and how it affects veterans with democratic presented of mark takano, chair of the house veterans affairs committee. in later james clyburn joins us to discuss covid-19 relief and a gun legislation being voted on in the house today. >> the yays are 220, the nays are 211. the motion is adopted. ♪ host: that was speaker nancy pelosi after final passage of the $1.9 trillion covid relief bill known as the american rescue plan. it heads to the white house for president biden's signature which is expected to come tomorrow after a national address this evening. we are getting your reaction to yesterday's debate and vote and asking what you think president biden should say in his address tonight. the democrats, 202-748-8000.

republicans, 202-748-8001. dependents -- independents, 202-748-8002 or send us a text at 202-748-8003, and please include your name on where you are from. you can catch up with us on twitter and facebook. a very good thursday morning, you can start calling you now. here is how the passage of the american rescue plan is playing out on the conservative and liberal news sites. from townhall.com, the headline house passes covid relief built with -- built with relief". "here is how much of the $1.9 trillion relief bill combats the violent -- the virus and what the rest is for." from the ret -- the left side,

covid relief proved democrats can go big and succeed. from salon.com, biden's covid relief bill is a bfd, and it is popular. one more from the huffington post, democrats have passed their covid relief bill and now comes the hard part saying that it is executing several large relief programs. that is how it is playing out on the websites online. asking for your thoughts this morning. we want to steer you speaker nancy show you'd speaker nancy pelosi in a ceremony outside the white house. this is what she had to say after final passage. [video clip] >> this is a special and good afternoon, a momentous day in the history of our country. because, we have passed historic consequential and transformative legislation. we are here today to sign the enrollment and enrolled the bill

before it goes to the white house. in doing so, these ceremonies are occasions to express recognition and appreciation. first, i want to express recognition and appreciation to the president of the united states. joe biden. [applause] president biden's vision and determination were so apparent to the american people and the reason why this legislation enjoys the support of 75 percent of the american people in a strong, bipartisan way across the country. we thank him for his leadership. and also, his contribution to the substance of the legislation as well as his signature when that comes. [end video clip] host: nancy pelosi yesterday in that ceremony outside the

capital. the final vote, 220-211. no republicans voting for it and one democrat voting with republicans, congressman jared goldman from maine. on the house floor yesterday it was congressman tom bryce who managed the final hour of debate who -- before the final vote. here is how he ended his remarks. [video clip] >> and yet my colleagues on the others of the aisle have failed every reason to rush through costly, unnecessary, progressive priorities that my constituents did not ask for. the american rescue plan is costing each american more than their mortgage payment, a down payment on their car, or a semester on their children's college, and their children will have to pay it back. i do not want to leave a huge bill for my kids and i know

most americans do not either. i hope that this bill expanding government, expanding entitlements, paying people to stay home, making them more reliance on the government does not really -- does not lead to another decade of stagnation, of lost opportunity. vote no to this dangerous bill, vote no against a selfish attempt to strap our next generation with debt. vote no to progressive payoffs that we, the people, did not order. we must do better. [end video clip] host: tom rice. that is some of the debate and ceremony. we will hear more from president biden later this evening, and we want to hear more in the first half-hour. gabby is up first out of new

hampshire. good morning. caller: i just want to congratulate the democrats on passing a bill. -- the bill. this has been a long time potter -- coming. the trump administration and the republican party ran away from the virus. trump continued to downplay it and made up lies about everybody getting tested. he also lied and said it is ok people to drink chloroquine and for people to drink household chemicals. this has been a long time coming for america. everybody in america, help is on the way. we are going to benefit from this legislation big time. host: if there is one thing that you think you will benefit from the most, what will it be? caller: i think it is going to be the whole thing. , -- the $1400 stimulus, the

boost unemployment, and it looks like with the taxes they are taking out, they will go back to last year as far as the first $10,000. also the extended benefits to the food stamps until september. i think i'm going to benefit from the whole entire package. host: that is gary out of new hampshire. this is ed out of georgia, a republican. caller: good morning. i think the lady from new hampshire is going to be sorry when she sees gas prices next month. also, there is going to be inflation because of this. there is a whole bunch of pork in there, and not 75% of the people want this bill. maybe 75% of the people need a check, but all of the other money being used in the bill is used for democrats. it is nothing for anybody else. host: specifically, where is the pork? what would you .2? caller: how about the tunnel

from pelosi's buddies from high-tech? how about all of the bailouts for the states that are blue, and nothing for the states that are red? host: larry out of virginia, independent line. good morning. caller: good morning. ok. what i have, i have a problem with one part of it. there is a piece of the bill that increases the difficulty for minor parties to get on the ballot, and i have written my congressman and of course he voted against the whole thing, he has to do that, it is a republican. i want to put on my note that we should not have done that.

other than that, i can sort her -- i can support it just fine. host: who is your congressman? caller: rob wittman. i refer to him as air wittman, because i once won an award for keeping him alive. host: how did you do that? caller: what had happened is i play this game, it is a tactical wargame, and we had this one scenario aces over eights, dead man's hand and the idea that they would give a reward to anyone who could get this guy through the scenario. we were swearing in german, four of us tried it, i am the one who succeeded, and i have the award in my hand. host: a military exercise? caller: a wargame. it was just a game, cardboard wargame. host: that is larry out of virginia this morning.

we will be hearing more from president biden tonight, but a statement from the president after final passage of the bill in the house. this is what president biden had to say. "now we move forward the resources needed to get $1400 in direct payments to 85% of american households, expand coverage, and help with lowering health care presentation -- premiums, get small businesses what they need to stay open. to help keep a roof over people's heads, to cut child poverty in half. this legislation is about giving the backbone of its nation -- of this nation, working people who built this country and keep this country going a fighting chance." his addresses tonight and expected to start after 8:00 p.m. we will start our coverage at 8:00 p.m. you can watch it here on c-span and on c-span.org, and listen to it on the free c-span radio app. the president is expected to

look back over a year of coronavirus and talk about the legislation. we are hearing from the former president, trump with this statement yesterday from him saying "i hope everyone remembers that when they are getting the covid-19, often referred to as the china virus, vaccine, that if i was not resident you would not be getting that beautiful shot for five years at best and probably not at all. i hope everyone remembers." the former president of the united states in that statement. bruce from ohio, democrat. good morning. caller: i need to tell the nation that i am so appreciative that we have a president, a grown man in the white house instead of a potential it -- petulant, incompetent. 400,000 people died on his watch and he had helped nothing and

did nothing. he went and played golf every weekend. biden in it first time -- in the first 100 days, he accomplished more in the last couple days and he has not even been in office 100 days. he has accomplished more than trumpeted. all that trump did -- the republican party gave the big tax cut to the richest people in the country who did not need it on the first stimulus package. now, that biden is in office, he has promised to help people. i know people, they thousands of dollars worth of rent because they are out of work. the people who own buildings, they cannot pay their mortgages because nobody is working. the people -- the few people that are working from home, i appreciate them and all of our hospital workers, all our fire

and police personnel, but biden is trying to help. host: this is rob from north carolina. republican. good morning. caller: it looks like you have a great day in washington, d.c.. host: it is supposed to be a good day. caller: we are supposed to have good temperatures. there is a lot of pork in the bill, and i think it is ridiculous to have $1200 or $1400 a week for federal employees to keep their kids home from school through the next four months, that is ridiculous. and, look. i spoke to nancy pelosi's office before the election on november the third and i said the only real way you will win the election is if you get mr. trump and mr. pentz not to run and if they get assassinated, which they will be hard to do or you wreck the economy. between nancy pelosi and misses feinstein, who had chinese spies

and the oligarchs in the tech world that do a lot of business with china and benefit with the arrangement that they have, i believe they had a hand in importing the coronavirus that helped wreck the economy because we would have a different president. host: we got your point. todd and california -- in california, independent. good morning. caller: thank you for taking my call. i disagree with biden's covid relief bill. it costs too much. but they should do is just open all of the state economies with optional face coverings. the social distance thing does not really work, in my opinion. and then, i know you referenced other callers, but there was a caller or two ago saying that on trump's watch many people died

because of covid. that was not his fault. the president has no federal jurisdiction on what state governors do and do not. my last point is that i honestly still believe that the democrats stole the election and trump is the rightful president. host: we show you those headlines from political news sites from both sides of the aisle to the editorial pages. first from the new york times headline "democrats deserve a victory lap writing that "it is enough -- not enough to get a win, but you have to trumpet the win so he is embarking on a marketing tour and blitz in driving home how the recovery plan will improve lives. he has scheduled this address, the first of his presidency and soon he will be hitting the road to sell the plan saying they deserve a victory lap."

