top policy issues facing the state and the country. at 9:40 a.m., new mexico house of representatives speaker brian golf on the issues playing out in the state legislature. flags are at half-staff over the capital today to honor the late reverend billy graham. he will be the fourth private citizen to lie in honor of the u.s. capitol, when his remains arrive in about 10:30 this morning. speak at arump will memorial ceremony a little after 11:00, and a public doing will -- 1:00 p.m..p.m. and we want to hear from you about the legacy of the reverend billy graham. give us a call. -- phone lines are split. central,e eastern or

(202) 748-8000, if you are in mountain or pacific, (202) 748-8001. he was known as america's pastor, the pastor to the presidents. you can start culling and now to talk about the legacy of the -- billye brown graham. he had a dedication ceremony of the billy graham library, and spoke about his relationship with multiple presidents. >> former president bush is coming, giving some magnificent remarks. carter, former president clinton, both of the longtime friends that i knew long before they ever went to the white house. their homes many

times, and love them all, regardless of politics and regardless of who stands for what. [applause] i'm sorry that circumstances pervade roseland carter from and hillaryoday, clinton, who is busy on other things. i am very grateful for the friendship of those wonderful people. host: we will show you more of the late reverend billy graham throughout the years as we also talk about and hear from you about the legacy of the late reverend billy graham. if you are in the eastern or central time zones, (202) 748-8000. mountain or pacific, (202) 748-8001 is the number. show you the

front page of the charlotte observer. clinton pays tribute to grams open-heart, showing former president's bill -- former president bill clinton walking with the son of reverend billy graham. he is lying in honor at the u.s. capitol today. he is expected to arrive on capitol hill, his remains will be in the rotunda from 11:00 a.m. this morning until about 10:00 a.m. tomorrow and thursday morning, march 1. public viewing is set to begin at 1:00 p.m. on capitol hill. we want to give you a call. pat in dallas, texas. your thoughts on the legacy of billy graham? caller: good morning. what a wonderful man, and how inspirational. , watched him many times on tv and it hurt my heart that he passed away.

i wish we had someone like him today. -- joel osteen is the only one who is close. he changed my life. he touched my heart, and he will be missed. i thank you for taking my call. host: robert in kentucky, good morning. caller: good morning, sir. i agree with the last lady. it seems to me like billy graham what heeat job doing was doing across america, and if we could have someone like that today to get these kids that are going off track and doing what we are doing today, we could get someone like billy graham in there and talk for this country. this is a great country and kentucky is a great place to live. that is why i call into you guys, to let you know that the

struggle with cold -- it is not doing good now, but i love america and we love billy graham. host: is there anybody like him today, robert? we lost him. broke in oklahoma. good morning. in oklahoma. caller: [indiscernible] -- and other people on television and radio. host: we are talking about the legacy of reverend billy graham. caller: i am getting to that point. billy graham knew about this and prayed about it every day for 15 years. oklahoma this morning. if you are in the eastern or central time zones, (202) 748-8000. if you are in the mountain or pacific time zones, (202) 748-8001. we mentioned billy graham's relationship with presidents, past presidents, many past

andidents tweeting expressing their condolences last week, last wednesday after his passing. here is former president bill clinton, tweeting "really graeme which is faithfully, and the powerful conviction he carried touched countless hearts and minds." obama, withrack wisdom and grace he gave hope and guidance to generations of americans. and former president george w. bush wrote a column for the wall street journal, talking about his relationship with billy graham over the years. he said "i was fortunate to witness billy's remarkable capacity to minister to everyone he met. perhaps his most meaningful service came on september 14, 2001 after the 9/11 attacks. i asked billy to leave the service at washington national cathedral. it was no easy task. here i -- easy task."

here is a clip from that day. >> we watched in horror as planes crashed into the steel and glass of the world trade center. were towers built on solid foundations, examples of the prosperity and creativity of america. when damaged, those buildings eventually plummeted to the ground. imploding upon themselves. and yet, underneath the debris, there is a foundation that was not destroyed. therein lies the truth of that that andrew young quoted. how firm a foundation. yes, our nation has been attacked. buildings destroyed, lives lost, but now we have a choice. whether to implode and disintegrate emotionally and

spiritually, as a people and as whether we choose to become stronger through all of the struggle, to rebuild on a solid foundation. i believe that we are in the process of starting to rebuild on that foundation. is our trust in god. that is what this service is all about. in that faith, we have the strength to endure something as difficult and her run this is what we have experienced this week. host: the remains of the late billy graham are expected to arrive around 10:30 this morning. president trump will be part of the memorial ceremony taking place in the rotunda. it will begin at 11:00, and he is expected to speak along with speaker of the house paul ryan. mitch mcconnell, the senate majority leader, also expected to speak as well at that service. the president tweeted last week after the death of billy graham

"the great billy graham is dead. there is nobody like him. he will be missed by christians and all religions. a very special man." we expect to hear more from the president today, but we want to hear from you in the first hour of the washington journal today. tell us about the legacy of the reverend billy graham. central and eastern, (202) 748-8000. mountain and pacific time zones, (202) 748-8001. ann is in north carolina. good morning. caller: good morning. host: go ahead. i thought billy graham was a good christian man. to viewe opportunity more of his crusades, and i felt like it was a privilege.

his message was plain and simple, even a child could understand. i just feel like we are at a loss that he did not mentor ,omebody to take over his shoes and that is all i had to say. i watched him from the time i was a child on tv, on his , and he lived a full and -- a full life, and i know the lord is saying to him "well done, my good and faithful servant." thank you. host: before you go, you talked about him not mentoring someone to take over. son isnot think his doing that, or are there others in the evangelical community that are doing that? , but onwe lost ann

twitter this morning "the legacy billy graham created is being destroyed by his son franklin. what a shame." , afterwashington post the death of billy graham, eugene scott had a column calling billy graham "the last bipartisan evangelical leader." may have "billy graham been the last bipartisan evangelical leader. he was one of the few clergy who ministered to presidents and first ladies on both sides of the aisle. he is as much known for his loyalty to richard nixon during ergate scandal as he -- pick a running -- lyndon b. johnson to gay running mate and providing marriage counseling to hillary clinton in the midst of her husband's infidelity scandal."

the political say " approach of many of these younger leaders has been quite different from grams, leading to criticism of it and jealous as strength of the located with conservative white america, for being the parts of -- divisive and partisan." we want to hear from you this morning. todd, california. go ahead. caller: good morning. host: good morning. caller: i wanted to say that great run,m had a almost a century of public service, and i wanted to say god bless him and -- may he be resurrected. host: chris in tennessee. good morning. caller: good morning, how are you? host: i'm doing well. caller: i just want to say that all the atheists that denounced and talked negative about

reverend graham, they do not have to worry about it, because he gets to one place, and we all know where that is that. host: what you think about the state of evangelicalism today in the wake of the death of billy graham? caller: reverend graham was a great man who did a lot of good things for people and brought a lot of people to the lord. i think he was a good man. plainfield,n indiana. good morning. wanted to sayjust he touched my life through the paper, and i have seen his crusades. he said a prayer one day, and i have been looking for that for 60 something years. host: you are the second person to mention the crusades. for those who never witnessed that, what was that? caller: it was a bunch of people coming together and lifting to

the lord. i did not get saved under billy, but i got saved under sammy allen 30 something ago. i know billy was a christian, and what a blessing. he was a good man, to me he was. that is all i got. host: any thoughts on evangelicals and where they go after the death of billy graham? anyer: what was that? host: thoughts on evangelicals in this country and where they go in leadership in the wake of his death? get back to god, and lead this nation back to god. change on. there andets in tears it up, but if we pray and -- i don't know, i am so great prayer warrior, -- no great

forer warrior, but i prayed a boy coming out like this, jesus coming to his thing, he was alive after i prayed for him and his whole family -- she was a baptist preacher, he came and thanked me. i got to meet the whole family. billy, he told it like it was to me. thank you very much. host: we want to hear from you this morning on the legacy of billy graham, on the day that his remains will lie in honor at the rotunda here in washington, d c -- washington, d.c.. we told you about the ceremony that will begin around 11:00. c-span's coverage begins at 10:30 this morning, when the late reverend's remains arrive on capitol hill.

you can watch it here on c-span, c-span.org, listen to it on the c-span radio app. the ceremony itself is expected to get underway around 11:00, and the public viewing that will be taking place for the rest of the day is expected to begin at 1:00 this morning. carolina, tell us about billy graham and what he meant to north carolina. was a great billy influence on so many people. i have never known a time without him. i am 67 years old, and the fact that he is gone now, it really sets you back. had a special anointing on him. he never got involved in the culture wars. his main ministry was to preach the gospel, and have people return to christ. that is how the lord views him

-- used him, and only in the later years did he come out and make any statements in regard to the culture wars. but he was a man of great faith and he was just inspiring. we all feel a sense of great loss in the evangelical world that he is gone. the world is less off with him gone. but he leaves a great legacy. he was a great man of integrity, and his humility is probably one of the biggest things that stands out. people of all stripes that met him has to ignore his humility -- had to acknowledge his humility and his humbleness, and i think that is why god chose him, was his humbleness. host: do you wish he had gotten more involved in the culture wars? caller: i don't know how to answer that. god had his special use for him.

