would happen to the economy and the environment if the world cut consumption by 25%? journalist jb mckinnon discusses that in his book, arguing we are currently using the world's resources at a rate that is unsustainable. tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span's q&a. you can listen to q&a and all podcasts on the new c-span now app. ♪ host: good morning and welcome to washington journal. with the omicron variant spreading throughout the united states debates over vaccine mandates are intensifying again. congressional republicans in the white house are at loggerheads over the idea of mandates for private businesses. this all comes as courts around the united states have been issuing conflicting rulings on

whether mandates are legal or not, forcing workers who don't want the vaccine to decide whether to quit or get fired. our quest to you this morning, what is your view of vaccine mandates? we open up special lines this morning. that means if you are in support of vaccine mandates, we want to hear from you at (202)-748-8000. if you oppose vaccine mandates, your number is (202)-748-8001. keep in mind you can always text us at (202)-748-8003 and we are always reading a social media on facebook at facebook.com/c-span or on twitter @c-spanwj, and you can follow us on instagram @c-spanwj. the omicron variant of covid-19 is spreading throughout the united states. with many wondering whether the government should abandon or

intensify its vaccine mandates right now, this debate has been going on on capitol hill this week and in the courts around the united states. we will go to a story from the hill to set up the conversation. the hill said this, the gop legal pushback against president biden's vaccine mandates is limiting his effort to get more people vaccinated in face of the new omicron variant. a string of recent court rulings have halted beau biden's vaccine or test mandates with businesses of a hundred or more employees and the vaccine for world health workers. they celebrated recent rulings in their favor arguing biden's mandates exceed his authority and infringe on freedom to make healthy decisions for themselves. some gop lawmakers are pushing to block a government funding deal unless it defines biden's

vaccine mandates. but especially at a time when the new omicron variant potentially poses a heightened threat, many health experts say mandates are a key tool in getting more people vaccinated to contain the pandemic and worry about the effects of efforts to fight them. as that story said the gop tried to hold up the government's funding bill to defund the vaccine mandate from the president, but the bill ended up going through and biden has already signed the stopgap measure to avert the shutdown of the government despite the gop's efforts. cnn has that story and i will bring that to you as well. president joe biden signed a stopgap bill friday to avert a government shutdown hours ahead of a midnight deadline, the white house announced. congress acted to prevent a shutdown thursday evening when they passed the stopgap bill

after party leaders brokered a deal to overcome gop brinksmanship over vaccine mandates. the tally was 69-28. the passage of the stopgap bill ahead of a midnight deadline ended the standoff that threaten to trigger a shutdown when a small number of republican senators who objected biden's vaccine requirements had held up the possibility of holding up a quick vote on the funding bill. to resolve the impasse the parties agreed to hold on the stopgap bill and gop amendment that prohibits the use of federal funding for covid-19 vaccine mandates, which ultimately failed. all of this comes as we in the united states have been dealing with the omicron variant which showed up overseas and is now here in the united states. the new york times story says, the omicron variant has already

been found in 16 states. here is that story. the highly mutated omicron variant of the coronavirus had been reported in at least 16 states by saturday, with washington state reporting three new cases. many appeared to be people who had traveled to south africa recently, including the first case reported saturday in wisconsin by the state's department of health. some, however, seemed to be examples of community spread, including a infected person in hawaii who had not traveled outside the state, and a man in minnesota who attended an anime convention in new york city. health officials were bracing for the inevitable spread of the variant. right now, the omicron variant is in the u.s. and so far, 16 states. president biden on thursday came out and announced steps you

think will help contain the omicron variant. he talked about how the covid crisis has become a politically charged crisis in the united states. here is what president biden had to say. [video clip] >> i know covid-19 has been divisive in this country, it has become a political issue which is a sad commentary. it should not be but it has been. as we move into the winter and face the challenges of this new variant this is a moment we can put divisiveness behind us i hope. this is a moment where we can do what we have not been able to do enough of through this pandemic, get the nation to come together, unite the nation in a common purpose to fight this virus, to protect one another, to protect our economic recovery, and think of it in terms of a patriotic responsibility rather than you are denying people their basic rights. the plan i am announcing today is a plan our scientists and teams recommended. while my existing federal

vaccination requirements are being reviewed by the courts this plan does not expand or add to those mandates. a plan all americans can hopefully rally around and it should get bipartisan support in my humble opinion. it should unite us, not separate us. host: once again republicans in congress have been opposing president biden's attempts to increase or start new vaccine mandates in the united states. republican mike lee on saturday came to the senate floor to lay out his objections to more vaccine mandates. here is senator mike lee. [video clip] >> each of us did swear an oath to the constitution and the constitution does not bring the federal government the authority to implement a mandate of this sort. it just doesn't. it certainly does not grant the president the authority to implement such a mandate without

the explicit authorization of the people's elected lawmakers in congress. make no mistake, this mandate is not only immoral it is unconstitutional. for that reason alone i must oppose it. but, mr. president, the harms do not stop with the damage that is being done to our constitutional order. millions of americans are at risk of losing their jobs due to this mandate. while court orders are offering at least temporary protection these americans are still anxiously awaiting lasting protection from congress. and could receive at a moments notice the final ultimatum to be vaccinated or lose their jobs. in fact, in fear of the fines

the is threatening against businesses that do not comply once the mandate is enforced many companies are already imposing these requirements on their workers. hundreds are at risk of closure or dismissal have reached out to me. their stories are heart wrenching. these are good people. they are our friends and our neighbors. they are american manufacturers, mothers and fathers trying to get by in the increasingly difficult economic times. there are millions of them across the country. over half a million workers in utah alone are at risk of unemployment due to this mandate. as i have said each time i have spoken i am not against the vaccine. in fact, i got the vaccine, my

family has gone the vaccine, i encourage vaccines. i am against the mandate. i recognize that these are protecting americans from the harms of covid-19 and that the government has no business, no authority and no justification to make millions of americans second-class unemployable pariahs. host: we want to know what you think about vaccine mandates. do you support them or do you oppose them? let's start with tyrone calling from new york, new york. tyrone supports the mandate. good morning. caller: yes, jesse i do. thank you for taking my call. we already know that a lot of human beings are not going to do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. we have to fight a war to stop the enslavement of human beings in this country. we know the mandates, if we

don't -- if joe biden don't do anything pertaining to the mandates, they are going to say, oh, he didn't do anything, he didn't try to stop the death of other human beings. they are blaming him if you do and blaming him if you don't. it is a catch 22 and seems to be a lot of these republicans, you know, they like to create anarchy. they like to change the forward mobility of this country. we already know their m.o. and now they are paying people who are unemployed not to work because when they lose this job now they are paying them unemployment. they were complaining about unemployment all the time. these people, they are here to just muck up everything. i wish biden continues with the mandate, continues to try to save people's lives because that is what he is trying to do with the mandates.

