host: good morning. a new poll is out this week asking if the american dream still holds true. lead 27% of respondents said it

day. we are getting your thoughts on the american dream. how you achieved it? how do you define a daca what policy changes would help you or your family achieve a? films are by region this time. if you are in the mountain or pacific time zone, it is (202) 748-8001. he can text us at (202) 748-8003 . be sure to send your first name and your city and state. we are on social media. welcome to today's washington journal. let's start with the pole that i just mentioned on the american dream. of those who said the percentage said that the american james phillips to, this is the

difference between september 2010 and january 2024, which is purple. the percentage went down. those who said it never held true went up. those who said that it once held true but does not anymore went up from 43 to 52. if you break that down by age, you will see this. the personage who said it still held true was -- went down 221%. the age group went from 48 to 24% and most optimistic being the 65 plus age group saying it still held to.

we are taking your calls this morning on that. here is the other thing that i found interesting. it's the american dream now costs $3.4 million. including two kids, a house and a car, which is more than most make in a lifetime. the american dream now costs $3.4 million. common milestones include marriage, to be a kids, homes, health care, cars and education. the cost of raising two children is estimated at half $1 million. the average lifetime cost of a home is now close to $800,000. you can see -- you may not be

able to read the numbers, but these are the numbers that kind of went into that, starting with the average cost of a wedding and engagement ring. you can see there are things like the average cost needed to retire. the cost of a funeral, $7,800. they also put in cost of pet care. it is nearly $68,000. wonder what you think about that. it's we will be taking your calls and the numbers will be regional this time. you can always send us a text message as well or reach us on

social media. there is a government funding deadline happening on friday and a bipartisan agreement reached to temporarily extend that to march. here is senate majority leader chuck schumer who was on the senate floor yesterday and he warned house republicans not to derail the agreement. [video clip] >> even now, the hard right is demanding that the speaker walk away from the agreement that the four corners made on the appropriations top lines. it is simply ridiculous. he goes to show you how incapable they are. but if their tactics approved one thing, it is that bullying almost never works and it is not working for them. it did not work during pda

shutdown threats and it will certainly not work now. i hope both sides can continue working together to move forward and prevent a government shutdown before the shutdown. host: that was chuck schumer talking about the deadline. there would be a partial shutdown saturday, if that agreement did not go through. here is republican mitch mcconnell on the housefly yesterday voicing his support for the short-term deal. [video clip] >> they worked hard to reach an agreement for the current fiscal year. work continues to deliver appropriations to the regular order. shutting down the government, even part of it would interrupt this important progress.

today, the senate will begin the process of passing a short-term extension to allow this word to continue. i'm grateful that the speaker of the house was able to secure rollouts on spending, but it remains to be seen whether they will get serious on the responsibility to provide for the common defense. for three straight years, the president has turned in budget requests for funding america's armed forces. even a quick glance around the world shows how little we can and women who defend the u.s. and our interests. we need to take this responsibility seriously. host: that was senator mitch

mcconnell. we are talking about the american dream. do you think it still holds? the american dream deferred. why housing crisis might part -- might pose a problem for joe biden. here is a part of what this article says. as many more people pay rent and save for starter homes, analysts are warning that affordability may be adding to economic unhappiness and is unlikely to be a more salient issue than in years past. many see the economy negatively even though wage growth has been strong. housing is a source of concern. and a recent survey, a placed second only to inflation,

overall. we will go to the phones and start with arthur in wintergarden, florida. caller: yes, ma'am. i believe that the american dream can still be a reality, but when it comes to a point of saying, if you try -- we are going to tax you. eventually, individuals will wonder if it is even worth trying to hold a job or a man is able to hire somebody saying -- he is going to wonder is it worth trying to keep his business open?

that will hurt the american dream more than anything. host: do you think that people and businesses are overtaxed? caller: i believe that we have been overtaxed for use. host: let's go to diana, livingston, new jersey. caller: i believe the american dream is alive. i just had a daughter. i will you that is. the children are more delayed and then getting out on their own. they have depended on us but they have also lived through financial crises and pandemics, stuff like that. she came out, went to to to be of years community college, decided she did not know what she wanted to do and was a little bit rebellious. she went into bartending.

it was quite lucrative and she saved that money. at 29, she returned to college and got her biology degree. and then she studied during the pandemic and taught herself norio science, calculus, all this stuff to get into med school. this fall, she started in new york city on a phd. she is living in new york city, a little apartment about 10 to 15 minutes from the school come the hospital, and she goes there every day. i have another daughter who has a masters degree. host: how do you define the american dream? caller: that you have attained a level of education where you can pull yourself up by your bootstraps. that list that you had on their about the american dream. i am 63 and my husband retired

in 2016. he is 68. we own our own home. we saved on his annuity. i can be the difference, when you have a union, you have an annuity that helps you. you have health care that you can buy into. he went on medicare and they have a supplemental plan that the union obtained for them. they cover me, even though i am not retired and actively on medicare. there is something to it that you need a good job with benefits. i just got done watching a hearing on fentanyl. where is the responsibility? where is it that the kids do not take drugs? they took one pill or got on opiates.

i have children and my generation was the one who did drugs. host: let's move on to andy in st. paul, minnesota. caller: thank you for taking my call. i appreciate her comment. my perspective is similar. i recently spent 20 years going to medical school now i am at a point where i have six-figure debt. i am achieving the american dream as she defined it, but it is not possible for me. host: are you working as a doctor? caller: i am a clinician. my point is that i think

previous generations including my parents do not see the financial pressures put on people like me, who they assume have it together. but we are all saddled with debt. there is an intergenerational bias, and i want to approach this as politely as possible. i think there is a flipside to that. that is all i have to say. thank you for your time. host: let's talk to gwen in detroit. caller: good morning. the american dream. i am 72. to me, the american dream is being able to believe that you will be able to take care of yourself, take care of your

family, get a decent job, go to college, if you want or go to a trade school to learn a skill. those things tend to be far out of reach for the young people growing up today. college is so high. housing is high. everything is high. i believe right now, the way the economy is set up, it should not be that way, but it is that way because of the federal reserve. they have raised interest rates continuously. all at once, holland. it caused a lot of things to go up. right now, the interest rate is

close to 2%. the fed said this year they may go down, but they do not want to go down. right now it is frozen or they are leaving it alone. i know president biden has nothing to do with the federal reserve, but the federal reserve should also be looking out for the american people and not just big business. host: go ahead. caller: i think -- excuse me. because the federal reserve chairman is republican, this is another attack on biden onyx, and it is keeping the people absent at president biden. host: you did mention the said,

so here is an article that says the fed is within striking distance. christopher waller said he was becoming more confident that we are within striking distance of the annual inflation goal of 2%. he said that the fed is on track to cut interest rates later this year, as it has fallen steadily sense and clocked in at an annual rate, according to the latest labor department data. tom in michigan. good morning. it's caller: good morning and thank you for taking my call. the american dream defiance opportunity.

an opportunity that all of us have to get a good education. it takes work and sacrifice to do that. employers with open arms are looking for people who not only work hard but get along with customers. people struggling to save, i apologize. i travel a lot and the starbucks in the airport are packed with 30-year-olds and younger buying seven to eight dollar lattes. the dream is there because the opportunities are offered to all of us. those who do not take advantage of them, the outcome -- they have created themselves. thank you. host: checking incebook, doug says, of course. with inflation, pandemic social strife, the nation is far

from dream like the last few years. on an individual level, everybody can tune that out and still pursue what they can of their own dreams. most are affected pretty heavily . she is a textrokendra saying the dream is attainable if three working adults live together to keep a roof over their head so they can save and eventually purchase their own home. we will go back to the calls. boston, massachusetts. good morning. caller: good morning. i heard everybody, so i be quick. i think the american dream is dead. that is my personal opinion. all that is happening out there, it is hard for anyone at any age to get what they want, like a house, whether it is a condo or whatever.

all you hear from the government, the economics is great. where are they going? i'm not including hawaii because that is out there, but it is massive unemployment. how do you say employment is low when there are so many people unemployed and homeless? i do not understand it. host: how is that workingcallerd because eggs slowed down enough for me to get the help that i needed. so yes, i got my small piece of the american dream, but it took a major disaster. other than that, nobody could find the stuff they needed for

people like me, struggling to save money. host: let's take a look at the poll, some numbers broken down by incom level. these are the numbers for those who bieve that the american dream still holds true for those making under 50,000 a year. for those between 50,000 to 100,000, 27% believe that. among those in the 100,000 plus household, that number is 33%. you can see it going up with income. oceanside, california. good morning. caller: thank you for taking my call. i believe the american dream

still holds true. we are living in american nightmare because of the biden administration, but that american dream was going strong under trump. i believe that treat -- i believe that dream will come true in 2024. all these people are complaining about the american dream being gone. go ahead and vote for trump and make that american dream come true. thank you for allowing me to talk. host: i just wanted to ask about you personally. how are you doing? how have things changed for you? caller: i mean, let's face it. it has been hard. under this administration, it has been really hard.

host: but you are doing better financially three years ago? caller: of course not. i was doing better under trump that i was now. but now? no. not even close. host: did clifford -- different mentioned the former president. here he is one day after his win in iowa. [video clip] mr. trump: you know nikki haley in particular has counted on the democrat and liberals. that is what is happening. a group of people coming and that are not republicans and it is artificially boosting her numbers here, although we are still leading by a lot. as you know, i watched her speech last night and i heard it was inappropriate. it is bad for the party what she

said. she came in third and she is not a particularly great candidate. she lost to somebody who ate her by about 2.5 points. we have these people and really have to get back to eating the democrats and not wasting a lot of time with these two. they are supported by some people that you do not want to have support. i will tell you. we had a very interesting thing. we were making a speech. this is a nice crowd of people. driving in the snow coming cannot see three feet in front. i asked, will people show up? but they always show up. they love their country. we were talking about the show and how corrupt the press is.

they refused to air my victory speech. think about it. they are crooked and dishonest and they should have their licenses or whatever they have taken away. they put on nikki haley. she came in at third, a distant third and they put on ron sanctimonious who came in second. host: a came pain pitch they in britain would, new hampshire last night. [video clip] >> republicans have lost the last seven out of eight popular votes from americans. we should want to win but the only way we will win is if we have a new generational leader. we had to leave the negativity and baggage behind with new

solutions for the future. another hard truth. i voted for president trump twice. i was honored to serve america and his administration. but rightly or wrongly, chaos follows him. you know i am right. chaos follows him. [applause] we cannot have a country in disarray and a world on fire and go through four more years of chaos. we will not survive a. 70% of americans have said that they do not want to see another trump/biden rematch. the majority of americans think that having 280-year-olds running for president is not what they want.

