure that working families have a shot at the american dream and they can also stand by our veterans. one of the problems we have this country is that when we send our troops to war, we don't talk about the fact that we will be caring for those veterans for the next 60 years, if we're lucky. that is a cost of war that should be talking about. and if you send me to the united states senate, i will be there everything will they remind my colleagues that when you go to work and make these decisions, we are making a lifelong commitment to our veterans. that is why we need to make sure when they come home of jobs for them. that is why we have to make sure they do not and upon the streets. the very same streets they defendant. which is why i worked on homeless veterans. something need to remember,

women are veterans to. they are my life's work and i will be doing this long after i served in government and as long as i'm breathing, i will advocate for my vets. mr. leach: 30 seconds, if you choose. sen. kirk: i'm very honored that as the chairman of the v.a. subcommittee i put together the pending legislation in the history of the country. 71 point $5 billion to take care of the 25 million veterans in this country. in my work i was able to put together the naval hospital along with the north chicago veterans administration. because of this joint facility, i would argue that it is now the best country. if you look at that, looking at the corruption out there, you have the department -- i didn't have problems ever, like my opponent had when the inspector general of the veterans

administration went after her when she wasted one .5 minute dollars on a treatment program to make sure that the outreach could be there. mr. leach: that's time. sen. kirk: no one showed up for her program. mr. leach: thank you, senator. jim? mr. leach: i want to move from veterans issues to act of duty military. as america battles is as america battles is modest -- as america idols the islamic state, -- battles the islamic state do you support the , increased use of american boots on the ground in places like iraq and syria? what would your strategy be for the defeat of isis? rep. duckworth: they are an enemy of the united states. they are butchers and they are criminals. i support the use of drones and some smart airstrikes. but i do not support further sending american troops to foreign lands to fight isis a must the american people have authorized it. one of the problems that we have are now as american troops overseas that americans don't know about. do you know that there are 5000 americans on the ground in iraq right now supporting?

it's an important job at the american people need to know about. the men and women in uniform new to have the full support of the american people behind them. i want to make sure that our allies do their part. their policy is part of a creative isis in the first place. all of our allies should be taking the lead in that will be my focus. >> thank you. 90 seconds, senator kirk. sen. kirk: the best way is to use iraqi troops with boots overground. serving with the air force of the iraqi government. as they move, i hope when they enter pockets of the opposition, the united states will be taken care of.

easiest with islamic troops that speak arabic from the area, i think that with the current policies that is it. >> congresswoman? rep. duckworth: i think he just called for the use of more united states air force. over these areas and my concern there is that having been a down behind enemy lines fighting for my life, i know when you send additional aircraft you also need additional pathfinders on the ground. you need additional search and rescue on the ground and logistics if we're going to do that. it's not a decision that congress can make on its own or the the administration can make on its own. we need to do this with the full knowledge of the american people on the decision we think we need to do. >> this will be senator kirk, first to respond to jordan's question.

>> last week and the army sergeant was killed by enemy forces and couple. u.s. a stark reminder that foreign policy in middle east continues to have effect on america. isis is not our only problem. what do you think the american influence should be in the middle east. sen. kirk: there's a long-term policy to support the elected government of iraq, to make sure that we do it the troops overground. i understand you need people who are called j-pack to hit the right target. i think that is the best way to do it with a minimal united .tates force i have not heard that. tammy, you oppose the president's policy? i did not know that.

>> congresswoman? rep. duckworth: the u.s. needs to have a leadership role in the middle east. we must force allies to do their job. holding the iraqis accountable. bite --ing the right -- and leading the fight in mosul is incredibly important. other allies need to step up. these are some of the greatest fighters i've had the privilege to witness. our turkish and nato allies, attacking them from the rear. we need to hold them accountable. this is where we exert influence but don't need to be sending troops over there right away. any type of engagement that we participate in, for example, removal ofclude the assad. he is a butcher who has killed and murdered scores of innocent

people. we cannot do that on our own. i want to be in the senate. my family has served this nation in uniform. i have bled for this nation. i still want to be there in the senate when the drums of war sound because people are quick to sound the drums of war. i want to be there to say, this is what it costs. this is what it takes to do. let's make sure the american people understand what we are engaging and and let us hold our allies accountable because we cannot do it all. >> three seconds to rebut. sen. kirk: i forgot that your parents came all the way from thailand to serve george washington. >> moving on to the third question. congresswoman duckworth, first respond.

mr. schoenburg: you are welcome to take some time if you would like to respond to that, too. rep. duckworth: members of my family have been serving in uniform going back to the revolution. if you go to mount vernon, illinois, you will see a statue put up by the daughters of the revolution next to molly pitcher, one of the first women to pick up her husband and take her husband's position during the revolution. i'm proud of both my father's side and my mother's who is an immigrant. she became an american citizen in her 50's and i am proud of that. mr. schoenburg: let me get to my question, here. to congresswoman duckworth, the u.s. allowed over 20,000 syrian refugees into the country in the past year. during the past year, in including the correct number, if any, in jordan those alternative locations are in war-torn syria. there was some regret after world war ii that more refugees from the nazis admitted to the united states. should that color how we look at

