president biden's agenda and upcoming fiscal deadlines. later republican south carolina represented nancy mace talks about the u.s. response to russia and ukraine and other news of the day. >> let me give him my view of what happened january 6. it was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to present the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election. ♪ host: senate gop leader mitch mcconnell's remarks playing out throughout the media this morning and we are going to talk about it and hear from you on the washington journal. good morning. we want to hear from republicans only for this first segment. was january 6, 2021 an insurrection or protest?

(202)-748-8000 if you live in the east and central time zones, (202)-748-8001 for those in the mountain and pacific time zones, and if you cannot get through on the phones, you can try text, (202)-748-8003. please include your first name and city if you would. you can participate in the conversation about january 6 via social media, just remember c-spanwj is our handle. we will take the calls in a minute. republicans only for this first segment. new york times front page, party censures earned a rebuke by mcconnell. the remarks from mr. mcconnell, the normally taciturn kentucky republican, added to a small but forceful chorus of gop lawmakers who have decried the action the committee took friday when it

officially rebuked ms. cheney and mr. kissinger and participating in the investigation of the house attack, accusing them of quote, "persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse." that is the front page of the new york times. on the inside part of this article on the jump, representative kevin mccarthy of california defended the resolution on tuesday telling a cnn reporter it was meant to condemn the house committee's targeting of conservatives who were nowhere near washington january 6 and had nothing to do with either the attack or broader effort to overturn the 2020 election. the censure, pushed by allies of former president trump, was just over one page long but it sent republicans into turmoil, exposing the fishers while

underscoring loyalty to trump defines everything it does. it disrupted republicans to turn the page of january 6 and focus on what they see as the failings of president biden and the democratic party in an election year. 202 is the area code, (202)-748-8000 if you live in the eastern and central time zones, (202)-748-8001 for those in mountain and pacific time zones, and you can send a text to (202)-748-8003. republicans only and we want to know if you think january 6 was an insurrection or protest. the chairwoman of the republican party, ronna mcdaniel, wrote an op-ed in town hall and here it is. this is what she had to say about the resolution passed. the media is distorting

republican censure of cheney and kissinger. if corporate news media wants to know why americans don't trust it anymore, they should look no further than the shameful, outrageous, and false coverage of the resolution adopted by the republican national committee, liz cheney and adam kissinger. let me be abundantly clear, she writes, as chairman of the rnc i repeatedly condemned the violence that occurred at the capitol january 6 and do so again today. the events of that they are deeply personal to me and our team as the fbi found a bomb outside rnc headquarters and i will never forget what it felt like to know that my staff was in immediate danger. violence has no place in our political discourse period and those who engaged in violence and committed crimes should be held accountable with the due

process by the appropriate law enforcement authorities and prosecutors. we will take your calls. republicans only this first segment. joe in georgia. insurrection or protest? caller: it was a protest. i love c-span. i am a strong trump supporter and i think the democrats, you know, i think it was an ordinary protest. the republicans are being treated very unfairly. host: what do you think about breaking into the capitol and what mitch mcconnell had to say? caller: i think mcconnell ought to be fired. we need to fire career politicians who have been in there so long. i am working for a new governor of georgia. david perdue will be the best in georgia history and i am fired up. by the way, vernon jones who was running against purdue and k

emp, he endorsed david perdue who is a close friend of trump. i think he will be elected and be the best governor in history. i am really fired up. i think david purdue will be the best governor in georgia history. host: that was joe in georgia and this is anne in manchester, kentucky. what do you think about what your senator had to say? caller: i do not agree with them. i think it was just a protest. maybe there were people who were planted and some bad actors but it was just a protest. do i think anybody in their right mind voted for the president in office now? no. host: bill, orange park, florida. protest or insurrection? caller: i think it was a protest

but i think mcconnell ought to sell his house in kentucky because he will not be living there anymore. i think liz cheney and kissinger ought to be routed out of congress. not only their own state, they are the insurrectionists. host: back to ronna mcdaniel, chairman of the republican national committee. her op-ed this morning in town hall, but the awful events of that day do not justify cheney or kissinger enabling a partisan committee whose real purpose seems to be helping democrats' electoral prospects at the ruining of people's lives. they have lacked bipartisan efforts investigating events of national importance. for starters republican leadership was not allowed to freely appoint a single republican to the committee.

instead, janie and kissinger were handpicked by nancy pelosi. the committee has vastly exceeded its original purpose and morphed into something else entirely, investigating republicans who had nothing to do with january 6 with the apparent offense of being republican. under the committee's approach anything related to the 2020 election is within its jurisdiction, including harassing citizens who were not even in washington, d.c. that day. gary in finley, ohio. caller: thank you for letting me talk. i was very shocked by the behavior of the incident that day. it was an insurrection. there was people hurt. protests have the sign and give your opinion about a certain issue. this turned into a real nasty situation. people got killed, many injured,

lives were threatened, and even the people who did not do anything trespassed and should be held accountable. that is how i feel about it. there are good republicans and bad republicans as well as bad democrats and good democrats. the situation should have never happened and embarrassed of the united states of america to the world. the people should be accountable and they trespassed. it is an insurrection. a lot of damage done to the white house, i mean capitol hill. they should pay for it themselves. host: gary, have you been a longtime republican? caller: no, i was a democrat for a long time. my parents are democrats but i met a guy at a gas station i worked with in high school who was a strong conservative. i learned a lot from him but i have mixed emotions.

we need to get our country going back again. i have been in between, you know, i believe the republican party, you have a right to be what you want to be. as ronald reagan said, government is not just the remedy but the problem. i belong to the lincoln project. there is no excuse being in washington, carrying a gun, threatening constituents. host: thank you for calling in. david in mansfield, texas. what did you think about what leader mcconnell had to say and do you think it is a protest, insurrection? what do think about january 6? caller: i do believe it was an insurrection and i agree with mcconnell and cheney and the other young man.

people trying to do a civil rights, i mean, a civil war and that is what these republicans are trying to do. these are not the ronald reagan republicans i grew up with in texas. i disagree people thinking this was a protest. no ronald reagan republican would stand for this. if ronald reagan was alive, he would not be in the republican party it is now. host: ronna mcdaniel, chairman of the republican national committee, op-ed at townh all.com. cheney and kissinger are cheapening this investigation. there are multiple ongoing active law enforcement investigations into what happened that day.

these are the correct avenues for investigation. i firmly believe we are the big tent party, and that disagreement amongst republicans is welcome and can make a a stronger, but what they are engaged in goes beyond policy disagreement. they have allow their party affiliation to be weaponized to allow the democrats gross overreach of power. in short, they never should've agreed to be part of a committee will republicans were denied representation. sondra, port st. lucie, florida. caller: good morning. i have been a republican since i registered to vote in about 1965 and i am very sad about the insurrection. i feel representative cheney and kissinger are saving democracy

in the usa. host: chris is in massachusetts. caller: good morning. i am a reagan democrat turned republican. i am very much disappointed in the rnc and i've back mcconnell entirely on this. i think the republican party is in jeopardy without addressing the trump leadership in this insurrection. we need to separate from trump in order to succeed in the election. without doing that the elections are in jeopardy in terms of the republican success. host: here is the wall street

journal, mcconnell fault rnc on censure is the headline. that is what we are talking about this morning, what leader mcconnell had to say about january 6, calling it an insurrection. in the washington post a little bit earlier we read ronna mcdaniel's op-ed on townhall.com. here is more from the washington post. in calls with some allies ronna mcdaniel said she was is an impossible spot because if she had not supported the resolution, she would have drawn the ire of trump and his allies. and she said her members overwhelmingly supported it. she also told others privately she had taken a political bullet for house leader kevin mccarthy from changing the resolution saying that he should expel cheney and kissing

