2018 coverage continues with a debate from new jersey. employment the equal opportunity commission holds a public hearing to review its sexual-harassment policy area that is followed by a discussion -- policy. that is followed by a discussion . day, president trump campaigns in florida on behalf of republican candidates ahead of next week's election. arab --onal council on --- arab relations posts h hosts their annual conference. evans fromp, arthur the american psychological association talks about the political climate and how it is computing to stress among

americans based on a recent survey. then, a look at california as a key battleground state in house races. vanill be joined by renee ♪ sen. murphy: good morning. it is wednesday, october 31. three-hour "washington journal." is a head morning. we begin on the issue of birthright citizenship. president trump yesterday said he wants to end the automatic rights of citizenship for anyone born in the united states. we want to know what you think of that idea. give us a call. republicans can call in at 202-748-8001. democrats, 202-748-8000.

.ndependents, 202-748-8002 you can also catch up with us on social media. on twitter it is @cspanwj. on facebook it is facebook.com/cspan. a very good wednesday morning to you. you can start calling in now. here is what the president said at an event with axius yesterday. [video clip] >> some legal scholars believe you can get rid of -- president trump: executive order. >> have you thought of that? president trump: yes. it was always told to me you need a constitutional amendment. you don't. >> that is very much in dispute. act ofcan do it with an congress. now they are saying i can do it with an executive order. how ridiculous. we are the only person in the

world where a person comes in and has a baby and the baby is a citizen of the united states for years with all those benefits. it has to end. >> have you talked about that with counsel? where in the process? guess, i have. it is in the process. host: that was the president. our question for you is on that topic of birthright citizenship. phone lines different. whether you think the u.s. should end birthright citizenship, 202-748-8001 is that number. if you think the u.s. should not end birthright citizenship, 202-748-8000. a special line for first generation americans, 202-748-8002. we now turn to jeffrey rosen, the president ceo of the national constitution center for plan.n the president's good morning to you and thank you for the time. on the president's comments about the process for ending

birthright citizenship, can he do it via executive order? onst: there are arguments both sides, but the consensus among republicans and democrats is that he cannot do it by executive order and congress cannot do it by statute either. the relevant text is the 14th amendment, which says all persons born or naturalized in the united states are subject to the jurisdiction thereof and of the state there in they reside and the question is what it -- what does it mean to be subject to the jurisdiction thereof? that is the qualification of being a citizen if you are born in the united states. the original understanding was people who are kids of foreign diplomats or native americans or those who swore allegiance to foreign powers, america's enemies were not subject to the jurisdiction thereof, but everyone else was. if you came to the u.s. as a

tourist, you would be subject to jurisdiction because you have to obey traffic laws. that is why the supreme court, in a case in 1988, said the legal alienhinese born in the united states was a citizen of the united states and cited the exceptions i mentioned, native americans and kids of diplomats. during the debates over the 14th amendment in congress, if you care about the original understanding. someone asked does this mean the son of a chinese person born in the u.s. would be a citizen and proponents said yes, absolutely. the case is pretty strong as a matter of tax and understanding and supreme court case law that neither congress or the president can -- the argument on the other side is if you come to the country

illegally and have allegiance to another power, you are not subject to the jurisdiction thereof and the supreme court has never ruled on that because the previous case involved the child of a legal alien and not an illegal alien. it is conceivable the supreme court could accept that argument. the bulk of the commentary thinks that is not likely to be the case and indeed, the wall street journal editorial page laid out the arguments i did against being able to do this by statute or executive order and said the president could not do it. the final thing is even if you think congress can do it by statute, for the president to do it by executive order would be more controversial. the president can only issue bycutive order elevated congress. we remember the controversy over the dreamers and congress passed lots of statutes saying the kids of illegal immigrants are subject to the jurisdiction of

the u.s., including by issuing them social security numbers. there is a whole lot of laws that presume the case was right and if you are born here, you are a citizen. for the president to counteract that by executive order would be going against congress' intentions. host: can you go back to the genesis of birthright citizenship? usa today with the list of 30 countries that automatic -- recognize automatic birthright citizenship. most of them in the western hemisphere. can you talk about why that is? guest: it is because america is not europe. in europe, citizenship was -- sanguine usd -- sanguinous, it is called. solace or., we have land, location. if you come to the country and

express your devotion to it by your physical presence, you should be a citizen and this stems from the infamous case, the dred scott case. dred scott -- the supreme court said dred scott, born as a slave person taken into free territory by his master could not be a citizen because as chief justice said, african-americans have no rights which the white person is born to respect and claimed historically and accurately that even free african-americans could not be citizens because we , the people of the united states, just refers to white people. that was historically unconvincing and infamous. president lingle rejected the -- president lincoln rejected it. if you are born in the united states, you are absolutely a

citizen of the united states and .he state where you reside african-americans or anyone -- that is the basic historical idea and it is a powerful idea as well asguishes us those 30 or so other countries from the vast majority of european countries, which have a citizenship based in blood. past 100 50 years since the 14th amendment was ratified, how often has the united states gone back and had this debate about eliminating birthright citizenship? upst: i don't think it has, all that often. the one case was 1898 and folks haven't criticized it since then. there was another in the 1980's that seems to presume birth rate -- birthright citizenship. it may have bubbled up now and

then, at no point has congress or the president made a sustained effort to eliminate birthright citizenship. guest: jeffrey rosen is the national -- president and ceo of the national constitution center. thank you for your time this morning. guest: thank you so much. host: our question is should the united states end birthright citizenship? if you think the u.s. should, 202-748-8001. if you think we shouldn't, 202-748-8000. that special line for first generation americans, 202-748-8002. blake up first in mississippi on the line for those who think we should. why is that? caller: america, and the world, i think this shows exactly what the problem in america is. we have had an unresolved situation and it is called slavery. america never gave reparations to african-americans. the build of the most powerful nation in the blink of an eye, it could not have been done

without slaves and that was not intended for the whole world from someone from china to come over here. there are hundreds of thousands of chinese having babies in hotels and we have to take care of their kids forever. no other president has addressed this issue. i am independent and i did not vote for mr. trump. tom the terrorists immigration, there is nobody addressing these issues other than him and it makes no sense. anyone with common sense should be for him. it makes no sense and we cannot take care of the whole world. everybody has locks on their doors, don't they? everybody has locks on their doors, don't they? because it makes no sense for someone to come over here and have a baby and we have to take care of the medical. we are defending the whole world. host: in tallahassee, florida, good morning. morning, c-span,

and thank you so very much. mr. rosen, i loved and enjoyed the series c-span gave with the constitution center regarding the supreme court cases he had on and i think that is fabulous. host: "landmark cases" is that show available at c-span.org. thank you for bringing that up. caller: yes, i love that, and everything you do to teach and give us clarity. the young gentleman that was just on, it is kind of a sad situation that someone would make those kind of statements and have no basis upon fact that we are taking care of people who come in for a lifetime, to make that statement is somewhat ignorant. let us be clear. we have a need for a modern comprehensive immigration policy . the issue, however, with the 14th amendment -- this is as mr.

rosen stated, it has to do with the context of a country that did, in fact, create stability and clarity for citizens who were here as slaves. this is a civil rights issue and i marvel at the fact that we have a president, as mr. rosen even stated, that would bring this fourth. here we are five days out from an election -- a midterm election that will determine the direction and transformation of the context of our country's political policies and to have a president to bring this up -- this is where we are. we have been at the crossroads here with this president and c-span, very specifically, is the value point that allows the citizens to come forth and share the commonality, the common good, the common value. yesterday, that man went there to philadelphia when they say

they had 2000 people in the a man who istest supposed to be the president. his own family who seemed to not have any influence on him. talk more about that trip to pittsburgh in our program. we want to stay focused on the birthright citizenship. we have a special line for first generation americans and mark is on that line from philadelphia. go ahead. caller: hey, john. i guess i have a dog in this hunt. both my parents were from italy and they were naturalized citizens. it took them a long time. my father fought in the u.s. army in world war ii and he was a legal resident. he was not, in fact, a citizen. he did not become a nationalized citizen until after he served in world war ii where he was lucky to have survived.

--m sorry, i will have to go even though i don't agree with the president much on anything, this idea that we can have these central american and you look at that caravan and a lot of them are women of childbearing age and they are going to come here and have how many anchor babies? this is kind of getting ridiculous, really. i think it should only be the birthright citizenship if the parents either -- one or the other is citizens or they have to be legal residents in order for the american-born children to get birthright citizenship. --have undocumented aliens they have people flying in from china and russia and having children and their kids automatically become citizens, that is total insanity. host: that is mark in pennsylvania. a few tweets from members of congress, their reaction to the

statements about ending birthright citizenship. nancy pelosi saying the president's new claim that he can unilaterally end the constitution's guaranty of citizenship, a power he does not have, shows his desperation from -- to distract from the gop's attacks on medicare, medicaid, and people with pre-existing conditions. lindsey graham sang finis he 8 -- saying finally a president willing to take this on. patrick leigh saying not a people from the president about -- patrick leahy saying not a peep from the president about how his trade wars have erased we are taking your calls this morning, your comments on this topic. doug from texas on the line who say we should not. caller: good morning. my curiosity on this thing is

about, where do you stop. i am living in texas and know several parents of people i know who are what you would call anchor babies. what about their children? and for that matter, how many people in the united states are not immigrants at one time or other in their background? host: that is doug in texas. kathy in montgomery, texas. good morning. caller: good morning. i think we should end the birthright. the illegals are absolutely abusing our country's laws. we do not mind the legal. ims i can italian and my husband is first generation italian. we love this country and everyone should have a chance. theld reagan did try to fix

illegal situation by forgiving i don't know how many million, 4 million at the time. now we have 20 million illegal citizens. our country has to protect its borders. that is the responsibility of a government and trump needs to fix this. it does not mean we don't want people here from other nations, we do. remember, a lot of isis people and dangerous ms13. arepeople are saying they so skinny and poor, they look pretty fed to me. they are coming into this country as an invasion and we don't want it. if i can go down and help our government, i would. bonnie in maryland, good morning. caller: it is like trump has a vendetta against the people of south america because most of his workers are from india and he had no problem with his wife

and their parents going to the front of the line to become citizens and his parents and grandparents are all from germany. citizensmany american are abused in the welfare system . it's not just the people from down there. this is nothing more than hate doesn'tand get you anywhere. i have seen people from these other countries and they work hard. i am not saying they should not be legal and all, but they will go out in the field and work 24 hours straight. you won't get somebody that can get freebies and welfare and all go out and work 24 hours. it is sad this man is spewing so much hate because something happened that he hates people from south america. host: that is bonnie in

maryland. our question is should the u.s. end birthright citizenship on whether the president can do it by executive order, debate on that topic yesterday. paul ryan disagreeing with the president saying, you cannot end birthright citizenship with executive order. i am a believer in following the plaintext of the constitution and i believe the 14th amendment is clear. that would involve a lengthy constitutional process. where we totally, obviously agree with the president is getting at the root issue, which is unchecked illegal immigration. kellyanne conway defending the president's intention to use an executive order to end birthright citizenship, saying there are constitutional scholars who say the 14th amendment has been misinterpreted and says the supreme court never gave a solid opinion on this. matt visor of the boston globe pointing out that george conway,

kellyanne conway's husband thinks otherwise, pointing to this column in the washington and today by george conway -- the husband of kellyanne conway, also lawyer in washington, neil to tile -- neil, and former acting u.s. solicitor general in the obama administration. they write about the president's proposal to end birthright citizenship. such a move would be it would beonal and challenged. birthright citizenship is what the 14th amendment is about, bridging the declaration of independence's promise that all men are created equal and all those born in the united states share that equality. darlene, thank you for waiting in nevada. those on the line who say we should not. soler: i think this is

ridiculous. african-americans were brought here as slaves and they were not guaranteed citizenship under the constitution as a gift for what they and toward during the time -- they endured during the time of slavery. i think the black people were -- formerlyrmally enslaved people. what about all the people who came here on the ships? were they citizens? fromve a lot of immigrants other countries and they know where their heritage is from. blacks don't know where their heritage is from and that is why the 14th amendment is so important. i don't understand what is going on right now. even if blacks were given freedom, they were not giving the -- given the free rights to become citizens because they are still enslaved.