policy towards refugees now? rep. duckworth: what should color our opinions are the values in the constitution, the bill of rights, and what we stand for. frankly we are not a nation that turns our back on children drowning in the mediterranean. we do not turn our back on families that are fleeing pictures. we need to deal with the directors of the fbi, cia, and homeland security say we need to do, which is invest more money in the refugees who are coming here. but once they are here we should embrace them because what makes america great is the diversity. i witnessed doing right by the vietnamese boat people after vietnam and i think we can do better. and moree can lead importantly, i am not going to leave people to grow up in refugee camps to grow up to be the next generation of insurgents shoot down american

helicopters like the one that shot me down. we are endangering americans when we say that we would turn our back on the weakest and vulnerable and do not uphold the values that we espouse. and yes, the values that my family fought to establish in the revolution. sen. kirk: i would say that there is a big difference between congresswoman duckworth and i on syrian refugees. i would note that the director of the fbi, james comey, said he cannot support fbi agents throughout the syrian war to collect intelligence on all the refugees. they have also said there is no database to check these people. congresswoman is going to tell you something about how the administration got on top of their guys and said, you have got to say that there is. haveven these brave people said there is no database to check against the syrian refugees. recommendhe policy i is similar to the policy the president adopted with regarding

iraqi refugees. when they found the refugees in bowling green, kentucky, were leading an effort to become a terror cell, the president wisely decided andelay the iraqi program find out more about these people. it's basic common sense. we should know who's entering the united states. especially after 9/11. rep. duckworth: i will quote the various newspapers who have said the senator is misquoting the fbi director. he actually said that we can fully vet the refugees, with homeland security and the department of state for vetting refugees. but more importantly, one of isis's biggest tools in propaganda on the internet tells the world that america hates islam and we will turn our backs on people from islamic countries. and we simply cannot feed into that by turning our backs on people just because of their religion. and we can do better, we can do

more, but we cannot turn back on who we are. >> thank you to both candidates. we have reached the first breaking point in the debate. let's take a brief timeout. we will be back in just a moment. stay with us. >> welcome back to the 2016 senate debate. congresswoman tammy duckworth, senator mark kirk. our second segment with a special block of questions from students that have written these questions themselves. we begin with will, a senior here, political science major and student ambassador. will, your question? will: i'm the son, nephew, cousin of current and retired police officers. a young, african-american male myself, i'm conflicted everyday with the problems between the the officersty and that serve and protect our community every day. what do you believe you can do as a senator to help resolve this problem.

moderator: we begin with congresswoman duckworth. rep. duckworth: thank you so much. i was the first candidate who put out a criminal justice reform plan. i think we need to include a multiple of things, including getting rid of mandatory minimums for nonviolent first time offenders. let's take a look at those. they are actually used to intimidate people into having records for the rest of their lives that they don't deserve. they need a second chance. i also think we need to work on gun violence legislation. equally important, we need to work on economic justice. what we see in black and brown communities is a lack of economic opportunity, and when you are in that kind of despair it's hard to look ahead. i want to say that this will take a lot of work. from all aspects. it's not a single issue problem,

but we have to look at it economically. and we have to make sure that we will look at the community itself. sen. kirk: i would say i have been quite critical of the ferguson police department and think they are too militarized. when you train local police as in french read they begin to regard the taxpayers and voters on the other side of the street as the enemy and that is an inappropriate civil military relationship. i hope we always remind the place that the people on the other side of the street are voters and taxpayers and not the enemy. moderator: rebuttal? rep. duckworth: my opponent recently met with police officers from other jurisdictions and said the office lacks the capability to improve police community relationships. i think that's the wrong

position. i think we need to build capacity and improve. there are things that can be done on more grants for community groups to make sure that you improve those relationships. i promise you that if you elect me to the united states senate, not only will we make sure that we have the capability, we will make sure that we take a leadership role in improving those relationships across the country. adam: thank you, congresswoman. our next question will be answered by senator kirk and comes from breanna rodriguez, a freshman here and member of the leadership for life organization. breanna: my grandparents came to the u.s. legally, 37 years ago. my mother is a first-generation immigrant who came to the u.s. seeking a better future for their children. even though they studied and dreamed along my side. they were the dreamers, the ones that loved this great nation as much as i. that their parents fought so hard for.

what is your position on immigration reform, specifically as it relates to the dreamers who love this nation as their own? sen. kirk: [speaking spanish] i have voted for comprehensive immigration reform. the kirk amendment is part of top transit immigration reform bills aimed at the military. if you get a combat infantry badge that shows you are under fire, you automatic become united states citizen under the principle. if you fight alongside us, you are one of us. it is not just a pathway, it is a rocket path. that is important to bring the

support. to bring the 525,000 people who are undocumented and the state out of the shadows. to lay down permanent roots. to build a new life for their families knowing they will not be deported. we have time to rebut we will give you time. 90 seconds, congresswoman duckworth. rep. duckworth: i fully support it. you need to make sure it is practical and fair and also that it is humane. separating families like the way my family was separated when we moved back to the states when i -years-old. my mom could not come with us. she was not a citizen. they were separated for six months. it was a to have time. i can only imagine what it is like to be six-years-old and you are thrown into the foster care system. it has to be practical. donald trump's idea of building