kinzinger. good morning. insurrection or protest? caller: it was an all out assault. what i watched was embarrassing. host: thank you for calling in. washington post has it on the front page as well. rnc wording sparks up roar and cleanup effort is there headline. coming up in 15 minutes, we are talking with two members of congress. we talk with earl blumenauer in a few minutes, democrat from oregon. nancy mace, republican from south carolina will also be on. connie in illinois, good morning. caller: good morning. host: what is your reaction to january 6 and what mitch mcconnell had to say? caller: mitch is trying to hang

onto his job. by going along with the democrats. it was not an insurrection. trump asked for 20 to 30 troops to be there to protect the capitol for the 5th and the 6th. nancy pelosi said it is not necessary, it is not needed. where it the insurrection, in? -- come in? you see that picture you showed? the people in the hardhats pushing, pushing, pushing their way? that is antifa. there was a black kid running around carrying a rope, that is

antifa. the black kid running around carrying a rope with a bullhorn, that was black lives matter. host: connie in illinois. this is jason in texas. what do you think? caller: the investigation has been subpar but i do lean with what i saw when you showed the investigation where they talked to the fbi. they were being accused of being a provocatuer and this is not an insurrection and we did not know anything about the planning on it. [indiscernible] i think it had a few bad actors in it. host: what do you think about what mitch mcconnell had to say yesterday?

caller: i think he has been around too long. [indiscernible] host: we are having a little trouble hearing you. we are going to have to cut you off. in the hill publication is the story, trump tightens grip on rnc. donald trump and his allies are strengthening their hold on the republican national committee amid a growing rift in the party between those who back the former president's election fraud claims and those who are hoping to move on. the rnc vote censured two trump critics, exposed to the extent to which trump's most fervent supporters have consolidated power in the highest echelon. now some fear his influence with

the rnc could hamper efforts to recapture congress in this year's midterm elections and take back the white house in 2024. the article goes on to say while the gop has thought to make the midterm elections a referendum on president biden,'s economic inflation and a host of other challenges, republicans find themselves tethered to trump who remains focused on relitigating the 2020 election and its aftermath, including the attack on the capitol. "anytime we are talking about anything other than what joe biden and the democrats are doing it is a mistake in the rnc needs to be the unifying force to remind republicans of that," said one gop donor. "censuring your own party? that is not what they are supposed to be doing." john in washington, d.c.. insurrection or protest? caller: i have been a tour guide

in d.c. for about five years so i have been in the downtown mall area, capitol area. i was down there january 5 the night before. host: i apologize. you faded away from me. i am going to have to move on, i apologize. omar in lacrosse, virginia. caller: good morning. i would just like to say cheney and the other guy, they are doing the right thing. they are standing up and doing what is right. all these other republican scared to stand up against donald trump, that is foolish. you see when you go against him how we act. if you see something wrong, he is going to treat you that way so why don't they wise up and get rid of him? that was, i mean, what they did

at the capitol, that was wrong. they would've hurt the republicans, too. that is what they have to realize. host: i apologize. thought you had finished. carrie is in wisconsin. was january 6 an insurrection or protest? caller: i think it was both. there were definitely insurrectionists there, the people who were violent. anybody you see on these visuals even pushing others or hitting people or breaking things or breaking in, absolutely insurrectionists. folks who just outside protesting, and maybe i am wrong, but i saw video there were some people who, when they came into the capitol, it had

already been broken into so they walked in through open doors and were inside ropes taking pictures like tourists. i know those people have gotten, you know, convicted of trespassing. there were protesters but this is what i believe, that did not mean to go to the extreme of using violence and an insurrection to overturn the election but there were insurrectionists there. the far right crazies and i wish we had a breakdown of how many proud boys and some of the others. host: if you had been watching this morning, we read from ronna mcdaniel's op ed and we listened to mitch mcconnell. what do you think of their comments? carrie? caller: i just tuned in so i heard the last two people

commenting. host: sorry about that. sue in new jersey texted, i believe it was a protest that got out of hand. however, there was an extremist element that seemed hell-bent on causing chaos. it is unfortunate former president trump did not grasp the proper way to channel his executive authority. johnson, turtle creek, pennsylvania. please go ahead. caller: i think this was a protest. if it was an insurrection, it would have went a totally different way. i think the media, if they want to call it an insurrection, it will be a failed insurrection. the thing i don't understand is why c-span is not covering what happened back in january when the department of interior was taken over by environmentalists, which are liberals. that is an insurrection in that building. but we don't hear that in the

news and that is the problem with the news today. i would recommend the people if they can get hold of it on fox nation, watch the tucker carlsen special he did on january 6 showing how fbi agents were involved in this. why won't nancy pelosi release the records of what she did january 6? she is in charge of this committee. she was in charge of security that day but she will not release anything to the committee of what she did. and the capitol police are to blame. if you watch the videos on news channels, you will see them taking the gates down and directing people into the capitol. these are things that need to be looked into because it is a conspiracy, not an insurrection. host: helen, long beach, california, what do you think? caller: i do not think it is an

insurrection, i do not think it is a protest. the democrats cannot stop fondling january 6. it is a sense of security because they are terrified of losing power. surveys taken prior to the election before trump was elected were showing more people were going republicans and democrats. this has been a big smear campaign from the? . get-go. i believe there is the possibility of provocateurs who got caught up in the moment and are not persecuted due to this. it was not a calculated insurrection. there was no motive. they just got caught up in a lot of excitement. it was not correct, there should

be consequences, but this should not be politicized. this is their lives. i just wish this feud in congress would end, they would stop this divisiveness, and put it down for one. nancy pelosi in all her buddies, leave it alone. let the facts stand. host: that is helen in long beach,. california. might texted in, we need more reagan and mccain republicans. in the wall street journal, canada's trucker protest. a majority of canadians do not support the ottawa protest but a recent survey by the angus reid institute found a majority favors lifting restrictions, suggesting the trudeau mandate, which went into effect

generate 15th, was a mistake. until now less present in public discourse he set off a backlash, deepened polarization, and raised the stakes in a showdown with the truckers. they conclude the editorial this way. the lesson for the covid-19 police is that when you have lost even canadians, arguably the most law-abiding people on the planet, you have lost the political plot. time to adopt a new strategy more tolerant of the need to return to life, not dominated by pandemic fear and government command. back to your calls on whether january 6 was an insurrection or protest. carla in wayne city, illinois. caller: i do not believe it is either one. i believe nancy pelosi has her hands in it.

i think they are going to do a committee after they have done investigations on it and nancy pelosi should be called in to testify her part in it. and every officer involved should be called in for their part in it. the cia, the fbi, and was it ray epps? nothing happened to him. where did he disappear to? now there is cover up. there is way too much cover up. host: where d.c. involvement by government agencies? caller: i believe there are government agencies involved. host: arizona, you are on the air. caller: i think it was people protesting their free rates. the fact these people were

arrested and as far as i know they are being prosecuted for trespassing. why are these people still in jail after a year? why are they not having their rights processed? i mean, a trespass is a misdemeanor. if they spent over a year in prison -- we have an open border letting all these people come in, not vaccinated. they are starting to take them off now because people are upset. the only reason they are taking the mask off now is because they are worried about the 2024 upcoming election. thank you, c-span. i think everybody wants to be free in this country.

