host: good morning everyone it is thursday, december 15. we will begin with action last night, passing a short-term spending bill that now gives negotiators an extra week to finish a 1.7 trillion year end spending package. political reports last night's

vote sets up an all night legislative -- all out legislative sprint before lawmakers leave for the holidays. this morning, your message to congress on this government spending. republicans you can dial in at [indiscernible] --202-748-8000. republic -- republicans you can dial in at 202-748-8001, democrats at 202-748-8000. independents 202-748-8002. you can also post on facebook.com/c-span or send us a tweet with the handle at c-span wj. wall street jou headlined this morning on the story. some in the gop progressed to delay a funding deal led by republican leader kevin mccarthy in the house. he told his caucus he is a hell no on any year-long spending

package pretty urge senate republicans to pass something short to bridge the issue to the new year where the gop can address spending is the majority party in the house. taking up the talks next year would respect voters wishes he said based on the gop's midterm win. lawmakers in both parties have expressed concern that if a deal isn't reached in this congress, risks grow for a standoff next year the could lead to a partial government shutdown. listen to the argument made by senate majority leader chuck schumer. >> year-long omnibus is by far the best option we have for making sure our kids, our senior citizens, veterans and small business, military members, our defense and all of the families that benefit from this do not see vital government services lapse or shrink. it means we can fully implement the investment secured we fought

so hard for the pact act, we fought so hard for the chips and science act, we have to fund it. cr will not fund these bills but in omnibus agreement will and they are all bipartisan with large support from both sides of the aisle. in omnibus bill is also a balanced approach which will contain wins for both sides that both sides want to see. like the electoral count act and funding for our friends in ukraine. if we can come to an agreement on an omnibus and i'm optimistic that these bills that these bills which are show -- so important for democrats and republicans alike can become law. but before we passed the funding bill we must also ensure the government doesn't first shutdown so we will have to pass a one-week continuing resolution asap. the house is said to act on a one-week cr as soon as tonight and when that bill comes to the

senate we should be ready to act quickly as soon as tomorrow if we can. the appropriations process of course is not over so the responsible and prudent thing to do right now is to pass a one-week cr quickly without the unwelcome brouhaha which is provoked shutdowns in the past. and remember as we go through this appropriations process, the experiences of the last decade show that those who risk shutdowns to make political points always lose in the end. >> from the senate floor yesterday now the so-called brouhaha the majority leader was referring to is when senator can -- 11 senator can hold this whole action up. over objections to the moves being made by the democratic majority controlled house and senate along with senate minority leader mitch mcconnell negotiating and the senate republican appropriate her as well.

for the house, house republicans, kevin mccarthy told his caucus he is a hell no, wanting them to pass a short-term bridge to next year were republicans take control of the house and here is what he had to say yesterday to reporters. [video clip] >> we have an omni bill that takes 12 appropriation bills and adds them altogether and as a baseline somewhere around $100 billion. for christmas season, a talk of the majority right now who wants to put a small continuing resolution to bump all the members up two days before christmas. to try and vote on a package they cannot beat written by two individuals who will not be here on spending for the entire government. the democrats have been in power

without the house, senate and presidency prayed they did not do their work. they should not jam us now. they should not jam the american public. we cannot afford it. we should not move a short-term cr. we should move one further into the new year. allow the american people what they said a month ago to change washington as we know it today. we cannot afford to continue to spend the way the democrats have. >> republic and leader kevin mccarthy at a news conference. the house passed that continuing resolution last night. the vote was 224-201 and now heads to the senate. we want to know what your message is the government on spending. do you agree with the republican leader kevin mccarthy? caller: yes i do.

we definitely have to hold back this spending. you're spending way too much money and we are not -- nobody seems to know where all the money is going, the money is not being properly audited, none of the money seems to add up and we just absolutely cannot keep spending this money, it's just gone to cause more inflation by spending money that we do not have, we need to get this spending under control just like you said. and another thing we need to do is we need to open up all the pipelines and get america back to energy independence. host: hairy in mount lebanon

pennsylvania, texas to say the only month of the year december, the only month of the year that matters to congress prayed by don't they take the 11 other months off. charlotte in oklahoma, a republican. your message to congress on government spending. caller: i would like to ask them if it is still in their budgets to cut social security and that's all i have to say, thank you. host: mark in florida, republican. caller: chuck schumer has been in congress since i think 81. he started out in the house of representatives. loc is been there since the late 80's. these two people have never spent a second of their lives in congress trying to balance a budget, saving social security, saving medicare, of these

programs have been going bankrupt for decades. they are irresponsibility of these individuals, they been the leaders of the democrats for the last decade. the met of data being run up, trillions and trillions of dollars of debt, they do not care. democrat on the capital couldn't care about a deficit or the national debt. >> what about the role of mitch mcconnell, republican leader in the senate has played. he's been in leadership just as long as those you mentioned, the democrats. >> he is can ago along with this, he will have another five to 10 republicans, a work with republicans and they will go along with this. there's only just enough worthless republicans to go along with this massive irresponsible spending and have another $1.7 trillion spending wound toggle in the generation of the future of americans it's just unbelievable. we just continue to commit suicide of the nation, it's staggering. >> let's listen to the

republican leader in the senate. >> with respect to government funding, i was glad to hear senator shelby announce yesterday evening that negotiators have reached a bipartisan, bicameral framework for full year of government funding bill. long-term continuing resolutions cheat our armed forces out of the resources and the certainty that our commanders and civilian leaders need to keep modernizing our forces, investing in crucial weapons and out competing adversaries such as china. i am glad that her democratic colleagues accepted reality and conceded to the republican position that we need to prioritize our national security. republicans simply were not going to allow extra liberal

spending on the commander-in-chief's own party as a reward for adequately funding our national defense. it is simply was not going to happen. funding defense is a basic bipartisan duty of our government, not something that turns democrats special treats. as senator shelby stated last night, the framework agreement doesn't mean the hard work is over, it means the hard work is starting. it will take seriousness in good faith on both sides to produce actual legislation that follows the framework. poison pills, especially far left demands to overturn long-standing and commonsense policy will need to stay away from the process. and even then, the calendar will still make this a sprint. our side has made it clear the

senate has till december the 22nd to complete either a full year funding bill or a short-term cr in to next year. that is the deadline and those are the two options. if a truly bipartisan bill without poison pills is ready for final passage by late next week, that i will support it. for our armed forces, particularly. otherwise we will be passing a short-term continuing resolution into the new year. >> senate republican leader mitch mcconnell saying he will support the spending package if it meets the semi -- stipulations he just laid out on the floor. you heard him talking about senator richard shelby, republican from alabama who has been negotiating the larger spending bill, it has all of the spending for the federal government, all of its agencies

tied into one package, a senator shelby retiring at the end of this congress. this morning we want to know your message for congress on this government spending. steven in mcdonald tennessee, you are next. >> how are you doing today. i think that mitch mcconnell is the only true individual that knows anything about government and that's just my opinion. you take care, thank you. >> charles in tennessee, a democratic caller. caller: can you hear me? host: we can. caller: i just wanted to call, all these people call in with cut this spending. what was that when donald trump was anti-at all these tax breaks for the wealthy people and stuff. the republicans got one agenda and that's social security.