don't get out of high school, they are going right to prison. host: ruf can american? -- are you african-american? caller: yes, i am. host: talk about this issue of heritage. caller: heritage means i don't know where my grandparents come from. in nevada, the person that shot at the mandalay bay, he was norwegian. where is your background? we have to know where everybody's background. america is based on everybody migrating here from other countries to have a better life. a better life of having an american and expressing and protecting rights. if you are living in america, you are an american. you are not a democrat, republican, you are an american. years in the 26 air force and i believe he represented this country. my mother was a nurse for 30 years. we understand america is about building from the bottom.

what is the issue right now? there should be a process established for people to come here and become citizens and we should know what the process is. the problem is there is no process. host: gloria in ohio is next. good morning. caller: good morning. understand either. i agree with everything the previous calle saidr. -- caller said. if donald trump wants to be the president of his base, which is 33% of america, that is all the tax but -- tax dollars he should be allowed to spend. he should not be able to spend my tax dollars on what he wants instead of what i need. i pay my tax dollars for what i might need. i don't pay my tax dollars for him to go to mar-a-lago every weekend and go golfing every

weekend and then go places where he is not invited. he spent i don't know how much money yesterday going to pittsburgh and now he is talking troops downng 5200 to the border to make a point. nobody comes from america. everybody came from somewhere. nobody has a right to tell anybody that they cannot come here because that is the way america was set up. if they don't like it, they are the ones who need to leave and they need to start a new country and they need to do it their way, not us. not america. we are not going to have this here in america. host: that is gloria in cleveland, ohio. this issue of birthright citizenship came up in this debate. [video clip] >> the 14th amendment of our

constitution and how this should be handled is by the congress. i heard you say lindsey graham is going to put legislation forward. we have to take a look at that legislation. as of right now, the 14th amendment of the constitution says exactly regarding this issue. thatld want to see legislation, make sure it was constitutional, and review it first. >> mr. brown, over to you. citizenship, all these issues have accumulated over a long. of time and the key difference will be to see are you happy with the way results have happened in d.c.? do you think the people who have been there have fixed this problem? i know hoosiers ranked border security up with the cost of health care and worries about social security and medicare.

we have a leader in the white house doing something about it. you cannot keep kicking these issues down the road. politicians on both sides of the aisle and the senator has been there for a long time. he has made a career of being in the game. he has got to hold responsibility for it. he did cover that issue right and there will be legislation on it. i think we will see how that pans out. it is the accumulation of many nears of neglect -- years of neglect, neglecting border security. >> the question was about legislation about birthright citizenship. would you support it or not? >> i will wait and see what the discussion is on it and if lindsey graham is introducing it, it will be something i take a look at. i will not say i support it or not until i read the legislation. host: that indiana senate debate and all of our debates available at c-span.org.

debates continue tonight on c-span live at 8:00 p.m., the new jersey third district debate. tom mcarthur and anti-cam, the democrat -- andy kim the democrat in that race. listen to it on the c-span radio app. another campaign rally today, this time in florida. that happening at 7:00 p.m. you can watch that on c-span 2, c-span.org, and the c-span radio app. san diego, california, good morning. caller: good morning, happy halloween, everybody. i was wondering if in addition to halloween, national suspension of all reason and logic day. what i am hearing almost makes my hair fall out. i don't have enough to lose. --far as immigration birthright by being born here, it say in thes

constitution that is even if you commit a felony by getting over here in the first place? that is what they are doing. the one thing that seems to be left out of the conversation is if we have a wall, we are not going to have this problem of anchor babies because they are going to get over here anyway. the wall is the first thing. president trump doesn't have the right to unilaterally by executive order say -- make that change in immigration law, but i think congress must have that authority. why would the founding fathers make it so difficult to change immigration law, especially when it is as ridiculous as the one we have? it is illogical. have a nice day everyone and i cannot believe what i am hearing. thank you. host: anthony, detroit, michigan

, thinks we should not change the policy. go ahead. caller: no, i think we should not and i disagree with just said.the caller it doesn't matter if you build the wall. you could build 100 walls. if the people want to come over here -- host: over here. if them people want to come over here what, anthony? caller: if they want to get over here, they will get over here. they will build tunnels. what he just said doesn't make sense, you are wasting taxpayer money to build a wall. host: lewis in alabama, the line for those who think we should not change it. go ahead. caller: i don't think they should change it. the first thing they ought to do if they try to change it is open up the wall border and let the mexicans in because they were here before any whites were. if he is -- if they are going to starve, let them starve with his own son. he is an anchor baby.

the youngest kid is an anchor baby. -- host: why do you say that? caller: his wife wasn't born in america, was she? host: she is a u.s. citizen now. caller: she still has anchor babies. u.s.n't talking about citizens now. we are talking about anchor babies. is an anchor baby. how can you sit over there and talk about anchor babies like this? he needs to talk about his own interest, politics. he is doing this against his own interest. host: that is lewis in alabama. bob in texas, good morning. caller: good morning. there is a big elephant in the room on this question. i could be for anchor babies, of theicle 4, section 4

constitution, which preceded the 14th and 15th amendments by 80 years says the national government, federal government shall protect every state against invasion. if we are protecting every state against invasion, we would not have a big problem with anchor babies. -- louise is next next in virginia. good morning. caller: i think one thing we are forgetting is this nation is founded on immigrants and if you stop the immigrants, our population will shrink. national born citizens are not having babies at the rate they used to. these people make our nation. we are strong because of the work, the social security they pay, which helps to support those of us on social security. and we arewide base

not getting it. the other point is i think trump .s leading toward dictatorship he wants it his way and it is shameful the way he brings out the dark side of our country. there is so much prejudice in this country and our treatment of immigrants is appalling. i am forced to give because i feel so ashamed of the way our president is behaving toward these people. they come here and work hard and pay their taxes, stop it, already. york.jim in new good morning, you are next. caller: trump is doing a great job. this is great. my care -- grandparents came from germany, france, portugal. every one of them assimilated and they all spoke english. an accent when i

was a kid. ,ll those liberals calling in all those bleeding heart liberals, why don't you move over here -- that is probably where the caravan is headed for. i bet they are all working off the books. don't tell us about paying taxes. how many people can this country take? you have got some of these houses, it is like a shanty town . you've got so many cars, they are piled up on the lawn and it looks like a junkyard because you have people living in these toses, renting rooms up to 5 a room paying $700 a month for the room. the is why they decimated siding and the roofing business because they all work for peanuts and the workers will not do that because they want to live as a family in one house and they cannot afford to live in one house.

i don't hear anybody yet and you are an educated die who reads the wall street journal and the guys like i did -- educated who reads the wall street journal and the times like i do. our country has -- what, for 60 years troops on the border? you've got all these bleeding heart liberals, especially some of the blacks. why did they leave? marquis at the high schools in elementary schools are in spanish. they are not assimilating. we have five or six radio stations in new york in spanish now. from long is jim island. a few more comments from members of congress about this issue of birthright citizenship. masto saying the

president continues to promote hate in america, undermine our country's values and attack our constitution. arthright citizenship is constitutional guarantee. president trump should be uniting our country in the wake of violence and tragedy instead of working to unite the country, the president continues to attack immigrants for political gain. i will not stand for yet another one of these attempts to divide us. another tweet from jerry conley with a picture of the constitution that he says he will be sending the president to read the highlighted section. he highlighted the 14th amendment for the president's convenience, he said. we abide by the sacred document and congressman steve king sang it is great news the president will end birthright citizenship for illegal aliens. i have been the lead author of this legislation since 2011 and i am happy my legislation will soon be a national policy. thank you, mr. president. that is steve king from iowa.

speaking of steve king, making his own headlines from this morning's washington times as -- pittsburgh began burying -- all but jettisoned steveican representative king from the house republican congress declaring we must stand up against white supremacy and hate in all forms. the highly unusual rebuke from the chairman of the national republican committee came a week before the midterm elections. after years of incendiary and racially charged comments by mr. recent days by his endorsement of a white nationalists running for mayor in toronto and a meeting with an austrian white nationalists which he funded with a trip to visit concentration camps. congressman steve king's recent comments, actions, and retweets inappropriate.

we must stand up against white supremacy and hate in all forms and i condemn this behavior. steve king firing back with a statement affirming americans of all races and "national origins, legal immigrants, and national born citizens" are created equal. he blamed attacks on him as orchestrated by nasty, desperate fake news aided by complicit establishment never trumpers. that is steve king from yesterday. speaking of other headlines besides the birthright citizenship issue, this also from the new york times and several other papers. robert mueller has asked the fbi to investigate an effort to appears to be to smear him, offering women money in exchange for fabricating sexual misconduct claims against him. "when we learned of allegations women were offered money to make false claims about the special counsel, we referred the matter to the fbi for investigation." one of the rare statements out of the office of the special counsel from the spokesman.

one other story to point you towards this morning, this out of washington out of the interior department. the interior department's office of the expected general -- one of the probes into ryan zinke to the justice department for further investigation according to individuals familiar with that matter. the inspector general is conducting at least three probes that involve zinke. -- operate a casino in connecticut. prosecutors's will explore whether a criminal investigation is warranted while the inspector general rarely issues reports, it refers cases to the justice department when it has determined there could be criminal violations. welcomed thecs potential investigation and answers,press for

quoting a congressman, the top democrat on the resource committee saying if democrats are given the opportunity to hold congressional majority, secretary zinke will be called to testify on why his conduct in office merited a referral to the justice department. that story is in today's washington post. about 20 minutes left in the segment and we are asking should the united states end birthright citizenship. if you believe the united states 0.ould end it, 202-748-8001 if you believe the united states should not end birthright citizenship, 202-748-8001. a special line for first-generation americans, 202-748-8002. caller: the president is making stuff up again. he is incredible, without credibility. he says this is the only nation that has birthright citizenship.

this is one of 30 nations that does that. we were talking about immigration whether it be legal or illegal. where does the word invasion come in? i don't see anybody with arms or guns or anything from the footage i see on the news, this caravan coming up from the southern border. the man admitted just last week that he is a nationalist. that is code speak for white supremacist. america needs to wake up and see what this man is. what happened in pittsburgh -- kristallnacht, the night when all the glass was broken in germany by the brownshirts. this man is leading us down a freeway on the left side of the road and he will create a head-on collision. host: that is larry and marilyn. rubin in florida on the line for those who think we should end

it. debated,t is kind of but it doesn't make no sense for the united states to go all the way to north korea almost to get in a war -- a lot of those people are good people. are bad lot of them people, that's what he said, the president. it just don't make no sense. there isn't even anything to talk about, it is political. he is just trying to get in the white house. host: carol in texas. good morning. caller: good morning, c-span and thank you for taking my call. thanks for having this discussion. the 14th amendment is crystal clear that all people born in the united states are citizens. this is exactly how donald john of theecame a citizen

united states. how i did and most of your callers became citizens. we became citizens because we were born here. it did not matter where our parents came from. one of the things that is discouraging to hear, like the guy who called and complained about spanish speaking radio stations and things like that, i have news for people -- most of the southwest of the united states used to be part of mexico . it is not anymore. sendhad a treaty called -- anybody north of the border line established by the treaty was an american citizen. they made that crystal clear. if you come to texas and go south toward san antonio, you speaking people spanish and they have brown skin and those are the americans. this idea that we are going to enforce things based on the color of people's skin again,

this is completely wrong, racist . that is what is coming out of the president's mouth. they are locking little children up in cages on the border. this is exactly what they are talking about when they talk about dog whistle politics right before the election to get a certain type of people to come out and support this guy. this is a complete mistake. this kind of stuff, this kind of rhetoric, this talk out of the president led to the shootings in pittsburgh. he should be afraid of himself and anybody who gives credence to him should be ashamed because the 14th amendment is crystal clear. it required two thirds of vote in congress to change the amendment and you had to ratify another amendment with three fourths of the state of the united states to ratify the amendment worried thank you for taking my call. host: that is carol sang the constitution is clear on the

issue. this is the editorial page of the wall street journal, saying president trump's executive order on birthright citizenship would violate the constitution. if president trump once the end -- wants to end the practice , he canirth tourism pass an amendment. he is making this futile gesture of the executive order a week before election day. here is what vice president mike pence had to say yesterday at an issue with an event with politico. [video clip] >> what i think the president has made clear is we are looking at action that would reconsider birthright citizenship. we all know what the 14th amendment says and we cherish the language of the 14th amendment, but the supreme court never ruled on whether or not the language of the 14th amendment subject to the jurisdiction thereof applies specifically to people in the country illegally. i think the president is looking at executive action and congress

looked at legislative action to reconsider that. our broad objective is let's fix a broken immigration system that is being used by people who literally are exploiting vulnerable people, enticing them to make this long journey north to the border in the hopes of coming to our country illegally and we need a system where people know how to come into the united states legally and we have a system working for the american people first and in an orderly way, like it did for my grandfather when he came through ellis island when he was 23 years of age from ireland. the system isn't making and we have to reform it. >> it would be dramatic action for the president to do that by himself. >> i will leave it to the president to announce whatever actions we will take. the president yesterday made the decision we are the .50 200 troops to the southern border. troops to the200

southern border. the crisis of illegal immigration on our southern border continues. of changes in the law and executive action, i don't want to get ahead of the president. you can look back at the famous speech in phoenix he gave about immigration reform and he spoke about us taking on this issue and other issues in a way we can have a debate about having an immigration system in america that is working, working for the american people first and that includes re-examining this issue of birthright citizenship. host: about 15 minutes left in this segment of the washington journal, having this discussion on whether you not -- whether the united states should end birthright citizenship. special phone line for first-generation americans, 202-748-8002. susan called on that line from new york city. paris: good morning, john

to thank you for taking my call. imc fed up with what the president is playing on people -- i am so fed up with what the president is playing on people's fears, injecting isis into the discussion. my parents came from germany in the 1930's. i have so many family members killed in the holocaust scattered all over the globe because of what happened in germany and because there were then, so many of my family never made it here. our country is about accepting people whose lives are in danger. you have to allow for these people who feel threatened to come into this country and enjoy freedom. it is too important in this country. the president is just going to go off half cocked doing his stuff about birthright. he is playing on people's fears and it is working for him.