that is what he was faithful to do. he saw the need at the end of his life to get involved a little bit and speak out more, but he had a unique ministry. i am not so sure that that would have been the thing to do anyway. host: what made it unique, daniel? well, he got to reach more people, and that was the main thing. ,e wanted to get the gospel out and it is because of his integrity and humbleness. he reached out to people, and more people came to hear the gospel. i guess his main thing is if you come to know christ, have a relationship with him, that will solve a lot of those issues. can sayis about all i about that. host: the new york post

editorial board from last wednesday wrote "billy graham a renowned theologian or the head of a worldwide religion, but he was arguably the 20th century's most influential religious figure. over the course of seven decades, he preached christianity to 180 million people and reached a larger audience via mass media. he was a spiritual counselor to --sidents who issued offers and issued offers of political power, and came to regret the few instances when he came politically involved. at heart, he was a simple and passionate teacher -- preacher with a gift for spreading his message as widely as possible." one of our callers also mentioned billy graham's wife, .is late wife ruth she died in 2007, just a few 2007.-

a few days before her death, billy graham spoke at that dedication of the billy graham library. he paid tribute to those in his ministry, including his wife, ruth. here through this library once before, and i am overwhelmed. the one comment was it is too much billy graham. has been my whole life to please the lord and to honor jesus, not to see me or think of me. you have already heard from others, and they have been a major part of my ministry and work. i think the press and the media -- media chose me to write about, but i think all the people who have worked in prayed

allugh the years, -- thank the people who have worked and prayed through the years, and think all of my family -- thank all of my family and children who are here somewhere. i have 19 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren. i do not know where they are, but i would love to see you. [applause] it has always been a great encouragement to me. it is terrible today, my wife, ruth, has been in bed now for six months. she is not even able to get up to go to the bathroom. nurses to be turned by to change position in the bed. i go in to be with her several times a day. we have two rooms and a bathroom , and i think about her door,

which is always open, to go in and see her and remember all the great things we have shared together. andy, i want to honor her tell you how much i love her, and tell you what a wonderful woman she has been. [applause] thank you. more than me she deserves to be here today. ants today on capitol hill, billy graham will be only the fourth private citizens ally in honor at the u.s. capitol. his remains expected to arrive about 10:30 this morning on capitol hill. only 33 americans have been honored with a similar recognition in the rotunda of

the united states capitol. the four that were private citizens include two capitol police officers who died in the 1998, as well as the other civilian, alabama native rosa parks lying in honor at the u.s. capitol. billy graham will be there today for a public viewing. that begins at 1:00 p.m.. he is expected to be taken out of the rotunda tomorrow at 10:00 a.m., and we will be covering that arrival ceremony as well as the remarks by the president, the speaker, majority leader that happening at 11:00 today here on c-span. theing your thoughts on legacy of reverend billy graham this morning in our first hour of the washington journal. keith, madison, wisconsin. good morning. caller: good morning. billy graham is one of the greatest frauds, con men,

counterfeit people who graced the united states. he got his start in the 1950's when howard hughes saw him, this charismatic young preacher, and he was showered with money ever since then. was great at separating people from their wealth. he amassed a huge fortune for himself, and he says he was not political, but he basically gave his blessing to every president that started a war, including to lyndon johnson, who visited onlth they are -- hellfire vietnam, and he gave his blessings before shock and awe to george bush. and he said he was not anti-semitic, but he made a comment to richard nixon, which he denied and was later caught on tape. what a fraud. it was only fitting that he

would get a memorial in washington, because these types are overrun in washington. these fraudsters are overrunning washington now, so it is only fitting that he would get a memorial in washington. host: robert in clear lake, iowa. good morning. caller: good morning. host: go ahead. caller: i just called to say that i think that billy graham was a modern-day moses. peopley just leading the of his country, but the people of the whole world knew and respected moses, yes. -- billy for what he was and who he stood for. the christian ethic in the world, it might be damaged by his loss. i hope not, but he was very great in the eyes of the people of the world and the christian sector of the world. the world is going to miss him, i think. said, he stirred the

hearts and minds of people all around, and he demonstrated the christlike lifestyle that he led . his word brought many people, including myself, to an understanding and a truth about who jesus christ was. god, the incarnate everlasting, almighty that billy graham spoke of continuously. there is only one way off of this planet safely, and that is as christ -- jesus christ. host: who is leading evangelicals now? caller: i do not know. i think maybe his son might pick up that mantle. i don't know. the lord will provide. there will be someone who comes along that will be great in the eyes of the world and in the and we are,country,

i think, in the seventh day of things. maybe moses has done his term of , this being the end times, i believe that the world is seeing the calamities that jesus christ spoke of coming true fruition -- to fruition, the prophecy of the return of israel homeland jesus -- homeland. jesus was a jew, and the restoration of that is amazing, show me a country that after 20 centuries has been reestablished. host: a few tweets. steve writes in "i believe billy graham did better than most to follow the path of his jesus christ of loving all. unfortunately, that is not the case of his son or people like tony perkins, who will talk about him. theirs is a path of hate."

perkinsd know that tony will be joining us this morning at about 9:00. he is the president on the family research council, and will be here to take your calls. we will also talk to him about the legacy of billy graham. one more tweet this morning, "i do not think you should be -- he should be -- elevated to a level of idle olatry. spirituality is fine, but when you substitute education with religion, it led to a lot of ignorance." caller: they put me on antidepressants and it made me normal, they pulled me out of the doldrums. i was really thankful for that. has somethingam in the seattle times, and it was

about depression and how people should not be taking drugs, they should rely on god. i guess that would work for some people, but it did not work for me. as i read it, it made my heart sink because i am thinking if there are people out there who do not do the clinical thing to ilp them through these times, hope nobody died as a result of -- what he was preaching at the time. person, and sos i am not critical of it. to each his own, but that was my experience. i can only say i am alive today because of him, because he opened my eyes that there are that do nothere take the right avenue for them, necessarily. that is all i have to say. host: bob in wisconsin, you're next. good morning.

first, if i may, we talk about madison here in wisconsin because that is the new sodom and gomorrah. that milwaukee genital and itved it -- gentlemen proved by calling from madison. ever since i was a kid, i taught back and forth -- my mom was a very christian lady. christian, not religious, because religion has been distorted. aboutld fight and argue god, if you really was, and i now believe in god. i believe we were created by god, and billy graham helped me with his speeches, and realizing other ministries. i pray that if more people would real tolerant to god, there would be less shootings in school. when i was a kid, we could say the pledge of allegiance because it had god. and then we set -- we learned

that we could not say anything about god. that is wrong, and that is why the country is going kaput like it is. those people do not understand the word of god. host: when were we told we cannot say anything about god? caller: pardon me? host: when did you feel like that started? caller: if i walked into school and say god, i was kicked out. i son was yelled at because he brought up god. when i go to a public stand and stand there and say god is the creator, i am automatically a hater, i am automatically a big it and automatically everything. that is not what god teaches, and that is why there is such a division in america, because the nonbelievers -- of course they will be nonbelievers -- they have a right to that. but if i say i am a christian, i have no right. i was told to shut up in the

military because i said god, because there was a hindu idiot that was standing next to me, but he can talk about his religion. so we are all confused. we have just as much rights. billy graham was a great leader, and i guess that is about it. host: fred, huntsville, alabama. good morning. caller: good morning. i would like to say a word about billy graham. i have been living about 53 years, and he was ok. i had my ups and downs with him, but throughout it all, he was ok. he was really good, he came about, and he saw people as people. lived as long as he did, and i wish we could go back to some of his ways, but he was good people. god bless billy graham. goodbye. host: tom, indiana. good morning. caller: good morning, thank you

for c-span, as always. i think reverend billy graham's extremelyl be his debilitating views on the role of women in society and also his anti-women and anti-homosexual views that he has. current climate in d.c., it is only appropriate that his final resting places there -- place is there. him an --, you could have buried him in a matchbox. your calls, taking talking about the legacy of billy graham. eastern and central time zones, (202) 748-8000. mountain or pacific, (202) 748-8001. one caller earlier talked about the controversy involving tapes

from the oval office during the nixon administration, that billy graham was caught up in. in his column about billy graham, eugene scott writes about that. in 2002, the richard nixon presidential library released tapes containing or marks from graham that many found anti-semitic, including his criticism of the jewish american influence in the mainstream media. a lot of dudes are great friends of mine, but they do not know how i really feel about what they are doing in this country, and i do not have any power or way to handle them. released,tapes were graham apologized, saying "they do not reflect my views." willnt on to say i continue to strongly support all future efforts to shoot vance -- advance understanding and mutual respect between our communities. we also want to show you some of the comments from those who came to know him, including president

-- former president george herbert walker bush, who paid tribute to graham back in 2007. [video clip] >> billy has and continues to impact our nation and the world, let me also briefly note that he has had a profound impact on your family, and he has certainly had a profound impact on my family in a very personal way. my dear mother, near the end of her life, said that one of the most glorious experiences, the way she put it, of her lifetime was the day that billy graham walked over to her cottage in thesummer and read from bible and talks to her about the bible. haver barbara and me, we been blessed to visit with billy on many special occasions through the years. the night he spent with us at , as desert storm

was being launched, stands out above the others. like any president, i felt the decision to commit american troops in harms way, which is it to asian -- decision can make, isent the hardest i had to make as president. even though i never doubted the moral clarity of our mission that night in 1991, but as someone who has lived through war and had seemed up the quotes -- seen death of close, i was concerned for the life of every man and woman wearing our unit or. just as president lincoln has observed, i found myself ribbon to my knees in prayer. prayeren to my knees in i "the conviction that i had nowhere else to turn." host: billy graham died last wednesday, and today he will lie in honor in the capitol hill rotunda. this morning,00

when the ceremony will begin. his remains are expected to arrive on capitol hill, along with a motorcade with his family members as well and 10:30 -- at 10:30. these ban will be covering it all for you today. you can watch it here and listen to it on the free c-span radio app. give us a call this morning. we want to hear from you about the legacy of the late reverend billy graham this morning in our first hour. (202) 748-8000 is the number if you live in the eastern or central time zones. www.c-span.org -- if you live in the mountain or pacific time zones. victoria in indiana. good morning. veryr: i want to thank you much for taking my call. i wanted to say that billy graham was a very good man, but a lot of people mistook him for , coming his comment

directly from god. that is not so. tois not the only person turn to whenever you turn to the lord. you need to search your own soul search in other people when you are trying to search your self or search the bible. don't turn to other people. that is a mistake. that is pretty much all i have to say. host: mike in new mexico, good morning. caller: thank you c-span for having me on. i just had a small statement to read, and it is as a member of the hope evangelical lutheran church in oklahoma.

i would like to say that the members of my church will be looking forward to seeing early graham in heaven with our former member -- billy graham in inber -- billy graham heaven with our former members. i hope and pray that people will realize that madalyn murray o'hare and the supreme court ruling of about 1962, no prayer in schools, is not right for everyone today. thank you. that is the end of my statement and i will be happy to take any questions. will you bewhat doing today? how do you remember billy graham? off everystart morning with the lord's prayer and then i read our lutheran devotional. it is included in my day, and it was a pleasant prize, because i did not realize you were going to be on today. host: do you think there is someone in the evangelical community who can take up the mantle of billy graham?

