streaming live today on our website. at 9:30 a.m. eastern, the senate armed services committee holds a hearing on global security challenges with former national security advisor h.r. mcmaster among the witnesses. at 10:00 a.m., a confirmation hearing for the nominees picked to head the securities and exchange commission, and the consumer financial protection bureau. also at 10:00 a.m., the supreme court hears oral argument in a case challenging arizona's policy barring voters from casting ballots outside their assigned precincts, and the collection of ballots by a third-party. that is live at c-span.org. coming up in 10 minutes, usa today network correspondent discusses the investigation of new york governor andrew cuomo about -- after a sexual harassment allegation. after -- at 8:00 a.m. representative judy chu on the

rise on violent attacks against asian americans. at 8:30 ethics and public policy senior fellow henry olson talks about the future of the republican party. ♪ [washington journal theme plays] host: good morning, it's the washington journal. new york governor andrew cuomo facing up third allegation of sexual harassment after a woman accused him of unwanted advances at a wedding. the claim prompted calls for his resignation from a new york democratic representative and calls for investigation from both of new york's democratic senators. in our first hours we comment on the story involving the new york governor. here's how you can call us. emigrants (202) 748-8000 -- democrats (202) 748-8000, republicans (202) 748-8001,

independents (202) 748-8002. if you are a resident of new york state you can call at (202) 748-8003. you can text us at that number as well and post on our social media sites. twitter, [video clip] -- twitter, @cspanwj. the new york times has that accounting from a third woman talking about events that take place -- took place as ash at a wedding. the story, she recalled mr. cuomo moving his hand to the small of her back exposing -- exposed in an open back dress within moments of them being introduced at the reception. she said the touch on her bare skin made her uncomfortable. i removed his hand which i thought would make a clear signal i did not want him to touch me. he placed his hands on her

cheeks and asked if he could kiss her. she felt uncomfortable and embarrassed when he was the one that should have been embarrassed. the exchange was captured in a series of photographs. it is active impunity that strikes me, i didn't have a choice in the matter or the physical dominance over me at the moment and that's what infuriates me and even with what i could do removing his hand from my back was not clear enough. that's the story as of late. in the new york times to other claims coming from former aides. both accounted in the various newspaper accounts. these prompted several actions from members of congress. the new york post highlights the democratic representative from new york kathleen rice saying she is becoming the first member of congress to call on governor cuomo to resign after a third woman came forward with the accusations. "the time has come, the governor must resign."

she represents parts of long island. "this -- other state lawmakers have all joined on the calls for cuomo to step down. if you go over to the senate side, more calls for investigation of this matter with two of those democratic senators weighing in saying it was on sunday that the senators eckerd the state attorney general's call that she should be given the power to investigate the accusations of sexual harassment against the governor, rejecting the governor's bid to find it independent lawyer to look into claims made by the two women. senator kristen gillibrand called for a full investigative power to be given to james. "these allegations are serious and deeply concerning.

as requested by the attorney general james the matter should be referred to her office so that she can conduct a transparent and thorough investigation with subpoena power." senator schumer backed the call that letitia james be the lead investigator in the probe. the speaker of the house nancy pelosi put out her own statement on this saying, "the women have come forward with serious incredible charges against cuomo deserve to be heard and treated with dignity. independent investigation must have due process and respect for everyone involved." just some reaction from capitol hill. in the next hour we get reaction from you on this. here's how you can call us and let us know your thoughts if you want to choose your phone lines. (202) 748-8000 for democrats, (202) 748-8001 for republicans, and independents (202) 748-8002.

if you are a resident of the state of new york you can call on (202) 748-8003. you can use that number to text us your thoughts as well. twitter available @cspanwj. our facebook page, facebook.com/c-span james in connecticut, democrats line, you start us off this morning. what do you think about these allegations against new york's governor? caller: my name is jim, good morning, c-span. inc. you for what you are. very good. host: thanks for calling, what you think about the claims against the governor? caller: i think it's another case of double standards. the democrats are the first ones to get rid of these guys this is what the cases. with the republicans, what happens all the time is these guys get passes. how many -- host: you're going to have to

keep talking and stop listening to the television. caller: i'm sorry, let me turn it off. host: go ahead and finish your thought. caller: the republicans, how many times did trump get himself allegations? and nothing gets said or done about this. it's terrible what happened i think and if he's gotta go he's gotta go. that's the right thing. the republicans nobody ever goes. they just keep getting worse. host: we will hear from a resident of new york, this is tyrone, a democrat in new york. you're up next, good morning. caller: yes, i'm a democrat and i definitely am in favor of -- am ashamed of what andrew cuomo has done with the pandemic.

i am happy that democratic callers are not calling in saying it's fake news and that the senior citizens didn't die and that there were fake actors and all the rest of baloney that a lot of people made up excuses for what this previous president did. host: on the sexual harassment charges against the governor? caller: i think those things need to be looked into and i think if this was a pattern and this is something he has been doing for long he needs to go. i think that if he hit the number -- head the numbers on the -- hid the numbers on the deaths of these people he needs to go. we don't need somebody an office that is going to cover up and use his power to take advantage of these women. we don't need that. we need to get away from this whole hierarchy where people that have power use their power to misuse other people. if he did wrong he needs to be

dealt with. host: a new york resident. for those new york residents, if you want to give your comments, (202) 748-8003 is how you do that. from georgia, the republican line. caller: yes, pedro. i want to know what happened to hunter? can we get one thing done at a time? has this replaced hunter? host: we are dealing with these accusations against the new york governor, what do you think about that? caller: i think one thing at a time would be nice. i think he's been a bad di for long. -- a bad guy for long. new york is a one-party state like a lot of states. i'm from the washington state. that's a one-party state also. host: to the charges against the governor, what do you think of those? caller: i think he should go. if they're true.

that's all. host: that's dave and bought us a, georgia giving his thoughts on the republican line. we have three lines you can call , four if you are a resident of new york. you can also reach out on social media. to give us a perspective on the investigative aspect from the usa today network is joseph spector, a government and politics editor from new york. thanks for joining us. joseph: thanks for having me. host: talk about the next apps. what is the attorney general involving itself with the echo -- with? joseph: that was the debate on sunday, who would investigate, overthrew woman with broad sexual harassment charges against him. that was sort of indicative of the problem and state government here in new york. there is not a true independent body to investigate claims of sexual harassment or ethics.

there is a joint commission on public ethics they new york has but that commission has long been viewed as compromised and beholden to governor andrew cuomo and lawmakers. to make a long story short, ultimately cuomo acquiesced and allowed the attorney general to hire a special prosecutor, a private attorney to investigate these claims and come back with a report and findings in the near term, whether that is weeks or months we don't know. host: what is the governor's ability to withhold going forward in light of the investigation and managing to do his job? joseph: that's a big job. we are still amid the pandemic here. new york is still trying to bolster its rollout of the vaccine. it just goes to cuomo's compromised situation as you mentioned. yesterday was the one-year

anniversary of the first covid case in new york. and governor andrew cuomo held over 100 briefings in arroyo. yesterday, no briefing. he hasn't had one since last monday. it shows you how difficult a position he is in and that comes amid questions about whether he can stay in office. you are seeing more lawmakers call on him resign. if he doesn't resign, lawmakers, some, republicans mainly are calling for him to be impeached. he has two things going on. one is the sexual harassment one, two is the nursing homes. before these problems came along for governor andrew cuomo dealing with sexual harassment people were already calling for his resignation, lawmakers were already asking for him to leave office because of the state's