he is not try to take over the country and all this. that is silliness. these people need to be able to be protected. this is not just a one man disease. this is a pandemic. host: tyrone, are you vaccinated? caller: i am. i am vaccinated and i am going to get my booster. i went but something else to place. i am going to take my booster. i am vaccinated. they are trying to get the people at my job to get vaccinated or tested. they don't want to get tested. they don't want to get tested, they don't want to wear masks. it is like your child. when you tell your child to take your medicine, i don't see much of a difference. they start crying and throwing on the floor. these people acting similar to your three-year-old, your four-year-old. i see children acting better than the adults. host: anthony calling from

edison, new jersey. good morning. caller: good morning. i find it high. ly hypocritical wooded force mandates when the border is wide open and this total idiot mayorkas is letting people into this country and he lies when he is at this hearing saying they are going to try to push out people who are no good, and the cdc is regulating them. he ate doing nothing. he is lying through his teeth under of -- he ain't doing nothing. he is lying through his teeth under oath. meanwhile, these aliens are being shipped over the country in the dark of the night which make me wonder about that, too. if it is so wonderful to do, why are they sneaking people around in the middle of the night and these verys are popping up --

variants are popping up? people are sick and unvaccinated going all over the place and then dr. fauci says, i don't want to get political. i don't trust him. the original deal was mandates as far as masks, sterilization and social distancing. when we recommend you get the vaccination but shutting down the economy enclosing the streets and towns is absolutely stupid. host: anthony, have you been vaccinated? caller: i am not. i am 59 years old and drive for a car service, in and out of train stations, and airports all the time. i have been like this from day one. i am not going to get that thing because i don't like it. i appreciate you put it together but i don't trust it for myself. host: how do you keep yourself safe? are you masking a social distancing? caller: i am enclosed quarters

obviously in a car. i drive people all over the place. i wear my mask, i sterilize, i spray the car and opened the windows periodically all day long. i have been pleasantly fine all day long. my doctor said i am perfectly fine and the option is up to me. my bloodwork was perfect. host: rob calling from new york, new york. good morning. caller: at least that last caller is wearing a mask but he would be a thousand times better off if he got the simple vaccine. i have had both the original vaccine back in march and i recently got the moderna booster. little to no problems. i am on a text thread with many friends. there is a lot of misinformation

and people like the last caller, you know, god bless you but you should really just get the jab like millions of other people who are refusing. the republican party has really become this opposition cult. on fox there was a report that one of the spokespeople on fox is comparing dr. fauci, a guy that has devoted his life to science and is brilliant, and they smear him and one woman from fox was comparing him to the doctor from nazi germany which is insane and disgusting. but the opposition cult republican party is a cult. they will come up with any bs, any punchline, any phrase on an

elementary school level to just continue the opposition and, i tell you, i have never been afraid for this country. i think there are enemies around the world enjoying our separation, the way in which the two sides are so opposed to one another in this country. we have such bigger fish to fry around this country. i mean, again, the vaccines, they are just ordinary and routine at this point. they are not something people have two make some sort of -- to make some sort of spectacular disagreement over. all the misinformation is useless and killing people and it really did start with people like our former president, whoever he was, mr. red top.

host: have you been vaccinated? caller: yeah. i had my johnson & johnson in march. at the very least people can get the johnson & johnson. it is not the mrna and it will save your life. it is really like getting the flu shot. host: tom calling from tip city, ohio. good morning. caller: good morning. my question is you have people like those who are unvaccinated like the caller that drives the service. is he informing the people who ride in his car that he is unvaccinated? and if one of them gets sick, is the company he works for liable to be sued? you got cops that won't take the

shot. they will give you a traffic ticket for running a red light. it is your choice to run the red light but the rules don't apply to them which is one major problem we have with cops all over the country. the rules don't apply to them. if you go to a hospital -- i am an older person, i got vaccinated, i got the booster -- but an older person goes into a hospital and has no idea if the nurses working on them have been vaccinated. come on. where is the legal liability for these companies? can they be sued? can the government be sued over somebody getting sick in a facility where that state fights the mandate? host: on thursday before the

president signed the stopgap measure to keep the government open house nancy pelosi came out and talked about the threats that hold up the government funding over vaccine mandates. here is what speaker pelosi had to say. [video clip] >> how did they explain to the public they are shutting down the government because they don't want to get people vaccinated? why don't you ask them? this is so silly. this is so silly that we have people who are anti-science, anti-vaccination saying they are going to shut down government over that and you are asking me what is our message? our message is we have to respect to governments and we have to respect science and that is what we are doing and we will pass this legislation. we are not going to go further anti-vaccine. if you think that is how we are going to give government open, forget that. forget that.

host: let's see what our social media followers think about the vaccine mandate and what their view of the mandate. this post from facebook says, necessary if we ever hope to get out of this pandemic because there is too much bad information out there and people are literally using veterinary medicine instead of a free lifesaving vaccine. here's a tweet that says, i have mixed emotions about the vaccine mandate. only because deaths are down but this is an airborne illness. i would support mandating masks indefinitely because too many refused to be vaccinated. another tweet that says, absolutely support. in the same way i support vaccine mandates for schoolchildren. it is our best chance to turn fatal infections into a manageable solution. another tweet says, totally unjust.

no disease that has a survival rate of 98% needs mandated vaccines. it creates panic, divides families, income loss, stops freedom of association. freedoms lost forever. one last tweet that says, covid is part of our landscape now. we cannot eradicate but we can minimize we have other diseases. we all have to play the game or we all lose. it only takes one to mess it up for the rest. we want to know what is your view of vaccine mandates? before i get back into telephone calls i want to bring you a poll that asks americans whether they thought the january 4, 2022 deadline with employees of at least 100 workers, federal contractors or health care to be vaccinated, what they think about that. you can see from the results 33% of all voters say the january 4

deadline is just right. 39% of voters say it should not be required. there is not a majority of americans who say the january 4 deadline is too much or too little, but 39% say the deadline should not be enforced. you can see a breakdown from other party angles as well. we want to know what you think about vaccine mandates. let's go to victoria calling from wisconsin. victoria, good morning. caller: good morning. i would like to start by saying i am fully vaccinated. i had a booster a month ago in addition to being fully vaccinated but i am 100% opposed to mandating vaccinations for people because my idea is that

if you are going to mandate it for americans, why are you not mandating all these illegal's crossing over the borders -- illegals crossing over the borders, dispensed all over the united states, do you know what they brought in? do you know what they are bringing in? do you know what they have? how can you tell american citizens that they have to do something when you are not willing to tell people who are coming into our country illegally, hey, go have at it? that is not how the united states is, was or should be. host: let's go to lori calling from naples, florida. good morning. caller: good morning. first of all i would like to address the fact that i believe

the incentive for wearing masks and getting the vaccines should not be for other people. any behavioral economist will tell you the incentive was wrong. if people thought they were protecting themselves only from the beginning, i believe many more people would be vaccinated and would want to be vaccinated and would want to wear masks as opposed to helping other people. it is sad to say that is the way things are. number two is that omicron, the omicron virus, there is no "r" and maybe you could pronounce it the preferred way. host: have you been vaccinated?

caller: i have cancer. it is not fatal or anything. i have gotten over all my treatments but been vaccinated five times for moderna and one j&j. i have been tested twice and i carry no antibodies to the vaccine. basically i am not vaccinated. it has been hard for me. haven't been in stores but overall i would rather live that way then died. i am negative for the antibody that you need to protect yourself. i am going to go get another couple moderna and we'll see what happens. host: let's go to robin calling from mercer island, washington.