from the editorial page of "the wall street journal," the headline there, the progressive steamroller noting that 1.9 trillion dollars spending bill is only a taste of what is to come. two different perspectives from two of the major newspapers out of new york. we will show you a few more headlines from newspapers from around the country, but as we do we want to hear from your calls. take a look of those papers as we hear from diana from halifax, pennsylvania. a democrat. good morning. caller: thank you for taking my call. i am delighted to see that this package has been passed. what i was so disappointed and really sad was to see that this is a power struggle between the democrats and the republicans. and the republicans really do not care what happens to the

country, they were only hoping to get back into power. but, yesterday my husband and i got our first vaccine shot. as we were returning home, we noticed that gas is three dollars a gallon for regular gas. and it is so disappointing to see that this country cannot pull together and get through this terrible time in our country. and, thank god that this bill has been passed. i am sad to know that my children will be paying, and my grandchildren will be paying the debt down. but something had to be done. host: john, industry, pennsylvania. republican. good morning. caller: good morning, i would like to point out one important thing, unemployment is 6.5, a

lot of people do not need this money. there is so much pork in this bill, 90% of it is pork. prisoners on death robo get it? i do not know what they are going to do with it. illegals will get it, i do not know what they will do with it? they have so much pork that union workers -- a lot of unions will get it, blue states will get it. governor workers -- government workers will get 15 weeks sick leave. host: michael and beverly hills, -- in beverly hills, california. independent. caller: i would like to say that i hope president biden starts to feel better, and gets more rest at the right time. i think the stimulus bill will help a lot of people. i know it will help a lot of my employees. but, to cut medicare $36 billion

next year, that does not say that he is helping the people. host: what line of work are you in? caller: i am a neurosurgeon. host: how -- you talked about your employees, how many do you have? caller: worldwide in my entertainment business and the other businesses i have i have seven pharmaceutical plants and 23,000 employees. host: how has the downturn of the past year affected them? have you had to do any layoffs? caller: i had to furlough 6200 and i gave them 16 weeks of back pay that they earned because those particular people have spent five years and one of my companies. and, and then for those that

have a child or two, or three, they get an additional $600 a month for 12 weeks. and then, as the economy improves and they go back -- they come back to work, other good things will happen to them on top of them just getting re-situated in their jobs. host: do you think you will be able to rehire everyone who is not furloughed? caller: everyone will be rehired with a bonus. and no one earns less than $28 an hour. host: that is michael and beverly hills, california. this from facebook, a few comments. this from paul saying "were you angry at the tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations that

tacked on the same cost." "the georgia caller about the gas prices saying those are independent of the congressional actions but look up what katie porter pointed out to an oil executive on how oil companies get tax breaks no. matter the price at the gas station" marie saying "i hope helps those in need." from ashley park, "what will the republican callers do with their $1400 check, will they send it back? ps, there is no tunnel for closely in the bill." those are some comments. you can call in, text us, send us a tweet or facebook message. time for a few more of your calls this morning in this first half hour segments. ingrid is out of pensacola, florida. a democrat. good morning. caller: good morning, thank you. i have been waiting so long it seems like everyone has taken

what i was going to say. i just have to repeat something that they have said and that not one republican voted for the stimulus bill, and under trump, democrats did cross over and vote with the republicans. they -- republicans are going to do what they did to obama. they are going to be the do nothing party, and only the democrats that care about the working people. and, if these republicans are complaining about the pork, they can send their money back to the government or send it to charity as a matter of fact. as people have said, under trump, that big tax bill is the same amount as this relief bill, and it is going to a lot more people.

and, i do hope that people can come together and be compassionate. i thank you. host: ingrid out of florida. you mentioned no republicans voting for the american rescue plan. yesterday in the house or over the weekend in the senate, but yesterday in the senate there were republicans who cross the aisle to support some of president biden's nominees for various cabinet positions. this is a story from "the washington times." democrats praising merrick garland's confirmation as attorney general confirmed on a 70-30 vote with 20 republicans, 40% of the caucus. noting that mitch mcconnell, who had kept merrick garland off the supreme court bench in 2016 saying he was voting to confirm because of his "long reputation of a -- as a straight shooter and his left of center

perspective was still within the legal mainstream." that from "the washington times." over to "the washington post," with the senate conferring michael reagan as the next environmental protection agency head. every senate democrat voted in favor of reagan, who since at 2017 served as secretary of north carolina's department of a viral mental quality. one more from yesterday, the senate voting 66-34 to confirm the nomination of congresswoman marcia fudge as secretary of housing and urban development making her the first black woman to lead the agency in more than four decades. "the washington post" noting that "during her january confirmation hearing that her priorities include ending discriminatory housing practices as part of biden's focus on dismantling systemic racial

injustice and boosting black homeownership, a crucial component and narrowing the wealth gap." i should note that she is no longer congresswoman marcia fudge, she resigned immediately following yesterday's final votes and in light of her resignation, the voting membership of the house, 220 democrats to 211 republicans, although another vacancy is expected next week as senators vote today to advance the nomination of congresswoman deb haaland of new mexico to serve as interior secretary in the biden administration. if approved her confirmation vote will take place early next week. back to your phone calls. this is jersey out of massachusetts. independent. go ahead. caller: hello, thank you for taking my call. i support the covid relief bill

100%, because i believe it will bring help to all people, all states, and all communities. the $15 minimum wage was removed, but i believe it will be passed soon in a different way. i believe it is a huge victory for democrats, and further that i am very grateful to the president. and, the democratic party. i despise the republican party as it is right now, but i hope that they will be able to clean up the party, and come back. host: jean out of north carolina, a democrat, good morning. caller: es.

-- yes. host: go ahead. caller: i want to say i am so tired of grown men and women crying over a loss that is lost. i agree with the stimulus, and i support it 100%. thank you. host: who is him? that is gene in north carolina. perhaps you are talking about president biden. it was president biden who unveiled the american rescue plan before taking office, days before taking office in january. the final passage was yesterday and he is expected to sign into law tomorrow. we are expecting to hear from the president tonight. among the things likely to be talked about is the federal government's effort to add additional vaccine doses and make them available for americans around the country. resident biden announcing yesterday that the federal

government will purchase 100 million more doses from johnson & johnson. here's the president from yesterday. >> today, i am directing my hhs team to produce another 100 million doses and purchase another 100 million doses of the johnson & johnson vaccine. i am doing this because we need maximum flexibility. there is a chance that we will uncap -- encounter unexpected challenges or there will be a new need for a vaccination effort. a lot can happen and a lot can change and we need to be prepared, and of course we need to match the miracle of science and the scale of manufacturing with the massive logistical undertaking of vaccinating over 300 million americans. host: we will hear more from him tonight just after 8:00 p.m. eastern and you can watch it on

c-span, c-span.org and the free app. time for a few more of your calls this morning. it is a shorter "washington journal," the house will come in at 9:00 a.m. we will take you there for life gavel-to-gavel coverage. mason out of charlottesville, virginia. republican. go ahead. caller: i am a republican in charlottesville virginia and i have only been a republican for 10 or 15 years. in the last five years i totally left. i grew up in northern virginia, i lived in mclean for 35 years. what i have observed in charlottesville is quite a mess. you left us down -- the leftists down here one lots of stuff for free. they are organized and have taken over the city. that is ok, it is a small place. the problem is that they do not want to fix the problem. getting their children educated,

it is not a priority with them. this 1.9 billion -- trillion package will be a temporary relief go back to the same. host: our schools open down there? caller: they have come it's the second day. host: did your children go to school? caller: no, sir, i'm 67. host: democrat, good morning. caller: good morning, america. i'm celebrating this event. what we are experiencing here, i was born in abraham lincoln, nebraska, and i am more scared about abraham lincoln, nebraska, with the conspiracies. then i am with gang violence.