you need to look at it and see it for what it was, it was a protest. the people who busted in were not trump supporters, they are not wearing maggot, they are -- maga, they are black, they are antifa. host: that was enger in arizona. abrams apologizes for not wear a mask in photo with schoolchildren. stacey abrams apologized tuesday for going mask less while taking a photo with masked schoolchildren, calling it a mistake. she was visiting an elementary school indicator, georgia and said she followed protocols but removed her mask to read to children had mistakenly left it off. "i approached the podium with my mask on, i told the kids i am taking my mask off because i am reading to kids listening remotely as well and we were socially distant.

the kids were socially distanced from me. in the excitement after i finished because it was so much fun working with the kids i took a picture and that was a mistake. ." john is in florida. insurrection or protest? caller: i would have to say protest. good morning first of all. i would say protest because we go back into 2020, the summer of love, washington had 25 fires. they had a lockdown for president trump and throw him into some secret place when they did that picture at the church. that whole summer of love there was $35 billion with the damage, 200 people killed including officers. what kind of insurrection where nobody is arrested with any firearms, the building is standing, there is a broken window or two?

let's talk about why the protesters going on. it was going on because of five states that stop counting ballots at 11:00 at night and happened to come back on online at 6:00 with joe biden being in front. that is what the protest was about. if this was an insurrection, they would own the building. what kind of insurrection where nothing happens? thank you very much. host: that was john in florida and this is steve in sierra vista, arizona. caller: how are you doing? host: good. how are you? caller: ok. it was a major protest because if you feel as i do you need to call in c-span. it started when hillary got away with murder practically and then pelosi ripped up the state in front of everybody.

it is the country looking at democrats like he is trying to be our rulers not leaders or voted in people. then when biden became president because america was sure trump had it in the bag, his rhetoric is what knocked him off the table. when that happened america felt betrayed totally by the whole process and the democrats have a target on him at that point. covering up the biden son affairs, burisma money. host: before we go any further down the road let's say thank you to steve and to all of our callers. coming up, we talk with two members of congress, earl

blumenauer, democrat from oregon joining a shortly. after that nancy mace, republican from south carolina. we also have another hour of phones with another question. thank you for being with us on the washington journal. we will be right back. ♪ ♪ announcer: at least six presidents recorded conversations while in office. here many of those on c-span's new podcast, presidential recordings. >> season one focuses on lyndon johnson. you will hear about the civil rights act, the 1964 presidential campaign, the gulf of tonkin incident, the march on selma, 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 that made sure the conversations were

taped as johnson would signal to them through an open door between his office and theirs. >> you will also hear blunt talk. >> yes, sir? >> i want the number assigned to kennedy when he died, i wanted a number assigned to me, and i want them right quick. >> yes, sir. >> i will never go to the bathroom. i will stay right here. announcer: presidential recordings, wherever you get your podcasts. ♪ ♪

announcer: washington journal continues. host: joining us on the washington journal is representative earl blumenauer, longtime member of congress from oregon, democrat. he works on trade and fiscal issues among other things. congressman, we want to start with where we left off this morning and did you see what mitch mcconnell had to say yesterday about january 6? guest: i did. host: what is your reaction as a democrat? guest: i did indeed and it is a welcome response to have republican leadership repudiating this effort of denial. he was forthright. it is consistent with the concerns he had after the insurrection but i was pleased he came forward.

two courageous republicans should not be penalized for telling the truth and standing up for the constitution and their principles. host: where were you january 6, 2021. guest: we had phased entry into the chamber because of covid protocol and i was scheduled to be on the floor. i was moving toward the floor when all of the madness occurred. i was able to go back to my office and be secure. it was very unsettling watching what happened outside my window. the chaos in the halls. i went out earlier that morning and walked the crowd. it was very obvious something awful's going to happen. it was unsettling and disturbing. host: you have been around in washington since your first election in 1996. what has changed for the worse

up on capitol hill? guest: when i first came there was some real problems. we had newt gingrich leading a charge and wanting to burn the place down and things were unpleasant. the first press conference i participated in was trying to return civility and that has been a constant challenge. but what has happened is we moved further and further into the extreme. the action on the outside coupled with people literally in denial, and we saw them encouraging the insurrection. as bad as it was earlier nothing like this has ever been approached. host: your hometown of portland, oregon saw protests last summer. what is your take on those? guest: it is brutal and we were caught between extremes.

we had white supremacists who wanted to shake things up. we had some and archivists who tried to -- anarchist who wanted it for themselves. it was extraordinary difficult and it is taking a while to return to normal. it was a hard and unpleasant experience. host: so the city is not quite back to normal? guest: it is not. there are scars that linger and when you have the overlay of the covid crisis which has been extraordinarily disruptive, and then you have problems with homelessness. it is still a struggle to get our balance. host: earl blumenauer works on trade issues. he is chair of the trade subcommittee of the ways and

means committee. we want to talk a little bit about trade. there is an article in the washington post that the u.s. trade deficit, record high in 2021, $859 billion. what is your take on that? guest: what that represents his people trying to reconnect with supply chains that have been dramatically disrupted. there are a number of goods that come overseas we have not had access to. what you are seeing here is an effort to do that. there are other disruptions that are going to take a wild. we continue to be strong in service says but i think this is an operation that is going to quiet a little bit going forward. the legislation we enacted getting tough on the chinese efforts to exploit the loopholes

in our tax laws like the provision that allowed them to send two million packages a day in the united states, not paying tariffs, not being inspected, getting under an artificial limit, our legislation would correct that. it is a step toward strengthening american business. host: are we to rely on china when it comes to manufactured products? guest: i think we have not been tough enough in dealing with china. the trump trade agreement was supposed to have a number of chinese actions, most notably not fulfilled, a promise to purchase american agricultural products. and we have not stopped them from stealing our intellectual property, cutting corners, forced labor. these are unnecessary advantages the chinese take advantage of and i think, as we did with our

legislation, we should draw the line and enforce it. host: do you support president biden's diplomatic censure of the olympics? guest: yes. host: the competes act, are you a supporter? it gives $52 billion to the u.s. semiconductor industry but what does it do and how, in your view, doesn't make u.s. manufacturing stronger? guest: we have an opportunity to strengthen the chip manufacturer and this is very important in oregon, one of the major businesses is intel. there are other companies involved. the united states being able to invest in helping us strengthen our supply chains for chips and technology is important. the rest of the country -- the rest of the world is doing it. the chinese have lavish support

for theirs. we have balanced it by taking a stronger stand against the chinese practices they give them an unfair advantage. they went into the wto 20 years ago. we still don't have a procurement agreement with them that allows the united states businesses to compete for business in china, even though chinese businesses can compete in the u.s. i think that is outrageous and we ought to enforce the provisions and not let them get away with it. host: politico this morning has an article about mask mandates. mask mandates, contact tracing going away and a lot of the blue states are getting rid of these mask mandates. do you support that? is it time? guest: i think we are reaching a point where it is time to relax it. americans have responded. in my state they were amazingly vigilant.

we have had better performance than many other states to try and be sensitive to the needs of protecting their families and others by using the mask mandate and getting vaccinated. the crisis we have is largely one of unvaccinated people who do not respect the mask mandate. those that do have a much lower rate of infection and hospitalization. it largely ran its course with the variant. people have done a good job of observing it and i think it is appropriate to start relaxing it. host: congressman blumenauer, a lot of the political talks have been about the strength of the republicans in the coming midterms. article in the hill this morning about senate democrats that says, senate democrats shift strategy after progressive

agenda falters. what is the talk in your caucus? guest: i think it is important to be able to deal with the realities in the senate. having a massive sweeping proposal is not in the cards. being able to take the items that are very important and very popular and focus on them is a reasonable countermeasure. the good news is what we are proposing is widely supported by the american public. dealing with early childhood education, what we have already done with infrastructure, being able to go forward, being able to deal with the environmental provisions that are broadly popular with the public. if we are able to take some of these individual elements and move it forward, some is better than nothing. it is already the most sweeping set of enactments we have ever seen and it is working.