you have two people who spent trillions of dollars putting us in debt that our kids are never going to forgive us for. biden and trump both did that. then you go and look at the fact that we have all these issues around the country and the world , and what are they both focused on? investigations, past issues, things that are not taking us forward. we can have more of the same or we can say it is time to change and move forward. i think our kids want that. i do not want my kids to grow up like this. host: we are talking about what you think about the american dream. is it still attainable? how are u doing? on facebook, sayin the arican

dream was attainable for me and my family beuswe were able to get a home before joe biden became president. it is a buyers economy and not just a seller's economy. doug says this. this is joseph on facebook saying, it is what you make it. you go get it and he worked hard for it. mark and westwood, new jersey. caller: good morning. thank you for c-span. this is a subject that i think about a lot. i was able to buy my first house before i turned 30 and that is how i built some wealth. now that i am a tired, i am getting by. i do not see my nieces or nephews in their 20's and 30's able to do the same. they pay unbelievable rent on

tiny, shoebox apartments. joe biden is trying to bring back the policies of franklin roosevelt that help the people and save the country but trump just wants to give more tax cuts to his billionaire buddies. he just wants to gut the federal government. people come unfortunately in this country do not understand fascism. they have not looked into history enough to realize that when things get bad it either goes left where it goes right, and right is always a disaster as we saw in germany. this is where america is going. it is a sad day here. host: when you are talking about your nieces and nephews, what about their income? are they keeping pace? caller: they have advanced

degrees. they are smarter and more educated than i ever was and they do not have great incomes. they have to be very careful with their money. i moved out of my parents house at 18 in the 70's. i was able to have an apartment and to go and do things come enjoy my life, and i even started saving for a house in my 20's. it is about policies. the government is the one that makes it fair or unfair. ever since ronald reagan, they cap did in tax cuts to the people on top and taking away benefits from the people at the bottom. that is all trump is going to do. he talks a populist game, but it is all lies. he would just give tax cuts to the rich and further impoverish this country. host: christina is in illinois. how do you pronounce the city?

caller: deploying. -- forgive me. i have a scratchy throat this morning. the man he was just speaking and talking about his nieces and nephews, i have two grandchildren and their 20's, 22 and 26. chose to go to college. both of them are making well over $30 an have wives. and both bought homes. i am a disabled widow. i am blind, and i live off of my $1700 a month. thank god i do own my home. but i see people complaining, but they are all lined up at mcdonald's and all going out and taking vacations.

it is a matter of living within your means. over my 60 plus years, i have watched the economy go up and i have watched it go down. it has nothing to do with which flavor of president is in the white house. corporations -- the rule of america, people talk about gas prices being up so high. gas prices are not chosen by the president. opec and everybody, all those guys are the ones who choose the gas prices. food prices and everything else. they are chosen by corporations. one last statement share. i do not do social media. i am blind and i just cannot figure it out, and i do not care

to either. before i went blind, i did it only for my work. if you are told over and over again that your life is bad, your life sucks, everything is bad, you are going to start believing it, whether it is true or not. so, any time they get on there and they say something and have to say it three times, then you know it is a lie. everybody can have a great d host: we have this. saying personally, mamerican dream came true. they are all successful and we get to spoil our grandcldn. i am free froman free to do what i want. i guess it depends on what your dreams are and whether or not you can achieve them. in idaho, falls, -- in idaho

falls, idaho. that i pronounce that right? caller: yes. well, i think the american dream depends on the individual person , what they want in life. for me, back in the 70's, i bought a house. i was paying rent for about $150 a month. i was only making a little bit. but then i bought a house after i started working in the mill in 1976. three years later, the steel mill close down. back then i was plant -- i was paying 19% interest. but i had to give the house up. i decided to just get up dleave.

and i moved to utah. from there, i got jobs here and there. and then i got jobs making $14 an hour. it depends on the person, their possibility of what they can do. i was not a smart person, may be in school, but i know i have seen how everybody else was living, so i wanted to do better in nice. so i did better. i learned how to paint. i learned how to do a trade of my own and became a painter. people can do anything that they want to do, if they want to do it. it is like people think that people are making them do drugs.

people do drugs because they want to do drugs. i never did drugs my whole life. i hated it. i think too many people doing. so right now, i'm doing good in life. i would call it the american possibilities. host: ok. let's go to santa fe, new mexico. caller: i believe the american dream is going fast for young people. the government is going more towards governance. the one world order -- they are pushing stuff that is not even real like the climate. there is a climate problem, but it is not that that big of a problem that we cannot control. not this global new world order.

our jobs are going to china. after trump lost the election -- he did not lose it. it was taken from him. everything is going to china. the border is wide open and drugs are coming in. there are a lot of people who get hooked on drugs. some people can say no, but others, if you have bad friends, you do what they do. they are damaging us but the gmo's. it is a sad world. everything is going bad. we need talk again. biden is crooked and his son is crooked. they are making with china, with

russia, with ukraine. that is probably why we are paying for this war. so, no. i do not see the market the way it was. we are going backwards really fast. host: we got it. we heard from the candidates. [video clip] >> we had a town hall scheduled earlier today and then this. i had the morning where usually candidates sleep in a little bit, but i thought, let's make use of that. my don't we dip into south carolina and make an appearance?

we consider them to be important. no matter what happens, i'm competing for delegates. as republicans, it will not always be fair for us. i think all three of those states will all happen over the next six weeks and i think that will breally important, but the tradition here with burst in the nation is something that is very significant. i agreed to do a debate on thursday and with cnn on sunday. i'm the only candidate who agreed to come to new hampshire to debate. we have four candidates for president now. i'm the only one not running a basement campaign at this point.

you as a voter deserve to have the candidates come up, answer your questions in forums like this, have a moderated debate where you go back and forth. i think we have gone away from, let's let me -- let people make the decisions and let the media coverage determine what is going on. i do not think that is what we want in a republican form of government. host: governor desantis didn't mention the debates. the new hampshire primary debate has been canceled. it was scheduled for tomorrow and has been canceled because nikki haley and donald trump have declined the invitation. nikki haley said she would only debate if donald trump was on the stage and he will not be, so they canceled the debate. back to william.

caller: i have been listening for years. the american dream is based on what you can achieve yourself. when you vote against your own self, it is evident that anybody -- how do you expect to achieve it? one other thing i have to say about the subject. why is all the news always talking about what is going to hurt biden when i am looking at less than three dollars worth of gas? why are we not talking about this do-nothing congress is not going to pay -- that is not going to pass one bill? why is it that anyone can think

that the congress is responsible for passing bills? i'm retired from the oil industry. i know the real price of oil is and it is crazy. have a good day. host: good morning. caller: good morning. i want to echo marc's comments from early. he talked about his nieces and nephews and how he was able to buy his first home and subsequent homes at an early age. he was right on target saying that the american dream died with the reagan administration. as soon as this became a corporate state, the usa under reagan, that is when the american dream died. i know your audience tends to

skew very old, so i want to ask those who call in and say the american dream is still alive, i own my home -- the woman he talked about her daughters having degrees in medical school and all that. tell me about how your dollar -- how your daughter who pays -- what happened is that first, corporations were able to buy up and build apartment complexes. the older generation listening to this, when he went in your first apartment, did you vent from a corporate apartment complex or from a mom and pop who happened to have an extra apartment where a couple units or something? whence is unaffordable because all of these are corporate owned. since the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, somehow or

another, wall street was allowed to get in on the housing market and hedge funds and private equity and all those types of organizations -- how many people who own their own home in their 60's, 70's and 80's, did you have to compete with an all-cash offer to buy or home? that is what people are left dealing with in the housing market. it is over $400,000 for an average home in this country. if you competed with somebody on wall street -- host: who are you saying are making those offers on the houses? caller: talk to any real estate agent and they will tell you. it is corporate america and hedge funds and private equity.

you want to put a bid on a house and somebody swoops in and says we have an all-cash offer? if it is not from a corporation, a hedge fund or private equity firm, it is somebody who has generational wealth, whose mommy and daddy are giving them money for their down payment. not all folks in this country, even white folks like me have generational wealth. i'm tired of hearing that it is only blacks who do not have generational wealth. there is nobody to help our generation put down 20 to $30,000 more on a house. the fact that you ask who is has -- who has the cash offers tells me that you are uninformed about the market. host: this is what it is saying. the share of black people who say it has been to -- it is

compared with a 22 point dp. 22% of those with a high school degree say that the american dream still holds true, down 25 point from 2010, compared with 40% of those with a postgraduate degree. an olive branch, mississippi. caller: i think the american gene is alive and well. donald trump raised $8 million in one week. one person conveys that much money in one week for committing a crime and they have money to throw away on a person convicted were trying to be convicted of a

crime? are you going to say the american dream is dead? it is not dead. the person saying it is dead is dead. host: good morning. caller: yes. good morning, ma'am. i am not part of any particularm right now is not about one particular person or persons. i think -- no offense to you because i enjoy your show. it is -- fairness is one of the most important things in my vocabulary. i believe that the press, the

people who spew the lines every day on both sides is the biggest obstacle right now in america. now, is it the only problem? g that some of these people need to be weeded out and they need to get unbiased people to speak for america. host: how is this related to the american dream? caller: you know something? everything is related and the american dream is stained because progress is not -- it is being held up because i said that one of the biggest problems right now for the american dream and everything else is related

to unfairness spread by the press. thank you and you have a nice day. let's go to new york. caller: hello. you got it. ■%so, my thing about the americn dream, i feel like there are a lot of people at the border still trying to get into america. there was this one youtube video that i watched about it about into pit -- with independent reporting where people in africa and the people taking fights from africa to europe and all the way to columbia and crossing the border. it is really crazy to me, how people are trying to come -- people are saying the american people trying still hold and to get into america still from these countries.