it is just outrageous. new yorkt is susan in city. linda in minnesota on the line for those who say we should not get rid of it. good morning. caller: good morning, john. thank you for taking my call. i have a couple of statements. i am hoping he understands that not just baron, but the other three of his children did not -- don was born in 1977. eric, 1984, but their mother did not become a citizen until 1988. i guess they will be booted out. that is great. my other comment is way up in the north country in minnesota, i am about an hour away from the canadian border. right now, we are harvesting sugar beets. it is a nasty job and nobody

likes to do it. right now, there are a lot of latinos up here doing this job because the white men who don't want these people in here will not take the job. that is my point and thank you for taking my call. host: david in new york, you are next. caller: good morning, john. i am in support of upholding the 14th amendment. i was born and raised in iran and came here and have a family of five. five of us have 25 degrees including advanced degrees. ae debate regarding tour is -- tourism birth has to be done in a rational and logical government-driven process. the far more a -- adverse ramification of such ideologically driven, politicized type of rhetoric is it isearly 100 million --

approaching fast one third of either. population, were naturalized, legal residence, or their children in this country, their daily lives have been totally impacted. safety, security, professional advancement and opportunity of nearly 100 million have been adversely impacted because of what our so-called president has driven a wedge among three major million u.s. population and that must be stopped now. host: that is david in new york. a few tweets from viewers. mark writes this is a distraction from the failed tax attempt to rile up the gop base for next tuesday voting. nothing more. another tweet from charity who

writes i don't think we attemptd end it. we need an amendment that can cut out vacation baby citizens. we need a timeline of proof with economy through schooling or job held before we give the baby citizenship. how would this work? the doctor delivering the baby would decide on spot if the baby can be a citizen? host: taking your calls. a few minutes left in this segment. don in tennessee, the line for those who think we should end it. good morning. caller: good morning. in the early paragraphs of the original body of the constitution, there is a little phrase about except they be under another sovereign and this isn't pertaining to birth in the united states. to me, i feel that means have

they renounced their citizenship from another country to embrace american citizenship? just -- when you see the daca protests from a few years back, they are parading their national flag from another country and stomping on the american flag and what have you and i am like, why give them birthrights? that is my opinion and i am welcome for feedback. host: rick in colorado. good morning. caller: good morning. i would like to point out some facts. trump supporters might want to hold their ears. i watched like 6 documentaries where trump offers a program in his condos down in florida that have rich saudi's or russians or chinese want to have birthrights. they rent a," for a couple months while the mother is -- a

condo for a couple months while the mother is pregnant and have a baby and they have dual citizenship. he is a hypocrite. as far as this caravan, i think he created a problem by sending the gang members back. why didn't we lock the gang members up up here, not send them back where they are going back -- after their own people? that is what started this whole thing. -- family in the democratic convention, he had it right. he has not read the constitution and does not respect the constitution and has never been held accountable. thank you. host: some stats on birthright citizenship particularly when it comes to undocumented immigrants from the pages of today's usa today. alan gomez did the question and answer that appears on page three. citizenship was granted to

275,000 babies born to undocumented immigrant parents and 2014, representing seven up -- 7% of all births in the u.s. that year. those numbers represent a drop from the peak years of illegal immigration, which topped in 2006 when 370,000 children were born to -- 9% of all births. those numbers do not include pregnant number -- pregnant numbers -- pregnant mothers who obtained visas. -deal with immigration authorities said they can- and to u.s. with the sole purpose of giving birth to citizens. 21% of births in arizona in 2014 were to undocumented immigrant and 25% of births in texas were to undocumented immigrants according to an analysis by the center for immigration studies.

forin florida on the line first-generation americans. good morning. caller: good morning, john. thank you for taking my call. i want to let you know i am a first generation american and i countryin laws of this and that is part of the problem with people today, including americans. they don't take us laws -- our laws serious. they are easy to follow until they are manipulated by the legal system and lawyers, that is when things get messed up drastically. i suggest the american population take some civic classes to learn about our country and our laws and pick up a history book dated prior to copy date 1970 and learn about american history and european history. maybe they will open their eyes and see history does repeat itself and the lack of knowledge and the lack of knowing law and history creates the hardship and the chaos we live in today.

thank you for the opportunity -- the time to speak with you and i would like to say i am proud fromse my parents came czechoslovakia and their name is etched in granite on ellis island because they came here the right way. god bless america and god bless mr. trump. host: in raleigh, north carolina, good morning. caller: good morning. thank you for c-span and the said somebefore me things clearly. what i am going to say, i think what the problem is is that legal are not speaking of immigration when people file their papers and come into the country legally, they are speaking of immigration that people come into this country on never gon visas,

home, have a baby, the baby is here and people just walking across the border illegally. are is what americans concerned about and i have seen it in the school system. i have seen it all over. i worked in many areas in the hospitals and i have seen the devastation that is happening in this country and it is dividing this country. we are speaking of people who are here illegally or people who are on visitation visas and pregnant deliberately to have a baby or they never go home. thank you so much. i think that will clarify what americans are concerned about. thank you. host: to bob. jacksonville, texas. good morning. caller: thank you very much. first of all, let me say i am not a fan of -- excuse me, i am

.ot a fan of mr. trump i think he is the worst president we have ever had. what i am going to say has nothing to do with that. birthright had not been handled back -- i don't know when it was made law -- host: ratified in 1868, i believe. 1868,: caller: ok, after anybody who landed on these shores and they were not a citizen when they came. if they started a family before they became citizens, their whole generations that followed them were illegal. i have a hard time explaining what i am trying to say, but i

think, you know, if you think about it -- if you are not a citizen when you get here and you start a family, all of the things -- all the people that followed you in your family are illegal. if that would have been the case. i think the 14th amendment is right on, it is doing its job. i appreciate you taking your call and god bless you and c-span, it is a wonderful program. thank you. host: thanks for that, bob. bob is our last caller in this segment. --will stick to arthur evans talk to arthur evans to discuss latestults of the apa's stress in america survey. the political climate is one of the most significant stress factors for american. we will take a deep dive into

states with the most competitive house seats. we had out west to california, a state with about a dozen seats in play this year. we will be right back. ♪ announcer: this week on washington journal. we are looking at battleground states. the most competitive races of the midterm elections. and minnesota. new york. california. pennsylvania. and florida. join us for a live campaign 2018 call in during washington journal at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. sunday on q and a.

>> seven years ago, the people of the united states set out upon what they thought was a great liberal campaign. somewhere along the line, we lost the objective. announcer: the two-time pulitzer prize-winning author on his biography of presidential candidate wendell wilkie. >> here was an internationalist. a great civil libertarian. here was a man with civil rights convictions that would have matched and obama, perhaps. liberal man who was a and, at the same time, accessible to the role of government in the economy. only to a great degree. i thought all the things about him were appealing. and his honesty. there is a part in the book where we have roosevelt asking

wilkie to consider being his vice president when he is going to overthrow henry wallace. he wants someone new. wilkie says no. announcer: sunday night at 8:00 eastern. on q and a on c-span. announcer: washington journal continues. the relationship between the political climate and your stress level is our topic. arthur evans is our guest. ceo of american psychological association. americans say that the political environment today stresses them out and how does that compare to previous years? americans aref stressed by the current political environment. 69% of americans are concerned about the future of the u.s. and are stressed by that. that is up from last year where we had 63%, a high number.

69% this year. one of the things that is striking about that is that it crosses the political lines. a majority of republicans, democrats, and independence stress and terms of the concern of the future of the country. host: at what point did you start to worry as someone who studies stress and its impacts. guest: what our survey is showing is that the current political environment is having an effect on people. and one of the reasons we do this is wanting to understand what are the stressors that people are experiencing. more portly, to educate the public about stress and its impact on our health. we know that unmitigated stress results in a whole series of physical and mental health challenges. and it is important to know what the stresses are. and to manage them as best that we can. question for our viewers

in the segment, are you stressed about the current medical environment? how has impacted your life? give us a call. for months split up regionally. if you're in the eastern or central time zone. if you're in the mountain, or pacific time zone, you can start coming in now. are americans getting better at mitigating that stress? guest: what is happening, it looks like the current environment is actually causing people more stress. one of the things we also know is that as we mature and as we are better able to match that stress. the lowest stress levels are in older americans. the highest stress levels turn out to be in younger americans. in the survey we looked at a generation z. they'd group between 15 and 21. what we found was that that age group experiences stress at a much higher rate than all the

other it groups. in fact, on a whole series of questions, they rated that more of them, they were stressed by events in the news like sexual assault, immigration, some of the political issues that are happening. results of of the the numbers specifically focusing on generation z. citing the sources of their stress. 75% cite mass shootings. 72% site school shootings. 60% are various. 57% site immigrant family separations and deportations as a source of stress. united sexual harassment. 53% of generation z cited as a source of stress. what is the take away for the youngest americans? >> you know, for young americans, and that it group, they are not fully mature. the parts of the brain that

helped us with executive functioning, the kinds of skills that we need to manage this kind of stress are not developing until around the age of 25. you have young people who are experiencing the same things that older americans are experiencing. but they are not quite capable of dealing with that. as i said, overtime, we learn how to manage stress much more effectively. so, you have young people who are exposed to the same things that we are exposed to. but not fully -- not having the same coping skills. the same coping mechanisms. and the ability to put things in perspective. that's what the things that happens as we mature. they don't have that. they are experiencing that. we have to be concerned about that. host: talk about the role of social media. for all americans. a source of stress and a coping mechanism for some people. guest: social media actually cuts both ways. in the survey about roughly about half of the respondents in social media was a

support for them. about another half said that social media also causes stress. we have to be concerned about the perversion of young people who are seeing this as a stressful service of stress. -- source of stress. the other thing our survey has shown is that the amount of social media that we take in also relates to our stress. it is important to manage that. to cut it off. i say it is like a soap opera. sometimes, you can miss a few days and it is pretty easy to catch back up. host: the relationship between the political climate and your stress level. tell us about it. caller: thank you for taking my call. thank you for the guests. i was in the go for it. was under a lot of stress at

that time. i remember when i came back how i ended up being under a different type of stress. the stress of everyday life. i noticed that my body was affected by the stress the same way. that was the first time that i realized, or that i, you know, realized how stress affects me personally. physically. and emotionally. you know, as far as the political climate, i have noticed that i am -- i do feel stressed by -- about it. think just thinking about the area of think my main stress is because, you know, the , youdent lies so much, but know, congress does not do anything about it. you know. you now, they don't, they don't,

they don't check him. the people that support him are ultimately, you know, you know, they, they are supporting these lies. it is frustrating when you can't , um, when it seems that you can't do anything about it. you know, and as far as the social media, you mentioned about the stress level and how that affects people. i do, i do know that, i just wanted to make a quick comment ont i just recently started twitter. i noticed that it is a sort of a --ess reliever to be able to vent and put it out there, you know, you know, because when you can express your frustration and your, and, you know, get the emotions out, it kind of helps. a strange thing about social media on that. host: thanks for the call. doctor. thank you for your

service. you are seeing a number of important things. he recognize that the stress that you feel actually does happen -- have an impact on our bodies and on our physical state. that is one of the reasons that it is important to manage it. you also said that you were experiencing or seeing things that were happening in a political sense and feeling that you don't have an ability to act on them. i would push back on that and say that you do have an ability to push back. ability to vote or do you have the ability to be active, politically. one of the things we know from the research is that the more we and take proactive actions, it actually helps mitigate our stress. i would urge you to continue to be engaged and to act on those issues that you feel strongly about. want to show viewers a statistic that he came up with through the survey on how people are dealing with the political climate. there was a plan to do with it by voting in the midterm election.

