that is provided to let people get a sense for, you know, where we are in the universe, which is pretty insignificant if you consider those images. i think it is been a great success. it was a great first mission for me. "afterword," on c-span2. c-span, where history unfolds daily. as a79, c-span was created public service by america's cable television companies, and is brought to you today by your cable or satellite provider. house daily white briefing was dominated by questions about the tax reform bill. thoseary sanders praised passing the bill. this is 25 minutes. sanders: good afternoon.

as i am sure you just also, a onse voted for final passage the tax cuts and jobs act. that brings us one step closer to the president making good on his promise to deliver tax cuts for christmas. to this,oking forward and the president will monitor developers. this is a perfect opportunity to look back what is been by any measure of historic year. nearly 1.7 million new jobs have been created, and the unemployment rate has fallen to 4.1%, the lowest in 17 years. the stock market reached a record high more than 60 times, closing above 24,000 for the first time in history. we rolled back 22 regulations for everyone, saving taxpayers over eight billion dollars and liberating the economy from a corrupt and bloated government. renegotiated trade deals

that once threatened to destroy american industry, shipping our jobs around the world. onfinally set up our nation a path to not only energy independence, but energy dominance. we directed epa to end the war on coal. the president has protected communities. we have seen the lowest level of illegal border crossings on record. dangerous policy, restoring peace to the border. with built eight prototypes for the border wall. with taken unprecedented steps to tackle the opioid epidemic by declaring a nationwide public emergency, promoting peace through strength. under the president's

leadership, isis has lost almost all of its territory and its most important strongholds in iraq and syria. alliances,d new rebuilt our military, and made it clear to the world that there or's fiercer and adversary greater and allied in the united states. we reshaped the american judiciary for generations. justice gorsuch was confirmed, and 22 more have been confirmed, including a record-setting 12 circuit judges. we reinstated and expanded the mexico city policy protecting $9 billion in u.s. taxpayer money used to fund abortion. will haveent delivered the most significant tax cut in history of the nation, and repealing the obama care individual andes. individuale mandates. we are just getting started. as some of your scene, disney

world debuted its animatronics president trump. in the president's remarks which he recorded earlier this year, he said, "from the beginning, america has been a nation defined by its people. it is why our founders began their great constitution with three very simple words. we the people." in the coming days, talking heads will discuss with this year means. what it means for the president, what it means for the republican and democrat parties, and for the never ending political theater in washington dc. i would encourage everyone to take a step outside of the beltway bubble to consider what this year means for the american people. to the forgotten men and women around our country, you are forgotten no more. 100%,resident is with the and is this year has proven, he will never let you down. with that, your questions. john. >> to questions. first, what is the schedule for signing?

mrs. sanders: we want to make sure it gets passed first. we want to see this through to the finish in the senate, and we will announce details on what the signing will look like. >> carried interest provision. is this part of the loophole that president trump promise to: -- too close? that?d he not get rid of mrs. sanders: look, the president was focused. he laid out his principles. he wanted to make sure that he was part of any piece of legislation. we certainly answered and addressed that. that was our focus all long, and what we've continued to talk about consistently here and every time we talk about taxes. this tax bill is going to cost him a fortune, apparently. that is not the case. how do you figure that?

mrs. sanders: we expect that it will likely on the personal side cost the president a lot of money. again, his focus is not necessarily been at all on himself, but rather on the core principles we laid out. priority number one is that it helps the american middle class. we know that this bill does that, and that is one of the biggest reasons the president supported it. he looks forward to signing it hopefully the coming days. >> to see get benefits from top rate tax deduction? is he going to make money on that? again, this: look, is a tax plant that we hope benefits all americans. primarily in priority number one, middle-class americans. that is been the administration's focus. we feel like that is been addressed. we feel it is been prioritized in this legislation, and we are going to be very excited to sign it hopefully in the coming days. matthew. >> earlier reports indicate that the fatal amtrak derailment out