they can always find money to spend for wealthy people, born it comes to helping poor people, they can never find a dime. we can argue about it all year. i just want to give a handout to the young people. >> singh need to pass this omnibus spending package. if they don't and you heard the republican leaders in both chambers about the need then for a short-term spending bill at the levels of 2022 it would be for all federal agencies into the next year and then they would renegotiate 2023 levels for the rest of the year, that means they would have a democratic-controlled senate negotiating with republican-controlled house,

this morning we want to get your reaction to this debate here happening behind us on capitol hill. john and wisconsin sends a text saying enough spending already, how about some cutting. the only entity that does not have to live within a budget is our federal government. mark in new york, and independent. caller: this is mark. i'm independent now. i'm more of a conspiracy theorist now. host: you are breaking up. henrietta, fort pierce, florida, republican. host: good morning. -- caller: good morning. with regard to the social security issue, there's a real clear fix here, it's called raising the ceiling of contributions from i think it's maybe 140 now -- i can hear you.

host: we are listening to you. caller: sorry. so raise the ceiling i think it's 125 or 140. raise it to 200,000. let's see how many senators and congressmen just saying. with respect to the budget, two senators who are leaving and who are no longer accountable to the american people have some nerve to negotiate the future. and i have to tell you, generations to come will be unbelievably unhappy and they will -- let's put it this way they will not like the descendants of those people today who absolutely sold them

out. host: henrietta referring to republican senator richard shelby in the senate and the appropriations committee chair, democrat rosa delauro in the house. they were negotiators for this $1.7 trillion spending package for the entire year of 2023, last night the house approved a continuing resolution, short-term spending measure to get them to next week and after, before the end of next week around the 22nd you heard mitch mcconnell say they need to approve in both chambers the larger $1.7 trillion spending package. john in st. paul, texas to say the cryptocurrency guy is in huge trouble for causing financial problems with his company but these politicians pat themselves on their back for

running up huge debt. theodore in texas, democratic caller what do you say? caller: this is what i want to say, this is been going on r years. we have had surplus, surplus and surplus. why should democrats get our surplus. here comes the republicans alone , they give these good tax breaks to the wealthiest, such as donald trump and all of them and mitch mcconnell approving all of this. they are the one that's causing all of this here problem in america today. i'm through with it. host: house republicans led by

the leader kevin mccarthy planning to vote, they voted no on this continuing resolution. they seem opposed to this larger spending package. there are some senate republicans who are also saying they don't want to approve this larger spending bill, they want to wait until the next congress. senator mike lee republican of utah he along with others helping sheldon news conference yesterday to put their point of view out there, here's what he had to say. >> we are told to be a great deal, we have to jump at it, it would make a lot of sense. i struggle with that. i also struggle with the suggestion that this is an appropriate activity for republicans to eagerly engage in at the moment when control of the house of representatives has just flipped from the democrats

to republicans and will be flipping as of noon on january 3. i struggle with the suggestion it makes sense to do that. as far as the bid 1950's, since 1954 we've seen control of the house flip from one party to the other five times. always in midterm elections during that time and during those midterm elections when it flipped for exactly zero examples of where the outgoing congress passed a comprehensive spending bill in the lame-duck session producing the majority shifting results. why would we want to break with this precedent here, why do that here. but the democratic majority in the house and in the senate they've enjoyed for the last two years along with the democratic white house has gotten a lot

passed. they've accumulated about $4 trillion in new debt during that time, they spent an ungodly sum of money. they could not get their act together enough to pass a full fiscal year spending bill prior to the election. it was their choice, i'm not sure whether chosen to do that way. having done that i don't see weather should put >> -- jump to their aid. senator mike lee republican of utah. there is a house appropriations committee chair, democrat of connecticut responding to the criticism of the process for getting this spending package negotiated. >> mr. speaker i would like for just a moment to set the record straight, there was an offer made to my republican colleagues

where we should go with an omnibus in june. another was in october, we were told at the time that they could not move to do anything until after the election. we were then told that they had to then wait for their leadership elections to occur before they could actually engage. then we were told we had to wait until after a georgia election in order to engage. speaking of enough is enough, i would also just say that they were invited to the table many times to join the negotiations. they decided not to do that. so we find ourselves here today when we have two meet the deadline in order to keep the government open. and with that what we do need mr. speaker is this bill to continue negotiating final 2023 funding bills. i urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill

and i yield back the balance of my time. >> host: the house did move to approve that continuing resolution that you heard the chairwoman talking about. 224 to 201, it gives them negotiators like the congresswoman to laura and senator richard shelby another week to put the final touches on $1.7 trillion spending package for all of 2023. we are getting your reaction to the spending debate, what's your message to congress on it. ray in north carolina says we have a national debt over $30 trillion in one of the democrats wanting even more, does the word unsustainable have any meaning to this congress. and then you have becky from san antonio, don't these congressmen listen to the fed. he said we are doing too much spending. i say wait for the new congress to start fixing the mess. let's hear from mark in new york. independent, good morning to you.

>> i am independent, can you hear me ok. >> i'm an independent now because i'm all conspiracy now. so the thing about this reparations thing coming up and even though who had reparations i think that would make an excuse -- >> is this related to government spending. >> caller: yes because if they do the reparations then it's going to be too much spending and if that money goes fast they will blame all the spending they have done. i want to know about chuck schumer and nancy pelosi how come they don't come on c-span and talk to the people if they care about the american much. host: here is another reviewer on twitter writing call your senators and tell them to vote no on everything until the 118th congress is sworn in. one of the callers mentioned

spending and its impact on inflation, yesterday the federal reserve chair to rome powell held a news conference to talk about his -- chair jerome powell held a news conference to talk about the decision. [video clip] >> inflation data shows a welcome reduction in the monthly pace of price increases. it would takes a stand for more evidence to get confidence that inflation is only sustained downward path. price pressures remain evident across a broad range of goods and services. russia's war against ukraine has boosted prices for energy and food and contributed to upward pressure on inflation. the median projection in the s&p for total pce inflation is 5.6% inflation this year falls to 3.1% next year. 2.5% in 2024. in 2.1% in 2025.

they continue to see risks to inflation as weighted to the upside. >> you can listen to the entire news conference by the federal reserve chair on our website c-span.org. you can find the debate that happened in the house and government spending on our website as well. over on the senate side yesterday, they were marking the anniversary, of 10 year anniversary of the deadly mass shooting at sandy hook elementary school, here is connecticut senator chris murphy on the floor. >> my pain is for what we lost that day, my pain is for the delayed reaction of this country in waking up to this epidemic. my pain is for the broader community of kids and individuals who have to live with the consequence of our inaction. i want to underscore something

senator blumenthal said as well. i come to this day with a lot of joy. a lot of joy for what we have found that lies inside each of us. out of sandy hook kane kindness and grace, senator blumenthal rattled off a list of not-for-profit organizations, charitable causes that have sprung forth from those families in sandy hook, of the amount of money that was raised to try and make people possible lives better in big ways and small ways. i come to this day with a lot of gratitude to the community of sandy hook for deciding to take that awful tragedy and turning it into something wonderful. small charities that started out of sandy hook based upon the passions of those kids, kids who