older americans, 87% of those are spotted to the survey. saying they plan to vote in the among the boomer generation at 76%. 10 racing dexcom a 66%. millennials, 68%. the youngest generation, generation z, 54%. guest: -- that is true. again, that is an issue. here's a generation that is most affected by what they're saying politically. least likely to vote. said, it is important and things are stressing us, when we are concerned about things, for us to take proactive action. the message is young people in that age group who have the ability to vote should get -- get out and vote. engage in the political system. host: greenville, rhode island. good morning. caller: good morning. i am stressed just about every single day i watch the nightly news. everyone cares.

i get stress over politics. big-time. i get stressed, my stress issues are how they distraught to the truth about what our president has a. and a combatants. they tell half-truths. about what he has done. anything positive, i mean, anything positive, our president ,oes, is switched around to like just this morning, watching the today show. oh how much tax money is going to cost to bring down the troops down to the southern border. is like they twist everything every day. i had to turn it off and i had to watch on the c-span. representative or senator speaker on the floor, i hear everything they say. not just a five second piece that is going to run on the news. ? do you know what i'm saying just a five second piece. a segment. not just what the president is

going to safer they take out a little piece of what he says. tell the whole truth. host: when you feel it is ok to turn some of those other networks back on? wendy go back to those things that stress you out in the first place? caller: when there is something about entertainment going to come on. i take on the entertainment segment. or the windy the weather is going to come on. i mean, it really, the first thing in the morning is a batch president first things first. that is the main agenda. i already voted. thatso trueblue american i'm working the polls. this is my second straight year this year. i volunteer for it in my town that i live in. i enjoy it. i want everyone who is a legal citizen to get out and vote, no matter what your views are. that is great. i would love to have -- i have conversations with friends who go both sides. i am an independent.

i already tell you i went down the chicken republican this year. the whole way. i was discussing with a lot of democrats. not doing anything but stalling and saying no to anything, even if it is on their agenda, on their side. and then they're lying about the health care issues that they want to take away. -- if you have an elm is, they would probably take it away from you. host: tj and rhode island. dr.. guest: you're doing a lot of things that we recommend that people do to manage their stressed or do the stress. being conscious about the things that stress you. and are taking action. you are being engaged politically. i think that the kind of things you're doing, and engaging, one of the things i really like that you said is that you are talking to friends who have different opinions. on both sides, i think the way that you frame it. we need more of that. i think it helps to increase the

civility in our country. think, helps in terms of managing how these events are impacting us. congratulations. host: harold is in wilmington, north carolina. good morning. caller: good morning and thank you. i was born when franklin roosevelt was the president. presidenter seen a that causes so much disruption. ask like the entire country was just about to fall into a hole. about him being so great and so smart, he is saving us all. take people's heads and bash them up against the police department. calling people names. disrespecting for women. like a commong man. by prostitutes. doing just about anything, and the old common man in the street would do. get away with it.

i have just about lied and i can't get it wrong. i am afraid what is happening to the united states. rubbing shoulders dictators. the bayonet korea. imprudent. saudi arabia. he asked like he is not -- i don't know. host: let me ask you one of the questions in the survey. in the stress of america survey. do you think this is the lowest point in the nation's history that you can remember? >> i have never known a president to cause so much disruption. some kind of complaint. something about this country. bad, hecountry is so needs to resign and get out of office. host: harold in north carolina. dr.. guest: one thing i think the cover is pointed out is that, you know, we have an unconventional president. both his supporters. and detractors would agree to that.

unconventionality, unpredictability relates to uncertainty. uncertainty does cause stress. so, you know, that element, that characteristic can be a source stress for individuals. host: sam is waiting in california. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. i have a couple of comments. far olderll, someone and wiser than myself who was also a doctor, my father, advised me and polite company avoid discussing politics and religion. that advice has worked for me over the past several decades. i just don't get stressed out because i don't discuss politics. with anyone. intellect company. secondly, i don't have any social media. so, that also helps. sometimes, people say we are not polite.

i am. that basically creates some laughter and also distresses. one step further, i say you should not discuss politics before eating. especially thanksgiving. it ruins the appetite. he shouldn't discuss politics or religion during the meal because it ruins the taste. you should not discuss it after thanksgiving dinner because it ruins the digestion. people laugh. that is all i had to say. thank you. , that isose are great great advice. host: this is the 12th annual stress in america survey. my did you feel lucky need to start it 12 years ago? caller: -- guest: we understand distresses related to our health stress. unmitigated stress cost things like depression. heartal conditions like disease. obesity. so, as a profession that is

concerned about the health of healthns, and how mental issues like stress are related to that, we thought it was important to get a handle on that. whetherdy wants to know your association has studied the psychological stress of the children separated from the parents. by ice. guest: we have. we have a large body of research that shows that separating children from the parents is extremely stressful. children, it is particularly stressful. so, we use the body of research to advocate for policies -- policies that would limit that and that would actually not allow children, particularly young children to be separated from the parents. while the more recent policy issue is something that is being studied now, there is a large body of research that shows that stress for children. host: some of that stress for -- on your website? there.evans is the ceo

kathy is in waldorf, maryland. good morning. guest: -- caller: good morning, thank you for taking my call. i wanted to say that i am not as old as a lot of the previous colors. i'm 37. however, i have not, i have not seen this country in such a roar. so much division. i'm from california. i have lived in maryland, the climate is completely different. at both ends of the country. i wanted to say that my stress comes from the fact that although i am a veteran, although i went to school and work hard as a registered nurse, i was diagnosed with ms. challenges. so, because i have those challenges, i automatically feel like i don't have a lot of control. now, i get into a lot of politics and that rules over to

the fact that it seems like the government is out of control because, although trump does things that are against all of our morals, a lot of our norms, anything that he does, nobody does anything about it. which makes me believe that everybody else must feel the same way if they are not doing anything to keep him in check. with me not being able to get -- for myself, i have in the past in the military. for social security and things, i am concerned that something is going to happen and they are going to take my medical away from me, what am i going to do? if there are some the other people in my situation. so, that is why i am starting to get anxious about what is going to happen. you for your thank service. and, you know, i do think there are things you can do.

you have more limited mobility, you can still be engaged in the political process. you can certainly do things from -- with over the internet to make your views known. you can reach out to your elected officials. all those things are very important in terms of our ability to manage stress. the other thing that you should be cut is about is your -- what is your social support and social network? there is quite a large body of research that shows that the more people that we have in our lives, the more -- the larger our social network. the better we do in a whole series of areas and our health status. our social status. and to the degree that you are feeling that kind of stress. you don't want to isolate pure you want to make sure you are reaching out to people who could be supported. friends or family. in the survey, one of the things people consistently have reported is that friends and family are a major source of coping with stress. i would encourage you to reach out to those people who are supportive to you. host: what are your thoughts on

the impact of negative campaign ads? the 2018 midterm campaign sets a record for negative ads. ads have airede in federal cases going past the 2010 record of nearly 40 50,000 negative ads. that according to a study released yesterday by the wetland media project. guest: the reason we have so many negative ads is that people believe that they work. i think the point of the survey is that they work at a cost. if the costs are health of our nation, i think, ultimately, as a society, we have to decide whether we are going to continue to reinforce that kind of behavior or not. host: scott in arizona. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you for your participation. this discussion this morning. i would like to ask that you have people look at the

consideration of music and how it can help you. we should ration our news intake tonight. five minutes, total, and a 24 hour time. we should listen to a lot more music. continue explain the difference between rascher, where you know what things are impacting you, and distress for you are having all of these issues and you don't know which is pressure and which is stress? guest: i'm not quite sure if i quite got the question. pressure versus stress. what stress is the result of feeling pressure that we cannot adequately cope with. pressure thatare things -- those things that cause us to feel that we may not have the ability to adequately address those things that are happening to us. you know, the question is that

we need to be aware of what those things are. what of -- what are those things that are causing stress to us. and either mitigate those things, limit those things that you have some great examples of, or learn how to manage the results of that stress. host: greg in maryland, up next. caller: good morning. my political stress is the fear -- knowing the fear of the gop party. trying to cut our social security and our whole life. i'm learning everyday, they're going to cut it. i need money. it has been -- it is bad enough the cut the air, trying to ruin our air. our border. our health care. every day, i worry about health care. health care benefits. my family. aca is the greatest thing that ever happened in the middle class. everything was mandated. all the other insurance companies.

i don't have obamacare. i do have blue cross blue shield. that's about by those rules. not just worried about my social security. and this know the gop president is going to try to cut it. they are saying they are not going to. they will. especially if they win the half and the senate. host: -- house and senate. host:thanks for talking about your source of stress. talk a little bit about what you mean by merging sources of stress in your survey. guest: there are issues that are happening in the news and, the way i would describe it is this. how we are seeing events and -- and taking that and, that is not benign. as emerging issues that are coming up in the news are affecting our stress levels. again, that is having an impact on our health. guest: -- host: 42% of respondents citing

debt as stress. to housing instability. discrimination. put percent, hunger. the hunger issue was a surprise to us. a quarter of -- almost a quarter of americans are reporting the hunger is -- as an issue. when we looked at that data broken out by race and ethnicity there were some groups like african americans were reporting a much higher rate of that. that was a little surprising to us. host: frank is in manheim, pennsylvania. good morning. caller: good morning. i'm calling into say that i'm stressed out behind the fact that when i look at this president and here the way he runs the country, he is mentally unfit to run the country. he has such a big ego problem. other things like that. legal, ego, and legal that he cannot function as the

president. obvious to see that the man really does not care about the whole of america. not just the black folks, the white folks, he really does not care. his main objective to me is to get ahead. people just want to, you know, the democrats don't stand a chance with all this redistricting and the way they are doing our children with this lead in the water and carrying on, it is just a shame. host: it is a shame. that is frank in pennsylvania. you have been doing this survey for 12 years now. compare the finger-pointing to the president as a source of stress under president trump versus under president obama. the finger-pointing, i think, is something that is increasing in our culture. you know, it is hard in the survey does not look at any particular individual. what we look at is the overall climate.

