talks about the political stability of central america, an how it affectsd immigration to the u.s. u.s. news and world report talks about the future of the u.s. construction industry, and how it is responding to a worker shortage. be su to watchre c-span washington journal. join the discussion. >> c-span sat down recently with white house press secretary sarah sanders to talk about the job, interactions with the media, and president' communication styles. she described her initial reaction to be asked to leave a virginia restaurant earlier this month with her family. from the white house, this is 20 minutes.

>> as you approach the one-year mark, what is the biggest challenge? sarah sanders: being away from my family, that is the hardest thing. the job is 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and never stops. that is tough, i have three young kids and a husband who still like me. that is a good thing. they want to be around me more often than i get to be there. that is the hardest part of the job. >> in terms of how you get your information and briefing, what is the process? sarah sanders: a number of things that play into the process. the most important is talking directly to the president and being able to do my best to accurately reflect his thinking on any number of issues. it is so wide-ranging, anything is on the table. you have to cover as much as possible. one of the other things is the daily prep of being in the room as meetings are taking place and decisions being made. you understand the background

story as well on how we got to a decision, and the decision itself. those are big parts of it. we have an incredible team i work with. usually from one hour to two hours ahead of the briefing to walk through what questions we think, at least what topics and areas we think will be covered. and do our best to prepare to make sure we have good information to relay to the press. >> is it safe to say you rehearse how you will answer some of the questions? sarah sanders: more like game it out, sometimes we get it right and sometimes we get it wrong. you have to be prepared for all of the questions you never saw coming. that can be more challenging. >> the president is right down the hall. does he watch the briefings? sarah sanders: sometimes, but he -- not always. he is the president, so he is

kind of a busy guy. because they take clips of it and play it throughout the day into the evening, sometimes into the next day, even if he does not watch the briefing, he may see clips of it later on. >> someone with the white house transition project pointed out your briefings average 15 to 18 minutes, far shorter than your predecessors. why? sarah sanders: i do not take as long to get to the point, i answer as many questions as my predecessors, but we engage with the press in a lot of ways and the press briefing has changed a lot. even in the time since the president has come into office -- before president trump, you often did not see the press briefing taken in its entirety on all of the cable networks. now that is a common thing. being able to consolidate that is important. also, we have a president that is extremely accessible and i feel like people would rather hear from the president rather

than from me. as much as we can highlight key is doing throughout the day, whether he is given a speech or doing a round table, being able to bring the press into those events is far more important to see than to see me. we respond to a number of reporter questions and do a lot on camera interviews with the team. as well as back and forth with the ability to email all day, everyday. we are constantly putting out information and getting information to the press so they can write stories and help them through different formats and venues. the briefing is just one way for us to do that. >> there is a lot that happens beyond the briefing. walk us through a typical day in terms of how you feed the beast. how you feed the white house press corps beyond the briefing. sarah sanders: a typical day is hard to describe because it is

the white house. we do not have a lot of typical days. often the morning starts with the morning shows, anchors or producers calling early in the morning, checking in to talk about news of the day and get the white house's thinking. those calls can start as early as 5:00 in the morning and go well into 8:00 in the morning, people prepping for their hit. our staff here getting ready to do morning tv, they check in to make sure they have everything they need before they go out. that is usually the first name. we come in and have a series of morning staff meetings to talk about the schedule and message of the day. what is driving the news and how we are responding to different things. reporters -- i have meetings with reporters throughout the day regularly. plus, we have a pretty unique situation in the white house that i think is probably different from most any other

government. i have met with my counterparts, and they are always amazed the press can walk up and stop in my office. they do that a lot and ask questions. they do that with all of our press team. that happens from the moment we get here until the moment we go home. we do a lot of one-on-one interaction. depending on whether or not the president has open press or event, or we are traveling, those things can play into what else the day looks like. >> complete this sentence -- the state of the white house press relations with this president is what? sarah sanders: i would say interesting. it is a constant give-and-take.. >> complete this sentence -- the i think certainly the tension could be lower. i have made attempts to do that a few times.

there will always be a little bit of friction between the white house and the white house press corps. it has always existed. i think it is probably at a heightened level at this white house. i think there is heightened attention paid to this white house and to this president. i would like to see it be a little better at times. certainly it has always existed. i do not see it going away soon. >> do you ever get angry with reporters in the briefings? sarah sanders: sometimes, there is a level of respect that has in moments been lost. i think we could do a little better on that front. >> do you have the president's ear? sarah sanders: i speak with the president frequently, but nobody elected me to anything. they elected donald trump and it is my job to reflect what his thinking is and reflect what his policies are, and why we are

trying to implement them and make the changes we are. i try to do that as effectively as possible and as accurately as possible. i think i have a very good relationship with the president. michael is always going to the to relay what he wants to do, not my own personal thinking. >> has he shared advice in how to deal with the press? sarah sanders: he does. [laughter] the president is one of the most dynamic figures we have ever seen. he is somebody who knows how to drive a message, knows how to drive a narrative, and certainly, somebody that has such a great understanding of the power of the press. absolutely, he weighs in. i think that is one of the reasons he is in the white house, because he does understand the power of the press and dynamic of it.