the definition of the american dream is a very subjective topic. the american dream and my eyes is being able to live comfortably, happily, and i feel like people are still trying to achieve that. i think it does still hold. the dream in that sense of the word still holds. and to quote my friend, jenna, i one -- won. host: how is that working out for you and what age group are you in? caller: i am 19 years old and currently i think it is working out very well. host: are you optimistic? caller: yes. i would say i am very optimistic. i'm really -- for me, i think my future is optimistic. my american dream still holds for me. i think the people around me, the people i'm studying with

think the same. host: michael agrees with that and saysheroof of the american dream islive and s. people are risking their lives to come to america but nobody is risking their life to leave for a better life because it does not exist. allen is. good morning. caller: good morning. thank you very much for great work. since i have been a high school student in the 70's, it occurred to me that the american dream has been sustained for centuries by our open frontier and the fact that we were first conquering a continent that had free resources that had not been tapped yet. we can continue grow into new areas. i thought to myself, once the frontier closes, people are not going to want to distribute and

will end up doing something like the reagan and post-reagan as -- eras. that is exactly what has happened, but what they have done cleverly is easing the mechanism of media to make it less possible for people to get accurate information that would let them make wise choices in elections. elections have become increasingly dysfunctional since the doctrine ended in the 1980's under reagan. that led to the siloing of public opinion. they never learn anything new. it has also allowed 1% of wealth holders to keep controversial

ideas about meeting reforms. sometimes the only way of getting that through is to make sure that the voices of average people making editorial comments can get past. this problem is becoming exacerbated. at an age by they are spewing false information and confuse the public to make it harder for democracy to function. we are not going to have informed consent or a democracy that can make our solutions available in a practical way. people will become so disillusioned with the efficacy of voting that it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy. the first task is consent and the second is to convince people

that the only solution is to get out and be counted. and then reforms are possible. host: good morning. caller: good morning. when i was listening to the guy calling in from new jersey, i relate to him. it sounds like we are about the same age. i am 63 years old and rent was cheap. i left my home at 18 years old and i moved to florida. i lived at the beach with some roommates and we paid $100 a month. we lived a block away from the ocean. you cannot do that today. what i'm saying is, since reagan -- i agree with this guy from jersey. things have changed so much. our lifestyle -- it is the cost of living that keeps going. it is called capitalism. when i was a kid growing up, my

mom was a cocktail waitress and she said she save money. people of means -- i lived in apartment. it was not kept up very well but we stayed there because it was so cheap. life was pretty affordable, even for those on the loww.!er skillf it. mom was a waitress, bartender and she saved her money. she was very old-school and old-fashioned. young people today you do not like to save money. they like to spend. she saved and she started to invest in stocks. she did well. she divorced in 1970. it was just my sister, her and i. she was working really hard and again, she had one year of college. people like her could survive back then. things started to change going into the 80's.

i lame so much on mr. reagan. things got greedy. corporatization. corporations started getting more involved and all sorts of things. taxes have gone up. for regular folks and then there were always wealthy people around. and now there are so many. there is so much wealth that has been squeezed from the lower classes and going up into the higher income. host: this is from kent on facebook who says the american dream has been co-opted by capitalism. they stole your dream and left you a pretty package. ephanie says, i love this couny. i work towards the ideals of our founders and i believe in the dream. i am living it.

john is next. louisiana. caller: i went to purdue, so i have an interest there. i am 80 years old and i was raised by parents in the great depression, 1933. my dad had something that i always lived by. if you cannot afford it, do not buy it. it was 14 years before they had me because they cannot afford me. i did a fellowship. i was flying airplanes. i retired and owned everything. when i was making the big bucks, i paid for everything, so my house was paid, my toys were all paid for. everything was paid for and i do not have much expenses while i what i did way back.enjoyi

my parents learned some lessons in 1930, the great depression. so if you wanted to get there, if you cannot buy it. and before he retired, owned everything. -- own everything. host: north dakota, good morning. caller: i am in the land of the free and i live in one of the best states. you can easily go from being a high school students are getting a good job in the north dakota area. we are looking for people in the oil industry because it is booming. i do not care what biden's relations are doing to stifle it. we need to go back to being energy dependent because -- independent.

we learned a lot the last few years. you cannot trust the shipping of some other country. back to the american dream. you can easily afford a home in a small town. you do not have to live in a lavish mansion. the dream is to be able to take care of yourself. find somebody that you love, get married, have your children. we live in a safe community. we have small towns that are thriving. we have industry in minnesota because of ridiculous things that are being put in place from the legislature and they are chasing away industry. there are about $5 billion with of industry moving to north dakota because of the bad policies of the democrats. if we are going to be potent -- if we are going to be pointing at republicans, that same finger

will be pointing at democrats. it cannot depend on being a burden on society. live within your means, live within your budget. your first home may only be a one bedroom. that is a starter house. now kids are saying -- in the first part of your life with a lavish lifestyle. if that is what you are expecting, you are outside your means. it is not bad to be middle class. i grew up on a farm. we grew our food. we saved money. host: here is

host: one last call from mark in greenville, tennessee, good morning. caller: good morning. you are our favorite hosting look forward to you every morning you are on the show. frank said it perfectly. the american dream is still alive. it's what you make it. if you are in california and you don't like the politics, move to a state where you can be free and achieve the american dream. don't think you can bring your politics to california to the east coast and make your dream whatever it is. we are trying to live our dream here. when our parents started out, they didn't have anything and we are trying to get to the point they were. host: all right. that's all the time with god for this segment. up next on "washington journal ,:" the new hampshire gop primary is less than a week agape.

-- away. we will have a preview and later, we will get an update on plans to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the week. we will hear from two lawmakers both on the appropriations committee. first up is republican dan newhouse of washington state and later, democrat henry cuellar of texas. we will be right back. ♪ >> this week, watch c-span's 2024 coverage as we are on the ground in new hampshire with presidential candidates in the final week of campaigning. here is the -- watch the candidates closing arguments and experience was like on the campaign trail. what's in the c-span networks, c-span now or online at c-span.org/campaign 2024. c-span, your unfiltered view of politics.

>> it has been three years since the january 6 event at the u.s. capitol occurred. since that time, close to 300 individuals have been charged with a crime by the u.s. justice department. because of the sixth amendment to the u.s. constitution and supreme court decisions, defendants have a right to an attorney and when necessary, paid for by the taxpayers. kira anne west has been one of those defense attorneys. she is a graduatef law school in des moines, iowa. >> on this episode of bo notes plus, available on the c-span now mobile app or wherever you get your podcasts. >> book tv, every sunday on

c-span2 features leading authors discsing their latest nonfiction books. at 8 p.m. eastern, the vanderbilt univeitlaw professor with his book why flying is miserable and how to fix it. he argues the problems with the airline industry can be traced back to the deregulation of the transportation sector in the 1970's. at 10 p.m. eastern on afterwords, president reagan's budget director shares his book, trumps war on capitalism where he looks of the economic policies of the trump administration and believes they were a failure. he is interviewed by the new york terms -- new york times economic reporter. watch every sunday on c-span2 and find a full schedule in your program guide her watch online anytime at tv.org. "washington journal" continues. host: welcome back to "washington journal."

we are joined by christian science monitor washington europe chief linda fellman to talk about new hampshire and iowa. welcome to the program. guest: hi, mimi. host: i want to ask you about new hampshire but let's start with iowa. what do you think of former president trump's victory there and the margin? guest: i was struck by the fact that the polls got it right. especially in this day and age when people don't answer their phones, polling can be very iffy and way off but in this case, the polls had at that trump would come in over 50%. it's significant that nikki haley did not come in second. ron desantis put it all on the table in iowa and came only a distant third. new hampshire is make or break for him but honestly, it's

looking very good for donald trump. we are kind of laughing in new hampshire that with nikki haley calling it a two-person race, i'm thinking, a two-person race for second place? she doesn't want to acknowledge how far ahead trump is at this point. host: was it a surprise that nikki haley didn't do better in iowa? guest: maybe a little bit because she was showing progress and she's the one who had the buzz a month or two ago and she was steadily gaining. ron desantis went to all 99 counties in iowa and nikki haley did not do that. she was focusing a lot of new hampshire and had made that comment about how iowa makes a mistake and new hampshire corrected. i think she was speaking tongue-in-cheek.

this could be it. it really looks like trump has it in the bag but you never know with new hampshire. the republican primary here is always had a different result from new hampshire. when it's an open nomination, not an incumbent. this was breaking the mold but trump in some ways is a causation incumbent. host: let's talk about new hampshire. the primary will be on this coming tuesday. what are you watching for this coming week? guest: just watching to see what the arguments are. can anybody say or do anything that changes the dynamic? you've got donald trump doing a lot of events. he was in court yesterday in the e. jean carroll case which you would think would be a distraction from campaigning in new hampshire but him facing

legal challenges is part of his campaign. he is running from court -- from the courtroom. what kind of crowds do they draw? on tuesday night, i saw donald trump had a massive crowd in atkinson, new hampshire. i went to the nikki haley event last night in brenton woods. she had a good crowd. it was a smallish room but she packed the room with a couple of hundred people. i'm going to see desantis this afternoon and we will see what kind of enthusiasm he draws. i'm watching mainly for what independents are thinking. i talked to a lot of undeclared, in new hampshire, non-party affiliations. there were democrats in the room looking at nikki haley and independents as well as republicans. new hampshire is not having a

serious primary here. joe biden decided the democratic primary process should start in south carolina. he has spurned new hampshire's are democrats are deciding, do they play in the republican primary which is a real primary or do they write in job biden so he's not embarrassed by a week showing? they are having the primary your like it or not. host: if you would like to ask a question about the 2024 republican primary for our guest, you can start giving us a call. the lines are by party, democrats (202) 748-8000 republicans (202) 748-8001 and independents c-span.org (202) 748-8002. for new hampshire voters, that number is (202) 748-8003. you can use that same line to text us.

can you talk a little about the difference between iowa voters and new hampshire voters in their politics and in their demographic? guest: the two states are similar in that they have very predominantly white populations. in some ways, and they are smaller states. iowa is much more conservative. it's a solid red state and its a battleground state in new hampshire. i was looking at the registration numbers and the largest party in is actually undeclared. then you've got republicans and democrats evenly divided. i was very republican and a evangelical christian community which was part of who ron desantis was wooing. nikki haley is herself a person

of faith but she didn't really play that card. she's playing more than new hampshire mainstream republican direction and new hampshire also has a strong libertarian bent whether it be the issue of guns, gun ownership and gun control. or abortion rights. the governor of new hampshire, chris sununu, is a moderate republican and endorsed nikki haley. i would say he's fairly liberal on abortion rights, very popular but he's retiring at the end of his term. that was a good kid for nikki haley. he didn't just endorse her, he's been going with her from event to event and he's a very dynamic speaker and he introduces her and sticks around and poses for pictures as does she.