all of our political leaders contribute to that climate. some might argue that some political figures contribute more to that environment. it is an environment. it is an ecosystem. that is all we really have to be concerned about. the overall ecosystem. what is the tenor that we want to have in the country around civil discourse?? right now, it is not to civil. we have do something about that. host: a few minutes left. how long have you been studying the issue of stress? guest: the apa has been doing the survey since 2007. we get interesting results. we don't ask the same questions every year. had different questions. the last few years, we have focused on some of the political issues. there has been a lot of interest in that. you see that people are very concerned about the political environment. the impact that it is having. we focus a lot more on that in the past few years. this year, we looked specifically at generation z. 50 to 21-year-old group and what is happening to them. host: apa.org if you want to

look through these results. a few more calls. caller:caller: go ahead. good morning to both of you. thank you for your time. i think, in the climate such as this, you know, where we start to have violence among different ethnic groups or we have shootings. amounts with a certain of racial problem associated with it. i notice that when something happens like in pittsburgh, it which, a large issue, indeed, it should. racial trauma, and years and it's unity effects that have been having in chicago and other major cities, particularly, the people of color, are working and entered -- inner-city. camden, new jersey. this one in miami. also, worked throughout many of the cities los angeles. of --is a certain amount not ignorance, but to ignore the obvious. ,n your findings and your study

have you done anything that is analyzing anxiety that people feel? not just in this climate where this person that sits in the white house, you know, i think, i appreciate his candor. i don't want is honesty. his honesty is what makes people , i think, at times, what justifies their irrationality. have you done any studies with young people in the long-term effects of that this causes on them throughout the society? guest: the color is pointing out a couple of important things paired one of the things that we do do is to look at the data. segregate the data for the weekend. look at it by gender, by ethnicity. our data shows that consistently, individuals who are from various ethnic groups experienced stress at a much higher rate than whites in the survey. that has been a consistent finding. experiencedwomen

stress at a higher rate than men. overall stress rates come down for the population as a whole. there is still this discrepancy between men and women. there is still a discrepancy based on race and ethnicity. we know that these things are not affecting people the same way. it is disproportionate for some groups. i think, as the color is pointing up, it is important to recognize that. guest: rachel is up next in texas, good morning. caller: good morning. i was going to say that i voted for obama twice. this last election, i did not vote. my husband did vote for trump. we never argue. when it comes to politics, we argue. like yesterday, i had him to google the unemployment under obama. and how he created jobs. i had him to google trump unemployment and all those jobs

that they claim he has created was a lie. he got very upset. we started arguing. wall, i seen this it on c-span. the wall will never be built for the fact that the land owners do not want to give up their property. it will be in court for years and a wall will never be built. that is another lie they tell. before you go, how many times a week do you and your husband argue over politics? well, when i had voted for obama he would come in if i had the news on, he would say turn it off. i can't stand to watch it. to cnn, hee comes tells me everything trump has done and i argue with him. i watch c-span. host: have you ever thought about not talking politics with your husband? i amr: it is hard because a headstrong woman and have never let anybody run over me. especially when i think i am

right. that is the only time we argue. he is not going to get the best of me. i will put him in his place. you know, she has pointed out an interesting fact. think, as a country, we have lost the art of debate. one of the things that contributes to the instability, i believe, is that we have not had -- we don't have the skills, as a country, to debate very controversial issues from a dispassionate standpoint. if you look at the models, the role models we have a television, people tend to devolve into ad hominem attacks, attacking the person as opposed to attacking the argument. i'm not saying that about rachel, but as a whole, that is the way a lot of our political debates go. because we don't have that skill of talking about controversial

difficult issues in a dispassionate way, we end up attacking each other and that is something that is a skill and something that i think we can change. host: dr. is the ceo of the american psychological association. you can check out some of the results we talked about this morning. thank you for your time. guest: thank you. host: up next on the washington journal, grieving pittsburgh community was divided yesterday over president trump visiting the city. three days after a gunman killed 11 people at a synagogue there. the protestof yesterday, we are asking you if you think president trump should have made that visit pittsburgh. you can start calling in now. we will be right back. ♪ announcer: this weekend, on the civil war.

historian peter carmichael talks about public reaction to photographs of the dead at the 1862 battle of antietam. and the soldiers perspective from letters to home. >> the people were changed by a strange spell. that dwelt on the dead. in the eyes of dead men. he said this was a terrible fascination that these people had with death here it he says that these photographs, in the end, all they really did was satisfy this morbid satisfaction. on lectures in history, arizona state university professor kyle longley, president clinton -- lyndon johnson in the vietnam war and 96 the. >> here's one of the most powerful presidents in american history that has transformed the country for better or for worse giving up power to search for peace. pretty big. major step. it all relates to what? issue? the

vietnam. announcer: sunday, 8:00 eastern come, on the presidency. ronald reagan attorney general talks about president reagan's views on communism and his relationship with pope john paul ii. you had to people, both leaders, one in the secular world, one in the religious world. with parallel interests. so, when those parallel interests were obvious as what happened in poland, there come up when they were under attack, if you will, then, it was logical, then, for ronald reagan have a particularly come with his ideas about defeating communism, to cooperate. next weekend come on american history tv, the world war i centennial. american history tv airs every weekend on c-span3. announcer: washington journal continues. should president trump

have visited pittsburgh guest today, that is our question for you in the next 25 minutes of the washington journal. phone lines put up a bit differently. if you are a pittsburgh resident, it is -- all others can call in. here is just one of the headlines about the president's visit to the city yesterday. trump's visit. mourning victims of hate. the story, the lead story of the new york times noting that if mr. trump big -- visit was intended to bring healing, it laid bare the nations deep divisions. many protesters and pittsburgh had no doubt of what one called at the dotted line between presidential rhetoric and violence. some people of the city have pushed back on the idea that mr. trump had prevented the atmosphere of anger as the president moved around pittsburgh, a largely democratic city, the signs of discord were apparent. the story showing some of the protesters in that city with the picture next to the article. some signs read words matter and

others saying president hate is not welcome in our state. the story noting as if to hold up the beloved local figure in contrast. the president, the largest margin of the day began on beechwood boulevard. where mr. rogers, the children's television figure, used to live. it ended at the church where he used to pray. urgedrriott pittsburgh the president not to visit while the mourners buried the victims of that shooting. neither met with mr. trump nor joint protest. four republican and democratic congressional leaders who are invited to join the president all declined. that is the front page of the new york times today. in terms of what the president actually did he was in the city, the washington times goes through his day, the president and first lady met privately with some of the wounded, with family members of some victims and with first responders who confront the government. they lit candles in the vestibule of the tree of life synagogue.

sanctuary where the worshipers were gunned down. it is still a crime scene there. a makeshift memorial outside the house of worship, the trump place what flowers and small stones from a white house garden on 11 white stars of david bearing the names of the dead. they were a company by ivanka and turkish air. all of whom are jewish. we're asking you should the president have made that visit to pittsburgh. a special line for pittsburgh residents. all others, marie, in florida, go ahead. caller: the president never should have gone to pittsburgh. it was very clear nobody wanted him there. him, hehe is, it makes wants to bully. and pushed through, and there are things that he believes that he should have and nobody should deny. he went towhen

pittsburgh to roll over people, he got rolled up. i don't know how you reacted to it. i was great -- it made me very happy to see that happen. that is marie in florida. linda is in pennsylvania. caller: good morning. i am calling on concerns about jobs providing his president trump providing his input a little bit too little too late. he really needs to come -- come down his rhetoric. i think he does insight and national display of anger. people who are -- i am of jewish faith. and i endorse all faith. i am an interfaith person. that president trump is appealing to people.

to unite us, to look at our qualities that are in common. i think that is attitude and his expression is bringing out some of the worst in some of the american people. i want him to reflect on this and stop. host: carol is in highland, indiana. caller: good morning. i would like to first give my sympathy to all the families in pittsburgh that were affected by this. certainly, we feel for them. i am very proud that president trump went to pittsburgh. i think that he has every right to go there. like anyone else. give this up of the. i think that this should not be about eight 30 even hitting a president. especially for the jewish race that has suffered as victims of hate. i think we need to ponder about that as a country. host: rhonda, go ahead. caller: hello. i think trump should have went

to pittsburgh. he is getting the blame for everything. if he did not go he would have just been blamed for not going. i think a lot of the democrats have been doing a lot of indirect bullying. i did not vote for trump, i don't really like trump. i think he is getting the blame for everybody's problems. i used be a democrat. i am an independent now. this should not have been protesting there. as a time to mourn. i think everyone has free will. just do what is right. and, quit blaming the president. host: before you go, what is that -- what is an example of -- what is an example of indirect bullying? like a much us, when they have the protest. a lot of protests that aren't necessary. they disagree with everything he says. i don't like the guy, personally, but they just fight

everything he says. i think they are just trying to get the policies passed about abortion and gay rights. their views of race. as the biggest issue here. host: that is rhonda and johnstone, pennsylvania. phone lines again. the question, should the president have visited pittsburgh yesterday. here is some of the reaction to that visit from state and local officials. first, mike doyle quoted in the washington post today, he is a congressman who the congressional district covers the squirrel hill neighborhood where the synagogue is located. community says they did not think this was the time from political photo shoot. there are strong feelings of the community about him and divisive nature of his rhetoric. the pittsburgh post-gazette today,", allegheny county executive rich mr. --

fitzgerald. one of the local officials there. saying leaders need to respect the families and the community's wishes. in the wake of those attacks and that neighborhood. the story from the pittsburgh post-quoted him saying the last thing we need is that kind of extraordinary outside influence to distract from what needs to be the healing of this community, referring to the president's visit. the prospect may have been appropriate and another week or two. d.c. delegates eleanor holmes norton. this is what she tweeted yesterday. trump barges into pittsburgh today as nine of the 11 tree of life victims are being buried. even though the governor, mayor, and residents asked for a delay, no decency. only politics. respect those we lost and the families. one more tweet from earlier this week. haley. the outgoing u.n. ambassador rice saying i have struggles with what happened in his spare because it is so similar to what happened at charleston.

the country was very racially divided at the time. we did not want lame president. we focused solely on the lives lost and their families. have some respect for these families and stop the blame. asking you this morning, should the president have gone to pittsburgh yesterday. don is in pittsburgh. where were you yesterday? pittsburgh.from i am african-american. of course, donald trump has not been the president that anybody would have hoped for. he has done a terrible job. nonetheless, he is still the president. part of the president's job is to unify. the president should have come to pittsburgh from one of the other colors that if you do not come here would have guns feared as well. i believe that also. he should have come. he should have played the unifying role. whether or not he is a unifying person. i also believe that the mayor handled the entire situation wrong. essentially, you

know, if you don't have respect for donald trump, fine. but still, you have to respect the office. the office is what unifies us. the office is the only thing that stays consistent. presidents chain -- change every four or eight years. tosets a bad precedent disrespect the office. to this respect the role that a prep -- president plays as the unifier and commander-in-chief. i think that people need to recalibrate their minds to recognize that it is not all about trump. it is about the country. whether you look at it through the lens of the country, you should recognize that the president has to play that role. no matter who the person is. host: good morning. caller: good morning. my sin city is the people in pittsburgh, i live close by. i understand it affects people in the whole area. i don't think he should have gone to delaware -- pennsylvania to pittsburgh. because, i think, it is a show another of his total disregard

for anybody else or anybody else's feelings. i think everything he does is all about him. he just does not respect anybody or their feelings. and, it was too soon for him to go. they needed to get their priorities in order. which was morning there losses and not about whether he was showing up or not to shake some hands with people. , this man has the regard for anybody or anybody's feelings. i think this was just another example of it. host: centreville, virginia, good morning. are you with us, we will go to kurt in florida. yes.r: i just wanted to say that i believe that the president should have gone like he had. showing respects and condolences. the one thing that i find interesting is all the

protesters signs. to be made in four days to have such great quality and unity within all the signs. seems to me that this was funded by somebody. other than just the citizens themselves. putting them together in their own home. that just raises the question in my eyes. host: who do you think was funding that? caller: well, i mean, i have got a couple of ideas. i don't want to -- i would say probably on top of the division list in my opinion, would be soros and stiers. and such. the ones that are funding all the democratic resistance. current inis florida. here is another picture for the washington times. with some of the signs yesterday. during just one of those protests we mentioned. near the the march

residence of the children i can't mr. rogers, the science saying hate is not welcome in esther rogers neighborhood. today, in the washington post, kathleen parker writes a column about what she wished president trump would have said yesterday. when he was in pittsburgh. she is wrote a speech for the president in which she wanted him to say this. it has become abundantly clear to me that my rhetoric, which i have employed to create energy and passions in the political arena has become destructive. whether in a vans or an individual's actions can be drawn in a straight line to the white house is debatable. this is not the point. i don't want to say anything ever that could give anyone cause to think so. she wishes the president had jokes at others expense is not funny. the media is tough but they're not the enemy. here is a reason the press is mentioned in the first amendment the constitution of your without it, democracy dies in darkness. i remain committed to a hard

border. i won't demonize those who -- those who'd risked life and limb to be here. to all the women offended or hurt, i am truly sorry. theleen parker's column in op-ed pages of the washington post. in this minutes left segment. should president trump had visited pittsburgh yesterday? pennsylvania, mechanicsburg. good morning. caller: it is leticia. i think it was beautiful that president trump visited pittsburgh yesterday. i think it was, he was showing a lot of disrespect. i think that was not good. do you wish the president spoke publicly? caller: no. i think he was right way to go. he did it beautifully. that is leticia. diane is next. good morning. caller: hello. thank you. i think, what i am trying to