loved art or loved animals, there are now charitable organizations that give more kids, more underserved kids access to art and experience in animals. there are big organizations that are seeking to change the culture of schools, that make sure you don't have situations in which individuals who are going through mental illness or trauma find themselves isolated and ostracized. in the way that many mass shooters become so much cover so much work that is happening based off of that. i accept gratitude for all the people who stepped up as part of this movement to change the lives of this country. i get it that people did not see results here for 10 years until the summer, but senator blumenthal and i and others have

been working on this issue for a decade, we saw that small but meaningful progress, every single year couple more partners especially on the republican side were willing to talk to us about change. it became more likely we would finally pass something and then this summer almost 10 years to the day of the tragedy at sandy hook we passed the most significant anti-violence measuring congress in 30 years and i got a briefing from the department of justice as did senator tillis and senator cornyn just a few weeks ago when we were shown evidence that this law that we passed collectively is already saving lives. host: from the senate floor yesterday, senator chris murphy marking the anniversary of the sandy hook elementary school shooting. also on capitol hill yesterday a gathering of current and former leadership and lawmakers in the house and senate for the

unveiling of speaker nancy pelosi's official portrait. here is a little bit of that ceremony from the outgoing speaker, some of her remarks. >> as was mentioned this painting will stand out as a woman in that speaker's lobby. i'm really honored. my members have the courage to elect a woman speaker. [applause] and as a leader mentioned somewhere out there there someone, somewhere in this congress is a woman, a future woman speaker to be. i'm honored to be the first it would only be a good accomplishment if i'm not the last. and again, with so much, so many values, so much commit and for the common good -- commitment for the common good, i know that

will be sooner rather than later. i look forward to continuing my service in the congress where it began 35 years ago, a voice that will be heard for san francisco. the matter what title my colleagues may have given me, my highest official honor will always be to speak for the people of san francisco. i thank all of you for being here to celebrate from my congressional career but as demonstrated, of those who shared some thoughts with us, it is our political career, it's what we have done working together. >> outgoing speaker of the house nancy pelosi, her portrait unveiling yesterday. you can find the entire event on our website along with the other topics we've covered here at c-span on capitol hill. let's -- you can go to c-span.org. we willontinue the

conversation about government spending throughout the washington journal. next we will talk to two lawmakers about the spending fight. republican lloyd smucker of pennsylvania, a top member of the budget and ways committee. later on, finishing up his first term in congress and a of the house initial services and homeland security committee. we will be right back. ♪ >> book tv on c-span two features leading authors discussing their latest nonfiction books. tufts university professor talks about her book about --

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and budget committees. thank you for being here. how did you vote last night on that continuing resolution to fund the government one more week? guest: thanks for having me. i voted against that bill. we have to change the way we do business in washington, d.c., the democrats are in control of congress and the senate and the presidency have had the opportunity to pass legislation, pass a bill that would fund the government for the next 12 months, they should've done that. what we are faced with instead is a bill that only very few people have seen and only very few people understand what is in that bill, we have to fix the process, it is not working. we end every american family, every business to pass a budget that matches expenditures that they are expecting for the next 12 months, we haven't done that

in washington dc for a long time. he passed on average for the last 20 years five crs because we cannot go through the regular process, the open, transparent process on spending trillions of dollars of taxpayer money so he voted against this it's not the way we should be doing business. host: if it comes to the floor will you vote for the larger spending package to fund all of 2023? guest: i don't expect to. i don't know what will be in that bill. if we have the opportunity to do that. very concerned about the long-term fiscal trajectory that we face with here in the country and i look at our debt to gdp ratio which is debt held by the public compared to our total economic products in the united states. projected to go to 185% in the next 30 years, it's an unsustainable trajectory that

will resolve in some economic calamity. that will affect the standard of living if we don't change that. we can still solve that, but i hope that the next congress is a congress that begins to put us on the right path. we've been here before after world war ii. we were at 102%. by the mid-1970's we were at 20% debt to gdp. we can do that. that to begin to put us on the right path. and we can avert that sovereign debt crisis. that'll most certainly will be coming at some point if we continue on this path. >> congressman smucker with us this morning. and member of the budget committee so we can answer your questions about the budget process, start dialing in now. republicans, democrats, independents, you can also text us. just include your first name,

city and state. here is a headline on fox news website. accusing mcconnell of selling them out with year-long budget deals, do you agree? guest: i won't be voting for this, i did not vote for the cr yesterday, i don't think there will be much republican support in the house for a massive omnibus bill without knowing what's in it. we think it would be better to wait until republicans are in control of the house where we can have a say in these negotiations. we would've preferred that we have the ability to do that in the new year and mcconnell apparently disagreed with that. i think that would've been a better path forward. host: how do you think that -- do you plan to vote in this new congress. >> guest: guest: i think kevin

mccarthy has been a very effective leader and both as majority and minority leader and also has done more than any individual to get us to the point where we would be back in the majority. we had what would be akin to a primary where we voted as a conference by an 85% margin to select him as our candidate for speaker and i think members of our conference should come together after that vote just like we do in the primary. we have internal discussions about how -- who would be the best person to be the candidate in the general election and this is similar to that. i think it's important that all of us come together and support kevin mccarthy as speaker. i will certainly be doing that and if it takes multiple votes i will support him. i think he's a great leader and will be a great speaker. >> host: host: let's go to lorraine in pennsylvania.

you are up first for the congressman. >> caller: caller: it is nice to get to talk to you since you won't hold town halls so those of us who aren't republicans rarely get to interact with you. i was curious do you agree to speak to the lancaster paper after the election and you indicated some of the priorities you have for the upcoming term. one of them, a lot of them are investigations which is at odds with your hammering of inflation constantly prior to the election. and one of them happens to be investigations of the leak of tax information regarding billionaires. i am curious how that's relevant to your constituents since i don't think there are too many billionaires. i'm also curious as an aside what he used taxpayer funder tax to fund a tax on democrats? you have a number of which who are are your constituents at a

not sure why our tax dollars are used to publish social media attacks against them. thank you for entertaining my question. guest: thank you, it's wonderful to have the first caller on the show be from a district that i represent. my opponent has leveled that charge against me, it's completely false. i've been incredibly accessible to people, we respond to hundreds of individuals. we -- regardless of your political party. we have vigorous debates during the campaign. i was elected by 62%. and i know every decision that i make, there's people who will disagree with me. it's important, you cannot do this job effectively without interacting with people in any way you possibly can throughout the district and i listened to

be would disagree with me, people who agree with me and appreciate all of the opinions. we vigorously oppose some of the policies of the biden administration and we will hold them accountable for those decisions that we think have led to an open border crisis that has resulted in a death due to fentanyl every seven minutes across the country. as a result of the open border. we are concerned about the spending decisions, trillions of dollars that have led to rising prices that have affected every individual across my district. i think it's an important role of congress not only to engage in these debates, to talk with individuals across the district but then also to hold the

administration accountable to the american people. we should be having these vigorous debates. in terms of the pro-public obliques of tax returns, it's completely illegal and if they can get away with doing that, with any one individual, the no one's tax returns are safe and the frustration we've had on the ways and means committee is that we have yet -- we have not yet seen a real investigation, we are unaware of. of how those tax returns were leaked and then not only that used for a political purpose. we cannot allow politicizing of government agencies, that's exactly what happened in this case. i think it will be very important to get to the bottom of what happened and we will certainly be doing that in the majority of congress. >> a republican in

fredericksburg, virginia. good morning. caller: i think -- just a slight idea here about illegal immigrants coming into our country and don't we have a tremendous deficit of many of these countries. when we have an illegal immigrant arrive in our country can we not place a cost on what it's going to be to the taxpayer and then deduct that from the deficit that we know that country. and if we can do that, than why not. i do believe our country is done. i think we are -- we have arrived and we are over with. you wake up, you have a real good life and you get prosperous and you get old and die and i think that's what happened. i do believe that the debt is on purpose, i believe the democratic party is going to be the destruction of the world,

and not just america and i believe obama was as he said i'm going to fundamentally change the united states which he did and i think he is the domino that will go down in history. one more thing, i think elon musk may be able to use twitter to be the go to place to get the real skinny on what's going on, thanks for your time. host: there was a lot in that. i will try to address maybe one or two of those issues. i do think that there has been a conscious decision by this administration to open the southern border. because, and i've been there a number of times, i've seen the thousands of individuals being processed at the facility in mcallen for instance. every single day about 1800 people coming into this facility on a daily basis when i was there several months ago.