a wall and making the country of mexico pay for it is not going to work. it has to be there. those that come here illegally should go to the end of the lot -- illegally, pay fines, fees, and penalties, and work towards citizenship. i think that immigrants make the nation stronger. we have passed comprehensive reform. the study show that as much as $1 trillion to our economy over 10 years will be the benefit of having immigration reform. i have also written legislation in the house that has to do with -- it would allow kids that don't want to go to college but who enlist in the military, as soon as they enlist in the military they get permanent status and when they serve a full enlistment, they then get a permanent residency status. the problem with my opponent's idea is that the combat infantry man badge is only available to men in the infantry. only recently were women allowed to serve. they are leaving out 60% of the

population. adam: thank you, congresswoman. sen. kirk: one of the reasons i endorsed donald trump is when he said the mexican american judge that was in charge of the trump university case could not possibly render a fair decision because of his mexican-american heritage. i did not endorsed donald trump because that showed he did not understand the basic idea behind the whole concept of americanism. to give everything for the country. donald trump did not even understand that and that is why de-endorsed him for president. >> testing has shown that students have fallen behind on median standards set in the program. what is your position on common core? what do you think the government can do to improve public education? adam: congresswoman? rep. duckworth: i think there is

a lot that the federal government can do. i am proud to have voted toward the law changing the rules that came under no child left behind. i think that one of the problems we had was common core. it's important to have a standard across the nation. i mean, i want to a young person graduating from louisiana having as good of an understanding as breanna does. but we need to make sure also that there is local and put. i think at the federal level we example.ead by when i heard that it was going to be cut across the board in terms of funding with students for special needs, i cut back my own pay. i turned back $10,000 of my own pay. a handful of us did it. i can tell you that my -- the senator did not do that.

it does not matter. it is about making sure we live up to what we say we're going to do in terms of leadership. adam: senator kirk, you have 90 seconds. sen. kirk: i do not support common core. i have strongly backed for funding for the special education program under the idea act. i have groundbreaking legislation to encourage the schools that want to to go to all of your schedules in the state of illinois. we have a number of all-year schools in chicago. those schools with the same number of minority kids will outperform the other schools with an all-year schedule. you can expand the academic calendar so we have just as many schooldays as kids in other countries. rep. duckworth: investment in our education is just as important as investment in our military. in fact, i think that our competitors on the global scale -- germany, japan, south korea,

they are making these investments and we are not even investing in the buildings, let alone our children. we can do better. that is why i think if we have problems with common core, we can change the things we need to change, but let's get more input from the educators in the local communities. there is some flexibility there. he will support on a federal level. adam: the final question comes from nathan, a political science major. he is also the student trustee illinoisiversity of board of trustees. nathan: how can the federal government work with students to pursue a secondary education such as a community college that is more affordable. do support those urges congressman rodney davis that would afford college graduates the same opportunity to pay off their student loan?

sen. kirk: there is a key difference between me and my opponent. my opponents primary spending plan is to offer stuff like free college. when the chicago tribune asked her how much her plan cost, she did not even know would cost $60 billion. remember, it only costs $60 billion. duckworth: i think college education is critically important to our nation's future. i went to college on student loans, programs, and waitressing. we leave people behind and leave our nation behind if we don't invest in college. it does not cause people a dime to reduced in her loan debt and to make american kids start up their post-education careers with 30,000, 40,000, $60,000 in debt they are not saving toward their mortgage.

my opponent voted against allowing students to refinance loan debt. that is just a giveaway to the big banks. it is why i introduced the into the red act. i do not think of free college is a giveaway. we will pay for it by closing tax loopholes at the top 1%. we make companies to send jobs overseas pay taxes for doing that. let's invest in our kids and communities. when i travel around the state, does not matter where i am. their place are worried about where they can send their kids to school. globalot compete on a scale. when we asked manufacturers, what is the one thing keeping you from expanding your market share duea? lack of a trained workforce. we're mortgaging our future. afford to do that. i do not think it is a giveaway, a handout, or an entitlement it is an investment in a future.

crack senator, you have 30 seconds to rebut. sen. kirk: she wants to spend more in tax war. i want to spend less and tax less to make sure we can fix this economy. when you do not even know how much her signature spending program costs, it is an example of everything that is wrong with washington. we as citizens of illinois have a duty to protect the people of this country from the kind of economics that is going to collapse the economy. we have got to make sure we run our government and a way that there is no financial graft. students: thank you for your questions. we now move to the panelists. congresswoman, you will be first to respond. >> the obama administration generated controversy with federal roles requiring schools to let transgender synergies restaurants and locker rooms that correspond with their

gender identity. what should federal law mandate regarding protection for individuals with transgender? >> we should protect all transgender. both on sexual identity and orientation. this is something i have been working on in my house district. we have a young transgender change ino wanted to the girls locker room and she was afraid to change in the boy's because you is afraid of being bullied. the students, and the girls parents and the school and the department of education which has guidelines came to an agreement to resolve the situation. the problem is, there are conservative forces out there not even involved in the school district to her trying to opposes. our kids all vulnerable. we should provide equal totection under the the log everyone regardless of race, gender, religion, orientation. let's live together in the

invest in each other. we all deserve protection. crack senator kirk, 90 seconds. my record.y proud of very unusual for a republican to get that feature. act with the senator from on, surely equalize the number one civil rights act of our time. >> congresswoman, 30 seconds to respond. rep. duckworth: i have a record with hrc. my opponent only has a zone new 6% voting record, just barely passing. the year before when he was not a four he had a voting record in the 30's. you can vote on him to write the -- but the right way when it is an election year but the rest of

the time he votes along a straight line with his hearty. i have a 100% voting record with hrc and i am proud of it. sen. kirk: she is so arrogant. >> you can use the time however you want. growing pains of according to health care.ma for expected to increase in the double digits but millions of people now have health insurance and popular aspects of the law are things like allowing dependents to stand coverage told they are 26 and covering pre-existing conditions. what do you think needs to be done with the affordable care act and if you want to replace it please explain with blood. sen. kirk: what we should replace it for would be to make sure we have reform.