of washington was similar to the philadelphia derailment, and could of been prevented by positive train control. congress mandated back in 2008 that it should been on all lines by 2015. that is been pushed back. -- that has been pushed back. is this white house considering the inflammation of steps to prevent these accidents? mrs. sanders: we continue to review and investigate exactly what took place yesterday. detailedave more determinations on that, we can take steps to prevent things like this from happening in the future. john. ofyou ticked off a number accomplishments that you see the president has made in his first year in office. why are his approval ratings mired in the mid-to upper-30's? mrs. sanders: often times because while the president in this administration has been very focused on how we can better help the american people,

i think often the media is focused on other things. certainly not talking about the growing economy. talking about the crushing of isis. not talking about the creation of jobs. if you look about -- if you look at the amount of time of coverages and spent on the president, 90% of it is negative. as you just said, i listed up a number of things that it been pretty historic in nature in this first year, and if people were focused on more of that in the media his numbers would be higher. we anticipate they will go up as more of these things continue to happen, and particularly as people feel the impact of the booming economy, the tax cuts that will take place later tonight and go into effect in the first part of february. those are all things to help raise her numbers. petersonay, matthew withdrew his judicial nomination. there's been a viral video of his inability to answer basic legal questions.

did he slipped through the cracks? why was he nominated? and are you doubling efforts at the white house and over a doj to ensure that your judicial nominees can answer this basic questions? look, thers: president's judicial selection process has led to a historic pace of confirmations, including 12 circuit court justices and a supreme court justice. every administration as individuals who do not go all the way through the process. we've had 60 nominees, and only three that have not gone through it. we're going to make sure that we fill that spot with strong and qualified candidates. >> where was the president watching the house vote, and what was his reaction? i am not sure. i will have to circle back around on that. >> can you explain why the

president has submitted names to the senate for nomination that his predecessors? focusedders: we've been on filling positions as quickly as possible, but at the same time the president has said before he does not think that every single position in the government needs to be filled. he is to cut back on some of them. we will continue filling out individuals. we have also seen a massive slowdown in obstruction by the democrats. hopefully they will continue to push our people through, particularly individuals who were held up weather in the judiciary or in the national defense profile. blake. youe: let me ask if questions were john roberts left off. he asked about the loophole. how is keeping the loophole good for the middle class? sec. sanders: the priorities

that we have, i will go back, our make it easy, make it fair, bring it home. we feel like this tax legislation does that. there are provisions put in place that directly help the middle class. they see more of their money come home. the sea childcare tax deductions double. there are a lot of things that will affect the middle class. if you like those things addressed the need to really help give them that boost. we think this absolutely will. who makesindividual roughly $83,000 a year would pay 24% with their rate. someone who benefits, a 24%ionaire, still might pay on that money. does the white house believe ,hat someone who makes $83,000 do you guys believe that is fair? not sanders: again, i am going to get into a

back-and-forth over the details, i pathetic or what have you. i cannot quickly do the math on it, but you feel like this plan fully addresses -- he feels like it fully addresses giving the majority of middle-class americans more of their money. that is what we've been focused on. jordan. jordan: i actually want to ask about ufos. -- sorry.dia reports sec. sanders: i was going to say. [laughter] i do not know whether or not this is a coincidence. i feel like passing on this considering you have aliens among you. secret program that the pentagon funds. does the president believe in the existence of ufos, and when he be interested in restoring funding for the program? sec. sanders: somehow that question is not come up in our back-and-forth, but i will check into that and circle back. jennifer.

