one, protect and defend and provide for, for security. but i think it is to help the least among us. i mean if government is not helping to level the playing field -- like right now, we have -- dallas, you wanted to defend this position, we have the republican party drafting a budget bill for next year right now which will take medicaid away from poor people so that elon musk gets the benefit of the trump tax cuts being extended. to me that is just the wrong priorities for the, for the american people, for the people on medicaid. not with elon musk. that's what makes me a democrat. host: a minute ago you mentioned your mother. it was about this exact time when you appeared on the program last time, 10 years ago, your mother called into this program.

joyce woodhouse is her name. this is that moment from 10 years ago. [video clip] >> you are right that i'm from down south. >> oh gosh, it's mom. >> i am your mother. i disagree that all families are like ours. i don't know many families that are fighting at thanksgiving. quick sets are mom. facts i was very glad that this thanksgiving was the year that you two were supposed to go to your in-laws. i'm hoping you will have some of this out of your system when you come here for christmas. >> we were not together this thanksgiving funny thing is, whm talks to brad, she lights up, funny dallas woodhouse, you mentioned your mom. how is she doing? guest: still sharp as a tack. doesn't quite get along as good as she did, but neither do brad

and i. i have noticed of that on that clip, she said she loves us both. she didn't say she didn't say she loves us both equally. for the record. we know who she loves more. when brad comes to town -- you never -- one thing i want to say about that flick that is interesting, i always remember it -- it did not sound to me at the time like it does when you play the clip. in other words, steve scully said we've got a call from raleigh, north carolina, that's all i heard. then he said the name joy -- joy is my sister, my mom is joyce. my sister wasn't living there at the time, but i didn't hear the name. all i heard was raleigh -- i thought someone from down south. that's what surprised me so much. i mean the clip is a big part of

me going -- gosh, it's mom. such a shock. host: i promise you that if a joyce from north carolina calls and in the next half-hour, we will bumper to the top. in the meantime let's talk to earl in redding, california, you are on with the woodhouse boys. caller: thank you very much. i find this a very interesting discussion with these two gentlemen. i got motivated to call today -- i tried to call every 30 days. i'm an agent orange volunteer. guest: thank you for your service. caller: thank you. i live on social security and a veterans agent orange, ok? here are some facts i want to share with brad. he's big on facts. tell me if i'm wrong, please, both of you, i will get off the phone, but i want to give you a couple of facts that i see.

i lost 20% of my fixed income in the last four years. that's a fact, ok? that's $2000. 2000 that i donated to homeless and veterans and to help people, you know, deal with announcer: we now take you live to the white house where president biden and first lady jill biden are hosting a hanukkah holiday reception, here on c-span. ♪ >> good evening, everyone. nice to see you all. on behalf of president biden, first lady jill biden, and my

wife, vice president harris, welcome to the white house, and happy pre-hanukkah. and to the president and first lady, thank you so much for your friendship, your kindness, and your support over the last four years. kamala and i are very grateful and we love you so much. just looking around room and i see so many familiar faces. i'm reminded when i first came into this role as the first ever second gentleman. many of you have heard me say this before. i thought being the first man ever in this role would be a pretty big deal. and it was. but it turned out that being the

first jewish person ever to be a white house principal was an even bigger deal. and i promised that i will continue to live as second gentleman openly, proudly, and with cheer as a jewish person. and that is exactly what i did. and with kamala's love and encouragement, i was able to do that every step of the way. kamala and i proudly affixed the mezuzah on our door at the vice president's residence. there's actually two. we've hosted shabbat dinners and held rosh hashanah. we have held passover seder's and saying. and every hanukkah we light our menorah and place it in the window for the entire world to see.