we had this last year the largest increase in employment in any administration in history. almost half a million new jobs last month. these programs are working. they are popular. i think it is appropriate to be more targeted so it adjusts to the realities in the senate. host: we put a lot of topics on the table. let's take some calls. david is in madison heights, michigan on the democrat line. caller: hi. thank you for taking my call. i am surprised as a democrat you let me call in. and the last three days you have republicans calling in only. since the beginning of the year that was your eighth republican call in only and only one democrat and no independent. i just want to say to the congressman, great job, keep up the great work.

we need to get rid of these republicans that are nothing but a stain on america. you had a caller with the gop only calling in and a woman caller said it was not trump supporters that breached and broke into our capitol. really? come on. keep up the good work. let's get rid of these republicans left and right and change your name to foxspan. host: that was david in madison heights, michigan. we will not make you respond. guest: let me say, i was there. i was out in the crowd. those who were not protesters -- those were insurrectionists and it was definitely a trump crowd. that has been validated by some of the republican leadership who were on the ground and responded.

host: next call is donald, democrat in burlington, new jersey. what would you like to say to congressman blumenauer? caller: good morning. i cannot even begin to imagine what it must've been like in the capitol that day. i am calling because i feel there is a lot of hate right now going on in congress, the senate, and especially fans of certain television network, fox. that's because it is no longer about facts, it is about opinions. these people just read the teleprompter and they believe every word they say. because of that people have started to get more and more hateful and they don't want to cooperate. if you listen to the call they say, we have to get rid of pelosi, we have to get rid of who ever. we need to work together. as far as masks are concerned they work. a republican called yesterday and said they work.

that is all i have to say. please stop watching fox. guest: i think your caller is right and opportunities to work together. that is one of the reasons i am encouraged about being able to take the more popular elements that have been advanced with the president's agenda and deal with them on an individual basis. there are a wide range of areas they don't have to be fiercely partisan divided. you will have nancy mace here, republican from south carolina, who i am working with on cannabis legalization. this is an area that does not have to be partisan. we can come together with reform. there are a host of things that i hope we can focus more intently on things we agree on, like standing up to china. these are areas where if we are spending more time working together, we can move around this and not be focused on the extreme and allowed. host: adam kinzinger was quoted

saying he was fearful of a civil war in america. do you agree? guest: there are some who i think are fomenting that and adam's experience, i can see what he would say that. he has been treated shabbily by the republicans and on the receiving end of vitriol that is unimaginable. i worked with him on a variety of things like dealing with immigrants, iraqi and afghan immigrants whose lives were at risk because they worked with us. i found him to be thoughtful and independent. i do not think we are on the verge of civil war but this is not a good time in our country. why i want us to find things we can work together on to have some progress and change the course. host: congressman, has redistricting lent itself to more extreme elements in both parties? guest: the way it has been pursued too often is that it

definitely caters to the more extreme voices. when you have districts that have been drawn to be entirely republican or entirely democratic with extreme gerrymandering it tends to squeeze out folks in the middle and promote the loudest voices. what we have seen in the republican party designed to embrace the trumpian elements. very thoughtful republicans. i don't always agree with them but i appreciate who they are and how they put somebody like tom rice as a target. my word, it is really unsettling what has happened to drive these people out of the republican party. host: roy is a republican in georgia. good morning. caller: good morning. i just have a question.

after the 2016 election there were several democratic congressman that challenged the election and it was allowed to run its course because they did not have a senator to go along with their challenge. biden did not entertain it. this time there were several congressmen willing to come forward to challenge the election. in addition to that they had several senators there were going to support it. the difference between 2016 and 2020 is it did not run its course because of the suppose it insurrection. but trump had told all the people who would listen to him go to the capitol and encourage your congressman to do the right thing. that is when everything fell apart. they did not want the challenge to go forward. they were people in there to try to interfere with that and

there were people from antifa and black lives matter that started that. and there were policemen that did not try to stop it. they were successful in stopping the challenge to the election. host: we got the point i think. congressman? guest: your caller is flat out wrong. this was not antifa and black lives matter. i was there, i saw them. it is clear there was an unlawful effort to stop the election. the claims that have been made and litigated by trump supporters of irregularities, there is i think 62 legal challenges. they were all dismissed except for one on a minor case. there is no question joe biden won the election and there is no question the procedure that followed was open, transparent

and fair. host: michael, beacon, new york, democrat. caller: how are you doing? i have a comment and a question. the january 6 committee is doing a fantastic job. they are exposing the coup the trump led. the biggest problem we have is that fox, they don't report this. how are we going to get the truth to america? because until this country lives with truth we will always be divided. in this non-truth coming from the republican party does not stop. how do we get the truth exposed to the people? they are not getting the truth. they are getting lies.

host: thank you. congressman? guest: that is indeed a challenge and fox news is one of the most extreme examples. it is interesting that people who get their information from fox news actually know less about what is going on in the world and people who do not listen to the news, there are alternatives. i think c-span provides a service both in terms of what has happened in congress and allowing opportunities like this for people to air their views, but you have public broadcasting. npr, pbs, there are a number of local news outlets. people can get the information if they want it. part of the problem is what happened with social media that has taken an outsized influence and it is distorting. but what is happening, for example, with the investigation on capitol hill.

it is very thorough. it is slow going. it is not exciting theater but we are finding out about the extraordinary steps donald trump took to try to overturn the election, right down to the fact he is violating the law by the material he takes out of the white house illegally. but things are coming out. the truth is going to come forward. the committee is doing a good job. there are a few republicans that are dismissive and quite critical of what is going on. i think it is going to build between now and the election but the record will be clear for people who have any sort of independent judgment. that is not everybody, but it is enough i think to make a difference in terms of a reset

both in terms of politics and public policy. in the end i think the american public will support a reasonable approach, hold trump and his accolades accountable, and be able to move on for what is good for america. host: covers men bloom in our, the house yesterday passed another resolution -- congressman blumenauer, the house yesterday passed another resolution. will the appropriations bill return? guest: yes and i will say there has been significant progress toward a spending bill that would be reset to the new level of funding rather than freezing in the past. continuing resolutions are awful in terms of restricting what can be done. for example, we passed a major infrastructure bill on a bipartisan basis which would put $550 billion to rebuild and

renew america, everything from roads and bridges to broadband. but until we get the new budget top line numbers approved we cannot get access to it. but there is remarkable progress that is being made. by credit rosa delauro in the house and republican colleagues who are working hard to get that. my every indication is there is progress that has been made because america needs to have access to this money according to the higher levels of spending and we are getting close to it. i hope we reach a point where we actually do the budget process without having to resort to these continuing resolutions which are very disruptive. host: last call for the congressman comes from paul in fulsome, louisiana, independent line. good morning. caller: good morning.