jennifer: does the president ensure that the irs has what it needs to implement these rules? sec. sanders: we understand that there fully prepared to take action immediately. we understand that people will be able to see the benefits of this tax package start at the first part of february. we have confirmed that to the irs. major. major: were you saying that the particular judicial nominee in this viral video did not properly go to the vetting process? sec. sanders: no. i did not say that. i said we are focused on pushing forward. forward over 60 nominees. we have had direct draw. that individuals one of them. we are focused on making sure we fill that position with somebody who -- >> you thought he was prepared. again, we are looking for the best and brightest. when we feel like that is not necessarily the right person for the job, he withdraws his

nomination. go forward.ed to that is pretty standard in most administrations. in fact, a every administration primer to assist done this. a lot of people are focused on just these three, and not the overwhelming number of confirmations. many of these people and had bipartisan support, including the 12 members of the circuit court. you do not disagree with what she said about personal benefits that will accrue to the president based upon provisions in the tax-cut bill. that it will benefit him, personally. said it will i benefit him is in some ways, particularly on the personal side. it is likely the president will take a big hit. on the best side, he could benefit. the biggest issue has been to make sure that all americans are better off today after this tax package passes than they were

before hand. we focus on invigorating the middle class and making sure that they have more their hard-earned money. >> you said the focus is on the middle class. why was one of the last provisions to lower the top bracket? did the president support that? if not, why did he not insist that that be stricken? sec. sanders: we respected the back-and-forth process. a lot of it took place in the house and senate. but we laid out our priorities because we wanted them to happen. that was our process. >> about the middle class. lowering the bracket rate for individual earners? sec. sanders: some economists say that it does. i would be happy to agree to we would get but into a very wonky conversation. a lot of people think that that helps the middle class.

i would be happy to situate with those folks later. peter. peter: what you say to those people who will end up paying more because the individual mandate has been repealed? sec. sanders: we maintained all along that that has been writes that. most americans want to keep more of their money. this plan does this. americans want to do away with the loopholes that benefit the rich. they want to signify the tax code so that it makes it easier for them to file. this does this. at the actual elements of the bill in front of the american people, they actually supported overwhelmingly. a lot of democrat supporters picked up when you look at elements of the bill. clear though, you would knowledge that many more americans will end up paying more? sec. sanders: look, we said all along that the health care system has been broken. this is one step in the process. we're going to continue moving forward in looking at the best ways to improve the health care system.

we anticipate this being a big part of our focus next year. peter: and you think people should have to swallow more until that comes? sec. sanders: i don't think that is the case. we are committed to fixing the whole system as a whole, and this is certainly a step in the right direction. this system is simply unsustainable. >> speaking up about sexual harassment in the work place, i wanted to check in with you and see if the president or this administration is considering any legislative steps to protect victims of harassment? there is a gretchen carlson bill to remove clauses from contracts. holding congress people accountable. would the president consider either these bills? sec. sanders: i would have to talk to him in get a more detailed version of the

legislation. obviously, we take this very seriously and are always looking for ways to protect all americans, especially women. is the white house considering -- >> i have to talk to the affairs team and get vacuum the specifics of those. jill. aboutanted to ask hurting. does the president still give him a 10 out of a 10? sec. sanders: look, the federal government continues to be engaged. homelandtary of security and hide are in puerto rico today. there further engaging in the engaging with leadership on the ground that the state and local level. within given everything we can from the federal level, and we look forward to working with them. >> and so still attend. sec. sanders: i still believe, and you can refer to the

comments the governor made previously, that every time they asked the federal government delivered. we want to continue to partner with them and help to rebuild. that is why the president is sent to members of his cabinet directly to deal with that to further assess and see what other actions we have to take. >> you're getting a lot of questions about will it benefit the president. i get that he does not want to releases taxes, because that would put all of these questions to rest. why theelucidate president cannot releases taxes for 2016? prove what you're saying is correct. sec. sanders: as we have said many, many times before, the president's taxes are still under audit. we willat is complete, not move forward on him putting taxes out. >> i do not need to belabor it, but the president wants to wait until after -- >> as long as they are under

audit, is not going to releases taxes. they are under audit, so he's not want to release and. john. i think we've addressed this a number of times. i'm not sure why answering it another time makes it any different. john. john: two questions on russia. first, the kremlin as recently threatened twitter with a complete shutdown throughout carry if it continues to the twitter account of what they call undesirables, notably dissidents. he made a similar threat to youtube recently. what is the administration's reaction when the russian government wants to shut down american run businesses? certainly,s: generally speaking, we would not support a government shutting down american businesses.