host: i wanted to show you since you mentioned the iowa voters, the hill has this article that says -- what do you make of that number? guest: that was absolutely stunning. it really demonstrates how much that argument has penetrated voters through whatever media they are watching and from donald trump directly. donald trump is focusing a serious part of his campaign on his assertions that the 2020 election was stolen and that he is trying to vindicate himself and by extension, he says i am your retribution meeting his

supporters. i was talking to a trump supporter yesterday, a friend of a family member, a new hampshire republican and donald supporter and he was iffy about trump at the beginning of the cycle but with all of these legal cases against trump, he convinced him that the establishment is out to get donald trump and now he is a solid donald trump supporter. it isn't just the idea of a rigged election in 2020. scheme of the establishment trying to get trump weather through a rigged election or through court cases. host: let's some callers now on we will start with mike in philadelphia, deming red. caller: i just want to put it out there because there is two things going on with this crime in the city and you have to look

at the dark money. there is dark money going through the streets. people talk conspiracies but all these criminals are coming over the border, who is paying them? it's easy to pay for someone coming across the border and trump would not do anything. thank you. host: he mentioned the border. how much is that playing into the primary race so far? guest: it is absolutely a huge issue. we are far from the southern border obviously. this is a national issue and every night on fox news, uc the hordes crossing the border and the numbers are truly bad. this doesn't suggest that some

media are making things up. there really is a problem at the border. republicans argue it's an open border. our immigration system is certainly broken. the republican candidates are using that and it's on every republican candidate's and they are pushing that hard and that has penetrated. host: joseph is next, independent in florida. caller: yes, this primary is a foregone conclusion as far as donald trump is going to win. the picture is that if you really analyze this, 50% of the republicans did not vote for him in iowa. people have to start to watch this. secondly, i live in florida and i can tell you there are major cracks in the wall of donald

trump as far as i have friends or not going to vote for him particularly if he gets convicted. the combination of the 50% of people who will not vote for him plus the convictions he will get. he's got big problems. i don't understand why republicans are even looking at this guy. he's got no chance and he will not go to jail because he is going to plea deal. that will put him out of the picture. the republicans should really start to look at who is their candidate. i don't have the answer. i do see this. it's serious stuff, thank you. host: what do you think, linda? guest: on the one hand, donald trump crushed it but on the other hand, he got 52% of the vote. if you consider him to be an

incumbent which some people do, that's not great. an incumbent president running for reelection usually faces no serious opposition. as with other elements of donald trump, he is unique. he isn't an incumbent and has major flaws in the eyes of many voters. he's facing serious competition even if they didn't do super well against him in iowa. if he is con day, there are a significant number of voters will not vote for him, people who say they will vote for trump despite his legal challenges but if he's convicted, some will not vote for him. it's possible that these court cases will delay until after the election.

that may not happen in terms of conviction before election day. i don't know if i answered all the questions. host: let's go to alexander in virginia next, on the line for democrats. tina, are you there. caller: yes, i'm here. host: go ahead. caller: a lot of people are calling in saying that donald trump one but only 13% of people voted because of the weather conditions. his percentage is not very high so for people to say donald trump is the winner, we really don't know who will be the winner. if i was there, i would not have voted for him, let me point that out. host: to be fair, you are a democrat. guest: right, this is a feature

of all caucus contest which is that you have the most engaged voters turning out. even though it was a small turnout in iowa, only 110,000 people, 15% of the republican electorate, you can almost give it as a real live opinion poll. a representative sample one might say would turn out for the caucus. the weather was terrible and it was totally freezing. there was some thought the trump voters might not go because he seems to have it in the bag with the polling but on the other hand, you could say he has the most dedicated voters so they would be the most motivated to turn out. i get that those two categories may cancel each othes we got. it's not a coincidence that the final result for iowa was

similar to the final polling before the caucuses. host: jerry and broadway, virginia, republican. caller: good morning. the reason the democrats switched up their primaries is so the democratic voters could vote against donald trump and republic -- in republican primaries. the democrats never get tired of finding ways to cheat. host: what do you think, linda? guest: it's not cheating to do that. in both states, you can change your registration however you want depending what's happening in that race. in new hampshire, they are not -- they are having a primary but it's not serious. there are 24 candidates on the ballot but nobody is a real threat to biden. the real question for solid democrats in new hampshire is do

i vote in this primary, the democratic primary anyway and there is an effort to get people to write in biden. according to the latest polling on that is that biden is doing well as a right in. or you can change your registration and vote in the republican primary. do you vote for trump because you think he might be the weakest nominee or are you afraid that if trump is the nominee that he might win and therefore you support nikki haley? at the event last night with nikki haley, there were people there who had voted for biden in the last election but came to hear nikki haley because they are thinking of voting for her on tuesday. a couple of them were biden voters but not super happy with him and his performance. everybody has their own reasons whether it's energy costs.

i talked to one woman who was an assistant principal and a high school. she's not happy with education. it's elements of the education system and she blames biden for that. we will have exit polls here to see why people voted the way they did and what their affiliation is. if you are an undeclared voter in new hampshire, you can just show up at the polls and decide on the spot which party you want to vote with. it's an open primary. there are people who are interested in politics to go from event to event to see the candidates in person and then they make their decision. new hampshire is famous for that. the joke is asked them what you think of so-and-so, they say have only met him once. it's a proud tradition here and they give it a lot of thought. host: what about the?

nikki haley says she will not debate unless donald trump is on the stage. he declined the invitation so they canceled the debate. how much impact have the debates had so far and the impact of canceling the new intra-debate? guest: donald trump is not done any debates. he knew he could get away with that. he says his supporters are with him already. it's important for nikki haley. she wasn't well known nationally until the debates started and then she really caught on among the people who were to trump. as for the debate that was going to happen here tomorrow night, nikki haley said if donald trump is not going to debate, i'm not going to debate and she knew

trump wouldn't debate so that was her way of quitting the debate. that debate would have been just between nikki haley and ron desantis, the governor of florida. you can ask why would she would give a free media but the counterargument is that she didn't want to be up there on stage with ron desantis who is in a do or die situation with his campaign and he would have read -- have attacked turbulent display. she's looking to do her own events even if she doesn't get that free tv time. there is supposed to be a debate sunday night on cnn. i suspect that one won't happen either last i saw it hasn't been canceled. host: let's talk to larry in defiance, ohio, independent. caller: yes, good morning. as far as i'm concerned, this donald trump is all scam trials.

it's election interference at its best. i was listening to a podcast last night with tucker carlson. he pretty much was saying that nikki haley is getting big money from democratic supporters. i think she is just a spoiler for donald trump as far as that goes. biden's agenda, the border, the economy, america isn't a nation homeless we are energy independent. we're just going downhill so bad. that's all i have to say and thank you. guest: the issue of democrats backing republicans in the race like nikki haley, it's interesting and there are some prominent democrats who are urging people to back nikki haley because they are worried

about donald trump becoming president again. the polling right now shows it's a tossup, if it's a trump-biden rematch, it's anybody's guess. is that election interference for democrats to play in a republican primary? it's a free country and its legal and you can do that. the argument about the legal challenges that trump faces, that has really helped him. a couple of years ago, i was at a florida local republican meeting and asking people if they thought trump should win again -- should run again. these were people who supported donald trump and they said the time had come for the party to move on. they didn't like his mouth or his tweets. we are interested in seeing ron

desantis run or some other prominent republican. that line of reasoning is still there but the court cases have really helped trump if you look at the polling. every time he is indicted come as numbers go up because people feel this is an effort by the so-called establishment to take him down. it could hand him the nomination. let's talk to bart in ohio, republican. caller: good morning. i'm calling in to voice my opinion on donald trump and nikki haley. nikki haley seems like a good person. i did vote for donald trump twice. as far as i'm concerned, with his past being a rapist now, a

fraud, he tried to overthrow the government but then he said the election was fixed. i worked at the board of elections this time because of donald trump there it i did not see any of that. when you look at what he has done when he was the president, he only got one thing past. he has done nothing for the middle class or the poor. that's all i have to say. guest: you are not a trump supporter this time around it sounds like. host: he's gone. guest: that's why trump among republicans is at about 50% and not 90%. if he was a true incumbent president, there wouldn't be a

serious primary. we are having one because donald trump is not the incumbent president and has these flaws. he has his avid supporters but he is not perfect. he did what he did for better or worse on all manner of issues. sometimes he says things he shouldn't say and did not work very hard to stop the january 6 right of the capital for a few hours, he waited. you can argue that he can bear some blame for those supporters going wild and doing what they did at the capital. donald trump is a tricky person. people love him because he is a fighter. the argument i hear from trump

supporters as they want him to finish the job and finish the border wall. they say the economy was much better under trump and hunter biden. they say he will make america energy independent so there is a lot of hope invested in trump. he comes with some deep negatives. host: host: mark, tallahassee. florida. democrat. caller: thank you, i just have a couple of things that i want to say. i want to begin by saying if you have any common sense in this country, we should know that trump is a schizophrenic narcissist. that being said i want to get back to 2016 presidential. anyways. we should all know that putin and trump stole the election in 2016. and we all know that when

somebody is accused of something people starts pointing the -- when he is accused of something he points fingers at everyone else. 2020 he got mad because the vote was legitimate and biden became president. he is still mad about it because he got caught. anyway, 2024 is coming up and we have to realize our history. adolf hitler and the german people. he hogwash the german people so bad with his niceties and being a good person. he turned out to be a tyrant and antichrist and that is what we are heading for with trump right now. host: any comments on that? guest: you know, this caller has put a finger on a number of arguments that people are making that trump would become another

hitler. i find that hard to believe. you know, donald trump and by the way, the trump-russia conspiracy theory has never been proven. there is no evidence that there was a collusion relationship between trump and putin. i think trump won in 2016 for a variety of reasons. and where we are going now, there is a fear that trump will be a dictator and that this could be the last really election in this country. i think i am not predicting that at all. i guess i have some faith in our system and people not allow that to happen. one thing we can a that this