undercounting of nursing home deaths. if you recall, what happen was new york initially for many months would not count nursing home residents who went to hospitals and died of covid as a nursing home deaths. they were counted as hospital deaths and that led to an undercounting of those who were from nursing homes dying. instead of 8000 or so that was initially being reported it turns out it was more like 13,000. that led to a whole another round of inquiries and concerns and hearings. there are two investigations going on. one that we noted from letitia james, but another investigation by the u.s. department of justice who is investigating the nursing home situation. host: we saw the governor make a statement and it read "at work i think i am being playful or make jokes that i think are funny. i understand my interactions may have been insensitive or too personal and that some of my

comments made others feel in no way i never intended. i acknowledge things i said have been interpreted as unwanted flirtation. to the extent anyone felt that way i'm truly sorry." is there anything about this statement that effects the investigation or the situation? joseph: any investigation will use any and all evidence put forward. that statement did not do much to quell the criticism of him. charlotte bennett, the woman who came forward on saturday to make claims that she felt uncomfortable and that he made inappropriate comments to her about her personal life after -- asking her if she would date an older man. she came out with a statement yesterday that ripped cuomo cost statement from sunday that he needs to come forward and acknowledge her or take her

stash acknowledge or take responsibility for his predatory behavior. host: you are there in albany covering the governor and the situation. have these patterns emerged before? joseph: no, not explicitly like this. one thing that has been long discussed is cuomo's governing style. many people have called him a bully, that he is aggressive. that he will give -- will remount his opponents and let them know how he feels. he has often said that as a means to an end. that he is fighting to get his priorities straight. when you talk about where he is or whether he can withstand it it's important to remember that in the state legislature they are not friendly with cuomo. he has had many battles with

them. he's had many successes with them like the $15 minimum wage, unpaid family leave, many progressive measures they sought. now that he is in trouble he is not finding a lot of allies in the state legislature who ultimately could impeach him and that is what some have already called for. host: as far as legal defense, has the governor hired anyone to assist him with charges? joseph: he did hire someone to help him with the nursing home scandal. he has hired a private firm there. it's also worth noting that charlotte bennett, she has hired her own attorney. her attorney represented christine blasey ford in the brett kavanaugh hearings. she hired a pretty high profile attorney when it comes to sexual harassment. the two of them --

bennett put out a statement that cuomo needs to be more forthright in his apology and urging the attorney general to do a thorough investigation not only of cuomo but his administration and alleging that others need to be investigated for possible -- host: this is joseph spector with the usa today network out of new york covering government and politics there. we thank you for your time and your input. host: a couple comments from social media. bob texting is from missouri saying let the investigators do the business of finding the truth, make a -- macon -- make a suggestion to resolve. three women inc. -- three women accused -- if 26 -- would obama be president if he said the things trump said?

cuomo may be a bad guy, but the hypocrisy is overwhelming. salmon bakersfield, california saying "at this point he cannot govern effectively, he should resign." (202) 748-8003 if you are a resident of new york. in new jersey on the democrats line, jim is next. caller: first and foremost, thank you for taking my comments. while i am a democrat i am a human being first and a born american. consequently i believe that governor cuomo should resign if it's found that the accusations against him are true and he is

deemed culpable for those actions. host: mary in new mexico, from williamsburg, new mexico on the independent line. caller: good morning. in regards to andrew cuomo and the situation i remember watching andrew cuomo on cnn during chris cuomo's shows during the initial coronavirus when chris cuomo was ill and he was doing it and governor cuomo was calling him in and they were having a big show. i keep remembering that governor cuomo kept mentioning the fact that he was single and that he didn't really have anyone in his life at that point and that he had to go out by himself jogging and that he kind of indicated that he was looking for females.

he kept saying it in many interviews with his brother. i kept wondering why the governor of new york was talking about needing a woman or a girlfriend or indicating that, it was awed. host: how do you relate that to the allegations after caller: i relate that to the fact that he seems as though he was trying to find a girlfriend. i'm not saying that makes the connection that he did something bad to other women, i'm just saying i have never seen a politician go one tv and start talking about wanting a girlfriend and lowly is me and all this other stuff. his brother chris would go on and say that he had a big nose and they would go back and forth on how handsome one or the other was. i thought, why are you doing this on tv during the

coronavirus? why are you talking about women? host: let's go to john, resident of new york on the democrats line. caller: hello? i support governor cuomo. i just wanted to say that i don't know when it became all right or not all right for a man to want to kiss a woman or to ask a woman to be able to kiss her. if a woman doesn't want to be touched i don't know why she just can't say don't touch me. host: that was pretty much the case of this latest allegation and in light of that you still support him? caller: i absolutely do 100%. i think he's a great governor and did a great job with the coronavirus. i know mistakes are made, but mistakes happen, nobody's perfect. host: this is the third allegation, does this indicate a pattern and is there concern there? caller: not at all, he's a single guy.

maybe he's looking for a girlfriend. why is that so wrong? if a woman doesn't want to be touched she can say don't touch me, don't put your hands on me. if a man wants to kiss a woman, wouldn't it be better rather than just to go up and kiss a woman to ask the woman first can i kiss you? i don't see anything wrong with that. host: let's go to al in massachusetts, republican line. caller: it's amazing what we're hearing this morning. there is no venue of investigation. the governor is doing up great job, they did a investigation on brett kavanaugh. we have yet to see governor cuomo's college yearbook. here are all the excuses from the left-wing media. i know governor cuomo is gone because good morning

america is covering this, next it will be an snl skit. the typical loop of the liberal media. why did it take three years as the big story? one woman goes back to 2017. why was the governor so brazen to do this in the era of me too? and less he thought the press would cover for him. me too all over the face of the liberals. it is dancing all around. we were waiting on a nobel peace prize for the guy. it's called equal treatment. this is why the right is suspicious of you folks. maybe we are a bit paranoid. find the truth. start redeeming your job you went to college for and find the truth. >> al in massachusetts on the

republican line calling, one of those people commenting on the accusations against the governor , also a frequent critic of the governor's new york governor bill de blasio talked about allegations recently, here's a bit of what he has to say. >> to women who worked for him and one of the things we have all come to realize because of great women who stood up, because there has been a fundamental change in understanding in this society that is long overdue. if someone works for you and they are in a position of vulnerability, they worry for their job and future, and when anybody, particularly an older man trying to take advantage of a younger woman does something that makes the younger woman feel like she does not consent to what the man once and she may not keep her job, these are horrible things that are unacceptable in our society. a full investigation. we have to understand what happened. if someone purposely used their power to try to force a woman to

have sex with them, that someone who should no longer be in public service. host: democrats devour their own, how do single people date? of course it's wrong, but it's not criminal. when did dems start taking their marching orders from pam bondi? david new york saying "cuomo's hubris, arrogance, and -- what is he thinking kicked trying to kiss someone his daughter's age? this is james in greenville, north carolina. you are next. caller: i don't think he should -- i don't think the governor should resign. we had a president that said grab a woman by the p and they made him president. it's all good. host: so it's not worthy of investigating? caller: did they investigate trump?

