the last signature has just been put on to this document. this will make the european union stronger and more capable of action and turn it into a strong partner for united states. we can build a strong partnership on this basis. first with russia, china and india. for ladies and gentlemen, the world we live in today is both freer and more integrated than ever before. the fall of the berlin wall, the technological revolution and information and communication technology and the rise of china, india and other countries and dynamic economies, all of this has changed the world of the 21st century into something completely different from what we knew in the 20th century, and this is a good thing, for freedom is the very essence of our economy and our society. .

man ca e he's free. but what is also clear is that freedom does not stand alone. it is freedom in responsibility and freedom to show and shoulder responsibility. for this the world needs an underlying order. but the near collapse. but the near collapse. financial market has shown when is none, when there is no underpinning order. there is -- if there is one lesson the world has learned from the financial crisis of last year, it is that a globalized economy needs a global order and underpinning it, a global framework of rules. without global rules or transparency and supervision, we will not gain more freedom but rather risk the abuse of freedom and thus risk instability.

in a way, this is a second war that needs to fall, a war standing in the way of a truly global economic order, a war made up of regional and exclusively national thinking. the g-20 is key to this cooperation. among the most important industrialized countries and companies. cooperation between the americans and the europeans is an important cornerstone. the g-20 have shown they are capable of action and we need to resist the pressure of those who almost let the nation's of this planet to the abyss. -- led the nation's of this planet to the abyss.

international economic policy needs to be more sustainable because this crisis was also the result of a way of thinking that was too short term. as a consequence, millions of people all over the world may lose their jobs and are threatened by poverty and hunger. to achieve prosperity and justice, we have to do everything to prevent such a crisis in the future. this also means not giving into the temptation of protectionism, and this is why the association was in the framework of w.t.o. as so important. a success of the round would send a very important message of openness for global trade, particularly in the current crisis. and just as much, the

trans-atlantic council can fulfill an important task in preventing the race for subsidies and giving incentives to reduce barriers to trade between europe and america. please, do let us jointly work for a global economic order that is in the interest of both america and europe. ladies and gentlemen, the global challenges can only be met by comprehensive international cooperation. it's also true for the third great task we need to stand in the 21st century. the war that seemingly separates the present and the future. this war prevents us from doing what is urgently necessary to preserve the basis of our very

life and climate. we can already see now where this wasteful attitude falls. icebergs are falling in the artic. the global sea level is rising. i am satellited to note that president obama and you in your daily -- i am delighted to note that president obama and you in your daily work know that the climate is important in your daily task.

of new technologies offers great opportunities for growth and innovative jobs. and innovative jobs. .

no doubt about it, in december the world will look to us, to theure peaians and to the americans. and it is true there can be no agreement without china and india. but i'm convinced once we and europe and america show ourselves ready to adopt binding agreements, we will also be able to persuade china and india to join in, and then in copenhagen we shall be able to overcome this wall separating the present and future in the interest of our children and grandchildren, and in the interest of sustainable development all over the world. ladies and gentlemen, i'm

convinced just as we found the strength in the 20th century to bring about the fall of the wall made of concrete and barbed wire, we shall now show the necessary strength to overcome the walls of the 201st century, walls in our minds, walls of shortsighted self-interest, walls between the present and the future. ladies and gentlemen, my confidence is nurtured and comes from a very important source, a very special sound, the sound of the liberty bell in the town hall in berlin. since 1950 the bell cast after the original american liberty bell hangs there in the belfry, a gift from the american citizens. it is a symbol of the premise of freedom, a premise that has been fulfilled. on the third of october, 1990 the liberty bell rang again,

signaling the unification of germany. the greatest moment of joy for the german people. on the 13th of september, 2001, a it folled out again, two days after 9/11, the greatest day of mourning for the american people. the freedom bell in berlin is like the liberty bell in philadelphia. a symbol which reminds us that freedom does not come about of itself. it must be strong and then descended anew every day of our life. in this endeavor germany and europe will also in future remain strong and dependable partners for america. that i promise you. thank you very much.

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>> we will your victory speeches from newly inducted governors in

new jersey and virginia. then today's "washington journal." them live coverage in the house. it will talk about credit card regulation. the senate environment committee yesterday began work on a bill to reduce carbon emissions and promote alternative energy research. the committee meets again this morning for day two of the markup on the bill. can see live coverage on cspan 3 and c-span.org starting at 10:00 eastern time. last thursday, house democrats introduced the health care bill. this week, the bill comes to the house floor. all of the entire debate live without interruption or commentary only on c-span. find more at the health care

hub on c-span.org. republican candidate for governor bob mcdonnell defeated creigh deeds with 60% of the vote. after the win, he spoke to supporters in richmond, the state capital. this is 15 minutes. [applause] >> thank you.

thank you. thank you, friends in virginia. [applause] eight months ago, i applied for the job of governor of virginia, tonight you have hired me. thank you. [applause] to my fellow virginians, i say i am very humbled and honored with the privilege you have given me tonight. i think god for his grace and divine providence in my life. [applause] i am ready to go to work to serve you and to help lead virginia for the next four years

[applause] i want to start by thanking you for the lieutenant governor, as well. [applause] i am so glad to be going to work with someone who every governor needs. that is a good lawyer. [applause] and thank you for your hard work and families. it meant a lot to have you behind me every step of the way. [applause] there are some of the people i

would like to tie but there are a few very special people that i want to say thank you to. the truth is, there are about 10,000 people that i need to think who have volunteered countless hours over the last year to get us to tonight. my staff advises me that if the delay this party too long, this administration is off to a bad start. [laughter] first, to maureen, the love of my life -- [applause] i want to say, banks, to the next first lady of virginia. [applause] maureen has now been with me throughout 33 years of

marriage, a 11 moves, nine elections, four dogs, five children, and one husband. i think she deserves applause. [applause] i would not be standing here without the love of an incredibly great family and also with us tonight are my daughters and my sons. [applause] and being in a big irish catholic family are cousins and sister-in-law's and brother-in- law's and family and friends and i'm delighted they are all here tonight. [applause] during my last landslide victory in 2005 -- [laughter]

my daughter was in iraq so when we got ready for this election, i made two commitments -- one, that jeneen would be here for my election and two, that there would be no recount this time around. [applause] i want to take my incredible campaign manager and great friend, phil cox. he has worked tirelessly for [applause] ] i want to say thanks to a great campaign chairman and a former head of the national republican party, ed gillespie. [applause] and thanks to my finance chair who did a terrific job raising the resources we needed, tom

farrell. [applause] and one of the reasons i think we were so successful was that we had independents and democrats that came over to support us. i want to thank my favorite democrat, sheila johnson for being here. [applause] in the early days of the campaign, you need friends who believe in you, who helped you get off to a good start and nobody was a better ally and helplessly the condition and a republican national committee chairman, michael steele. [applause]

and some of the other great leaders. absolutely, the youth of tomorrow, the college republicans, what a great job they did. [applause] the leadership that was provided by the republican governors association was of immense help as well as the leadership of pat collins -- that mullins. [applause] just a little while ago, i had a conversation with senator creigh deeds. we both agree that this is a great and wonderful state in which we are privileged to live and the greatness of our state lies in the character of our people. creigh deeds is a good public

servant. what we're going to need over these next year's is good public servants to help us to govern virginia. i look forward to working with creigh deeds for years to come as he serves in the virginia senate. [applause] in our system of political life, designed by our founders, those great virginians some centuries ago, we organize ourselves and the political party. we're republicans, we're democrats, and we are independent. our philosophies and principles are very important and they are worth fighting for. there are a couple of things in france and politics and that is the fact the first and foremost, we are all virginians and we are all americans. [applause]

together, as virginia and americans, there are many challenges we will face over these next four years. i have been traveling all over this great commonwealth during the course of this campaign with my running mates, bill and ken. i've visited injured island and her about their plight. i spoke to the coal miners to learn about the things and challenges they face. i have met many times with heart broken families that have sacrificed their loved ones during the global war on terror. i was inspired by darrell bolling to create a wall of honor for those who gave their lives for virginia. [applause] i have met with the college students at our great universities and heard about their concerns of rising tuitions and challenges in the job market.