and it can be resolved, we can get control of the border, it would not be that hard to do. we can pass some laws that address some of the ways that are asylum laws are being taken. we can secure the border with a barrier with technology. you could easily be done but this administration for one reason or other has decided that's not what they want. and i think as i said we are seeing drug trafficking and human trafficking on a scale we haven't seen before and 80's wrong, it's affecting every community across our country. and then you mentioned the decline that you see in america and i think every generation is responsible to ensure that this experiment we call america, this

republic continues to exist for future generations and it's a wonderful opportunity that we've seen. every generation is doing better than the one before them, that's the american way, that's what we think of as the american dream. we need to ensure that that continues for future generations. we can do it but we have to make decisions now that begins to put us on the right trajectory. i believe in america, i think america is an exceptional country based on idea that has led to more prosperity than any other time in human history and we can continue to do that if we choose to do so. host: back to the spending debate, you were running to chair the committee in the house prayed the wall street journal quotes some senate republicans who say are leery that speaker mccarthy and republican majority will be ready early next year to hit the ground running with the spending package. that's the quote from kevin

cramer, republican north dakota. i think some republicans in the senate feel while kevin mccarthy wants this authority and responsibility they would like to relieve him of that burden. would you be ready to go with republicans for a budget proposal spending package. guest: sure, but there are several reasons why hope to be the next budget share if there is a vacancy at that spot. one is of a ready briefly talked about the trajectory we talked -- we are on and i think the next congress can be the one to start to put us on the right path. i think i can be useful to our conference to help bring us together and bring congress together to make the right decision to do that. one of the ideas i have. we've talked about how broken this process has been, there was a budget control act done in 1974 which set out for the first

time the budget committee tried to bring some accountability into the process, it worked for a number of years, for a decade or a deck and a half or so. then congress just started ignoring the budget resolution that was passed, that was intended to set the limits on the spending for the year. so i think we should reauthorize that, we should come together as a body, it would take congress, it would take the house, the senate, it would take the executive branch as well to come together to reauthorize that, to evaluate what they did, what wasn't working to include new levers of accountability. we should be accountable to the resolution that's passed. i think we should do that. don't think it's too much to ask to do that every half-century, to have this discussion. >> in lancaster, a republican,

is next. caller: good morning. you are my congressman, we -- i've talked to your office before several times when we had the crisis here when it was with the doctors and i called your office for patients that were suffering it just blows my mind, nothing ever got done. but here we are in america now facing the biggest cruelest drug crisis with fentanyl. in history. unfortunately i'm surprised to see you on here this morning. nobody talks about this, i have yet to hear on any of the shows about them. 100,000 people that are died from drove overdoses. i just want to say before let you go i agree with the other

caller. i believe old glory here our country has seen desert -- better days and i think it's done, it's burned. thank you. guest: thank you, what a pleasure to have two people call from the district that i represent, but i couldn't agree with you more. we have 300 people dying per day across the country from fentanyl overdoses. and we just simply must, we cannot accept that there are things we could do starting with insuring that that flow of drugs coming across the southern border has stopped. 80's very difficult to find family that hasn't been impacted by drug addiction or even drug overdoses in one way or another and we just simply cannot allow that to continue to happen.

in terms of american decline. i think future generations will look back and perhaps you are right, perhaps we are at the beginning of an american decline. i hope that is proven wrong. i still think the ideas of freedom, the ideas of free enterprise, opportunity, limited government that this country was founded on will still work and as i said i hope decades from now we look back and we see that america is once again had another half-century or century of american opportunity and freedom across the world. we have been in the past a beacon of hope to the rest of the world and we should continue to strive for that. host: for viewers interested in this fentanyl discussion, the

washington post is running a series on their website, 107,600 22 dead of drug overdoses in the u.s. in 2021. fentanyl was responsible for two thirds of those deaths. the number of americans killed by the drug has jumped 94% since 2019. another statistic for you, fentanyl killed more people than automobile accidents. the piece in the washington post is an overview for mexican -- -- labs to u.s. streets, of the pipeline. good morning. caller: can you hear me? host: we can. this was for the congressman. i find it appalling you consider yourself kevin mccarthy is good to be the speaker because this is a republican house upcoming congress that is basically going to be controlled by mag are republicans. so if you say you think kevin mccarthy is good to be the

speaker, how confident are you. and also, this is a party that has been in the minority for years. they have lost i think eight of the last nine to maybe seven last popular votes. they have a demographic that is fading. we have a younger group of people under the age of 35 that's heavily voting democratic , how in the world can you agree when you have no agenda and when you have a population that's becoming more diverse and leaning more democratic. guest: thank you. i came in in 2017. i ran for election in 2016 after serving in the pennsylvania state senate. i came in with a wave of republicans who took the majority at that time, i was very proud of the work we were able to get done, it highlights the agenda of the republican

party we believe in implementing progrowth policies that provide opportunity for all americans and that's exactly what happened. after the first two years of the previous administration, and you saw it and all of the numbers, poverty was after that at the lowest level ever. in the history of the country, unemployment was the lowest ever particularly for some of the most disadvantaged populations historically and they were all time lows. the average household income after several decades of stagnation increased by $6,000 per household and you compare that to the record we have now, people are seeing about a $9,000 decrease in their spending income due to inflation, it's like an entire month of income has been taken away from people. i would ask to your point which

policies are most compassionate, which policies they come most difference in peoples lives and i think if you look at the numbers, take the politics out of it, just look at the numbers and results i am very proud of the republican electors. i'm proud of the ideas of limited government, implement and progrowth policies, freedom, individual responsibility that are the hallmarks of the republican party. host: oliver in falls church, virginia. good morning. caller: can you hear me? host: congressman let me -- caller: congressman let me say this. i look at you and i'm just flabbergasted that you people continue to support a criminal like donald trump, he is a

criminal, he lied to the american people when he was -- he lied to the american people and covid broke out and it's amazing that you people can show your face on television and talk about how much you support a man who was a criminal. host: let's hear from the congressman. guest: thank you, i appreciate that. i look at the biden presidency has something similar to carter. i think most see the spot -- carter presidency as one -- not one that we list in the top 10 in the country that failed in many ways. we had record high inflation. we had diminished stature amongst other countries across the world, multiple high gas prices and seeing a lot of that, of the same things repeated in this administration and ronald reagan who is one of my