speak for what my impression is of the people there. in deep sorrow right now. many people were affected. if i had, you know, if i had lost a loved one or a friend, whatever, and i thought that his stoking the anger of the general public over the media, stoking their anger, some people are right on the edge and they can be pushed over into action. you know, i would think, you know, their loved ones would be alive today, maybe, just maybe, if he hadn't been so strong on his rhetoric. , i know, you can understand could only attempts to understand how they feel and how they are holding him accountable. so, you know, if you're not in their shoes, it is you know, it is hard to know exactly all the

emotions. especially wrong right now. they are feeling. hoping to settle down and make him feel more at ease about things. thank you. host: one tweet on twitter imagine the rhetoric if trump did not go to pittsburgh. robert and clinton, maryland. what do you think? caller: yes. yes. i think trump should not have went. i sent out my best wishes for the people and families of pittsburgh. he should not have went and asked him not to come. it is just like john mccain. he did not want trump around. what the trump do, he said away. what is the difference between these families of pittsburgh? host: our phone line for pittsburgh residents. .202) 748-8001 .ll others, (202) 748-8000

new jersey. caller: i feel an idea that he should go. i thought it was very low-key. it was not just the, you know, that he went to the synagogue, he went to the hospital. as well. i think that was a very good idea. it does not matter who is in the office, it is the office of the president that somebody had gone know, actually kind of for the whole country, you know, that he went. i don't know. that is my view. i am a little bit nervous. host: that is ok. jim is up next in florida. go ahead. caller: i just want to say, new jersey, exactly right when he said. he is the president of the united states here he represents all country. not as pittsburgh. i thought pittsburgh was very rude to him. and the news organizations last

night, they are acting like it was like this big crowd of thousand people. it was just the neighbors are in the neighborhood. and the one lady in pittsburgh yelled from her outside yard. i just think it is very rude. i did not vote for president obama. i would have never done that to him. i just think, in these times of tragedies, we need to let our country up. our president should be able to go anywhere in the united states and represent us. these people that say he is not welcome, let me tell you, he is the president of the united states. he is welcome. by the way, pennsylvania did vote for donald trump. i think it is so rude. i would not have done that. i would not do that to a fellow democrat. i think that is the problem. me thatt, it disgusts in the press last night, every channel they gave the impression

that everybody did not want him to come. that is not true. michelle is in pittsburgh. go ahead. --ler: we lost michelle. white house press secretary sarah sanders is quoted in the washington times wrapup of the president's visit yesterday saying that the president was very moved by the visit. his time with a rabbi, called it humbling and said. the president commented on how moved he was by the bravery of the first responders. while the rabbi and many of the residents welcomed the president to the grieving community, others did not. a street near the synagogue, hundreds of people who say that president trump campaign rhetoric encourages violence, marched to protest the president was showing some of the pictures of some of those marches. the story also noting that a coalition of dozens of progressive groups, including moveon.org, the naacp, pro-choice, and vote latino,

published an open later -- letter. for fermenting anti-semitic violence. their letter to be published in an advertisement thursday in the pittsburgh post-gazette. accuses the president of attacking globalists as a code for jews. it blames mr. trump and the national republican congressional committee for ,nciting hatred of george soros who is jewish. and the recipient of a pipe bomb mailed to him last week. a trump supporter has been arrested in those mailings of course, which also targeted numerous democratic lawmakers. that from the washington times stories today. a few minutes left in the segment. ron in tennessee. should the president have gone to pittsburgh yesterday? caller: absolutely. he is the president of the united states. i want to share this with you. i went to israel in january, for the first time i was allowed to

go to the temple mount. that was done directly because jerusalem was made the capital. the christians care about the jewish people per we care about our own people. sure, he should have went. i am a registered democrat. i cannot vote democrat anymore. i don't believe in abortion, don't believe in gay marriage. i don't believe in socialism. itsdemocratic party is off deep end. i just think it's crazy that they can't see that. everything that is done. host: utah is next. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you. when someone has itt a loved one to murder, is the right of the person who has experienced that most horrific loss to have their

wishes honored. i cannot imagine going to a iseral where your presence offensive. i just don't understand how calle can support, even the victims rude. those families that have been through the worst lost they have -- they will ever get in their life and whatever they, whatever kind of -- tiny bit of comfort can begin to them, ought to be. my brother was murdered on the day of his funeral. calledderer, his wife and she was not offering condolences. it was the worst -- it is one of my worst memories to have that intrusion by the person who contributed to his death. rudenk that to call people like the man from florida called

people rude because they did not want someone to come, who they felt had contributed to the deaths of their loved ones, they should not be called rude. they should be comforted. our nation is our nation owes these people any measure of comfort they can offer. that's all i have to say. thank you. host: lauren is next, gaithersburg, maryland. caller: good morning. i just want to say my heart goes out to everyone in pittsburgh, and any family that is a victim of gun violence. i am disappointed with our president. i have been since he's been elected. i agree with the last color. if they didn't want him there, i think it is unprecedented people would even ask the president of the united states not to come to an event like that, and i think that speaks volumes to how our country is feeling.

president notour being held to the standard that every other president and even normal citizens are held to. disappointed in him and his administration. sanderseople like sarah huckabee that is speaking for him. than heore articulate is in expressing his own feelings, and it makes me question whether or not he even feels those things. so thank you for giving me the opportunity to say this. i've been wanting to say it for a live very long time -- say it for a very long time. host: robin and pennsylvania. caller: i just want to say that i am so disappointed in the american people.

president trump is the president of this country, and the people of pittsburgh that protested, shame on them. that was a disgrace. there's one thing i've got to say here. out of all this stuff that happened, there wasn't one aboutn yesterday farrakhan. he called the jewish people termites. what is wrong with you people? go after the people that do want to earn this country. shame on you. in pennsylvania. caller: i just wanted to say the president should attend if he has time. also, i thought it was very disappointing that the governor and the mayor of pittsburgh, being democrats, showed their true colors by not even having the respect for the president of the united states. i don't think any republican

would ever do that to any other democrat. that is just totally disrespectful. that is all i have to say. host: before you go, would you have liked to have seen more congressional leaders with the president in his visit to vicksburg -- to pittsburgh? caller: no, i don't think that was necessary. if the president wanted to go and pay his respects, that is perfectly fine. i don't think you needed anybody else by his side. he is very strong, and that is what we needed this country. a strong president, and somebody that is going to stand up for the american people. host: one more headline from the front page of "usa today." "pittsburgh rigged by sadness as protesters greet trump." that is the big story on the front page of "usa today." joe in new orleans, how do you feel about it? caller: i think c-span and the way that you have phrased your

question is doing a disservice to the families of pittsburgh. added,ld have said -- you could have phrased it, saying that should the president have visited yesterday or at a later date as the families requested. that is my understanding. they weren't saying not to come. they were asking the president to come at a later date, after the families had dealt with burying their loved ones and dealt with their grief. you are doing the american people a disservice. what wasisrepresenting the sentiment of the people of pittsburgh, and they were protesting the fact that he

disregarded the wishes of the family's in -- the families in coming yesterday. he did it because he is a bully. it is his way or the highway. there would have been nothing wrong with him going at a later date when city officials and the families who were involved in this tragedy said it was time for him to come. you all are doing a disservice. you are misleading the american public on the wishes of pittsburgh. host: we appreciate the suggestion. why do you think he went yesterday, then? i think we lost jo. jan is in winter park, florida. caller: i can answer the question why he went yesterday. he went tuesday because he didn't have any campaign rallies scheduled, and it would be inconvenient for mr. trump to go

on one of those days when he had campaign rallies. so he completely dismissed the desires of the people of people whoand the lost people in this synagogue massacre. they wanted him to come at a later date. -- i am going to link going to send to twitter donald trump rallies. you see he has rallies every single day up until the election. tuesday was the only day he didn't have a rally. so it wasn't convenient for him to do something to accommodate the people of pittsburgh. it is all about trump. you have to accommodate him all the time. tuesday,hy he went on because it was inconvenient for him to go and the other time. that is how this self-centered narcissistic president operates. need to knowallers

why he went on tuesday and not any other day. host: the president is going to be in florida today for a rally. we are airing that tonight on c-span2. that is going to do it for this segment of "washington journal." up next we continue our weeklong series taking a deep dive into some of the states with the most contents did -- most contested house races. we had out west to the golden state to talk about california's house battlefield. we will be right back. ♪ this weekend on american history tv, saturday at , historianastern peter carmichael talks about public reaction to photographs of the dead at the 1862 battle of antietam, and the soldier perspectives from letters to home. taken by aere

terrible fascination these people had with death. he said that these photographs in the end, all they really did was satisfy this morbid satisfaction. announcer: at 8:00 p.m. on "lectures in history," professor kyle longley on president lyndon johnson and the vietnam war in 1968. >> here is one of the most powerful presidents in american history that has transformed the country, for better and worse, giving up power to search for peace. it's pretty big. major step. and it all relates to what? what is the issue? vietnam. announcer: sunday at 8:00 p.m. eastern on "the presidency," ronald reagan's attorney general talks about present reagan's views on communism and is views on pope john paul ii.

>> you have two people, one in the secular and one in the religious world, with parallel interests. those parallel interests were obvious, as what happened in poland where they were under attack. it was logical, then, for ronald reagan, particularly with his ideas about defeating communism, to cooperate. announcer: next weekend on american history tv, the world war i centennial. american history tv airs every weekend on c-span3. c-span, where history unfolds daily. in 1979, c-span was created as a public service by america's cable television companies and today, we continue to bring you unfiltered coverage of congress, the white house, the supreme court, and public policy events in washington, d.c. and around the country.

c-span is brought to you by your cable or satellite provider. "washington journal" continues. host: today we continue our house battleground series, taking a deep dive into some of the key states that could decide control of the house of representatives in less than a week. to do that this morning, to focus on california, we are joined by brian anderson of "the sacramento bee." as we get started, can you talk about some of the early vote numbers we've seen out of california? is there anything to read into the latest numbers out this week? caller: it is very early in the process, and california is a unique state with a motor voter program and lots of other initiatives were they are encouraging people to vote. we are just starting to see numbers trickle in. a little too early to say at this point. it is possible for some of the

contested house races, we might not know the results until late november or even perhaps the first week of december. we can see thee early voting members right now, it looksme districts like we are seeing some lower minority turnout, and it is really going to determine a lot in many races on gun voters who are not typically voting this early in the process, but might be voting later this week or closer to election day. host: that 39th district race one of five ranked in the most competitive category by the cook political report, a tossup race ,or the open seat of ed royce the outgoing chairman of the foreign affairs committee. it is one of several tossup races in southern california. why so many seats in and around l.a. so competitive this cycle? caller: that is the big

question. is a couple we are still watching in northern california, but like you said, a lot of the competitive ones are in southern california. a lot of that is due to changing demographics in orange county. perfect example of that, where you have the majority and low population youral years ago, but now seeing high asian and latino voting blocs that you haven't seen in the past. these areas in los angeles and orange county specifically are becoming more diverse racially, and democrats are seeing an opportunity to be more competitive than they have been previously. host: let's stay in that area with the 40th district. 15 term congressman dana rohrabacher could be in the race of his political career this cycle. tell us the latest on that race. caller: if you asked a gop orange county chair, he would tell you the idea this is going

to be close or competitive is, and his words, "mostly made up by the media." if you look at some of the polling we are seeing, it is really and that. there has been -- really do and neck. what little polling there has been show it to be a statistical tie or just a narrow rohrabacher edge. i went over to that district, off the coast of california, by costa mesa, newport beach, huntington beach. this is an area where rohrabacher won in 20 by about 17 percentage points. the fact that it is within five in most polls or very close shows some signs for democratic optimism. you are seeing a lot of funding going into this race. that is another thing to keep drive out for. host: next door is the 45th district. congresswoman mimi walters trying to hold onto her seat. take us there. caller: mimi walters is a

congresswoman who has been there fairly recently. ins is a district she won 2015 by 70 percentage points as well, but the democrats -- 17 percentage points as well, but the democrats are seeing themselves in a very tight .ontest that is with democrat kitty porter. that is another interesting race we are watching. it is by irvine, a small college campus over there. there's some chance for young voters turning out and swaying that more to the democrats. that is another when you are going to want to keep drive on as well ask your eyes on as well -- keep your eyes on as well. host: take us to the 50th district. congressman duncan hunter getting a lot of attention that race, trying to hold onto his seat after he was indicted on charges on misusing campaign funds.