lawsuit reform would dramatically change things. buy car insurance from a green gecko in northern virginia you should be able to buy house insurance from any state. we should have complete competition in every state. myt was: i do not agree with opponent who just said he wanted to end the affordable care act. there are problems we need to fix. some of those. we need to look at some of the bipartisan solutions on the table right now. there are folks who can drop it after the grace. even after having a major surgery so people are signing up knowing they need gallbladder surgery. having it during that 90 day time and then dropping it. one of the things you can do is say if you have a procedure, keep insurance for the whole

year. what i am not willing to do is put people on the street to fend for themselves with health insurance companies. it is not acceptable. women should not pay more for their health insurance and they do not under the aca. i have a pre-existing condition, we should not have to fight to be average. you know, my opponent is all about sabotaging and privatizing. medicare as you know it that put senior citizens like my mom out on the street with a $600 voucher to find her own health care. that is not the solution. let's fix the problem. there are bipartisan solutions. if you send me to the united states senate, i will work in a bipartisan way to fix it and i've already done so in the house. : the clinton said the obama care was crazy and he was correct. we had a 60% increase for people .n illinois and much more

if we're raising cost and lowering choice, we're heading in the wrong direction. >> congresswoman duckworth will respond first to the next lesson. from television as that the array on nuclear deal has been a point of tension in the race. what is your opinion of the deal for what is best for the national security of the country. rep. duckworth: i voted for the iran nuclear deal because of the evidence shown to me. it was a pre-nuclear state. within a few months, gaining nuclear power and capability and the iran nuclear deal stopped that. theave to watch out for increased funding that iran now has and bulk up our support include ourorism to support for our greatest ally in the middle east which is israel. where we have to come up with a bipartisan solution. i voted to increase funding for

the arundel program for example. e. the iran dom a deal to undermine us with the ayatollah. he's said it would bounce off their turbans. these are not the words fitting of a united states senator at a time when we are dealing with a potential nuclear crisis. kirk one of bipartisan achievements has been building the bipartisan consensus. i took the senate to two votes on a rant. i got the vote of every single democrat including bernie sanders. without the sanctions there would've been no reason for the iranians to come to the table to negotiate. the worst thing we can do is condemn the next generation of americans to cleaning up a nuclear war and the persian golf. we see what happened when the

president sent to over $30 million to the iranians. the first thing the iranians did of announce the creation their own foreign legion to destabilize yemen and lebanon and iraq. if we look at the future of our policy there, we look at a researching and dangerous iraq. when you see the state department, right after the money showed up they issued a warning to americans in some iranians might want to take advantage. we should run our policy in the way that there will never be a price on the head of the american. you should be able to travel to any country you want. rep. duckworth: i do not understand the incumbent's policy. he says he does not want a nuclear war but he voted against the deal that would prevent iran from becoming a nuclear state. he wants them not to nuclear weapons but he tried to help

pass what would have helped. you we're talking about some but you said he once to get rid of nuclear weapons and around but once to do everything he can to make sure they maintain the capabilities but it is not in the best interests of the united states. jim: senator, what specific steps should be taken to ensure medicare andof like program's? simpson --k: the book plan. i believe when i read it that senator durbin worked so hard. my opponent took the position of the far left and said that senator durbin voted incorrectly. when you look at the whole plan, it comes across as a plan written by real republicans and democrats and once we get the plan and place, we could remove

the big cloud from the future of the country which is the $19 trillion debt. rep. duckworth: you have to understand that plan raises the age for social security. when i travel around illinois, when i am in southern illinois where i see called miners, they cannot afford to have social security age raised. the best way to make sure we preserve social security is to raise the payroll tax cap. right now, people who make $1 million only pay social security on 10% of their income but if you make 30,000 you pay on 100 percent of your income. let's not released the age on the people who desperately need it most but make sure the top 1% pay their fair share. my opponent has voted to make medicare into a voucher program. we need to go after the waste and fraud that happens in

medicare. medicare waste about $50 billion a year and that is why i sponsored a bipartisan piece of legislation that goes after waste, fraud, and abuse and medicare. let's get that $60 billion back. a bipartisanin way. parts have passed. i want to path war. to make sure medicare is there for the long term. and probably your grandparents rely on social security and medicare and let's not abandon them. my mother is also on social security and medicare. i think the whole reason for being a fiscal conservative is to make sure we have enough money to one of the promises we made to senior citizens. if we continue borrowing, every senior citizen america knows when we overspend we threaten their economic viability. policies, taxpt

less, but no less, get us out of the red. >> thank you. that concludes our second segment. we will be back with our final half-hour. senator tammy duckworth and mark kirk. we will continue with questions from our panelists. congresswoman duckworth really response was. i'd's republican leadership has been frank in their hearings to close hearings until after president obama leaves office. what kind would you advocate for and how to convince them to hold hearings on a nominee? i ask i think any juror that gets nominated, you have a brilliant legal mind. that we can evaluate. i would love to see someone who looks more like america. there are some great justices who are asian-american. there is one who is always one of the finalists and she came to