>> i am not trying to add any confusion to anything, but back ining the original movement 1527, with martin luther, we were genuinely considered the original evangelicals. there is a tiny bit of confusion there. it can be addressed. host: explain? caller: evangelical is a term for freedom, and my forefather, my last name is luther, my wanted to be considered the original evangelical when they had to struggle 500 years ago. term to changed the call us lutherans. was opposed toer that, because it was almost a robert torrey. he would have been happy to have

just been called event -- erotic -- derogatory. host: our next caller? caller: i am sad to hear about billy graham. i'm not an evangelical, but i do want to say i am sorry about that. i also want to go back to --ething you had dated stated about what he said about jews controlling our media and our banks and our economies, for that matter. i think there is a real problem with that, and i think people apologizing and not addressing it is also a concern. host: let's move to carol in boise, idaho. good morning. caller: good morning. what i wanted to say was i hear a lot of talk about if we turn to god and looking at billy graham dying, and if there is

more god in the world and we believe in him there will be less tension and hatred, but if you look through history, more wars have been started in the name of god, and that just kind of seems to be contradictory. roll call with a story this week, noting that billy graham will lie and honor at the capitol rotunda briefly, but his likeness could endure in the building for longer than that. north carolina's legislature wants dad a statue of the noted evangelical preacher to the capital's collection, replacing ck, aof charles ayco white supremacist and north carolina's 50th governor. the national statuary hall collection bars likenesses of living people.

so now members of congress from north carolina are speaking out in favor of that plan. we will see what that happens with that that you swap. cindy, norwalk, connecticut. good morning. hi c-span, thank you for talking about billy graham this morning. i just wanted to say that billy graham, whether you agreed with his views -- i do not believe they were his views, they were god's views. and we don't really like what we hear sometimes, we want to cherry pick what the bible says, billy graham, we are all sinners god. shown the glory of and god did use sinners for his glory, if you read the bible. ,o one is perfect except god billy graham had his faults, to be sure, but he did follow what the commandment of jesus was, to spread his gospel. not used him in that way.

he might have made some mistakes and might have made a wrong comment, but i believe he was repentant. we should offer forgiveness. like what he had to say, but he was there to speak the truth, and we do not always like the truth because we know, as humans, we are sinners and we do wrong. god will forgive you if you ask him. that is all i have to say. if you see some of his orerviews with atheists agnostics folk, he is not judgmental. he does not hate the center, he hates the sin. he hates the sin. but he was kind to those who did not agree with him. that is what we are missing today, the backbiting and sniping. it is ok to disagree, but in a

respectful way. i think we have lost that respect. do you think billy graham could have done more to try and push for that in our public discourse? you know, i believe that he did not want to cloud the message of jesus christ. say he wasdid bringing people to christ and let the gospel work on this in part. instrument.n he might not have been perfect, ,ut god used him as instrument just as god used david for his glory. david was a murderer, but god uses these people for his glory, and david did repent. and i do not think billy graham

was ignorant to any mistakes that he made. i think we all have to answer to god. we don't have to answer to fellow man. people who call up and trash him, maybe they are afraid. -- theyecause they know do not like it. they want to say you are ignorant, that is an easy way out. let's hear some educated arguments instead of calling people ignorant. host: matt in maryland. good morning. caller: good morning. i don't want necessarily -- do necessarily kick a guy after he has passed away, but boy, does he have some really nasty views on homosexuals and women. i cannot really blame the guy, because he is following the bible. he had a really, really tough spreading what he would

save a good message, and some hateful things. i want to respond to callers saying that takings prayer -- taking prayer out of school is a bad thing. school, you can pray in school if you want to. the teachers will not be telling you how to do it. it is freedom. you can pray in school, but the teacher will not be telling you to do it. thank you. here is former president bill clinton talking about the impact that billy graham had on him. [video clip] almost 50 years ago, and i have been a christian for just about three years, my sunday took me to little rock to hear billy graham's crusade. becauseols were closed the little rock central high school integration process, and

i had the exact same experience jimmy carter did. the council in little rock tried to pressure billy graham and all of his people to preach to a segregated audience in our football stadium. theyld them that if insisted on that, he would cancel the crusade and tell the whole world wide, and they folded. and i will never forget it. here we were, with neighborhood after neighborhood in my state on the verge of violence, and yet all the tens of thousands of black and white christians together in the stadium. when he issued the call, thousands came down holding hands, arm in arm, crying. it was the beginning of the end of the old south in my home state. i will never forget it. host: that was former president

the clinton after -- at billy graham library in 2007. he was there again yesterday. here is the front page of the news and observer in north carolina. this is where billy graham's funeral will be on friday. it will begin at 10:00 a.m. on friday in a private service at the billy graham library, but there will be streaming by the billy graham library of that service. it is expected to be 90 minutes long, about 2300 invited guests expected to attend. it will be a service that will take place under a large tent in the main parking lot of the billy graham library. the tent, as the atlanta journal-constitution notes, serves as a reminder of of how -- reminder of how billy graham's ministry launched under the canvas cathedral.

are split upes regionally. eastern or central time zones, (202) 748-8000. mountain or pacific, (202) 748-8001. phil from florida, go ahead. are you with us? caller: i am waiting perio -- waiting. host: go ahead. caller: billy graham was a man of prayer, and i just heard one of your callers say we should not have prayer in schools. when i was in school, that was the first thing we did. there were no shootings in our schools. people had respect. would not young man have shot those students if he had a time of prayer with the other students like we did. host: you mean a teacher led prayer? caller: we had a teacher led prayer, yes.

that, somebody lead them in print -- cannot do that, .omebody leads them in prayer we prayed after the fact, we pray after 9/11, and we prayed to the lord before 9/11 and after all these school shootings, maybe the students' hearts will be touched. i have been a minister over 50 years, and in the communities i have seen broken homes over and over again and drugs. , ther is a powerful tool most powerful tool to christians have. [inaudible] only after the fact can we pray. host: dave in denver, colorado. good morning. caller: good morning.

-- someone once said as long as we continue to securities, we will witness atrocities. we are witnessing atrocities -- hello? host: we are witnessing atrocities? caller: because of our delusion, worshiping these delusional people like billy graham. why don't we have someone like brian lamb, your founder, who had people like christopher hitchens, and called these people on their insanity. that is our gun problem today. why are delusional people owning guns? somebody talking to an imaginary guy in the sky -- i do not believe he should be near a gun and these, people trying to claim to know more than a man could know -- i do not believe these

christians, i am suspect of them. if we do not continue to call them on their insanity, we will continue to witness atrocities. host: j, indiana. good morning. caller: good morning, thank you for c-span and taking my call. i would also like to remind the wasers that reverend graham a pretty shrewd political operator and a manipulator. as i recall, in the 1960 election between nixon and kennedy, he attempted to weigh away from kennedy and toward nixon. and this is at a time when the public was concerned about the pope actually being elected through kennedy, but i do not recall that anybody worried about reverend graham being elected and having influence in american politics, as much as they worried about the pope. i would like to see the reverend

graham's legacy be the absolute necessity of the wall of separation between religion and state. thank you very much for taking my call. host: before you go, what do you think the influence is right now when it comes to evangelicals on the white house, on congress? caller: well, it certainly seems inarent to me, particularly reproductive rights, laws, and women's rights. that has been a political issue for some time. jay in indiana. a few tweets from members of congress this morning. mcmorris rodgers, a republican, there are a lot of communities right now that are in need of peeling. it is my prayer that we honor the legacy of billy graham i remember in his faith all devotion to sharing god's love to us. lostor john thune, when we

billy graham, we lost one of the true heroes of our faith. kimberly and i had the privilege of joining in his 1985 crusade in d.c. no one in our lifetime has lived a life of greater impact for the cause of christ. he truly did serve god's purpose for his generation. and democrat from west virginia, gail and i are saddened to learn of the death of reverend graham. his unshakable devotion served as a pillar in the lives of millions of people across the world and his memory will serve as a reminder for what it means to live your faith. including congress, senator tom tillis of north carolina, expected to be at that ceremony today in the rotunda. out,or tom tillis tweeting reverend billy graham, a proud north carolinians, was truly america's pastor and spiritual compass. he dedicated his life to preaching the gospel and inspired millions of people in america and cross below -- across the globe.

another, i was saddened to hear a billy graham's passing. he was instrumental in spreading the gospel to millions. he will always be remembered as a friend to the civil rights movement when violent racism was an accepted norm in america. he will be missed. another, the reverend billy graham's sermons reached into homes and touched the very soul of the country. may his message of love and unity live on. from youo hear this morning about the legacy of and tony perkins will be joining us in our next segment of the washington journal. we will be talking about this with him as well, so you can continue to call in during that event as well -- segment as well. tony perkins, president of the family research council, will be with us around 10:00. our next caller, good morning. caller: hi john, i just wanted to express my opinion. in my lifetime, billy graham was one of the greatest men that i

have ever encountered. i think people should realize the tremendous organization that billy graham ran with his crusades back in the 1950's. some wonderful people, who were truly inspirational. the kind of organization he had set up -- i think he was often by the billy graham aura about him. he did not want the attention drawn to him, but it is inevitable that it would be. it pulled through the people, yet he wanted to express his message of salvation through jesus christ. sensek he always had a that he had an embarrassment about separating the two. that is all i had to say this morning. host: one more editorial from

the asheville citizen times. billy graham, a son of north carolina. they wrote "who will be the next graham? no one. not only was graham a unique vintage of american character, he was the vintage of a unique time. he caught the wave of a communications revolution, writing new technology with an age-old message. hitit his stride as america a postwar boom that will likely never be rivaled." one, turtle the associated press it is hard to imagine that they would come together in the same way again. we can only be papal they came together once as they did -- thankful they came together once as they did. mary in the dinah, tennessee -- medina, tennessee. caller: good morning. it is raining here, and that is the way most of this area feels