good morning. caller: good morning. i can kind of relate to lori from florida. i am immunocompromised and when i went to get my first shot i had an anaphylactic reaction. having it be a mandate, i have to take steps to protect myself. i wear a mask any time i go out because i have to go to the doctor a lot but i have all my food and groceries delivered to my house, which is an extra expense, but i could become a carrier or get covid again. i got sick early and was sick for six months with covid. i just -- i don't have a right answer here. i just don't feel that people should be penalized for choosing

to work with covid the way they need to work with it. i can't get vaccinated because it will kill me. i have researched all the vaccines and novavax has not come out but it looks like a potentially reasonable option. but i have to wait for that and i don't know if i will have an anaphylactic reaction to that too. host: one of the things you said earlier is you have to go to the doctor a lot. a lot of the mandates they were talking about were for health-care workers. do you think your doctors and nurses should have the vaccine or that they should also have the choice of whether they want to be vaccinated? caller: you know, i worked in the hospital for years and i didn't have a problem. we had to take our flu shot every year, we had to be

up-to-date on all of our other shots and i think as an institution they chose to make that necessary. and i think that doctors in the facility know very well what needs to be done. i think that it shouldn't be federal mandate to make that requirement. host: do you think it would be ok if the hospital made that or a doctor who loves his rectus mandated that everyone who works in his office would be vaccinated but just at the federal government? caller: yes, exactly. i think it should be of to you,

the institution, or business owner how to go about deciding if it's important for their employees to be vaccinated. i think wearing face coverings should be absolutely mandatory for everybody, just because that is originally how we held down the fort before we had the vaccine. even though we have the vaccine, people are still getting infections and being vaccinated, which tells me we don't have vaccines that are 100% effective. don't have vaccines that are 100% effective. host: greg is calling from chattanooga, tennessee. caller: i can't believe people are still discussing this. there's three reasons i would never take the vaccination.

you've got bill gates on ted talks talking about how he could lower 10% to 15% with the use of vaccines. everyone can watch it on youtube. host: jane is calling from payola, pennsylvania. caller: i'm just calling to say that every time i hear people against mandating the vaccine i just roll my eyes and go berserk because anybody that has raised children and sent them from kindergarten on up, you have to prove they've had all their vaccinations. where would we be in this country if people hadn't had their vaccinations for polio and whooping cough.

we are trying to help save everyone. i think it's just become too politicized. but mainly i wanted to say if you sent your kids to school, did you ever complain that you had to prove they were vaccinated? no. we just did it. host: a three-judge panel on the fifth u.s. circuit court of appeals held up a rule that would have required the covid-19 vaccine mandate and i want to bring to you what judge kurt englehart said about the mandate. the prescriptions combined to make it the rare government pronouncement that is both overinclusive with little

attempts to account for the obvious differences between the risks facing a security guard on a lonely night shift and a meatpacker working shoulder to shoulder in a cramped warehouse, and underinclusive. making no attempt to shield employees with 98 or fewer coworkers from the very same threat. the mandates stated impetus -- it's promulgation grossly exceeds versus statutory authority. when that three-judge panel stated the enforcement of the

biden administration's covid-19 vaccine mandate. we want to know what you think about the vaccine mandates. cory is calling from harvey illinois. good morning. >> i wanted to say amen to that woman. she was spot on with what she said. biden has lost the moral authority. he and kemal harris the first people that when asked about the vaccination said, we won't take it until trump as president. so they were the first people that made this into politics. the larger point is the moral authority. biden has lost the moral

authority. you cannot go out there and tell people, now that i'm president you should take the vaccine. host: have you taken the vaccine? caller: yes. i've been vaccinated and i have my booster. host: do you think people should be mandated to take vaccines? >> no. you should not be mandated. i've had the vaccine and the booster, but it was my choice. i don't believe you should force anyone else because that's what you believe. as far as the school vaccines, biden is out there trying to tell people, take the vaccines. you've got millions of people

pouring across the border illegally and they are not mandated to have vaccines. we saw biden exempted postal service workers. why did you exempt them? host: margaret is calling from texas. good morning. >> there is so much there. the government does have the authority to mandate. under the clause that he can take actions for the well-being of the population of the united states. there is the authority for the mandate and the constitution.

that was a downright lie that biden harris didn't say that at all. and i look back, i'm 94 and my children, all of them over 60. one of them is 61. i think what would have happened to them if i had said they are not going to take the polio vaccine because i don't believe in being told to take a vaccine. they'll have their vaccination shots before they went to school. and people who are anti-science.

everything in their house from refrigerators to anything they use each day is based on science. and yet they will not believe the science that says this vaccine works. they never said it was 100 percent effective. it was in the high 80's or 90's depending on the vaccine. i've had my three shots. still when i go to the grocery store, i wear our mask. i can breathe it in and hold it in my nose. go to the grocery store and breathe it out on someone who is vulnerable. host: jonathan calls from

georgia. caller: that last collar, 94. she sounded really sharp. back in the day if you had polio, you didn't need to get vaccinated. you had natural immunity to it. if you had measles, you had natural immunity to it. there's all kinds of vaccines there that aren't mandated. the survival rate for this virus is way north of 90%. 90% of the people who have sadly died with this virus or over 50 years of age. nearly 30% were 85 and had one or more comorbidities. do they need to take the

vaccines? do they need to be mandated, forced to take the vaccines? of course not. even the cdc said the vaccines do not stop transmission. learn the facts. given that fact, the vaccines only protect those who take the vaccine presumably. no one else. worry about yourself. host: have you been vaccinated? caller: i had covid 21 months ago. i have robust strong natural immunity. i have strong t cell and b cell

memory cell community. i wish you would have someone who has over 40 different peer-reviewed paper on this. a cardiologist from texas a&m, dr. peter mccullough, who is not compromised by other special interests, big pharma, and speaks the truth honestly. host: jane is calling from akron, ohio. caller: i wish the government would get the thing cleared up about the people coming over this border that's not vaccinated supposedly. my understanding is that the ones who are vaccinated are the ones that come in legally. the ones that come in illegally

possibly are not vaccinated. in the next thing, all these people called in with all these different reasons why they were not going to get vaccinated because they can't sue anybody. if you are dead, you can't sue anybody anyway. i've had a couple relatives died. they all wish they had taken the vaccine. so all of you people with this ignorant stuff listening to fox news, you're crazy. thank you. host: richard calls from hagerstown, maryland. caller: the guy who said that the cdc said the transmission

rate are the same. the fall back on the fact that it protects you from serious disease or death. the deaths are higher before the vaccine then before. host: are you saying that deaths are higher before there was a vaccine? caller: since we've had the vaccine, more people have died. so where's the evidence that it protects against death. where is the breakthrough? host: i can tell you if you get the flu vaccine, that's not a guarantee. >> we talk about mandated to go

to school. host: have you been vaccinated against covid-19? caller: no. host: how are you keeping yourself safe? caller: i'm living my life. host: representative dan newhouse talked about legislation he wants to exempt critical workers from vaccine mandates. >> our country is in a time of crisis. president biden's policies have caused nationwide shortage and delays. federal employees are facing termination over what should be a personal medical decision.

they don't deserve to be fired. that's why i introduced the exemptions for nickel workers act to ensure these critical workers who kept our industries functioning can make the health decision that is right for them while continuing their important work. three federal courts halted the mandate in some parts of the country. clearly these mandates are unconstitutional. i urge my colleagues to support my legislation. host: here's a post from facebook that says terrible and unconstitutional. a tweet that says i will get

every booster until i'm 94. another tweet that says it's either mandates or restrictions. which would you rather have? a vaccine that is ineffective should not be forced. one-size-fits-all doesn't respond as health care. biden has to do this because he wants americans to be healthy and some of you won't listen. i would support mandates 100% if we were dealing with an apocalyptic pathogen. let's meet the challenge and not panic.

james is calling from georgia. good morning. caller: how are you this morning? host: go ahead, james. caller: what the problem is i think is a lot of the american people don't want to take a shot because of these illegals come over. they just run wherever they send them to. host: sean is calling from baltimore, maryland. caller: good day to you.

