♪ host: good morning. the senate returns at noon

eastern. the house is in at 9:00 a.m. three stories we are focusing on today. the gaza cease-fire announced yesterday, president biden's farewell address and the ongoing confirmation hearings on capitol hill. give us a call on any of those topics. the phone lines are split by political party. democrats, it is (202) 748-8000. republicans, (202) 748-8001. independents, (202) 748-8002. you can also send us a text. that number is (202) 748-8003. please include your name and where you are from. catch up with us on social media. x at @cspanwj. facebook.com/cspan. this is the headline running across the top of the wall street journal. negotiators reached gazan cease-fire deal.

a pathway to in the 15-month war. it would take effect on sunday. this was president biden announcing the deal. [video] pres. biden: the deal is structured in three phases. phase one will last six weeks. withdrawal of israeli forces from all populated areas of gaza and -- and the release of a number of hostages held by hamas, including women and elderly and the wounded. i'm proud to say america has been part of that hostage release and phase i as well. the vice president and i cannot wait to welcome them home. in exchange, israel released hundreds of prisoners. during phase one the palestinians can also return to their neighborhoods in all areas of gaza. in a surge of humanitarian assistance innocent people can

have a greater access to these vital supplies. during the next six weeks israel will negotiate the necessary arrangements to get phase two, a permanent end of the work. a permanent end of the war. there are a number of details to negotiate to move from phase one to phase two, but the plan says if negotiations take longer than six weeks, the cease-fire will continue as long as the negotiations continue. i have spoken to the mayor of kuwait and the president of egypt. -- emir of kuwait. negotiations will continue for as long as it takes. when phase two begins there will be an exchange for release of the remaining hostages, including male soldiers and all remaining israeli forces will be withdrawn from gaza.

and, temporary cease-fire will become permanent. finally, phase 3. any final remains of hostages who have been killed will be returned to their families. a major reconstruction plan for gaza will begin. host: president biden announcing the cease-fire deal, taking credit for the cease-fire deal. donald trump also taking credit for the cease-fire deal. this was his post yesterday on truth social. "this epic cease-fire agreement could have only happened as a result of our historicictory in november, as it signaled to the world my administration would seek peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all americans and our allies. i am thrilled that american and israeli hostages will be returning home to be reunited with their families and loved ones. we have achieved so much without even being in the white house. imagine all the wonderful things that will happen when i return

to the white house." donald trump set to return to the white house on monday. president biden leaving the white house on monday. last night president biden gave his farewell address to the nation. he talked about his accomplishments in his four years as president. this was last night. [video] pres. biden: i'm concerned about the potential rise of a tech industrial complex that can pose real dangers for our country as well. americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling the abuse of power. the free press is crumbling. social media is giving up on fact checking. the truth is smothered by lies told for power and profit. we must hold the social platforms accountable to protect our children, our families and

our very democracy from the abuse of power. meanwhile, artificial intelligence is the most consequential technology of our time, perhaps of all time. nothing offers more profound possibilities and risks for our economy and our security, our society. for humanity. artificial intelligence even has the potential to help us answer -- unless safeguards are in place, a i spot new threats to our rights, -- ai can spawn new threats to our rights and how we protect our nation. we must make sure ai is safe and trustworthy and good for all humankind. in the age of ai it is more important than ever that the people must govern. as the land of liberty, america, not china, must lead the world

in the development of ai. host: president biden last night from the white house talking about his warnings for the future on his way out the door of the white house. it is monday when inauguration day starts. we will cover it in its entirety on the washington journal and throughout the day. hope you join us for extended coverage on this program and watch the inaugural proceedings throughout the day here. your phone calls this morning. talking about the cease-fire deal, president biden's farewell, and those nominees that continue to go before senate committees on capitol hill. the confirmation hearings continuing this week. some 14 nominees -- hearings. 13 nominees on capitol hill. it is hard to follow it all but we hope you do with us on c-span. we will try to bring u.s. as many hearings as we can.

happy to talk about them this morning. we will start in clearwater, florida. robert. the phone line for republicans. caller: good morning to you. i think that's a good thing, the cease-fire. maybe you can stop this war altogether. have everybody go back to where they belong. it's a shame we had to get a world like that anyway. they attacked israel and that is wrong. i don't know what else to say. biden is leaving. that's the best thing in the world. host: do you think it was donald trump's election that was the key here to making the deal happen? caller: absolutely. they are afraid of donald trump. he will take whatever. -- won't take whatever. host: the wall street journal on the truce deal.

according to those involved in the negotiations, steven witkoff, a real estate mogul designated by donald trump s is middle east envoy that breathed fresh life into the negotiations. arab mediators say made clear from the get-go he was serious about pushing through an agreement. witkoff met with netanyahu. that you announced yesterday. doug from south dakota, democrat. caller: i heard on cnn the deal is off now. something about hamas changing their plans. blinken gave a speech at the event at consul -- atlantic consul. first time i've heard him criticize israel. biden gave his speech on foreign

policy also. everyone is created equal and deserves a fair shot. seems to have forgotten about the palestinian people. both want a two state solution, trump and biden, which they know is not going to happen. israel is not going to let that happen. for not doing so, trump -- gaza and the west bank will become all israel with a little bit of syria and lebanon added. the total disappearance of palestine eventually. i think it is all wrong over there. they killed 50,000 people i believe. the icc court should put the crime -- even biden should be charged. it is not over yet. it will continue. the next step will be iran. just wait and see.

they will not allow nuclear weapons over there. that will be the next target. i wish all the killing would stop. they are both claiming to have done the deal. i don't know who will get the credit. kind of like a jimmy carter when he's going out. anyway, it is good they are thinking about stopping but they are not going to. have a good. host: vince in houston, texas. independent. good morning. are you with us? caller: how are you doing this morning? i'm sorry. a couple of comments. i'm an independent. i have voted for both republican and democratic presidents. i'm so sick and tired of everybody has to win. if the hostages get released, who cares if biden did it or trump did it? they are getting released. number two, on the confirmation

hearings, i'm embarrassed when i hear people act so self-righteous and go after these people on their character when they don't look in their own bedrooms. hegseth about having affairs. well, bill clinton had one and no one says anything about it. as far as yesterday's hearing with pam bondi, everybody talks about how tone is so important. the gentleman from california pointing his finger at a woman trying to get confirmed, doesn't that show disrespect for women that the democrats always talk about? i want to send a message to mark cuban. trump don't like strong women. that woman yesterday ate every man's lunch that was trying to get her to mess up on her answers. as far as blumenthal is

concerned, i do with from anybody that lied about fighting with our great veterans in vietnam. nobody brings that up. i know i'm sounding negative but it has got to stop. if i had to bet today, it never will. host: that is vince in texas. we will take you to pam bondi's confirmation hearing. her exchange with senator alex padilla of california. this from yesterday. [video] >> i'm glad you asked the question about pennsylvania. >> it is a yes or no question. >> senator, i was hoping you would ask the question. >> do you have evidence, yes or no? >> i traveled to pennsylvania. >> you are not answering my question. if you have no evidence to offer, let me offs -- ask you this. will you attract previous statements that trump won pennsylvania, yes or no? >> i traveled to pennsylvania

and let me tell you what i saw firsthand. >> yes or no? >> i didn't talk about california because i was not in california. >> yes or no? >> i talked about pennsylvania -- >> she's not answering my questions. for everybody, members of the committee and everybody watching, the attorney you stood beside, mr. giuliani, has been disbarred from multiple jurisdictions for making false claims about the 2020 election in court. like mr. giuliani, as you noted today, you have taken an oath to uphold the constitution as an attorney. now you are asking us to consider to service the chief law enforcement officer in our country. it is imperative, ms. bondi, that you subscribe to facts and evidence and not politically convenient conspiracy theories.