.bout losing billy graham i was a little girl when he was a young, fiery preacher, and i am not understanding the hate part, where these people are from about franklin graham. he is walking the world, giving so much comfort to people that have lost so much. i'm not understanding that. i think he is well-equipped to pick up where his father left off. i don't understand the hate for franklin graham or for billy graham either. i am not understanding that. mary in tennessee. a reminder, the memorial service for reverend billy graham beginning at 11:00 in the capitol rotunda. you can watch that here, or on www.c-span.org and listen to it on the c-span radio app. coming up next, we continue our conversation about the life and

legacy of billy graham with tony perkins, the president of the family research council, and the c-span bus is in santa fe this morning, stop number 21 stick around for the discussion and we will be right back. >> monday on c-span's landmark cases. wherea civil rights cases the supreme court decision struck down the civil rights act that granted all people access to public accommodation like trains and theaters regardless of race. given invote was opposition. explore the high court's ruling

with the dean of howard university's law school. watch landmark cases live on 9:00 eastern on c-span, c-span.org or listen on the c-span radio app. book available for $8.95 plus shipping and handling. and there is a link on our website to the national constitution center interactive constitution. text for nearly 20 years, in depth on otb has featured the best-known nonfiction writers for conversations about their books. this year, we're featuring best-selling fiction writers. with the author of

he hasnd generals." written 11 more novels that recounts the military history of america. we'll take your phone calls and tweets and facebook messages. our special series will be on noon-3:00 p.m.om washington journal continues. host: the president of the family research council joins us on the day that billy graham lies in honor at the capital. how would you describe him? a one-of-a-kind in terms of the impact he had on this country and across the globe.

make the man or do make the times? it is a combination with billy graham. when thento the scene world was looking for solutions. he mainstreamed evangelical system in this country. that he will leave a lasting legacy. you look at his children, franklin is a good friend and grandma and they continue the ministry of their father and building upon his legacy. host: did you know billy graham personally? guest: he was retiring as i came onto the scene but franklin is a close friend so i do know them well.

and i see a lot of the characteristics and their father. host: you wrote that billy graham helped to lay the foundation for the civil rights -- for the mainstream. guest: at a time when the country is looking for answers, going back to the cold war. coming on the scene with a strong gospel message. from that, we did see other ministries come forward and inerally touch the world and my world we have seen the engagement more of evangelicals. saw as past election we ticket participation of evangelicals. host: is that what he wanted? guest: he was about preaching

gospel. he played a significant role in bringing evangelicalism to the mainstream of american life. .nd making it more acceptable the times are different. i asked franklin and said that his father would not speak out on issues as much and why is that? and he said, it was a different time, he didn't need to. in the 1950's when he came on the scene, that is the same decade when we changed the pledge of allegiance to include god." tion, under when we adopted the motto "in a different time. but now there is a movement away

the involvement of religion. schoolchildren no longer able to pray in schools. even say the pledge of allegiance when we can see that a motto? school with a poster that got taken down. host: we had a caller in the first segment saying that you can pray in school and it isn't teacher led prayer? guest: or the amendment of silence prayer. when we don't horse anybody to print. but only talk about in god we trust and it becomes controversial and it is taken away from schools when schools

are one of the most dangerous 20ces in the country -- years and close to 20 shootings. host: if you would like to join our conversation, telephones are open regionally. (202) 748-8000 if you are in the central region. about who takes up the mantle from billy graham. what do you think? guest: let's talk about

television in billy graham's day. three major networks. we have a different time in which there won't be one billy graham. i think you do see a number of evangelical's who come forward. franklin is having crusades. don't think anyone holds that particular spot and i don't think we should look to one of person. a lot of people have come in his wake to do different aspects of the ministry. host: a washington post column last year called him the last bipartisan evangelical leader. are you concerned that evangelicals have become to tie to the republican party? guest: do i think our country is polarized? i do. there are lines that have been drawn. to compare billy graham and how

he operated to today's standards, when you go back to the 1950's when, as a nation, we embraced under god in our pledge. we embraced a full congress. .e embraced that motto we are not there today and i don't think we could get that passed. i think we find a partisan split. host: where we are today, is that a good thing? guest: i don't think evangelicals have chosen that. i think they've gravitated towards a party that is more embracing of the values that they represent. 2012you go back to the conventions of the democratic when god was rejected as a platform, there is the increasing hostility and difference. not everybody is hostile but

a difference with religion in a public square. do the republicans have the -- guest: i would say the policies. i would say the policy that we see from this administration reflects that. host: why do you feel clear about separating the policies? guest: that is what the election is about. evangelicals do not support donald trump on his personality. this went from a personality driven election to a policy driven election. voters voted based upon party platform. was successfult at turning this into a policy election. he is maintaining his support by advancing that.

maryland, good morning. caller: good morning. republicans and democrats, whether they voted for trump or not is irrelevant. i honestly feel that we should allow people to practice freedom of religion. because that is what we in the united states honor. and i don't think people need god in a religion to make an educated decision. if you are an educated individual as you think logically, you can pretty much decide on any suspect whether or not to go one way or the other. religion should stay out of politics. and i think if people just the wayshemselves and , theynk about problems

will come to the right decision. guest: keep your eyes on the road. from a christian perspective, what evangelicals are looking for is the ability to make decisions. and one who is an evangelical has a biblical world. they view the world around them the scripture and they make their decisions based on that. so we cannot have this life where we draw a wall of ok, if i ametween, involved in politics, i have to leave my religion at the door. to be clear, evangelicals and christians are not looking to impose religious views on anyone. they're looking to bring their views to the table.

so why is someone who believes in the bible -- why are they against someone who wants to live on a ancient philosophy? ourhould be able to operate is less and teach our children and lead with the scripture. host: do you speak to trump? what policy would you bring to the table today? to aski would continue him to continue to bring this forward. he is in the process of restoring religious freedom. the executive order in may of constructing that agencies are respecting religious freedom on the

pro-life front is doing a great job. panic on those has been great. i ask him to continue. host: is there any area where you wish you would do more? one area we have found in government is personnel. government is made up of people. and i think the department of health and human services, he has picked great people. this is long been an issue for people of faith. and i think there are other areas. of concerns in the department of defense. we see military personnel who free to live out their faith in an open way. and so i think those are the corrections that he wants to make. and we encourage them to do

more. host: do you think transgender troops should be able to serve in the military? i do not. that strikes on two issues. many of those are not deployable because of the surgeries and more thaneatments and that we have rdc there is a conflict with religious freedom. where those who have views differing from that are being penalized. line withtting in that. especially in the area of same-sex marriage. we have seen officers be penalized because they wouldn't embrace it. host: steve is waiting period good morning.

caller: i would like to talk about the hypocritical oats that these christians hold in this world. -- he cheated on my mom and is a demon just like trump. is, billy graham and folks like billy graham led folks astray. host: you are going in and out. guest: i took it that he wasn't a big fan of billy graham but that is all he got. caller: i went to a revival tent in the rain that really graham was teaching. he preached love and nonjudgment

preachesranklin graham hate. and this man puts judgment on everybody. and that is a sad day to franklin graham to do that. and that is my opinion. guest: i take issue with the caller. i don't think franklin graham preaches against anyone. i think he preaches the same message. when you and say that billy graham preaches that we are all sinners and we need grace extended by god through jesus christ, that is an offensive message today. because this is where not going to make it on our own. we look at the times in which we live. of societyge segment

has rejected biblical standard. and as christians, we don't have the luxury of picking and choosing what we want to believe with the scriptures. if you are going to follow jesus christ then you have to follow him. he said, i am the way and the truth and the light. others, who do not believe that jesus is the son of god, according to the teachings of jesus will not go to heaven. and that is jesus's statement, not mine. have you not read from the for this reason, man will leave? that is jesus's teaching. and if we are being faithful to him, we have to embrace all of his teachings.

host: when did that become a offensive discourse? guest: there has always been an element of that. especially in the last decade. i was in office in louisiana when the vast a member -- when the vast number of officials were democrats. george within i were serving together. with democrats and talked. the republicans are in the majority but there isn't the bipartisan approach. host: what is to blame for that? guest: i would say it is part of the growing divide of our culture. i know they're people who say that we are holding up the standard of morality. but i don't think that is fair.

i think there has been nature of delay from the biblical truth and the recognition of who we are and united as one nation. i think this is all the more reason that we need to continue to have this discussion for those who preach the word of god . host: laura is in new hampshire. good morning. caller: i just came from north carolina. be a lotend there will of rerouting around the services that are happening. and at the grocery store, on everyone's mind is billy graham. ad a young boy was not believer and that is his prerogative. and i think we have lost the fact that we are allowed to have our own voice and opinion. the lord gave us free will.

and whether folks believe in the lord or not, there are those that -- that those that have see.and eyes here and if you are not a believer, you won't love billy graham. but the question you keep asking is, who is the next person? who is the next event list? favoritel name of our one and one by one, they will not be perfect as we all make mistakes. kenneth copeland bought a fleet he catapulted a lot of them. there was only men -- there's only one man who walked on this earth as a true christian and that is jesus. we areeed to remember all entitled to our opinion and i think the next evangelist is

all of us. every day. american kindness. i drop a nickel on the floor and a black lady picks it up and that is what the world is about and what the country is about. and we're just trying to protect the right to worship the way we want and everybody doesn't have to believe like i do or like you do. but we should be able to sit down. my father worked in the paper mills and they all sat together for lunch time. they all joked about what nationality they were and what food was around the table. and that is what this country was founded on. allowing for each other but within the guidelines for allowing within the freedom of our forefathers and what they worked so tirelessly for and prayed for. because this country is one nation, under god.

in guest: i believe her point that billy graham, changing millions of people, we don't do have a part to play. and that is from the new testament. are one body in christ but many members. we all have different roles play. i think many of us could share our roles whether we are in entertainment or government or preachers a ministry. we all do have a role to play. host: priscilla, good morning. caller: good morning. i was 11 years old when my mom was at west point and she served billy graham dinner because she was there with the dean and she came back and she told me about billy graham and meeting him. and i remember watching him on

tuesday tv when we were very young. and that was back in the 50's. because i remember rock 'n roll came out at the time. and billy graham was bay. preaching about the gospel. and later on in life, back in the early 70's, the late 70's, i about jimmy swaggered and his crusades. i went there in 1982 and i got saved. he preached a balance in our world and it was so much better. prayersp where you had every day. that is how we started our school year. in the 60's, i graduated and after the prayer came out of schools, that is when you started having problems in the schools. and i think if they would bring prayer back into school, there would be a lot more peace.

there wouldn't be as much killing. kids would know the truth. and they would know there is then bad ortter evil. out.t would balance it so i just think god for the fact that billy graham was here. i used to watch the big, huge crusades with thousands and thousands of people. that was a good time in life when america was really great. kider: i remember as a listening to billy graham and his program on sunday night. it is a different time. she makes a point. with our schools today, when they are having active shooter drills. they did have the duck and cover

drills before my time or your they were afraid of the russians dropping bombs on us. for was the motivation pursuing the statement under god. eisenhower went to a church service year and a preacher actually preached on the pledge. we compared our pledge to the russian pledge and the fact that .here were some distinction lawit was signed into saying that our kids would say we are one nation under god. needed that to bridge what we were able to do. today, our threats are more internal. and i believe once again that there is the freedom to need

that. host: do you pray with president trump? guest: i do. and i think he has become much more comfortable. he has an appreciation for evangelicals. he understands that they were a major factor in his success. he has grown to understand why we believe what we believe. and why these things are important to us. it makes sense. strong families are good. they havegrow up and opportunities in the environment around them, it is a positive outcome for society.