this is a biblical event. we should have been celibate in the jubilee. this world has been going backwards ever since i have been born -- we should have been celebrating the jubilee. this world has been going backwards ever since i have been born. everything is upside down. the roman empire -- host: bring us today. are we going in the right direction? caller: this is a church biblical event. joseph -- the savior. he is here in charge of the day. we are seeing the biblical events happen at once. host: that is eric out of california. this is tim out of michigan. you are next. caller: listen, if you want to see pork, look at the republican bill that just went through before the year ended, and you will see a lot of -- for instance, they pay for lobbyists, 100% of their lunches and stuff like this, and i don't

think republicans understand the concept of the loyal opposition. host: that is tim out of michigan. next caller out of canton, ohio, independent. caller: good to see you on tv, man. there is a lot of bias going on in this country. what i want to say is, we have a lot of people talking about the left and the blue states, and it is a lot of back-and-forth. i want to say that i heard a lot of colors saying a lot of things, but i command michael out of california. as a matter of fact, michael for president. host: out of ohio this morning. a couple more comments from social media. this is john in d.c., more and the socialism, he says coming using paper money backed by nothing tangible.

gary saying it will be signed on friday. also, more debt per generation. and the last one saying the democrats passed this blue bailout bill, the gift that keeps on giving. stick around, plenty more to talk about, including in our next hour, we will be joined by two members of congress. up first is republican congresswoman jodey arrington, and later we will be joined by -- by congressman jodey arrington, and later we will joined by mark takano. stick around. we will be back. announcer: american history tv on c-span 3, exploring the people and events that tell the american story, every weekend. saturday at 2:00 p.m. eastern, university of georgia professor john morrow recounts the story

of black american expatriate and french war hero eugene bullard. at 6:00 p.m. eastern, on the civil war, brad stone from the national museum of civil war medicine. from transporting supplies to acting as residential mascots. on sunday come at 2:00 p.m. eastern, the legacy of sojourner truth, as a slave woman self emancipated, who spoke out on abolition and women's rights. on the presidency -- a look at the political partnership between franklin and eleanor roosevelt through home movies, which gives a behind-the-scenes look at the couple. exploring the american story. much american history tv this weekend on c-span 3. announcer: you are watching c-span, your unfiltered view of government. c-span was created by america's

table -- cable television companies in 1979. today we are brought to you by these television companies who provide it to viewers as a public service. announcer: "washington journal" continues. host: a day after the house voted to send the american rescue plan to the president's desk, we are joined by congressman jodey arrington. you along with every republican in the house and one democrat went into the nay column. why is this better everyone in texas? guest: because it is not a covid relief bill. the vast majority of it is nonrelated, and in fact there are bad policies that will be a barrier to our recovery. they are, in my opinion, allowing states that have

operated, mismanaged, operated poorly prior to covid, pension bailouts without any reforms, without any fixes so that we are not back here using taxpayer money's to clean up the corporate ceos and -- we are giving money to schools that still haven't opened their doors to students who are struggling. it is just a parade of horribles . unfortunately, the democrats have wrapped the flag of covid relief around, not to mention that $1 trillion is still unspent. so why would hurling to trillion dollars at something, and why we are not working in a bipartisan way when for five times over the last year, to the tune of $4 trillion, we have worked in a bipartisan way to build gaps, to meet the needs come and help families get back on their feet

and move our country forward? that has been abandoned since the democrats took control of congress and the white house. and it is unfortunate. the outcome is bad. meanwhile, the worst crisis of all is on the horizon, and that is the sovereign debt crisis. we are digging a hole for our kids that they will never get out of. that is my take on this covid relief bill. host: was there any compromise that you had here? would you have supported any additional spending in the bill? caller: sure, where every -- guest: sure, wherever the gap is, we could celebrate the capacity for getting vaccines out there, to front-line workers where there are needs. i offered an amendment in the ways and means committee during this markup where i said we are happy to help our fellow americans with cash assistance. that is one of the biggest ticket items in the covid relief package. but i am not going to give money to people who incur no economic

harm. it is a waste of taxpayer money to do that. that was dismissed out of hand. republicans offered an amendment that said you cannot pay people to be on unemployment. this is in reference to the enhanced unemployment checks. you cannot pay people to be on unemployment that they made in their previous job and -- or they will never go back to work and they will never recover. that, too, was dismissed out of hand. they were not interested in a bipartisan bill, in negotiating come in finding common ground, so the result is we have a big loose state bailout. that's exactly what it is. one quick point, the revenues collected by the states in 2020, the shortfall -- $2 billion. you know how much money we are giving states in the name of helping them get back to their feet? $350 billion. tax flush states like california get the most money at $40

billion-plus? it is a moral hazard because it rewards bad behavior and we are going to get more of it at the taxpayers' expense. quite frankly, it is that the children and next generation's expense because all of this borrowing is a deferred tax on our children. host: congressman jodey arrington with us until the top of the hour. going to take your phone calls and questions. democrats, 202-748-8000. republicans, 202-748-8001. independents, 202-748-8002. you raised these concerns about the debt and the burden on future generations yesterday on the floor of the house. right after, democratic congressman earl blumenauer responded and said where were the republican concerns about the debt when they passed a $1.5 trillion plus tax cuts and jobs act. you did not get a chance to respond to him, but what would

you say? guest: i would say that as a result of lowering taxes and allowing americans to keep more of their hard-earned dollars, we got trillions of dollars to come back from overseas. we reinvested, created jobs. we had more jobs than we had people to fill them. what was the result? no revenue coming -- the revenue coming in from economic growth was paying for it. number two, we had the greatest increase in wages, especially at the lower income, because of the prosperity. because of the opportunities. we are asking americans ever. we were experiencing the highest household income in the history of the united states of america. so i'm not suggesting that republicans don't share some fault and blame for where we are in terms of the national debt. both sides have done their share to contribute to it. but to say the tax cuts didn't

help this country -- people in poverty need the best anti-poverty program that we could ever come up with, and that is a job. and we created more jobs because of lowering taxes and regulations. that's why progrowth policies work. they work for the american people, especially working americans. host: you are familiar with u.s. debtclock.org. this still has not been signed into law and is expected to come in tomorrow. the u.s. national debt, $28 trillion, $970 million and counting. mike is in the lone star state out of houston, mike, go ahead. caller: good morning. money is not free. we can give money to people who need help, who are desperate, but the greatest cure for people in trouble, people hurting, is a

job. prosperity is not the result of the federal government replacing our jobs with cash payments because there is a cost. i am willing to bet that the cost per adult is somewhere around $50,000 to receive $2000. by my math, that is not a good return. that is not a return. we are putting later expenses and bills due on adults today when we could open up the businesses and allow people to make rational decisions one year later and rebuild their lives. we had a great economy. i remember it. the unappointed rate was low, businesses were growing. prosperity -- the unemployment rate was low, businesses were growing. posterity is the source of self-reliant -- prosperity is the source of self-reliance. the problem is democrats never talk about the value of work as a self-fulfilling -- it is