430 9000 people died and they didn't look into it. host: these charges against the governor, are they worthy of an investigion? caller: not really. he grab the woman by her cheeks. i grabbed my daughter by her cheeks. host: maxine in baltimore, michigan on the independent line. caller: good morning, c-span. this allegation against cuomo, it's a bunch of la la, it's he said she said. we are taking her word and we are ready to throw him to the curb. host: there are three women involved in this now. caller: it's three, does that make a difference? three can lie just as good as one. i'm not saying he's guilty of that or not. if you are a female and you go into the workplace you can

expect some harassment. it's just natural. men will be men. you have to learn to deal with it. you can't run to hr with every little he said this or he did that. host: how does this become a woman's problem versus the one who is accused? caller: it always has been. host: how does it become a woman's problem? caller: it has always been a woman's problem. you are going into a man's world, you have to expect men to act like men. cuomo is nothing. the fact that he murdered senior citizens, that's the problem. host: back to these charges. when both democrats in congress, at least the senate called for investigation, when a representative from new york calls for his investigation, would you have state legislators calling for his resignation, isn't that worthy of investigation? caller: it's politics.

can you get it? they are not playing by a rulebook, they are playing by their democratic playbook. cuomo has fallen into disfavor with his group. if he is going to resign for anything it should have been the senior citizen, not because -- host: harry from pittsburgh, pennsylvania. caller: i think they will investigate this but i don't know where it's going to go. we are in this #metoo movement. this guy sent 9000 people to their deaths and he's on his brothers show joking that he's single and ready to mingle. is he eligible to be j. lo bully echo it's getting ridiculous -- is he eligible to be jailable? they will get array with it. democrats never get persecuted for anything. the same people saying nothing

should happen, they are just the same people calling upon kavanaugh and how -- host: these kind of allegations led to senator al franken to be removed from the senate. do you think that applies to the governor? caller: i think it should be worse than that. franken never killed 9000 people. it should be way worse than that. host: a new york resident, this is ann on the democrats line. caller: i live in new york city, and i voted for governor cuomo, and i hope to be able to do so again. there is a difference between someone behaving like a jerk and you say no thank you and someone who is sexually aggressive. in all of these instances, even if they are true, cuomo did nothing that should make him be removed from office. i don't think al franken should have resigned either.

you have donald trump on rape charges going into a dressing room and shoving someone against a wall and raping them. and you want to pick on andrew cuomo? host: three women have identified some type of harassment or uncomfortable with the governor's actions, that doesn't concern you? caller: to be uncomfortable with someone coming on to you is different than sexual aggression. you simply say no thank you. i'm sure he wasn't going to slam her against the wall and demand that he kiss her. you simply say no thank you. host: tara in cherry hill, new jersey on the independent line. good morning. caller: good morning. i want to let you know from life experience and what i have witnessed in the scene of politics this is a political set up. i think al franken should have not resigned either, i wrote to

him, don't listen to nancy pelosi, don't resign. i think it's a political set up. host: what makes it a set up? how do you clarify that? caller: as i said, life experience and what i have witnessed watching the world and politics. if he did something that someone more powerful than him didn't like they are going to mess him up and probably more women will come out, i'm not going to be surprised because that's the theme, that's the protocol. host: you are calling it a set up. do you mean there some type of collusion between the women involved? caller: know i am thinking there is a process, like feeling uncomfortable because somebody asks you if they can date you or if they can kiss you, that's very normal. you just say no and you move on. feeling uncomfortable, he might

have made more people more comfortable -- uncomfortable because he is single and looking to date someone. feeling uncomfortable is not a reason for a government to resign -- a governor to resign. host: previous collars because we live in the era era of me the interactions have changed. don't you think that warrants some type of -- erai don't think america shoulo that. america should not do that to its children. and come up with those plans. somebody is doing it to him. host: that is terra in cherry

hill, new jersey. we have been getting your calls looking at these allegations against governor cuomo and we will do the same until 8:00. if you want to call us, (202) 748-8000 for democrats, (202) 748-8001 for republicans, (202) 748-8002 and four independents. residents of the state of new york and call asset (202) 748-8003. the house expected to work on legislation today. democrats planning their democratic retreat to engage in topics of their strategy for the congress. we will talk about those with guests in our second hour and take your calls for the next half hour. dottie in georgia on the democrats line. caller: how are you doing? i was reading about what he supposedly did, and personally,

i wouldn't call that sexual harassment. i would call that a man looking for a date. and there is nothing wrong, i might not like an old man dating a 27-year-old woman but i don't have anything to do with it. host: exactly why does it not rise to the category of sexual harassment in your mind? caller: sexual harassment is when some man touches you are grabs you aggressively. if a man comes up and asks how you are doing and if you had a wedding. he comes up to you, you are wearing a dress hanging down and he puts his hand on your back, you would say, do not touch me, get your hand off of me, nice meeting you and walk away. nobody is making her stand there, why didn't she just walk away? host: rebecca in summerville, south carolina, republican line. good morning.

caller: good morning. i feel very strongly about this issue that we have elected officials we hold to high standards we showed, both republicans and democrats. if there was nothing that was done wrong then an investigation will show that nothing was done wrong. i am stunned having heard the comments from women who just believe that other women's allegation should not be taken seriously, do we not live in 2021? have we not made any progress? host: rebecca and south carolina giving us her thoughts. you can call on the lines this morning and post on social media. one of the people who has commented on this on monday was the white house press secretary jen psaki asked about these allegations against governor cuomo. you can find the full press conference on our website, but here's a portion.

>> i said i support an independent review of the allegations against him. one of those aides detailed specific language and questions that she said the governor asked her about her personal life that made her feel uncomfortable and the governor himself has not denied asking these personal questions. in general, when it comes to sexual misconduct, where is the redline for the president and this administration. is it unwanted physical overtures or unwelcome language between a boss and date subordinate with a power differential? press sec. psaki: as i said yesterday that story was uncomfortable to read as a woman and we certainly believe that every woman coming forward, charlotte, lindsay, should be treated with respect and dignity and be able to tell their story and treated with respect. there is a process of reviewing, as you noted, an independent investigation.

we will leave it to that process through the attorney general to make a determination on the path forward. host: this is lisa from facebook saying "since when do we make people resign before they are found guilty of anything? oh wait, there's al franken. lookout well that turned out for kyl student -- kiersten gillibrand." carol from panama city sang "the governor should go if -- adding that former president trump never stepped down after 18 plus accusers accused him of sexual misconduct plus paying hush money while president. the hypocrisy from republicans will be stunning. this is from crystal, albany, new york on the democrats line. caller: thank you for having me -- i believe that cuomo is innocent

, and i will vote for him again. as far as these allegations, this goes further back besides sexual harassment. it goes back as far as when he was going to d.c. to get things to help new york state with this pandemic. trump even said that he was going to get him -- why don't people realize that trump has done everything in his power to make sure that new york state, that he was helping to make sure things were getting the ppe -- host: were not talking about the former president, we are talking about allegations against the governor. why do you think they are not true? caller: as far as allegations, those women lied. women can also play the same game. they can go up to a man and do the same thing and turn it around and claim this person did something to them.

why aren't they investigating both sides instead of one side? host: what do the women get out of it? caller: who says the women have to get anything out of it? maybe they don't like him and won him to step down. for him to resign, he doesn't need to resign. he needs to fight for new york state. to fight for what he believes. he's been there for 10 years. he's not that person. does he have any record back then? for 10 years before this came up? host: we will hear from rufus, rufus in arlington, texas. caller: yes. the man is a single man and we have a republican texas governor killing full with his guys down here. this guy is a single guy. he's done a good job to a point. people try to blame him for everything.