i'm speaking. your job will be to protect voters and election workers, not to undermine and dox them. earlier you agree that joe biden is in fact the president. the president-elect's inner circle continues to spread the big lie about the 2020 election. >> may i speak? you cut me off when i was speaking. >> i hope you and her, ms. bondi. -- answer, ms. monty. -- ms. bondi. >> i'm not going to be bullied by you. >> it was deeply disappointing. >> i guess you would hear my answer. >> an opportunity to study overnight. can you tell me end this committee with the citizenship clause of the 14th amendment says? >> senator, i'm here to answer your questions. i'm not here to do your homework and study for you. if i'm confirmed --

>> you are the one asking for a confirmation. >> can i please finish? >> what does the 14th amendment says? >> it addresses birthright citizenship. i look forward to given you remarks today working with you and the people of california if i am confirmed as the 87th attorney general of the united states of america. i did not take your homework assignment. i'm sorry. i was repairing for today. -- preparing for today. host: pam bondi yesterday on capitol hill. if you want to watch that hearing in its entirety, you can do so at c-span.org. stay with c-span on c-span2 and 3. more confirmation hearings coming. interior secretary picked doug burgum today, along with treasury secretary pick businessman scott bessent. we talked about several topics.

the cease-fire deal in gaza, its future. biden's farewell address last night. confirmation hearings. phone lines for democrats, republicans and independents. shirley, go ahead. caller: thank you for taking my call. i watch fox news almost all day long. i try to keep up on all this stuff. i give pam a lot of credit for what she went through yesterday. i do believe she will be good when she is put in that office. what i'm calling about is the cease-fire business. this exchange of hostages and on and on and on. i truly believe we need to hold this off until trump is in office. then i believe they should bring every last one of those hostages home at the same time, dead or

alive. allowed trump to be in charge. it will be done and it will be done right. their prisoners, if they have committed murder, they have nothing to say about those people. if they want their hostages back they better do what trump says or they might be sorry they did not. thank you very much for taking my call. host: as a caller alluded to earlier, the deal is not done yet. the latest reporting from npr. benjamin netanyahu said a cabinet meeting scheduled to vote today on the peace deal between israel and hamas has been delayed to a blow to the hopes for a cease-fire. netanyahu saying the meeting will only happen when hamas pulls back on them answer what he called last-minute concessions, adding hamas has reneged on parts of the

agreement reached with the mediators. the deal not yet done. announced yesterday. a few key votes and movements in the israeli government before it is official. we will see what happens throughout the day. larry in houston, texas. democrat. caller: thanks for taking my call. i hope they did solve it in the middle east. all these people hollering about a two state solution, it was written in 1948 when this happened. avonex combat veteran -- i am an ex combat veteran. i'm glad my kids are not in the military because they will be war. syria now belongs to turkey. america will not fight nobody that is backed by nuclear

power. turkey one of those kurdish people out of syria. and the syrians want the golan heights. israel has a problem. all these people with all this trump did this, great. biden administration was totally wrong. totally wrong with this. israel committed genocide on these people. people talk about the hostages. how many palestinians have been killed? not just when this war started but before? host: how do you think this does end? caller: it is not going to end good. these people, the palestinians are still oppressed. they are still under israel's control. why do you think these people are fighting? these people want to be free in their own land to control themselves.

that is what they want. like i said, people think it is over. biden did a terrible job, and i'm a democrat. he did a terrible job. until america stops backing israel like this we will stay in problems. host: did you watch joe biden's farewell address last night? he laid out some of his, strengths and warnings for the future. -- accomplishments and warnings for the future. caller: all the people that live in this fantasy world forgot where we were when trump left. this country was heading for -- the economy was so bad. it was so bad. just remember what i said about turkey. just remember what i said about turkey and syria.

israel don't have to worry about weapons coming through syria anymore. through the golan heights and all that no more. turkey is going to get the kurdish people that america is backing. they will make them move out of their. they don't the kurds to have their own state. host: mike from maryland, you are next. caller: good morning. in biden's farewell address yesterday, i remember when he was a real moderate republican -- democrat. he was not this far left. he really did seem to be very pessimistic. he seemed to be bitter about something. talking about facing this oligarchy.

really? i guess. his party kind of screwed him. they had no choice, i guess. he wasn't very bright -- positive. he said a couple of things i agreed with about the press and fact checking. we have not been fact checking the left. the other thing that needs attention is the dark money to political action committees. there is such a thing. it happens where people donate to these pacs and remain anonymous and the pacs don't have to report where the money came from and contribute to the campaigns. i think we need to look at that. host: the oligarchy he talks about. "an oligarchy is taking shape of extreme wealth, power and

influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead. we see the consequences all across america." caller: i think it's a little extreme. we have seen trump for years and years. to say that, did or things like that -- to save bitter things like that -- to say bitter things like that. the tech industrial complex, maybe we need that. think about it. you guys have a great day and enjoy the last days of democrats in office. i'm looking forward to a safe and happy monday. host: the tech industrial complex he talked about harkening back to dwight eisenhower's farewell address in 19 six he went in which he

famously warned of the military-industrial complex. joe biden with a 17-minute farewell address from behind the resolute desk at the oval office yesterday. this is kimberly in las vegas, democrat. good morning. caller: i was actually trying to save my call for trump's inauguration. i had to speak on joe biden's farewell address. joe biden actually was a good president. i know you guys are grading him about a couple of days ago. i think he deserves a solid b. i think he was a good president. the problem was he had a few issues that -- crises he couldn't -- i don't know what it was. the first thing was merrick garland. merrick garland, the -- the doj.

host: the attorney general. caller: when he appointed merrick garland as attorney general, first mistake. it should have been kamala or xavier becerra of california. host: what were they have done differently? caller: he was basically trying to be too moderate. nonpartisan. he could have picked up those issues about the all the report -- mueller report. there were things they could have charged trump for but merrick garland said we are not going to charge him. we are not going to look at that. at the beginning, merrick garland was an issue. that was joe biden's first mistake. the second mistake was afghanistan. he should is that it is on our timetable. that is how we are going to do it this way. we will give them enough time for our people to get people

out. that was the second thing, the timetable. he should have just said we will do it on my timetable. third thing, pardoning of his son. his son was going to be pardoned, to what. whether it was trump, kamala or human office dashcam in office -- him in office. there was no way he would let his son rot in jail when he is that old. for people to not understand that is crazy. he should have just said no comment. my family is off. i'm not going to talk about my family. he should have just pardoned him. no one would have said anything. host: you don't think people would have said anything? caller: no one who has children -- people who have children who love their children or even people who don't have children but they understand a father and a son or a family unit. no one would have commented. it would have been comments for

24, 48 hours. he never should have commented about it. he should have just pardon him and called it a day. the fourth thing was him running for reelection. he never should have ran, never should have said -- i thought he was too old in 2020. we needed someone to rally behind. he was a good guy. he's a good person. why not him? and, this is the last thing, my life -- my extended family's life. we are better because joe biden was president. just like the last caller, when joe biden came in we had lost so many jobs here. i'm in las vegas. this trip was shut down for the first time in 50 years. this trip was shut down. -- the strip was shut down. it's a service economy here. when joe biden came in -- that was under trump. when joe biden came in and got

the shots in arms, people saw family again. people able to move and get a different job. they didn't have to stay at the same job. they were able to make more money. that was under joe biden. people need to understand that yes, he had hubris. certain things he should have been more straightforward with and have read lines with a lot of things. he was a good president. he wasn't ever the smartest guy in the room, which he always thought he probably was, which he wasn't. but he was a good president. my family and my family's life was better because he was president. host: that is kimberly giving joe biden a solid b. the numbers from the washington times story on it on joe biden's approval ratings at the end of his presidency. an associated press poll found last week that 47% of

respondents rated mr. biden as poor or terrible. only 25% said mr. biden was a good or great president in comparison. 36% said mr. trump was good or great when he left office four years ago. 52% said the same thing about barack obama in 2016. that was from the washington times story. taking your phone calls. just 7:30 on these coast. a two hour washington journal today. the house is in at 9:00 a.m. eastern. we will take you there for live coverage when they do come in. taking your phone calls throughout these two hours. tedla in flushing, new york. caller: good morning to you. i followed joe biden's speech. it was a little short. it should have started with what's going on in california.