i'm totally against it. florida has not mandated the vaccine down there. you look at the state of california. newsom has mandated california has just as many covid debts as florida. they have the same number of deaths. so what's the point of the mandate? i just don't see the point. he's making everybody get the vaccine and in california they're making you get the vaccine and in florida you are not. i haven't looked at the data recently. but florida is doing way better. the government should not tell a business what to do and vice

versa. texas was telling businesses that you can't mandate your employees to get the vaccine. if you own a business, you run your business how you want to. the vaccine mandate just doesn't make sense. you read a tweet that was like apocalyptic, raccoon city. that's not what we have here. host: cheryl calls from pittsburgh, new york. caller: i don't think it's appropriate for anyone to walk in anywhere and ask if you have been vaccinated. it's inappropriate, it's disgusting actually. this mandate is not conducive to

the virus. the virus is highly survivable. it's treatable. we have treatments that are 85% to 100% effective yet we are going with the vaccine and it's really not a vaccine, we are going with a vaccine that doesn't even have that kind of efficacy. we have not opened there and investigated theirs. it's a government run website. why aren't they investigating? with the swine flu virus, they stopped the shop. children are not drivers of the spread. it's a fact. it's disturbing. i'm not sure why people are even questioning this. we need to live our lives like

we always have. if you want to wear a mask because you think it's going to protect someone else, you haven't done your reading. but go ahead. don't force it on me. host: craig calls from oklahoma. caller: i want to give an honest analysis of why there is resistance. the fact that the polio vaccine is really causing the most resistance to this, people taking this one. because the definition of vaccine truly is lessen the effects. but the problem is after polio happened in america saw that, they believed that it would stop and illness. what's causing that resistance is with polio, you wouldn't get

crippled if you took it. so they thought it was a cure. that's what's causing the resistance. if americans feel you are not being honest with them, they will back off. i hope keep -- people can resolve this and we can be healthy. we just need to be told directly with this vaccine does. people can make their decision based on their own personal choices. host: a former administrator talked about the requirement to vaccinate health care workers and what she thought would happen if they tried to force. forcing the resignation of

unvaccinated health care workers could lead to the closing of hospitals and nursing homes, especially in rural errors -- areas. the consequences could lead to life-and-death issues for patients across the country. we are talking about individuals who have already entered the stress of losing patience to covid-19. about the requirement for health care workers. bob is calling from louisville, kentucky. good morning. caller: good morning. i had friends that took the

coronavirus shot. next week later they got the virus. what's the purpose of the shot if it don't stop the virus? host: joe is calling from bedford, maine. caller: good morning and thanks for taking my call. i just had a few points. a year ago before vaccines, if you got it, you were dying. and nothing is 100%. and it is a vaccine. of course it's a vaccine. nothing is 100%. no vaccine is 100%. and these people saying it's the flu, that's just preposterous. approaching 800,000 people killed. that's not going to happen with

the flu. the other question is we have tuberculosis. any job i've ever taken you have to have a blood parade. -- pricked. a woman brought up hepatitis. you can be charged as a criminal for endangering people's lives. these people that don't want to wear a mask, the result is that you don't get to fly. all these people that are saying florida ain't so bad, that guy better check his stats and check what's going on in florida. people will believe anything. you know who said that? donald trump.

host: josie is calling from indiana, pennsylvania. caller: good morning. i'm amazed listening to many of my fellow americans coming in and spouting all sorts of ridiculous theories that are coming from internet illogical sites. i'm very surprised. vaccinations are to protect everyone. my children are vaccinated against mumps, measles and rubella. i get a flu shot every year because it's necessary. sometimes i get a mild case of the flu depending on how the variant has changed when i get my shot. i think that we have forgotten the we in america and we have

become so individualistic that we think the world revolves around us and i think what covid has shown us is it revolves around all of us. it's a global pin to make -- pandemic that needs to be curtailed. if we don't stop or lessen it, it's continually going to mutate. host: mark calls from columbia, south carolina. caller: good morning. i just want to make a comment about civic responsibility. i think people aren't understanding that as americans we have the civic responsibility and our president is asking us to get vaccinated. i think they've done a great

campaign and showing people getting vaccinated. i can't think of anybody that they've had on tv or in their campaign that's had the vaccine that's gotten the virus or died from it. i think we should take those examples into account. there's so many people calling in talking about this person got a vaccine. there is so much misinformation out there and i think people should take their civic responsibility because we used to have that civic understanding. i think we've lost it in the schools, we've lost it and everything. my family's been vaccinated. i think people should take this virus more seriously and thank

you. host: we would like to thank all of our collars and social media followers did of next, a political roundtable discussion on campaigns 2022 and 2024 with b.j. martino and jim manley. later, ben hodges will be here to discuss the massing of russian troops on the ukraine border and how the u.s. and nato are responding. we will be right back. >> without the advances we have made inefficiency and renewables, i think certainly our circumstances would be much more serious than they are today. at the same time, we have been

entirely focused on that kind of approach to climate change for the last 20 years and we have yet to see a single year in which there has been an absolute reduction in global carbon emissions without there being an accompanying recession or pandemic, a circumstance in which the world closes down its shelving. >> what would happen to the economy if the world cut consumption by 25%. he discusses this in his book, arguing we are currently using up the world's resources at a rate that is unsustainable. tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span's q&a. >> this week on the c-span network, both chambers of

congress in session, the house will take up a bill to prevent abuses of presidential power and protect against foreign intervention in elections. and also the confirmation of the next sec chair. -- fcc chair. house oversight committee looks at threats posed by terrorist organizations like al qaeda and isis with counterterrorism heads from the fence department. then on c-span-3, the inspector general of the u.s. capitol police testifies in an oversight hearing i the senate rules and administration committee, following january 6 attacks. and then a meeting on u.s. relations with chest -- russia as they get more troops on the border of ukraine.

the house financial services looks at cryptocurrencies and other digital assets with testimony from ceos of several digital currency companies. at 2:00 p.m. eastern, the instagram ceo testifies before a senate commerce subcommittee on efforts to protect kids online. watch this week on the c-span networks or watch our full coverage on c-span now, our new video app also head over to c-span.org for scheduling information. >> "washington journal" continues. host: we are going to have a roundtable discussion of the biden agenda and the 2022 and 2024. joining us this morning our bj martino and republican pollster

and jim manley, a democratic strategy and senior counsel at atc a worldwide. good morning. let's look at the most recent job numbers. i want you to tell me how this affects the biden agenda and the upcoming election. we will go to the wall street journal story that says hiring slow last month amid covert uncertainties and assigned that the tight labor market could be loosening. 210,000 jobs in november, the smallest gain since last summer and a mark slowdown from an increase of 546 thousand in october. what do those job numbers tell us about the biden agenda? guest: it tells us the numbers aren't going to do anything about helping the biden's

standing with the american elector. when you look at his job approval rating, it covers in the low 40's. to get a jobs number back that is less than half of the expected number shown for the month is not going to improve that. it is going to have an impact on his capacity to get things done on the hill, which he hasn't shown much capacity to do that, but it is going to continue to drive this sense of disappointment that is existing among his own democratic base. when we look at numbers overall, the 42 roughly that approve of the job he is doing. in the democratics, that number is 80's manatt bad for president but lacks intensity when you look underneath the hood of that approval from democrats, you see only half of the democratic base strongly approving of the job he

is doing. there is a growing sense of disappointment over the lack of this administration's ability to get things done. it starts with the base but spreads among independent voters and republicans have obviously been there for a long time. host: is he right? guest: with all due respect, no, well, some of it is. i would say it is slightly different. first of all, the top line number of the jobs report was disappointing. it is no doubt about it. the unemployment rate continues to tick down to 4.2%. to the extent you can look ahead to next year at the election, it

will revolve around the economy and to a lesser degree covid. a key part of getting the economy in place is continued effort to try to wrestle this covid disease or infection, to a place where everyone can feel more comfortable getting out. again, we could spend hours talking about the numbers. we have seen in the last couple of months there have been revision of previous numbers that keep on spiking up in a dramatic fashion. i am no expert on how to analyze these numbers, but it seems the numbers that keep on getting reported change and are revised in the next couple months later and they keep on showing the economy is in a decent spot all and all, though there are still problems.