he's done nothing but what he tried to do as the governor. he probably overstepped his -- he had his hands tied from the start of the coronavirus to now. host: these are about accusation from three women. you believe them or not? caller: this man is single, like i said. he is looking. he's not tied to nothing marital . host: so the actions in these three instances, that makes it right? caller: no, no, no. let's say you are single and you see an attractive person. you walk up, if you invade her space she will let you know, back off. i'm over 60, some ways we do things are changing. you used to just walk up and touch their hands, hold their hands, "how you doing, you look

nice." when you get that frown you know to back up. people taking pictures of you everywhere you go and all of a sudden they put their spin on it . that's wrong. host: we will hear from another resident of new york. several calling in on our number. you are next, hello. caller: yes. [indiscernible] i forgive him. if he was doing that he is not the trouble. democrats, stop it. because if this were placed you could put a republican governor

written. mario cuomo i will vote for you. he should resign -- he's a good governor. [indiscernible] host: jazmine in new york giving her thoughts on these allegations against governor cuomo. we will do that for 20 more minutes. other pieces of news to share about the relationship with the u.s. and iran. the world stage and iran. comments from the international atomic energy agency chief. an appeal to all sides to engage in constructive discussion as the vienna-based agency --

iran enacted a law late last month that restricted snap access for inspectors to some sites and surveillance cameras, claiming it is not the reaping of economic rewards it was promised in exchange for curves on its nuclear program. the inspection work of the iaea should not be pit in the middle of the table as a bargaining chip. if you turn to the pages of the new york times, a breakdown of discussions between the president of the united states and mexico's president, talking about issues of immigration, facing an uptick in illegal migrants crossing at some parts of the southwest border, mr. biden is hoping mr. lopez over door will become a partner in curbing another cycle -- and one without resort to the

full range of policies mr. trump and based -- embrace. esther biden once one of the same things from the mexican president his predecessor did, keeping central american migrants from immediately surging north to the united states through mexico. that's in the new york times. an investigation continuing on tap at all hill -- capitol hill taking a look at the january 6 attacks. christopher wray will appear at the senate judiciary committee. you can see that live at 10:00 eastern on c-span three, c-span.org. you can follow along on our seat -- re-c-span radio app. bethel from baltimore, maryland on the independent line. caller: i was just calling to comment on something i haven't heard so far. two of the people who came forward against cuomo with allegations were his aides and when it comes to sexual harassment in the workplace it's pretty cut and dry, if someone

makes you feel uncomfortable whether that is a boss or coworker, man or woman, doesn't matter who it is. if someone makes you feel sexually uncomfortable it qualifies as sexual harassment. i'm not discounting the third person that came forward, i'm simply saying that under any other circumstance or other standards whether you are an elected official or not if it happens in the workplace they have the right to come forward whether it was somebody touching your face or putting pressure on you to play something like strip poker which is one of the allegations. host: patricia ann easton, maryland on the republican line. caller: i believe the allegations are true. i think a lot of politicians get away with a lot of stuff and people are scared to speak out. they fear for their life and i

think for these people to come forward and speak on this, especially as powerful as he is, i believe they are true. host: what makes you believe that? caller: everything he has done lately. i feel like he is an evil man. the way he handled the elderly people. i feel like he is on board with some evil people who are now basically trying to destroy this country. i think he is part of a huge group and a lot of them think they are invincible and they can do whatever they want. i wouldn't put it past any politician and the power they get in their hands. i think they treat people and women like they are below them and they can do whatever they want. for these three women to make that statement this is their lives they are talking about.

i think it's true. host: marianne, a new yorker, republican line. caller: yes. i've always thought that our governor was someone of a jerk anyway, but on the other hand i didn't hear what the young ladies said to him. if they had given any indication they weren't interested in the conversation, that would be one thing. but i think they have a part to play in this. i am sympathetic to him on this even though i'm a republican and don't like him. host: what makes you think that women have a part in this? caller: we haven't heard what they said to him. in other words, if he was saying something to them that they did not like, all they had to do, what an earlier caller said was no thank you and walk away.

if he then pursued it i would see some difficulty. host: how much support do you have for the attorney general investigating these matters? caller: i think this is being completely overblown. host: that is marianne in new york, a republican. let's go to marie in columbus, ohio. democrat. caller: good morning, governor cuomo is a great governor. he is a very wise man. he is good. what has happened with these women, it needs to be investigated. in working for the government, if someone approaches you in a way that you don't like you tell them you don't like that and they won't do it again.

if he comes back again or she comes back again and does the same thing, then you report them. i think a lot of politics are playing into this because cuomo has become very strong recently and i know the democrats are going to pound him now. this needs to be investigated and he is a great governor and i think he will come through all of this ok. >> with three separate allegations what do you think about that many -- those numbers about allegations towards the governor? that three women separately came to this. caller: allegations can be made all the time. investigation will prove what really happened. those women have a mouth. if someone approaches you wrongly, and in working with the federal government for 36 years, they tell you if someone approaches you in a negative way or that is offensive to you,

then you tell them. if they come back again, report them. can make allegations all the time but politics are playing into this. you don't know too much about these women. it needs to be investigated and a conclusion to come forward. host: it doesn't rise to the level of resignation in your mind? caller: know. people have reasons for doing things, politics. no matter if it becomes 10 or 20, investigate those people. there's a reason for why they did what they did. >> brenda from south carolina and saint stephen's, you are next on the democrats line. caller: i agree with the last caller and other previous callers. governor cuomo is a very good governor. he does his job as a governor.

these three women, it could be 10 or 20 women, the allegations. these three women, he asked to kiss her. he is an older man. maybe he is out of the loop with dating. to say get rid of him or make him resign because of that and you had a president that has all the sexual harassment allegations against him. i watch your show but i never remember seeing you had a show where you had people calling in and asking about president trump and all the women he sexually assaulted and grabbed. we have done issues involving stormy daniels and accusations over the year. they are available at our website. caller: did you ever have anyone call in and give a comment on how they feel about him not being president because of it? host: during those times. as far as that is concerned you think the same standard should be applied to governor cuomo? the standard president trump was asked about or questioned about? caller: i agree but the standard

is different because this man asked to kiss someone. he asked, they could have said no. he didn't put his hands on them or grope them or commit a crime. he just asked for a date. host: there is a picture in regard to last when there is a picture of the governor's hands on this woman's face. caller: he touched her face, i mean they accused joe biden of smelling people's hair. my god. where is the line drawn when it comes to sexual harassment? just because you touched someone's face, was he rubbing her face, was he caressing her face or he just touched her face? she could have had something on her face. i don't think he should resign. republicans don't resign when they do more awful things than that. he's a good governor and does his job, that's all that important. he cares about the people of new york. that's more than i can say for lindsey graham in south carolina. host: let's go to kathy in

montgomery, texas. caller: this is not a republican or democrat issue, it's a woman issue. i'm shocked all these colors are ok with this man's bad behavior. he's using his power to humiliate women through his personal satisfaction. >> there are allegations. caller:'s comments do not dispute this. people think he was joking, come on, this is ridiculous. he was using his power to humiliate women. he has a respectful position -- host: gerald in new york, many residents of new york state calling. where are you in new york state? give us a visual about where you are located. caller: it's albany, new york

but it's a town inside, and between. host: you are close to albany, go ahead with your comments. caller: i believe, personally, and as a male, cuomo is being targeted because he is an aggressive governor. i've been watching this whole presidency battle since it started. he has been doing the covid, pandemic, he has been the most aggressive, aggressive governor about this covid thing and has not been able to get any help from the governor -- from the government. now all the backlash to him is because he is so aggressive this is how they are going to come at you. host: how does that relate to

these allegations? caller: you understand politics like everyone else does. if we can't get you one way we will get you another and that's the bottom line. he has been aggressive during this whole thing. and he's a democrat. all the governors that were out there saying they needed ppp or this stuff and they were passive and they needed help, he was aggressive. he did executive orders and stuff to make sure that new york got what they needed. host: back to the allegations, two of them came from aids, one came at a wedding, you say this is a concerted effort? caller: i don't believe he did what these ladies said he did. it started out with one and now we have three. it hasn't even been a whole month. how many more are going to pop out? he's been in office for 10 years. his father served more than that.