political heroes and i think a very effective republican president came after carter and a think now what we need is a republican, we need a reagan after carter in 2024. i don't know who that will be. it'll be up to the republican primary voters to decide who will be the nominee. we will have i'm sure a debate, we will have a process to determine who that will be. maybe it is trumped, may be of someone else. we need someone who can bring the country together and i think we need someone who can bring the country together around the republican ideas of the progrowth policies, the policies of freedom, the policies of individual responsibility, a government that i believe have work back in the 80's and will work again and that's what i'm

hoping we see in our next presidential candidate. host: can president ash can donald trump do that? guest: we will see. that's of vote primary ash republican's will make. they think he should be the nominee. host: what's your opinion? guest: i was very proud of what we were able to get done during the trump presidency, i mentioned the first two years of that presidency when we were in the majority aching a real impact on americans lives. he conducted himself in a way that i wasn't raised that way. i was born old order amish interreligious household. i did not talk about people in that way. what we need is someone who can bring the country together, whether he needs to change his approach to >> john, a republican, from

pennsylvania. caller: thank you so much and thank you for your service in congress. i want to make two quick comments. you're focused on budgets. the real focus going forward, the bad budgets being passed by the democrat party for decades and censorship by the democrat party working with big tech. we need to look at that and do investigations. it was funny to follow that independent color and previous democrat paul or -- caller. and in fact it was the democrats that have been in charge for so long and we don't remember what it was like to not have them in charge. and all they do is investigate everything. i don't think there is a budget issue. it sounds like there is not one.

obviously there is no debt problem. we can spend forever according to the republicans and democrats. we give money to the ukrainians and don't even know where it is going. we can't fix our roads. we were focusing on the budgets and not the real issue which is poor republican leadership in the house and senate who doesn't push back and fight against the corrupt makeup party. host: we are running out of time so i will have the congressman jump in. guest: the way i think about this, i like at our $32 trillion in debt, which excludes the government agencies. to unsustainable levels over the next 30-50 years. every time a country has spent more than it had, it prints out -- we have put it out -- and

never ends well. that is our trajectory at this point. it never ends well. and i agree with you. republicans and democrats have spent too much money. anything like we have seen in the past few years, and i think in this congress we will begin to reverse that. and continue down that path. we can put us on the right path and trajectory but we have to make tough decisions to do that. and it is time to do that to save the country. host: congressman, thank you as always. we appreciate you coming on and talking to our viewers. guest: thank you. host: still ahead, congressman ritchie torres will discuss the funding deline. before that, it is bill of ghts day. what is the most imptant right to you?

freedom of speech, religion, the right to bear arms? start calling and, now -- calling in now. >> on monday the january 6 committee will hold its last meeting ahead of the release of the final report of the attack on the u.s. capitol. you can watch live getting at 1:00 p.m. eastern on the c-span network and be s watch all of the past hearings in their enrety anytime online. at c-span.org/january6. at 8:00 p.m. on lectures in history, a look into christian nightclubs in the 1970's in california.

and a reenactment of the second virginia convention of 1775 at its original location in richmond virginia where patrick henry spoke his words give me liberty or give me death. and find a full schedule on your program guide or watch online anytime at c-span.org/history. fridays at 8:00 p.m. eastern c-span brings you a program where nonfiction authors are interviewed by journalists, legislators and others on their latest books. this week, economist offers his advice on the worst catastrophe of his lifetime, as he says.

host: we are back. we are marking bill of rights day. what is the most important right to you? is it the freedom of speech, freedom of religion, the right to bear arms? we want to hear from you. republicans (202) 748-8001 democrats (202) 748-8000 independents (202) 748-8002 a little history from census .gov. the constitution might never have been ratified if they didn't add a bill of rights. it gives them more confidence in the new government and contains many valued freedoms of

americans today. opportunities to improve our constitution have been contemplated since its conception. on december 1971 ratified the first 10 amendments of the constitution. the bill of rights, they protect some of the most indispensable rights and liberties that define us as americans that we often struggle to live up to the premises they contain. since it was ratified, fundamental freedoms remain at the center of our democracy. joining us now this morning to talk about this is the president of the bill of rights institute. thank you for being here. why and when was it established? the bill of rights day. guest: bill of rights day is really a commemoration of the idea that alexander hamilton

said, here, the people rule. the bill of rights is a statement about rights that individuals own. individuals have those rights and the government is not. it marks a bulwark of freedom. against your knee. when -- against tyranny. when they overthrown it, he wanted to replace it with a government. what happened over a number of years, the first 10 minutes of the constitution were adopted. in the bill of rights was established much later, it came about because on december 15 1791 the first 10 amendments were ratified. genia became the last state to ratify. at that point -- virginia became the last state to ratify. in 1941 on december 15 franklin

delano roosevelt as president established the bill of rights day. host: what is the bill of rights into to where you work and its mission? and the importance of civics education on a day like today question mark -- today? guest: we teach civics. we are an organization that wants everyone in america especially young people to live out the ideas of a free and just society. in your introduction we have struggled to live up to the promise of the definition of independence at times. i think the significance of today is that we are challenged as americans right now to be able to talk about our differences. i think one of the remarkable things about bill of rights day and what we commemorate today is that those individuals who put together our government -- that

the people should have a say. and in fact the constitution itself was not quite up to par. we were just with a bunch of social studies leaders in philadelphia and had a chance to look at one of the original copies of the constitution. james wilson had written out in his own writing the first draft. in the margin he wrote the words free speech. as a difficult today i think is that it took a long while. those amendments came to be through a process of give and take. they were whittled down from 200 some objections from the constitution. it does not protect this fundamental right, it was whittled down from about 200,to 40, to 12. and today we are very polarized. today, i think what the bill of rights institute does every day,

his support those educators in the vital mission. host: how can people mark the day? guest: we support a network of 65,000 teachers of civics of american history. just, think a teacher. ciao to someone in your community and thank them for what they do. that model of free expression, thank them. i also stressed to -- suggest you talk to someone that you don't necessarily agree with. it will take individuals one by one in communities all across the country reaching out and stepping out of their comfort zone and recognizing we are in it together. the constitution and the love rights are a way of managing our disagreements -- host: our viewers can learn more online.

follow on twitter as well. thank you for setting up this conversation. guest: we are happy to have people go to my bri.org. thank you for the opportunity to talk today. host: for our viewers, teachers, students who want to learn more you can also use c-span as a resource as well. a lot of civics education can be found if you go to c-span.org /classroom you can find more information on this bill of rights day as well. what is the most important right to you? bill, astoria new york. caller: i am calling because i would like to talk about how the bill of rights is a very interesting part of the constitution. you have the main body of the

constitution which tells us what the government does, what it can do and should do. but in the bill of rights you have a document that tells you what government cannot do. they cannot, the third amendment, they can quarter disorders, fourth amendment they can't have you subjected to a legal search and seizure, fifth amendment, they can't have you testify against yourself. it is interesting that the number one thing in the first amendment, the first line of the bill of rights is that the congress should make no law respecting an establishment of religion. i think that is the most important part of the bill of rights. the freedom from religion. have these republican saying this is a christian nation. it is not a christian nation. have a separation of church and state. it is right there in the first amendment, and the first line of the first amendment.