every democrat on capitol hill has to recognize that. host: jim, at what point do we start blaming the current administration and stop saying it is covid causing the problem? are you worried about voters saying it is not code but the leadership? -- it is not covid but the leadership? guest: covid is such a tricky thing and adds such an impact to the economy. i think -- i think that this administration has done a heck of a lot better than the previous administration. throw in the fact that it was a political war about how republicans are trying to talk down this thing and try to do everything they can to try to undermine what the administration is trying to do when it comes to dealing with covid.

i think the administration has done a good job. but they are going to own it. the buck stops with the white house and with the president. my issue is that republicans are doing everything they can to try to undermine what the president wants to do. we saw another vote in the senate to try to eliminate mayonnaise -- eliminate mandates and there will be another vote next week using an expedited procedure. host: b.j., at what point do think the voters will say the covid pandemic caused a lot of these issues? maybe it wasn't just the leaders but it was an extraordinary time and we should give them another chance? guest: there is a sense for the

first six months of the presidency that voters had the capacity to say there are problems insisted in the first six months are not by the current administration. they are willing to give that level of grace and part of the honeymoon of any new presidency. for the biden administration what happened after the first six months was afghanistan. that is not only an issue in and of itself that eroded the faith of the administration but you can clearly see in the decline of joe biden's job approval from late july to august and really through much of september, a steep decline in his job approval rating as a result of that. it didn't just hang onto that issue, then it began to open up questions in voters' minds about this administration. it is an absurdity to think republicans want to somehow

prolong or continue this discussion on covid. all of the pulling suggest that voters continue to give joe biden the highest marks on how he has had an old -- has handled the covid pandemic. it is really the one area at which he continues to get good marks. it is one voters focus on cost-of-living, afghanistan, immigration and the border that voters then begin to get a sense that this administration wasn't as competent as they were sold on and began to assign the blame for things that are happening. it is part of this public policy model that this administration has taken which seems to be one a problem emerges to ignore it, then criticize those who say that it is a problem and then actively take steps to make it

worse. it is like living in eight bizarro world rather than embracing and actively doing something to fix it. they do something like cost-of-living which will be significant going into next year and the administration was whistling past the graveyard on the issue and then finally beginning to talk about that, and what is their plan, is to spend trillions of dollars, which by all accounts will only add fuel to the fire of inflation and increased cost-of-living. they have credibility problems. they are beginning to on their mistakes which happened after afghanistan and is leading to problems with the future agenda. host: president biden talk friday on the latest jobs report. i will bring it to both of you and i want you to react to what he says. [video clip] pres. biden: every year december brings the holiday season and

gives us opportunity to reflect on the year gone by and look ahead and begin to imagine the new year took on. this year we can reflect on an extraordinary bit of progress. our economy is stronger than it was a year ago and today the incredible news that the unemployment rate has fallen to 4.2%. at this point in the year, looking at the sharpest one year decline in unemployment ever. simply put, america is back to work and our jobs recovery is going very strong. today's historic drop in the unemployment rate includes dramatic improvements for workers who have seen higher wages and higher levels of unemployment and they are receiving higher wages. the rate of black and hispanic and unemployment is lowering. wages are up for hard-working americans.

workers in transportation and warehouses have seen wages go up approximately 10% this year. workers in hotels and restaurants have seen wages go up to 13% this year. thanks to the american rescue plan, we have delivered significant tax cuts to families raising children. tax cuts enraging wages -- tax cuts and raising wages means american's have more in their pocket each month that we have been in office than they had last year after, -- after accounting for inflation. the typical american family has more money in the pockets than they did last year. the only economy in the world for household income and the economy as a whole stronger than they were before the pandemic. host: jim, is president biden saying what americans need to

hear by talking about the economy and his accomplishments with the economy? guest: i think so. the bottom line is there is a lot of good out there but he has to acknowledge that not everyone is feeling it. and as b.j. nose with the pulling, things are not as good and the americans' minds on the economy. he acknowledges that there has been -- knows with the polling, things are not as good in americans bus reminds on the economy.

you have to try and figure out the bright spots but you have to acknowledge that are still feeling pain. i think the president did a good job to try to thread that needle. host: g.j., what do you -- b.j., what do you think about what the president said? guest: being in alignment with how voters are feeling, and although statistics might say the economy is improving, voters don't feel it. they don't feel it in their family's bottom line. i think of the wages that the president was talking about from last year, certainly from the heart of the pandemic it is not surprising wages are higher, but the more important thing is that maybe i'm making 10% more, evident costs me 10% more here

so i may have more in my pocket, it is just me the same i had before. it is that rhetoric that when voters listen to it, it doesn't meet my reality. i don't have that sort of buying power. maybe my wages are higher but it doesn't mean anything. it is using numbers to try to convince voters that what they see in front of their face isn't true. it's not going to work, unless and until voters begin to believe it in their heart and unless the biden administration does more to acknowledge that. the concern is not even about job creation but about cost of living. as we head into the winter months and not only is the energy cost for the gasoline and cars getting higher, but home heating gets higher, that is going to be a rural problem for the administration for this problem of higher inflation is

just beginning for the biden administration. they think they are trying to get their arms around it, but there is a lot of indication it will be worse into the winter. host: let me remind our viewers they can take part in this conversation. we will open up the regular lines, which means republicans can call in on (202) 748-8001. democrats, (202) 748-8000. independents, you can call (202) 748-8002. you can always text us at (202) 748-8003. and we are always listening on twitter at @cspanwj. the build back better program is still in the senate and democrats having arguments amongst themselves over it while republicans seem to be stepping back and letting democrats argue

amongst themselves eerie what do you see the fate of the build back that are program in the senate right now? guest: i think it has problems, because of what you said. first of all, republicans think it is a joke when you have a party that is completely controlling the levers of government from the president through congress and making the mistakes they are, the best thing they do is to step back and continue to let them fight amongst themselves and make those mistakes. president biden has not made the argument to voters that build back better is necessary. what voters, the little they do know of it, is the massive amount of spending that it entails and they understand that increased levels of spending

only served to light the fire of inflation existing in their lives. they have a lot of problems right now and it is going to be interesting to see what happens in the next few weeks with this. it voters are just not happy about some of the cost implications. when you get into specific elements, there are things that cause problems for the democratic base. taxes on home heating and natural gas, the salt deductions for the wealthiest like nancy pelosi in the bluest states, increased hiring of irs agents. there are things that are wildly unpopular. on the other, we test individual element and voters seem to like it. that may be true until you put a price tag on it and that ultimately is one that many voters are not willing to pay and democrats are learning that. host: jim, you have years of and

around the senate. what is going to happen to the build back better plan in the senate? guest: i don't have -- faintest idea -- i don't have the faintest idea. there is a decent chance it can get done by the end of the year. having said that, for a variety of reasons, including the issues relating to needing to scrub this bill to get it passed so they can use the so-called fast track procedures, there is now a chance it can be kicked over until next year. if that is the case, as you know from your ears covering the senate, that is a recipe for the build to die -- from your years covering the senate, that is a recipe for the bill to die.