are you serious? people are out of their minds thinking that this governor is out there in the limelight like he is on the front line battling for his state and is going to put himself in a bad position like that. host: what level does it take when the attorney general is going to have to investigate it? caller: that's her job. investigate the girls or women saying all this stuff. investigate them before you throw the governor under the bus or try to. host: we will hear from doreen in gloucester, massachusetts on the republican line. caller: thank you for taking my call. i'm listening to this and it's interesting that the first scandals for governor cuomo was the nursing home scandal, putting positive covid patients into the nursing homes and i

believe this was a distraction. this whole story with the sexual harassment, it is serious, but from what i'm hearing -- host: but you don't believe it, why is that? you don't believe it? caller: there is -- these are allegations and from what i'm hearing a lot of his colleagues are defending him. he will get away with it, it won't be a thing he has to resign. i think he should resign for the nursing home scandal. that's what scandalous and where the resignation should come in. he has an executive order that he wrote, you could get a copy of that i'm sure. i sighed for myself months and months ago. he put covid positive patients into nursing homes. guest: that story is well known

-- host: that story is well known, in ohio on the independent line, esther. caller: thank you for taking my call. i want to say that our country, all of a sudden nobody is accountable for anybody, bill clinton had monica low inscape. host: as far as these allegations against governor cuomo, what do you think of them? caller: i think they're true. men take advantage if they're in power over women. if they are a liberal or if they are a democrat, whoever they are they are not accountable, they can do anything. i'm sorry, he needs to fess up to his actions and why he did this. monica lewinsky, clinton had

power over her and he knew it. guest: -- host: the senate confirming mikko cardona, now -- a bipartisan vote whose nomination moved through the chamber without significant controversy in contrast with the confirmation of his predecessor, betsy devos, who needed the tie-breaking vote of the vice president to win the confirmation. if you go to the washington times, taking a look at issues of the supreme court, saying "the court will hear a challenge on to arizona election matters that band ballot harvesting and out of precinct voting, a case with broad implications for states moving forward with the election integrity laws in the wake of the 2020 presidential contest. advocates on both sides have a case marks the first time the high court will determine how a key commission of the voting rights act which forbid states denying voters rights on the

basis of race applies to the landscape of election law. the high court has a 6-3 conservative majority. isaac in new york, democrats line, go ahead. caller: finally i got on the show. good morning to you, my brother. i want to say this. in this country you are innocent until proven guilty. all these allegations against cuomo, i don't think they are true. i think they should be investigated because those ladies do have a right to have this investigated. i think a lot of people on your show are getting everything twisted. everybody is basing their comments off of the scandal with the nursing home situation. that's already been investigated and dealt with. they have nothing to do with each other. i don't think cuomo did it. he's a good guy. that picture you keep showing with his hands on the lady's face, that was at a wedding. you're smart enough to know

that's not sexual harassment. he put his hand on her back but that's probably because he was trying to get her attention. i don't think the man has done nothing, i don't think he's that type of guy. i think he's too smart to get himself caught this. amy: pim -- amy: -- host: we will take one more call. caller: i don't think this should be tried in the newspapers. i am amazed how much the colors are sticking up -- callers are sticking up for them without knowing the facts. host: why not look into the situation regarding the governor of new york? caller: it should be

investigated fully. i don't think that people should be making a decision one way or another. host: thank you for all the who participated. we have one hour until the house comes in. we will start our our talking with representative judy chu who is the chair of the asian pacific american caucus about the rise in attacks against asian americans. we will hear from henry olson talking about the future of the republican party. both are coming up on "washington journal." ♪ >> sunday on in-depth, a live conversation with a staff writer for the new yorker, the most

recent book is under a white sky, the nation of the future. and also the sixth extension -- at distinction. join us at noon eastern on book tv on c-span two. and before the program, be sure to visit c-span. shop/org -- c-span.org/shop. >> visit c-span's new online store to check out the new c-span products. we are taking preorders for the congressional directory. it helps support c-span's operations. >> "washington journal"

continues. host: our first guest of the morning is representative judy chu who represents california and also the chair of the asian pacific caucus. guest: thank you for having me. host: we saw a report on the rise on attacks in asian americans. can you tell us why this is happening. guest: what is alarming is that it is largely against the elderly. there is an 84-year-old man, asian-american man, who was assaulted and murdered. and then there was a 91-year-old man in chinatown who was assaulted and pushed to the ground. that perpetrator went on to

assault two more elderly women. in new york there was a subway attack in which a man was slashed from ear to ear on his face. these are just the tip of the iceberg. over the last year, there have been 3000 anti-asian hate crimes and incidents related to coronavirus. it started with president trump continuously calling this virus the china virus, wuhan virus. so this has been happening throughout the year there has been a spike in these kinds of hate crimes in incidents within the last month. we have been engaged in quite a bit of activity to stop this. resident buying put out an executive order that said that

the u.s. department of justice has to work in combating these hate crimes. we have set up a meeting with the department of justice to figure out methods in which we can stop this and prosecute these crimes and wait also are pushing a bill called the no hate act which would enhance the propagation of these two getting law enforcement to put together a crime program. host: so legally is that the level of a hate crime for what the law says? guest: not in all cases, because labeling it a hate crime is that there has to be some uttering of some kinds of words that leave it to be a hate crime. these crimes that i talked about

were totally unprovoked. we are talking about a 90 own -- a 91-year-old man on a walk. just in my own district in california, there was a man who was simply sitting at the bus stop when he was assaulted and as a result he lost part of his finger. these kinds of unprovoked attacks all happening around this time leads us to believe these are hate crimes. we call them these because in some cases there are verbal attacks where there are high rates of discriminatory words being said. they may not rise to the level of a crime but they are deeply disturbing and traumatic for the victims of these kinds of verbal assaults. so these kinds of crimes and

incidents do not have a place in our society and we are doing what we can to stop them. host: this is our guest judy chu . if you want to call, you can call or text us at (202) 748-8003. we are going to show what the president said about the memorandum what does it do going forward? guest: it actually gives the department of justice direction to work with the community to meaningfully engage the community including us in congress. that is why we immediately called to set this up. for the last year, we tried to

meet with the department of justice and they refused to meet with us and refused to do anything with us to combat the crimes occurring. have the president saying we must do something about this and have him say this within the first week of taking office was very meaningful. as a result, we were able to get first of all media attention but also had a press conference and speaker pelosi came. we had so much attention brought to the issue because of him. as a result, we have had numerous rallies all around the nation in which people come together from all walks of life in different ethnicities to say stop these hate crimes and incidents. host: here is part of president

biden's memorandum. we must realize references to the pandemic and the location of its origin that they have perpetuated stigma about asians and have contributed to increasing hate crimes. these actions defy the best practices of health officials and have as -- caused harm to families and communities and must be addressed. at least legislatively, are there other actions that can be taking towards these -- taken towards these incidents? guest: some of these crimes have not had perpetrators caught and in some cases they have been caught. the 84-year-old man who was murdered, the prof -- the

perpetrator is being prosecuted. we clearly need to have greater enforcement so that those perpetrators can be caught. in new york there was an elderly 87-year-old woman who was put on fire by perpetrators of the crime and there was also a woman in new york who was simply taking out the garbage when acid was thrown on her. we clearly need to have more coordination with law enforcement and the unity in order to catch these perpetrators. at the core of this is educating our community and making sure that people out there understand it is not asian americans that caused this and that it was a political slogan perpetrated by

our political leader at the time, president trump, and that this is not true and that we should stand together to fight these kinds of hate crimes and incidents which are based on a hysteria that is not true. host: our first call comes from john in maryland, democrats line. you are on with representative judy chu. callers: i was just wondering -- caller: i was just wondering how you can differentiate this because this has been going on for years and they call it a knockout game and how can you differentiate it was just because it was an asian? guest: they have been happening in such a concentrated time and they seem to be increasingly

against those who would be considered the most vulnerable. they were an 84-year-old and a 91-year-old, people that clearly these perpetrators that were easy to assault and not covert to murder. so that is what is causing the whole asian community to rise up and to say this has to be stopped to we have to do what we can to stop these perpetrators from doing these incredibly harmful acts against these very vulnerable asian americans. host: another democrat, louise, north carolina. caller: good morning. i just would like to agree with her. words do matter. our former president when he started talking about the china virus, it was just ridiculous.