i have heard from the onto the bourse and the small business leaders of this commonwealth, business leaders like rhoda elliott was with us tonight. and indeed they have to have the advantages to grow and prosper in the free enterprise system. i have listened to the technology leaders in northern virginia. they have to be able to grow and prosper in northern virginia. at nearly every stop, i have met virginia to have a need and are searching for a brighter future and more opportunities for tomorrow. some have lost their jobs. some have lost their homes. some have lost their business says. there are challenges that we all must confront as we look for ways to make this a brighter virginia for our people. leading virginia will require innovation and cooperation. my promise to you as governor is the same as my promise to you as candidate for governor -- that is to strengthen the free

enterprise system, to create more jobs and opportunities so that every virginian can use their god-given talent to pursue the american dream in liberty in this great commonwealth. [applause] i pledge to you that we will honor the words of thomas jefferson to keep a wise and frugal government and we will do everything possible to keep taxes and regulation and litigation and spending to a minimum here in virginia so that freedom can grow. [applause] i pledge to you that we will honor the words of george washington to honor the internal rules of order and rights by protecting life and liberty and property in the pursuit of happiness, here in the commonwealth of virginia. [applause]

working to gather as virginians, we will find those new ways to solve the problems that face us and to create more jobs and opportunities for all of our citizens. for those of you here who supported me, i say thank you from the bottom of my heart to all that you have done. [applause] for those of you that did not support me, i say to you, give me a chance to learn your trust to work with you for the betterment of the commonwealth of virginia. [applause] i had the privilege of growing up in an average middle-class family in fairfax county. my sisters are here with me

tonight. i grew up in the shadow of mount vernon, the home of george washington. i was the oldest of five children. my dad was an air force officer. my mom was a working mom. they taught me to dream big, to work hard, to respect your neighbors, to follow the golden rule. as a young kid, i never dreamed that i would have the chance to follow in the footsteps of thomas jefferson and patrick henry and yet, you have made that come true for me. [applause] it just tells me that with hard work and faith in god in america, you can still be anything you want to beat. [applause]

george washington has always been my model of a servant leader. washington understood power and service and accountability and duty and honor. he said something profound that will guide the as i take on the mantle of leadership for you for the next four years in virginia. he said that remember that it is actions, not the commission, that make the officer and that more is expected out of a leader than a mere title. tonight, you have given me the title of governor of virginia. but i pledge to you over the next four years, action and results. i am reminded of the old adage of the boy scouts that i will bring to virginia and that is working together with ken and bill and you and the great leadership team that we will leave virginia better than we found it. thank you very much. god bless you.

god bless virginia. thank you very much. [applause] thank you. [applause] thank you. thank you. [applause] [applause]

>> in tuesday's other governor's race, republican chris christie defeated incumbent democrat john corzine. here is the governor's concession speech from his campaign headquarters in east brunswick, new jersey. [applause] >> thank you, all. [applause] thank you, all. thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you, all. thank you very much. you guys have been cheering me

on and giving me courage and giving me strength throughout this campaign and i love you and i thank you all very much for being here every step of the way. [applause] i called mr. christie and new jersey's next governor.ng i want you to know that chris was gracious in his response and we will work hard together to make sure that the transition is moved, that we are able to do everything that serves the people of this great state. that is my responsibility. that is our responsibility. my administration pause responsibility and i know we will live up to it so thank you. [applause] it has been a long hard fought campaign and for everyone who put their heart and soul into it

and i know so many of you here tonight did and i could not be more grateful for everything that you have done. we have been everywhere. you know that, from the delaware to the jersey shore, from bergen county to cape may county and across, it has been quite a journey. i hope -- i hope that you know that all of those people that i have met in union halls and thank goodness for labor, you have been terrific. god bless you all. [applause] high schools and all those new schools and senior centers, all the churches and synagogues, that everywhere we have gone has been an incredible journey together and i am grateful to all new jerseyans who have made it. [applause] thank you.

we have had a lot of time to talk with folks about jobs and education and health care, economic security, and new energy policy, lots of things that were on the people's agenda. it was not always easy. i know you well know that. i am telling you -- there's a bright future ahead for the jurors if we stay focused on the things that matter in people's lives and i guarantee you, i will do that for the rest of my life, working with all of you for the things that matter. [applause] this is a moment where there is a little sadness, and must separate i must tell you, i have never been more honored that i have been to have a chance to serve as the united states senator from this great state

and this great people that live in this community called new jersey. to be the governor of this great state has been a joy that i could never, ever have imagined. it has been a tough time but it has been one where we make a difference in people's lives. i am proud of my administration and the people who have worked so hard. [applause] the thing that i want to emphasize is at the end of the day, elections are not about the people but are running, they are about the choices we make. the people have chosen to night. that does not mean that the people in this room, the democrats in this room, the democrats across this state or across this country, do not have an agenda to carry forward. it is important that we fight for health care. this important that we make sure

our children get the kind of education that i know new jerseyans what period is important we fight for collective bargaining and the right for labor to work and other things. let me just say in closing, i could not be more grateful to a whole host of people. certainly, the people who work in my administration for the last four years and they have erred -- burned the midnight oil, they have done much, much to service great state. i want to think loretta weinberg. [applause] i am proud to stand with her. i cannot wait to watch her when she gets on that senate floor next year. that will be a joy. i must say, there are a whole bunch of people here who worked so hard in this campaign.

maggie moran, all the people at the democratic committee. all of those folks, my heart goes out to you. thank you all so much for what you have done very i cannot make everybody. if i do, i will get in trouble but i hope you know that all young people, through yourselves, god bless you, keep on fighting. it is worth every minute of what you are doing. [applause] i also want to say, the key to mr. daggett who added to this campaign. he made it a more sharply focused debate. his stability was a positive element in our campaign. let me finally closed with the most personal part -- politics enters into one's personal life but i have never had a group of people spend more solidly with

me than my family. this lady, sharon, is the love of my life. thank you. [applause] my children, jenny, jeff and josh, to all my family, thank you. my mom is happy because she is a registered republican. [laughter] she is 93 years old. let me say thank you to all of frank's. they will keep up the good fight for new jersey. they will protect your values everything we believe it. with that, [applause] let me say one more time, to all of you, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for being my friend in this process. there is more for you to do. there is more for all of us to

do. i promise you, we may be retiring from politics but we are not retiring from life. we are speaking out on the things we believe it. we will join you in that fight to make sure that every american, every person has a chance to live the life that america promises. god bless you all. thank you very much. [applause] >> now the new jersey governor- elect, chris christie. he is the former state attorney general. here is his speech from last night to supporters in parsippany, new jersey. this is 20 minutes. [applause] [bron to run song

[born to run song] [applause] [applause]

>> thank you. thank you. [applause] thank you, thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you. hey, new jersey, we did it. [applause]

ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much. thank you so much that all of you are here tonight. bank you so much. thank you so much. [applause] all right, let me get through this. [laughter] first,