that is what joe biden should have done. america is on fire. the whole world is watching america on fire. whether he believes -- i don't understand. he voted for environment to issues. why doesn't he start with that one? he did a lot of things. you cannot blame him for the economy. he did something. the way he put it, have the people's man, i was disappointed. it was good what he did with the palestinian issue. he took 10 months. he worked very hard. antony blinken. a lot of good things.

it is said. -- sad. maybe we don't think he is a good person but i can tell you that. it will be there. now this meant is a failure because americans are worried about their pockets and the economy is bad. in 2020, i called your program. when joe biden talks about covid, he never gets credit for donald trump's vaccination. i'm disappointed. he took that one. the same thing with this issue of this negotiation. president biden did it. now he took over it.

we should be humble and respectful. host: we will take your point. you talk about how joe biden put it last night. he was laying at his accompaniments. here is president biden from his farewell address. [video] pres. biden: it will take time to feel the full impact of all we have done together. but the seeds are planted and they will grow and they will bloom for decades to come. at home we have created nearly 17 million jobs. more than any other single administration in a single term. more people have health care than ever before. overseas we have strengthened nato. ukraine is still free. we pulled ahead of our competition with china. and so much more. i'm so proud of how much we have accomplished together for the american people. i wish the incoming administration success.

i went america to succeed -- want america to succeed. that is why i will ensure a peaceful transition of power, to ensure that we lead by the power of our example. i have no doubt america is in a position to continue to succeed. that is why my farewell address tonight i want to win the country of some things that give me great concern. -- one the country. -- warn the country. the concentration of power in the hands of a few ultra-wealthy people. the dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked. today an oligarchy is taking shape in america. extreme wealth, power, influence that threatens our entire democracy. our basic rights and freedoms. a fair shot for everyone to get ahead. host: president biden last night in his farewell address. in the washington post, george

will has a different take on joe biden's years in office. a president's road to ruin. "several issues led to that road to ruin. the seeds of its ruin were sound with the american rescue plan which pumped up demand for goods and services beyond the capacity of the economy to produce the predicted result was inflation. it was exasperated by the inflation reduction act's toward of subsidies in the service of industrial policy. no prior president used masking medication more insultingly -- mass communication more insultingly with his warnings about the dangers of americans imposing jim crow 2.0 and voting for semi fascism. democrats would save american democracy in 2024. the saving would presumably begin after democrats missed trying to ban his opponents for the ballot and incarcerating

donald trump. " that is george will today in the washington post. david in salisbury, maryland. republican. good morning. caller: thanks for taking my call. i want to talk about the speech last night. thank god we get trump next week. biden talking about the oligarchy, a small group of rich people. they want to be dictators and things like that. that is totally absurd. he's got it all wrong. he was so negative last night. the lady was talking about joe biden being such a -- one of the best presidents we had. that is totally asinine. that is ridiculous. look at the borders being open. look at these poor females being killed by these illegal immigrants. look at the fentanyl coming into our country. look at the condition of our country and how the jobs --

despite what joe biden says, jobs have been lower since trump is been in there. thank god we will get a decent america that loves america host: jim -- loves america. host: jim. caller: i want to talk about the nominations. we look at pam bambi. host: bondi. caller: whatever her name is. come on. when you are an election denier and you will be the head, that is a joke. then pete. he said himself he was denied protection for biden because he had a tattoo about some religious fanaticism.

what you have to remember about america, it was set up and realized by the founding fathers that it will be a problem with these different religions. people left other countries in europe for freedom. even though i don't believe in this other trash religion, they have the right to believe whatever they want. that is america. host: that is jim in wisconsin. duane in new york. independent. caller: good morning. trump nominations or pre-nominations, it is funny how we all look back and say, well, he's trying to make america great again or whatever his phrases are. the cabinet is not a reflection of america. most people, black folks did not vote for him. look at his entire cabinet. they are older white men sprinkled in with white women.

he shows who he is. we are accepting. like the guy from maryland. he cannot wait for trump to get into office. are you serious. you can't wait for a man like that? host: we are losing your line but we got your point. middleton, ohio. roger. republican. caller: it would take a while to sail the stuff i want to say. the new job situation. they replacing the ones that covid eliminated. mr. whatever his name was -- i'm a korean veteran. they can reinforce all the important [indiscernible] they will come back and do it again.

the koreans agreed to a peaceful -- we bring the heavy equipment up. that's a 1600 situation. joe biden was the worst president we ever had. he made no sense. his little talk of the day he wasted 15 out of 17 minutes. the two minutes that were good was e said hello and when he say goodbye. obama and all these people the destroyed america. things were going great until the covid situation came in. i'm a military man. i haveserious situations from combat. they made me take these two shots. i took the covid shots. within six months i had a massive heart attack in phoenix.

i had to pay $1100 to get flown back to ohio so i can be treated. the situation with the democrats, they are living in 1948. harry truman was probably the last good democratic president. roosevelt, when the japanese attacked us, he knew they were coming. how could you let 4000 folks leave japan and us not know about it? host: we will stick to the new stories from yesterday just because there were so many. it was a big news day yesterday. we are focusing on the biden farewell, the confirmation hearings, the cease-fire deal. brad stevens writing in the new york times today, sang in the deal the price for israel will in many ways be very heavy for the israeli hostages released. israel will release several palestinian prisoners, many with israeli blood on their hands. it was through one such release

that the mastermind of the october 7 massacre was freed. the phased nature begin with the release of 33 hostages, most living but many most likely dead. he will leave an unknown -- they will leave an unknown number behind and giving hamas opportunity to extract additional concessions. this is stan in florida, independent. caller: how are you doing? that report that was put out, if he didn't win the election he would be in prison because of january 6. that lady that watches fox news, they had $700 billion for the wrong information. donald trump ran to stay out of prison. i hope you stopped selling guns and watches and all the stuff he

sells. jared kushner got billions from saudi arabia. host: any thoughts on donald trump's nominees on capitol hill? caller: everyone of them has to kiss the ring. they can't say he won or lost the election because he still has not admitted he lost the election. host: is there any nominee you think is qualified? caller: marco rubio. host: why do you like marco rubio? caller: he's been around. he's from florida. pam bondi got $25 million to stop the university think when she was there -- thing when she was there, trump university. he gave her $25 million. he still can't admit he lost the election. there are a thousand people in prison. they will release them all. he wants to release them all. elon musk gave him half $1

billion. if you didn't pay the lawyer fees he would have never been able to run. host: he mentioned marco rubio, the one you think is qualified. this is senator rubio yesterday, nominated for secretary of state. [video] >> the commonest party of china leads the prc. it is the most potent and dangerous adversary this nation has ever confronted. they have elements of the soviet union never possessed. they are a technological adversary, industrial competitor, geopolitical competitor. a scientific competitor now in every realm. it's an extra ordinary challenge that will define the 21st century. when they read the book, they will be chapters about putin and other places but the bulk of the book about the 21st century will be not just about china but about the relationship between china and the united states and

what direction it went. if we stay on the road we are on right now, less than 10 years, virtually every thing that matters to us in life will depend on whether china will allow us to have it or not. everything from the blood pressure medicine we take to what movies we get to watch and everything in between will depend on china. they have come to dominate the critical mineral industry, the supplies throughout the world. they have established critical mineral rights. even those who want to see more electric cars, those batteries are almost entirely dependent on the ability of the chinese and the willingness of the chinese commonest party to produce and export it. if we don't change course, much of what matters to us on a daily basis, from our security to our health will be dependent on whether the chinese allow us to have it or not. that's an unacceptable outcome. host: marco rubio yesterday. this is sam from fayetteville, north carolina. republican. good morning to you, sir.