will be an election like no other. it is amazing to see, even in 2012, the republican nominee was mitt romney. today he is completely on the outs. he is still a republican but he is an outcast in the party. he used to be the mainstream republican. and that is very much in the minority. it is trump's party. trumpism rules. even if donald trump disappeared tomorrow the party would be oriented in the direction of his policies. this is going to be the state of the party for the foreseeable future. host: washington bureau chief of the christian science monitor. you can find her work at csmonitor.com. thank you for joining us. after the break more of your

phone calls and open forum and plans to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the week. we will speak to dan neuhaus and later we will be joined by a democrat on that same community, henry cuellar who represents a border city in texas. we will talk to him about government spending and the recent surge on the border. stay with us. ♪ >> discover the heartbeat of democracy with c-span's voices 2024 as we engage voters nationwide asking what issue is most important to you in this election and why. >> i am from ohio and the most important issue for me is that the united states continue to support ukraine and it would be a violation of the memorandum so it is important that we support our allies. >> the most important issue for

me is the issue of abortion now that roe v. wade has been turned over and has been given back to the states. i want to see how politicians handle this and making abortions say for data safer and then making sure that mothers and babies are protected in and out of the womb. >> i am from ohio, and the most important issue to me this election cycle is education. i feel like no one has been talking about this issue and it has been falling behind your after year. >> i am from kentucky. the most important issue is public to court -- discourse. we have entered a place where politics have taken a divisive edge and so i think we need to go back to civil discourse. >> voices 2024, be a part of the conversation. >> c-span, where history unfolds

daily. in 1979, c-span was created as a public service by america's television companies. today, we continue to take you to congress and other events around the country. c-span, powered by cable. >> cns is c-span's online store. browse to the latest collection products, apparel, books, home to core, and accessories. there is something for every fan and every purchase helps support nonprofit operations. shop now or any time at c-spanshop.org. >> washington journal continues. host: welcome back. we are an open forum. and before we take your call we are joined by representative dan

neuhaus on the appropriations committee and also the select committee on u.s.-china competition. congressman neuhaus, welcome to the program. guest: thank you for having me. host:host: the house and senate leaders have agreed to temporarily extend the government funding through march 1 and eight. that is according to sources. are you in favor of that? guest: support it? guest:yes. thank you for having me this morning. as you know the first deadline we are facing is this friday and we have to come up with alternatives in order to get our work done, particularly the appropriations bills where we recently got the top line numbers. we have not had the adequate time necessary to come up with the final versions of spending bills and conference those

between the house and senate. the bottom line is to be pragmatic about this, we have to have extra time allotted to get the bills done, or else we are faced with either a government shutdown or a continuing resolution for the rest of the year. both options are not something that most people are looking forward to. host: speaking of the top line numbers, 800 86 billion for the u.s. military. 773 billion for everything else. what is your view on that and a? guest: we have been working through this whole process with republicans as we address the appropriations packages for the current fiscal year, 2024. our main objective through this whole process has into bend the spending curve which has -- which we have been on for a long time.

we have to get control of our spending. we are faced with a $34 trillion debt. we have to get our fiscal house in order as that kind of out-of-control spending and debt is not sustainable. so, that is the bottom line and the goal of how we have been addressing the spending packages, so i think that even though this is longer than we would have preferred to get this done, i think it is critically important that we do it right and get the numbers correct. so having a little extra time, having time to work through our differences within the conference as well as between the house and senate. democrats and republicans, i think that is a good thing. those numbers reflect the necessary give and take between the two chambers and two

parties. in order for us to advance forward, that is the reality of where we are. host: the freedom caucus wants to bring down spending. what is your view of their approach and do you think that it is useful and constructive? guest: so, i have the same goal that i think our fiscal responsibility needs are critical and we have to address them as soon as we possibly can. and the american people want us to do that. but we have to change the habit of the federal government to spend more and more every single year. just as an example. if we pass the bills as the republicans wrote them this year in the house of representatives, we would be for the first time in a long time if maybe ever spending less in the upcoming fiscal year in the last fiscal

year and that has never happened. that is the kind of restraint we need to exercise. now, the freedom caucus many of those people are friends of mine and i agree with their goals, what i do think that shutting down the government and using that as leverage to achieve the goals that we all need, my experience has been and this is my fifth term. i have never seen a government shutdown accomplish a stated goal that we want to have happen. it ends up costing the government more money and people are furloughed. they continue to accrue pay so we end up having to pay them. so many things are put on hold that cost the american people money. we never ever achieve that the goal that you have in mind. there is no upside to a government shutdown. so i think we should not be looking at that as a strategy.

it is unproductive and politically, republicans always take the blame politically. host: what is your view on u.s. aid to israel and ukraine. do you think it should be tied to an agreement on the southern border? guest: three very important issues and let me just tell you that crisis that we are experiencing at our international borders, southern or northern is of epic proportion. i believe we need to use every leverage available to us in order to strengthen the security that we need to display on our borders. and so, tying those issues together, i think that makes logical sense. it is something that we on our side of the aisle think is very important. i also agree that we need to

stand behind our allies, both ukraine and israel. but these are very important issues for all of us in congress and the american people. i think we can find between republicans and democrats common ground so we move forward. i do believe that the existential crisis we face on the border is paramount. and people around the country tell me every day that we have to get control of the border. it is very difficult to agree to spending to prop up and to help and aid our allies if we do not even take care of our issues at home. i think we can marry the two together and then work successfully on all fronts. host: what specifically needs to be done on the border, specifically the southern border? is it hr two or something more? guest: as you know during the last administration the border was not perfect but in better shape than it is today.

i think largely we can point to many of the decisions that were made by the biden administration to reverse some of the policies that were working on the southern border. i inc. we need to stop catch and release and we need to reinstitute remain in mexico. we need to continue working and building security along the border itself. i have been on the border several times and plan on going again. it disturbs me greatly to see individuals crossing freely into our country with no obstacles in their way. we have the raw materials sitting at the border ready to be installed. and i think we should continue building that wall. so there are a lot of things besides some of the policy measures included in hr2 that were important. the interesting thing about this and recognizing, and i do not

think you will find a democrat or republican who will not tell you that we have a very situate -- very serious situation. the president could make executive decisions that could reverse what is happening. can do that without congress't! actions but that has not happened yet. we are talking with the president to explain and enlighten him to some of the things he can do to stop this and turn around what we are seeing. we are getting 300,000 illegal entries a month. in the last three years we have gotten about the equivalent of my home state of washington crossing into the united states illegally and that is not sustainable. people on both sides agree that we cannot continue doing that. host: i want to ask you at the farm workforce modernization act. explain what it is and what it would do? guest: thank you for asking about that. this is something i've been working on my entire tenure in congress.

i am a farmer in the state of washington. we have very labor-intensive crops in my state. and we need to have a reliable workforce, but we also want a legal workforce. it is, i think, a very good solution to achieve that. it allows people to come into the country legally and when the work is done at the end of the year they can return to their home countries legally as well without the fear of not being able to return for the next growing season. i think it is actually part of the solution that we need to control the borders. it removes the incentive for people to cross into the country illegally because they now have a vehicle and a method that they can come into the country to work on the farms. we need them, and then they can return home when the work is done. host: and you have, finally,

have you endorsed a candidate for the gop nomination? i just want to note that you were one of the 10 republicans that voted to impeach former president trump after the january 6 attack. guest: i have not. it is still early in the process and i am waiting to see how things play out and how the american people determine who the nominee should be. i can tell you that i do not want to see another four years of what we have seen in the biden administration. it is critically important that republicans returned to the white house but i have not made a decision on who i will be supporting. host: would you support donald trump if he was the republican nominee? guest: it is very early for me to make that determination. i am waiting to hear from the american people as to who our options will be. but just to underscore we cannot

afford another four years of joe biden in my opinion. host: congressman dan neuhaus, number of the appropriations committee and the psych -- the select committee on u.s.-china competition. thank you for joining us. and we are in open forum taking your calls on whatever is on your mind for the next 10 minutes. we will have more time for open forum later in the program. we have plenty of time to hear from you. first up is surely in -- shir ley and south carolina. democrat. caller: hello. this is the first time i tried calling when you were here. for the people talking about donald trump in such a good -- is such a good man because he always worked in a business, i want them to tell me what is news he was working? i lived in new york over 40 some years when donald trump first

came to new york. never stayed in school no time to learn anything, that is why he is so cocky and crazy, he does not know anything. i would never vote for him. and i do not understand how anyone could vote for him talking about he has a businessman. he is not nobody in my book. thank you very much. host: robert. independent. petersburg, virginia. caller: good morning. i want people to listen to me. donald trump what he did trying to overthrow the government, they think it will be different on this election it is not. if he loses he is in a better position to cause trouble. he has paramilitary outfits ready to go. and just recently, megyn kelly on her podcast said that if

donald trump goes to jail this country will be on fire. i think it will be on fire if he does not go to jail. and the man, look. people have to realize that it will not be a regular election like it should be with him in this situation. i think what they have to do, they have to get rid of donald trump one way or the other. they have to get these maga maggots and go to russia where they will be safe. but if we do not take a stand now and move to get this man out of the country then this country is going to go to sam hell. host: democrat in freehold, new jersey. hello rhonda. caller: good morning and happy new year to my beautiful american brothers and sisters. i really wanted to talk to the congressman that you had on regarding the business of the congress for this next session.