[laughter] i want to let you all know, i want to let you all know, i want to let you all know, i want to let you all know that about 40 minutes ago, i received a call of congratulations from governor john corzine. [applause] :/c'mon, now. listen, the governor's call was gracious. i thank him for his years of service to the state. he pledged a smooth transition to the new christi/gratano

administration. [applause] i would like you to indulge me in a few thank yous. i want to thank our two great former republican governors who stood with me, governor tom kaine and governor christie whitman, thank you very much. [applause] i want to thank my great friend and my campaign chairman, state senator joe carrillo. [applause]

i want to thank the future of the republican party, our republican state chairman, jay webber. [applause] and most of all, most of all, i want to thank the most important people in my life, my wife, mary pat [applause] my four great children, andrew, and sarah, patrick, and bridget. [applause] i want to thank my dad, bill, who is here with me tonight. [applause]

i think you all my brother todd. [applause] and my sister dawn, i love them both. thank you very much. you know, new jersey is an extraordinary place. here i am, the guy who was born in newark 47 years ago, two parents struggled to make ends meet, brought me home to a fourth floor walkup apartment on the corner of south orange avenue and 14th street. by years later, they moved to livingston because they want our family to have the best public education we could possibly have. everything that i have been lucky enough to become, the foundation was laid for that in those schools, in those years, by great teachers and by my

great parents who gave us the values that allowed me to be standing in front of you tonight as the 55th governor of the state of new jersey. [applause] but you know, i have said this before, this election tonight is not about me and it is not about many of you. this election was and is about the future of the state we love, the great state of new jersey. [applause] because for me and for most of you, we have already had a great new jersey life.

a great new jersey life. what we want to do is to make sure that everyone in new jersey has the opportunity for that great new jersey life and even more importantly, that our children and their grandchildren have the opportunity for that great new jersey life because, if we continue on the path we are on, that will not be possible. we are in a crisis. the times are extraordinarily difficult but i stand here tonight full of hope for our future, full of expectations and dreams, not just for my children but for all the children of new jersey. ken and i will get to work tomorrow to make that happen. [applause] because tomorrow, because

tomorrow, together, we begin to take back new jersey. [applause] tomorrow, we will take back new jersey for our families. tomorrow, we will take that new jersey for our friends. tomorrow, we will take that new jersey for our neighbors. tomorrow, we will take back new jersey for the least fortunate among us who do not want the government to fix every problem. they just want to give a hint of so they can build opportunities for themselves. [applause] tomorrow, tomorrow, we begin to build that greater new jersey for our children and grandchildren because i want my children to raise their

children in this state. i want your children to raise their children in this state. [applause] tomorrow, tomorrow begins the task of fixing our broken state and i can tell you -- i can tell you that kim and i are ready for the test. we are ready for the task. i will tell you that the campaign we just went through will seemed easy compared to the tasks that lie ahead of us to fix the state. over the next four years, we will have our work cut out for us. there are no easy answers to these difficult problems. on the campaign trail,kim and i learned that the suffocating taxes and a government that was out of control has rendered

trenton completely out of touch. tomorrow, we will pick trenton up and turn it upside down. [applause] over the last week on the campaign, i want to tell you about a few people who helped. just today, i met a man from hamilton with his two children who is a small-business owner, who, with tears in his eyes, said if you don't win, my business will go broke. i don't know what i will do with my children. we will have to leave the state where i was born and raised this election tonight is about him and his children. this week, i met a senior citizen, a man who was in 90

years old, who grabbed me by the hand and said," i am 90 years old but you better do everything you said because i will be here four years from now to hold you to a." [laughter] [applause] tonight, that election is about him. a couple of weeks ago, i met a farmer who was a fourth generation farmer and he said to me," if this continues, i will have to be the one who gives up the farm that has been in my family for four generations. i will feel like i am breaking the heart of my father, my grandfather, and my great- grandfather." tonight, that -- this election is about him. we need to make new jersey more affordable and we need to do it now. [applause]

and you know there will be naysayers who said that kim and i will not be able to lower taxes, that we will not be able to hold down spending, that we cannot cut hrs regulations and that we cannot cover -- did government back under control. let me tell you, these were the same people eight years ago, when i became u.s. attorney, that said you could not fight corruption in new jersey. they were wrong then and they are wrong now. [applause] and kim and i will go without regard to party or politics. we will do it without regard to what section of the state you are from, what your race or

ethnicity, what your gender, with about regard to any of that. new jersey's problems are too big to conduct the petty politics of yesterday no matter whose idea it is. if it is a good wood, kim and i will figure out a way to get it done. if it is a good idea. [applause] let me say one more thing about the people of the state of new jersey. you know 40 years, for years and years and years, the talking heads on television, the commentators in the newspaper said you cannot win an election in new jersey without being personally-and without doing this mirror attack advertisements on the character of your public. it is february when i announced

for governor and i said that i knew that this campaign would get into the gutter. i would not follow my opponent into that better. i told you been, i did know -- i did not know whether that was a winning or losing strategy but i told you that was my strategy. i worked too hard over my life to give away my integrity for any job, not even this one. [applause] let me tell you this -- through their overwhelming support tonight, the people of new jersey said," no more negative personal campaigns." [applause]

in the face of a $30 million onslaught that consisted of almost exclusively negative personal campaign against me, my family, and my friends, the people of the jersey decided enough is enough. [applause] so now, to all of those pundits out there, to all of those experts on politics, i beg you, let's turn the page, let's put the petty politics of the past behind us and let's start a new era of hope and optimism in new jersey. [applause] you see, because i was born

here and i was raised here and this is the state that i love and i will tell you, i have known from minute one of this campaign, that we can change new jersey. so tomorrow, let's roll up our sleeves. let's get to work at the hard task ahead of us. we will know that at the end of these four years, i promise you one thing, that we will restore your hope and your faith and your trust in new jersey. thank you very much. [applause] [badlans song] [badlands song]

>> on c-span 2 today, an interview with admiral mike mullen. he will take questions. live coverage at 7:50 a.m., eastern time. >> the 2010 s student cam, test is here. $50,000 in prizes for the top prize is 10,000 -- is $5,000. the deadline is january 20. winning entries will be shown on c-span. grab the camera and get started. >> coming up to date on c-span,

"washington journal"is next, followed by our live coverage of the u.s. house. members will work on a bill moving up the effective date of a credit-card bill. . in about half an hour, a congressional reporter will have a look at the health-care debate in congress. also there will be a look at yesterday's political results. there will be a preview of the

troubled nations meeting and talk about the oil industry. "washington journal" starts now. . host: an analysis of yesterday's republican victories. in this paper -- there are

lessons for each party after the victories there, including how to treat independent voters, and the effect of sarah palin. also, the political forces behind efforts to have conservative the hoffman to win in the 23rd district race there. we will take a look at those victories in new jersey as well as elsewhere in the u.s. in the first half-hour we want to focus on that with you, of what you think about the victories and what it says about that individual states and the larger picture -- especially attitudes toward the white house. you can twitter us or e-mail us at c-span.org.