caller: good morning, john. thank you for letting me talk. biden will go down as the -- one of the worst presidents in the history of the united states. one of the most corrupt presidents. he weaponized the doj to go after his political opponents. particularly president trump. he knew about the raid on mar-a-lago and did not do a darn thing about it. i think the only happy person was president carter. he went to his grave knowing he's no longer the worst president of the united states. host: that is sam. anne in clinton, maryland. democrat. caller: good morning. i'm hope unclear. -- i'm clear. i heard one of the persons who spoke about biden being the

worst president. i also had brothers in service. the worst part about that is there were those who were killed in service. i had an uncle -- i'm sorry, great uncle. a great, great uncle that was killed during the war. not world war ii. he was killed earlier. these people never had a chance to collect insurance money or have their souls be in a better place on this earth from the services they have given. we have to be thing for. to say president biden is the worst president, we can aim other people. i'm not going to talk about what happened with him. nixon had to resign. i was in college and i was blessed enough by my mom who was thrifty to encourage me to continue college while others had to stop. there have been some wonderful things that happened but we have

to take advantage of a wonderful thing and not concentrate on the bad things. when they said president biden did not do anything, you have to look at the number of republicans, those that did not want anything done versus those that wanted to have things done. the numbers were outweighed. i don't want to go into a dialogue about that. the opponents during the campaign were called profane names. kamala harris, vice president harris is a female. these people said they respect females. the way they called her names, i don't understand. i do understand. i believe karma will come for them. host: anne in maryland. you mentioned richard nixon's resignation on august , 1975 -- august 9, 1974. the ford inauguration, known as

the warmest inauguration, took place in august. it was 89 degrees. it is expected to be much colder on january 20 this year. predictions for the weather in the 20's and low 30's in washington, d.c.. the story from usa today looking back at various inauguration day weather forecasts. the warmest, more traditional inauguration, the january 20 not gratian, 1981 -- inauguration. 1981. 55 degrees. the coldest was ronald reagan in 1985, the temperature just 7 degrees. the inauguration was moved indoors. ronald reagan taking the oath of office under the capitol dome. a smaller ceremony because they could only fit the number of people who fit inside the dome. the rainiest was 1937, franklin

roosevelt's second inauguration. 1.8 inches fell that they. the snowiest, eight inches the night before john f. kennedy was sworn in. his famous statement, ask not what your country can do for you part of that 1961 inauguration. mark in hempstead, maryland. good morning. caller: how are you doing today? host: doing well. caller: biden's speech last night. he uses that speech to preach what the left has formative for the last 60, 70 years the ideology of kennedy. he mentioned oligarchs and watching out for the rich and powerful. it is funny. democrats never seem to actually know the tax code. they don't realize the so-called 1%, the rich, pay the lion share

of taxes in this country. there are many people who pay no taxes. the left is always preaching for making them pay their fair share. you look at russia when they got rid of the czar, they were going to make the 1% pay their fair share. they put about 6 million farmers on trains for xi variant so the -- siberia so they could freeze to death. hitler did the same thing. he was a socialist. he said look around. the 1% are taking advantage of us. he proceeded to put them in internment camps. i have a question for democrats. i hope somebody can give me a number on this. not a lecture or speech but an actual number. what is your fair share of what somebody else has earned?

thanks. i will wait for my answer. host: this is jerry in winston-salem, north carolina. caller: good morning and thank you for having me. the cease fire in israel, i do believe -- they are still negotiating. except for donald trump given the warning that all hell will break out if they don't release hostages. he keeps his word. biden talks about in his address he would keep his word but he didn't keep his word. the cease-fire would not have happened unless donald trump got involved. biden in his address once again was making up fantasies. he wanted to warn us about the rich and all of that. he and their party spent billions of dollars -- over a billion dollars on the campaign for a woman that was absolutely

not qualified. then the confirmation hearings, the way they attacked, the democrats, donald trump's nominees is totally embarrassing for the democratic party. you can tell they still didn't understand why they lost the election. why their agenda for transgenders and all that is an important part to the true americans them with their daughters in the bathroom with men or boys, or in sports. it is common sense why donald trump won the election and why the democrats have been so out of touch with the normal people of the united states of america. host:about who took credit for t hostage deal. this is the editorial board of the wall street journal.

the lead editorial. saying president biden took credit, "i lay out the precise contours of the plant back on may 31 of 2024." why is it happening now instead of then when hamas rejected it for a year? biden pushed this rock up the hill only to see it roll back down each time. the u.s. election changed the regional calculus, threatening hell to pay if hostages were not freed by junior 20. mr. trump an american tower changed the incentives for the parties -- american power changed the incentives for the parties. six weeks from now, we'll mr. trump give the backing to exit the deal and finish hamas? he pledged to work with israel and our allies to make sure gaza never again becomes a terrorist safe haven. the editorial board of the wall street journal. scott in florida, independent.

caller: good morning. that speech last night, he warned about rich oligarchs coming in. let's not forget they had twice as much money in their campaign. they put twice as much money and lost. they literally gave the medal of freedom to george soros, the men with the darkest money on the planet -- man with the darkest money on the planet. talking about speaking out of his rear. i'll tell you what. did you see joe's wife and son? did you see kamala and her husband? they looked bad. they looked worried. they looked like they were up all night for nights. they looked scared. one last thing, we will find out about covid.

we will find out the truth about january 6. we will find out. uncle sam took an uppercut from this commonest left. -- communist left. four days from now they will get hit with the overhand right. i promise you the administration is going to change. this country is going to change in everyone listen loud and clear. this world is going to change. remember what i just said? host: you talk about campaign spending in 2024. open secrets -- opensecret study ts.org. $1.9 billion raised. the harris campaign with some $1.1 billion in candidate money.

donald trump, $463 million. outside money contriving to the race. it's almost equal in the spending to close to $1 billion. the amount of money there. opensecrets.org. it is not just presidential. it is the senate candidates and the house candidates as well. open seek -- opensecrets.org. russell and virginia, democrat. -- in virginia, democrat. caller: i meant to call on the independent line. host: we want people to call on the lights identify with because it takes a call away from summit who calls and on their lines. call back on your line and we will go to the independent line where john is waiting in pennsylvania. go ahead. host: -- caller: good morning.

the historians will rank biden in the top 10 of all the presidents, mainly because in the four years he's been in. i want to mention also about pam bondi. her testimony. she brings a pennsylvania. like there was some kind of fraud in pennsylvania. the only fraud was a republican and put his mother and mother-in-law on the ballot. they both were dead. that was the only fraud in pennsylvania in 2020. i don't know where she comes off at this pennsylvania thing. i'm a pennsylvania resident. in pennsylvania, it was a fair election. as far as biden, his speech last night was terrific. in four years he's done more than any other president in existence. to put him down and make them sound like he's some kind of

gangster. the guy coming in the office now has some reputation. i can't believe people voted for this guy. it will be voter's of remorse in the next four years. host: grant in washington, d.c. independent. caller: it is remarkable that joe biden chose to highlight tech oligarchs as a threat to democracy. if jfk had the opportunity to give a farewell address, he would have highlighted his fight for the palestinian right to return, the u.s. opposition to the israelis building nuclear weapons, and his own fight to register the israel lobby as israeli foreign agent. he was not able to do that. here we are. the people want to read the senate record about haul all

this happened, pick up a copy of how israel made apac, the $60 million they paid to set that operation up. host: this is constance in virginia, democrat. caller: good morning. i wanted to say i was quite irritated listening to some of these people saying bad things about president biden. president biden is a moral and wonderful man and i'm sorry to lose him right now. very caller: i wanted to say that i was quite rotated listening to some of these people thing that rings about president biden. throw that phone away and the tv and tell those people --

host: apologize for the language. this is lenny, republican. caller: how are you doing? host: i'm doing well. caller: i just wanted to point out something that the news media really hasn't been touching on because of all the highlights going on lately. and that is the fact that michelle obama -- host: i tell you, what we are trying to do this morning is focus this discussion, because there's a lot of happened yesterday, the cease-fire deal, the confirmation hearings, do you have any comments or thoughts about those issues? we lost lenny. this is mark in san jose, california, democrat. caller: thanks for having me on. i am a retired marketing manager in my own business here and i'm in new york jewish boy.