the country as a vietnamese by person. a baby. who is in the nomination and who is nominated, the senate needs to simply do its job and have a hearing and have a boat. my opponent checks the box of political pictures and has a meeting with mayor garland but never actually said to ms. mcconnell, and the hearing i am not going to but few as senate majority leader. he said he sent a letter to his calling sent with to demand a hearing but at no point did he send a letter to chuck grassley and say, past the hearing. leadership. that is hogwash. sen. kirk: i would say was the first republican senator to meet with merrick garland and i urge my colleagues to meet with him. i led the republican conference after my meeting. 12 also met with him after the

meeting. we get to see the current nominee answer questions from the current senate is a great way to explore the outliers of the constitution according to the day. unlike my opponent, who is been rated as one of the most effective congresswomen in the lead this effort i actually had 12 of my republican merrickes meet with garland. he was a very interesting man. outstanding legal scholar. insked him about the problem chicago, the gang problem. we had a good academic discussion about the banks of chicago. congresswoman, 30 seconds if you choose. rep. duckworth: it is not much leadership of your meeting with him in march and it is on over.

i think you failed in those efforts. the bottom line, the senate needs to do its job. my opponent, even on a radio interview after he took the pictures aren't told his colleagues to go ahead and mean and took the pictures, and took the pictures, in a radio interview later he said he knew the hearings would never happen so it did not cost anything to take those pictures. you candidates. next question from burning. bernie, your question. ernie: senator kirk, the marketwatch website recently reported that as of 2013 when had the recent figures, the median working age couple had $5,000 put aside for retirement. what policies would you add to help ensure regular working people can retire with dignity? is akirk: the best program groundbreaking legislation i wrote myself called the 401k it's act.

allow every couple to kids account. the government can never take or by from it. i want to revolutionize. so dad can sit down with his daughter to say, this is what we have in stock, this is what we have in bonds. so they can see how successful the policy was. so we could eventually get our savings rate like what china had. i think by revolutionizing our savings rate, it would really help out the next generation. >> congresswoman duckworth, 90 seconds. my. duckworth: you know, family had savings when i was 13 and 14 and my dad lost his job and we lasted on those savings for about six years until we had

nothing. and you have never seen the despair until you looked in my dad's eyes when he asked me for my $300 in my passbook savings cap because that birthday money and tooth fairy money was all my keep keep us from being homeless. frankly, a 401(k) plan is not the way to go. and about 2008 we had the crash. all of these 401(k) plans lost their value. that is why we must save social security. we must reserve medicare. let's raise the role tax cap and make sure the wealthiest 1%, the people who make $1 million pay on 100% of their income just like anyone else who is paying into social security. we need to make sure medicare remains a program available for senior citizens and not turn into a voucher program and turn them out onto the streets. yes, we should make college more affordable. we should have college savings programs for that. i have one for my daughter who is 23 muslim.

i was told i can count once when she hits two years old but she is my baby at 23 muslim. there is to make sure free technical education programs. students should be able to refinance their student loan debt. >> i will go back to something my opponent said. i think we should get away from a racial and gender politics. this andget away from take the best person regardless if they claim to be -- what do you plan to do? is someone actually hits -- [indiscernible] >> this question will be answered by congresswoman first.th >> both have come out against the transpacific partnership. where do you stand on tpp and

what principle should govern the u.s. trade agreement? rep. duckworth: i oppose tpp for several reasons. i think it is good for our agriculture policy and i hope we can fix tpp but right now i cannot vote for it for several reasons. it allows to unfairly treat. the word is that you should not engage in currency manipulation. there will be penalties behind it. to granite city. talk to this 50-year-old steelworkers getting flooded out of their jobs because chinese are dumping cheap chinese steel and manipulating currency and pushing american manufacturers out of business. we should defend american manufacturers. we should put american businesses first. let's make it a fair trade program not a free trade program. allowing to explain workers, currency, to gain unfair

advantage. if you make it a fair ground, i will probably vote for but as long as it puts americans at a disadvantage i cannot vote for. if. kirk: i would say that my opponent says she supports illinois manufacturers but she ignores the illinois isufacturers that say tpp responsible for sponsoring over puttingfamilies and people out of work. making sure we're always exporting. cities.g out of the when you drive the highways and byways of illinois and was into the farm as of the state they is forll you that some export markets. illinois farmers snow 95% of the humans on the planet are not american citizens. that theld say unemployment that was caused by it by disagreeing with president

obama that is for tpp or even need nominee for tpp and would lose a lot of jobs with the duckworth plan. cut off foreign markets from our state. rep. duckworth: in a time that my opponent has been in office in the last 16 years, illinois has lost over 270,000 jobs. caterpillar just built a new production facility in malaysia in anticipation of tpp and that will be jobs leaving you are, malaysia.to go to my opponent went to china and told the chinese not to invest in america because we're not a good bet. i say made in america is the gold standard and if you make me your united states and i will fight every day for american workers. polle most recent gallup measures congresses approval rating as 20%.