we will start by taking a look at the actual breakdown in the new jersey race. chris christie got 49% of the vote. this is with 99% of precincts voting. in virginia the governor elect, bob mcdonnell winning with 59% against creigh deeds. that was again 99% of the result. in the new york congressional race with 93% reporting, bill owens won. taking a look at some

editorials, they specifically look at what each has to do with the victories. looking at bob mcdonnell in virginia, his victory is the headline. the editors write that he read the electorate, and a panic, and swing voter correctly by playing down divisive social issues such as abortion. and by broadening his appeal to women, minorities, and others not always effective recorded by the gop. taking a look at "the star- ledger" out of new jersey, some of it looking at principles toward his economic policy -- the editors read that his success will be enclosed by two

elements of his control -- the course of the national economy and the amount of stimulus that he gets. so far only a portion of it has been doled out, much of it in the form of aid to help strapped states like new jersey. the governor will do well to put aside his qualms about federal help, it says. we are interested in your thoughts about the republican victories in both new jersey and virginia. you can also send us your thoughts on twitter and e-mail. on the line for democrats, go ahead. caller: yes, i was so surprised to see is what has happened in virginia, but for all those persons who are unemployed now in virginia and perhaps in new jersey, they probably will not be getting an extension of unemployment benefits. just yesterday the republicans

blocked where they're democrats were trying to extend them. now that they have republican governors, there will probably not get the extension. also, the republicans have earlier tried to cut medicare. so i'm sure for those on medicare in those areas, they probably will see a difference now that there are republican governors. host: fla., on the republican line. caller: yes, it was a great win yesterday for the republican party and i am very happy about it. as to the prior callers assertions about medicare, it is the democrats who are cutting $500 million. how can we maintain services

under medicare with a cut like that? if democrats think they will make willhay out of medicare cuts, they are sadly mistaken. -- if they think that they will make hay from those cuts. host: what you think about the governor's race in florida? caller: i think that mccullen. has got it. i think that mr. crist is a lot of trouble for being a certain type of republican down here. by supporting this stimulus package he has turned off a lot of people who were active in the republican party.

rubio will be the nominee for republicans and i expect will be the next u.s. senator from florida. host: 9 us to give us insight on the race as well-reported on leading up to yesterday's, joining us to give us that in sight -- is jude seymour of new york. tell us a little about the report and the drama that you saw the van up to the results yesterday. are you there, jude seymour? caller: yes, hello, good morning. we had a democrat bill owens who was registered without party affiliation working on the democrats working parties line. he won by about 4000 votes. that was over conservative party

candidate who was originally rejected by the republican party during their nomination process. we had a republican and independent party candidate dropped out early on. she only captured about 5% last night. it was a big win for the democrats who have not represented this area in some parts since the civil war. host: what reaction came from the republican party there? guest: well, i think that they're trying to put their best face on things. i hear a lot from the conservatives about how this is a win to bring the party back in line with its more conservative values and platforms. but an think there was a lot of disappointment over the weekend when scozzafava dropped out of

the race because a lot of people put a lot of money in her. for her to not only dropped out but to back the democrat was a slap in the face of many. host: what did putting these names into the race do? guest: it put a lot of focus on as an intensified things. it gave the conservative party candidate, hoffman, a real momentum. having fred thompson come out early and then subsequently sarah palin, tim polenta, and other big names to come out in support -- a really bill to abuzz about him that was not here before. the g-8 really built a buzz

about him. he was going to be a spoiler and the bolling said that he would pull ahead of thei other candidate and it turned around. host: the paper talk about some conservative efforts for conservativehoffman. that would be such as the florida senate race? the question is, some said that the conservative effort yesterday was more of a trial run for other races. did conservatives describe it that way especially heading out of yesterday's race in york? guest: absolutely. i think that conservatives will put their best face on this. look at what we were able to accomplish. we were able to push the moderate republican chosen by the 11-county leadership out of this race and basically have a

battle cry where we rejected her moderate stances. her positions on game marriage and abortion better opposite to the conservative party ideals -- such as with a gay marriages, opposition to that. some will say that they did not win but pushed the moderate out. then they think that they can duplicate the effort in other races. i don't know if it will play out that way. host: did bill owens talk about his plans to arrive in washington? guest: i recall anything from his speech. the job starts today as far as we're concerned. we have a reporter in washington, d.c. and will follow him through the orientation. we have not had a new

congressman here in 16 years. host: jude seymour is a political reporter for the paper in watertown, new york. the to next call is on the independent line. caller: i think this is some backlash against republicans. let me give history about myself. i was a staunch democrat for 36 years. in february 2008 when i voted in the primary in florida at the democrat party came along with one man, howard dean -- he abolished my vote. he did it in florida and also in michigan. that turned me into an independent. as for the 2008 election, i

voted strictly republican. that was except for the sheriff. i really do think this is a backlash against the democratic party because the promise so much and produce so little. host: dallas is next. caller: i don't think it is that significant because they're just governors. there will not be senators. they will not go in the house. at this time is amused defeat. they are just trying to defeat president obama. but i do have a suggestion for the democrats -- you have the power. if you do not use it, then you will be out. i don't care if you are blue dog or whatever tie it. we are tired -- the

republicans, good, bad, indifferent, they screwed up this whole economy. but one thing about it -- they were united. as obama's said, it will take time. look out spinel i'm telling you now that i will vote for -- look out because i'm telling you, [inaudible] a lot of these red neck estates will opt out on the health insurance. host: to go back to your original comment, you are saying that what happened yesterday has nothing to do with what is going on in washington, d.c.? caller: no. host: good morning, caller. caller: two things -- the significance of these races is

congressional redistricting. the most important gracious today was the vote in maine to repeal same-sex marriage. whenever that is on the ballot it loses. the people of the state of maine spoke yesterday. it happens every time. the gubernatorial races yesterday -- in 2008 there was supposed to be a major realignment. we cannot define independents. it could be the most are conservative voters who got tired of the republican party. and they decided to vote republican yesterday. virginia is back in the republican column.

it controls the house of delegates down there i think 60/40. chris christie had all this going against him with the media, the dnc, and he pulled it out. host: that was stopped from westminster, md. it to talk a little more about chris christie's victory joining us is josh margolin of the paper in new jersey. one of the papers talks about low turnout in the state. ultimately also how that was a factor and how the results went. would you agree? guest: it is critical. once the account of the absentees and other votes it

could be the lowest turnout in new jersey for governor. but it was a resounding victory for chris christie and across the board in the critical suburban areas. it was clear that independents were going for chris christie, no higher turnout would have helped. host: if that is so, what made the independents pull the lever on jon corzine? guest: it was clearly referendum. many were talking about whether this would be read as the referendum on the president or on the national democrats' control tled house. it is straight up political science. people have been upset with him for a number of months.

it was a referendum on him. it is interesting because at bottom there may not even have needed to be an election yesterday. chris christie won by the margin he seemed to have in the summer and spring. after all is said and done, it looked like it may well have been of pre-determined outcome. host: as you saw those results, what was the all-time result of having a third party in it? guest: not much a result. they tend to have independent candidates who might get up to 7% of the vote. this independent seemed to be on the march at one time during the campaign. our newspaper, the editorial board, endorsed him.

but in the end he played no role in it. host: did mr. chris christie clearly define an economic plan? guest: he defined and economic philosophy and have a lot of ideas on the table. he was said to be vague by democrats and many in the press because he did not lay out an alternative state budget. we have about $30 billion in the budget. independent estimates are that the deficit could be as high as $80 billion. democrats are trying to force him into a posture to describe his budget. they figure if they can get him committed to $8 billion in cuts, there's a lot of political fallout that would come. special interest groups and people in different geographic regions of the state. chris christie never would get

into that game. 30 years ago the republican who was going to win a race ended up losing as soon as he put a detailed budget plan out. host: the editorial for your paper talk about his resistance to stimulus funds. will he be pressure to keep that up? guest: he is probably more of a moderate republican. one of the keys to his success is he is one of the few republicans in recent memory who was able to keep conservatives in line with him. obviously, conservatives don't want him to take the stimulus, but he has a democratic legislature and heavily blue state. he will be under a lot of pressure to take stimulus funds, and you saw that toward the end of the campaign.