this is when all this stuff started. the same thing with black lives matter. things were going fine with everybody talking and protesting peacefully and then all of the sudden after two days, that is when people started infiltrating that. i think it is terrible what has happened to the asian community. it is terrible i think it should stop and i pray that with any culture. i think you -- i thank you. host: go ahead. guest: ain't cute so much for saying that. i want to tell you that many asian americans were incredibly upset at the police brutality that was occurring and has been

occurring but especially the terrible cases of george floyd and breonna taylor. we joined in and i immediately called for a press conference with the caucuses to show that we are united in fighting this terrible police brutality that has been went on for decades. that is why we have the george justice policing act that will be on the floor this week to finally put an end to all of this. do words have consequences? absolutely. black lives matter, and you don't denigrate that by saying all lives matter. there is a point to all of this. and let me say that president trump continuously saying that the virus is a china virus,

wuhan virus or kung flu was to try to deflect to his failed response to coronavirus. the cdc and the world health organization continuously said that you should not use such terms that relate to specific geographic locations because all it does is cause stigma. that is why they called it covid-19, a neutral term, and they said that is what everybody should call this. so despite all our efforts to urge president trump to stop doing that, he actually doubled down and went the opposite way and used it more and more and so did his followers. as a result, we now have the hate crimes and incidents come over 3000 of them that have been committed over the past year. host: are you saying it is directly the statements of the

previous president that you can draw a direct line between the president and those incidents you described? guest: there have been racism and discrimination that has occurred against asian americans over the past century, and we know this because of incidents like that of vincent chan who was murdered because these out of work employees, autoworkers, or matt at him and killed him -- were mad at him and killed him because they wanted to blame him for them being out of work and the judge let him off with a $3000 fine. those burn in asian americans' memories. they have been occurring for a long time. there are times when those kinds

of feelings are under the surface. right now what we see are those feelings are becoming above the surface, a for all to see, where some people feel so totally justified in doing these horrendous acts. earlier last year there was a man who just grabbed a family at a sam's club in tech this -- in texas and two of them were children, and he stabbed them. he stabbed a little two-year-old child and thank goodness a sam's club worker saved their lives, but the perpetrator was caught and he said that he wanted to kill them because they were asian americans who caused the coronavirus. so, yes, there is a direct relationship between the lies and the anti-asian crimes and i do believe they are related to the president's rhetoric.

in fact there was a research firm that has been tracking hate crimes in the twitter world and found that in the first few months of the coronavirus, the anti-asian coronavirus hate crime utterance was increased to 900%. so there was an increase in those kinds of ugly feelings as a result of the president's words. host: james is not in connecticut on the republican line. caller: thank you very much. i guess there are two issues she is talking about now. the first is the issue of hate crimes or alleged hate crimes. i am against all crime, all violent crime for any human being.

the first thing i would ask is, when there is one crime in a neighborhood and later there is 10, that is a thousand percent increase in crime, but it might simply be that somebody came and robbed someone in a neighborhood and told their friends and said i made $150 and then they go back tomorrow which happened in my neighborhood in connecticut when it comes to car theft. we have any thousand percent increase in car theft in the last year and a half and we had no crime in my street in 52 years before that. the first thing i want to say, what is the data set? are you breaking down and saying there were 20 crimes and asians in new york city and now they are 74 and in these situations where there specific people? was it a group of white men that have been identified and asian men into of the crimes and

lachman in 12 -- and black men in 12 of the crimes. the data does tell the story. you need to identify clearly by the daily -- by the data who they are. in the indian community, from india and pakistan, many of the women wear and carry gold and there have been a huge number of attacks to steal their gold. host: her address that part. guest: i would agree with you that more data has to be collected on what exactly happened in those crimes and that is what i would like to work with the department on justice on, gathering the data and having a more in-depth look and what happens in these particular incidents. but right now we have no attention being paid by the u.s. department of justice on the hate crimes in incidents and

that is because the president ignored us totally on what was happening. i would like to know what the truth behind what is going on. i would like to say those instants i talk about, the 84-year-old and the 91-year-old and the man whose face was slashed, they were not robberies. the perpetrators of crime didn't take anything from them, they were just outright assault. so what would that lead you to believe? so we can't just sit here and watch this kind of continuous assault going on without doing something about it, without educating people, without saying it should stop, without working with the department of justice, without having better collection of the data and also of getting

the law enforcement through the no hate act. note hate act would improve the collection of hate crime data, which now is faulty. the federal government is required to collect it, but it is so faulty and the reason for it is because they rely on local jurisdictions to submit the hate crime statistics and there is a wide variation in our local law enforcement as to whether they collect it at all. there are three states that don't even have a hate crime law on the books. so we have very little consistency from jurisdiction to jurisdiction across this nation. that is what the no hate act would seek to solve and would provide the resources to the local jurisdictions to improve

their hate crime programs and reporting system. host: let's hear from sacramento, california, on the independent line. this is rhonda. caller: this is a huge issue here in california. because of the coalition of those being released from incarceration and the agencies that they are to report to have been overwhelmed prior to the covid pandemic. so what happens is those released because recidivism. part of that is going to the asian community and committing these heinous crimes. as a representative i did hear you speak upon that you have been in communication with law enforcement by getting probation, parole.

so they are not being monitored. there are no jobs for them to go to and note agencies available for them to help the homeless here, not only in sacramento, but los angeles and up and down our state. there is nothing for them so they are creating recidivism. can you please comment on this and it is an honor to speak with you. guest: you point to a fundamental problem of our prison system, and that is whether the goal is punishment or whether the goal is rehabilitation. i believe that it should be rehabilitation, because these are people that will come out into our system and we need to

be able to make sure they are productive residents of our community. they need to be given the tools. if we just continue on the punishment trap, -- track, and then when they get out they have nowhere to go and commit crimes. we have gotten on the punishment track. we are 25% of the prison population, so what is going on there? let me just say that those who are committing these hate crimes against asian americans, they might be criminals. we might -- we need to have the data for that. they could be just people out there who think it is ok to assault asian americans. they can be very frustrated,

because you know this is a time of heightened emotions. so many are frustrated because they lost their job and the rent is due. they may have been feeling sick or lost loved ones to covid-19. there is a lot of desperation in our society and they may be taking it out on asian americans area there are more -- asian americans. there are more reasons why this is happening. host: i want to talk to you about the american rescue plan. now that it has gone to the senate, potentially it could change what changes would you accept? guest: i did very much want to have the $15 enema wage in that bill -- $15 minimum wage in that bill. the reason is, i do not believe people in this country can live on $7.25 an hour which is the

federal enema wage. -- federal minimum wage. they could be working all year long and only make $15,000 a year. i cannot live that way, even though they are probably the hardest working americans around. they need to have a wage they can live on and so many jurisdictions realize that as well. over 30 states have increased their minimum wage. california is soon to have their $15 minimum wage that has already been voted in. california has seen fit to raise the minimum wage. nonetheless, it is going to the senate now and it looks like the parliamentarian has said the minimum wage cannot be in their. i wish we could use -- in there.