you know, it is very disappointing that every time the republicans are in charge of congress they try to bankrupt the country. donald trump is publicly telling the congress to bankrupt the united states. and stocks just so he can come back into office again. i believe that this man has a demon spirit in him. for people to support a man who inflated his assets by 300% in new york. he already bankrupt new jersey some -- new jersey shore when they had to blow up his casino. if the gentleman cannot win his own state that he grew up in and was born and raised in and became a billionaire in, what

does that tell you people about his character? , on. -- come on. and as far as evangelicals voting for trump that is insane and not a vote for trump. it is a vote to make america white again. go to your lesser evils and wake up. this man is not a good person, everybody. i love you all, even if you don't agree with me. i want to let you know that i love you, that i need you in my life and you need me. and let's get back on track, and really make america the beautiful diamond that she is on that shiny hill that reagan taught us. have a blessed year. host: independent. minneapolis, minnesota. jonathan, good morning. caller: i love the last caller,

she is a bright light in a bright light in the world of stupid. first off i enjoy you as a host, you are really quite fantastic. i have a question in a comment, so please, there with me. what happens if a twice impeached president wins and then goes to jail for crimes he has committed? what happens? do they go with choice number two as the vice president or -- which will be desantis or nikki haley. i am concerned for the future of our country. just with the common decency and disrespect going on with people. i really would like to see what either team is doing. and i think that there needs to be a decent choice. the problem is that there are two old white guys, not that i

am prejudice, but the older generations that are running for office look like they are about to fall over. it does not matter which side of the team they are on. it is either biden or trump and i am sick of the both of them. i think we need to have a third choice, whether it is somebody that is normal. i do not know what will happen in 2024 and the caller was right is that if trump does not win i think we will have a problem on our hands in this country. people had better been ready and hopefully, god willing whoever wins will bring the country together. i do not think it is either one of them. and i hope that people use their brain and not their religious beliefs and what needs to believe what is going on in the country. host: is there a third candidate

that you would like in support? guest: not -- caller: not necessarily at this point. i am an independent and ice cube both ways. i believe in the republican things where it is safety, and equal rights. i am for everybody. but there is not one choice that i would vote for right now. i honestly feel sorry for this country of what is about to happen in 2024. like you said, i really wish that people would use their brains. donald trump is an evil man. he will destroy this country. joe biden is so old that he cannot walk down the stairs without falling over. i mean, we are getting to the point in this country where it is just feeling like the country that we love so much as

americans, we do not have a good choice. i feel bad for the next generation because the next generation has to step up at this point to the game. we are all basically on our own and whatever happened and the only thing that can happen is ufos fly overhead. host: you are getting a little far out. barbara in philadelphia. democrat. good morning. caller: hello, two comments. joe biden has done more for the middle class that anyone in my lifetime. and i do not think he gets enough credit. i think he is in fine shape, considering. i do think that if trump had been convicted, i think joe biden would not have run again. that is number one. number two, the whole immigration issue. something that is never mentioned is why don't we punish the people who are hiring people

illegally? we never talk about americans who are hiring them? they get a slap on the wrist if they are found out. and nothing is ever done? why are these people coming here? because someone is telling them there are jobs & that someone will hire you legally. that is an issue we never talk about. the republicans use immigration as their go to issue, and they do not really try to solve the problem. so. host: let us go to minneapolis. independent. cj, good morning. caller: good morning morning and happy new year to everyone. like the callers have been going in with their opinions about things and that is great. i want to add to that. on one of your shows you had a lady who had gone to jail for insurrection and she spoke eloquently about how she felt for donald trump -- fell for

donald trump. i think they should do more interviews to find out how they feel about him now that they are in jail. if you look at the income bracket and then you go to jail for something, i guarantee it as a wake-up call. they should bring more people to the front line to show that this support and those same people that supported trump are in trouble with the law to not support him no more, that is something we can take a look at. as far as the congress and senate are concerned, they are not doing a good job because they are taking time to harass joe biden and about things that are not -- things that do not matter and are getting paid for nothing. they are not going to pay us a budget or do anything that is supposed to be job. the real world they would be fired. and that is all i have to say for right now.

thank you for letting you my two cents in. host: gregory in mississippi. republican. caller: good morning. first off i want to let you know that i am a lifelong republican, 71 years old dying of cancer. and i do not want my nation to die shortly after i do. and people in america have forgotten the important thing. we are living in a time where less than half of 1% have ever served in the united states military. i took an oath to support and defend the constitution of the united states with my life if necessary. i figured that if i would do that i should read it and know what i said -- know what it said. we live in a time where less than 1/10 of 1% of the population have ever even read the constitution of the united states.

we have all of these people running around saying i am a true patriot and i am this and that and i am going to make america great again. i have news, america has always been great. and what you have to understand is that the united states constitution itself states that any person who betrays their oath of office and -- in any way, shape, or manner is an enemy to the constitution. and is ineligible to serve one more minute in their office or serve in office again in the united states. we have a disability because that was placed in our constitution to protect it. the first 10 words say no person shall be a senator or representative in congress. that means if you are a current

member of congress and you support sedition it's -- and you do not have to be part of an insurrection or sedition -- all you have to do is get aid or support. when you go in and promise that you are going to pardon these people who attack our nation, that instantly makes you an oath breaker and an enemy to the constitution. every one of these supposedly republicans -- right now, people called me a republican in name only -- my old republican party is dead. i am a republican and a national oath keepers. above all things, we have to understand in america that we need to recognize that any and all acts of having betrayed the united states constitution, both

the trail is an active open war against our -- both betrayal is an acte open war against our constitution and betrays 200 and 40 plus years of adherence to foundational, constitutional law. host: i hate to cut you off, but we are out of time. i wish you the best with your health. next, democrat henry cuellar, who representsof laredo in texao talk about government spending and the migrant surge at the border. we will be right back. ♪ >> discover the heartbeat of democracy with c-span's voices 2024 as we engage voters, asking

what issue is most important to you and why? >> the most important issues are the border and the economy. >> to me, college tuition. the lot of my friends dropped out because they could not pay their tuition. i think that is important right now, something to look more into. >> to me, the most important issue is lgbtq rights. >> i am from virginia. the most important issue to me is taking a fresh and positive approach to leaving america forward. >> c-span's voices 24. be a part of the conversation.

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radio, plus a variety of podcasts. c-span now is available at the apple store and google play. scan the qr code to download it for free today or visit our website c-span.org/c-span now. c-span now, your front row seat to washington, anytime, anywhere. >> washington journal continues. host: welcome back. we are joined by representative henry cuellar. he is on the appropriations committee, democrat of texas. welcome. let's start with the funding. house and senate leaders have agreed to temporarily extend government funding in two batches, march 1 and march 8. do you support it? do you think it will pass? guest: we need time to do the

appropriations. the need time to work out the differences between the house and senate. i think we need to get it done by march. but we are still missing the allocations. we have top line numbers. hwo much -- how much money do we spend in each appropriations bill, we are missing that? we can get it done by march 1, but we need the numbers from the speaker asap. host: there have been rumblings among the freedom caucus members. they are unhappy with the speaker. at nbc news headline sayshat moderate democrats would save -- would not save -- would say speaker johnson if he -- if there's a movement to oust him. we do save him? guest: i spoke to mccarthy that if he was willing to work in topped with yakym jeffries, some of us, including myself, would

be willing to help them out because we needed to keep the government open. he never spoke to a team -- hakeem about it. but i have the same message. talk to our democratic leader. some of us are willing to help and to make sure we keep government moving ahead. host: republicans are asking that aid to ukraine and israel be linked to changes at the border. where do you stand on that? guest: i know what the republicans are doing. they want to use the border to get something done by leveraging funding for ukraine, israel, and taiwan. the problem is is that the speaker and some of the republican leadership this weekend, i do not think we can get a border deal until trump is elected. and we will reject the senate

deal. i have not seen that deal. nobody has. we have a general idea of what they're looking at. what came out this weekend was not very promising. they will meet with the president. hopefully they can work that out, but if they state their corners, it will be hard to get a border deal. if there is a crisis, let's do it now. why wait to see if former president trump is elected? ho: let's click on the screen hr it is the resumed construction of the border wall, detain or deport new, undocumented immigrants, tougher screening standards for asylum, reinstate family detention and mass humanitarian parole and mandate employers checked workers status through e-verify. guest: the republicans did hr 2 without talking to democrat, not even talking to people who live

there. they just drafted it on their own. i have talked to some of them but their only responses hr 2 without trying to negotiate. that is what the senate is trying to do, and negotiate. there are some things we can reach an agreement on. it is too easy for people to come in right now. his is that it is accurate that all you have to do is touch the riverbanks and the u.s. border and you can come in for 4 to 6 years before you get a hearing. if you look at the numbers come out most of those people are going to be rejected. wh people at the beginning? there are ways you can do this. let's look at what happened last year. there was about 3.1 million people who came to the border. po5 some were getaways.

you have 300,000 that were paroled. i think the h 2ab were legal ways that people could come in and work. but in one year, there were 300,000 people who were paroled. we have to look at limitations. how we get there is a negotiation. host: if you would like to call in and make a comment, you can do so. our lines are democrats, (202) 748-8000. republicans, (202) 748-8001. independents, (202) 748-8002. you can also context -- contact as untaxed or social media. the washington post has reported that you have pushed the biden administration to do more to stem the flow of migrants

crossing illegally. how do u.s. as the president's performance on the borders of our? -- so far? guest: i do not think it is good. if you look at a record number of people coming in, there is a pull factor. they feel that all they have to do is touch the border and they can come in and stay for years. that is accurate also. let's look at what president obama and his secretary did years ago. they enforced the law, treated migrants with respect and dignity but enforced the law. sometimes you have to deport people because that is what the law is. right now, we have millions of people that are waiting for a hearing before an immigration judge. on top of that, there is over one million final deportation orders. that means that they are still

here. at the end of the day, ask yourself, if there are immigration laws, are we going to enforce them? four are we going to say let's just move forward? host: i want to show you this poll about biden's support in 2044 among black and hispanic voters. black voters currently at 63%, down from 87% in 2020. hispanic voters only at 39% for president biden, down from 69% in 2020. guest: in buying south texas district, and i present about -- i represent about 80% hispanic democrats. we are losing some of that support. they feel he is not strong on border security. a lot of us on the border down there, people came in.

my father was born in mexico. what happened was he came in, became illegal resident -- became a legal resident. it took years. but now a lot of the people who went through that process are seeing people jump the line. that is distressing to a lot of hispanic democrats. host: us about the recent death of three migrants, a female adult and two children, in eagle pass. you have blamed those deaths on governor abbott. why? guest: when the state kicked out the border patrol -- keep in mind that the border patrol under federal law is the agency that allows us to secure the border morass -- the border, arrest people who are here illegally. they came in without telling the local government when they were

doing. they came in without telling border patrol. they kicked border patrol out of that area. they also have some trucks and other monitoring equipment. these trucks are vehicles that have equipment that can look at the mexican riverbanks, the middle of the river, and the u.s. site. -- side. they took those eyes away. we do not know exactly what happened, but we do know that when the state took them out, they took control of that area. now they are saying do not blame others for those deaths. but if you are going to take over a piece of property, you have to take responsibility for that area. we would not even be talking about this if the state would have not taken the border patrol out of that area. last year, i think we had about