when he had a conservative opponent he said he would not take stimulus funds, but as the general election progressed he said he would take some of this, some of that. he said he would not take employment assistance. he will be under a lot of pressure. it is a classic case of it easy to say something when you are not an office. but when you are in office with a deficit you can either cut jobs or get a handful of cash to allow you to keep those jobs in place and keep supporters happy. you might be tempted. host: does he have anything on his agenda today? guest: he is supposed to have a press conference. the tradition is that the winner will have a press conference the day after the election.

we have already been able to determine who his transition directors will be in their offices are set up. he already has a state police secured twho arrived last night. he will probably lay low for a couple of days, getting things together. typically we do not see staff announcements until closer to thanksgiving. obviously, he is a man with a young family, four children from age 6 and up to 16. he has a lot of planning on a personal bubble because of family changes. host: things for talking with us this morning, mr. josh margolin.

back to calls. the independent line. caller: yes, i'm calling to say that i think it is pretty sad that the republicans won the election yesterday in virginia and new jersey. i thought the independents but if democrats in to see if the government. there are enough independents in the country that they could vote an independent in to office now. neither party knows have to rule the country and they are both the same even when they do. they spend, spend, spend and put the country into a deeper debt. not only that, but they are

undermining the constitution. host: md., on the line for democrats. caller: the caller from westminster said the new jersey win was overwhelming. they deny that obama got a mandate. it was painful for me. my advice to rahm e. if he is listening is that the president cannot be a part of every small conversation everywhere. it is ok to offend some people to get some things done. that idiot from taxes and a the devil from wyoming -- when you mess it up it will take a little more to fix it. host: "the new york times" this morning says the white house is

viewing new jersey with the best hoping to put resources into the race. white house aides reviewed corzine commercials. but his abiding and popularity suggested that even obama surge voters who voted for him last year could not take it into his favor this year. annette, on the republican line. caller: yes, i was agreeing with woman earlier this speaking that possibly we do need a third party. i think we have lost confidence in this government. i was listening to the focus group from new jersey one day and was amazed to hear their taxes are 65 percent said.

-- 65%. i was feeling sorry for california, but that seems worse. i think they just wanted an honest person there. this government has served us well for over 200 years and probably would be now if it were not run by a lot of greedy politicians. i agree with this woman proposing an independent party. i heard those from new jersey saying that. they are chipping away at our rights, taking more control, taking over banks, health care. that is absurd. telling us to pull in our belts. it is a job for everyone. the morals and values have declined. it is bad from the little person cheating on their taxes or the

contractor over-charging on their bid. because it is just the government and they can get away with it. host: robert, on the line for independents. caller: i get what this lady is saying with a sense of frustration the populace has with regard to the political parties. independents are probably swain people. however, the democrats have it in depth t-- they had an inept candidate in virginia -- it was a loss for mr. creigh deeds, not for democrats. i think the american people are tired -- trying to put all these people in office to get health

care past and can i get it done. we have nowhere to turn. we can't get anything done for the american people. we hope that an independent can do it. if he does not have constituents, it will not work. the american people are in a quandary. the government is not for us because the people who represent us do not. host: baltimore, md., good morning on the independent line. caller: good morning, real quick -- i think the elections yesterday don't have much to do, much significance as to what we can expect next year or beyond. host: why is that? caller: they are general elections and i don't think they forecast will happen. there is a lot in the works within the house and senate now.

bills to be voted on. it will probe we have more effect on what we're looking at in the upcoming election. with regards to that we need to seek not more bipartisanship, but non-partisanship. the bickering and republican boycotts -- as i have looked into these debates on c-span, and i love to be able to do this, it seems like there is no consensus between parties. that is why it in a registered democrat, but i really am more of an independent. i will switch my registration to that. i am tired of all the fighting, all this nonsense we see. host: one more call, alabama, on the independent line. caller: good morning, there is a problem we have with our

government. it is not the fact that -- we are both correct, the democrats and republicans. it is not about having a third or fourth party. the problem is how we find our elections. when we have corporations finding them when no longer have a democracy but rather a corporate-run government. look at europe and canada and ask why they have a good quality of life? why do they have universal health care, good education, mass transportation? because they have only a two- week political cycle. we have corporations funding our elections by the billions. when that happens we have to give them hundreds of billions back out of our tax treasures and our quality of life is eroding. we have to go to true public-

financed the elections or we will become a third world country. host: that is the last call that we will take on this issue. we will continue on these themes throughout the morning. coming up, perry bacon, a congressional order will talk not only about yesterday's result but how will affect debate on healthcare and climate change. first, other political news from yesterday. we turn to john mercurio guest: the election is not over in atlanta which now faces a december 1 runoff and could elect their first white mayor 1973 cents. . norwood is currently in the lead and will face reed.

with 100% of the vote counted she led. reed finished a strong second with 37% of the vote. there were eight candidates on the vote. both candidates and campaign and supporter have vowed that rates will not play a role in this runoff. but it remains to be seen whether that will be the case. the current incumbent mayor, franklin, who is leaving office has endorsed reed. another factor -- reed and supporters have accused norwood of being a republican. this is a non-affiliated election. she did attend the republican

national convention in the past. there are some ties she has. but she will have to enter for that in this predominantly democratic city. moving on to houston, that mayor's race also advances to a runoff. the match up will also feature a white woman running against a black man. it features the potential for a political first -- city comptroller parker and attorney locke are the two candidates predicted by many to prevail and now face each other in a december 12 runoff. parker led yesterday with 31% followed by locke with 26%. if elected, park would be the first openly gay mayor of houston. the big surprise here -- history still being made for incumbent mayor tom -- elected to an

unprecedented first term. this was not even close with 57% over 42%. host: thank you and we will get another update from the hot line shortly. joining us now is perry bacon from "the washington post." if i'm a party member and i have issues like health care, what will it mean to me? guest: you have to look at the number who turned out to vote for republicans. many of those who voted for obama blaster will not necessarily work out for 2010. last night's vote had fewer young and minority voters, again suggesting that summit turned out last year not turnout for other democrats. for republicans you also saw

with the special raised in new york that it was very close. it was a fight between the conservative candidate against the official republican. they split the vote in some ways. the conservative, hoffman, ran a very sharp campaign and lost against bill owens. host: does it affect how people may vote on issues like health care? guest: for democrats, yes. we saw lot of concern about the economy. some of the more conservative democrats are concerned that congress is doing too many issues, not helping the economy

directly. you will hear more of this anxiety. the democrats are having trouble getting all the votes together. host: that and the larger issues of the economy as well. as far as the actual vote this week, a story yesterday saying that a vote could take place in the senate in january? guest: yes, senator harry reid has been asked and he would not commit. they are giving signs that while the house may vote to approve their version this week, the senate is still working out questions among moderate members. we may not see a vote for a longer time than expected. there are few senators in close

races for next year. it will be interesting to see how they are affected by their race last night. host: concern about funding for abortion? guest: also about immigration. whether or not they are allowed to enroll in health care exchanges. the senate has a lot of difference issues. host: it is an effort to gain moderates? guest: yes. almost no republican said that they would support it at this time. the house is trying to get moderate behind the bill. host: if it gets pushed to january as they're concerned about losing steam? guest: yes, we heard a lot of democrats talk about that yesterday. i think that is why the office

of harry reid tried to reverse his statement. one thing the democrats have talked about all year is a sense that they have to get a healthcare bill done. the white house staff argues that when democrats lost in 1994, the problem was that the voters viewed it they did not finish it. so, i think there is a view on the hill concerning trying to get a bill done before the next election. host: here are the phone lines.