i think working on the strength of families gives a good understanding. has ak this is why trump good relationship with them. it isn't about power. policies that create an environment that allows our families to prosper. there is no question that the and his -- i was not with him at the primary. i came out for ted cruz. i shared a value set with him. but there were a lot of choices. but he went longer than anybody else. endorse think i would donald trump.

i knew that i would vote for him of hillary's policies. but i never thought it would endorse him. what was required to gain our support. a conservative running mate with a track record. and i was on the party platform. and he couldn't mess with the platform. every other campaign i have been involved with has tried to water down the platform. to my amazement he met all three and put out a list of 11 pro-life justices. no nominee has used the term pro-life. he picked mike pence. he didn't oppose us on the platform but he helped us in getting the most conservative platform. what can i say?

at that point he met the standards and i endorsed him at the convention and i have not been disappointed. theas followed through on commitments he has made. host: we go to sterling, virginia. i have a comment about billy graham. i am in my 60's. i remember billy graham as a child. faith in vietnam. but billy graham represented much more than evangelicals. he represented the truth. and he represented a face of that believes in tolerance. something i don't believe his son is pushing. a question for your guest. have you ever been in combat?

guest: no. i did not serve during a time of combat. i have been a police officer. host: did you have a follow-up? caller: i have a follow-up question. about gays and transgender in conduct. i spent 18 months in vietnam. if you are in a foxhole, you thet give a rats -- about sexual orientation of the person saving your life and firing on the enemy. caller: there are many military leaders that would take issue with that. caller: i would like to call as a catholic christian.

me one thing that concerns from a prior phone call was the man who made a little bit of a directly comment -- of a derogatory comment about the jewish people. we have nothing against the jewish or muslims and jewish -- and jesus didn't teach that they would go to hell. he taught according to the light that we have, we will be judged. not according to whether we are muslims or hindus or buddhist. and i do think that people would take the time to listen to pope francis, he might be considered the next nonpolitical religious leader for the entire world, including america. and he teaches what jesus taught. love god, love your neighbor. treat others how you like to be treated. do not judge.

when we have a difference in opinion, we can still treat each other with respect. and i believe that was billy graham's basic message. i believe his death is a loss for the entire world. i just want to say that as we are to love others and help them to know about christ and i think that is what billy graham tried to do. let's pray for each other. thank you. host: the last minute or so for the day that billy graham is lying in repose. guest: going back to what we started with, a legacy is help determine by what is before you. pave thehe did was

way. i do think this is a collection of early graham. and the grandchildren continue consistently and faith. and as a father there is nothing more important than your child to follow in those teachings and to carry forth the ministry. to then remains true .essage that jesus is the way and the life. it is sad to see billy graham past. he represents a lot of what happened in america. is up to us, each of us.

we need to see our children carry on with the faith we have in jesus christ. can be found on twitter. we appreciate the time. coming up, open phones on washington journal on this wednesday morning. the lines for demographics, republicans and independents are on your screen. we have stop number 21 on c-span's 50 capital tour. we will be joined at 9:15 this morning so stick around for that discussion. we will be right back. >> monday on c-span's landmark cases. casest these civil rights

. this is the federal law that granted access regardless of the race. this is said to have eventually peter personnel, an attorney on the civil rights. watch landmark cases live on eastern on:00 p.m. c-span, c-span.org and on the c-span radio app. landmarkcopy of the cases book for $8.95 plus shipping and handling and for additional resources, there is a link on our website for the interactive constitution.

>> c-span, where history unfolds daily. as a publicreated service. we continue to bring you unfiltered congress of the white aroundsupreme court and the country. c-span is brought to you by your cable light -- by your cable or satellite provider. phones on washington journal. any public issue you want to talk about, publicans colin at (202) 748-8001 -- republicans call at (202) 748-8001. democrats, (202) 748-8000. callers, (202)

748-8002. a special election happening april 24. -- winning the primary in the state with 100% reporting the precincts on tuesday night. with the vote. host: in the meantime, back to your calls. what do you want to talk about? reese is in cleveland.

what is on your mind? i want to talk about reverend graham. i saw him in cleveland. i listened to his classics. and whenever he had a special i would make sure that i would either tidbit or tune in. i think he was a very good man. to be anonsidered him evangelical preacher. you know? a preacher. i really did enjoy him. reverend graham will lie in honor at the capitol building today. he is expected to arrive in the -- arrive in capitol hill

around 10:30 with the viewing starting at 1:00 p.m. and mitch mcconnell are talking. you can watch that on c-span.org and on the c-span radio app. trump is up and tweeting this morning. here is what is on his mind. , saying the ago wall will not be built until it is approved. "big victory yesterday with ruling from the courts that allows us to proceed, our country must have border security. code story from the ashington times this morning, series of environmental laws speeding up construction.

this is all the more striking judgee it comes from curiel who trump called biased in the presidential campaign because of his mexican heritage. the judge said he wasn't a pining on whether the wall was a good or bad policy but whether the government has the power to build it. william, good morning. caller: i want to say how much we will miss billy graham. there is a lot that will come that he was a child molester. that?why would you say caller: i have a lot of young

girls who went to my church who went to his school and then came back and were traumatized. they wouldn't talk about anything. host: we go now to rob in oklahoma. billy graham represented a wide range of christian views. .e ate with gandhi how could he put donald trump in the white house? in adult were and liar? it is my opinion that he has racist. i am a gay, charismatic christian. evangelicals, the man does not represent jesus.

family values have broken down you can have the same family values. this man is not doing that. i'm talking about trump. and it scares me that a press christiansays she's a and she lies for him. it amazes me. is a christian, he needs to turn over his tax statements. in texas. is good morning. to thank tonyed

perkins for standing up for the local principles and our constitution. got bless. caller: and. this is my very first time calling. there is a problem with america and the world's. one thing i have to say to everyone is this -- there is no such thing as political and

evangelism. they don't mix together. that, he usedk at to teach and preach and he even believed that when someone , heeved in jesus christ died in the name of the father and the holy ghost. it is his name. cingular. said to baptize in his name. jesus said in the name -- what

do they do? they go and make money. that was paul from maryland. more from the headlines. the electiondging fallout." host: here is the exchange yesterday at the senate armed services committee between mike rogers and a ranking member of the committee. >> aside from the intelligence agencies operating, either any authorities to disrupt

russian election hacking operations where they originate? dhs -- capabilities? >> you can argue that probably -- some argue of dod and doj and the standing authority in that regard. >> but the teams at the origin of the attacks have the authority to do so? >> granted the authority. they don't have the day to day authority. >> are you would have to be .irected by the president >> have you been directed by the president? over the specific consequences you recognize already? >> i would be glad to go into more detail in classified.

i have directed the mission and using the authority. >> so as a commander to prepare and structure but you need direct authority of the president through the secretary of defense? i havee are some things the authority on and i am acting on that authority. host: for more on that, go to .ur website the house select committee on , hopeigence yesterday today, notingd that she refused to talk about

the work after the inauguration. this scene across washington as a key witness. and during the campaign as a director.ions opec's leaving the scene. back to your phone calls. line for democrats. good morning. caller: i never hear anyone -- on the school doors. i was talking to a teacher and and she said that some schools in new jersey had metal the textures. if they could afford it. i think they can all afford it.

a teacher volunteering their time or all of them to sit at the door with metal detectors that everyone comes in. i don't understand that. do they not want to have them? are they too much money? the metalwe use detector? and -- wanted to join the gun, join the army. have you had a guest yet say why they don't have metal tech is on the doors? host: we have had collars and features talk about metal detectors in use at their schools. and their thoughts on the effect that has been happening.

that conversation happened in the weeks after the school shooting. pictures on the front page there are two students who were injured in that attack. killed in the attack. they took of the discussion of what should happen with gun policy. the president has proposed army more individuals in school. .llowing them to carry weapons "arming teachers is unintelligible of the anywhere ."d everywhere crowd is a shooting at a

mall, we will hear that shopkeepers should be armed. in a hotel lobby, it should be up to the concierge of the front desk to return fire. the editorial ends by saying the answer to too many people with too many military grade firearms is not more of the same. we need to do more to keep weapons out of the hands of weapons and people. morning.ood i want to go back to billy graham. i am an admirer of billy graham but i have trouble with his son, franklin. he calls islam hateful which is a silly thing to do. so that is my thinking. we go to tallahassee, good

morning. how are you today? i have a couple of things i would like to say. i am not a catholic myself. we shouldgree that listen to the pope. anyone who reads the bible could see where jesus ordained the first pope. thing he said is about more -- i wish people would take a look at what is done in the valley in the 1980's and 1990's. we were able to get guns and gangs out of our schools without upsetting the nra.

it required school districts and the police to come together. we worked with them and i was astounded. i ran the first pilot group and children who came were so the said, we only bring guns because we don't know any other way to do this. and they were so hungry for the knowledge. they wanted to come to school on christmas and thanksgiving. againis was demonstrated and again. i worked with high risk children and it became mandated in every school district in those counties. i think there are interesting things people could learn about teaching peace and how to create peace and share power. and that more guns create more

problems. less guns create less problems. host: mike thompson heads to capitol hill to talk about what democrats want to see on the floor in terms of legislation. it is our duty as lawmakers and representatives to pass laws that will make our communities safer. so far, congress has done nothing in regards to gun and that is shameful. every member here knows that something must be done about gun violence. we may not agree on what that is but everyone from the president of the united states america to the inspiring young leaders who are leading a movement today out of florida agreed that we must

expand background checks. that is why we need this resolution. and while he must take up the bipartisan background bill immediately. you cannot table the 30 people a day killed by a gun. let us have this vote. we have had too many moments of silence. we have to build. bipartisan. democrats and republicans supporting the bill and co-authoring the bill. of the american people believe we should vote for a measure regarding background checks. this is a good bill and it should be brought to the floor. republican should be silencing the risks -- silencing the wishes of the american people. it must be confined to the question of order. that was represented mike

thompson yesterday on the floor of the house. this being reported by the new york times that we are -- that dick's sporting goods says they will immediately end sales of all assault style rifles in their stores. the retailer also said they would no longer sell high-profile magazines or guns to anyone under 21 years of age regardless of local laws. that announcement was made two weeks after the shooting in parkland, florida that killed 17. this is the strongest stance taken by corporate america and it carries something from a prominent national gun seller. the 63-year-old chief executive says when we saw what happened in parkland, we were so disturbed and upset and it got to us.