it's been a joke, that these people are doing whatever mr. trump seems to want, and it's very, very upsetting. enough so i'm considering leaving this country. host: where would you go? caller: canada, mexico. i used to have a place in mexico. they have a female president now that seems to have the right idea. in canada, the only thing i would have to fear is if -- the united states. this is not the country that i fought for. i'm a vietnam veteran. and what i see now, it horrifies me. but i see a moving toward autocracy and enabling and supporting it.

he's very plain in his language about what he's going to do from day one on. and i don't understand. i still have a lot to figure out as to how the american people supported this. a criminal. he talks about all kinds of other things. he's been found guilty of 34 felonies, is a sexual predator, he owes a ton of money. i'm not impressed with him as a businessman and never was, and at this point we are in real trouble. host: that's mark in california. just after 8:00 a.m. on the east coast. only 9:00 a.m., and we are taking your phone calls throughout this morning. the cease-fire deal in gaza has yet to be officially a done deal and has run into some trouble

today as npr and other outlets have reported as well. the biden farewell address was last night, or these confirmation hearings that continued today on capitol hill, including this morning, donald 'picture interior seetary, doug burgum is on capi hill for his hearing before the senatgy and na resrces committee. live coverage on c-span 2 at 10:00 a.m. eastern and scott bessent has a confirmation hearr trsury secretary for the senate finance committee. at is live at 10:30 a.m. eastern on c-span three. for the house and senate schedule today, the senate is in at noon eastern and of course the reason we are leaving you at 9:00 a.m. is because the house is in at 9:00 a.m. stay here for gavel-to-gavel coverage. philadelphia, independent, good morning. caller: good morning.

i wanted to focus on biden's farewell speech. i give him a c because even though he did a good job on the economy, the u.s. cost-of-living increases for federal retirees, he stabilized as far as all the sectors are concerned, the economy is concerned, he did a great job there. but he failed on border security, he failed on foreign policy. two wars that would not have happened if president trump was in office. he also failed on the immigrant issue and crime in our country, crime is unforeseen. it just has affected our communities so much. that's all i have to say. host: this is rob in california,

republican. go ahead. caller: i hope you give me a little bit of time here. number one, if you pull up the debt clock, we are so many trillions in debt and when trump aide this thing over, 3, 4, five months before covid-19 hits, we had the lowest unemployment ever in the united states. i'm so tired of hearing the democrats and the liberals put trump down. he had the finest economy going. everybody was working, he made deals to bring united states companies back into the u.s. and manufacture in the u.s. and nobody remembers that. if we didn't have that strong economy we would have been devastated through covid-19. gas double out here in california. $7.65 for a bag of potato chips, give me a break.

inflation, everything went up. so don't give me that. and also the only reason joe biden did amnesty for his son was so that the money they brought in through ukraine and china is cut off and we don't expose him. but he's going to be expose after donald trump comes in. they are going to expose and that his son. that is why he cut the deal for his son to protect himself. host: that is rob in california. this is bonnie in florida, independent. caller: i'm calling in reference to the gentleman who asked someone to call in and make a statement about how much taxes the wealthy should pay. he made the comment that 1% of our country is paying all the taxes, the majority of taxes. any mathematician can tell you that of course the rich are paying more because they make

more. the problem i have with the tax system and trumps desire to continue to lower the taxes for corporations and americans in general is the fact that look at what trump did. when he was in office and we were finally able to get a record of what is taxes, how much money he paid in taxes, if anyone recalls, in a six year period if my memory is correct he paid a total of $750 in taxes. give me a break. if the rich are going to pay, they should all pay fairly and there's too many tax loops. so my recommendation would be to have some kind of a table where you pay a set amount of taxes and then don't get away with all of these loopholes. secondly relating to the

hearings, when it comes to all of these people that are being presented on the republican side of the party, and i am independent, i believe in many of the republican policies. i'm very concerned about this nominee, except -- pete hegseth. all the republicans could tout was his wonderful war record and that he was a veteran. my concern is his managerial experience and the disaster, apparently, that was reported and is documented regarding the lack of financial welldoing with the nonprofit organizations he worked for. to me, if the republicans are in such a rush to get these people through that they are not even allowing people to speak to the democratic side of the party like pete hegseth only spoke

with greed, why don't they select candidates who aren't going to be challenges in the process? that is all i have to say, thank you. host: you talk about what republicans are saying about dollar trumps nominees, we are going to talk to one republican house member, jim baird, republican of indiana, member of the foreign affairs committee coming up at about 8:30, 8:45 this morning. in about five minutes or so, it is democratic gabe vasquez of new mexico will be joining us, a member of the armed services committee. conversations with a few members of congress happening in this hour ahead of busy day on capitol hill and as we continue to take your phone calls. this is henry in new mexico, democrat, go ahead. caller: top of the morning and thank you for taking my call. i have a special request i would like to make. i would like to see c-span do a

chronological history of social security, because this is one of the things on the hit list and i'm quite sure that we are going to have some serious changes with regards to this particular system. the reason i say c-span is because probably you would be able to post it on your website or whatever and a lot of people would have access to it. host: we always appreciate suggestions come you have any thoughts on the hearing for cap length -- happening on capitol hill or joe biden's farewell address? caller: i often times wonder whether or not any of the nominees for the open positions would be able to pass a background check. that includes the president for

the office. i don't think that any of them would be able to pass a background check. i don't know how they would be able to function. but at any rate, i appreciate you taking my call and thank you so much for c-span. host: this is annie in new jersey, go ahead. caller: morning and happy new year. i just want to say that after the election i was very sad, but i had to turn off the news and just enjoy my holiday. joe biden was still our president and i was very happy about that. so the thing is, i want to say a fond farewell. joe biden did a great job and i just want to say to democrats and anybody who disagrees with trump, it is time to come back now, support democrats because i don't want to see a lot of fighting and gossip and nailbiting.

i just want to see healthy debates about what the american people want in america, and i say god bless to america, we are still a great country and don't lose hope. keep the faith. host: you talk about democrats coming together. on monday afternoon, who would you say would be the leader of the democratic party? caller: that's hard to say. i love kamala, i was very sad that she did not win the election, but she is wonderful, she is so strong. and i also like michelle obama. she's another one that is so strong and she's got such strong fortitude, and i love that. that is what we need democrats to do. stop with the gossip and the nailbiting and just be strong, the who we are meant to be.

show the humanity. show what is going on with the american people. and every time trump does something stupid, just ignore it, because what he says and what reality is could be two different things. work with democrats, forget about trump. work with democrats to make america great. you want to make america great, stop with all the taxcutting and all of these things that are hurting people and making us poor. host: why should republicans forget about donald trump if you just won every swing state in the 2024 election? caller: to be honest with you, i'm just going to say this. i don't know that he really got all those votes. i can't believe so many americans -- host: you don't believe the

dollar trump one in 2024? caller: look, if they say he won, he won. but all the gerrymandering and the things that republicans did prior help to get democrats elected. host: how did you feel when there were some republicans saying that they didn't believe that joe biden won in 2020? caller: well look, we know all the lies and trump telling them find 10,000 more votes and all of this other stuff. and everything he went through, and the courts said there was no voter fraud. but i don't want to get into that, that's the past. the past is the past. i'm saying we have to work together and where he is calling for division, democrats and republicans have to say we are not playing this game anymore. we've got to do what is right for the american people, that is

it. but i just want democrats, because i know a lot of democrats have turned off the tv, i love c-span. i will be watching you this next four years because i really feel like you guys really report, you really are fair and equal and i love that. i'm turning everything else off because it sounds like a lot of gossip to me. and i don't want to hear that. host: middletown, new jersey. we will get to more of your calls in just a few minutes but we want to take viewers now up to capitol hill to the canon rotunda where we are joint ahead of a day in the house by democrat gabe vasquez who represents new mexico's second district on capitol hill. congressman vasquez, we been talking about president joe biden's farewell address last night. how do you think he did, how do you think america's 46th resident remembered? guest: thanks for having me on.