does it look like he will hold on to that seat? caller: every poll seems to suggest he has a narrow win lead. it is a safe republican seat. by 27 past he won percentage points in 2016, more than any competitive race we are seeing right now. it says a lot that this is even talked about, let alone close. the democrat still has a shot. talked to democratic operatives and political consultants in the state come and they think this is still one that is winnable. we are not seeing -- [no audio] host: that is bryan anderson with "the sacramento bee." we will try to get him back. we continue our discussion this morning, our focus on california in this house battleground series. phone lines to start calling in about it, (202) 748-8000 if you are a california resident. all others, (202) 748-8001.

we will go back to bryan anderson of "the sacrament of the." you are just -- "the sacramento bee." you were just wrapping up the 50th district before we lost you. caller: it is not as competitive as some of the others we are seeing. the district won by about 27 percentage point in 2016, so it has traditionally been very safe for the republican party. it is generally leaning republican right now, but if you talk to political operatives in california, it is one that is being closely monitored. ,t is one that is competitive and certainly one getting a lot of national attention from c-span and many other credible outlets. host: last minute before we let you go, i do want to touch on one of those races farther up north in california. can you talk about the 10th district, congressman jeff denham trying to hold onto his seat? host: this is -- caller: this is

a very and neck race -- a very neck and neck race. it is still very close. leaning -- [no audio] -- and like many democrats across the state, he appears to be out racing denim. what to watch for is young voters, money being put into the race, and those are factors that could determine whether there is a blue wave, whether democrats can take control of some of these traditional republican strongholds. bryan anderson covers it all as a political reporter for "the sacramento bee." we appreciate your time on "washington journal." caller: thank you. i would remind viewers we have a podcast coming out tomorrow on all of these issues. host: and the website is

sacbee.com. we continue with this discussion focusing on the state of california in our house battleground series. we are joined for this ,iscussion by renee van vechten political science professor at the university of redlands. thanks for getting up early for us this morning. we talked about some of the handful of tossup races, but the cook political report has 13 races in play this cycle from tossup to liens one way or another. is that unusual for that many house seats to be in play in a midterm election cycle? caller: i think in any given election there are going to be a handful of races that are tossups because whoever the minority party is, they are going to be going after those seats as hard as they can. in this cycle we see the democrats really going after those republican seats. if there is even a with of -- if there is even a whiff of folder

ability. in -- of vulnerability. where theose races republicans have been very strong, they might be overtaken. turn, i do actually think those would be a good sign that the house is going to turn democratic. host: we've shown our viewers a map of where these districts are that we are focusing on in california. a large number located in southern california. what does that tell us about the political fault lines in california today? caller: the fault lines have actually been shifting a little bit. we see that democrats really do have a plurality of registration in the state. there are about 45% democratic registrants in the state. we have also seen that, for the first time, republicans are actually a minority as far as registration goes. they have been overtaken by those who call themselves no party preference voters.

what we've been watching, if you watch the registration numbers, really california has been moving into the democratic column. although we are not an absolute majority democratic state. , --re not over 50% credit 50% democratic, but we are in terms of the overall top number of democrats registered. what we see playing out is here in southern california, maybe in the last few decades republicans have had an advantage. democrats have been slowly overtaking those numbers in several districts. that is being reflected in the competitiveness of these races. host: california certainly considered a reliably blue state. when was the last time it was a red state, or even a purple state? caller: the last time we republicand a strong unified government, meaning that

both the assembly and the senate , which are our state chambers, and the governorship held by a republican was back when ronald reagan in the 1960's was the governor. had --nce then, we have well, let's see -- democrats started to take over after about the 1970's in the legislature, and they held it ever since. there's only been a couple of times when the legislature has gone republican in just a very small punctuation, whereas the governorship has flipped back and forth between republicans and democrats almost regularly. in terms of registration, the state has registered democrat since pretty much 1932. democrats lost that absolute majority to the no party preference voters, they've been taking over since about 1989 or so.

overall we are a pretty democratic state. today if you look at the statewide executive, we have all democrats who have got the major offices. that includes people like the governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and so forth. host: taking your calls as we focus on california in 2018 in the house races that could help decide control of the house of representatives. some 13 race is considered to be in play this cycle, five in the most competitive category. phone lines if you want to join the conversation, if you are a california resident, (202) 748-8000. all others, (202) 748-8001. willssor renee van vechten be with us until 10:00 this morning. we will start with matthew, calling in from emerson, new jersey. go ahead. caller: thank you. good morning. the facts here with regard to

california's increasing crime rate are important. when president trump called democrats the party of crime, the facts show he's right because the democrats in california have been giving early release to convicted criminals, which has led to no one's surprise, an increase in innocent citizens there being affected, assaulted, robbed, etc. by criminals who have been given this early release, and also went democrats decriminalized drug possession, as they have in california, massachusetts, and some other states, this also, the fact shows, that drug addiction, drug abuse, and crime rates have gone up. i would appreciate it if these good people could address that. host: that is matthew in new jersey. professor, do you want to talk a little bit about criminal

justice reform in california, its impact on the politics there? caller: absolutely. california has had a problem with housing its inmates. at the state level for the past few decades, we've been over stuffing our state institutions, our jails and prisons, with people who have been convicted of crimes. as a result, we haven't actually jails andng those state prisons like we should. so we had overcrowding, and as a result the federal government stepped in and said you need to do something to reduce that crime population. brown andy put jerry the legislature at a disadvantage because they face a lot of constituents who don't want to build new prisons in their backyard. so we haven't had any new prisons being built, with the exception of one in the stockton area that is a hospital prison.

a lot oft has been overcrowding, and the federal government telling us we need to reduce those prison populations. and if not, they were going to be released anyway. the federal government was going to find a way for us to reduce the prison population. the legislature and the governor came up with a few ways to try and reduce the prison population. some of that does involve early release. some of that has been to decriminalize certain kinds of crime. , such as drug possession for marijuana, and what we have seen is there has been a slight uptick in petty theft and lower-level property crimes. at the top we haven't seen huge increases in other kinds of crime like murder. the murder rate is still historically pretty low.

but if you are the victim of one of those crimes, it certainly doesn't feel it is going down. host: bring it back to campaign 2018. can you remind viewers about the primary system in california, and what impact it had on targeting districts by parties in the general election? caller: california has a really interesting kind of primary system. we moved into this system just a few years ago because the citizens voted for it. , it is actually very technically called a voter preference primary. in a normal primary, that means that republicans would turn out for their own candidates, and maybe if there were 10 people running for an office, the republicans would vote for the person they want to move on to november to the general election, and the same for democrats. we scrapped that system. all of the voters are allowed to show up to the polls on election day, and all of the candidates for a particular office are listed on the ballot.

the top two vote getters move on to the general election. ,hat could be to democrats two republicans, or any minority parties. that led to more intraparty elections were you have democrats versus democrats. there are about 19 of them in this coming election. there's only one race in which there is a republican facing off against a republican, and that is in a congressional district. there are some interesting kinds of consequences of having a top two primary, but it does mean -- and i should back up just a little and say the reason we did this was to hopefully moderate the legislature, which was shown to be pretty liberal because it has been dominated by democrats for such a long time. that, where the

race may be is a foregone conclusion that a democrat might be winning anyway, that if that democrat front-runner is actually being challenged by somebody who is more moderate, then when it comes time for the general election, the entire electorate would weigh in, and you would have republicans joining democrats to maybe elect more moderate democrats, for example. there's some mixed results about whether or not that has happened , but for the most part the california legislature is slightly more liberal than you'd find in other states. host: what was that one district were a republican is facing off against a republican in the general election? caller: that would be congressional district eight, where paul cook is facing tim donnelly. can donnelly is far more right wing than paul cook is. paul cook holds the seat now. formed his own minute man kind of group to try to patrol the border. he is very activated by immigration issues.

,o he is challenging paul cook and that district kind of runs along the interior of the state. it covers a lot of territory. if you have the district map, you will see it is a lot of area, but it is very sparsely populated. host: was that a place where competes had hoped to this cycle, or was this a reliably red district? caller: reliably red district. it wasn't going to turn. host: michael waiting in pensacola, florida. caller: good morning. i am interested in what's going and the seat nunes that had been vacated. caller: sure. race is a kind of race where it is very unlikely that the democrats will take over for a couple of reasons. some of these races that are in the central valley, for example, the san joaquin valley and northern california, such as the

congressional district number tommy to where nunez -- number 22 where nunes is, there is a republican edge in these districts. it would be surprising in some of them if a democrat actually won. in one of those districts considered in play should the democrats turn out in force, but he has a couple of factors going in his favor, one of which -- and this actually applies to both of the candidates in the central valley -- most of the candidates in the central valley mother is a very high hispanic-latino galatian, and he don't tend to register or turnout at high rates. that has actually favored the republicans in places where they might be edged out by democrats. ,s far as the darrell issa race that is down here near san diego. that is an open seat race, like you mentioned.

host: what district is that one? caller: 49 -- actually, that's not 49. i can't renumber the number offhand. i will have to check on it. as far as that one goes, mike levens is facing off against diane harkey. that is a net in that race. issa almost lost. they had to do a recount at the last election, and he barely won. issa stepped down after having been in congress for many years, and a hour for republican at that, leaving the race open. it is a very competitive race. that candidates are truly and neck.- truly neck and host: steve is up next in california, in lake elsinore. caller: good morning. good morning, professor.

i have actually fairly close to you. my wife and i have already voted. asked correctional orrectionalan ex-c officer. let me tell you, i used to vote republican, but i turned independent. i have voted, up until jerry brown, republican. but we had trouble getting a budget through with a republican governor. assemblyf a democratic , i voted for brown. and i was alive when brown was governor back in the 1970's, and i knew what he was going to do. he was going to tax. but i voted for him anyway because we were having trouble getting the budget. he did a really good job. i did vote for brown, and i did

vote for the democrat this time also. and also in this district. actually, that was a vote against trump. anyway, i thought i would throw that in. host: thanks for the call this morning. on the role of independence in the state -- caller: it turns out that we do have this category of registration called no party preference. that means you can actually register to vote. you don't have to register with one of the major parties. that has been a category that has been growing over time, and it is steadily growing. it tends to be a place where, like this particular caller mentioned, a place for you can actually go if you don't want to be registered with one of the major parties. those people actually tends to vote the way they lean. one thing political scientists

have found is if you tend to lean toward one party of the other, that is how you do vote in the end. this doesn't hold for all times and places. as you heard this caller say, they may be have been shifting certain votes over time. but in general, what we find is that independents in california do support democrats. that is one of the reasons why even know it is a plurality democratic state, you do get solidly democratic majorities holding onto statewide offices in the legislature and at the executive offices. host: gale is in san diego. good morning. caller: good morning. thanks for taking my call. you already touched on the point i wanted to raise, which is , the impacthnicity of ethnicity on the votes here in california. a map of the at state, you will see that it is the central valley that is essentially the red part of the

state, despite the fact that the majority population there is ethnically hispanic. elected fromo get those districts also often have hispanic names, even though frequently they are from the republican party. so, for example, someone mentioned devin nunes. he is portuguese. his farm is in iowa. , he has beeness elected over and over again despite the fact that the republican party is obviously anti-immigrant. they are anti-hispanic. hurtheir policies tends to hispanic people here in california, and tend to be lower income overall, and the republican policies hurt them. i am just curious to know what come ofk that makes it

what income, ethnicity, and the name recognition of hispanic republicans being elected, what that mix means for this election. caller: that is actually a really great question. all of the factors you mentioned , you really way into -- you really weigh into the way a person identified with a party. people who are of middle and lower income tends to go towards the republican party. there is also a gender gap. the democratic party has been attracting more women than men. when it comes to the central valley -- and if we want to even talk more generally about the political geography of takeornia, you can almost the state and draw a line down the middle.

the coast goes blue. the coast goes pretty democratic most of the time. is whered counties republicans have gathered and lived and settled. the inner part of the state tends to be read. but even in parts of the state where you do have latino/ hispanic majority or coming up on a plurality, those are places where you either have people at who are able to appeal to those constituents either because of a kind of name recognition, or because they do actually make appeals in the way that they take policy stances. for example, you have people like jeff denham, who is in a district where he's been able to say i support dreamers. if that is the only method you here as a voter, you might say that is actually something that i support as well.