we go to maryland. caller: thank you for taking my call. am trying --t i number one is religion. ofelieve in freedom because being under god. i believe everyone has choices and what they want to do. you have choices whether you believe or not. there is nothing wrong. but my biggest problem with the bible is that anyone can read it. everyone. -- behaviorve to and discipline. thing is about a gun for shooting. that they do have a lot

of freedom. and they do what they want. secondly, background checks. if a person can purchase a gun like three or four times but my that is, after you finish person's background, and they person a criminal, the fix because of that. that is my opinion. .ost: we go to nick in virginia for republicans. caller: good morning.

my concern is this. i would love your response. an admiral yesterday says he has been given no authority whatsoever from the white house to implement any kind of protections and countermeasures for russian meddling. cyber meddling. he tabled sanctions that have een like sitting around on a desk for eight months or more against the russians. done everything to protect the russians. is : nick, do you think it

time for impeachment proceedings? be er: when can he impeached? what is it legal to say, you enough, like a a vote of system has no-confidence, what do we have? host: nick, do you continuing is for those proceedings to begin? caller: yes. franklin happen if roosevelt didn't act against the pearl harsh os -- harbor. months later, working on something, press secretary telling the press corps, we're working on something, you know, you could blame herbert what the japanese did, but the pearl harbor authorized aporate my commanders to do anything. ost: nick, here is more from that hearing yesterday with mike rogers and exchange with senator elizabeth warren.

>> the strategy says and i'm going to quote to you, "in to certain attacks and intrusions, the united states may undertake diplomatic actions, take law enforcement economic d consider sanctions," so i want to focus for a minute on that last piece, "sanctions," congress overwhelmingly passed a law last ear that in part required sanctions on individuals and companies that knowingly engage cyber activityos behalf of the russian government, including freezing restricting travel. the trump administration has not required ese sanctions. admiral rogers, i know this is ot your primary responsibility to impose the sanctions, but i a different question. what message does it send to vladamir putin that the united fully implemented sanctions to counter known attacks?yber

broadly, ogers: more not just sanctions, more is, i , my concern believe that president putin has to the conclusion, little price to pay here. >> bingo. > therefore, i can continue this activity. >> yes. director of as nsa, if we don't change the dynamic here, it will continue and 2016 won't be viewed as something isolated, it will be sustained over time, so i think all of us, e for what are the tools available to us and is director of nsa, if we don't change the dynamic here, it will continue nd the strategy says, diplomatic, economic, some cyber-things, there are tools available to us. i think in fairness, you can't say nothing has been done, y point is, it hasn't been enough. >> it hasn't been enough. >> clearly what we've done hasn't been enough. that's right. >> i'm mindful of my roles and operations. host: just after 9:00 on the coast, in about 15 minutes

on "washington journal," we'll next stop on the c-span "50 capitals tour," we're santa fe, new mexico, stop 21 on our tour. stick around for that. until then, open phoneos "washington journal" combshgs public policy issue you want to phone lines are yours. next, rry, arizona is genius roberts calling in, an independent. good morning. morning, world. robert in ius arizona. i'd like to call attention to cut me - please don't off, this is a very technical subject. important. host: genius robert, we only goe a little bit of time, so ahead. caller: yes, please don't cut me off, that is a statement. pay for this, you know, this program because i like it.

in the interest of civility, i is d like to mention, there one thing i like about president on p, that is when he tugs his lapel, his coat with both hands, that's a joke. but, also, something more than that is the word "carnage," and he's the one that mentioned that word, the word which e" is how voters, are people that are dying from weapons, that is not moral or right. to mr. suggestion president trump, he could an executive order to have all the sheriff departments and every county in country to confiscate anything that belongs in a war they call it, you know, when they want to kill a whole bunch of people. this country, the interest of

civility and to stop the do age, he's got to something like that and then i would even vote for him if he do that because that would really, really help the about children being able to be voters, being being decent and not scared. his is a terrible, terrible spot. host: that would be a pretty big shift for you, you called in the past, you've usually been pretty critical of the president. aller: yes, i did mention one thing i liked about the president, you don't have a lot of time, you did listen to the carnage, he brought that word about. he biggest carnage right now, innocent little children are being killed and that is not he l, that is not right f. could institute a program where departments of every county -- host: got your point. santa fe, new

mexico, independent. good morning. caller: good morning. biggest problem i see is and politics. support and defense of founding tution in documents. word of our fore fathers, history, i have a sign in santa forgets its past has no future, that is from churchillf. we want to make change in the government, get money out of politics. school.nt guns out of get money out of politics. we want our social security money out of politics. we want affordable prescriptions, get money out of politics. there are thousands hacking at problem, but of the few go to the root. one root of our problem in this ountry is that we the corporation or we the constitution, the people, you know.

it's come to state now like who said, there rogers are people in government that shouldn't be allowed to play with matches, you know. there is a lot of good information out there and people -- we the people, i don't care if you're republican i democrat, i'm not either, don't like either party. one of our fore fathers said he two-party system. two parties act nothing concerted with each other, you know. up ave the business party there. host: jame necessary harrisburg, kentucky, republican. ahead. caller: yes, thank you for taking my call. i was listening to everybody and everybody seems to have the reat ideal of how we can solve all of our problems in this country. this,n control and all of

i say this to the american people, it's time -- it's time to the lord, ck turn our lives over to him and for one compassion another the way that christ did and do the right thing. very much for taking my call. i'll be praying for everyone in america. i do everyday. you, sir. host: james, you bring up the issue of guns. democrat mike thompson on the floor of the house yesterday, here is senate leader mitch mcconnell talking about outlook for gun this congress. senate majority leader: we've een down this path before, there are bipartisan differences address this issue, snagged every y effort. cornyn suggested is that we take something we all any way not in

showing it is panacea, but progress toward dealing with one element of the problem. the lion share of the discussion was about school safeand i think the governors are very and it re of that issue strikes me, even though it is not a federal issue, senator does have a bill on school wee aught to be able to that problem. it's hard to get in the capitol going through a metal detector, or an airport, we need safe.hools to be federal role in that may be but it seems to me we ought to be able to harden youngsters, rotect so when they go into schools we know they will come out. left inout five minutes

open phones this morning. what's on your mind across america today? sein west virginia. go ahead. bobby yes, my name is may and my wife's a school teacher, she's been a school 32 years and when kids that gotthose killed at sandy hook, she cries because she's looking in the of the kids that she taught, basically. and i'm a gun owner. to own a egal permit gun. bambi, my wife would cry and might put me out in the dog house. the point.ide now it doesn't take a man and democratic party believe this. the republican party used democrats, gainst

when they get elected such as president, they will take your your guns and put fear in them. have never known and you'd have to testify to this, that the guns have never been taken from the americans and they're going to. but those military ar-15 weapons sorts of weapons have o place in a peaceful society, such as the united states. and that does not mean they're going to take your guns. they are not going to take your guns. and -- what should be outlawed, bobby? outlawed?ld be what is your definition of assault weapons? caller: well, anything that is fire. rapid fire. i mean, i'm a deer hunter, used a deer hunter, until i married my wife, animal advocate loves animals and loves people and everything. do not need a rapid-fire gun

to go out there. if i'm that bad a shot at illing game, you understand where i'm coming from? host: all semi-automatic weapon? shotgun, you can fire one shot and it takes time to but literally e, get out and have 150-round and literally, that erks me.ly civilized society, we should not be fighting one another over issue like that. bobby, last caller in this open phone segment of "washington journal." you to our continued "50 to the c-span news desk and peter. on the c-span 21 tour of all "50 capitals tour," santas this morning is in fe, new mexico, parked outside the state capitol, known as the bus is a e, on that

familiar face to c-span viewers, state, overnor of the bill richardson. governor richardson, thanks for being with us. we talk about some of the national issues the country is facing, given your past i want to ask you, what is your stance on the state new mexico? of governor richardson: well, we're gas help te, oil and the state, some royalties go nto education, into infrastructure, into roads. you know, we're a very proud state. done well and tourism, development we've got a great tradition of the native y, hispanic, american, anglo, we've got a new industry, movie industry that here.ved in the legislature just finished. so, the state and the

statistics, we're don't do too well in terms of per capita, and growth, but we're a very proud state that right now i think a rough, positive phase because our evenues from energy, from renewable energy, from oil and gas is up. asking and u for welcome, c-span, to santa fe, you're parked right in the of the round house, the official legislative body of new but welcome. host: we want to get the numbers up, we don't have much time with richardson.nor if you are interested in talking about issues facing new mexico facing the country with him 202-748-8000 for new mexico residents. 202-748-8001 for everyone else. in, we'll nd dial begin taking those in just a few minutes. do you richardson, how think your successor did, martinez, entering last

year as governor? governor richardson: well, i'm fan, i think the state could have done more on education, on jobs and on development, but i think there is a democratic legislature, so there is checks balances, republican governor, a democratic the last e, this is the governor's reign. i served eight years, before me -- the libertarian. we are a state more independent, becoming more re a blue state. we shift back and forth in terms f republicans and democrats heading the governorships. guest: what do you think about in new -carry law mexico? governor richardson: the carry?ed host: yes, sir. governor richardson: well, you happened when i was gfrp. i support it, i'm a supporter of second amendment.