my hope is they can still get it done by the end of the year. it may take until after christmas, calling the senate back to wrap things up, but my hope is it will still get done. i want to be crystal clear. b.j., i will agree or hopefully he will agree with me that we have a real problem that -- i would say the americans support policies but we would both agree they sure don't support the warfare going on between democrats right now. they don't like the performance and an indicator is that this bill is sitting in the senate after spending months to get it out of the house. host: i have to ask you, b.j.,

do you agree with him? what will the cost be to democrats if they get it through or don't? guest: if they get it through and massive amounts of dollars start flowing into the economy from government spending, inflation is only going to get worse into next year and voters are going to pin that squarely on the sitting administration and those in power. they don't pass it, it is just another point of disappointment for the democratic base. the democrats sorely need something to get their base energized and motivated for the 2022 election. a look at what happened in this year in places like right here in virginia where i live. they look at a democratic

campaign that went after republicans with vote based issues and failed to turn it in we saw it with what happened in virginia and new jersey. on one hand they pass it and cost of living continues to increase at a faster pace and voters blame them. before any of these programs that would potentially be positive or before it has a chance to get hold they have a benefit from it. and secondarily, it is just another disappointment and failure in this administration to get something done. i don't know if there is a good choice for them, but whatever they do, i agree with jim that they probably want to get it done quickly. host: jim, what happens politically if the democrats do pass build back better or don't

pass build back better? how does that affect 2022? guest: lets to the second option. doing nothing is not an option. it will be a dagger to the heart of the biden administration and for democrats on capitol hill who don't get anything done. having said that, i want to be crystal clear, if we pass this thing, that in and of itself is not going to guarantee victory next year. as i indicated earlier, the election, as far as i can tell at this point in time, is going to revolve around the economy and covid which are somewhat interrelated. it will be a quiver in the arrow

of a broad set of selling points we can use to try and get our base out to show folks that basic level of competency and that we are trying to get something done. i would of the two options, i would take the option of getting something done over not getting anything done and wait to see what impact inflation would have. inflation is trickier than they tried to outline. i also want to be clear that inflation is an issue we need to be very concerned about. again to get this done. failure is not an option. it was my hopes in the weeks to come they can pull it off. host: let's let the viewers take part. let's start with shelby who is calling from albany, georgia on the independent line. good morning.

caller: good morning. thank you very much. thank you to c-span and happy sunday. i am one of those voters that are thankful today that we have c-span that allows voters to call in. i am one of the voters. i appreciate the fact you have the republican and democratic pollsters. i am independent. let me offer the possibility of these pricings and relentless indignities, that it seems like we have going on in our country this sunday morning, where we have much to be thankful for. i have traveled all over the world. i have an epidemic and a medical physician. i have my family apart of offering those services and i am one of those voters who

contribute mightily to the economy. what we have here in america right now and what we have had, because i have seen it over a 40 year patient care, academic care with young people trying to come through the matriculation of their life, we have voters for the past 18 months to two years, december 2019 is when this country went into a pandemic crises. now we have a power that does not want to repeat. what we had on january 6 -- i am a female, educated, suburbia, who have young people with college and have eldercare and childcare, who provides health care and also contribute to a public education system.

we have a lot of issues right now. this word voters and american people, those are nebulous words. host: can you get the question in? caller: could the gentleman b.j. please tell us why it is that we are a country that brought a coalition together, females that brought a coalition? we had particularly white men who are wanting to continue this entrenched power that does not give a country quality of life. we have service industries -- people who have no education have been struggling. you have been riding around in a pickup truck with a sign saying you will offer your services.

we have an economy for 40 years by men who want power. host: go ahead and respond to her. guest: i think the important part we have seen in our politics in the last four years, starting in 2016, was a new cleavage of the elector. when you look at the behaviors prior to 2016 and after, we do see a difference in college education being a clear delineation between the parties, the republicans doing much better among voters who have less than a college degree and democrats doing that are among those with more than a college agree. it was more about being in those places and in that socioeconomic position where you felt like you had access and power and authority. the republicans started to do

better among those voters. he felt ignored for the past 20 to 40 years by politics. there is a new populist cleavage existing among our electorate and republicans have benefited from that. in some ways it changed and that voters who are working class are beginning to gravitate more towards the republican party, because they understand that we are listening to their issues about economic concerns as opposed to the democratic party who are increasingly seen as a party of more, for lack of a better word, elitist, at least that is how the working class sees them, who are paying attention to their issues and our entrenched politicians and only embracing their far left. there is a movement and

republicans have taken advantage of that in the last several elections, at the congressional level and most recently in the 2021 elections. host: jim, what do you think? guest: i guess i'm not quite sure what to say on the last question. what i say is i agree with b.j. that republicans are making inroads in certain areas and certain demographics that had turned towards democrats in the recent years. i, for one, are watching very closely the inroads they are making in the hispanic community in florida and texas and elsewhere. obviously, the gubernatorial

election in virginia was very interesting, and that the suburban voters, democrats and independents that democrats had moved our way the last time around, seem to again run away from my party this time around, which is i think a significant reason why, you know, glenn youngkin one. -- won. host: let's go to carl calling from west virginia on the republican line. good morning. caller: good morning. i would like to ask the democrat if he continues to believe in russian collusion with donald trump. also, every time -- well, both times biden has been in the white house, he uses the justice department like the fbi, to go

after his political opponents. they use the irs to go after the tea party and, you know what, i thought in vietnam i was fighting against the communists, and now we have people like joe biden sicking the fbi on parents going to protest at a school board meeting. don't you think this is getting out of hand when the person in power can use the fbi and the cia to go after their political opponents? host: go ahead and respond to that, jim. guest: there is no way to sugar coat what i am about to say. i don't believe in what word of what that gentleman said, with all due respect. he is not sending the fbi after his political opponents. i think the irs issue that he

alluded to from the obama administration has been mischaracterized by the right wing republican attack machine. regarding his first issue about collusion, all i know is every time you look around during the previous administration he found the russians. i have been in politics for many years and i have never seen more examples popping up than what we saw the last time around. has everything that has been printed been correct? no. do i think that the russians actively engage in efforts trying to undermine our election? yes, and i think that's been correctly assessed by the intelligence, the senate

intelligence committee, and also by our intelligence committees as well. host: b.j., what do you think about the russian collusion and the irs and fbi being used? guest: i agree there is clear evidence the russians are trying to impact our elections. we have seen that an evidence to that. as opposed to the collusion, they never had any sort of hard evidence other than made-up dossiers. let's look at the future in this administration right now and to the gentleman caller's other point. it was a significant part of the discussion in this last election in virginia, when the biden administration justice department did begin to issue a statement saying they were going to help investigate parents who were potentially complaining

about school boards. this was part of that disconnect in the biden administration. every time voters begin to express some sort of frustration about an issue, the biden administration's first impulse and instinct is to say, you're wrong we know better. that is the problem in the democratic party, that elitism and ignoring the problems that voters have when they express them. and criticizing them and maybe investigating for those who do speak up. that was a big part of the focus on education ultimately that led to glenn youngkin's victory in virginia and it is a big robin for the biden administration owing into 20 -- a big problem for the biden administration going into the 2022 elections.