i think certainly president biden leaves a legacy behind in that it's going to take several years if not decades for the american people to fully realize some of the historic investments this administration made in things like infrastructure and climate change. i've really been focused for last two years on my district and the progress made in my district. just recently we announced almost 62 million dollars in infrastructure to repair roads in my own town to the department of transportation, and there are so many more success stories from this administration that have touched rural communities, everyone from farmers to farmworkers to small business owners to international trade. i was really focused on how we can get the ministration to match some of their ambition to making those dollars flow to the ground, and i think we are starting to see a lot more of that now. host: the second district runs along the entire length of new mexico's border with mexico.

donald trump has promised executive orders on day one having to do with immigration, having to do with securing the border. how are you preparing in the second district, what are you expecting? guest: i come from an immigrant family. the story of the american dream a lot of immigrants hope to reach when they come to this country. the truth is that in my district in many places around the country we depend on immigrant labor. but it is not just the labor itself, it is those hispanic families who come from in the good backgrounds that help power are small businesses. it is veterans, it is folks from all across every spectrum of education and health care that contribute to this nation and contribute to this country. so what i'm focused on is finding bipartisan solutions so we can actually meet the nation's workforce needs and any district like mine that looks like farmworkers, that looks like rural health care workers intertribal communities, rural

communities, international trade is also a huge part of how our economy works along the u.s. mexico border. we have one of the fastest growing ports of entry and our largest trading partner in the u.s. of course is mexico so we have to think about diplomatic solutions to grow the economy, reform our immigration system and finally have a system that is humane and also helps contribute to our economy. that is what i will be focused on in terms of working with the trump administration and republicans in the upcoming two years. host: you are one of 11 democrats who won any district that donald trump won in the 2024 election. so what lessons do you take from that, does that influence how you will be representing the second district on capitol hill? guest: our approach in this election may different than other democrats, but for me it was really showing up first and foremost. second is not excluding the latino electorate as a separate electorate.

i do have a majority hispanic district and the issues that impact hispanic folks in our community who may be third or fourth, fifth generation, or new folks coming to this country, the issues that they face of the same. and pocketbook issues in my district with a big thing. if you can't afford a place to live or health insurance, if you're going broke from medical bankruptcy, those are the things that people are facing and whether you are hispanic or not, those are the real issues for americans. that is what we focused on here in the first two years of my term and i think that was a successful formula, and i think it's going to continue to be that way for me with republicans holding the senate and the house and of course the administration is finding bipartisan solutions to the things that people care about the most. once you start to separate a specific electorate away from the actual issues that matter to people, you really gain some traction. so i was really happy that we actually won hour reelection campaign by 500% more than i did in my first term, and that was

skiing and incumbent republican and has traditionally been a republican district. host: you were on the armed services committee. i know you don't get a scented vote as a house member, but what do you think of the confirmation hearing this week for pete hegseth? guest: national security for me in the military installations that we have in our district including missiles and air force base are keys to nationals during. when it comes to nuclear weapons testing or the developing of new technologies, it's incredibly important for me to honor the role i have serving for the armed services committee and that includes quality-of-life issues and military families. i'm looking for a leader that has the qualifications to actually run what is essentially a $900 billion a year budget through the national defense authorization act, and it is troubling to see that pete hegseth does not have the qualifications and the experience to run a budget this

big or handle this many employees. obviously the president has his choices to make in the senate that has to do their due diligence to confirm those nominees, but i'll look forward to working in good faith with him should he get confirmed. i have serious concerns about his ability to lead the most important part of their country which is national security. host: do you think he will be confirmed? guest: i can speculate on what the senate is going to do. it certainly seems he has the republican support to do that and i want to make sure that if he is confirmed, we actually get him up to shape to be the leader of our nation's national defense system. host: if somehow you could have asked a question in that hearing what would you have asked? guest: i think there are infinite a lot of questions i would've asked him. i don't care too much about the personal stuff. i care about is national security. as we face adversarial threats from a communist chinese party and other threats across the

country, clearly development in the middle east and of course russia and ukraine, i'd like to learn more about the pressure those issues. i was going to work in a diplomatic way and certainly use of force and the strength that we have as a country to be able to negotiate with other countries to achieve diplomatic outcomes that bring peace to these regions. and that is really important to me. i would ask his strategy on how to use diplomacy as a tool to be able to help negotiate a cease-fire or learn his strategy about those things. host: i know you have to get to a busy day. what is up for you on capitol hill for the day? guest: today i'm really happy to receive a lot of my constituents were coming from new mexico who are here to purchase a paint the inauguration activities. it's a great day for us, we are having some activities from every part of our district, a district bigger than the state of pennsylvania.

you can imagine when folks make the trek from new mexico, lots of historic event. we want to welcome them with open arms so that will be a large focus of what we are doing today. host: are you going to be at the inauguration on monday? guest: these ceremonies are really important and we will see what the cards have in store for us. host: congressman gabe vasquez, democrat of new mexico, second district. appreciate your time this morning. back to your phone calls as it is just about 8:30 on capitol hill. this is jim in florida, independent. caller: good morning. first time calling in and i appreciate the time. for the hearings, these people

appointed under president trump, additionally, both sides had to confirm these candidates. the gas lighting is reprehensible in my opinion. host: republicans have the votes if they wanted to to confirm all of these nominees. caller: you are right, they have the numbers 100%. now when it comes to the biden administration, as an independent, in my opinion biden shouldn't have got out of the primary and never ran at all. host: who do you think would have emerged from that kind of situation? caller: if biden decided to step down and not run again a second term, democrats have a chance.

harris maybe had a longer cycle to be a campaign. yet maybe governor shapiro or some other democrats who could put their names in the hat. but to have someone just literally stepped down and come up, that is very hard. i voted for trump because of the policies. i'm not a big fan of him personally, but when it comes to policy, that is what i voted for him for. you need to have a strong leadership who can communicate and harris was able to communicate the duty and the views. the democrats need to have soul-searching here to see whether they can get back to coalition that they lost.

the working class, they are the working class now, not the elites, not union workers. democrats have a very challenging time to bring that coalition back. what can i say, the woke stuff that turned people off in my opinion during the election. host: when people say it is the first time calling and i always ask how long have you been watching and why was today your first time calling in? caller: confirmation hearings and honestly i was flipping through the channel and didn't know c-span had the ability to take my calls. i really appreciate that. host: you can do it once a month, we will hear back from you hopefully next month and you can continue to do so. there scholars out there who literally wait until they're 30

days or so have been and then they called in and we have regular callers, so hope you join in that effort and keep watching. caller: will do, you guys are doing a great job, appreciate it. post: this is susan in pennsylvania, good morning. caller: thank you for taking my call. i want to say that i'm very thankful to joe biden. when trump with the president before, i was getting so tired of this cruel ways. when joe biden came in, humanitarian in him, he is such an honorable, caring person putting the american people first. still, i remember donald trump's last inauguration, the speech he gave. he really wasn't the president of all the people. he really was against democrats,

and i never felt comfortable with him. i'm a fair person, i like to listen and hear what people have to say, and let's see what is going to happen because i've been watching these hearings and the people like pam bondi, the way they are afraid to say anything that trump might be offended by, saying that the election was fair and that you did win, i don't think they can say that to him. there are certain things that they are not going to be impartial. pete hegseth, her, the other what they want to put in at the fbi guy. i'm worried that they will be fair and impartial, and the american people, we need a leader that cares for the people. joe biden, god bless them, i love him. i'm going to miss him.