the shootings and in light of the terrible tragedies hitting our schools, we're a western state, second amendment is very important, we have a lot of law-abiding citizens. i think with these mental health issues affecting many of these shooters, i think with the background checks, maybe need to to lookgthened, we need at assault weapon issue. i remember when i was in the i voted to ban assault weapons and i was banished by a lot of people. controversial in- new mexico. conceal carry, as long as it is -- there is proper screening, proper vetting, it is the right course of action. we should give it to our teachers, i'm against that. they've should teach,

got enough pressures, they do a great job. very worry body that open carry giving it to our teachers. increased security personnel in our schools, that is what i would do. governor richardson spent 10 year necessary congress prior to eing u.s. ambassador upbtn. in the clinton administration. one in congress, you were of the few u.s. officials that traveled to north korea, how do you view the current overtours ip and the we've been hearing since the olympics? governor richardson: well, i am pleased, it seems the trump administration is shifting all i heard acy, pemptive military trikes, relationship in the korean peninsula. i'm a little worried, i still the the diplomats and state department in the administration are pursuing the right path, but it bothers me president, you know,

just on impulse will start tweeting and insulting the north leader and then the north korean leader insults him. i don't want the president of insulted, but es i'm not that hopeful right now. i'm worried. diplomat resigned, joseph ewin, from the state department yesterday, he was very involved the diplomacy side. will replace ho him. i just hope the state department, diplomacy, secretary tillerson, that is where the path should be towards dialogue with north korea. we should just sit down with them and talk to the north koreans and see if there is in common. i know they are difficult, i've been there eight times, i know they are impossible. we don't want a war out there. 50,000 american troops in japan, we've got 30,000 south korea, s in on the on south koreans

dmz in seoul, north korean missiles that shoots and detonates nuclear weapons, so here is where dialogue and needs to be stronger and i hope that happens in the days ahead, but we move forward all of a sudden, you know, the president will tweet something and we're back to zero. host: let's hear from our callers, evelyn calling in. are on with former governor bill richardson. caller: hello, governor, nice to always follow you and i agree with everything you say. you.rnor richardson: thank caller: i -- how are you today? i am very chardson: well, i'm happy here in santa morning, iarly in the think you guys are later than we are. you are on eastern time, you're too. a beautiful state, i love going there. caller: it is raining this morning. it is probably going

to be sunshine out there. to -- in ratonne, near the border, traveled and went through there probably 25 years remembered how and that i got chance to buy a place out there and my family and i love it, we just love it. a couple times a year. governor richardson: that's a you, place, i agree with pass out there, western part of united states history. you know is big boy scout camp where thousands summer go ts every and practice being boy scouts, horseback riding, but we're proud of that part of the country.

keep your property there, you get solice and opportunity to relax and see the mountains. not a problem there. host: governor richardson, over two the population of million people living in new mexico, half the population live in albuquerque, santa fe corridor, is it a tale of two states? governor richardson: yeah, it is, it is. you have albuquerque, santa fe there is another growing las cruces. ways to meld nd the interest of rural areas and he city and you are going to

have speaker of the new mexico egolf, shortly, brien can tell you about balances and tensions. albuquerque, ht, the main city, industrial, over half a ty million. , those are the two big cities. urban, rural contrast, urban areas are smaller than major the capitals in cities anywhere around the country. host: michael calling from michael, you are on with former governor richardson. hey, governor, i was wondering about the diversity of the state. any african americans this? second question is, what do you think about the security in the white house and what should be done about that? governor richardson: all right, well, i'll take the security involved first, i was

in the clinton cabinet, u.n. ambassador. important the white house, those dealing with foreign policy, including the resident's relatives, get the highest level security clearances, if they are dealing governments. ivanka trump was, was, that is not happening. the best thing the white house have overall revamping of the security f.b.i., listen to the listen to intelligence, law enforcement, they know how to do it. instructions about what needs to happen. it is already a year in the your second n, on question, when i was first running, i would say new mexico three-culture state. hispanic, native american, were african re american necessary our state. what about us? because aboutself 3% of the population is african

american. they're in albuquerque, las cruces, all over the state. population.ud quadri-lateral state now. i did make that mistake in early politician. it is a growing community, but 46% principally hispanic, hispanic, 10% native american, tribes, the t of most diverse state in the union, over 50% of the state is minority, diversity oriented. call nothing from chicago. good morning, rose, you are on c-span. caller: good morning. taking my call. governor richardson, i've years and for a few i would like your opinion on a things with this and istration and russia syria, watching cbs news this they spoke about

yria and chemical gas and talking about assad, assad, ignoring russia and syria. why is russia and syria and then the sanctions that this administration is boasting about north ey have done to orea, they place sanctions on north korea for -- and ignore actually a is transporting oil to north korea, photos were taken, those are facts that have been known, they sanctions on russia for giving oil to north korea. not even report that. host: so rose, what do you want the governor to respond to? caller: well, why are we not -- why o we have to know -- russians ormed by the

when trump, president trump, speaks to vladamir putin and why are we not implementing sanctions? as i being attacked, speak, our country is being attacked right now. all right, rose, thank you. bill richardson, a lot of geo-politics there governor richardson: this lady very well informed. first, we should implement sanctions against russia, their involve nment our election and because the congress is mandated it. to why the d as president hasn't initiated or enacted these sanctions that are literally required by law. now russia is also playing is right, lady there's sanctions on north korea and i'll give credit to the administration, there's sanctions on north korea have been probably the most but they are ways north korea is invading sanctions and i wouldn't be

russia, there is a report that north korea and chemical trading on weapons and north korea helped syria with some of that technology that technical are using now. i also asked about syria, mean, the reason russia is in syria, they sell a lot of syria.s to this gives syria russian anchor in the, an vital part of the world, the east and i believe making terrible mistake backing assad. russia is ad out, important component and we are unwilling, trump administration, put necessary pressure on russia, to work on syria, out, a possible solution, diplomatic solution, newe there is new election, leadership there.

give theanctions and i administration credit, instead of talking about military we should be doing more in diplomacy, find a way dialogue.ve north korea freezes their uclear weapons for a time being, freezes their missile tests in exchange for the united them, maybe g to reduce the military activities we have with south korea, some the exercise, not permanent, just and talk and see, all you , north korea, what do want? this is what we want, we want it.to denuclearize we want sanctions to be reduced. dialogue, diplomacy, talking to people, the way you resolve problems. ost: what are you doing these days, governor? governor richardson: well, i've got a foundation where we work political prisoners, trying to release them, get them out. workeded on north korea,

on several parts of the world. my foundation also trains leaders. i live in santa fe and most of barbara, my wife, and then in the summer, we've in cape cod, lace massachusetts, which we love. baseball there, my wife's from that region. ut we're, you know, i'm still active, still kicking around. when i found out that c-span was santa fe, nd here to i said, that's great. great exposure for the state. a verygoing to listen to promising young pop tigz named shortly, he's the speaker of the house. ut i'm very happy you guys and c-span are here in santa fe, thank you for being here. elected you miss office? governor richardson: do i sometimes, butw, i was 35 years, i was in the governor, i was

u.n. ambassador, secretary, i ran for president, it was very forgettable, lasted through two rimaries, but, you know, i enjoy public service, but now i have a little more freedom. i'm still engaged, i was just in myanmar, dealing with a humidi humanitarian crisis, trying to get remains from north korea as with soft power start dialogue with north korea and my and ation has been there trying to work this issue. many years ago, i brought back our emains of seven of soldiers, under the bush administration, i was a special the time. i'm still around and active. to i miss eelectricitioral side, of the political system? i don't, i'm very happy. there was report you quit

refugee camp on -- what is the source of that? well, that hardson: is true. by the democracy activist nobel prize winner. over there, supposed to be a panel that was supposed to the mething positive about refugee crisis and i found chi has changed, she got mad at me i asked a simple question. said there are two reuters reporters you put in jail, why, let them out that, is not smart. at are supposed to look what is happening, bedrock of democracy is freedom of the press. at one mad at me and point i thought she was going to smack me and so i quit the panel the panel was just going to be a white wash, a views of herof the government, that i think is mismanaged. is a million human beings, that left myanmar to

starving, they are been violated, human rights buses, mass graves, this is crisis the international community needs to look at further, not just north korea, or syria, let's look at humanitarian crisis and also deal with some problems here at home. rightlet's hear from rick there in santa fe. hi, rick. caller: hi. thank you very much for the love it.i i want to talk about something i'm really po'ed about, calls he air force stratosph ering or eric aerosol. this hasn't happened in almost a i see it all the time, albuquerque, i've seen it, alifornia, i've been to louisiana and what it is, air orce planes with nozzles and

tanks spraying, like you spray crops, people have tested the soil, air, their hair, and the have found at they oxide, oactive, aluminum and other things. 2016 sick four times in from going outdoors after they had been doing it, the cold draw down. when they fly low, i've taken and ulars and looked up seen just stuff sprieing o -- entire wing of the spon. host: okay, rick, let's hear wants overnor richardson to say about that. governor richardson: in all candor, i'm not well informed on that issue. word, heis dpmgentleman's knows the problem, he know its is probably something happening, technically able to comment on that specific side. this, though.

mexico, we have open spaces and training sites, four military t and support, bring jobs, bring american defense. experiences with the air force here in the state have been very positive, but areas where the air force, you know, some verflights, there's been concern from local communities, too much noise, etcetera. worked out, but i'm going to look into this case this fine gentleman, i'm just not familiar. , in other words, i don't know anything about the ssue, so i can say that now that i'm not running, but i will try to inform myself.

host: governor richardson, the budget for new mexico is about billion a year, 40% or so of the federal om government, from your perspective as a governor and a member of congress -- between the feds and the state? governor richardson: you are absolutely right. one of the problems and one of positives, we have a lot of federal money coming into the state. has a negative because it not made us diversify on other industries as much as we should have. governor, i did my best to bring in the renewable industry. was a big dustry thing. southern part of the state. the military bases, we have four bases, two national

laboratories, they provide jobs.us amount of budgetmous amount of our is government. national parks, blm wilderness, bureau of land management. so, you know, we're grateful for these funds from the federal government us back t, it has held from diversifying other industries. tourism,ed oil and gas we have federal presence, but we hould be developing more high-tech jobs, more education training jobs we try to amazon -- federal

presence and inability because unwillingnesstimes to diversify and try to bring in new industries. former governor, ormercongressman, former ambassador to the u.n., bill been our guest. we'll continue our visit to outside parked right the state capitol, unique state capitol, called the round house, dedicated in 1966, and we're going to be speaking next speaker of the house in new mexico, brian egolf, we'll learn about some more of the new mexico faces, budgets, orm,

marijuana, and others. hear from mike in sedan, new mexico. sedan, new mexico? caller: sedan is northeastern mexico, rural, agricultural, crop circles, cattle. host: okay. caller: i'm a ranch home carpenter basically. here is what is cool. question is, i would like to run for district 67 state rep. i just want encouragement rom him to do that because district three, i believe, luan, and n ben ray

istrict sketch, dennis roach, enkou encourage me to run for state rep. host: unfortunately, governor richardson has left the we're getting brian egolf, the speaker of the house seated. 'll tell you what, we'll ask speaker egolf his view and what encouragement he would offer to interested. mike, why are you interested in running? caller: i believe it is a civic duty. i'm 66 years old. legislator in new mexico is a volunteer job. i don't believe they are paid. they get per diemand everything, but want you know.ent, at this point, it would have to me.ndependent for i'm not a radical, just want