natural, it is in human nature to go to work and build your life and challenge your talents and use your talents that are god-given. guest: i could not say it better, mike. i like the fact that he said democrats, there are a lot of good men and women who happen to be democrats who are patriots, many of them. but their philosophy to me is upside down. in many respects. i think mike nailed it. prosperity covers a multitude of problems. freedom and self-reliance is, at its core, what has made america the most powerful, most prosperous, and most charitable nation in not just the planet but in the history of the world. there is a cost to growing government, there are diminishing returns, but in less than a decade, just the interest on the debt, just to service the principal, the debt that we are

amassing -- we will spend more in interest and the entire spend on the national defense, which in the constitution is fundamental to the mission of government, providing a common defense. it is hard to wrap your mind around the trillions of dollars that we are amassing. but it is going to do for the next generation. we act like money grows on a tree at the treasury. it doesn't. the chickens come as we say in west texas, will come home to roost on the heads of our kids and grandkids. it is un-american that as great a country as ours is come with all the sacrifices made in world wars and great depressions, at such a core fiscal condition, one that may be a reparable if we continue to spend unnecessarily like the democrats did in a partisan way on this so-called covid relief bill. host: from the lone star state

to the old-line state. this is met in bladensburg, maryland. how are you doing today? caller: good. i think this is great. i think it's about time that our government started doing things for the people instead of giving the speech ridiculous excuses. i also wanted to say that for any of these fiscally conservative people that call, quite frankly after the january 6 adventure more reflect fascist sickly conservative -- fascist conservative, because of their little venture, we have had to pay $519 million in security upgrades downtown. i live in maryland, so -- but,

you know, this is sheer hypocrisy. they do not care about how much money it spends as long as it is going for something they want. so this nonsense about democrats spending more money than republicans is just that. host: congressman, i will give you a chance to respond. guest: matt, with all due respect, this is the problem with democrat thinking and their ideology that the government needs to do more and give more to their citizens. here is what the government was designed to do by our founding fathers -- protect our freedom, keep us safe, keep us free. build roads and bridges, facilitate interstate commerce. do a few things, do it well, the accountable, efficient, and then delegate to the states and the people. don't try to centrally plan in washington the economy and don't try to control their lives from washington, d.c..

i think that is a huge problem. you see federal takeover of the elections with hr one. you see the federalization of police. you see this giant sucking sound of power being transferred from the people to washington and to the government, and that is just -- that is a recipe for disaster . not the formula that our founders put in place that has created again this prosperity, this exceptionalism. let me mention quickly that the $500 million that you remarks regarding the fence around the capitol and you mentioned the hypoxia. nancy pelosi called walls -- the hypocrisy. ninja policy called walls in moral when it came to the border wall in texas. but now we have wire fence

around the capitol, this beautiful complex, the people's house. we are spending $500 million. there are no risks after the sixth, and there certainly are not risks at the level of the number of troops, 5000 plus troops and offense with razor wire. it looks like a maximum-security prison. it looks like we are working in the dmz in the freest country in the world. it makes no sense. it's completely hypocritical. i do think it is a political prop to continue to propose to the mayor that all republicans, any republican that objected on january 6 is an insurrectionist. it is baloney, and i wish we would do away with those sideshows and work together to solve problems and move the country forward. host: 10 minutes left with congressman jodey arrington of texas. you mentioned power in washington. we talked about power in texas, a different kind of power.

on the senate side today, there is a hearing in the senate energy and natural resources committee on the electric grid reliability. can you talk about last month in texas? where the failures were from your understanding, what questions you would ask during that hearing if you happened to be on the senate side for that. guest: great question. i will not say renewables are to blame. we actually produce or renewable wind energy in texas and in my district than in any place in the country, and we also have the most fossil energy production. so we are already -- i will say this -- when you are subsidizing renewable, which is an intermittent source, and you are putting enormous cost and burden on fossil energy production, which is the most predicable, most reliable, most affordable, that is a -- the most

predictable, most reliable, most for the book, that is a recipe for disaster. the root of the problem was mismanagement of the power grid. we believe in open competitive markets that provide best value to our citizens and ratepayers. 99% of the time, they get the best deal anywhere. but that 1% where you have a once in a generation storm and you are not prepared and you don't have power reserves that you need, adequate power reserves come you don't have winterization of your energy assets like you should, then you have a problem on your hands. there are lots of issues to manage the power grid better that is on the state leaders, on the public utilities commission. we believe in free markets, but a limited role for putting basic safeguards in place. in this case, it is preparedness, it is power reserves, and it is

winterization. and we need to make sure that our policies at the federal level don't perversely distort the markets so that we are taking intermittent power beyond its capability and reducing the most affordable power that is not only a protectable source but it gives consumers the lowest cost of gas, heat to fuel their homes, and natural gas is making americans a leader in reducing carbon and greenhouse gas emissions. america is a great place and very blessed because of conventional fuels. host: you can watch on c-span 3, c-span.org, listen to it on the free c-span radio app. back to callers. this is darius waiting in princess and, maryland, an independent. caller: good morning. i just want to make a few

comments. talking about the debt, i am a united states veteran, went to afghanistan i'm sitting here wondering, we could spend billions of dollars in afghanistan, why can't we spend billions of dollars right here at home on americans that need it? i keep hearing about debt and how the republicans are talking about this and the democrats are talking about this. there are a lot of people hurting out here. they don't have any job, health insurance. the republicans were in charge of the last trillion dollar bill , and they haven't spent the entire trillion dollars. but we want to blame the democrats right now for trying to get something passed just for every people. i want to know if your constituents told you -- or any of you said don't give me any money from the economic relief plan that is supposed to be coming out, this covid relief bill. host: congressman, i give you a chance to respond.

guest: first of all, thank you for your service, william. good and fair questions. the fact that you mentioned the trillion dollars still unspent means we ought to let it work its way through the system, and then do a needs assessment, and then fill those gaps, address those needs in a responsible way. and, yes, my constituents have told me we don't need more cash assistance and more enhanced unemployment. what we need to do is give people that get people back to work and our kids back to school. but unions aligned with democrats are holding schools hostage. that is just a small example and i will get back to your other question. spending money abroad. we should be judicious about where we send our sons and daughters in uniform. that is number one. it needs to have a high bar of national interest. there is plenty of debate, what

is in our best national interest. if you look at the budget, only half of the one third of the environmental budget is spent on national defense. we should be able to reduce that. there are a lot of efficiencies to gain here. no question, waste, fraud, abuse. my hoping to have that debate. two thirds, or 70% of the entire budget is entitlement programs. that auto spend, that is mandatory spending. that is the problem. the debt is really being driven by the mandatory spending, the entitlement programs, and they have just completely run away from us. not to mention we are experiencing the largest generational retirement in the history of the world. so more people are getting on medicare, more people in social security, which is an earned benefit. nevertheless, those other things that are driving our debt, and we as republicans and democrats