i wish we could use every tool possible but i think the covid relief bill needs to be supported because it has so many things that will help the american people. $188 billion for vaccination distribution, better testing and contact tracing because we have to get to the heart of what is going on, which is the suffering of the american people and the necessity for stopping this covid virus through vaccinations. the other thing that is really important, $25 billion in rental assistance. so many people are right at the edge and need to be able to pay their rent. we all want schools to reopen, but they need resources. there is money for schools to be able to improve their ventilation system as well as their hvac systems, heating and

air-conditioning. and of course the all important economic relief payments of $1400 per person relief payments , i call them survival checks. people are at the end of their ropes and probably have exhausted their savings perhaps a long time ago. and the all important continuation of the unemployment relief checks. they expire in the middle of march and if we let them expire, those who are unemployed will have either a lot less money or no money at all. that is why we need to continue those unemployment checks but also this bill increases it from $300 to $400. host: one more call on the democrat line. we are running short on time so jump in. caller: i wanted to make the

comment that i fully support the bill to stop these crimes. after 9/11, the indian communities were targeted by citizens. i think the politicians have to have the responsibility to make sure these kinds of hate crimes don't happen and i fully support what the representative has said . guest: thank you so much for saying that. after 9/11, there were so many terrible, unprovoked attacks against muslim americans and indian americans.

there was the terrible massacre at the old creek temple in which several were out light -- were outright murdering. they were simply preparing their meal for their sunday services. there were terrible things that happened to innocent people post 9/11 and the lesson is that whatever crimes of heightened emotions they have, people should not take it out on innocent americans who have been living here for such a long time who have contributed to this country and who are trying to just make sure that we can come together as americans and that all americans can benefit from

their hard work and desire to be a part of a mayorhart. his wife -- part of america. that is why we are fighting against these crimes and make sure all people feel welcome to be americans. host: she serves the 27th district in california and is the chair of the asian pacific american caucus. guest: thank you. host: we will hear from senior fellow henry olson talking about the future of the republican party. ♪ >> today, fbi director testifies in front of the judiciary committee for the security

during the attack on january 6. watch on c-span-3 and c-span.org or listen on the c-span radio app. >> book tv on c-span2 has books and authors every weekend. saturday at 8:00 p.m., charles koch and the foundation president, co-authors of a book, author -- offer their thoughts on how to tackle economical challenges. a pulitzer prize winning author talks about environmental issues, global warming, and the impact on nature. she is the author of several books. her most recent book is, under a white sky. a federal reserve chair, offers her thoughts on how to build

economic sustainability for workers in the future. watch book tv on c-span2 this weekend. >> "washington journal" continues. host: this is henry olson, the senior fellow at the public policy center and washington post columnist. we called you to talk about the future of the republican party post trump. where does it stand? guest: it could be poised for a breakdown. it remains divided over the legacy of president trump and that can turn into something that could break party into if it becomes bitter and acrimonious, but it could be

something that strengthens the party if it brings both sides together. it is too early to say. host: we heard the former president talking at cpac in reference to being a uniter. guest: if president trump were willing to say i'm not going to run in 2024 but i am going to dedicate myself to build party around my legacy, that is not what he said. he said he is going to run and called out every person in the senate who called for impeachment and said they should be targeted. the idea that president trump will be a uniter is something that should be confined to fantasyland, although many of us would wish that were not so. host: call in at (202) 748-8000 four democrats and four

republicans, (202) 748-8001, independents (202) 748-8002. we will be talking to mr. olson appeared we will play a little bit of the speech and get you to comment on it. [video clip] mr. trump: the republican party is united. the only is a decision is between washington dc establishment political hacks. i think we have tremendous unity . when you look at the crowds that want your seat, they will take your seat into second. congratulations -- in two seconds. congratulations on getting in. [applause] that is why i am announcing i will be working to elect strong, tough, and smart republican leaders. [applause] host: first he said the party was united it is establishment

hacks versus everyone else. guest: the party is largely united. there was a poll released at the policy center that shows on questions of culture and american values, enormous unity among the voters. there is division about president trump's role going forward. everyone would be delighted if president trump treated himself to a well-deserved political retirement in his personal capacity and devoted himself to building party, but that is not is what is on the agenda. host: you called the speech the high watermark for him. can you elaborate? guest: trump right now is seen largely as a hero by probably 50% to 60% of the republican party as a whole and disproportionately so by very conservative voters. you look at cpac, which attracts

the very conservative among the republican party, and trump could only get 55% of those people willing to say they would vote for him in 2024. that suggests strong resistance to him being the actual leader of the party and i suspect as things go forward he will find those people being called political hacks much stronger with their own voters than he thinks. if trump can't beat everything one of them, it's going to expose him as somebody who can command a ferocious minority but not a majority and that will hasten his departure from the political scene. host: you said the speech from sunday was kind of two speeches intertwined. can you elaborate on that? guest: the first half of the speech he was attacking democrats but attacking democrats and joe biden in particular, basically recounting his talking points from 2015 and

2016. the spent 10 minutes on immigration that could've been delivered anytime, including his mix -- his mischaracterizations of what they do when they get to the country. i called it like a greatest hits album with a once famous band. the second half of the speech was not scripted and that is when he went into republicans. -- when he lit into republicans. he focused on a perceived wrong done to him self rather than the help -- health of our republic and the republican party. host: a lot of people saw that he said about the election again and again and his concerns about the results. how long does this play out in the party and what happens if it continues? guest: the president is

obviously going to continue to try to make it a theme that the election was stolen and your representatives didn't defend you, my vice president didn't defend me and the court didn't defend me. the fact is the election was not stolen. what president trump believes is true is not true. republicans have never been treated to a representation of that. the more he refers to that the more the people who want to make trump a past figure rather than a future figure in the republican party are going to have to respond or else people in the middle who don't know election analysis in and out, will believe him and they will follow him down a path where he will become the pied piper of the republican party leading the

children off to disaster. host: if he involves himself in elections, what type of republicans are we possibly going to get moving forward and what does that do to shape the party and the results and how the party operates? guest: a lot depends on who the characters of the people he endorses and who they are. the angriest elements of the conservative and populist alliance are rallying around trump. if you have more people like that who are interested less in governing the country, that will be a problem and drive away the swing voters that republicans need to become a permanent governing majority. what is important to note is the republican voter base is largely in agreement on a lot of things, and if the republican officeholders, the establishment starts to recognize that and

stop resisting that and instead be effective fighters for that consensus, you will see a lot of people start to dessert trump as a person, because many republicans have held their nose and supported him despite his personal flaws because no other republican seemed to step up to the task. host: henry olson of the ethics and public policy center as the senior fellow. patrick in illinois on the democrat line, go ahead. caller: your guest is speaking a lot about x president -- ex president trump. my focus is the republican party. i served four years in the united states air force to ensure everyone have the right to vote. with the state houses are doing, the republicans are trying to

unite -- to deny blacks the right to vote because they feel whites are being disenfranchised. it is so frustrating that they feel they are disenfranchised and taking our vote to remedy their disenfranchised. host: let the guest respond. guest: there is no effort to remove the black vote from people,. full stop, period. you can vote without -- you can vote and that is what we did will be installed voter registration. anyone who wants to vote in this country can vote and in virtually every state will be able to vote by mail there is no

effort by republicans to suppress minority votes, period. that is a lie. host: now to the republican line. caller: i am a veteran, i was for our former president. i just wish they would get together with the 7 million people who voted for our -- 70 million people who voted -- the 7 million people who voted for our president. i voted for george bush. he started wars. i feel somewhat guilty because i

