divided government, until there is another election which would change the circumstance and there is no longer a divided government, is anything fundamental likely to change? jayne: i think -- christopher: i think that you are going to -- it is definitely a status quo as far as any major legislation or major reforms for the next two years. susan: lots of heat but not necessarily any outcome? christopher: i would say so, yes. jayne: unfortunately. susan: thank you so much for being on the program. christopher: thank you. announcer 1: all this month on c-span, we'll feature the first and second prize winners of our to student cam documentary competition. middle and high school students created videos answering the question, what does it mean to be american? and now it is time to announce our grand prize winner. mason doherty and eli scott 11th

, graders at the international academy of north texas in mckinney, texas where c-span is available through spectrum. their winning entry is titled what it means to be american. >> the topic is accountability in government was what we believed was the really important topic in describing what it means to be an american because it was something that was pretty clearly written into our constitutional documents. >> the thing that surprised both of us the most was the sheer amount of knowledge and resources made available for us to research the corporate narrative. at least on my part, i was a little bit surprised at just how much effort and planning goes into producing a documentary. >> we were trying to make the film that was going to win. we eventually got a topic we were passionate about and went with that. >> i still think like even now i am having trouble processing what this means.

i mean it is amazing that this , message will be spread throughout classrooms across the country. mr. trump: and we are going to washington, dc to drain the swamp. >> to be american means to hold your government accountable because america has a corruption problem. in a recent gallup poll, 75% of american respondents said the political corruption is widespread. when an american thinks about political corruption, it is common to think about criminal bribery and illegal money, but that is not all. political corruption can be defined as any abuse of power or distortion of democracy that undermines the interest of the people. what is the role of citizen accountability in our government? >> we live in a representative democracy. it is essential and definitive of what america means that we hold our representatives accountable. if they don't reflect the people, then the entire concept of the american experiment does not work. the american people are behind,

what happens when you get to dc is a totally different story. >> our obsession of corruption is an american tradition. >> our country was founded by framers who understood that concentrated power is always in chemical -- inimical to liberty. >> when did this fight against tyranny make its way into the structure? >> fighting against the government is just. going back to the very founding moments, that was an essential element of the american creed. >> the declaration of independence says we hold these truths that all men are created equal. to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. >> is the birth of our nation, the founding fathers drew on this quote, the corruption of a republic rests within the corruption of its principles.

where has the united states detracted from this? >> instead of the textbook model where you have the executive executing law, judges judging violation and the legislative making law, you have all three functions combined in bureaucracy. executed largely by people that are not elected. >> it ultimately comes down to who the folks are in power, but the constitution has always provided for evolving to meet progressive goals, and i mean progress as far as a more representative society as -- to be able to give people power and authority over their government as opposed to just a wealthy elite class. >> it is clear the anxieties of our founding fathers have not necessarily lived on in our democracy regardless of how many protests planned, laws passed and positions lost. the successful fight against corruption was intended to be a distinct american quality. so what are the disparities? >> there has always been a disconnect when you get to elected representatives, ones

that are in power and they become dependent. they have to go out and be dependent on lobbyist contacts or the ways the industry influences their behavior. >> but relationships when they , manifest in the political arena to get things done for one person that is not done for another, it is a form of corruption. i think it is pretty clearly gone beyond that and construing -- in construing the scope of federal power, and has done that by i think distorting the original meaning of the necessary clause which gives congress the power to make all laws necessary for carrying into execution its enumerated powers. it has moved all our politics to the federal level with one-size-fits-all legislative solutions because the federal government has pretty much unlimited power today. >> so how can citizens hold the government accountable for abuses of power and undermining the interest of the people? >> try to convey and fight for people start thinking of purpose driven decisions instead of partisan driven decisions.

the local level you can get in our face and express your view, and you will be heard. there is much more access and accountability. >> taking leadership and introducing reforms that can catch fire and catalyze federal reform. we see it the only way through now is doing this at the state and local level. >> the public cannot stay on top of everything. a citizen's most important job is to do what they do well and then vote. voting people to represent you and trusting that role to members of congress that you believe in is really as much as anyone has time for except for a select few. >> we have had almost 80 anticorruption acts, resolutions passed around the country. a comprehensive ethics package in alaska. we have more anticorruption democracy measures on the ballot in november than at any point in american history. i would say like this movement is taking hold in folks getting

the idea that we cannot wait on elected officials to take care of the problem. >> in short, it comes down to us. our american institution is one of the most unique in the world where citizens have power to hold the government accountable, rather than just sit around and complain. the greatest thing about the issue of corruption in the united states is that the citizens are vocal in subduing it. in most places people are willing to recognize the nations -- nation's flaws even when the politicians do not. the governed and the government. you may remember the gallup poll that a beginning of this film and the significance is not how widespread corruption is but in how well we seek to keep the government in check. out of the 20 other nations interviewed in a survey, the united states has by far the most pessimistic view on corruption no matter how many , times governments overstep their power, the citizens are always there to play their part when they are knowledgeable of what they can do. so stand up. participate. and exemplify what it means to be an american by holding your government accountable.

♪ announcer 1: you can watch every winning studentcam documentary online at studentcam.org. announcer 1: today in a conference hosted by the american islamic relations focusing on islamophobia in the united states. the event includes a panel on community activists discussing the issue. here is part of that event looking at the rise of islamophobia during the 2008 presidential campaign. thef i could speak about of islam ation phobia united states, we have a specific time where it occurred. it is around the obama campaign. obama was being accused of being a muslim, that he was part of

, part of theod brotherhood conspiracy. if you think of that conspiracy, the brotherhood would have conspired to bring a kenyan in here, to find a white woman, impregnate her and to have a child in hawaii, then come back to work in the inner city of chicago to get elected into the do all americans to vote for him for the presidency. let's say they have that conspiracy. i really want to talk to them. >> [laughter] >> and to see if they could take our homelessness program and actually have a conspiracy that would address it. its functions in here, society at the time that is still islamophobia wanted to use the n word on obama but they

felt still the oxygen in the air was prohibitive so they felt comfortable using the m word as a substitute for the n word. that is where you get the birth of the birther movement, the tea party and they stoked islamophobia and bennett succeeds in the midterm 2010 election. the most expensive singled appointment appointment of aroundhobic resources is the election of obama. announcer 1: hosted by the counter -- total of american islamic relations at 6:45 on c-span. this week on the communicators, james lewis of the center for strategic and innovative studies talks about the fiber status of russia and china. 1979 made theince

illicit acquisition of western technology one of the cardinal points in its program for economic development, technological parity. it will be hard for them to give it up. they continue to siphon off intellectual property much as they have the last 20 years using the internet. monday night at 8:00 eastern on c-span 2. >> one, 2, 3, go. announcer 1: monday is the 131st annual easter egg role. hosted by first lady melania trump. here is a look back at the festivities with past presidents.

>> when i got out at dawn i saw the easter bunnies walking around. plotting their strategies for the day and getting ready. >> ready, set -- ♪

♪ >> everybody ready. [applause] ♪

[applause] [indiscernible] >> on the whistle, on the whistle. ready, set -- [whistle blow]

♪ >> ready, everybody? everybody ready? ready, set, go.

ready, set, -- blow]elle >> thank you, everybody. [indiscernible] >> give that. sell it tonight. ready --

[indiscernible] announcer 1: watch this year's easter egg role monday morning on c-span. remarks from supreme court justice clarence thomas at 2019rdine university's annual dinner. he talked about his future on the high court, the role of state in the judiciary and the process for clerks. [applause] jus. thomas: -- >>