how are you doing? host: good morning. go ahead. caller: i would love to have a deep discussion with this representative. but i would like to ask you one question. i sat automation to chemical plants, refineries, the energy sector. let's just get -- you say you have these great agendas that the people want and you cannot get through congress because of republicans. that is such nonsense. i want to ask you an intelligent question and see if i can get an intelligent answer. i know about 2000 engineers that have called on the last 20 years. there is not one who says with these electric cars that biden is doing and basically cutting

our own throats with the energy sector, not doing throats with y sector. and all these pipelines being shut down. what is your question -- host: what is your question? caller: how do you charge your electric car? with what? guest: this is a very good question. what we are seeing now is an explosion of renewable energy. it is now cheaper to have wind and solar than coal. there are opportunities now with the battery technology, wind and solar that we are able to meet the nation's energy supply over the next 10 years with less reliance on fossil fuels that's poisoning the planet's atmosphere and leading to global warming. louisiana is the worst example of being pounded by climate

change. they are losing their shoreline. they have had extreme weather events. louisiana needs a reset. and i hope that within these policies we will be able to invest in alternative energy and environmental restoration and broadband that louisiana needs desperately. host: for those meeting you for the first time, how long have you been wearing the bicycle? guest: i started a bicycle program and i have been advertising this now for over 25 years and congress. every day, a giveaway thousands of them -- every year, i give away thousands. host: the longtime democrat from oregon, we appreciate you coming on. guest: i enjoyed the visit. host: coming up, representative

nancy mace will be here and we will take calls with her as well on all of these topics. but let me show you this headline first. 31 million americans have bet on the super bowl. a record 31.5 million americans plan to bet on this year's super bowl according to estimates released tuesday by the gambling industry's national trade group. it is forecasting over a $4.6 billion will be wagered on pro football's championship game. the amount of people planning to bet is up 35% and the estimated amount is up 78%, new records. that does include casual wagers, entry into office pools, and bets placed with illegal bookmakers.

well, if you have had your television on you have seen some ads for the new online apps, where you can bet online in 30 states. about 100 million americans have access to online gambling. we want to get your views on this expanded online gambling, particularly when it comes to sports betting. you can see the lines. we will begin taking your calls in a minute. if you support or oppose expanded online gambling. if you support it, 202-748-8000. 202-748-8001 if you are opposed to it. we will begin taking those calls in a minute. ♪ announcer: c-span offers a variety of podcasts, something for every listener. washington today gives you the latest from the nation's capital. book notes plus has interviews

with writers about their latest works. the weekly uses audio from our archived a look at how issues of today developed over the years. and talking with features extensive conversations with historians about their lives and work. many of our television programs are also available as podcasts. find them on the c-span now mobile app wherever you get your podcasts. ♪ announcer: american history tv, saturdays on c-span2, exploiting the people and events that tell the american story. at 2:00 p.m., abraham lincoln's historians talk about the president's speeches and what they reveal about his views on the constitution. and then the annual lincoln forum in gettysburg with discussions on the civil war

with lucas morrow, the author of "lincoln and to the american founding." and then the author of "juneteenth" joins us. explain the american story, saturday on c-span2. you can find a full schedule on your program guide or watch online at any time on c-span.org/history. announcer: “washington journal" continues. host: 31 million americans to bet on the super bowl according to the american gaming association. this is because of expanded online gambling abilities, of course the casinos -- about 1000 of them in the u.s. 30 states have legal betting at this point. we want to get your viewpoint on this expanded online gambling. 202-748-8000 if you support

expanded online gambling. if you are opposed to it, 202-748-8001. there is a group called stop predatory gambling, which is opposed. here's their public service announcement. [video clip] >> gambling was not recognized as a problem in the 1980's when it was deemed an impulse control disorder. it was recognized in 2013 as an addictive product. in 2018, the murphy case was decided, big game changer. so from a non-cynical perspective i would suggest we are right now at the time for th e surgeon general and the national institute of health to get involved. there have been efforts to fund

studies that mark mentioned on the public harm issue. countries have looked at public harm in commercialized gambling and have found that approximately 16% of the general public is harmed on an annual basis by commercial gambling. we have never had an independent study from a public health perspective in america. the gambling establishments have shot them down. if the numbers are consistent in america, and one could suggest today would be larger because of the growth of online betting, e ven just 16%, we are talking upwards of 55 million people a year in america being harmed. when that becomes the public health model, the surgeon general and cdc will be required to get involved.

host: that was stop predatory gambling, a group opposed to the expansion of online gambling. in maryland, what do you think about this? maryland it just expanded its online offer. -- maryland just expanded its online offer. caller: i gamble with my friends, $10 here, $10 there. i do not have a lot of money to spend a lot. but they should have red flags for family members to get registered so they cannot gamble anymore because gambling does ruin people's lives. so there should be a registry and all of the gambling agencies should have to follow it, so if there is an issue they can help people. host: wouldn't that be like trying to stop somebody from going into a bar if they drink too much? caller: i am actually an alcoholic and i think that, i

think that they should put a stamp on your license where you cannot get alcohol anymore, that is fine with me. there's a problem in society, up to 5%, and i am one of them. i go to aa, i cannot drink anything. a stamp on my drivers license would be easier. just saying. host: matt in maryland. caller from temple, texas. what do you think about the expanded online gambling? caller: i oppose it, because times are so hard now and people cannot afford to do that. what i go for is the boards. my father has been doing boards, where you get a number for one price, and inferior number is at the end of the thing then you

and. -- you win. but i do not support the online and every other kind of thing, because a lot of times you lose your money on that. the boards, keep them. host: do you mean where you pick numbers, like that victory or pick four? -- like the pick three or pick four? caller: you have boards that are square like a square diamond box with little things on it. what you do is you by the board. you cannot see the number because the numbers are on the board and they have been picked for the board like 7-0, 7-7. host: like the office pools. caller: yeah. and the most to spend is $10 or $20, the most you can win is

like $100. that is fairer than online and all these other big people who are out to get money. if you can afford them, do them. for everybody else, i say especially you, to get a local street board or church board, because everybody does it. host: about 1.8 million jobs in the casinos in this country, and now of course, all the bedding apps -- betting apps. our caller in new york, what do you think? caller: i oppose it. we have casinos in new york.

and if you have ever been to atlantic city, outside of the boardwalk the city is a don't. -- a dump. and they keep adding casinos so you can go to one in 20 minutes. why add it online? it's like having a delivery service. you are making it easier for people who cannot afford to go to casinos to waste of money and now there are more government agencies to deal with the addiction because they keep spending more tax money and they have to come up with games. it's a terrible idea. now biden is giving away crack pipes for free. what is going on? host: in the new york times, "ne w york lost mobile bedding last week -- betting last week. ohio is joining 29 states where legal gambling is legal.

efforts by lawmakers in georgia, north carolina, massachusetts are expected to heat up. the matter could finally go before california voters by the end of the year." governor roy cooper was asked about efforts to legalize sports betting and here is what he said. [video clip] >> it is here whether we like it or not. the issue is will north carolina try to be on the cutting edge wi th the technology jobs and other employment that it will create, plus be able to get state taxpayers their cut, or will we let it happen all around us? i think it is time for us to step up and do it. the legislation that is being considered, you know, i think

there has to be more tax dollars involved in this, a bigger cut for the people. and it is complicated. but i think there needs to be a free and open debate. we need to do what is best for the people of north carolina. and eye support the -- i support the move toward it. clearly there are people who get addicted and it causes significant harm to families, but i think that is probably already happening. and we need to make sure that people can get the treatment that they need. and think it is time for north carolina -- and i think it is time for north carolina to step up and do this. host: that was governor roy cooper. 202-748-8000 if you support online gambling. 202-748-8001 if you are opposed to it.