host: let's read it. congress should make no law prohibiting the free exercise thereo or of thfreedom of speech or of the press. or of the people to assemble. no? guest: yes. and that shows you what was open most in their mind. they had seen religious wars in europe that tore countries and governments apart and they did not want that in this country. host: mo, washington, d.c. -- and that in washington dc--emma in washington dc, independent. caller: freedom of speech. i think it can be worked very

quickly into oppression and it is both dangerous and un-american. host: david, concord, north carolina. republican. what do you say about the bill of rights? caller: it is just the freedom and the lack of speech no. they censor everything to fit their agendas. it is just like they have changed the bills to fit their needs. 20 different versions of that religion, and was based on christianity. and our freedom of speech was based on lack of a fact checker because the fact checker will only tell you what he wants you to hear you censor everyone it does not accomplish one thing. and they have done that all the

way back to clinton. and it has come so far now that these kids are not even being taught the bill of rights. the constitution, they want to bring before the new house so they can be updated on what they are therefore. when they lost that, when they decided it is not a world we want anymore. we are being forced into electric and to do this in the in the constitution was rewritten without a word put on paper. host: all right. here is a tweet from one of our viewers, the right to vote which was not available to women until the 19th and then it was passed in 1920. she says it is the most important right.

paul and alabama, democratic caller. what is the most part right? -- important right? caller: i think the most important right is the 14th amendment. one of the reasons i say that is because there was a case of eugenics of buck versus bell and in that case they took away her right -- fundamental right, to be able to very child. because of the eugenics law. and today, that was in 1927 but today that law is still on the books. it is still practiced in state

institutions and state prisons. it is practiced where they are sterilizing women in jail today at an alarming rate. host: shelley in new jersey, independent. good morning. caller: good morning. i think freedom of speech should be top of the list. bribery and fraudulent acts -- if they were accepted during our public hearings and in front of us, it would be different. but it is not. it is erratic and everybody is confused and nobody knows what to do and it is scary for tomorrow but i think freedom of speech and if you can get your point across i think we can communicate. i think we can learn to understand each other. there's so many issues that really need to be dealt with.

you do not always have to be dice -- nice. you know i've already had this happen to me and i don't want to repeat performance, if you do understand that that is not my problem. but a few understand the things i stand for, that a school and maybe we can work together. but as far as what is going on in the white house. he went to pick me up, i am here. i can go do whatever you need me to do, sign whatever you need me to sign and i have id approved. i am legally able to do the job you hire me for. host: all right shelley. we are marking bill of rights day. this is from the national day calendar.com. from 10 amendments to the united states constitution make up the bill of rights, passed by congress. on september 25 1789 these rights, put limits on government power. did you know the bill was introduced by james madison and

he later became the fourth president of the united states. congress passed 12 of his amendments and the state only ratified 10 of them. two of them concerned the number of constituents for each rep resented. limited how members are compensated. the letter of the two rejected amendments was ratified to a three years later, 27th of amid which active competition for members of congress buried the bill of rights is displayed in a rotunda of the national archives building here in washington dc and there were 14 copies made. one for each of the 13 states to sign and one for the federal archives. only 12 copies arrived today. all of the rights are important, the right to keep and bear arms ensures we keep all of those rights. without that i believe the rights was -- would be rescinded throughout the decade, they say. rich in mariana ohio,

republican. good morning. caller: yeah. a lot of good conversation. it seems like the ability to have arms, i don't know how you deal with that, with the countries that cannot be arms. we have to be responsible when we bear arms like our drivers license. it is not just that you can drive, you have to be responsible that. the other that the speech is very important. it seems like a lot of the points was we don't have a king. so whenever our congress or present -- sticks out of his boundaries he abuses the country. a lot of these rights came to check the king. and it seems like the president once you step out of that president when the other bodies do that when we abuse it. one case is how much paper they lay on everyone every year. wish have it -- a budget

problem, and how many dollars they have. i will hang up. that is your answer. host: mike, democratic color. -- caller. caller: the answer as far as i am concerned is free speech. and the freedom of press. i think this is the foundations of how we keep our freedom. i am calling in response, my reaction to the caller from new york in regards to freedom from religion. i agree. i think as society matures, we will realize the mistakes of the past of religious organizations. and we will have to come to realize that we are certainly a

free from religion. and once that is established our society will get better. host: we are marking bill of rights day here. in this 30 minutes on the washington journal. we will return to the conversation here on government spending coming up shortly. the bill of rights, a brief version, can be found here. the first 10 minutes to the constitution summarized below. number one, freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly trade number to the right to bear arms in order to maintain a well regulated militia. number three quarter a soldier. in the fifth amendment, due process of raw -- law. the sixth, right of accused persons, to a public and speedy trial. number seven, the right of a trial by jury in civil cases. number eight, written from

excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishment. number nine, a right of people. number 10, powers are reserved to the state. the most important right. that is our question for you. tim from acids use its, independent. good morning. -- from acid juice its -- massachusetts. caller: i believe the most important right is the one we have lost over the years. and it is the right to present tatian -- representation in congress. host: how should it be changed? caller: i would like to read something quickly from wikipedia . i want to make sure you know that is where it's coming from. it says here, when james madison

initiated the 12 amendments to the constitution, 10 of them were ratified as the bill of rights. those were passed by the states at the time. in the 11th was passed in 1992 as congress could not raise its own pay. and pay raises had to be initiated outside congress. the one amendment that was passed by the congress back then and never ratified by all the states was the increasing proportion of representative in the house of congress to match the growing publishing of united states. and it is my belief that this has weekend the house of the congress. host: in what way? weekend them how? caller: and no longer has the

direct connections to the united states people that it should have. with the representation that medicine hopes. some 50,000 per representation -- are presented of. and as well as the fact, and i am sorry i'm doing this off the top of mind. by not having the increasing number of people in congress we have created a political clash. that has separated us from -- the people from the congress in that way. by having a greater representation it would solve 70 problems. people talk about having term limits. if we had as many that medicine would have come up only 6000 representatives, obviously not be paid at the rate they were because they did not envision this jobs where one got paid for

that amount. you would not need term limits because you would so many people. host: so you are saying in the house you would have far more than 435 representatives. caller: if all of the states went ahead now and ratified this amendment which has already been passed by congress, yes, we would have significant more. and by medicines met at that time i guess it would be as many -- madison's math at that time i guess it would be as many as 6000. then in ministration issues in terms of electing that many people to state, and how many people would vote. host: and the physical restrictions of fitting them all in the house chamber. caller: i think you can do things electronically nowadays

that people could be repetitive. -- that could be represented so to speak and not be physically in the building. and also things can be done to accommodate people eventually over time if we were to make such a drastic time. even those people who don't think there is enough houses and parties in congress. if we had this many representatives we would have a lot more parties. and redistricting of states would be less of an issue because there would be so many people elected from each district. districting would become less significant. this concentration of power has been bad. i think this is the biggest right. host: i am going to get into more calls. -- two more calls.

anthony and district heights. caller: i am in agreement with the last caller about the proportions. it was about how many people we have make our decisions. the amount of people in the states as well as voting, census and it has not changed. so i am in agreement with him. that i look at the 14th amendment is most important. it is the people's amended. and the people are enclosed in the 14th amendment. host: sorry i pushed the wrong button. j in indiana, independent.