it is the attitude they have towards those who dissent. host: g.j., we just avoided another -- b.j., we just avoided another shut down and will keep the government open until february. what is the political calculus on these government shutdowns which we have seen happen more and more over the last decade? what is the advantage and disadvantages of threatening to shut down the government if you don't get your way? guest: threatening to shut down the government if we don't get our way is a difficult way to say it. it is distinct policy differences driving some of these decision-making, but from a timing perspective, this is something most politicians would have rather gotten the pain with over this year rather than

kicking the can into next year into an election year when congressional lines are drawn and campaigns are underway. it will be more of a problem for campaigns next year if government shut down. it is going to be ultimately a problem for the party in power. voters look at who they put into office. they put a democrat into the presidency. they put democrats into power in both the house and senate, and now they have to own what goes on there. another is an ongoing effort to bring republicans into this by many and say they need to own some sort of these problems, but ultimately how are voters going to view this? you have to look at the party in power and give them either blame or credit for the things that go on our field to go on. so a shut down next year while

no one would think is pleasant, i think ultimately would be another bad sign for the democratic prospects. host: jim, shutdown politics we have seen more and more over the last few years. does that hurt the democrats when it comes to 2022 the government has to shut down? guest: first of all, to get the small point out of the way i think what we saw with the cr when they got it done was an indication of the desire for different reasons of republicans and democrats to work out a deal on the debt ceiling to kick it further into the future. i am not talking about a year. it is very easy to imagine that working out a debt limit agreement to get this passed in the next two years. that is number one.

number two, i understand the idea that republicans suggest that a government shut down would negatively impact democrats than republicans. i don't agree with that. she is one of those people who was working in the senate when newt gingrich sent down the senate and required to work for free when the government was shut down, something i will never forgive him for. again, i think that on a tactical level, the last thing that senator mcconnell wants to see is a shut down on his watch. he doesn't want, which is why they reached an agreement after objections from the hard language in the caucus, i think

he is betting that he has a good shot of flipping the senate, though i don't agree with that, but he doesn't want to unnecessarily --the waters. host: let's talk to russell, who is calling from south carolina on the democrat line. good morning. caller: good morning. i would just like to say that republicans in their current form are a threat to public health and a threat to national security representatives -- national security. representatives like omar our culture warriors. they have attacked voting rights, women's rights, and

religious rights. i always thought america was any religion that you want you could practice in america, but apparently you have to be christian to be a republican. the gerrymandered republicans were present 45 million less people than the democrats represent, and that is because the district are gerrymandered so poorly and they continue to attack will board members. i am glad you mentioned that, because even here in south carolina, school teachers, principals and schoolboard members are asking for help because republicans are continuing to make death threats because they are asking their children to wear a mask and asking their children to get a vaccine. they are threatening their lives. i hope that the republicans

overextend their hand to the point that there voters realize that they don't have policies. the only thing i criticize biden -- the biden administration for is --. host: i let you respond to that first, b.j. guest: i agree the border is a problem and has gone on for far too long. we have stopped paying attention to the growing problems occurring on the southern border. voters are paying attention, is clearly this gentleman is. it matches the bizarro world public policy model of the biden administration. one is ignore.

we put vice president harris in charge and she doesn't go down to the border to visit, just ignore it, criticize those who say it is a problem and accuse them of racism or some ridiculous arguments, and ultimately enact policies that could potentially make it worse, incentivizing those who would want to cross the border illegally when there is already a great influx. i agree with the gentleman that the southern border is another issue and a secured pump for the biden administration. host: jim, what do you think? guest: needless to say, i agree that immigration is an issue that will continue to be problematic for the administration. i guess what i would rather focus on and discuss is what i think was the central theme of the gentleman's comments, and that is that we are currently

dealing with a republican party that is becoming more and more conservative and is becoming much more aggressive in advancing social policy issues that are causing a lot of division and or anger within the country. obviously i agree with that. all i have to do is look at my own example in the senate. i first came to the senate in the 1990's when the place still worked. it was possible to get things done and i worked for senator ted kennedy who believed in the art of compromise. now fast-forward, and stuff like that is from a bygone era. all i see are republicans trying to advance divisive social

policy issues and trying to advance one problematic issue after another. host: before we end, i want to ask you both about the election 2022. jim, what does the senate look like for the election of 2022? will democrats keep the senate? guest: i have to tell you i am not sure how much time we have left, but i am surprised we haven't talked about abortion yet. i guess so i am going to do that as part of entering that question. i think that for the senate at least, potentially a real wild was thrown into that bait this week when the supreme court heard that abortion issue. it is -- i think it's going to

have less of an impact on the house, but for senators, they are in fact right in the middle of this. they voted -- again i believe unfairly, quite a handful of supreme court justice -- folks on the supreme court, by using the rules of the senate and has now given the supreme court probably the six votes necessary to overturn roe v. wade. if that is what happens months before the election, i think it's that the possibility of providing some fairly dramatic change. i do agree based on the polling i have seen so far, this issue was going to, you know, further energize republican voters who

believe -- you are opposed to the right to choose, but i am betting it is going to further energize the suburban women or independent voters to come out once they can seat what is it very clear that republicans are prepared to take away the right to choose. if you look at the house, past history suggests it could flip. i am not convinced it is going to happen in the senate. host: b.j., since jim brought it up, let's talk about election 2022 in the senate and abortion and how they will merge or if they will merge. guest: i think we are months away from knowing what the supreme court is actually going to do. speculating on that maybe

something that we probably shouldn't do at this point, but it will have an impact, whatever happens in whatever decision comes down. it will have an impact and could serve to help energize some of the democratic base. i think what is important for all of us, the cautionary note for my republican candidates i talked to is that there's still a lot of time, 11 months to go before this election. although we see a generic balance that favors republicans nationally, which is something you rarely see even when republicans gain seats. you see blame given to the biden administration. things can change. while you see all 19 or so democrats who have chosen to retire from the house. you see the target list with only a handful of republicans they think they might be able to

draft in contrast to the republican committees, where they think they may go over -- may be able to go over in the cycle. we don't know is what conditions are going to change between then and now. the goal for a lot of republican campaigns is to make sure we stay focused on the job of those in power and the incumbent party. host: on friday, house minority leader kevin mccarthy came out and promised changes -- if they put republicans back in power. i wanted to play what kevin mccarthy said on friday. [video clip] finds own treasury said it was time to retire the word -- >> biden's own treasury

secretary said it was time to retire the word transitory. i don't know what they are doing in the white house but maybe they are trying to come up with a new term to dismiss inflation. gas prices skyrocketed and he said he would lower the gas prices and he hasn't done it but made it worse. at the measly two cents they think is lowering it. he depleted 50 million barrels of oil from our emergency supply and has done nothing to reverse this anti-american energy agenda he has contributed to that spiked up costs. in my home state of california, you see the price rise almost every day, when the five dollars a gallon. that hurts the hard-working americans every single day. it is not just the gas price. they take that and fill up the car and go to the grocery store,

it costs them more. they turn on the heat it costs them more. everything they do, and now we have come to christmas. we worry about the ability to give -- to get the gifts you want or can afford him and what is the answer from the white house? we can't even promise it would be on time if you can pay for it. the american party is sick of this one-party rule. next year we will make the commitment to every single american, we will listen to you, we will hear you, work on your policies, and we will improve your quality of life. host: jim, what do you think the chances for republicans taking the house? guest: welcome again, if you look at past history, two years into a four-year presidential cycle, the odds are with republicans. having said that, i am not so