this would bewhy different, but i would have to look into the details on the. specific action. john: senator rubio is introduced legislation to name the street in front of the russian embassy here after the slain russian dissident boris nemtsov. senator corker has blocked it. any opinion? sec. sanders: i don't think so. senate committee has said that we should go forward, does the white house think it needs to name someone else? sec. sanders: we are going to work with the committee going forward. we're certainly very disappointed in the senate banking committee for missing an opportunity to get export-import banking fully functioning again. we will work with them to determine the next step. by him or someone else?

sec. sanders: we will let me know. brian. brian: matthew was asking about amtrak. there was a budget request as i understand for 600 $30 million in deduction for the amtrak route. do you plan on revisiting that issue? on matthew peterson, the three that were turned down as i that they were going to try to change the betting progress. do you -- >> let me take this one by one. we will see if we can get to all that. the first one was on judicial nominees? brian: the first one was on amtrak. sec. sanders: oh. as i told you, we will wait

until the investigation is complete. in terms of the judicial nominees, i have walked through that a couple of times now. 60 individuals, only three of whom had to withdraw or not go forward in some capacity. that is pretty standard for any administration. every administration before us has had similar challenges with a of either withdrawn or not go -- >> this applies to the white house. was it because they were friends of the white house? is that going to change the vetting process? sec. sanders: we are focused on friends -- we are focused more on people who would move forward. james. james: the new national security specifically calls out russia. why did the president use that kind of aggressive speech? -- why did not the president use that kind of aggressive speech?

sec. sanders: he has enumerated the policy and strategy in a very detailed paper. that was of the president, and it reflected his views. he did not read every single page of it word for word. we certainly couldn't. maybe i should do that for the next briefing. but look, the president has been clear about his position. we have been tough on russia. with put sanctions on russia. with imported energy and impacted them in a big way. the president has not been soft in this process. he chose to focus on different things in his speech. those things were included in the national security strategy, because they are important and part of the administration's viewpoints. jill. : does the president regret having nominated someone who advocates getting rid of the export-import bank? sec. sanders: not that i'm aware of.

jill: any idea of the timing for a potential difference? sec. sanders: the invitation has been extended and excepted, and we are working to finalize the details which we expect to announced soon. we will keep you posted on that one. last question. >> the president did say that this tax cut bill would cost him a fortune. that was false. sec. sanders: no. because on the personal side, this actually could impact in. it could do it in a large way. >> does this balance out corporate versus personal? sec. sanders: i'm not sure whether or not he's done a site-by-side. but there are number of factors that could negatively impact and personally. said, that isi've what we think is delivered in the tax package. we very much look forward to seeing it pass later today. signed and dated soon. thank you so much.

leeunday on c-span's "q&a," edwards chronicles his 60 year involvement in the conservative movement. : i met joe mccarthy through my father, who was something of a confidant. he liked to party. he liked to drink. as long as you did not talk about communism, you could not ask for more fun guy to be around. but he was very serious about that. he was also someone who did not take advice very well. and he consequently said things and even did things that hurt

the cause of anti-communism for some time. >> "q&a," sunday night on c-span. on americanend history tv on c-span3. saturday that :00 p.m., american university professor aaron bell talks about privacy laws and federal surveillance of civil rights leaders. cointelpro just before the famous i have a dream speech. we must mark king is the most dangerous negro in the future of this nation. .m., vietnam 4:30 p war veterans and former members of congress reflect on lessons learned during the war. >> we learned the limits of military power during vietnam.

we learned that as a society, as a culture that you cannot kill an idea with a bullet. >> " the tax reformf belt were in the house, speaker ryan and other leaders spoke to reporters about the changes in tax policy and the benefits for businesses. this is 10 minutes. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. >> i ask unanimous consent that all legislators have five days in which remarks can be revised for the bill under consideration. >> without objection. arer. speaker, today we delivering on our tax reform promise to the american people. foe