caller: thank you so much. i have been ascending to the answers and for me the most important is the one that is not there. that is the one that gives also sends autonomy -- gives citizens a tom me over their body -- a tom and me --autonomy over their body. if you do not have that i am not sure all of the other rights are meaningful. thank you for taking my call. host: we will leave it there. another break and then congressman ritchie torres will join us to talk about congressional funding deadlines. stay with us. we will be right back. ♪

the new 118th congress concedes on thursday. republicans will control the house of representatives and democrats of the senate. newer preventatives are younger with the average -- and with more women serving. it holds the election for the new speakers of the house. -- speaker of the house. watch the opening day of the 118th congress live. also on c-span now. our free will video at or online at c-span.org.

middle and high school students. it is time to get out your phone and start recording for your chance to win $100,000 by entering the contest. picture yourself as a newly elected member of congress and tell us what you are top priority would be and why. show us the importance of your issue. the bold with your documentary. don't be afraid to take risks. the deadline for entries is january 20th 2023. for tips on how to get started visit our website. >> washington journal continues. host: joining us this morning as congressman ritchie torres .

he resents the 15th district. on the short-term spending bill to get you all to next week and hopes of passing a larger $1.7 trillion spending package for 2023. how did you put laissez? >> -- how did you vote last night? guest: i voted the responsible way which is yes. there is no higher priority than passing an ominous. host: why pass this question rick you alluded to it. -- why pass this question mark -- why has this? what would benefit the citizens? guest: it makes critical adjustments in every area. one area it is now more

important than ever to make sure we are fully funding the national security of our country. that we are providing you systems -- assistance to ukraine. we cannot afford to underfund our government now more than ever. host: i will ask viewers to join in this conversation. we are talking to ritchie torres from new york. numbers are on your screen. you can begin dialing now. what have you heard about next week and how this will all take place. political said it will be in all-out legislative sprint before leaving for the holidays. guest: it will be a herculean task we hope we will pass anonymous by the 22nd or 23rd right before christmas eve. host: you are finishing up your

first term in congress. what has your experience been like and what has surprised you the most? guest: it has been full of surprises. if someone said to me, that i would become a member of congress during a global pandemic and and is an instruction to to the u.s. capitol and all of it would happen in the first two weeks that would have sounded more like a movie than real life. it has been far more eventful that i possibly could have imagined. it has also been a productive legislative set -- session. we have seen or bipartisan policymaking in the 117 congress that we have seen in recent times. the bipartisan veteran health care bill, gun safety bill, semiconductor bill as well as democratic achievements like the macon rescue plan. in the patient does connect -- like the american rescue plan and the inflation reduction act. i feel like it is a rare time in

american history. host: what are some disciplines? guest: the single greatest discipline that was january 6. the frontal assault not only on the u.s. capitol but also on the peaceful transfer of power. my view is that republicans and democrats can disagree on issues like the size of government for the taxation but the one principle that should never be up for debate that should be nonnegotiable is the peaceful transfer of power. have more than a 200 year tradition of transferring power from one president to the next and that was violated on january 6. host: republicans will take majority in the 118 congress. where do you think you can work across the aisles democrat? -- i'll as a democrat? guest: i served as vice chair for homeland security committee in one of the issues we are tackling is cybersecurity.

i know that could be in the area that lends itself to bipartisan compromise and cooperation. my view is that you're in united states we invest far more in traditional defenses that we do in cyber defenses. and within the cyber realm we invest more in cyber offense than defense and as a result the federal government and the rest of america is highly vulnerable to cyber attacks. we saw in december 2020 which was the largest intrusion into the federal government and megan is her. we saw the attack on colonial pipeline's, the largest cyberattack on energy introjection. the largest cyberattack on food into structure. we can't afford to neglect our cyber defenses. host: james is our first call, in hamburg, new york. independent. caller: good morning, how are you today? host: good, what is your

question can -- question? caller: since today is the bill of rights day i am hoping we can get this congressman to help change the laws in new york. because the bill of rights of new york does not say you have to get a permit just to own your weapon in the house. in new york you have to do that with a pistol. how does that work into the bill of rights? host: congress and. guest: i imagine you are referencing the second member. as you know it has been a long-standing debate about whether the second amendment or text the illegible -- protects the individual. but the right to bear arms is not absolute. it can be subject to reasonable regulation. the question of what constitutes readable regulation is often the subject in the court. the right to bear arms although it does exist is not absolute.

host: elaine in abington massachusetts. caller: hello, thank you for letting me be on the show today. i'm calling because i am a chronic illness worrier and i have gotten covid four times. and i want to make sure the funding for the next generation of covid vaccines, what will happen. they give are having me. host: did you hear that. next generation covid spending so research and development to combat the next wave, future pandemics etc. guest: as a country we were catastrophically unprepared because we underinvest in pandemic preparedness and public health. and that is a critical void that we have going forward.

one thing i would want to see the federal government do is invest not only in particular vaccines but invest in research and development of universal vaccines. for whole families of farces. there are about 20 families that post-pandemic threat -- post a pandemic threat. host: kate in ohio, republican. caller: good morning c-span and thank you for taking my call. i had a question for the congressman. i was wondering if he really believes that joe biden got nearly 10 million more votes than barack obama ever did. i think there is a disparity there and i have a lingering questions. this notion that somehow you are a denier if you don't go along

with the election results to me, is un-american in itself. why can't we question election is my question. guest: there is no basis for questioning the integrity of the 2020 election. the 2020 election we saw record voter participation on both the parts of the cuts and rubbing it. the main reason can be summed up in two words. donald trump. he turned out millions of voters for him and against him. as a result we had a highly engaged electorate. electorate had never been more in case. even during the midterms resolve muscles of participation. in both parties. and that is why you had an even outcome in the end. the republicans control the house with it public and set controlled the senate. -- they are more engaged before.

host: we are talking with the democrat of new york, ritchie torres finishing up his first term. talking about your experience and has -- have also been serving a past term on the financial committee. just the other day they had the -- on the collapse of the ftx exchange. what you think conversation dual cryptocurrency after that hearing? host: guest: we have an obligation to regulate cryptocurrencies. as unit -- you know ftx was lending customer deposits to hedge funds so you have sam bankman-fried had both an exchange and hedge fund which is a conflict of interest. it creates a comic of interest

and a situation of trading against customers. it creates a risk of co-mingling funds and in the case of ftx misusing funds became a reality. from my view have to pass regulations that prevent a repeat of history. there needs to be greater transparency around crypto. to redeem deposits immediately for customers. we have to prohibit pepto changes from leveraging lending or coming going funds. have to ensure the protection of customer funds. those are some of the policy reforms i would recommend. host: do you think the industry is legitimate? guest: my view is that you should never defame the

character of a whole industry based on the vi jones of one actor. it seems to me sam bateman freed is not resented of of crypto finance anymore than bernie madoff is resented of of conventional finance. i think we have to be careful not to pay a whole and she with a broad brush. -- paint a whole industry with a broad brush. host: dusty, myrtle beach, south carolina. dependent. we lost him. marion and lakewood, new jersey. caller: first of all, you say not paint everyone with one brush. the democrats are painting us. i am a maga trump supporter. i am being painted as a