-- i'm a volunteer firefighter. ost: tell you what, mike, what -- how do you think governor richardson did when he years in the governor's office and how do you doing?uzanna martinez is caller: i'm not that well versed suzanna martinez, she's a republican and i know governor democrat, but a listening to what he has said uring this program, i pretty much agree with him. i just, we need help in this state, it is fe.ost remote from santa i'm new mexico fourth generation and -- take you long would it to drive to santa fe from where you are? caller: it's 273 miles. host: mike, thanks for your time this morning, we appreciate it. maine, what k, comment do you want to make this morning? c-span. thank god for

i'm totally addicted. to talk to whichever representative or that was there, currently for about the strategy school safety and i want to run y what i thought, most schools , could the bout speaker say if i was close or far off. host: what is your strategy, ed? i'm guessing it is districts and school boards get they er and set up what think is their strategy for the district in and from the district, it goes to the state department of the tion and then maybe legislature of the state itself. and then to the federal government. the states tever want to take a check, they come back down and do audit, i'm

on what is happening in the overall districts and changes.mmend and the safety of student necessary their district. york, maine,s ed in joining us on the c-span bus is new er of the house of mexico house of representatives, brian egolf, he is a democrat egolf, let's start was that last caller e talking about, in response to aztec shooting in new mexico. armed, changes made? peaker egolf: good morning c-span, we're thrilled to have you in santa fe. that during the legislative session that ended a couple weeks ago, we passed a

that is going to dedicate $40 million of school capital money specifically to security at schools statewide. is allocated through to make sure it is distributed where needs are greatest. a number of school districts, albuquerque the largest, school resource fficers who are trained law enforcement officers on campus, sure that any e situations that arise there are dealt with quickly while other enforcement arrives. hopefully we don't have any ncidents, but want to be prepared, we had that tragedy in aztec, in that case, in two employees, a janitor and a teacher, who risked their live necessary an incredible way. of course,, unarmed, chased after the shooter and made sure that as he chased him a hallway, all the doors

long the way were lockd and we who, substitute teacher because she was a substitute, didn't have a key to lock the is an om door, which issue that of course we'll be addressing, but she was able to the ll the students in classroom into a secured closet in the back and stood between and the shooter and saved a lot of lifes, we have great and a response by legislature to do the 40 million improvements. million, does that mean x-ray detectors, armed guard? does the money go? speaker egolf: it will be improvements, so it could be metal detectors, it in areas ew glass where bullet proof glass would be desired, security improvements decided at the local level, put it is exactly what they need, with guidance the state in terms of what

is effective. host: 202-748-8000 if you live in new mexico and want to talk house, brian the egolf. 202-748-8001 for all others. egolf, you just finished your legislative session, what did you get done? peaker egolf: well, we came in focused on showing the state we things done when the legislator comes together and works with the governor. we focused that first on the main priority of our short legislative session, in h we had this year passing a budget and unlike what e see out of washington, we were able to get a budget out of legislature with huge bipartisan votes, i believe in 57-3, a budget s that made critical new investments focusing on early education.

we had pay raises for teachers, large pay increases for law enforcement and corrections officers. and we also made sure that we money into fully funding services and medicaid. new mexico has a lot of needs, we right now are able to take huge increase necessary our state revenues, rive from oil and gas production and it is important that as we do that, we keep an diversify ourd to economy so that year after year we're not so dependent just on and gas sector necessary our economy and that we can grow our economy to be there when oil and gas prices are low and production drops. that means investing new mexico, a large and has growing and thriving film and not ision industry, it's just breaking bad, we've got full production films here. a dozen crews k,

throughout the state and so we're making investments to grow industry and of course the cultural economy and tourism re central to what we're doing in new mexico. we made investment in the budget get message s to out new mexico is open for business and we'd love to have vacation and visit us year round. $18 : state budget about billion, unemployment rate 6%, one of the higher in the nation, that, mr. speaker? speaker egolf: well, our high.loyment rate is over the last seven years, under have seen a , we change in approach. our neighboring states, arizona, oklahoma, exas, made a decision to maintain public employment and to maintain large and sustained investments in the state's economic development programs. instances that meant

changing tax policy, but we weren't able to do that here in mexico. we have a very government-dependent economy. not just the state government, but federal government, as well. workforce, theate state employees dropped in number, what that means, the state, roughout communities tonight have the to have hat they need spent at the local grocery the local restaurant. so reduction in workforce is big part of that. also think there has been not investing in n sa start-ups and pursuing the creative economy, like we see, for example, in austin, texas, or in denver. bright spots coming up. santa fe specifically has a new is creating what is called immersive experience. indoor disneyland

type experience that has been a uge success nationally recognized in santa fe and they are expanding now to denver and vegas. we have bright spots. employment numbers are diversification efforts start to take hold, but there is definitely a lot more to be done. -- i read recently there is a move to bring it back, reinstate death penalty, i wonder topic?feels on that

speaker egolf: thanks for the question and the governor was just on ho before me, signed the repeal of penalty in new mexico. i think that was absolutely the right thing to do, it was one of first things i got to vote on when i was a freshman legislator. repeal oud to vote to the death penalty. we resisted efforts to put it books here in new mexico, this session and last. to try s been an effort to do that. when democrats were in the inority in the house for two years, following the 2014 election, republicans in the did pass, unfortunately, 3:45 or 4:00 in the morning a lot of public notice, -- that einstate the didn't pass, continuing to resist that, it doesn't make ense to impose the death penalty, especially new mexico. the social justice aspect of how

fare.penalty not it is always applied more or nst people who are poor -- right way for our state to go and we'll continue that. host: other criminal justice reform issues were on your legislative agenda this past was covered? else speaker egolf: we passed -- is a crime problem that is ery significant focused in albuquerque. we passed in the last session, a

our that we refer to as ama mnibus -- firearm and included components that are designed to reduce and prevent crime before it takes place. so we have provisions in there for the first time to require assessment and mental healthcare be provided to people when they are put into into prison, as well, requiring now they will be signed up for medicaid before released and they'll be released with sufficient supply mental health medication, if that is what they need. recidivism in the united states, we are adopting that here. nonviolent eries of offenses and changed them three of being for felonies, they might be misdemeanors or petty misdemeanors, that allows judges to focus on violent offensives, so that

time and resource prosecution and law enforcement who are ed on people attempting to harm or hurt people or businesses. was all in one package and it was a great success. unanimously in the house, i believe unanimously in senate, combined treatment and prevention with increased crimeses on the types of we need to focus on felons possessing firearms. martin calling from madison, wisconsin. hi, martin. to comment o, want about this. i've been to new mexico before, okay.d, and, you know, the schools even ar-15s, ecure them with why pick new spot like maul, can't go there anymore, i'll move over here, you know what i mean. ridthey're just time to get of them. people can't hy handle them, ok.

not against the second okay?ent, but this stuff, host: thank you, martin. egolf. speaker egolf: thanks. you're right. he issue of securing schools doesn't protect other large public spaces and we saw a las vegas agedy in when a person shot from a hotel room and killed scores of people hundreds using an assault-style weapon with a bump stock. bump stocks i think need to be absolutely be banned in this country. of ink the next place greatest focus should be on large capacity magazines. people to walk into, as we saw in aurora 100 rounds shoot without having to reload a weapon is not what was by our founding fathers in the second amendment. oversupply of assault-style weapons also needs

i would support to prohibit these large capacity magazines and i do think we need to look at ways to restrict the availability of assault weapons. to as the brave students from parkland have shown us, when ease with about the which people can walk in off the street and buy a weapon of war then shoot and kill hundreds of people, it's outrageous and i it is time to look at that. las cruces, new mexico. chuck. live in las cruces, new mexico, you have probably been to. paso, and the thing i see and i feel it, as well. an enormous ee is stark difference when you cross that borderline. el paso, in texas, the economy is booming.

i live, what they have in las cruces, this is taxes and regulations that are out.ng us for example, they increased the inimum wage to $11 or maybe it was $15 and these businesses closed up. warned las cruces of this activity if they jack up prices, or operate e here here. i see that throughout the state. norsburg and bloomfield and those places are devastated by regulation the put on them. it was -- i would love to san juan, yes. so what are you doing -- have you lived in new mexico? 2005.: since 19 -- host: thank you, sir. response?golf, your speaker egolf: chuck, there is a couple things down in your part

going state that are great. is greatest rowing in the state and tremendous economic activity in terms of export/import and light manufacturing. it is an instance where new mexico tax structure is actually state.benefit to our we're seeing large warehouses built, fed ex for example, just one of the largest refrigerated warehouses in the in santa teresa, new mexico. inperty taxes are lower than texas. there is an economic advantage in that area. n that part of the state, the delaware basin within the larger memo permian basin is becoming a focus of large operators concho, eog and

others, we'll see scores of invested in ollars just d eddie counties, east of las cruces, to produce nd develop the new oil resources that have been discovered there. so there are things coming around. the minimum wage in las cruces $15, the highest is santa $11.30, thereabouts this year. since we adopted santa fe living we have seen , unemployment go down and standard of living go up in our city. we put more money into the pockets of people who spend locally. minimum wageruces, $9 and we're and not seeing decrease in terms of statistic decrease in the opposite.ite las cruces is coming around,

it's becoming a great for retirees, to move, and the economic impact benefits that retirees bring seeing the e are positive. host: we had gotten a call from new mexico, , earlier, wanting to run for office. what got you into this business? speaker egolf: i decided to run because i wanted to make sure new mexico is nd the kind of place my kids can raise their families. bring a longer-term view, longer-term focus to issues we a state and we wanted to see change. we don't like what we see in ashington with that type of dysfunction and i just decided if i want to see change, i have change.e so that meant a new democratic speaker with new democratic across the ching aisle, getting good ideas from republicans, traveling to epublican parts of the state, bringing ideas back to santa fe and