-- i should tell you, i formed a bipartisan group with scott peters from san diego, a democrat -- we got 30 democrats, 30 republicans, all concerned about our national debt and growing deficits, and we're looking for ways and we actually sent a letter to leadership giving them specific ways to put reforms in place that would force congress to do what you do, william. and what other americans watching this program do come and that is manage their fiscal affairs in a responsible way. until we put those reforms in place, here is what congress is going to do. they are not going to hit your pocketbook with a so you feel the pain -- with a tax so you feel the pain. they're going to do the most immoral thing -- they are going to borrow and mortgage the future of your children and grandchildren, and they don't even know it until they wake up one day and they are in a situation where they are robbed

of their liberties and opportunities because of our irresponsible behavior. i know there are democrats committed to this like scott peters. so m.r.i.. so m.r.i. -- so am i. i would say when my democrat friends are ready to work in a bipartisan way. host: a couple minutes left with texas republican congressman jodey arrington. one or two more calls in those few minutes. keith, palm bay florida, republican. go ahead. caller: just a quick comment before my question. i believe the true push behind doubling the minimum wages because everybody else -- it will double the fica taxes brought in, so it is a huge tax increase, in my opinion. the question is, in this bill, is it true -- it was reported yesterday, in order for the states to accept the money in this bill, they have to agree

that their state in cities and counties will not lower taxes in the future, and i believe that is unconstitutional. i don't see how the governor would have the authority to speak to our states on this. could you answer that, please? guest: keys, you are an astute citizen and engaged. that is what is gone -- keith, you are an astute citizen and engaged, and that is what is going to make our country a leader in the world. it is important because there is language in there that suggests that states could not enact a tax cut. i believe like you that is unconstitutional, and i'm going to be part of an effort by republican members of congress to make sure that that cannot be enforced. i don't think the courts will allow that. you are right about the minimum

wage. it is a backdoor tax increase. beyond that, it will destroy 1.5 billion jobs, and meanwhile we increase wages at a record clip, not through a federal mandated wage but through growing the economy and creating jobs. when you do that, you don't have a net loss, you have a net gain for our country, for our economy, and for working families in every state in the union. that's what happens under the progrowth america first policies when republicans were in charge. it is a philosophical difference. i don't have to tear them down or attack them personally. that is the choice americans get to make at every election. this philosophy, as i have articulated and some of the other callers have, versus the callers that say it is about

time the government gives us more. it is not the path to prepare 80 -- two prosperity or success. not now, not in the past, not ever. host: are you talking about filing a federal lawsuit over this? guest: it may come to that. it may come to that. this issue has come up recently. i was communicating with colleagues. we have a constitutional scholar , mike johnson, from the great state of louisiana. i imagine he is going to be a part of leading the charge. we don't think it will happen, and we think it is unconstitutional, so we are going to be pushing back on that in a big way. this debate is just ensuing as of recently. host: monroeville, pennsylvania. this is joe, a democrat. caller: i am a vietnam era veteran also. as usual, when republicans speak, there is a lot of untruth to clean up.

he was stating that the economy was so billet and so wonderful under trump -- it purely into and so wonderful under trump. it was crony capitalism and it wasn't fair. and all these people, democrats, saying that -- preaching hard work, it works when you have a fair playing field. but it doesn't work when you don't give women, minorities, and lgbt people a fair plainfield. this adam smith economics, the reagan trickle down theory has proven not to work ever. republicans take money from the poor, give it to the rich, and that is the way they have done it forever. the power grid problems in texas are texas' power grid problems. they are not national power grid problems. just ask how fracking is working for oklahoma and texas. host: i will give you the final couple of minutes. guest: i appreciate the

gentleman's service to the country. i would say that if he flies on an airplane, turned the lights on this morning or cooked a meal or even put his clothes on, if he takes medicine, i can go through a long list of products generated as a result of the petrochemicals that are in a lot of the things that have been proved on the quality of life and i would also say that the facts don't lie. you can hear politicians. there is a lot of empty rhetoric out there, but the facts don't lie. you have the lowest unemployment. all of what this caller said was true, you would not have wages increased by 60% from the obama era. you would not have unemployment levels at record lows. you would not have the trillions of dollars in capital working for americans to create jobs here and not overseas. so i know this gentleman

probably believes in this whole reese tribute -- redistribution of wealth. we are definitely headed to a system of venezuela and cuba style socialism, wrecking the greatest economy in the world. i look at what we did. you mentioned unfairness. what was unfair is the playing field with mexico and nafta, and every democrat said we need to repeal it, it is a giant sucking sound of our jobs going to mexico. you know who did something about it? a republican whose name was donald trump. he put america first policies in place and he said we are not going to have that giant sucking sound, we are going to have a level playing field. when we compete head-to-head as americans, we win. we said to china, you are not going to steal our factories and manufacturing jobs. this president held them to account like no other president before. donald trump. he also decided that securing the border is part of his first

job, and the displaced jobs for people who come to this country illegally was also robbing american citizens and working families of opportunity. i am very proud of what we have done. the results speak for themselves, and the lives of americans on the quality of life for americans improved dramatically under republican policies. they would again, and i believe they will again after americans have had enough of some of the more radical policies and socialist style policies they are getting from democrats right now. that is not a personal attack. i think that is a very objective analysis of what is happening, and these bills that are coming across the house transom that will radically transform this -- the landscape of this free country. host: jodey arrington is a republican on the -- and i we

appreciate your time, sir. guest: thank you. god bless. host: up next, we will be joined by democrat member of congress mark takano, the chairman of the veterans affairs committee. stick around, we'll be right back. announcer: saturday on "the communicators come cofounder and ceo of girls who code, on what her company is doing to close the gender gap in technology. >> my parents came here as refugees and i have had a job since i was 12 years old. in 2010i found myself running for congress, and as part of that i was -- i would see lines and lines of boys clamoring to be the next steve jobs or mark zuckerberg. they saved pretty well come almost 120 thousand dollars.

to me it did make sense. i was like where are the girls? where are girls like me who could get a shot at one of your jobs? that is when i decided i wanted to build a program to teach girls to cope. announcer: saturday on the communicators on c-span. announcer: washington journal continues. host: we are joined by the chair of the house veterans committee, democrat mark takano. it is a huge $1.9 trillion bill that passed congress yesterday. what is in this bill specifically for veterans? guest: the main thing, the $17 billion that is carved out for veterans, what that would do is to basically empower and enhance the veterans health administration to be able to

anticipate the increased realization of mp health. increased rates of about -- a veteran unemployment during the pandemic, anticipating that many veterans are going to need to turn to the da for their health care. the v.a. is doing everything it can to vaccinate all 6 million of its enrolled veterans that are in the system, as well as look at ways in which we can alleviate the co-pays. most of the veterans that qualify for v.a. health care par low income veterans. so during the pandemic, these co-pays and -- these co-pays are waived. some of the veterans are able to pay those fees, but many veterans, those fees were waived and we anticipated that these

payments were going to come due. we basically in this bill have taken care of those fees, so we are offering to go back and pay back those veterans, even though -- enhanced, you know, attention to veteran mental health care. we are looking at that backlog of claims processing that needs to be addressed. and any number of other sorts of things that the pandemic -- that are pandemic related. host: as we talk about veterans issues, we should make a note of this special segment. if you have a question, 202-748-8003 is that number. otherwise, phone lines numbered as usual.

democrats, 202-748-8000. republicans, 202-748-8001. independents, 202-748-8002. why wasn't this included in the larger package? guest: we looked at it in the larger package, and my ranking member had an amendment to do so, and in committee when we were marking up the coronavirus package. the american rescue plan. under the rules of reconciliation, there has to be an impact on the budget. this bill was basically scored at zero, so that is how the score would work. the impact -- it was basically a policy change that we would see which would give authorization

to the secretary of the da to authorize the administration to veterans who are not eligible mainly because of income. what we wanted to address was the situation where we had -- world war ii veterans with aid requirements but were not eligible for v.a. care because their income was too high. most americans would feel, come on, can't you administer vaccine to people in their 90's and their 80's in areas where local vaccine distribution was very difficult for most of the citizens of most local areas, and the v.a. is there to help veterans. this veteran vaccine act basically allows that flexibility for the v.a.