stephen in gladstone, michigan, "i'm opposed. too many people will be worse off financially, especially the ones that get addicted." greg in colorado, what do you think? caller: i would strongly oppose any kind of gambling, not just online. americans right now are in a bad situation with covid. and it really makes me laugh when you hear these people call in about of economy, the economy -- mostly republicans -- but they have money to gamble. and they are gambling on stupid american ball games called a, football and basketball. right now -- called football, basketball and baseball. right now we have the olympics

and all anybody can talk about is the super bowl. life is a big enough gamble, you do not need to be spending your money on it. host: americans like to put action on their favorite sports teams and states love the extra tax revenue from legal gambling, from forbes. there are 30 states were sports betting is legal, including 18 that allow online sports wagering. that is more than 100 million americans who completes a legal wager where they live. sports wagering has a spread across the country, since 2018 when the supreme court overturned the professional and amateur sports protection act. it had effectively made sports betting illegal except in nevada and other states. after it was struck down, states have been allowed to legalize sports betting, launch at their own programs, the industry has

been on fire and growing. the market has grown from 19 states to 32 and washington, d.c. in the last 12 months. david in staunton, virginia. caller: i am opposed to gambling. i personally have lost a quarter of a million dollars gambling in casinos and in poker when i lived in louisiana. there it was legalized. my financial situation changed immediately after i got addicted to gambling. a far as sports gamblings, i have not really participated in it but because it's so easy to access it online i would want to go the same way. thank you for taking my call. host: david, how did your addiction play out? caller: i started playing video poker. in louisiana, almost every bar

has three video poker machines. there was also a truck stop -- also truck stop all track betting where they would have machines. and there were a couple casinos in and around new orleans. so, it started out as kind of fun and it ended up where i got dependent upon it firm money. i was suspending at least -- spending at least $300 to $700 a week. i earned a good salary at that point in time, but it was -- it would just overwhelm your life, just like any other addiction like alcohol or drugs, whatever. i think it is clear that people have done it -- who have done it for a while would have the same perspective. host: do you think the casinos

in vegas or in maryland should be dismantled? be declared illegal? caller: if it was only las vegas and new jersey, it's not so widespread, you can go there for a few days and have a good time. but when it became in your own neighborhood, 100 miles away, it was very difficult to avoid it. host: thank you for sharing your situation with us. harry and mount lebanon, pennsylvania, "online gambling, i support it. i used to handicap basketball games and made a good amount of money, but i quit. it robbed the joy of watching them." edna in rural valley, pennsylvania. what do you think about the expansion of online gambling? caller: i have seen in my own

tiny community and it is terrible because the seniors get addicted. and they throw all of their money away. and i would not say they live in poverty, but hard times, yet they go spend money in these machines that are everywhere. you cannot avoid it. and the older folks are destroying the end of their life. and i will not participate. i have been encouraged to do that several times, come on, we will go down to run the machines or go wherever and use the machines. and they do and if they do not have anything left. and they are borrowing money to spend money. host: consulting is one of the states that has the highest t --

pennsylvania is one of the states with the highest tax revenue from gambling, is that a benefit to the state? caller: of course not. you are raping your seniors so you can whatever. that question does not resonate with me, it just doesn't. host: ken is in sun city, arizona. what do you think about the expansion of online gambling? caller: i think it is a good idea. it's been around for a while. people are going to gamble no matter what. and i have to talk about the previous caller. what is terrible is these televangelists who cities send me money and people are sending them all their money. they are not spending it on gambling. i have been retired for over 20 years, and i go down to the casino and i play poker. and, uh, i will tell you it is -- i go once every six months,

because sitting for long periods is not my forte. i used to gamble in pool. lost the a lot of money, but i used to supplement my income by playing pool because i was a fair player. host: having you very bet on the sport, or on a professional sport? caller: yes, i was a denver broncos fan and i bit on the super -- bet on the super bowl when john elway was the quarterback. i do not bet on them all the time, but if i find myself with some extra bucks and my family is taken care of and i have money in my savings account, i do not mind to plop down $5 or

$10. i will buy a lottery ticket a couple times a month. and is a 3 million chance to one that i will win. it is a enjoyment you do. if you do it in moderation i do not see the harm in it. but people who say it will bring prostitutes, they will be walking up and down the streets and drugs will be everywhere -- nothing like that ever happened. it's really ludicrous the way that some of these people argue. i do not know where they come up with these ideas, but they do. host: are you one of the 31.5 million americans who may bet on this year's super bowl. caller: i will not bet on this year's super bowl, even though i do have a favorite player,

von miller. he was a denver broncos and i really like how he plays. he plays for the los angeles rams, i think that they are going to win. they are kind of the underdog, but i have always liked the underdogs. they are long shots. host: arizona republic, this is an op ed, "the sport betting mechanism is designed to get sports fans hooked on gambling while a few operators enjoy most of the riches. almost nothing or little is going to arizona state coffers to find a residents' needs. michael, what do you thing about expanded online gambling? in illinois. caller: hello? well, gambling has been going on for thousands of years.

and no one is going to stop it. and i used to go to casinos because i never did before, but after two and a half years i'm $2000 ahead and i will stay away. i will bet a little bit on the super bowl, like $10, but with friends. i think that it should be expanded, this is america. if somebody is going to make money, they will do anything they can and we will be the recipients of their profits. thank you very much for c-span. host: you can pull out your phone now and go to a sports app and bet. what do you think about that? caller: you can, but i am not going to. let people do what they want. host: leslie in indiana, what do you think? caller: definitely opposed to

it. i know too many people who have lost everything they had and they started out with good things -- with relationships, housing and they have lost everything. i know nine people that way. once you start gambling, if you cannot control it you will lose everything. i thank you. host: jennifer in west virginia. jennifer, what are your thoughts? caller: i'm in the middle. i understand people want to gamble and i believe there is a place for that, but i think that this education that needs to happen, especially within apps. for instance, in west virginia if you play online poker or table games, even the ones with live dealers, it's reported through your taxes.

and in west virginia, you cannot take the win/loss statement that you do on your federal taxes. if you show a huge win, despite the fact it probably did not happen or it did not pan out that way, or your year on average was not a win, you still have to report all of the winnings "on your taxes." so i think this is the first year west virginians will be dealing with it on their state-level taxes, so i think that these apps could do a better job of informing the consumer on how this works. west virginians, i have spoken to quite a few of them, have no idea how this works. now they are being faced with -- host: have you downloaded a

sports betting app. caller: i have several on my phone. i'm a very passive user. i'm a steelers fan, so every once in a while i will put $5 or $10 on them to win. besides that, gambling -- aside from that, gambling is not my thing. if you do not live near atlantic city, or you do not have the wherewithal to fly to vegas, but you still want to bet who are we to say you cannot do that because you do not live in proximity to an actual betting location in person? at the same time, we need a better education and information. these apps could do a better job of educating the user as they are playing. when they have a reportable event that will cause a problem

on their taxes, they should be alerted that that happened. and of course, you asked the previous caller if this is beneficial to the state. of course it is, west virginia will have a windfall this year because of the tax situation. host: but they also have physical casinos. do you think that those contribute to or contribute positively to the west virginia economy? caller: we have three, i think, three or four. those physical locations do employee people. the problem with the apps is they are mostly computer-based, so there is not a lot of backend employment on them. host: thank you for sharing your

perspective with us. nick in ann arbor, michigan. caller: can you hear me? host: yes. caller: great. i'm calling on the support line because i support the expanded online gambling. on that i agree because of covid. only because of covid, that people should be given the opportunity to gamble online instead of going to the. casino and catching covid. if i am opposed to gambling over all. i'm 68 and my father was a compulsive gambler. he was making money at work. my mom had a smaller wage and she was the one able to take care of the household. and we did not go bankrupt. but my father, he had other vices also.