and this year we are going to do it again. this year, as we prepared to leave a legacy of our time at the vice president's residence, we planted a pomegranate tree. this tree commemorates both the pain and perseverance of the jewish people and it also honors the victims of october 7 and those who were taken hostage on that horrific day in israel and those were still being held captive. but even as we saw anti-semitism continue to grow and rise in our country around the world, i walked around with my head held high, my shoulders and chest back, so proud to be a jew. [applause] and everywhere i went i encouraged our community to do the same. not to cower and not to live in fear ever. and in spite of this scourge of

anti-semitism, we came together. and i was proud to host many of you at a roundtable at the white house where we discussed how to overcome this hate. and then we worked together to create the first ever national strategy to counter anti-semitism. and we could not have done it without this guy, president biden. we really couldn't. this is historic. and i want to thank you for that and your steadfast leadership and commitment for prioritizing this strategy and making sure that we got it done. after the strategy was complete i traveled around the country and around the world building coalitions and uniting people of all different backgrounds. because we know hate, it is like a venom coursing through the veins of our democracy. we all need to be against it. so our work does not stop here.

it does not stop when we leave the white house. so tonight i am re-dedicating myself to fighting anti-semitism and hatred of all kinds. [applause] and i'm going to continue to speak out when it matters most and i am going to continue to show up for our community when these challenges persist. last year i had the honor of visiting the town where my great grandparents were from in the old country. i never thought that this kid born in brooklyn, raised in jersey, who his great grandparents for lead -- fled persecution from what is now poland would be standing here today in the white house with the president of the united states. i am so honored to have served as urination's -- as your nation's first ever second gentleman, and i thank you for welcoming me so warmly. now, please join me in welcoming -- and all -- deputy --

thank you so much. [applause] >> good evening, everyone. as we gather here in the white house to honor hanukkah, i think about the power of this moment. telling the story of god's miracles and the faith jews have held onto for centuries. the power of miracles that have brought each of us here. the woman whose name i carry, my great-grandmother, lost her life in auschwitz. my grandmother survived and bore her number from auschwitz on her arm and in her heart. from her, my parents taught me to be deeply grateful for the gift of welcome that america provided us. and to so many of the families

in this room whose histories are tied to the hope we found in the light cast by lady liberty's torch. it's perhaps uniquely appropriate that hanukkah is the final holiday we celebrate with president joe biden here at the white house. because this is a holiday that celebrates faith, hope, and the power of a little light to dispel a whole lot of darkness. and over the course of his entire life and career, president biden has embodied that enduring spirit. in his personal life, his faith in even the darkest hours inspires us all to find strength during our own challenges. and as president, we all recall his historic trip to israel soon after october 7. [applause]

as our people reeled from pain, president joe biden came to pay a shiva call, he came to mourn with us, to hold us through our suffering, and remind us to never lose hope. that's president joe biden, always inspiring people to lead with dignity, integrity, and faith, and to spread their light in the darkness. as a community, our deep appreciation, mr. president, is more than words can ever say. [applause] and i personally feel so blessed and grateful to be among the countless lives you have touched. thank you for your leadership, and for all you represent to the jewish community, to america, into the world. ladies and gentlemen, please

welcome the president of the united states. [applause] pres. biden: my name is joe biden, and i'm jill biden's husband. and i was raised by -- some of you know me well -- by a righteous christian, my dad. my dad used to come home and rail against the fact that we didn't let -- we didn't bomb the railroad tracks, etc. my dad would always talk about our obligations in my dad was the one who inspired me. and i see my fellow father-in-law up there, ronnie. ronnie is a good friend. what happened was my dad always thought we had an obligation to

step up and talk about what happened. and he inspired me to take every one of my children and grand children from the rich age of 14 on their first trip overseas was to the camp. i wanted them to see what it was like. i wanted them to see that no one could have misunderstood what was going on in those camps. so they toured the camps. they toured them because i wanted them to know, they could not pretend it didn't happen, and it should never happen again. i learned a long time ago, you don't have to be a jew to be a zionist. i am a zionist. [applause] happy hanukkah, everyone. jill and i and kamala and doug are honored to host you here at the white house. you have been a true friend in a real leader. she has a beautiful son.