secretary during national emergencies, which this is, and it will continue to allow the secretary that flexibility in future pandemics and future national emergencies. we had to get the bill right, making too many people eligible. it would have been a surge in people seeking vaccines at the v.a. medical centers. it still hasn't passed the senate, but i think our bill gets the authorization right. we were working with the office of general counsel at v.a. for several weeks when it is this issue that first came to our attention several weeks ago. many of our florida members like debbie wasserman schultz, that is where the media stories first began to happen, which were -- the images of being veterans

turned away, elderly veterans being turned away from the v.a. this basically allows veterans, meaning the eligibility criteria -- it would also permit their family caregivers that are in v.a. programs to also be vaccinated. that seems to be picking a lot of sense to people as well. we did not agree to making the bill so broad that it would mean that a lot of civilians were maybe jumping the line before veterans were done. host: do you know how many people this would impact, and have you gotten any sort of commitment about that vote in the senate? guest: i don't have a commitment yet in the senate, but i can tell you there is growing support on the bso community, and we will see. i think the v.a. is evaluating

the legislation, but i think we have got the right calibration for what we want to achieve, the right calibration and the religious -- the latest legislative language. my ranking member, republican ranking member, mr. bost, was very supportive. you know, all of the republicans, all of the democrats on the committee support legislation, and we had a small victory in getting it passed on unanimous consent, even as members of the tea party caucus were wanting to exact roll call votes on every suspension bill. i think people understood that this was a very common sense

bill, and it was a victory for america. it was a bipartisan victory and a very tense moment. host: several veterans waiting to chat with you, sir. will is up first out of michigan. good morning. caller: good morning, sir. i have a question. since whitten is the secretary of the v.a. a noble person -- since when is the secretary of the v.a. a noble person from royal blood? i have been trying for the last two weeks to get in touch with the secretary. nobody at the v.a. even knows how to get in touch with him. host: what would you ask him about if you were able to get in touch with him, will he? caller: the question is this. since covid affected -- tomorrow will be one year since i was supposed to have a virtual appearing via computer -- i can go to my medical facility now, but the same facility that would have done -- can't do it.

he has been over a year since 1982 when the v.a. decided that my whereabouts were unknown, yet they did an audit the same day that they close my case, and my new address was in there. so i have been fighting with the v.a. now for 30 some odd years. host: give you a chance to talk to the chairman of the veterans affairs committee. guest: it sounds like an issue of trying to get a hearing. i don't know what c-span's policy is, but if you could pass will's name on to me and how we can be in contact with him, i will have my committee staff reach out to will and try to troubleshoot what is going on. host: will come if you are willing to do that, stay on the line and we will get your information as we talked to a few more callers. karen is in tulsa, oklahoma.

karen is a republican. good morning. also a veteran. caller: actually, i am not a veteran myself, i am the wife of a veteran who has been put into a nursing home with alzheimer's. i've been working for almost two years to get his benefits increased and get him the care that he needs. and it seems like there are too many silos in the v.a. as far as who had -- who does what when and where, and the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. i end up going around in circles, and it is very confusing. i am not sure exactly what can be done, but it would be helpful if there was a place to go. i have signed up with a vs oh who is not helpful, and like i said, it is a little confusing. guest: who is your member of

congress? caller: as far as the house, it would be kevin hern. guest: ok. and you are from oklahoma, right? caller: right. guest: i would suggest you also try to be in touch with your members that your member of congress. members of congress regardless of party usually have a caseworker, some more than one caseworker, that are dedicated to troubleshooting veterans issues. and so i would recommend that you do that in addition to working with the vs oh. some states also have resources at the county level and at the state level, or it depends on the state. those folks -- for instance, riverside county, where my congressional district is nested in, we have even a county staff,

but it is a large county. i realize that is not all counties across the country that have the same resources, so sometimes it is at the state level. often my congressional office caseworker, ignacio romero, will have a relationship with the county office. often we will engage with the v.a. on behalf of a veteran who has opened a case with us. you might want to open a case with your local member of congress. and of course, you know, i can also take your name if you are willing, through c-span, and i will work with my republican ranking members -- ranking member because he has a staff as well.

at the level of congress. but your local member of congress should also have a caseworker, as do your senators. your senators from oklahoma would also have caseworkers as well. people often don't know that they can turn to their members of congress to also troubleshoot a benefit issue. that is our job, to advocate for you. host: happy to help with that caseworker, especially when you are on, congressman. congressman, karen brings up the esso. can use plane would've eso does and their connection to the v.a.? guest: vs oh stands for veteran -- vso stands for veteran

service organization. some that are widely known are like the american legion, vietnam veterans of america. disabled american veterans. pva, paralyzed veterans of america. pva focuses on those veterans, often with spinal cord injuries and who are paraplegics. disabled american veterans organization recognized service-connected disabilities. these vso's some of them are going to be chartered by congress. there may be more, but i think at least three are charted by congress. they often have in their local state, their state and local organization, they often have

counselors and service officers that are trained to help guide veterans and their families through the maze of benefits and the ways in which you have to pursue those benefits. the v.a. is a large -- it is the second largest federal department of the government, so it can be intimidating. admittedly. so folks should know that that is a resource that is out there. again, i will -- your local member of congress come and your senator calls will be hopeful as well. host: rob is from riverside, california. a republican. caller: i have a small question.

we have mental health ward at the va hospital and such. although they are controlled by the state. the federal government doesn't control all the laws. what are the democrats or even congressmen in general doing to get those laws in line universally throughout the country. if we are going to have an affordable care act, it doesn't make sense, paying for different laws in different states because in california there are a lot -- a lot of the legal system plays when it comes to the health care system to an excessive extent in some cases, could be just made by medical professionals. is there any agenda the democrats can do where they will bring this in line? my second question was, back when covid started their retreat -- the repeat trading back in the united states, you seemed to oppose retraining people in your

backyard, and i wondered if you wanted to clarify to people why you kind of had a negative stance toward that repatriation of people. i will stay on the line if you have any follow-ups. guest: i will answer the second question first, and then i want some clarification on the first question. no, robert, i don't think -- i don't know where you are getting the impression that i oppose the repatriation of americans. i worked very, very hard to work with the initial plane -- that was going to go to ontario but that was redirected to the reserve base when the top health officials, then i think assistant secretary or

undersecretary aged test, -- and the cdc, the head of the cdc -- i was called literally the night before this -- the night before they had made another decision to redirect them from ontario national airport to marshall reserve base. it was not a matter of me choosing, it was a matter of them informing. i worked with the local board of supervisors. in fact, the local board of supervisors and county health officials were already working with the federal officials, federal and state officials, and if you review the communication that comes out of my office, we were doing everything possible

to inform the community and keep the community call. my public statements were to the effect that we were evacuating the families of state department workers, of people who work on behalf of the american people, from the wuhan region. there were others also on that plane. but i later found out that what you may be referring to is, i later found out that federal officials were less than prepared then they should have been. they were less than transparent. i was demanding and asked for -- i actually asked for and was given an assurance by undersecretary, the assistant

secretary that he would brief me on the procedures that were being followed or not being followed, and indeed there was an internal investigation that was underway that was being used by investigators to not brief me. i felt i was oh that referring because this is what happens in my district. hhs officials and other officials needed to be true as transparent as they could. i feel that during the pandemic, health officials need to be transparent, period. and there are a lot of fears about how the virus can spread. we did not know enough, we did not have adequate testing. in fact, there was a lot of evasive and destructive language in the response to my written inquiries to hhs about who had

been tested. and in fact, the folks who were in quarantine at that time, the evacuees, not all of them were tested. the truth is, we know during that time period in late january, early february, that the cdc having real trouble with tests. as you kind of recall during that time. but i have been very critical since then about the lack of transparency, about the fact that people were not trained, the agency that deals with families and children, they were not well trained with how to take care of the evacuees once they were at the reserve base.

and there has been some revelation, based on the reports since then, that show that they were not completely prepared and not completely trained, the government officials in terms of being able to receive and take care of these americans who we have a responsibility to take care of. host: congressman, we are running short on time, and i know you wanted to answer his other question. guest: thank you. as far as the mental health warrants, out me understand -- this is an issue you're bringing up about mental health and state laws, so kind of explain to me more what the issue is. caller: the issue is we have an affordable health care act with and we are going to try to implement health care through the entire country. there are different laws in different states on how to

handle mental health, and a lot of it goes back to what legal challenges patients can make to treatment, things like that, and are you guys doing anything to help get that to be consistent and try to do something to change these laws, which haven't been changed in more than 50 years, some of them, to try to get them in line with new treatments we are doing, and, you know, we don't need to be relying as much on these legal systems that we do with mental health care. guest: what i will tell you is that there is a shortage of mental health care professionals -- psychiatrists, a shortage of mental health care practitioners. the affordable care act, as far as its 10 essential elements, health benefits, a standard that

health care policies have to meet, is that they had to also include mental health care as part of the policy. i can tell you that medicaid, as i have talked to you, the inland empire, i.e. hp, this was like a few years ago. it is not that reason. but one of the effects of the affordable health care act, the aca, and expansion of medicaid has met, that we have been able to attract specialists here, including mental health care practitioners.