gambling is a vice. but we cannot avoid gambling in our lives. when we go out in the morning, we might get hit by something. we take a risk. we take the risk that some idiot will hit us and kill us. the other risk that is worse is the stock market. look what is happening today. if you get a savings account you get a ridiculous rate. you are losing 5% every year. host: we will leave it there. we appreciate you sharing your perspective. coming up, representative nancy mace, the republican from south carolina will be talking about the issues in congress and taking some of your calls. ♪ announcer: book tv, every

sunday, featuring leading authors discussing their latest nonfiction books. a discussion about the u.s. election system with john fund. and the authors of "our broken election." and then the state senator will haskell on his book "100,001st bosses," where he talks about his path to becoming a state senator at age 22. he is interviewed by leland debated. -- vaden. want to book tv every sunday on c-span2. watch online anytime at book tv.org. ♪ announcer: american history tv, saturdays on c-span2, exploring

the people and events that tell the american story. at 2:00 p.m. eastern, abraham lincoln scholars noah feldman and diana sean talk about the president's speeches and what they revealed about his abuse on the constitution. at 3:00 p.m., the annual lincoln forum in gettysburg with discussions on the civil war and abraham lincoln with the author of "lincoln and the american founding." and the author of "juneteenth." exploring the american story, watch american history tv on saturday on c-span2. find a full schedule on your program guide or watch online anytime at c-span.org/history. announcer: “washington journal" continues. host: joining us is representative nancy mace, you first termer from south

carolina, a republican. you just went through a second covid diagnosis, didn't you? guest: yes, at the beginning of the year. i believe it was omicron based on my symptoms. i did christmas virtually. i did not go out for new year's. and i still got covid-19 for a second time and being vaccinated. i was sick for a couple weeks, actually, and it was a symptomatic long after i tested negative. i hate this illness. host: how severe were your symptoms? caller: one of the days i was sick i had a blood oxygen level that got down to 85. the first time i got sick it was down to 87. that level fluctuates, as mine did, but for about 36 hours it was really uncomfortable when that was happening.

we do not know why. i which we had more studies to understand why certain people react a certain way or have a harder or more difficult time with covid-19. it's very frustrating. it went through my entire family. and i read somewhere that 66% of omicron cases were people who had covid-19 previously. so i wish that we knew more about this illness and how to treat it prophylactically, treat it better when you have the honest. i was not able to get monoclonal antibodies when i was struggling to breathe in my state. i wish we had more resources to deal with this illness for everybody. host: giving your personal experience, the fact that you have two school aged children, what do you think about mask mandates? caller: i am not a fan of mandates. as parent, i know that parents

want to be able to make health decisions for their kids. when delta was surging in south carolina, i demanded my kids wear masks, and that was my decision, fortunately. and when there are no spikes, i do not want them to be masked up at school. one of my children has had it twice. everyone in my family has had it. but i do not want to them to be distracted from learning. it has been a struggle, i will tell you, fo our familyr -- for our family. our school had to go virtual at one point because omicron was ripping through the community. we did not have enough administration to operate the schools. and that set my kids back a month when we went virtual for two weeks. it's frustrating as parents but i want to make sure that parents

have the ability to make health care decisions for their kids, period. and you are seeing different leaders saying now that masks should not be required, we need to get a sense of normalcy back. and that is a great first step, turning back the mandates. we should be able to make health decisions for ourselves and for our kids. host: i want to play a little bit of mitch mcconnell from yesterday talking about january 6. [video clip] senator mcconnell: let me give you my view of what happened. we were here and we saw what happened. it was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to create -- to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimate election from one administration to the next. that's what it was. host: we are asking -- we asked

there is this morning if they thought it was an insurrection or protest. what is your take? caller: it will be up to the justice department who is investigating, that is where those charges will come into play. there have been 10 committees in the house and senate also investigating. and they have the select committee also investigating it on top of all of that. so at the end of the day, over 700 arrests have been made of individuals during that day. i was a vocal how i went through that over a year ago. and i want to let the process work its way through the court system and be adjudicated really there. i want us as a country, also, not just democrats, but republicans altogether looking forward. we need to understand why we have so much division in this country.

we have had a violence on the left and right over the last two years. we saw it in my hometown of charleston in may of 2020, we had violent riots and the destruction of businesses one night during the year. but as a nation, we need to look forward and come together. and remember why our nation is so great. remember why freedom and democracy is worth preserving. because we have one of the freest democracies in the world it we can live, work, retire and raise our family in an amazing country and prosper. we have got to work together moving forward. all this looking back and a ttacking people on social media, the american experiment is about debating ideas, ideologies, policy into being able to walk away at the end of the day and agree to disagree.

and agree that violence is not ok, whether it is the left or right. it's not ok for one side to do it, not the other. i have been the victim of threats. and i have 10 cameras at my home today because my house was spray-painted last summer. the year before that, when i was running for the first congressional district. we see how this trickles down into our communities and into our neighborhoods. into our work and even our schools. my kids have been blocked on social media by people who disagree with them because their mom is a republican. i have seen it personally in my life and i have seen how it has affected us. as a nation, we have to stop the name-calling and this rhetoric,

and we need to look for it together and understand that both sides have made mistakes. and that there has been violence. and we need to move forward as a nation. host: what do you think about your party's center of liz cheney? caller: i have been focused on my district, the first congressional district in south carolina. i have things to work on this year legislatively. i just passed a bill last week out of the oversight committee. an amendment passed out of committee and attached to a bill, it was a historic animal farming bill. we have never banned animal farming in the past. that was a historic moment last week. so, again, this question was asked of me yesterday and i am about unifying my party and bringing people together. we need to accept that we have members that have different ideas or approaches to issues.

i marched to the beat of my own drum because i promised my district to be an independent voice and i would work with anyone willing to work with me. as a fiscal conservative, i promised to work with others. that's where my focus is, that is where all of our focus should be. we were elected to do any job, not trend on twitter. we were elected by the people. that is where we should all be focusing our efforts, regardless of your political affiliation. host: earl blumenauer was here earlier, he said he was working with you on a cannabis bill? caller: yes, i -- guest: i am failed to state reform act in november and it has gotten accolades, endorsed by americans for prosperity, a veterans group and a law enforcement group. it also got an endorsement by normal. it deschudules cannabis.

we should not be scheduling it like a schedule one drug like heroin or opioids. and we should be able to study it, if it is as good as people say it is for medical services. we should be able to research it and make recommendations. but the act also recognizes the rights of every state in the country. all but three have some form of cannabis reform in their states. south carolina, we made a cbd and hemp legal. florida has medical cannabis. california and colorado have full adult use. this bill recognizes the state'' rights, that we will recognize the laws of every state to make decisions on what they want to do, whether it is cbd or full adult use. i try to also bring republicans

and democrats together, there is something for everyone in here. funding for small businesses and community policing, to make sure that kids are educated on drugs and how bad they are. there is incentives for states t o not sell cannabis to those under 21. there is prohibition to marketing and advertising towards children. there are -- there is protections for veterans who are seeking employment and today should be able to get prescriptions if the doctor determines and that they need it. so there is something for everyone in there. there is expungement and release. so nonviolent cannabis offenders would get released and records expunged, but it does not include gang members or duis. so i tried to be bipartisan in

the approach and recognize that there are certain rights for states and this is one of them. host: representative nancy mace, first female graduate from the citadel. magna cum laude is what you graduated. guest: i have a primary and general election this year. host: your primary opponent is more supportive of president trump, is that a fair description? guest: i actually worked for president trump in 2016 and i traveled across seven different state to helps him get elected in 2016. one of my opponents was not there early on and i was. i have agreed with him on his policies. i have been under his presidency. and we had operation warp speed.