what are the issues on the house side? guest: the abortion debate, and aggression. they released final details of the bill last night. it will be interesting to see how members react. the democrats have about 50 members who won seats in 2006 or 2008. it will be interesting to watch. to see whether it brings more or less confidence over health care. host: republicans have released their thoughts on what a bill should look like. how has that been received? guest: it is a more pared down version. the democrats' version expands medicaid.

there are trillions in subsidies to help low-income people buy insurance. the republican plan is more pared down and does not require insurance companies to issue coverage to anyone. it focuses more on reform, allowing people to buy insurance across state lines. it would cover fewer people. it was not designed to immediately have a universal coverage. host: as far as regulation of companies it would only be for the state's were those of reside? guest: that is right. host: the first call is from arkansas. caller: good morning, my question is about the public option. considering that the very fiber

of this country was built from public utilities, and once everything was going we saw the privatization and de-regulation and we look at the costs now. then considering that it is not american government we want -- free trade works well in a communist country like china -- my question is whether the public option could work like the public utilities did at one time? guest: the democrats think it will work in some ways like you are describing, i guess. they think it will provide competition for insurance companies and keep prices down. the republicans argue that it will be the government becoming the biggest player and you will end up with more regulation. right now we see both the senate

and house moving toward some version of having a public option in their bills. host: palm beach, fla., on the republican line. caller: good morning, mike son's name is carter to give you some idea of the last time i voted democrat. my father was an italian in madrid. last night's results show what is wrong with the democrat party which has attached itself to the gay rights movement, abortion issue -- these are minority rights. many people like me have had to go over to the republican or independent party because it is the party that used to be considered the evil party not concerned about helping people

along. now they have become the party who have accepted conservative christians, people against abortion and gay marriage which is being shoved down our throats. i'm not saying to hate homosexuals, but america does not want gay marriage and that is why i am a republican. guest: i understand why it the color caught himself a republican. last night's races want to focus on jobs, the economy. the republicans who won did not talk about gay bearish or abortion. candidates are talking about pocketbook issues because we are in a recession. last night you saw virginia, new

jersey -- concern about the status quo. host: if there is possible delay on congressional votes, how does that compare with the white house desire to get it passed before the end of the year? guest: at the end of the day they are beholden to the timetable of the congress. the president has wanted it since august. the senators have to be able to pass it, but they are still feuding. host: asheville, n.c., on the independent line. caller: yes, i am listening to mr. perry bacon and really appreciate c-span. i listen to it extensively. i listen to both sides, both parties. americans today need to not look at things as a party, but as

americans. therefore, look at the issues. if each of the parties, of our congressman will look at the issue and not just get their back up because it is a republican thing or a democrat thing -- i have gone recently from republican to independent to allow me to go the way not of the party, but of the issues. the other thing, it is time for us to identify the americans not as african-americans, not as asian-americans. in three generations removed from my heritage of germany. do i call myself a german- american? i am proud to call myself an american from the time i knew what that was. if we only address the issues -- health care, if they looked and listened to both sides, i

will leave the room and listen to c-span. i am listening to the congressmen speaking sometimes i have to run into the room to see what party they are with. occasionally i will side with the democrats. let's look of the issues, not set up blockades from partisanship. let's work together. guest: last night i think we saw voters like the caller who is independent who are switching parties who appeared to have voted for obama but voted for chris christie in new jersey last night. i think that independents will become a big factor in the 2010 election. you will see a lot of focus on that. i assume that democrats will

talk about the economy as soon as they get health care done. a big issue next year will be how to woo independents. host: how this climate change fit in? guest: 1 my colleagues -- one of my colleagues read an article about that. right now is not clear when it will come up on the senate schedule or when it will pass. when the white house signaled it will not work on that until after healthcare, that makes me think it will be pushed back until next spring. i don't know the answer. host: as far as the healthcare debate is concerned there is a story today saying that the question of immigrants factors in. what is the current debate? guest: the bill has set up health-care exchanges. that is where you would go to

shop for health care, to buy a plan from this company or another, or from the government. the debate about whether legal and to a lesser extent of illegal immigrants should be able to buy under these exchanges. the goal is not to cover illegal immigrants. congress has hotly debated that. the question is how exchanges work and who can enroll. and who will get federal subsidies. host: do you have a sense that this debate can be resolved? guest: i suspect that it will be by the end of the week in the house. host: and then they'll come of

virginia, and drew on the line for democrats. -- annandale. caller: i would like to offer the president some advice -- to get tough and start doing the change we voted for. here's a list. he started caving when he got into office. there was the additional photos of the abu ghraib into that we could have seen. he has been caving on health care. 60% of the people want a public option. we want the insurance companies to fend for themselves. he has given money to the banks not to the people. now we are caving on israeli settlements. the list goes on. instead of trying to be that bmoc he needs to serve our agenda and what we voted for. guest: there has been a lot of thanks to on the side of democrats because the president

has not lived up to every promise of the campaign. he pledged to repeal the do not ask do not tell policy. we have heard a lot of those arguments. last night's election looked like it might be more about which party can draw independents. i'm not sure the first concern will be to make sure that the left gets everything they want. host: wayne county, pa., up next on our republican line. caller: yes, i'm glad that mr. perry bacon is there talking. he covers our problems in washington whether right or wrong. but for one month we have been hearing that they will extend the unemployment again. our state is up near 10 and so is the national average. people are losing jobs right and left. they seem so wrapped up in afghanistan healthcare.

the people who need unemployment are just being ignored. i was told three weeks ago -- i wonder if you know what the status is? guest: yes, congress, the senate is likely by the end of the week even today to vote on expanding unemployment insurance. it would be expanded for 14 weeks for people in most states and for 20 for those facing unemployment above 8.5%. the republicans and democrats have been feuding for things in the bill for months. there are many changes democrats are talking about in improving the economy as with homebuyers credits.

host: "the new york post" has an opinion editorial by senator lieberman. he writes that health-care costs is the principal driver of long- term federal debt. that is why he agrees with obama's pledge not to add one dime to the staggering deficit now or in the future. is he a factor to consider on the senate side? guest: he is. he has been saying that he is opposed to the public option. last week he said he would try to stop the bill with it in there. i think he has reversed that. democrats are never sure where he will vote. it is hard to imagine anyone democrat blocking it. it would have to be a coalition of moderates. his whole point about the

deficit has been discussed to death. most democrats say that they want to be deficit neutral. it is not really news. host: tulsa, on the independent line. caller: i am wondering why republicans are in favor of continuing health care system on the back of business which makes the business is less competitive? host: can you expand on that? caller: as you know, many get their health insurance through employers. this makes the employer less competitive with world business. guest: if you look at the health care proposals of both parties,

both are interested in dealing with those who don't get it through their employers. the democrats look at healthcare exchanges. republicans want to make it easier to buy directly from insurance companies anywhere in the country. it is true that most get their insurance through their employer, but i think both parties are reluctant to change that because most people in america already have it. most already kind of like their interest. so there is reluctance to overturn that so radically. host: washington, d.c., good morning. you are up next on the line for democrats. caller: good morning to both of you. i am really flabbergasted that this country -- i don't care what party you are, republican, independent, green, yellow, pink