voted for him. when we voted for people we didn't inc. who we were voting for -- we didn't think who we were voting for. when the guys get killed over there, somebody is responsible and the voters are somewhat responsible. i just hope the american people wake up. host: thanks. guest: i think president trump did a number of things that were good. if you could put his platform and policies on the ballot without him, virtually all republicans would be enthusiastic about that. with respect to the wars, that is one of the things republican leaders in washington need to understand that just because we have a strong military doesn't mean it needs to be used in every incident. there are cases where they are

deployed in areas that are at best tertiary to american security and we need to rethink not our involvement with the manner in which our troops are deployed and put fewer of them in harm's way. host: there is a column in the "washington times," taking a look at president trump influence on the party talking about the issues he championed, the wall, america first. they say he single-handedly drag the republican party out of the clutches of the donor class who despise the voters. mr. trump redefined the party. guest: it was very clear in 2015 and 2016 that the republican elected elites and the donor elites were out of step with where republican voters and swing voters were. that is why donald trump on the

nomination because he was the only person speaking to the issues he cared about as opposed to the issues a few people in think tanks mine or in elite circles were talking about. donald trump deserves credit for that. he made the party wake up and take a look and see what was going on outside the rivers of the potomac and the hudson. he deserves credit for that and hopefully the party has used those years wisely and will rededicate its efforts to talking about solving the problems the people want solved rather than the problems that the elites think need solved. host: in wisconsin, on the democrat line, michelle. caller: thank you for taking my call. i want to comment on the fact that ex president trump used hate and racism and violence and i just don't think that is the

standing of the republican party in the past. what i see here is a lot of people flying flags along with trump flags and that tells me they promote racism. he has divided the party in ways i have never seen. i am 61 years old and even though i am a democrat, the republican party used to stand for things that were good for people. all he has done is divide the republican party and hate and racism in this country, more so than it has ever existed. i think that is a very sad thing. host: we will let our guest respond. guest: the future of the republican party needs to repudiate continually racism. it is shameful that people have

not stepped up to the plate on that more than they should, but i think they will do that in the next few years and you will see the republican voter base be what it used to be, one dedicated for an inclusive america, differences with democrats over how to achieve it, but that is still where republican voters are and the next nominee will make that crystal clear. host: you wrote a recent column taking a look at the north carolina republican marjorie taylor greene. what case study does she served with the american -- with the party? guest: i was early on the stop marjorie taylor greene bandwagon . she is an example of the sort of republican who should not hold a leadership position. she is not interested in governing. she is interested in tweeting and is somebody who embraces

conspiracy theories across the board and is not someone who is fit to be in congress or a party leader. there should be no doubt about that and that there should be a strong effort to remove her through the primary process and even through redistricting in order to reduce her chances of winning reelection to ensure she does not come back as a voice for republicans, even as a minority voice or a representative for her district. host: another example you can comment on, the senate minority leader, mitch mcconnell, strong words on the senate floor about mr. trump's role on january 6 and yet turning around saying he would vote for him again should he decide to run. guest: it was simply a statement that he will vote for the nominee of the party. it is quite clear mitch mcconnell does not want donald trump to be the nominee in 2024, but mitch o'connell works best when he works quietly -- mitch

mcconnell works best when he works quietly and he wants to make sure a party not including trump emerges. that is how we can reconcile those statements. host: who has the potential to emerge if it is not going to be the former president? guest: i think there are a lot of people who have the potential to emerge. the second-place finisher in the cpac straw poll, governor ron desantis, is currently the hot topic in insiders. he is somebody who has a sophisticated demeanor but also one who is not afraid to mix it up with the press. conservative but not excessively so. over the next few months, he is one percent people will be taking a look at. people will look at marco rubio, tom cotton, former vice president pence, ted cruz,

kristi noem. there are others who will put themselves forward and will have their day in the sun and we will see how they do. host: don is in traverse city, michigan, independent line. caller: the republicans have a bad problem with getting rid of democratic processes. democrats have a 121 page platform and there is a platform of committees participating. they are not doing a democratic process. they don't seem to understand it. when you look at the insurrection, that was a rejection of the democratic process. if we don't watch out, we are not going to have that democratic process available to us pretty soon. guest: i would have liked to seen a real party platform and

not simply a blank sheet. it is quite clear what republicans believe. they talk about it on the floor of the senate, house, from state houses whether in the legislature or the governor's office. republicans believe in a strong america, strong national defense, they believe in the priority of the family and creating safe living conditions. they believe largely in a free market economy with limited and targeted interventions for people who need it. i think republicans believe in the democratic process. too many were fed the lie that the democratic process was corrupted in 2020 and that is something republicans need to combat and reorient the understanding of the voter base, because they have been lied to by president trump and his minions on that question. host: from silver string -- from

silver spring, maryland. caller: good morning. i believe the headliner at cpap should have been vice president mike pence, former vice president mike pence. i saw him as the republican hero on january 6. he came back after the riot with all of the senators and representatives and continued the process of counting the electoral votes. it was a solemn ceremony. he had the gravitas of being a leader. i felt so proud of being an america. i love america. all the world saw him. he should be the hero. at that moment, i am a lifelong democrat, i would have voted for him. to me he was a human being, a respectful human being respecting all of our votes.

so he should be the person who should have been at cpac. host: that is rachel. guest: i think the vice president will recoup and reenter the political debate sometime this year. i think he will be a marvelous person with a good voice to hear and i really welcome your comment. i think he did show remarkable courage in doing his duty and in showing courage in bringing back the senate in order to do their duty at a time when emotions ran very high. i hope he does not shy away from talking about his role in that and i hope he is willing to openly confront his boss when inevitably his boss taunts and attacks him for those actions which are courageous and that he stands up to president trump in public. host: because we are talking

about unity, president biden said he would work on those issues. what do think has bared out in the weeks since he has been in office? guest: a lot of talk on unity but no action. they won the election to some extent, that is understandable, but it is not something where president ayden has been willing to -- president biden has been willing to expend any capital to bring that about. it will be quite clear by the end of april or may that president biden's words of unity really mean we are supposed to surrender and agree with the democratic party rather than something that treats the republicans and the publican party as serious. host: alexandria, minnesota, republican line. go ahead. caller: before the election, john kerry was sitting around

and said iran we have a plan to get this guy out of office. that was proof right there they were going to rig the election. you only need one brain cell to know this election was rigged. host: before we go, besides that , why are you convinced the election was rigged? he dropped. guest: to quote ronald reagan or paraphrase, is not that he is so wrong, is is that so much he thinks he knows isn't so. the election was not rigged. i can explain very clearly why it was not rigged. it was a fair and free election that showed very similar returns, whether you want to say blue state, red say -- red state, this was an election that was free, fair, not free of

irregularities, but president trump. host: richard in new york, you have 30 seconds. caller: -- richard in new york? caller: hello. i appreciate what you are saying about trump. i appreciate what he did on iran, israel, the middle east. but his time was over. it was time for him to go and we cannot say what he would have done if he had been reelected. i think those who weep for his departure missed the point. we should thank him for what he did, but his time was over and let him move on. he will not be a uniter of the republican or the country. host: thank you, richard. mr. olson? guest: there'll be a lot of

people saying those same sentiments over the next few years. host: harry olson is the senior fellow at the ethics and public policy center. he writes a column also for the washington post. thank you for your time. guest: thank you for having me on. host: a lot of things in the house, policing, voting issues. stay close to our website. they are on today, fbi director chris wray will talk about the events of january 6 as the investigation continues. you can follow on c-span-3. you had the ability to follow at c-span.org as well. you can download our free c-span radio app if you want to listen along. the house of representatives about to come in with plenty of business to do this week we will take you to the house.