one of the reasons we had the vaccine so soon was because of those policies. we had low taxes and because of that the tax cut and a jobs act we had the lowest unemployment rates for black and brown americans, women, hispanic, latino americans. do not forget the bipartisan law in 2018, the one bill i had signed into law as a state lawmaker before coming to congress was a prison reform bill. i looked at the first step act that president trump signed into law, and one provision was prohibiting pregnant women from being restrained. and i thought, how barbaric that that is still going on in our prisons. come to find out in south carolina it was a policy. and along with the head of our infraction department, we worked together to ban it and we had

the bill signed into law in 2020. ideologically, i am a fiscal conservative. i have done a lot of civil rights work. president was also involved in pardoning those for nonviolent crimes. i have met some of those people. so i would not go that far, but i would certainly say my policies very much line. -- align. i'm a product of the reagan era. he was also conservative and he said it was incumbent upon us to work with others and i have done my best to do that. you have seen that as a state lawmaker and is a member of congress now. it is important that we have pragmatic voices. if you threw a punch my way or lie about my record, i will hit back. i will clarify that nd speak the truth -- and speak the truth. i know that is what my

constituents want. and what everybody wants from their representative. host: here is stephen in indiana on the democrats line, you are first up with congresswoman nancy mace. caller: good morning. guest: how are you? caller: fine. i'm impressed. i did research on you to try to find something, but i agree with everything you are saying and i am a democrat and you are a very impressive woman. a high school dropout. you got over that and what happened to you as a youngster, we do not need to talk about that, but i am very impressed. and i'm at a loss of words. i hope you succeed because you are a true american. guest: i appreciate that. i believe in second chances. i have been given a lot of second chances. and as you mentioned, i was

raped. when i was 16. my dad was a general, my mom a schoolteacher, and they said you have to start going to work if you are not going to school. i learned tough lessons. i learned about the value of hard work. i became a waitress at waffle house on the side of the interstate. and i learned tough lessons. and i believe that is why i am so passionate about the things i am fighting for, things for the american worker. things i think that most of us can agree on. our goals are the same, our approaches might be different, but we want a better life for our families, better wages, better opportunities and be able to work and retire in the greatest country in the world. so, those tough lessons and i eventually did get my high

school diploma and i would go on to the citadel to become their first female to graduate from there. i did that in 1999. i learned the courage to speak up for myself and also give voice to the voiceless, no matter the consequences. and having confidence. if we do not believe in ourselves, no one will believe in us. it's true in business, when you are managing colleagues, when you are putting forth legislation entry when you are trying to put the kids to bed at night. so, i tried to bring those life lessons because i have had as much failure as i have had success. and acknowledging that, that i f eel the pain of many americans when they are struggling. i have been there, i have gotten the t-shirt multiple times over. and the struggle is real and i get that. i will work hard, like i promised to do, and i will not tow anybody's line but those i

serve. host: edward on the independent line. caller: one, i want to say quickly thank you for talking about the situation. it does affect people's lives. now that we have this personal freedom of choice, for legitimate political discourse, does not only apply to health emergencies or will it apply to the next war that i do not want my child to be dissipated? -- child to participate in? guest: i'm not sure i understand the question per se, but i think that the temperature in this country needs to be dialed back. and that is true on both sides of the aisle. words have consequences. i learned that in my first year.

violence is never the answer, no matter the issue. peaceful protests are. the first amendment is. i do not believe in censorship. you want to hear what the other side is saying, you want to know whether perspective is. so i hope that our discourse going forward is not violent. that goes for republicans and democrats alike. we need to focus on solutions. there's bashing on both sides of the aisle. inflation was at 7% last year, wages have gone up by 3% and did not keep up with inflation. gas has gone up. steak costs 25% more. heating and cooling your house is up. these things affect the american people, so what are we going to do about it? greater spending and printing money by the federal reserve are

some of the root causes of this in our country. we are distracted by shiny objects on twitter. and who threw the last punch. we are not focusing on the american people. we are not looking at balancing the budget. why aren't we looking at balancing the budget, for example? the government shut down large and small businesses in the pandemic and businesses had to make cuts. and they had a look at that. and the federal government just kept taking record revenues and spending more and putting us further into debt. we are not solution focused right now and that is a problem, a problem across every sector of government, whether it is health care because of those costs are skyrocketing, taxes, covid-19. all of this is keeping us from surveying the american people and doing what is right. host: dana, a republican, you

are on with representative nancy mace. caller: good morning. we were just talking about mandates. do you think that -- like everybody is saying it is a communist thing. if they get away with it now then what can we do to stop mandates? guest: i agree that it is a slippery slope. i said it earlier in the show that i do not agree with mask or vaccine mandates. and i am someone who has been fully vaccinated and i have had covid-19 twice already. the other thing we are talking about, vaccine passports for example. there are certain states with a vaccine passports, like new york or hawaii. but they do not have voter id. that's hypocritical. you have to show a vaccine card and id to get a coffee, but you do not need it to vote in this

country. it does not make sense. when becomes a vaccine mandates as well, historically states and county governments are the ones that will dictate vaccine requirements, not the federal government. it has never been done for businesses over a certain size. it has never been done before and is not constitutional. mask mandates, that should be a personal decision. i made a decision when my children were going to school, when we had spikes, kids would wear a mask. the same time, we just got omicron. it went through the whole family. we stayed at home and we still got it. i share frustrations with every parent. and i also want to follow the science. i was criticized for mentioning natural immunity. now there are studies saying that we should take into consideration. it should not only be people who

are vaccinated. i would like our policymakers to look at all of the science and make the best decision, not a political decision for political points, but follow the science and studies. and let's get real about it. host: three minutes left. nancy, a democrat, go ahead. caller: i would like to know if the young lady can state that president biden is the president. guest: yes. mhm. i stated that back after the election in 2020. again, i think that looking to the pastor will not help the american people. we need to be looking forward. we have a crisis at her southern border right now. we had over 2 million illegal immigrants across the border and that is what we know about.

we have historic levels of immigrants coming across the southern border and it is killing americans each and every day. china is on our heels, not to mention ukraine and russia and nato issues in eastern europe. we have inflation crisis on our hands, where wages cannot keep up with the cost or price of inflation. we have real issues and if we continue to relitigate issues of the past we are not doing right by the american people. i will challenge everyone watching to think about what is going to get us and our country through this crisis? will it be division, will it be fighting with each other into scoring political points on social media? or will it be solution focused, finding answers and working together get to get us out of this mess? i hope you would say the latter. if you agree, let's start acting like it. host: does relitigating 2020

hurt your party's chance of taking the house? guest: i think it hurts both parties. i think republicans will have -- in the next cycle. will it be -- of the republican agenda. the house right now, nancy has a strong majority, but that is not a mandate on socialism. that's a mandate to build consensus and work together. so i think time will tell. but i believe it will be a republican sweep. but i think it will be with republicans who have ideas, solutions and policies for the crises our nation is facing. host: have you been watching the beijing olympics? guest: i have watched a little bit, there are some south carolinians participating. i agree with the diplomatic boycott. it did not go far enough.

i wish we were not having the olympics in beijing, it is china's way to soften its image around the world when we all know that they have major human rights atrocities that we are turning a blind eye to. host: representative nancy mace from south carolina, we appreciate you coming and talking with our callers. coming up, the house of representatives is coming into session. they will be in in a few minutes and we will go live to that it'd be back tomorrow on the “washington journal" with a taxpayer advocate. they will be here for a full hour and he be able to talk taxes with him. we appreciate you being with us. here is the house.

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