now, the entire voting record of the republicans clearly are not democratic voters, not those that appeal to democratic voters. but they are, in fact, in 32nd campaign ad, pretty -- 30-second campaign ads, able to sound moderate and appeal to those across the aisle. to get back to the main point, the social identity factors of how we identify as people really do help drive our partisanship in pretty fundamental ways. host: you mentioned 30-second campaign ads. was from sanler diego, in that race featuring duncan hunter trying to hold onto his seat. this is one of the ads being run in that race. this is the group vote vets,

encouraging voters to vote against the congressman, who is also a veteran. >> they say you can't pick your family members. >> republican covers men and his wife are accused of spending $250,000 in campaign funds on themselves. >> whenever she did, it will be looked at too, i'm sure, but i didn't do it. >> completely throws his wife under the bus. >> and individual who was described as having a "personal relationship" with duncan hunter. >> you can't pick your family members, but you can pick your congressman. vote hunter out. host: that is one ad playing in that race. here is another, congressman duncan hunter going after his democratic opponent. he isarkup in a jar -- working to infiltrate the government. 's father said they deserved to die. millennialan mexican democrat doesn't get support from the people of san diego. >> he is being supported by the

muslim brotherhood. this is a well orchestrated plan. >> a risk we can't ignore. >> i'm duncan hunter, and i approve this message. host: professor renee van vechten, what to get your thoughts on these ads, starting with the second we just showed. this is one of those competitive races where there is just a scorched earth policy being executed. you see that hunter, who had been a shoo-in to this particular seat, and has held the seat also held by his sr., thatuncan hunter senio particular race has become a really great possible seek to flip because that can hunter has been indicted on misusing

$250,000 worth of campaign funds. he was caught using funds to buy personal items, for example, borrowing from his campaign to pay for personal things. so these indictments have been levied against him, which he course he had denied. but at the same time, he's an opponent with a mexican mother and palestinian father. hunter is exploiting those facts about him to paint him as somebody who is a threat to the united states. you see these campaign ads that --us on some of probably the some issues or some items that are going to be very easy for people to remember, but also strike fear in people's hearts. -najjar,azar

for the record, is a christian. that is why it has been called one of the worst ads become a -- is clearlybecause it guilt by association. it looks like duncan hunter is quite vulnerable at this point. host: taking your calls as we focus on house races out in california, one of our battleground states we are focusing on this week on "washington journal." we are joined in this segment by professor renee van vechten, political science professor at the university of redlands. jan is waiting in fredericksburg, virginia. go ahead. caller: hi. i just want to say i am so sick hypocrisy of the trump

people. hypocrisy of the trump people. if you are not born in the united states and you declare your right trump supporter, he can for you out. i mean, he would throw his own wife out, so be aware of what you want. i am just so sick of it. now they want to take the native americans because -- it is ridiculous. i was born right here. i don't want what trump is doing. jan inhat is fredericksburg, virginia. this issue of birthright citizenship that came up yesterday, i wonder your thoughts on how it might impact races and the political dialogue in california. caller: well, the 14th amendment does contain the phrase that all persons born in the united states soil are united states citizens. 1868s been like that since

, when we forget the moment was ratified, and it has been vetted by the united states supreme court in a couple of different cases. person,here a chinese and american person of chinese descent, was born in san francisco to parents who were not allowed to be citizens because at that time we had alien land laws which said you are not logged -- not allowed to be a citizen if you are of asian descent. in that case, the united states supreme court said you are a citizen if you are born here on u.s. soil. there is a phrase that says we are subject to the jurisdiction thereof, and that is where conservatives have said there's some question over, if you are an immigrant, whether that applies to you. if you are here as an undocumented immigrant, are you subject to the laws and jurisdiction of the united states? , i that is going to play

think it could play out in a couple of ways, one of which is that clearly immigration is a very big topic here in california. one out of every four persons is born elsewhere. we have a very large latino population. out of 40 million people in california, about 39% are latino , and about the same number at this point, maybe 39% or 40%, are white. we have a very large asian population as well. if you look at the numbers of immigrants, asian immigrants are a growing category in the state as well. so this is an issue. immigration is an issue that struck the heart of a lot of californians. brown, in his last state of the union address on a basically said bring it on. we are ready to defend our immigrants because, as he's said, immigrants make us stronger. when californians who are in

that camp, or that majority really, here the kinds of comments that trump is making comments as we are ready to revisit birthright citizenship that does mobilize people to vote, and to vote against trump. host: let's head up to northern california, where gary is waiting. good morning. caller: good morning. thanks for taking my call. i am from the far north, where we are forgotten appear. -- forgotten up here. most people consider the bay area northern california. my comment in question is about senator dianne feinstein. she has never been to northern california to our district for any reason. i am wondering why she hasn't got the endorsement of the democratic party this year. can you answer that for me? thank you.

caller: sure. there are a couple of things going on. i think you are right, northern california doesn't really get a lot of attention from the state senators, in part because they do hail from the middle of the state. they do have to represent everyone in the state, but most voters tend to be concentrated in the metropolitan areas. los angeles, san francisco, san diego, and san jose at this point. senatorsee from these is a kind of -- they do try to appeal, i think, to everyone. it is not as if they want to ,orget about those in the north but it tends to be more expedient for them to focus on where they are going to get a lot more attention. host: can you focus a little on that senate race in california? caller: sure. at this point there are two democrats vying for this office, kevin daly on -- kevin deleon

and dianne feinstein. actually did ask about the schism within the democratic party. i think this really does, this race encapsulates that pretty well. among democrats, there is a kind establishmentte wing of the party. people like dianne feinstein who have been around washington for a long time have learned how to get things done being a member of the minority party in washington, and they learned how to compromise and bargain, which is really what you have to do to get anything done generally in politics. but kevin deleon is starting to represent a kind of growing wing of the party. this wing of the democratic party is not quite as large as the sort of bigger, more

moderate of the liberals. this wing that deleon is representing at this point is more left wing than we seen before. things, these are the bernie-crats who supported bernie sanders in the last election. they want universal health care. they want really big ticket items. they are not afraid to tax and spend like other democrats may want to do. they don't mind more taxes for more government services. that is kind of a growing division within the party, although we haven't heard a lot about it was in this particular election. dianne feinstein is on her way to win one more term because she will be there for six more years. on is positioning himself for maybe the next go around as that wing possibly gains more ground. maybe he will be in a better

position to win next time around. host: anderson, california is also in northern california. jerome is waiting there. good morning. caller: good morning. how are you today? host: doing well. caller: thank you for taking these calls. congressional first district, we have a race appear that i think is pretty tight. we have audrey denney going against the republican. she's raised a lot of money. she's getting a lot of support. but we hear nothing of it. i'm like gary. i feel at the middle child of a family in northern california. the upper regions of california just get passed over by congress and everyone else because we are sparsely populated. but that doesn't make it necessary for people not to come here because we are part of california. there is a big movement now to split california. i am totally against that because i think california is strong as a state.

but i just want to know why we are not focused on as much, especially as this race is so close, on audrey denny and what's his name. i would just like you to comment on that. host: thanks for the call. caller: sure -- guest: sure. northern california does have a few issues that are different than the rest of the state. alln't want to characterize in the north as if they have a drug problem, but i would say opioid abuse is three times higher in some of the northern california counties as southern california counties. that is a problem, but there are other kinds of issues. environmental climate change is taking a toll as well, when it comes to dead trees, for example. that is a problem where you have forests.

whereare lots of examples northern california has some distinctive issues that should be focused on more clearly by some of our representatives. at the same time, you have these congressional district, people who do represent those areas, who are trying to bring them probably to d.c., and also to the state legislature to be done with. when you have these competitive races, if they are competitive it's because we are in a very special year where, as i mentioned before, this is kind of a referendum on trump. you will see the enthusiasm factor among democrats and republicans both being very high , and it has put a lot of different kinds of races in the midterm into play that wouldn't normally be in play because midterms really don't draw out a lot of hours -- a lot of voters. trump has said himself this is really a vote for a republican is a vote for me. we see that this is really

acting up a lot of people and gotten them excited about voting. where maybeme races a few months ago or a year ago we would not have dreamed that they would be competitive. so i think to the extent that democrats will be showing up at the polls, that is more or less a reflection of the fact that, again, californians are not really enamored of trump overall. haveu are a republican you probably not changed your mind, but if you are a democrat is more likely you are more incensed with every passing day that the trump administration policies are harmful. host: before we leave that first district race in california, should note for viewers the politico report has that race is currently likely republican, that race between the incumbent doug lamalfa, the democrat

audrey denney. you were talking about the role president trump is playing in these races in california. we can see it in some of the advertisements, especially some of the most highly contested districts, including the open 39th district. this of the house majority pac that aligns with democratic candidates and their ad in that district. >> he is the celebrity tv president. she's his apprentice. kim's audition went great. she voted on tax cuts to the top 1%. how will kim prove her loyalty? by slashing social security and medicare to pay for the tax cuts. and the story. house majority pac is was possible for this advertising.

caller: the 39th district -- guest: the 39th district features young cam, the first korean-american to be in this seat. she is being challenged by gil cisneros. gil comes from a family that actually won the lottery, 30 spent about $5 million of his own money to try to get this seat. young kim -- i should say, this is quite a strongly republican , like mostut it is of the other congressional districts, being targeted by democrats, and money is pouring into these races. one of the things i want to point out is that while the candidates themselves have raised very high sums to win these offices, and the neighborhood of $10 million between them, you have anywhere million $220 million

coming in from elsewhere -- to $20 million coming in from elsewhere just to try to get the democrats elected. there is a lot of money pouring in right here, the week before the election. in fact, there was an article that just came out showing that in this last week alone, the top six congressional district races , $16.5 million has been spent by outside groups alone. these are very hotly contested races, and in the young cam case case, can she win? it is likely for her to win because it is a heavily republican district. flipped?n it be the democrats are hoping that it will, and that is why they are pending republicans in most

of these races by large factors. host: we will try to get one or two more calls. en here in -- ian here in washington, d.c. caller: i am originally from east tennessee. i can relate and understand people who feel that their areas might not be considered the people running for office. we if you are in d.c., don't have a voice at all. i just left my early voting station and i don't think i've ever felt as disenfranchised ever. i absent he voted while i was -- i absentee voted while of a tennessee resident. d.c. residents need a voting voice in the house and senate, and i would question the patriotism of anyone who opposes that. host: professor, did want to ask you.

we have been showing stats on all of these races we have been focusing on in the house battle grand -- battleground. it is 39 democrats, 14 republicans. i would wonder if you care to offer any predictions at this point of what that delegation might look like come the beginning of the new year. well, ifell -- guest: i could do it, you would be paying me a lot more money. i wish i could make a solid prediction. but i will say maybe a couple of those seats will flip. if money really is as persuasive as we think it is, and it is being put to good use in persuasive tv ads, it might swing some of the nonpartisan there is no party preference voters to the democratic column, and it might draw more people to the polls if the issues

peopleves provoking of to want to cast their votes. but i wish i could make a prediction, but often productions are wrong, so i am going to be a little careful about making any predictions. maybe we will see a couple of them flipping, but i will say overall, in an election like this, a midterm, especially when a president's approval ratings are under 50%, you do tend to have over 30 seats flipping to the other party. in california, the issue is not one of gerrymandering. -- i should say, we don't have gerrymandered district because we have a citizenry districting commission that wrote the books on these district. ,ut across the country, you do so there are tight races everywhere. it is a question whether or not the democrats will flip the house but chances are they will. host: professor renee van

vechten is a political science professor at the university of redlands. you can follow her online @profrvv. thank you for joining us this morning. that is going to do it for our program today. we will be back tomorrow morning at 7:00 a.m. eastern, 4:00 a.m. pacific. in the meantime, have a great day. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2018] >> this week on washington journal. we are looking at radel ground states. the most competitive races of the midterm election. in minnesota, new york,

california, pennsylvania and florida. campaignor our live 2018 colin during washington journal at 7:00 eastern on c-span. national security adviser john bolton will discuss the trump administration's national security strategy. he is speaking before the alexander hamilton society in washington. we'll have live coverage at 1:00 p.m. is turned. our live today coverage continues tonight with republican representative tom mcarthur faces andy kim in new jersey's third district house race. live tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern. you can watch online at www.c-span.org and our app. tomorrow, candidates in west ridge and you's -- west virginia's u.s. senate race.