very worried. also one thing, the dark money, they started this decades ago trump came along very clever and very slick, able to fool the american people i think. i'm afraid of what it's going to happen. came with the big tech billionaires, what they are going to do, god help us all. we all have to take care of ourselves and watch out and protect democracy. america, liberty, freedom. things that are important for the american people. democracy, god bless us all. that is what i want to say, thank you. host: susan in pennsylvania.

when we go back up to capitol hill to the rotunda, it is congressman jim baird joining us, republican who represents indiana's fourth congressional district. also a member of the foreign relations committee. good morning to you. on foreign relations, we start on that cease-fire deal that was announced yesterday. sounds like it has hit some snags today, but what was your reaction to that announcement? guest: i think that's a real opportunity for that area to come to an understanding on how they are going to get along, and yet i do not criticize prime minister netanyahu for what he is resisting, because he is asking for all the requirements of that agreement to be complied with, and so i think that is an important aspect to make sure that we recover those hostages.

ivory president trump say that they should never have been taken and i don't disagree with that, but now that it is where we are, i think they need to be released. host: yesterday joe biden taking credit for this deal and in president-elect donald trump taking credit for this deal coming together is truth social post. doesn't matter, and who do you think should get the credit? guest: to me, sometimes it really doesn't matter who gets the credit for some of the stuff, at least from my perspective. but in this case i really think that president trump has put a pres o situation and i think that is going to be a real feature as far as trying to reach a compromise. and i think that is appropriate. host: look ahead to monday beyond the inaugural ceremony see on capitol hill. what are you expecting to see from then president trump on monday in terms of executive

orders, what does he need to deliver on his first day in office? guest: i think he's been working on that. we've been working on that in fact in the house. speaker johnson has done a good job of keeping us informed of what the president, incoming president wants, and as of today, i think we are pretty well in conjunction with each other. that is going to be important to make sure we move this through fast and appropriately. host: you think it is going to be immigration and border control, is it energy? how many things can he do on day one? guest: i don't know that there's a limit on how much he can do but certainly the things you just mentioned about the border. there's never been a situation or a country that didn't know who was coming in and who was sleeping and all of that, in my military background, you never move into a new area and established a perimeter so that you could tell who is coming and who was going.

this is important for this country, so controlling the border, energy is going to be a major factor. when we set down the pipeline at the very beginning of this administration, that really started the inflation process. and everything in this country moved by ship or by air or by rail or truck, and that takes fuel. so as soon as you put a war on fossil fuels, you're going to have inflation as a result because everyone is going to pass that excuse down for the product that they produce. that is going to be an important aspect of what we try to do in this first 100 days. host: you talk about your military background. i want to focus on your farm background and your service on the agricultural committee. can you bring viewers up-to-date on the status of the farm bill? >> we did such a good job in the 118th and we had a lot of support from various organizations across the country, so i'm hoping that we

can use that as a real strong base. if there are some things that we need to tweak because of the changes in the economy, the agricultural community has not had a lot of the commodities that had good prices in recent times, and so it is important that we provide that safety net for them to get through this. and a lot of us don't really appreciate where the food comes from and how hard those individuals, ranchers and farmers work to produce that food that we all eat. we taken it for granted sometimes. back to your original question, the farm bill, i think we are going to move that forward, because it is so important. and we are almost a year late already, so it is time to get that moving. and we have a lot of support out in the rural communities and in the farming communities. host: are you concerned at all about donald trump promises on tariffs and mass deportations,

how that could impact the agricultural industry in this country? guest: the deportation, i think those people who are criminals and doing bad thing for some of the citizens of this country. i think we need to find them and get them out of this because our families are safe, our children are safe. i think that is an important aspect. and as far as agriculture is concerned, yes, we do need employees, but we need legal workers and laborers to handle our farms and work in our farm economy and our farm industries. host: i do want to ask you about the confirmation hearings on capitol hill this week. a lot going on. which ones have you been able to watch and what are you focused on? >> i've think they've all been interesting. pete hegseth did a great job in his answers.

he was well-informed, well-prepared. pam bondi did a great job. she answered the questions. and you've got to be proud of her for the way she stood up for her beliefs and aspects that she intends to improve the department of justice. but all of them were important. i think president trump has done a good job of selecting individuals that can bring the kinds of common sense to our government and do the efficiencies that are important. host: monday are you going to be at inauguration? guest: i am. is that ok? concerned at all about the weather? guest: i'm looking for a pair of heated underwear, how about that. host: congressman jim baird joining us, republican and member of several committees on capitol hill.

appreciate your time, come join us again and stay warm on monday. guest: you bet, thank you very much. host: phone lines as usual. democrats, republicans and independent, the three topics we've been focusing on throughout the morning. the cease-fire deal announced yesterday when it comes to gaza and the hostages released. joe biden's farewell address last night from the oval office and those ongoing confirmation hearings. there's plenty more happening today and we hope you follow c-span throughout the day to stay on top of the series. william has been waiting in the buckeye state, independent, good morning. caller: good morning, how are you today? host: doing well. caller: i've got to say one thing about joe biden, he did one fantastic job for four years. if he could have got out sooner

than we could've got a guy like newsom in there, or ship era. and about the confirmations, the orange monster scares me. i think he's going after democracy. and we cannot lose my beautiful democracy. it's been in this country 248 years. especially my family's been in this country since the 1600s, and he is a johnny-come-lately. that is about all i've got to say about it, thanks. host: ralph is next, good morning. it's florida. caller: homosassa florida. that's correct. i'm calling about the cease-fire deal, which i think is disgraceful. both sides taking the credit, republicans and democrats. everybody forgets what happened october 7, how many women and

children were murdered and how many people were taken captive and the women were raped and also murdered while they were in captivity. and i thought it was awful disgraceful that on our soil that we had americans saying death to america. now as usual, hamas gets the better of this hostage trade back and forth. again, we know that israel will give up one person for 1000 terrorists. but they forget that these terrorists then come back, and how many of those people who came in october 7 may have been released in the past, and here they come back and they

murdered. as far as i'm concerned, there should not be any trade agreement or hostage trade off the way they are doing it. and i feel that netanyahu was pressured to give in to make either side, republicans or democrats look like they were the peaceful bargainers and as far as i'm concerned, netanyahu should never give in to this hostage agreement. that's all i've got to say. thank you. host: that agreement not a done deal yet as we found out early this morning. israel delaying a cabinet vote on the cease-fire deal, with concerns being expressed by benjamin netanyahu about hamas'

actions and what they are asking for. i want to take you back to yesterday, joe biden announcing the cease-fire and then taking questions on it from the reporters gathered on the deal, but also the role of the incoming trump administration. just a minute or so from that. >> the implementation of the steel in the next administration, basically they will shape the future of that. so how do you see this future and also how much credit do you give to the trump team for the steel? trump is already taking credit for it. >> while you know, this is the exact framework of the deal i proposed back in may, exact. we got the world to endorse it. secondly, it is america's support for israel that helped them badly weaken hamas and its

backers, and create the conditions for this deal. and thirdly, this deal would have to be implement it by the next team, so i told my team to coordinate closely with the incoming team to make sure we are all speaking with the same voice. because that is what american presidents do. >> how many americans will be released when the hostages are being released? >> all the exact details on how many people are being held and how many bodies are being returned to us will all be forthcoming. all of it. thank you. >> what happens if this steel won't hold? >> i'm confident. >> who is taking credit for this, you or trump? >> is that a joke? host: president joe biden yesterday taking your phone call this morning as we wait for the

house to come in about 15 minutes or so. l.a., democrat, good morning. caller: yes, peace be unto you. yes, the last caller talking about that netanyahu should not take this deal. i believe the deal will not go through because the terrorist state of israel wants to exterminate all the palestinians. 34,000 palestinians have been murdered. their land has been taken away from them. to think that they are the terrorists, it is the european jews who are on arab land who

are the terrorists. if they wanted to partition some land, they should have petitioned germany because germany is the one who committed the crimes against them. the palestinians are innocent victims of white supremacy, and the reason why donald trump, a liar, the antichrist won is because the foundation of america is white supremacy. host: this is russell in virginia, independent. caller: good morning. i'd like to talk about a different news story from yesterday if that's ok with you. host: i tell you what, keep it to the cease-fire or the farewell order confirmation hearings because that is a lot already. caller: it has to do with the house and donald trump and the struggling mr. johnson to fire the intelligence team.