800 deaths -- drowning, dying of thirst in the river. it is very dangerous. host: the woman in the two children drowned. do you think border patrol could have saved them? guest: when you have monitoring, border patrol had a handful, but they had another member, a handful of scope trucks. those are eyes where you can see what is happening on the mexican river banks. there would have been somebody in distress. they would have been able to move faster, but mexican officials contacted border patrol. border patrol called the center. they did not answer. then they sent somebody over. think about the time lapse. if they had been there, they would have seen everything. i think it could have been prevented, but nobody knows. host: the biden administration

has demanded that texas authorities stop blocking federal agents and allow full access. the deadline for that today. what happens if the governor says i am blocking them? guest: i think the governor is going to dig his heels, not move. i think it will be up to the supreme court. i think if the supreme court follows its president from the arizona case, saying no matter how frustrated people might the about immigration policy, the federal government still enforces immigration. in this case, it is ordered patrol. host: let's start with michael to belmar, new jersey, democrat. caller: -- i usually save my calls for a republican representative, but i will call you to talk to you about a couple of things. we can build as many walls as we

like we can do all the technology. we can hire isa border security guards, but the problem is the countries these people are coming from. you read about ecuador, guatemala, nicaragua -- these people are leaving horrible countries. it isn't there more the u.s. could do to correct the problems we are having in those countries instead of spending money on walls? if you do not fix the problem, the people are going to come. if you build walls, they will go through the water. the other issue is for the functional -- fentanyl inspections. the problem is that the drug but the demand in the u.s. i know somebody in guatemala. they said, "you people keep feeding our problems."

the guy said, "it is not our problem. it is your problem. you use the drugs, we will ship them to you. it is a way of making any." you have to fix these problems or people will continue to come. make it nice where they live and they will stay there. when it is cold up north, people moved to florida. host: we've got your point. guest: thank you. you lot of good points, but let me talk about assistance to central america. 10 years ago, when the president was vice president, we worked with him. we added the first $750 million to help central america. over the years, we have provided billions of dollars to central america to make things better because of the push factors.

there is also pull factors on the u.s. side, which is the policy we have right now. we have added billions of dollars to do that. the problem is it is not only the central american countries of act circle. now they are coming from over 50 countries because they feel if you just that to the border, all you have to do is touch the riverbanks and you can worry. -- you can move forward. the fence should be in the middle of the river because that is the international down to read, but fences in texas -- international foundry, but fences in texas are about a quarter-mile from the river. so those looking for asylum across the river, walk a quarter of a mile and defense does not stop them. with fentanyl, i agree there is supply and demand. we need to cut that supply.

but number one is addressing those issues in the country. number two is, 90% to 94% of cocaine and fentanyl come in through ports of entry and not in between ports with migrant summa and some --, as some say. host: anthony in staten island, good morning. caller: i know you are on the frontline of this. but are you willing to take the drastic measures? it is bided policy. you guys are maybe closing the border for one year, close it completely. let's face it. it is not just a central american problem. it is a world problem. it is a national security problem. you have countries coming in from china and iran and

afghanistan, all these places. a year ago, and i am not blaming you, but i think -- democrats will stay in power forever. i may be wrong, but that is what i feel like. in my life, -- with the policies your party is pushing, if republicans are pushing policies -- unbelievable. guest: again, it is not a democratic or republican response. back in the 1990's with president clinton, there were some immigration changes that were tough on the border. but again, it is knowing how to address the border. fentanyl, keep in mind that

there are push factors and pull factors. there is droughts, hunger, crime. but keep in mind that the only people cap that can come in and ask for asylum, it has to be based on nationality, race, political belief, religion. if you are hungry, looking for a job or better life, that does not qualify you. we have to of -- have to enforce asylum laws. we as americans can have a firm law and order at the border, be firm with border security, and worse it. we have the right to do that but still respect migrants and treat them with dignity. i think we can do both, but at the end of the day, you have to take the pull factor out.

in 2023, there were 3.1 million people who came to the border. 2.5 million were encountered by border patrol. we did not see an estimated 600,000 of them. only a small portion were deported. we have got to look at how president obama and secretary jeh johnson did the enforcement of that law with respect and dignity. host: anthonyro up the idea of the administration is not motivated because they want all those people voting and they will vote for democrats. guest: by the time they become u.s. citizens, i do not know what is going to happen. it will be a long time. that is what republicans always used, the narrative. looking at the border, i want to make sure we have law and order, security border. anybody who comes in the right way -- either through a legal

visa or there are paroled and follow the rules -- but keep in mind, right now, there were 300,000 people last year who were paroled. and the illegal migration i have been pushing, a current law for temporary work is right now. host: linda in orange, connecticut, democrat. caller: i have watched you for years. i also watched one of your counterparts, representative call, a republican. you both talk about the border. we need to talk about the border, but the bottom line is we are supposed to talk and you are supposed to listen. i am a dyed in the wool democrat. i am 70 years old. i donate to causes all over the

country. i get the feeling that immigration is turning into a bumper sticker. it is a shame. we need workers. immigrants are not bringing fentanyl. americans are. there is so much here that has gotten so messy. you have to be tired of it. why can't you people in congress -- we send you there to represent us -- why can't you sit down and talk about what is good for this country? we need immigrants but we need good, solid people who want to bolster our american dream that they share. you are not doing that. why? it has been so long. can you give me your gut feeling answer on that. guest: it takes two to tango. i have been willing to roll up my sleeves and take decisions

that sometimes go against my party, but i am trying to represent idisk. -- my district. at the border, this is an issue -- you mentioned michael mccaul. we are headed to the border this weekend. we can sit down and make things happen but keep in mind that republican leadership, the speaker this weekend, they tweeted out that there will be no border deal until president trump is elected. there is a crisis -- and i think there is a crisis -- we cannot wait a year to see if somebody gets elected. we have to roll up our sleeves and get the job done. the problem is we get to the corners. we have to get out of our comfort zones and compromise. i will be the first to compromise. host: richard, louisville,

kentucky, republican. c-span.org -- caller: you are the first democrat i have gotten to speak to that has shown any common sense when it comes to this. we mentioned earlier that 80% of your constituents voted democrat, correct? guest: no. 80% are hispanic. caller: but in all probability voted democrat? and voted for you? the only time that this is really -- let me back up. when prompted was -- when donald trump was in there, he had the remaining mexico policy. he had help, send money but we want you to keep these people. we will gently bring them over and do the best we can. then trump was defeated and all

hell breaks loose. but it only became a political issue when adams in new york and the mayor of chicago and the folks there are thinking, weight, we did not -- wait, we do not count on these people coming up to our city. now they see what is going on in texas and whatever it is trying -- and what greg abbott is trying to do to get the federal government to work on this problem. what about that crew that got into martha's vineyard? remember that? what a joke. these are high dollar people. these are people with multimillion dollar homes. we will have none of that. and they got out of there. host: let's get a response. guest: kentucky, you have a good number, hal rogers.

he had a little car accident, i sent my best to him and his wife. let me say that there are things that we can talk about. i am one of those democrats who supports state in mexico. sometimes people say, it is too dangerous. some refugees have been in some difficult parts of the world. but keep in mind that there is ways to address this. we have to get out of our comfort zones and get together and work this out. it can be worked out. mexico plays an important role. in december, we were getting 10,000 to 12,000 people a day. it went down to 3100 day. the reason is that mexico started stopping people at the border.

when we get mexico to do its job -- they do it for a while and then they lose interest -- it is not to be consistent. because the more people that they stop on the border, we can manage the people who are coming in. you give them their immigration hearing. they are at the border, asylum officers. if they do not qualify for asylum, they have to be returned and deported. host: brainerd, minnesota, democrat, good morning. caller: it seems like the biggest problem with the border just happened within the last maybe 10 years, but at one time, this was all taken care of in the country these people came from.

they went to register and get cleared to come over here to become citizens. but when trump did away with the money that was proposed for this, all hell broke loose. they started coming here. they started traveling by foot to get to the border. they never used to do that. i have to say, thank you. guest: the profile of the individual coming to the border has changed. in the old days, the 1990's and before, it was people from mexico who were coming to find a job and then they would return back. in the 2000s, there there was a change of the law in 1997, the way you treat family units and unaccompanied kids changed. in the 2000's, you start seeing

family units, unaccompanied kids from central coming in. now you are seeing people from name the country and they are coming in. the profile has changed. there are push factors and pull factors. push factors is what happened in different parts of the world -- crime, poverty, lack of jobs, not liking the government. then you have the pull factors, part of it is jobs, a better life in the u.s., shining city on the hill. at the other is the immigration policies that we have. if people think that they can touch the u.s. border and then get in four years, unfortunately, that perception is reality right now and something we need to address when we talk about push and pull factors. host: we are out of time, but i want you to tell me about the

mayorkas hearings for impeachment in the house and you of that effort. guest: i disagree. i think we need to focus on securing the border. this is a distraction. a lot of us might disagree with the policy but you do not kick somebody out for that. you change the policy, not the individual. republicans ought to sit down with democrats and work on policy. but to make statements -- you know what, we do not like what is happening but we will wait, as the speaker said, until president trump is reelected, that is not the way to address the issue. host: henry cuellar, democrat of texas, number of the appropriations committee, thank you for joining us. coming up, a preview of today's meeting between president biden and congressional leaders and

more of your phone calls after the break in open forum. your chance to weigh in on any issue. you can start calling in now. democrats, (202) 748-8000. republicans, (202) 748-8001. independents, (202) 748-8002. we will be right back. ♪ >> discover the heartbeat of democracy with c-span's voices 2024 as we engage voters nationwide asking what issue is most important to you in this election? >> the most important issue to me is foreign policy. there is many wars right now in the world. >> my name is gerald nelson. my biggest issue is letting the

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these points of markers are on the right hand side of your screen. this gives -- makes it easy to get an idea of what was debated in washington. scroll through c-span's points of interest. host: welcome back. we are in open forum until the end of the program at 10:00 a.m. eastern when the house is expected to gavel in. here is roll call that says the supreme court is to hear arguments on landmark regulatory doctrine. justices could overturn a nearly 40-year-old decision that gave deference to the interpretation of ambiguous laws. the supreme court hear that case. you can follow that sg at