-- what you raise a good point. the pandemic will result in increased need for mental health care. congress does need to take a look at this issue in a very broad way. how are we going to meet the mental health care needs of many , many americans who are going to be in need of that health care? i can tell you that related to veterans that we have a great need to increase the number of mental health care providers. but health care at the v.a. has improved greatly. we want to proceed to review the whole issue of how do we meet the mental health care needs of the country. host: i believe we have one more of your constituents, in california. carney has been waiting about 20 minutes to talk to you. you make it quick?

caller: i have three questions. host: just give us one, connie. caller: how much is being allowed for the veterans? also, what are you doing, since you are from california -- what is being done about the homeless? we have a big amount of homeless here. host: congressman, let you and with that. -- you end with that. guest: we are doing a lot in the reconciliation bill, in the american rescue plan, to make sure that we prevent homelessness by addressing rental assistance and also addressing homeowners that are facing mortgages. we address that in the bill. we address some of the huge

housing-related issues. we also, i think, do address issues related to safety of homeless people by making sure we provide the funding to get them into emergency temporary housing. the whole issue of how we address homelessness throughout california when it is a big issue in california is going to take effort. the v.a. is a key part of that solution and there has been an ongoing effort for the last several years, the last 10 years since the obama administration made it a goal to eliminate veteran homelessness. there has been tremendous progress made nationally, noosa

progress nationally, on reducing veteran homelessness. we need to make more progress on that front in california. i'm happy to say in riverside county, where we are right now, where you are, where i would like to be most of the time -- in riverside county, they have done a tremendous job. i have to give a lot of credit to the county folks, riverside county, for really attending to reducing veteran homelessness. they have done a really good job in san rubino county. but we need to take the same expertise they have gained and apply the lessons and techniques they have used to reduce veteran homelessness to reducing homelessness across the board. and it is complex.

it involves having mental health services available, and homelessness is driven by mental illness, poverty, but also addiction issues. so there is a lot to doing that. i think we are really up to the task. we have learned a lot through how we have dealt with veterans in this community. host: thank you. come back and talk to us again. about 25 minutes before the house is scheduled to gavel him for the day, we are going to take your calls and ask you to tell us about public policy issues. phone lines are on the screen. start calling now and we will be right back. >> here is a look at what is

life today. on c-span, the house is back at 9:00 a.m. eastern to vote on gun legislation that expands background checks. on c-span 2, the senate returns at 10:30 a.m. eastern to consider moving forward with the nominations of javier becerra as health and human services secretary and deb haaland as interior secretary. at 10:00 a.m. on c-span 3, the senate energy and natural resources committee hold a hearing on the u.s. electric grid. in the afternoon, postmaster general louis dejoy testifies about postal service operations before a house appropriations subcommittee. on our website, a 10:00 a.m. senate hearing on antitrust law and consumer rights. at the same time, a house appropriations subcommittee meets to consider ways to address mental health needs and substance abuse. at 10:30, child safety advocates

meet to consider protecting children during the pandemic on the internet. >> "washington journal" continues. host: 25 minutes left in our program. start calling in. tell us, what are top public policy issues? phone lines for democrats, republicans, and independents as usual. today, we will end at 9:00 a.m. eastern when the house is expected to gavel in. the house will consider two gun control bills, and enhanced background check. the senate is scheduled to return at 10:30 a.m. and resume debate on the nomination of california attorney general javier becerra to be health and human services secretary, that happening in the senate finance committee. that is what is happening on capitol hill today. we will hear later this evening

from president biden, expected to speak from the white house after congress passed the $1.9 trillion american rescue plan. this is what the president is expected to say in his address. it is expected to start right after 8:00 p.m. eastern. the president will talk about the sacrifices made the american people, the more than 500,000 lives lost, and people whose lives were changed by the pandemic. he will speak about how this is been the greatest operational challenge the country has faced, and the work his team has done to rapidly increase vaccinations and vaccine sites. and he will lay out the next steps to get the pandemic under control. expect the address at 8:00 p.m. eastern tonight. you can watch it on c-span.org and listen to it on the free c-span radio app. the president will be signing the $1.9 trillion american rescue plan tomorrow. expected to take to the road to

give something of a victory tour after that plan, to tout its provisions around the country. more on that as the president's schedule comes up in the coming days. asking you what your top public policy issue is. john is an independent. caller: my current top policy issue is this so-called american rescue plan, the covid relief bill. i know people are desperate for the money here in the united states. i understand that. but everybody is talking about it as though that is all the bill is about. and occasionally you will hear the word "pork" used. a term you don't hear used at all is "foreign aid." we used to hear about foreign-made a lot years ago. now you don't hear the term used, what it applies to this bill, because so much of the

money is going to countries all around the world. our tax dollars. that is why the president -- host: what specific provision, but amount of money? guest: there are many, like the one that was brought up -- the one that has been most publicized is pakistan getting several million dollars, i think $8.3 million for gender studies. that is the one that has been most talked about, but there are many of those. here is one more thing really quick. that bill is 628 pages long. on page 613, just before the bill ends, on 613, several million dollars is given to bill gates. that sounds like a lie and it sounds fantastic, that it is true. host: have you read all 628 pages? guest: of course not, but i read

a lot of it. i have had certain things pointed out to me like the point i just made about bill gates getting several million dollars. it's on page six and 13, almost at the end of the bill. host: out in california, democrat. good morning. caller: thank you for taking my call. i am very concerned about the drought and how our water in northern california is being used. in my area, the people have come in and it is all marijuana. so much of the water is for growing marijuana, to the point where we are going to have wells that dry up. i have spoken to all agencies i

can think of about this problem. it's the area -- we were totally surrounded by fires last summer. i had to be evacuated. a lot of the water went to fight fires. there was a place right out in the field where the helicopters came in and were filling up the bags to fight the fires. i don't believe marijuana should have precedence over our water use here. host: marijuana is a crop out there. what did you used to go out where you are? caller: we have a lot of cattle. we used to have a louisiana pacific lumber mill that closed years and years ago. and we have no law enforcement appear.

we have had murders. we have seen our young people dying from drugs. we have got tons of people that have come in from other areas in the country just to buy up some land and grow marijuana. host: this is david in oklahoma, republican. david, your top public policy issue? caller: my top policy issue -- i am a veteran. i was hearing something that was on there before. i don't generally spend a lot of time talking. i would love to hear an answer. thank you for taking my call. i'm worried about -- i am

worried i will have to go to ardmore, oklahoma, about 60 miles away, stuff like that. i have to go all the way to oklahoma city. i would be leaving 5:00 a.m. to ride all day to oklahoma city and back. i'm worried about losing that. i heard biden was planning on recalling all the outside money. i wonder if you could find out about that for me. thank you for taking my call. host: david, "military times" reporters certainly come through here on occasion and i promise they will come through again to talk about some of these issues. thanks for the call. dwight, fairfield, california, independent.