the chairman of the intelligence committee, another republican, this really bothers me. why would someone do this? there has to be something that he wants to cover up, and he is afraid this man is too honest i think miss bondi is extremely qualified but i think she might have been soiled by the touch of the trump. and pete hegseth evidently managing money from the little bit i got out of the confirmation hearing was pretty poor. host: how many of these hearings have you watched? >> thank you c-span. i'm slightly disappointed with

what you provided this morning. you briefly touched on the cease-fire deal being delayed. in the last 24 hours, over 81 people have been killed since netanyahu has delayed this cease-fire due to what he is considering black male by the hamas leader's. all 81 of them, none of them are hamas members. i just wondered if you could briefly touch on this, maybe a four news circuit, maybe al jazeera or someone that covers it more intensely. 46,000 people have been killed since this unintended or unneeded campaign against the coliseum's has been broadcast. over 100,000 have been injured. i was wondering if you could update the viewers up-to-the-minute possibly with those sources.

thank you and enjoy your day. host: up-to-the-minute is hard to do on a live call-in show, but we do try. this story coming late last night. represented mike turner, the republican of ohio ousted in his role as intelligence chair. speaker johnson removing him, bowing to trump at the new york times puts it. he had at times been critical of the president elect, he told people he was asked -- axed. this is judith in northeast maryland, republican, good morning. caller: yes, my comment today focused on the confirmation hearings provided. she would do to the democrats it

confirmed what they did to the republican for the last four or 12 years. also, the biden farewell speech. he has welcomed in so many killers to our country, and that is not enough. he had to pardon death row. in the constitution it must have slipped everybody's mind in the white house. it says the president shall protect us and clearly welcoming in killers and pardoning death row inmates were killers host: that judith in maryland. the confirmation hearings, cease-fire deal been gaza -- in gaza. later on that deal is not a done

deal yet. benjamin netanyahu holding up the vote on that deal. that is, as al jazeera puts it, prompting perimeter celebrations in gaza, expecting to take effect on sunday. the israeli military has stepped up a tax on the gaza strip, killing at least 81 palestinians in the past 24 hours according to the health ministry in gaza. that is the al jazeera headline. this is beverly in wyoming, democrat. caller: good morning to you. what is on my mind is my beautiful family, most of them are republicans, and maybe it wasn't fair or it was, i don't know, but i'm hoping that the president that comes before us,

i'm hoping he has better solutions than the hate that he spews. i just wish the best for him and you know, i have no hate for no one. i just want to enjoy my day, you know. i'm turning 62 today. host: happy birthday. caller: thank you. and i wish the president that comes in the best, and i also think joe biden for being our president and being a real decent man, and kamala harris, she was a very decent woman. people don't get it. she's a woman. men don't want women in power.

god bless all of you, and i hope he straightens up the border situation because there is a lot of people that came in, but you know, to blame president biden for that kind of stuff, that's just like saying, that is too deep for me. because he was the president, he doesn't have followers that want to destroy the nation. he doesn't have followers like that. host: that is beverly and the cowboy state. to the hawk i state, this is floyd. republican, good morning. caller: first i want to get out of his nomination business. they have pam bondi on for attorney general but they've got him tapped to be ambassador to nato. we need matt whitaker to be

director of the fbi. matt whitaker, iowa native, he knows both. and let me get to something else. host: former acting u.s. attorney general for a little while. caller: yes he was. this middle east business, trump has been complaining saying that canada is going to be the 51st state and they want to take panama. the middle east, want to just take the 51st state over there and just moved in and impose order over there, get things straightened out. that is a big mess over there. something else that happened over there, lies are being told by the idf. that is not the same thing at their civilian leadership, but we had an incident in 1967, the uss liberty was attacked by the idf, and that was intentional. they said it was an accident, thought they were going to get away with it. we had ice on it.

host: bring me back to 2020. >> they lied to us than about what is going on with military actions. they are lying to us now. that is why i believe trump is going to have to get over there. when he talks, people think he is brash, he makes bold statements. those statements can cut both ways. they can get those terrorists and the arabs and they can also make the israeli side get nervous because this guy might do what he says. thank, goodbye. host: new york city, this is mary elizabeth, democrat, good morning. caller: good morning, happy 2025, hope everyone remains healthy and safe. i'm calling to comment on the pete hegseth hearing, and looking and looking at his responses, i'm wondering if he's suffering from ptsd based on his

military service. that is number one. host: what specific responses concerning you, mary elizabeth? caller: just his whole demeanor. he was very combative. he was talking over the questioners, the senators who were asking him questions. host: do you think that is unusual in confirmation hearings, regardless of the administration coming in? caller: i do. i'm very concerned about him. very concerned about him. he's possibly suffering from ptsd. the second point is this whole business about who is a criminal. a criminal president. people feel that about the president-elect, the comments

that people are making about biden and his family and calling them crime family, what is the evidence? i'm just concerned about the hatefulness that the president-elect has for the fbi, and i've been thinking that i would really like to see his fbi file from 1988 to 2015. he will talk about warfare against the president-elect, but the primary question that i would have is why he hates the fbi, and i really would like to see his fbi -- host: this is brenda in west

milford, new jersey, independent. could morning. caller: i want to talk about the confirmation hearings. i watched pam bondi and the pete hegseth hearings, and i thought the democrats were so rude. like, it was just all gotcha questions, trying. and i thought both hegseth and bondi did great jobs, and i heard the last caller saying pete hegseth has ptsd and i didn't see any of that. host: do you think gotcha questions are unique to this round of confirmation hearings? caller: i don't think they are unique, but is -- it is the way

democrats were freezing the questions. -- phrasing the questions. i thought it was very rude. some of them sounded unhinged. to me, it was very offputting. and my second thing is that i think the reason that the cease-fire is happening is because of trump's threat. host: explain what you mean. caller: well, when trump said if the hostages art home, there's going to be hell to pay. host: you think that is what made it happen? caller: i think so, because the offer was out there since may or march or whatever, but i think

that hamas sees the writing on the wall with trump coming because they know he's going to do what he says. host: that's brenda in the garden state. to the peach state, kevin, independent. the house is getting ready to come in in just a couple minutes, go ahead. caller: i appreciate the opportunity to speak to you and the public. i wanted to comment specifically on the confirmation hearing of pete hegseth. it was sad to see such a groundswell of support for the idea that we need to make america great again, and the general consensus that we could make america great again by putting in such a high office a man who clearly does not value and respect the ovi took to the multiple women that he married, and while out one side of his mouth claims that he loves and supports the military, has utilized his existence as a veteran to bankrupt a company that was supposed to support

veterans. the man is clearly not someone who takes his own seriously. while i wasn't present at each and every one of his weddings, i think each and every one of his wives would have expected that the oats he took were to be faithful and two-part only under the circumstances of death. as a former member of the military, we are required to swear out says one of the first things we do because there needs to be some understanding that there is an allegiance that can be relied upon. if a man like pete hegseth would betray three women that he married and committed to, how could we expect them to take anything seriously and how can we expect to make a country great if we wouldn't honor our own? host: that's kevin in georgia, our last caller. we will of course be back tomorrow morning at 7:00 a.m. eastern.

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