people disapproving of the job congress is doing. each of you currently holds a seat in congress. what specifically will you do to improve the trust that people need to have in their lawmakers, and what will you do to improve working relationships in the senate? as the gluerve between the house and senate. after my stroke, i set for a lot of time thinking about my job and representing the state. i would say the senate is like one big national corral. that corral is filled with 50 different wagons third one for each state. each wagon is pulled by two horses. the illinois wagon is pulled by horse named kirk and a horse named german. if those forces are always nipping at each other, the illinois wagon will not go very far. i insisted that i have a good relationship with dick durbin.

we have a good policy going forward. one thing my opponent has just talked about -- i was my transit there. >> consummate duckworth, you have 90 seconds. people need to know their representatives understand the struggle in their daily lives. they have perhaps lived the same challenges they have lived. that is flat think members of congress should lead by example. if you cannot do your job, you should not get paid. increasee should transparency in government. i think what the people need is to understand that the members of congress understand their challenges. when i travel to stay and talk to fellow dust talk to families and talk about what it is like to answer food stamps and have a high school in the future by me

dinner, they get it. i know what it means to be hungry they know it means to be struggling. they just want to know that the people fighting for them understand that, even though they are on their knees, they are not giving up, and their fighting every single day to put bread on the table, to send their kids to college, to pay their taxes come and to contribute to this great nation, and this great state that is illinois. they can't trust in their representatives in their disassembly is a test disassociated with them. the people of illinois can count on me to fight for them every single day, because i know what it is like. i have been there. i know what it is like to think of my god, how my ever going to pay off that student loan debt? >> 30 seconds, senator kirk, if you choose. sen. kirk: i would pick up on that one train of thought that i lost there. the reason why we lost so many jobs, i would say, is probably because we had a criminal, who

-- broadly billion which, who my opponent served under as governor, we've got to make sure we elect honest people to government and not people like rod, your old boss. who go to jail. [laughter] [applause] >> the next question, you ask the question and congresswoman duckworth will respond first. >> each of you have had outside groups run ads on your behalf. there was a democratic leaning veteran political action committee that air ads questioning some funding votes by senator kirk and a group called independent voice for illinois, which had some big republican donors, attacking representative duckworth. you, on the iran vote and other issues. can or should anything be done to limit campaign or outside spending in politics and how do you get that done? >> i want public financing of campaign, i want to get all money out of politics. i also think in the short term

what we can do is support an act that would oppose giving money to super packs until we disclose who they are. it is dark money. my opponent actually is supporting making it darker and less transparent, and, you know, i think the american people deserve to know and get rid of citizens united. in the meantime i think the best way to get rid of citizens united is to have a functioning supreme court, bring in other cases for the supreme court so the individual person's voice is just as important as that of a large corporation. trust me, no one wants money out of politics more than i do, that way i can spend more time talking to people. my average campaign contribution is about $40, and 90% of my contributions are less than $70 . we're supported by a grassroots campaign. >> thank you, congresswoman. time is up. senator kirk, 90 seconds.

sen. kirk: on the issue of campaign finance reform as a congressman i supported the new regulations that are in place. to make sure we got rid of dark money, and moved to the current system, i was one of the only republicans in the house to break with my party even when the majority leader delay said this is the end of us, if, kirk, if you break from the party. i broke from the party and got the reforms through and made sure the current reforms that we have, the reform that we need is to make sure that we have instant disclosure. once the contribution is made, you should be able to read it on the internet. >> thank you, congresswoman, 30 seconds. representative duckworth: he doesn't support it for super pacs, and i would say the current system does not work. the current system is why we have the problems that we do, and frankly, i am running a

grassroots campaign and we need to make sure that the individual's voices are just as important. these are the people who are supporting the likes of griffin who wrote millions and millions of dollars in checks to that particular super pac. >> thank you. 30 seconds is up. next question, first responder will be senator kirk. >> everyone would love to see lower taxes but we must also be concerned about the nation's rising debt. what specific policies do you support, to still generating enough money for government expenditures? sen. kirk: with regard to tax policy, we should have a flatter, fairer tax. we have about 72 special interest provisions that ought to be wiped out to make sure people with the best lawyers don't pay the lowest taxes. i think a flat fair tax would be the way to go.

the big text change i would want to do would be to lower the corporate tax rate so we can bring in that $400 billion and use 10% of that money to fund a new round of transportation spending for the congress. >> thank you, congresswoman, you have 90 seconds. >> we need comprehensive tax reform. i know my opponent is worried about apple being profitable. if we allow them a lower tax rate and repatriate those dollars, let's get it to small and medium businesses that keep jobs here in illinois. small businesses in this state pay at almost a 30% tax rate and that's not acceptable. if we're going to lower taxes for the top 1% we should be lowering taxes for middle income families and working families as well. my opponent called himself a fiscal conservative. he's no fiscal conservative. by 2019, in just two years our national debt will be upwards of $16 trillion.