-- anybody that would vote for any republican to get back in any office -- i don't care for this governor, mayor, what ever -- has got to be out of their mind. the republican party is the reason why we are in this mess. obama is trying to tackle health care because it is common sense. i used to work in the emergency room in one of the hospitals here in the district of columbia. you have people coming in just to get a one time shot or a one time fixed for a problem that is going to be there looking at you in your face down the line. whereas if you have a doctor and

you have healthcare they can tackle the problem and fix it so it does not go on and on. it costs this country. as a matter of fact, that is why a lot of your hospitals closed down in the past two or three years. people did not have health insurance and they were running the emergency rooms down. guest: i think i would agree with the concerns about the healthcare system the caller has expressed. but to come back to her first pint when she said she cannot believe anyone would want to vote for republicans who are the cause of all the problems -- the era of blaming president bush for all the problems is probably over. you have seen with new jersey which is traditionally

democratic, it has suggested to me that some anger about bush that drove the election of 2008 no longer exist. in 2010 you will probably have a more even platform. host: this morning there is a story from the roll-call. the democratic ascendancy has been complicated. it results in a mixed success from capitol hill in reaching out. do you agree? guest: i think they have reached out a lot. they have been very aggressive reaching out. president obama served in the senate. rahm emanuel was a leader of house democrats. they have many staffers who have had a high-level jobs and are known for closer relationships than the bush white house did. many staffers complained with the bush white house.

in fact of the complaint among democrats is that obama is not detailed enough in what he would like them to do. many democrats would like more detail concerning the public option, for example. they complain he is not detailed enough. there's not much tension there. host: next, the republican line. caller: i have a couple quick points. one, the analysis from the democrat side that said that the election last night basically speaks to the fact they're now getting their message out properly is pointed to the fact that the side is quite delusional. their message is out there and that is the problem. the people are rejecting their message. the reason we have what we did in 2008 is they have distorted

their message to make themselves seem more centers. and they got a lot of this independents across the lawn. two colors -- one pointed to central control of the telephone industry and how great that was -- two callers, the one concerning the telephone industry -- that is extreme ignorance. relative real costs were actually much higher than what we have today. plus, you did not get the range of choices. you basically had to rent the phone from the company and you had the choice of black or black. then look at the woman who called in today who said she could not believe that anyone

would vote for republican because they caused the crisis. but the crisis extends all the way back to their reinvestment act from the late 1970's into the clinton era with threats of lawsuits for not lending to lower income families. host: we will leave it there. guest: the caller is a republican and i think he sounds like what we saw last night. republicans seem more motivated, more angry. the republican intensity and anger is a little higher than the democratic enthusiasm right now. it is something democrats have to worry about in the next year particularly. we were talking about health care and climate change. the democrats have to get those bills passed in a way to keep their supporters enthusiastic to

have them turn out next year for elections. . . now it is to a point where i

think that obama is making an effort and i think that republicans are holding it up on precedent because it is not their idea. guest: that is true in some ways, yes, the republicans have been trying to slow down the process. i think that they disagree with the health care bill and their strategy has been to delay in the hopes of raising more concerns and drawing more lobbyists to them. although at some points i think that there will be a vote. yes, the republicans have been trying to delay. host: the house takes up the issue of credit-card reform today.

it deals with credit card penalties. what is expected? guest: it is expected to pass. provisions to make it easier for businesses to loan money, for unemployment insurance, credit cards, there has been a lot of effort to focus on pocketbook issues. guest: what would it do? host: -- host: what would it do? guest: it would make it harder for credit card companies to raise prices, making it harder for them to charge you so that you do not know this. host: what is happening on both sides to gain support for the health care measures? give us an example of people getting on board. guest: right now they are doing a lot of meetings in both

chambers right now. trying to get republicans behind the ideas. the house is spending a lot of time meeting behind closed doors, talking about abortion, trying to find ways to make sure that the pro-life democrats do not block the federal funding. in the senate there are a lot of meetings between harry reid and the rest of the senate. meeting with the white house, trying to talk about the overall goals the more important than the details. host: oklahoma, democratic line. caller: good morning, fellows. the one thing that i have got to bring up, they are talking

about medicare. i have been disabled since i was 38. i am 45 now. giving us $250 at the beginning of the year is not going to stimulate the economy. i do not see how that is going to help the disabled. guest: the reductions in medicare spending are supposed to come from something called medicare advantage. not something that every medicare enrollee receives. we will see how that works out. host: california, republican line, good morning.

caller: when it comes to reporting you hear things about the republicans, then in the last three years of president bush they passed everything right through and kept reporting. is there any way that they can tell the people that it was not just that simple? even with obama, it is not a one-man show. these are people we have voted into the house and senate. the election that we saw yesterday showed them winning people over a little bit. it is not the president that controls the country. guest: by a greek, people are aware that there is more than the president -- i agree, people are aware that there is more than the president. i think that we generally realize that there is a complex

complexity to these issues. host: houston, independent line. cynthia, go ahead. caller: a lot of people did not care for the way that george bush was a cowboy. now that obama is in office, people are concerned because he seems really sneaky. this 2000 page bill has been criticized because no one can understand it. they cannot decipher what exactly it says or what it does. can you comment on that. guest: it is not clear to me -- sneaky is an odd choice. they have been working on this in the house for 10 months now. there has been a bit of a grass- roots movement in congress to

call for these bills to be posted online at least 72 hours before the vote comes up. there have been bills in the past were the final text was only available for the last 12 hours or so. there's a lot of talk about the fact that people who are not lawyers cannot understand the text of the bill with all the references the previous bills, you need 40 bills in front of you to read it all. there is a movement to try to simplify the riding of the bill text. right now you see a lot members, people come to events, reading from the bill, it was confusing to the members who often have not read any page and confusing to the audience who do not

always necessarily understand the legalese. host: houston, texas. go ahead. caller: 72 hours is not enough time for the country to respond to a 2000 page bill. i do not see the participants of the voters in the industry that this law will impact. this is just scary. guest: i would say the the bills do not come out of nowhere. they are debated publicly in committee. the last version may not be too different from the versions that came up before. should congress me before? that is a good question. host: one of the folks that

responded to was on twitter talk about the 12 supporters of the single health care system, they refused -- guest: who was this? host: nancy pelosi. guest: i have not heard this before. there are members on capitol hill that wished they had but it will cut get much movement right now. host: new jersey, go ahead. caller: i would like to make a comment. all of this commentary about the

election, gov. jon corzine last night and everyone saying that it is a reflection on voting against obama's agenda. people have to understand, new jersey is one of the most overly regulated states in the country. it was not a referendum against obama. jon corzine was not a particularly effective governor. in virginia, the past nine elections they have always voted opposite the party in power for governor. it is just a bad economy, jon corzine was a good governor, but taxes are killing us. taxes are a huge percentage of the in, my business.

property taxes have gone through the roof. we have got polls everywhere we go in new jersey, roads, we are constantly paying money through the roof. it is not against obama, it is against jon corzine, he was not a good governor. guest: the exit polls last night showed that a lot of voters did not view this as a vote against obama. those that did said that they did not vote for the democrats. it may show some concern over the recession and what the democratic leadership in congress have to say about the

washington feeling. but i think that was reflected in last night's vote. some people that voted for obama last time did not show up last night. host: rep bodman is having a rally on the capitol tomorrow. what is this about? guest: she is one of the more well known conservatives in congress, and this is not particularly unusual in that it appears that all members of the republican party in the house are opposed to the health care bill. host: republican line, south carolina. good morning. mr. brown, the washington post

is supposed to be a large, a huge paper. host: go ahead. caller: sorry. instead of all of this type we are getting about health care, why not have the government's, regulate the insurance companies, regulate the cost of the insurance coverage. i have a couple more things i would like to address. we need term limits on all government elected officials. no time should spent -- no person should spend more time there than the president of the united states. we should give every household in america $1 million. we, the people that are having the money taken, we will pay our

mortgages and credit cards, then we will go out and purchase things that we want. guest: term limits is a clearly discussed issue, but with jon corzine we saw the other forms of term limits that we have our elections. it will be a very interesting election next year with the democrats attempting to keep control. host: thank you for your time this morning, perry bacon. guest: thank you. host: we are going to talk about the election results with john brabender, coming up. but first, political news with john mercurio. guest: one of the biggest surprises of and i took place