communist or nazi. you better look back at obama. he was as friendly as the underground bomber and you did nothing. you swept it under the rug. another activist, the black panthers, i could go on and on. and yet you still vote for him. host: you're voting for him? for who? caller: trump aaron -- trump. host: i don't know if you heard the congressman. he is serving his first term. guest: i have certainly not called the caller a nazi and

that is not a word i would use indiscriminately. i would say i've proudly voted for barack obama and he is one of the finest public servants our country has ever seen and i stand by that unequivocally. host: a caller from oregon, democrat. caller: your first guess was an election denier and no surprise to see him on the show. how do you swear in an election denier? how did they take in oath of office. i look forward to hearing your answer. guest: it is a question i struggle with. there are those who aided with the instruction who i think should be accountable. but i think it is notable that half of them voted even after

the instruction. again reasonable people's goodwill democrats and republicans can have disagreements about public policy. what should never be up for debate is the peaceful transfer of power. the counting of electoral votes. there was a frontal assault on our democracy on january 6 and that is a line that should never be crossed. host: as member of the homeland security, congressman response, he asked who will pay for close and heat and he will educate these folks. and when do they get voting rights question work -- right? guest: it depends on the circumstance but if you are coming to the united states speaking asylum, you do not have the dissension of any do not receive voting rights. responsibility of carrying for migrants on state and local

governments, i am from new york city which has seen a wave of gratian and has been providing services to those migrants. unbalanced immigration is a net good and value for our society but we certainly should have a much more orderly process. i'm concerned about certain governors who have been fully sizing the issue of immigration, busing people to new york outside which should be an orderly process. host: how has your disick responded to the -- how has your district responded question mark -- responded? guest: we are a sanctuary for migrants, we have been providing services and shelter. it has been a challenge and the

mayor will be the first tuesday as much -- two state as much. i think we are managing the situation as best we can with minimum support from the federal government. we need more support than we have gotten. host: a republican, we will hear from you. caller: the first thought is for ftx, don't be lazy arrogant or ever -- overleveraged because winters company -- winter is coming. i think he spoke on sunday and he was talking about everyone needing to get there booster. and my thought is this. we can maybe have heart problems or maybe you are still healthy

and got the vaccine but your immune system is still showing, some people might not need the vaccine especially if they have not been exposed or if they are still free of it. the thought is for every person, is different. it should be between the doctor and the person. we should not blanket vaccine boosters. not promoting the vaccine but promoting more boosters. we should probably look into that when it comes to people with heart problems. my other thought is children. that is what i have been worried about is that we don't have the data yet about how the booster might affect children. host: christopher, i will leave it there. there is a broader question. that is the white house saying they are close to preparing for the end of the covid-19 public health emergency. do you think the u.s. is ready for that? guest: yes. to the caller's question, have

full confidence in the safety of the vaccine. the food and drug administration here and then states has the most rigorous exhaustive process for testing and evaluating the safety of drugs and -- drugs in general. dr. fauci as a public health official provides recommendation. whether you as an individual follows that is up to you but i would encourage people to listen to our public health professionals who have our best interest at heart. and i think we should try to insulate public health from politics. host: from bethesda, maryland. caller: my question involves extremism and arms forces.

25% on january 6 were either active service work armed services. host: do you have a view on that? guest: angry. on a lead security i have been pushing them to adopt a short trip -- strategy for weeding out extremism in the part with. we have an obligation to root out stream is him in the ranks of the federal government. anyone who persuaded in the instruction in my mind betrayed their oath. and has no business serving a federal government. host: brian from massachusetts,

democratic caller. guest: i wanted to congratulate him on his win and wish him all of his success in his first term. a productive first term. he sounds like a man with a head on his shoulders. all spoken. a lot of problems in this country. one is the courts. and pa is force people to take plea deals and bail. the extremism in the police department and in politicians, it is great to be wealthy and we all want to be wealthy, it is easier to be wealthy. a better education and better living standards. the land of the free and home of the brave. the american dream. i believe in that. you work hard, i worked as a laborer my whole life until my back couldn't lift anymore.

it is hard to believe that i can understand why a lot of people are pitstop. i am pitstop. i was railroaded by the courts. set in jail for 30 days and did not get bail. these things that happen to me make a person better. -- there. in working with politicians and seeing the bottlenecks, i want to be reelected. go to the wealthiest people and cater to their needs. you have to get a license to become a forklift driver. how ridiculous, the opportunities we speak about in this country that this country was founded on, working hard. host: congressman? guest: thank you for the kind

words. i share your words with the dysfunction of the criminal justice system. someone arrested and never convicted of a crime, of stealing a backpack, and he spent three years in the new york city jail, two of those years in solitary confinement even though he was never addicted of a crime he was denied his constitutional right of a child. when he was released, he was so affected of the trauma that he ultimately wadded up committing suicide. that is an egregious example of how our justice system can catastrophically disserve the most vulnerable among us. host: frank is a republican in delaware. hi frank. caller: good morning. i am calling in reference to mr.

ritchie torres . if you will be a congressman he will have to start telling the truth. everything he has been saying, he has lied about. host: what are you referring to? caller: all the questions he has been -- has been come in. he has been evasive and drive out the. host: what has he lied about? caller: every question that the people have asked him. host: you're going to have to give me an example. let's go on to stand in alexandria virginia. caller: good morning. i think we are really making a deal out of nothing here in the u.s.. especially. and i love the beer -- and all over the we are -- world. on the internet and everything,

people cannot settle. we have a lot of resources in this country. more than most countries. we can drive thousands of miles, speak the same language. we need to settle down and say everything is good. and go on. it is ridiculous. thank you. guest: i am not sure if i heard the question. i'm sorry. host: let's move on to rosemary. caller: in reference to henry six i was watching a hearing where he admitted that there were fbi agents and i want him to comment on that. why is that being talked about? guest: i am not aware of the

presence of fbi agent's. caller: dr. ray admitted it. guest: i am not saying you didn't but i can't comment on something i don't know about. host: he is saying the ftx scandal could currency alternatives also be a threat to the homeland security. guest: i think every technology depending on how one uses it can either be constructive or destructive so originally, there was an original form of crude occurrence he called stable coins. a civil going was -- stable coin

, there was an original concern that they could pose a threat to the u.s. dollar which is the basis for american power in the world. and those fears have not come true. in fact most stable coins are pegged to the dollar which reinforces rather than challenges the status of the dollar as the world currency. the worst fears about crypto challenging the supremacy of the u.s. dollar, none of those fears have come remotely true and we have seen quite the opposite. host: another viewer was to follow up on this spending debate. the short-term measure passed last night to give negotiators a week for the larger $1.7 trillion spending package for all of 2023. becky from san antonio, of these cover expenses listen to the fed. he said we are doing summa -- too much spending. guest: we have to keep the

government open. i can assure you that would be more destabilizing to the u.s. economy then no longer funding the federal government. we have to make these could go investments and spending can be part of the solution depending on the nature of the spending. i've been an advocate for the expended child -- which cut child poverty by 50% and i believe the child tax credit could be a powerful response to the power of inflation because it would enable the families most affected by inflation. research has shown that the most, uses of the child tax credit or food, housing and utilities which are precisely the areas that have been hit the hardest by inflation. host: congressman ritchie torres

finishing up his first term. we hope you come back in the 118th congress. we will bring you up to the house, florida sedatives, think you for life -- watching live coverage right here on c-span.