and how to operate within the system. >> you are smiling. sarah sanders: i am a happy person. >> in regard to how the white house is portrayed, if you watch cable news, some call it a reality show, what is it like on the inside? sarah sanders: you have some of the most incredible people you will ever find, working extremely hard and doing everything they can to make our country a little better today than it was yesterday. people here really love america. they want to see the very best that we can make it. that is what we are here to do. if you walk around and see the time and hours and dedication people are putting in committee would be a lot different than what you see on tv. >> you have been driving debate this week to what happened at the red hen. you made a statement at the top of the briefing. i am curious -- when the owner

different than what you see on tv. >> you have been driving debate this week to what happened at the red hen. when the owner talked to you, what was your immediate reaction? sarah sanders: i was a little surprised. at the same time, i made a pretty quick decision, the whole conversation lasted a minute or two. >> what does that tell you about the state of our country and the political climate? sarah sanders: it is incredibly divisive. i think that, as we move into the midterm elections, you will not see that dissipate, sadly, but hopefully it will not continue to rise. and we can get back to a place where people can agree to disagree. we do not have to agree on everything, but i think we can treat each other a little bit nicer. >> does the president bear some responsibility? sarah sanders: if you look at the policies of the president, everything he has done is about getting the best for america, focused on defending our country, protecting our country,

establishing law and order, building an economy that benefits everybody, every single american. i think that everything he has done as president and the policies he has enacted are things that should be celebrated and should be things that can bring us together. the fact that we have such a booming economy should be a point that brings our country together. instead, people want to take it apart and attack and find things wrong with it. we can do better. >> the tone of the tweets and some of the statements, do you think that is an issue in the larger debate on the political climate and why it is so toxic? sarah sanders: the president has always been a fighter, he is tough and will not back down. i think there is a difference, hitting somebody in a verbal way, through a tweet, than asking for physical harm to be

brought to someone's children. which we saw with members of the hollywood elite this past week, or maxine waters asking us to -- any member of the trump team or trump administration to not be allowed to go in public. that is unheard of. that to me is totally unacceptable, to take things to that extreme. that goes beyond. >> president clinton and senator sanders said it was wrong for the owner of the restaurant to ask you to leave. sarah sanders: i appreciate that. i saw the comments by former president clinton and appreciated that. >> has there been one day on the job most memorable to you, or a moment? sarah sanders: there have been a lot. we are on the front row of

history. the president is one of the most dynamic, and engaging individuals i have ever been around and every day there are incredible moments we get to be a part of. every day we step foot in this building is an honor and privilege. i am thankful i get to be a part of it and part of what the president is doing. >> when we last talked, we talk about your father, does he give you advice? sarah sanders: sometimes, sometimes i take it and sometimes i do not. my dad and mom are both proud of my ability to be here and they are parents, they will be proud no matter what i do, they are very encouraging and supportive. glad i have a few people i know will be on my side. >> when they see you behind the podium, how do you work the room regarding to the questions? an approach in terms of who you

call on? sarah sanders: not really, i wish i could say there is a special formula but it is trying to go to different parts of the room and cover a variety of different outlets. >> have you reached out to your predecessors, have they given you advice? sarah sanders: i had conversations with quite a few of them. they all had very good advice. a little bit different. for the most part, it is all about do your best to get as much information as possible. give accurate information and be yourself. a small group have held the role. >> marvin fitzwater, the job is to be a reporter because you have to figure out how to give information across the

bureaucracy. sarah sanders: i could not agree more, a lot of times we deal with an issue that has eight or nine different principles and you have to get information from all of them to do your best to accurately reflect the overall process, not just one player. you are on a fact-finding mission. you are doing your best to get as much as possible. pretty consolidated amount of time, and related to the world. >> easy or difficult to get information, especially with military information? sarah sanders: it depends, sometimes easier than others. we have an incredible team at the white house. despite what you think, most people enjoy working with each other and have

a great deal of respect for each other. while we may disagree on how to get there, we want the same thing. i think it has gotten better over the last several months as you get to know people a lot better. coming in on day one, you go from a lot of different people from all over the country in various walks of life thrown into a building and say, "run the government overnight," it takes getting to know each other and getting to know different personalities. it has gotten better. after doing this for one year. >> as you reflect on the first year, have you grown in the job? has it changed you? sarah sanders: i definitely think i have grown. i like to think i have not changed. i come in every day hopefully