50% of that will be as a result of the war in iraq and the bush tax cuts both of which he voted for. in fact, he co-wrote the iraq invasion resolution and went around convincing other members of congress to vote for it. those are the kinds of things we can't afford to spend money on. my tax policies involve closing tax loopholes for the top 1%, closing tax loopholes that allow companies to invert and avoid paying taxes here in the united states and making sure that if we have comprehensive tax reform which we need, we need to make sure that small and medium businesses and working families also get those tax benefits as well. >> 30 seconds, senator kirk. sen. kirk: i would say right now my opponent, when she was running a republican leaning congressional district she supported bush tax cuts before she was against them so i have no idea what your philosophy is. my philosophy is basic frugal republican to make sure we tax less and spend less, and get us out of debt. that would be the way to go. >> thank you.

first response will be from congresswoman duckworth. >> the paris climate agreements go into effect a few days before the election. do you think climate change is real and it's a manmade exasperated problem and what would you support in order to help combat climate change? representative duckworth: well, i am, of course, climate change is real. i support an all of the above approach in attacking climate change. it is everything from moving our country toward being carbon neutral, moving our country toward clean energy, illinois is uniquely positioned to lead the clean energy revolution, and yet we've not taken advantage of it. it's why i want to invest in illinois manufacturing, especially when i comes to clean energy. we here in illinois produce gearboxes for windmills, windmill towers and yet we only get 5% of our energy from wind power and iowa gets 30%. we have the corn and soybean farmers, we should be leading

the world and nation when it comes to biofuels. we need to lead the world in clean energy but we also need to make sure that we provide a consistent policy when it comes to global carbon emissions and getting to that carbon neutral. >> senator kirk, 90 seconds. sen. kirk: i have voted that climate change is happening and it also is caused by man. before i was elected to office, i went to the kyoto climate change negotiations and what i learned is that most emissions will be from developing countries. and that we should -- the best thing we can do on climate change is make sure that china converts to a more nuclear future to limit, the one coal burning plant coming out of wheaton that we expect. the principle of the kyoto climate treaty, all that matters is the zip code of the polluter. mother nature doesn't care where

the pollution comes from and, we need to work cooperatively in our developing countries to make sure they emit less. that's the best way to go and that's why i voted for the clean climate fund over at the world bank. >> thank you. duckworth, 30 seconds if you choose. rep. duckworth: the problem is that my opponent has not been consistent. he voted, depending on whether or not he's up for erection from -- election from the house to the senate or re-election he's either voted for the clean power plant or against the clean power plant. he's switched back and forth multiple times. whatever is convenient for him that's what he votes for and frankly, those who are investing in the technology and the research need consistency in their senator and in those votes. one of the head scratching moments for many things my opponent has said is when he said he didn't believe in global warming -- >> time is up, congresswoman, thank you. bernie asks the next question, senator kirk will respond first. >> senator, gun violence remains

a problem across our state and nation. what additional federal laws are needed? sen. kirk: additional laws, i'm very proud of the f-minus record that i currently have from the nra. that is unusual for a republican. shows how independent i am. in my legislation i put forward with a democratic junior senator from new york, we criminalized gun trafficking to criminal organizations. i want to shut down the the chicago with police department. 515 different kinds of crimes and if we criminalize that relationship, when i was at the atf, they briefed me that a couple of gun shops seemed to have a close business relation with the gangsters of chicago. i want to shut down that supply of weaponry. >> congresswoman? sen. duckworth: i just participated in the sit-in in

the house of representatives with the great john lewis on demanding a vote on gun violence legislation. quite a few senators came over to support us. unfortunately my opponent did not. we need universal background checks and close the loophole for people who -- if you want to pass a background check in a gun store you shouldn't be able to go to a gun show to buy a gun without background checks. that's currently happening. i don't think that you should be able to buy armored piercing bullets. they are not needed to go hunting. they are used for one thing, to pierce body armor. i think we can certainly get rid of high capacity magazines. again, i'm a marksman. i fired expert in the army at least once or twice here and there, i come from a marksman family of sportsmen. but really, you don't need a high capacity magazine to go hunting. if you need a high capacity

magazine to go hunting you're a really bad hunter. there are some basic things that you can do and i'm co-sponsoring legislation to close one of these loopholes, if you go out of business as a gun owner you lose your firearms dealers license. right now you can convert your entire gun store inventory to personal use and sell it without background checks. we need to close that loophole. senator, 30 seconds if you choose. sen. kirk: i believe if you're too dangerous to fly in an aircraft -- you're too dangerous to buy a firearm. that, no-fly, no buy provisions was voted on the senate. i was the only minute to vote -- the only republican to vote for no-fly, no buy. to make sure, if we feel you're too dangerous to be in a civil aircraft you're too dangerous to buy a firearm in america and that's what we need from our senator. in the case of my opponent she's voted 94% of the time with nancy pelosi, she has a near perfect voting record with the people of california that sent the senator to the congress. >> we move on the closing statements.

congresswoman duckworth, you go first. sen. duckworth: i just want to thank everyone for participating in our democracy today. it's why i served in the military and why we have men and women serving overseas right now defending that right. thank you for doing. i want to go to the united states senate because i want to serve the people of illinois. i know what it's like to work hard every single day and not get ahead. that's why i believe so strongly that we need a real investment in this state. we need infrastructure investment. we need investment in american manufacturing. we need to invest in our educational system. educational system. not just because it's good to support students but because it's a piece of our national strength. one of the reasons that i got into public service was because i feel like i owe. i owe for all of those folks who took care of me when as i kid, hungry, and i wasn't sure i would be able to go to college or graduate from high school but there was a high school there that i could graduate from that was free and public and it was in my neighborhood. there was a state college that i could go to, so that i was able