caller: thank you for taking my call. my top public policy is getting these kids back in school. i am here in california now. all the focus is charter schools that stayed open during the pandemic. what the public schools and the teachers unions who are fighting going back to school unless they can guarantee 100% that they are not going to catch covid -- which is crazy. my daughter and my grandkids are staying with me thanks to some layoffs during the pandemic. i've got an eight-year-old and a five-year-old who are looking at a notebook all day. kids are not designed to do that , john. kids should be in school. kids should be socializing with each other. they lost a full year of education. we need to get steve back.

we are waiting for him. steve, we love you. thanks, john. host: a democrat in toledo. good morning. how are you? caller: doing alright. i got on too late. i wanted to talk to the v.a. guy, the chairman. i am 75 years old. i am of vietnam veteran. i tried 30 years to get a settlement, like the guy that was on before. i have diabetes. i am a vietnam veteran, but there is a lot of vietnam veterans that were not boots on the ground. i was in thailand. every base in thailand got sprayed with agent orange. they gave one concession.

security police on the outskirts of the base. well, i have sent them proof that the spray covered basically the whole base, but basically where the barracks were, they were screamed in living quarters with about 24 guys in them, and they were on the perimeter of all the bases in thailand. they sprayed outside of those, and the wind took them into the bases, and there are hundreds and maybe thousands of veterans that did not have boots on the ground in vietnam that were actually affected from agent orange. host: robert in mechanicsville, new york, republican. go ahead, you are on c-span.

caller: i just wanted to know why dr. fauci is not being held accountable for what happened since he financed the research. he allowed it. the government said know about letting it go airborne, but he said go ahead with it when he got the money from the government. host: robert, what are you referring to? caller: dr. fauci along with the covid. host: ok. paul is in florida, democrat. good morning. caller: i've watched this for many years and it is very informative. the pandemic has affected every aspect of life. at the same time the black lives matter movement started. but just last week, a doctor, a

surgeon, aired during a procedure which we saw -- he had a suspended license. he lost his medical license, which he should have. but i would like to see the government and the police support systems try to work better and be more understanding with the civilians of everything that is going on, because not everyone that has an issue with the system is a criminal. everything is virtual. court sessions right now. someone is arrested for a bogus charge, a ridiculous charge, and inside the correctional system, it is not black lives matter. it is what color you are wearing. it is whether you are an inmate. host: former president trump often touted his work on criminal justice reform.

do you think the former president moved us in the right direction? you think president biden will move us in the right direction? caller: i am hoping so. the truth, for me, it is not a party thing, but trump did a lousy job. he did do a couple of things. i am a democrat, but he did do a couple of things i will pat him on the shoulder four. when it comes to the presidency, i think i want someone running the country that i would not have a problem inviting into my home, and trump is not an individual i would invite into my home. host: the color in washington, and independent. good morning. -- a caller in washington. independent. caller: wolves have been taken off the endangered list and montana is going to do a wolf mass call. my concern is what happens in these trophy hunts is that testosterone is raised.

the men and up going out and many of them -- you have like eight when he percent rise in rates, -- a 20% rise in rapes, in domestic violence. why is this being allowed to happen? obviously, the former administration took it off, but why hasn't president biden put it back on? the other concern is the court system. the gentleman just spoke before. he is absolutely correct. i know what is happening in washington state. folks cannot get into the court system. infractions are turning into these tremendous fines. you are getting warrant things out for you. i have had two sons it has happened to, and nobody understands how to work these virtual systems. i myself am not a computer techie. i am an older lady. what are they doing to help these folks that are stuck with

these huge fines? host: i want to turn back to capitol hill, joined via zoom to the number three democrat in the house, congressman jim clyburn. fungus in clyburn, we all know on c-span that you have the ear of president -- congressman clyburn, we all know you have the ear of president biden. what should he tell the country tonight? guest: thank you for having me. i think the president should just tell the country what we have done with this legislation. people have been waiting. we cannot allow his opponents to fill in any blanks that might be there. he should share with the american people exactly what we

have done, why we did it. for them, for their families, for their communities. i think it will bode well. a big mistake was made back in 2009, when we did what needed to be done after the great recession. we did what we needed to do for the. we never took the time to tell people exactly what we have done. we lost seats because of the affordable care act. it was simply because people did not realize -- it took four or five years to realize what really had occurred. that is what he has to do tonight, in my opinion. we will tell everybody what they can expect over the last several months and what he is looking to do sometime after his state of

the union address. host: just a few minutes left before the house comes in at 9:00 a.m. eastern. we are chatting with congressman jim clyburn, democrat from south carolina, majority whip. i want to talk about the whip organization when it comes to the american rescue plan. you ended up losing one democrat on the final vote in the house, congressman jared golden. and you give us any insight into whip operation? how many democrats where you working? how many did you convince not to vote no? guest: there was not convincing about it. i think people saw what this would do for their constituents. they voted for their constituents. it was and still is a big number. he was reticent because he thought it was too much money.

i would like to know, is it too much or too little? would you air -- err on the side of doing too much for people or doing too little for people? i think that is one way to fail. you never know when you were going to get it just right. we explained these things to all of our members in the caucus. all except one of them thought that if an error is going to be made in this legislation, you have to err on the side of doing too much rather than not doing enough. host: does that mean there probably won't be another covid relief bill down the road? guest: what it means is it will be a smaller bill. we hope to have another relief bill. we think this is enough for relief. we need to stimulate going forward. we need to do a big

infrastructure package. you know how many roads and bridges are in disrepair in this country. we need to get people back to work redoing these roads, getting these bridges done. we have a lot of sewage problems still in this country. we need to get safe drinking water into communities, especially rural communities. we need broadband appointment throughout this entire country. in the 21st century, it is what electricity was in the 20th century. all of these are infrastructure issues we have to work on, and we need to do it in this next bill. that is what stimulates the economy and is going to put people back to work. that means if people are going back to work, we will have a smaller bill in the future than we have now. if we do too little now, then you have to do a big layup.

i think it is best to rescue people now and then worry about the west. -- where the rest needs to be. host: the house getting started in a few minutes. the house considering some gun-control legislation, including one you have sponsored. explain what is going to be happening on the floor today. guest: i think everybody remembers what happened at the bible study at mother emanuel ame church, where the white supremacist who entered that bible study stood among them for one hour, and when they close their eyes in the bible study to pray, he pulled out his weapon and shot nine of them to death. it weapon he should not have had because there was a loophole in the law. what we are trying to do today is say universal background

checks, and have them with a sufficient amount of time for people to find out what is in the record. when somebody gives you false information, they may be giving it to you on purpose. i believe this young man gave the wrong information on purpose. if you cannot find the error in three days, you have to sell him the gun anyway. that is silly. somebody who knows what the law is and how much time it takes to find out he lied to you, and then he can do what he wants to do in the meantime -- we lost nine souls, some of whom are my constituents. the pastor of the church was a former intern of mine. this should not be. i do not understand why there is a rush to sell somebody a gun.

i don't call this gun-control legislation. i call this gun safety legislation. yes, you can have the gun, but you should be ethical. host: the background checks act and the enhanced background checks act. congressman james clyburn, always appreciate you coming on to talk about these issues with us. i know you have another press conference on these issues in just a few minutes. guest: thank you for having me. host: that is going to do it for our program today. a reminder that president joe biden is addressing the nation on the one-year anniversary of covid-19, on the passage of the american rescue plan. that is all happening tonight at 8:00 a.m. eastern. he can watch that here on c-span, on c-span.org. you can listen to it on the free

c-span radio app. and you can join us tomorrow morning here on "the washington journal." we are going to spend all three hours of our program tomorrow talking about your stories over the past year, how covid-19 has impacted you. if you want to join us via a video chat, you can do that. send us a tweet with a 32nd video and let us know how covid has impacted you. now we take you live to the house. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2021] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]