with the same attitude i have always had, that is to do my very best. to give the best possible information, and to always be myself in the process. i will continue to try to do that. >> at some point you will leave the position. sarah sanders: we will all leave, whether we like it or not. >> have you thought in terms of when? sarah sanders: no. i was asked this before. i wake up every day and part of my daily routine is to pray and ask for clarity, at some point i will get it, and when i do, i will make that decision. >> cbs news said you were leaving and you said they never contacted you. sarah sanders: i did not say they never contacted me, i said they never talked to me. i had an email with a deadline i missed because i was on a

program for my daughter, so they never spoke to me and put the story before they spoke to me. >> what does that say about the media? sarah sanders: i think there is a real race often to be first instead of to be right. that is a dangerous place. we used to have a 24 hour cylce, but now we are running on a 24 second cycle, that is a dangerous place. now there is not the same editorial process as stories go through before they go live. i think often times people -- reporters will use twitter to comment on a story and they do not realize it can be taken as news because they are a reporter. those are fast turnarounds. there is not an editorial process they go through.

i think it has not been helpful to the news for this constant race to be first instead of correct. >> do you tell editors and producers at various points? sarah sanders: absolutely, it is a constant thing we remind them of on a regular basis. >> we talked to you before you took this position, what thing best trained you to work in this white house? sarah sanders: probably having kids, it has taught me more patience i probably had beforehand. but it has given me great perspective. i never want to lose sight of the things that matter most. that is the best driver i can have, to always know the most important things will be my faith, family, that is the best preparation. >> do you have interest in seeking public office down the road? sarah sanders: i am just trying to do the job i have, not aware of any office i want to run for. i have seen the process and am

happy where i am. >> what time does your day begin and end? sarah sanders: start around 5:30, and stop around midnight. >> what are the weekends like? sarah sanders: it depends on if we are traveling. i usually try to spend time with my family. >> one trip that stands out? sarah sanders: several. certainly the singapore trip was incredible. momentthought it pivotal with the president. there have been some other really neat things we have done, i went as part of the presidential delegation for the olympics. it was led by ivanka and she had a good mix of diplomatic and fun, cheerleading side, a really interesting mix. a cool experience. i have done a lot of great

things. >> you still enjoy the job? sarah sanders: i love our country, think the president is doing great things and am blessed to be a part of it. >> what would you change? sarah sanders: probably shorter hours. less reporters? in all honesty, the thing that i would change would be the interaction -- often when the cameras are off, the interaction between the press and the press team is not as escalated. that would probably benefit everybody if that could be what was on the camera. >> are the briefings still useful? sarah sanders: i think they can be. i think they have become more at times about having a gotcha moment more than getting

information. >> do you want to name names? sarah sanders: everybody can figure that out. >> sarah sanders, thank you. sarah sanders: thank you for having me. >> >> that interview and many others are featured on our pod cast. you will find these bands the weekly and all podcast wherever they are able. -- wherever they are available. ♪ travelingpan bus is across the country on the 50 capitals tour.

>> we are finding it hard to him race -- to embrace diversity is a good ring. it is creating a great divide. conflicts then we need at the moment. we should be focusing our problem-solving skills on , nothing more important how we are different. our differences make us great. >> the most important issues to me are at the policy. we have a misconception amongst a lot of the public that we are falling behind. and, it is important for me to

inc. for the public to understand to work harder on making arctic policy a bigger issue than it is currently perceived. >> i'm a dentist here in fairbanks. i have been here since 1976. , where i from michigan went to school at the university of mexican. -- university of michigan. dental health is an issue in this date. in the cities, or the small rural communities are especially out in the bush. there is no access to many care facilities. the dental significance in this date are volunteers. we treated thousands of people the of charge for two days. .t was our second the private sector, the biggest burden -- a lot of the treatment is donated. the government facilities, public health offers a great

bush areasut in the where there is no private practice. i encourage everybody to remember it there dental hygiene. a 32 year resident of fairbanks, alaska. the most important issue to me is our political divide. i was raised a moderate republican. i worry about the future of our country. it seems like there is no room for moderation anymore. and we have is a conflict nothing gets done in the political party. i would like to see some changes. our worldwidebout ending. historically we have been looked

and aproblem solvers level of good that is changing and not for the better. those are my issues. be sure to join us july 21 and 22nd when we will feature our visit to alaska. what alaska weekend on c-span, c-span.org, or listen on the c-span radio app. capital. >> welcome to alaska, stop number 38 on our 50 states capitals tour. today we are in the 49th state in the union, and the capital juneau.june oh -- of governor walker, i understand that you can't drive there from