to use pell grants and student loans and graduate so when the army came calling and asked me to serve i was ready. but if those things had not been there for me i wouldn't be in front of you today running for the united states senate, and how many americans are we leaving behind. all across this great state who don't have that opportunity. how many senior citizens are wondering, am i going to have to work for the rest of my life? we can do better. we're better and if you send me to the united states senate i'll work hard every single day to represent each and every one of you to the best of my ability. thank you. >> senator kirk? sen. kirk: i would say in my years of serving, i've tried to go in there and be the glue between republicans and democrats and be the personality that most advantaged my state. i worry about any opponent. -- my opponent. she's so partisan, she would go to war with the opposite party which is no way to get anything done in the senate. you can't go to war with anybody in the senate because you will

absolutely run aground there and i want to make sure that my record of building bipartisan sanctions on iran and saving the export-import bank of the united states, which is responsible for 47,000 jobs right here in illinois, is one that motivates you to support a moderate, that works between the two parties and is effective, and is not rated as the most ineffective congresswoman in the house and not with a 94% record of voting with the people of the state of california. >> thank you, thank you to the panelists for 2016 senate debate. [applause] >> have a good night. rep. duckworth: thank you, tammyer the debate, duckworth replied with a tweet.

apologizedaign later . >> it this week on c-span2 we are featuring political radio programs with national talkshow hosts. 6:00-9:00 a.m.om politics with meaning, the bill press show. live thursday from noon until 3:00 p.m., author and progressive radio host. noon on friday, eight conservative perspective from the mike gallagher show. all this week on c-span2.

♪ >> after he came up with this idea, i did research information because -- and this is definitely the case with a lot of pieces in this competition but mental illness especially. it is a complicated issue. .ot black and white it is so multifaceted i had to research to get knowledge of what i wanted to talk about on this please. it is so complicated i cannot talk about it all and 5-7 minutes. >> i thought it would be nice to have a focus. interviewingtarted my parents, before he started shooting, i researched this extensively. i visited my dad's pharmacy and talked about his business there. i talked to my mom and her colleagues. to the library.

>> i did a lot of research to find facts and data and employment fort people with developmental disabilities to see what was going on. most of the information i got off of the internet came from government-founded websites so that is how i knew most of the information i was getting was legitimate. >> this year's theme, your --sage to washington, tc washington, d.c.. competition is open to all high school or middle school students grade 6-12 open to all high school or middle school students grade 6-12 with $100,000 available in cash prizes. students can work alone or in groups of up to three. include some c-span programming and also include closing opinions. the prizes will be awarded and shared between 150 students and

53 teachers. the grand prize will go to the student or team with the best overall entry. is januarydeadline 20, 2017. so help spread the world to student film makers. for more information go to our website, student cam.org. house speaker paul ryan campaigns to keep the republican majority in the house of representative. joining us on the phone is james arkin who is following this for real clear politics. ryan'ss been paul message? what is he telling republican and swing voters? >> pulse message has essentially been that no matter what the focus is going to be in terms of the top of the ticket, what paul ryan is trying to do is convince voters that no matter what they need a majority in the house. you see him holding up his

pamphlet for his or her way agenda that he developed earlier this year with house leaders. basically talking about what he wants house republicans to be able to pass if they maintain the majority. he is not really talking about the top of the ticket unless he is criticizing hillary clinton, but he is saying we have this agenda. we hope to be able to pass it through the house. you need to be able to send it back with the house majority. saying, we need congressional majorities to be able to pass this agenda. he said it would be great to have a republican in the white house to pass that agenda. problems withaced the republicans or are they coming home to on a conversely, away from republicans running for election and reelection? >> that they have faced some

serious headwinds. fallingom is sort of out and they are worried this could cause albums for republicans down the ballot. there is also the question of whether certain republicans have either walked away from donald trump or been a little bit wishy-washy on whether or not they support him will face some backlash from supporters who are frustrated that the rest of the party line has not been behind him. we see donald trump tweeting and saying negative things and going off on paul ryan a little bit. paul ryan has not responded really, is not talking about donald trump at the top of the ticket. there are problems in terms of whether or not they can convince moderates or bring republicans that are already trump supporters home. one october surprise

came last friday, the fbi taking a look at some new hillary clinton e-mails. but national polls indicate it may not have a significant impact on her race. some are theorizing it could have an impact on house races. >> it is interesting. most people i've talked to since friday i agree with that. in terms of how voters think of hillary clinton and the problems baked.mails, the cake is either you have a real problem with it or you don't think it is a big deal but you are not going to be swayed one way or another based on the most recent revelations from the fbi on friday. it is an interesting question, whether or not it will have impact out the ballot. some democrats think it could actually energize some supporters who might have thought this race was a done deal, might've thought hillary clinton was going to walk away from it and maybe they're not totally motivated to go to the polls but now they could either

see the race tightening a little bit or it could re-energize their feelings that hillary clinton has been treated unfairly. republicans dismiss that argument. they think it is spin from democrats. couldicans think it influence them. some are pretty turned up by donald trump, don't support him as the nominee. they could be now energized to go to the polls. having a check and balance on hillary clinton if she wins the presidency in terms of having a republican congress. it is an argument a lot of republicans have been making down the ballot, that they need a republican congress to check her power. next week, it is about hillary clinton, her e-mails, and the fbi potentially investigating some of those e-mails. some voters who may not have wanted to go to the polls because of their feelings about donald trump may go to the polls because they want