convinced that is going to be the case this time around for a variety of different reasons. not only because house republicans are morally, physically and spiritually bankrupt with no agenda, but as b.j. pointed out, there is still a lot of time between now and the election. i mentioned the abortion issue and the possibility it will serve as an energizing issue, but in the end i think it will revolve around the economy. if we get to the economic numbers to a better place, and get the build back better bills out of the senate to the president for his signature, democrats will have wind in their sails. but leader mccarthy is spending an awful lot of time trying to deal with the work for his

caucus that includes marjorie taylor greene, representative boebert, paul gosar and others. to the extent of the republican, i would take that into debate next year and would love to get more attention and focus on those folks, because that is where the republican party is going, dominated by extremists. i think there is real potential for them to overreach. host: b.j., republican chances in the house and who gets to be house speaker if republicans take the house? guest: i think leader mccarthy has the whole position there and i am not sure it is much of a

debate right now, but the larger issue for the republicans is don't start measuring the drapes just yet. we have to go out and earn it. how do we earn it as a party? it is to stay focused on the issues that we have been focused on to this point. this is first and foremost with voters' concerns about cost of living. it leader mccarthy spoke eloquently about the concerns people are having about not only the cost of everyday goods and groceries, but energy costs and this administration's first of all failure to even acknowledge it at first and then things they are doing like shutting down domestic pipelines and proposing additional taxes on natural gas, are actually going to make these things worse. as long as republicans into new to speak to the problems voters are actually having. when voters have economic concerns, they have a hard time

really beginning to look at anything else. it is the hierarchy of needs that when your family's bottom line is at stake, you are not too sure you are worried about some other issue happening thousands of miles away or doesn't impact your daily life. when voters focus on the pocketbook concerns and republicans speaking to that, i think our chances continue to be very good. but republicans from this standpoint can't let up and have to address the concerns and talk about those concerns. but at the same time, while democrats are making these mistakes and have plenty of their own internal decisions, not to mention what comes out of the squad and what they have to deal with their, their factions within each party and that has existed since the founders talk about those actions. it is nothing new.

but when you are in the majority, factions are worse and the voters and votes in the house can impact your ability to get things done and can hold you hostage and that only perpetuates the notion that you really can't get things done and then begins to move your caucus further to the left, which is already a problem for nancy pelosi and fighting against that impulse on that side. there are visions on both sides. the -- there are divisions on both side. host: let's see if we can squeeze in one more quick color. hermann from texas, can you get us a quick question? caller: i think it is the people with this voting, because they are voting against oppressives.

when people go out and cheer for the party and they are telling them they are going to do -- and they don't hear that, on both sides. if you do it for the football team, it'll have an effect on your life, your team might win, but it won't have an effect on your life. but with this power -- political thing, if the right legislation and what you can and cannot do in this world, it could have a terrible effect on your life but you won't accept it because your party won. you need to get back to your moral values and inks in what we need -- moral values and things that we need and not bite my party needs to win and -- we need and not my party needs to

win. and then you get a raise, but your tax cut, the millionaires that the tax cut and you got a dollar or five dollars week on your paycheck, that did not help you. and then if you get a raise and get your hours cut, at doesn't help you. you have to be real about things. just start being truthful about what is happening daily. host: jim, go ahead and respond. guest: there's a fundamental issue the caller just raised, the idea that there are folks wilting against their best interest -- folks voting against their best interests. the idea that folks can vote for the republican party dominated by hard right social conservatives who believe in tax

cuts for the wealthy and trying to undermine key protection on the environment is always puzzling to me. it is not for me to decide, but it is true and it gets lost sometimes in the debate, but it is true some of these folks are only in congress because they were elected by their constituents. there are constituents in the ultimately owned a lot of the chaos that we are currently seeing in the republican process -- in the political process. host: final words, b.j.? guest: i take one question is when the browns lose it affects me personally. his point is well taken. these policies and things we pass impact everyone's life and have real consequences.

you see democrats wanting to pass deductions that give millionaires all these giant tax breaks and meanwhile, families, you're telling them hey, your wages went up 6% but sorry, prices went up 8%. most voters say well, that's not helping me. i think back to early focus groups i did back in 2016 out in greater minnesota, the rural parts of the state, and asking voters, democrats, about who they might vote for in the presidential election and this is before really we got in the heart of the trump versus clinton election that year, it was early spring still. but voters said all i know is a lot of these folks are the status quo and status quo hasn't worked for me for 20 years. i want some change. what we're really asking for is someone who pays attention to them and listens to their concerns and does some things

that might benefit their lives. i think there's a reason we have a lot of republican governors in the country because voters feel that governor has a chance to really impact their life. there's less of that feeling who represents them in congress and the senate but they certainly feel that way about governors and i think the republican governors have done a great job improving the lives of folks in the states and why we have a lot of the governors who represent and are doing very well. host: we'd like to thank d.j. and ben for talking us through the biden agenda and 2022 election. gentlemen, thank so you much. guest: thank you. host: coming up next, retired general ben hodges, the former u.s. army europe commander will be here to discuss the amassing of russian troops at the ukraine border and how the u.s. and nato are responding. after that we'll have more of your calls and comments. stick with us. we'll be right back.

>> the book is called "wasps," and in this case it called for white anglo-saxon protestant. the subtitle for the new york lawyer michael baron's examination of the wasp culture is the splendors and miseries of an american aristocracy. the people featured are familiar names from history, franklin and eleanor roosevelt, dean achison, t.s.eliot, joe alsop, and whitaker chambers to name a few. the publisher, pegasus, writes that wasp ss were features of glamour, power, and privilege, yet they were unhappy. >> on this episode of "book notes plus," it's available on the c-span now app or wherever you get your podcasts.

>> at least six presidents recorded conversations while in office. hear many of those conversations on c-span's new podcast, presidential recordings. >> season one focuses on the presidency of lyndon johnson. you'll hear about the 1964 civil rights act, the 1964 presidential campaign, the gulf of tonkin incident, the march on several ma, and the war in vietnam. not everyone knew they were being recorded. >> certainly johnson's secretaries knew, because they were tasked with transcribing many of those conversations. in fact, they were the ones who made sure that the conversations were taped, as johnson would signal to them through an open door between his office and theirs. >> you'll also hear some blunt talk. >> william. >> yes, sir? >> how poor are the number of people assigned to kennedy on the day he die he died, and i

can't ever go to the bathroom, i won't go. i promise you i won't go anywhere. i'll just stay right behind them. >> presidential recordings, on the c-span now mobile app or wherever you get your podcast. >> download c-span's new hobble app and stay up to date with live video coverage of the day's biggest political events, from live streams of the house and senate floor and key congressional hearings. the white house events and supreme court oral arguments, even our live interactive program "washington journal," where we hear your voices every day. c-span now has you covered. download the app for free today. >> "washington journal" continues. "washington journal" continues. host: we're back and joined by retired lieutenant general ben

hodges the u.s. army europe commander and here to discuss the russian troops amassing on the ukraine border and what the u.s. and nato are going to do. general hodges, good morning. guest: good morning. host: you hold a pershing chair at the european policy and analysis. tell us what that is and what do you all do? #. host: cepa is a think tank that focuses on central and eastern europe and we're experts for several years particularly on the black sea and baltic sea region and expanded our attention to disinformation, digital domain and immersing and disrupting technologies but focused on the transatlantic relationship. host: where do you get your funding? guest: like most nonprofits from a variety of sources. we depend on government grants, on foundations who are