and i want to thank you all for being here tonight. when you walk around the white house you feel the history of the story of our nation including the story of the jewish people who came to our shores in the 1600s after fleeing persecution abroad. here in the east room there is a portrait of george washington. in 1790 a local jewish leader from rhode island wrote a letter to george washington expressing his hope that america would be a nation of religious freedom for all citizens. the nation was, quote, giving bigotry no sanction and -- the ancient hanukkah story when jewish maccabees religious freedom thousands of years ago, a letter to george washington echo the same vision for freedom. in every sense the values have shaped the very foundation of the character of our nation. that is why two years ago we display the first ever permanent white house menorah, made of the original wood from the white

house building. we display it again tonight to make clear that history and vibrancy of the jewish life is woven into the fabric of america, every aspect of it. and it is permanent. it's permanent. but i know this years hanukkah falls on the hearts that are still very heavy. it is the second hanukkah since the horrors of october 7. over 1000 slaughtered, hundreds taken hostage, unspeakable sexual violence and so much more. so much of that day is still raw and ongoing. i have gotten over 100 hostages out and i will not stop until i get every single one of them home. [applause] last month we -- so residents can safely return home. my commitment to the safety of the jewish people and security of israel and its right to exist as an independent nationstate

remains ironclad. [applause] i know the jewish community is also suffering from a despicable surge of anti-semitism in america and all around the world. it is immoral, it is wrong, and it must stop now. doug, i want to thank you for your leadership. i mean it sincerely. i know it is hard to find hope. while carrying so much sorrow. but from my perspective be people have always embodied the duality of pain and joy. the late rabbi jonathan sacks said, a people who can walk through the valley of the shadow of death and still rejoice is a people who cannot be defeated by any force of fear. [applause] that resilience and that capacity define faith and joy despite centuries of persecution and pain is your life. like the light of miracles

throughout jurors -- jewish history. let me close with this. throughout my life rabbis, jewish friends and colleagues have always been there for me and my family when we have gone through very tough times. i mean it sincerely, they have been there with us. they taught us so much about the optimistic spirit of the jewish people. above all they taught me one thing. we can never lose hope. hope, hope, hope. i've seen the power of that hope in my own life and in the life of our nation. next week you will light the eight candles on your menorahs. my final hanukkah message to you is this. as president, it is to hold onto that hope. shine your light. shine the light of optimism. and above all, keep the faith. keep the faith. may god bless you. happy hanukkah.

now i turn it over to the rabbi. [applause] by the way, i visited his semi gog to new york and he was so nice to me afterwards. rabbi, it is all yours. go get 'em. [applause] >> mr. president and dr. biden, on behalf of american jews with one voice and one heart, we are here to say we love you and we will miss you. [applause] we love you for your lifelong friendship with and support for the jewish people.

the lessons taught to you by your father, a blessed memory, on the price of an action, and the lessons you have taught us all on the perils of indifference. thank you for taking a stand against the scourge of anti-semitism and for your steadfast support of israel, especially in our darkest hour on october 7, and ever since protecting israel's security, working to bring hostages home, and easing the suffering of all people, israelis and palestinians alike. thank you for the legacy you leave for all of us of empathy, of civility, and being a mensch, that is the heart of our great nation. mr. president and dr. biden, for all these and so many more reasons, we love you and we will miss you. [applause]

tonight, we celebrate hanukkah by kindling the lights of the menorah. hanukkah doesn't actually start for a bit, so when we sing the blessings we are going to substitute. hanukkah tells a story of our mcabee ancestors who, upon entering the temple that was destroyed by the greeks, found a single cruise of oil, enough for just one night. and it miraculously lasted for eight. the sages asked the obvious question. if there was enough oil for one night, then that first night was technically not a miracle. hanukkah should be a seven night festival. [laughter] and while explanations abound for the miracle of the first night, the one that i believe speaks most urgently to this moment is that upon entering the ruins of the temple, one

imagines that our ancestors asked themselves, how can we possibly get through this darkness? and yet, they did not give in to despair. they found the spiritual reserves to kendall that first light -- to kindle that first light. that was the miracle of that first night, a raider miracle perhaps then all the other nights combined. as did our ancestors in their day, so too in our own. tonight we have entered this house and we light the candle, choosing hope over despair and light over darkness, committed to bringing miracles into our world in such desperate need of healing. please join me in reciting the three blessings loud and proud, followed by --

[speaking another language]

happy hanukkah.

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