10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span three. you can also watch on the c-span now video app or online at c-span.org. we are joined now by brett samuels, white house reporter for the hill who previewed for us that meeting going on in the white house. welcome. tell us about that meeting. who will be there? what is on the agenda? guest: the white house is hosting the speaker at the house, the minority leader of the house, the majority leader in the senate and the minority leader, chuck schumer and mitch mcconnell respectively. we are also expected to see a handful of other lawmakers, mainly committee chairs, appropriations folks at the white house and lawmakers as they look to hash out a deal on national security spending, which the white house has been

pushing since october. host: this would be president biden's and speaker johnson's second face-to-face meeting. what is the dynamic of their relationship? guest: the fact that it is just their second face-to-face meeting speaks to the fact that it is not a close relationship. speaker johnson got the gavel in october. president biden with him in the halls of the white house at one point and they have spoken on the phone one or two times, but has been limited interaction, which president biden and former speaker mccarthy did not have an especially warm war constant communication relationship. not a huge change there, but it does speak to the fact that in this white house, with republicans in charge, there is not a lot of face time between the president and speaker. host: he said they will be

talking about the national security supplemental request that the president made. what is in that request? guest: this is the request white house put forward a few months ago, about $100 billion. that covers all kinds of national security requests that the white house has on ukraine, russia. it included funding for israel in the aftermath of a mosque terrorist attacks in october and funding for increased border security, of the republicans are keen to act on. it has the money as well for allies in the pacific, taiwan, some others in t region. it runs the gamut of priorities for this white house, as well as border security, which is a nod to republicans especially. and some democrats as well, who

feel that that is a pressing issue. host: our speaker johnson and senator mcconnell on the same page when it comes to ukraine funding? guest: great question. ukraine funding has divided the gop. mitch mcconnell has been unspoken about the need to support ukraine, about the fact that u.s. support ukraine is critical for protecting democracy against russia, where is the speaker johnson has been less outspoken about the need to support ukraine. he is basically said that the house is going to pass funding for ukraine but it needs to be tied into increased order security, changes to border policy. while speaker johnson has expressed an openness to more ukraine funding, he is certainly the one who -- then mitch mcconnell and others in the senate. host: hutch bulk is reporting

this about john thin, who said, "there is no way that we would get the kind of border policy that is talked about right now with a republican majority in the senate. this is a unique moment in time, an opportunity to get some really conservative border policies that we have not been able to get for 40 years." when do you make of that? what if human hearing on the republican side about the timing of the deal -- what have you been hearing? guest: on the democratic side, there is this idea that president biden could use a border deal. it is an election deal -- an election year. there is the sense a deal on the border would help with voters, especially at a time when headlines are glaring about the

influx of migrants across the border and issues at the border. his department of homeland security secretary is being in each -- being impeached, which the white house would say is political. this does come at a time when president biden could use a win on the border. republicans are seeing that undergoing to try to extract some concessions, which president biden has said he will make compromises on. certainly, it is a moment where the white house may be willing to give more than they would otherwise. host: brett samuels, white house reporter for the hill. you can find his work at thehill.com. we are in open forum until the end of the program, another 16 minutes or so, whatever is on your mind. david, texas, republican. caller: good morning.

first, the story out there about the state of texas with the border agents -- drowning, bogus. it is been debunked. they have updated a filing with the supreme court about stuff going on and acknowledged the people were drowned over an hour before -- they drowned on the mexican side. secondly, you get people who are still hanging on to stuff in the mainstream news, like the strapping or the whipping incident with the border patrol agent. it was known within hours that the guy who took the picture said they were nowhere near him. they were not whipping him. that very long while. the president said they did.

they were taken off the job for nine months. they came back to work but there was never any public acknowledgment of the lies. i want to point out that biden was put in charge by the obama administration in 2011 of the iraqi withdrawal. that is what led to isis. the iraqis were begging for american airstrikes. isis slowed down into iraq. obama did not do anything until they got within 10 miles of baghdad. half a million people died. 8 billion refugees because of -- starting with the premature withdrawal of all the troops except for a handful. the new york times has a great story in july of 20 from one. -- 2021, or whatever the year of

the afghan mess. i was confused about the numbers being reported. they were reporting that biden sent 500,000 troops back in. that does not make sense. they were saying they had not pulled the troops all out. yet, when they sent 5000 in -- the new york times made clear what has happened. it did not get much press, but they took out all the troops except for 600 something. the europeans were begging him not to do it. they withdrew in the middle of the night, did not tell the afghans about it. the 2500 number is misleading. there were over 60,000 u.s. troops and allied troops and contractors in iraq at that time. we had twice as many contractors working there. these are trigger pullers who

have been hired to keep the troops down and also people handling aircraft. we train the afghan army to fate -- to fight like american troops. same thing in vietnam. when we withdrew our air support, we took the guys out. they had no air support. biden was in charge of all of that. host: let's go to bob in middleton, wisconsin, independent. caller: previous caller is a spot on. i am a single white guy with two to, daughters -- two chicana daughters. what if what is going on at our southern border is some form of asymmetric warfare? how does someone from senegal get to the border with a brand-new iphone?

how is it that tens of thousands of americans every year to belize or costa rica to sit on a beach and sipped cocktails? there is a reason why people are coming to the seven order. it could be asymmetric warfare. someday soon, but is on the southern border is a disgrace. it is either by content or incompetence. at some point, it will come back to ugly head. host: robert in texas, democrat. good morning. caller: people calling in and want trump reelected. tell me, what has he done for you, your kids, your grandkids? are you cutting me off? host: no. i am listening. caller: the only thing i think trum benefit people

is they love his racial views. but what money has he put in your pocket? he -- he lies every time he opens his mouth. if you watch judge judy, the first thing she said, those teenagers lie. same thing with trump. his racial views the only thing. thank you. host: republican in lincolnton, north carolina, jenny. good morning. caller: three things i wanted to say but i wanted to make a suggestion. i listen to all these callers. we are opposite each other, democrats, republicans. the only reason why we are different because all these news

stations -- cnn, msnbc -- they are talking about different things. when i hear these people talking, i know exactly what station they are listening to. my suggestion, since you always listen to everybody and try to be in the meadow, i am thinking like january 6 people are talking about january 6 with trump. there are videos where the police are letting people down. we see vans coming in with people starting all this stuff. i do not see nancy pelosi on the stand explaining why when trump asked for security they did not give any. with the shooting, we saw a cop aside. then we got a guy who is shot. we will not mention names. fine.

you could share those videos that we see in america's voice or news, because we do not see it on democratic stations. maybe that would help people understand what is out there, what is not being told, because we see it. when we are on your show, we talk about these things. people think we are nuts. other people are not seeing the same things we are seeing. if you could find those clips of january 6, that might help people. i also want to mention about the border. biden said if he was elected, he would open the border. people are flooding in. i do not care if they think he is going to give them licenses and then they can vote. whatever the reason, he opened it, funded the gates. -- flooded the gates. he is the reason why we have

this problem. one more thing, democrats are turning to republicans to vote for nikki haley just to go against trump. haley, i hear now she bought a mansion and has become rich, taking money from democrats. she says she don't care wherever money comes from? she is no different from biden if she don't care what money comes from. host: draws, new york, independent. caller: two comments, one about domestic policy, one about foreign policy. i am hearing a lot about border situation. i know they are not fixing that border. they keep people hot and bothered about what is going on with the border. america is changing.

people coming into the country who are not blonde haired and blue-eyed, that is what is bothering some people. they feel like they are being replaced. they are not being placed. the palestinians are being replaced with the genocide against them right now. our tax dollars are paying for it. we americans are not being replaced, but the world is changing. when it comes to foreign policy, i am getting information about trump. the arms inspector back during the iraq war. i wish c-span would have stuff on him. i am getting the truths from scott brown. things i do not get on american tv. is what journalism is, showing the truth, not taking a stand one way or the other.

the public decides what is going on. our tax dollars are paying for a genocide. it is insane what is going on with our foreign policy. i was there for vietnam, one of the last drafts. i was hoping our foreign policy would change, but it has not. we need to get a hold of ourselves and start thinking about things. host: st. paul, minnesota, jan is a democrat there. good morning. caller: good morning. it is interesting to listen to everyone's views on what they are hearing and seeing. people are seeing different things and understanding it in different ways. here is my concern. i became active politically one president trump was elected to office.

as i watched him move through his presidency with the hope that things would improve, i did not see any improvement and so i became active around his representations and removal of -- i do not know -- many things, the opening of parks, taking away protections from around the environment. i understand that you cannot do anything unless you can pay for it. if you want to change the border, you have to have the allocations to do it. the information i have heard about the border is there is not enough funding for judges. people are not offering to give money for the border. but i clearly remember during the period that trump was in charged, children were removed from their parents and not accounted for.

after biden came into office, we were still trying to take children back to their original parents. i cannot see that happen in this country again. i am 67. it is important to me that people who come here have rights and consideration, not that they run out over the border and tension and magically they are in. i do not think they believe that. i do not believe that that is the case, but i know you have to find something in order to pay for judges, for assistance for many things. i am tired of this country continuing to argue over things like joe biden's son having sex with someone and not addressing the real issues.

if this government goes into shutdown, that is going to hurt us all. we need to call our representatives and have some real action. host: independent time, alabama, high-risk. -- iris. caller: i have learned a lot about politics listening to you more than any other station. i also want to talk about the border. i remember back when trump is going to build his wall. he went to mexico. i have seen him shake the mexican president's hand. the cartels are in charge of the mexican government. we all know that. i had never heard of a caravan in my life coming intel trump -- until trump shook hands with the president.

they need jobs over there. they come because they are made to come. their lives are threatened. the way have to leave. they are pushing them out. when trump gets elected again, all of a sudden, we will see that the mexican border is secured. that is what he is running on -- i am going to fix this problem, build this wall. all of a sudden, we will see it stop because he is getting his pocket padded by the mexican government. the government is working with the cartel. i had a friend who just passed away, odie -- od'ed on fentanyl and heroin. they got it from the same person who lives in pensacola, florida.

host: joan, cleveland, republican. caller: hi. host: be brief. caller: first, i want to thank donald trump for being president. he did a terrific job. the second thing is i do not understand. we have got 80,000 children. no one knows where they are. how does biden think everything is ok? he could care less about these children. he should have shut the border down. the supreme court, with all their books that they have to look up everything in, i cannot believe they have not done anything about this border. o cut you off, the house is about to gaveling we will see you tomorrow. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute,

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