in new york city. michael bloomberg won reelection to a third term but by a must -- by a much closer margin than anyone thought would happen. it was a comfortable enough margin, but polls leading up to the election suggested that the mayor was going to win by 18 to 20 points. thomson's showing is all the more amazing considering that he had been declared as getting no support from the national party. he virtually ignored thompson at a fund-raiser, a democratic fund-raiser. why was it so close? a couple of theories are coming out. boaters in new york city may not have been particularly happy with his maneuver earlier this

year to undo term limits. also he is a billionaire media tycoon, he spent roughly $90 million of his own money on this race. a lot of the voters in new york city were not particularly happy. another close vote took place in the state of maine where voters voted to repeal a same-sex marriage law, mean becomes the 31st state to reject same-sex marriage at the ballot box. this is the first time that voters have overturned marriage laws approved by the state legislature and signed by a governor. gay-rights groups find this

particularly discouraging, this is the first one that took place in the region of new england, where they have seen so many gains in the last few years. five other states have legalized same-sex marriage, but this was not a win at the buyout bot's in maine. charlotte, n.c., voters ended two decades of republican mayoral leadership by electing a democrat to the office, he won their closest mayoral race in years, taking just 51% of the vote. finally, in california, in their 10th congressional district, democrats held on to a few house seats.

they are headed to washington today to be sworn in filling a former congresswoman's deceit. -- seek -- seat. host: thank you. tooling us right now to talk about the results from lasnine t m last night, john brabender and tad devine. guest: the republicans are back. 2006 it was the depression, 2008 was a recession, now there are strong indicators for republicans. this will not be a tidal wave, we are not that naive, but 2010 should be very interesting.

host: was it's strictly a pocket book thing? or was it a message towards washington? >> a combination. people are clearly still unhappy with the change they did not get in 2008. they see that their money is not being taken seriously. some people are going to think that these are exceptions, but they are not. look at pennsylvania. or new york state, where they want the county executive race. republicans had a very good night. host: did washington deserve some of the blame? guest: in 2006 and 2008 independent voters acted like democrats, last night they acted like republicans. that is the challenge.

people still want change and they are looking for it. the lesson, for my party, i think, is that if we do not deliver on health care, do not deliver on fundamental change, we will be in trouble. host: are there concerns for the current efforts? the cost of the kinds of things that congress wants to enact and have it ultimately affects people? guest: there are concerns about the deficit, but there are much bigger concerns. people want to see the change they voted for manifest did. they're looking for leadership from our side and if we deliver, we will have a good argument. i agree that it was a good day for republicans, but it was also a good day for democrats in the

23rd district of new york. the republicans had a big fight and started a civil war of their own in that district. they will -- democrats are going to benefit from that if that continues in 2010. guest: obviously you had a conservative independent running because the republicans in new york were way too moderate. you had a number of people like sarah palin and rick santorum coming out to say that they are going to stay with the conservatives. the republican well up pulling out of the race. almost like a reality television show. more than other -- more than any other race you will see, the 23rd is hard to say what will happen.

four points in new jersey is a landslide for republicans. there was a lot of local politics in the 23rd, fighting it had very little to do with a national referendum. most of this is what they wrote today in " new york post." "-- in "to the new york post." -- diane "said the new york post -- in "the new york post." guest: she announced that she did not know anything about that. this is seen by some as an aloofness, others see it as her

being disorganized. the jury is out on where she will be. is she going to be a reality television show host or a national leader? host: if you want to ask questions of our guests, for democrats, 202-737-0002. . for republicans, 202-737-0001. for independents, 202-628-0205. both of these gentlemen are part of a larger effort. you mentioned a reality television, what is your new web site? >guest: the idea, and i want to credit john with this, he has been the big force behind it, the idea is to put together a website where people can go to see political shows that are entertaining. there is no partisan agenda,

hopefully there will be tremendous entertainment value. i have got to tell you, the longer that we do it, the crazier it seems. the show that is coming up today, produced and written by john, captures a lot of that feeling. [laughter] guest: we have a totally fictional u.s. senate race going on in pennsylvania. we get to know the republican and democrat for it well. like most campaigns, they are very dysfunctional. you get to see the people that run the campaigns, the relationship, everything here is based on reality, but the absurdity hopefully makes it comical. here is the promo. >> if you were the answer on jeopardy, the answer would have to be who is an incompetent

moron. >> meet jason mahoney. >> do i have tickets to coming out of a republican women, while fundraiser campaign? >> it is the story that defies the islands, finding a manager to win. >> it is not funny how far over my head that i am in. >> and no one wants to hear some idiot that they do not know. >> coming this fall to the political entertainment network. host: so, folks can see this starting when? >> 3:00 today it goes live online. now that the new jersey race is over, people need their political fix. host: chicago, you are up first. caller: first of all, i would

like to make a comment about the last guest, who did not talk about how democrats tried to pass unemployment insurance and 13 republicans have been holding up the bill. i am one person that is not too happy about the new york one- third, meaning that we get another blue dog. we have seen how they are holding up health care. as far as i am concerned, that should have gone to the republicans. in virginia deeds ran as a republican. democrats did not come out for him, and they should not have. guest: i think that caller represents a tension within our party, between the base that

wants to move forward immediately on the public option and climate change, as well as a lot of other things, right now, and whether or not we will be the big tent party. i think that yesterday was really about independent voters moving towards republicans. i think that we will get the voters on our side, not just for a liberal agenda. host: democratic defeat in virginia strictly about the campaign that he ran? guest: deeds had a great primary campaign, but mcdonnell had a great thing going for him as well. his agenda was massively done.

-- masterfully done. guest: he never once backed away from saying he was a conservative. he ran every day and his conservative values. he spent a lot of time talking about key issues, jobs and transportation. in virginia there are basically one term governor's, and what you will find the areas where he will be moving forward to quickly. keep in mind, people around the country are going to want him to do fund raising. the republican base is extremely small for this. we are not in control anymore, there is a responsibility to help republican candidates. host: richard, virginia. caller: good morning, gentlemen.

i think that what happened in the election last night was them saying they would have another presidential election. the republicans have open primaries where they can vote democratic. the guy that was supposed to be the democrat to run for governor voted in the open primary. this also happened in the presidential election. republicans hated hillary so bad, they voted against her in the open primaries. that is when obama caught fire. i have to say this to the republican the keeps talking about sarah palin, do not let her come back and shoot you in

the foot with her gun. guest: the assumption made in that call is that somehow the republicans played in the primary and faked the weakest candidate. i do not think that is what happened. people in virginia said that he was just not one of us, coming down from new york where he had spent most of his life. guest: you can vote in any primary, and i agree with john. they did not one deedwant deeds, by the way, i think he has a great story. maybe he did not tell enough in terms of background and things like that but i think that the washington norseman is the end of the primary race in virginia that trump everyone. host: chicago, paul, independent

line. caller: thank you. i am so privileged to be on the air. gentlemen, this is the way. what we have now with the crisis of the wall street debacle and the rich buying their power, you know what? american democracy is the away. here is the thing, tyranny is at the door. we need to take the country back for the poor, and indigent, homeless. those in nursing homes that are not getting been needs met. again, i reiterate, bloomberg won through the power premise of money. that is all. he did not win by talent or ability. thank you.

guest: if money decided the outcome of elections, jon corzine would have won yesterday. perhaps mayor bloomberg did have tremendous resources, but what i find interesting is that he won a close race in he had a 70% job approval rating and 51% of the vote. there was something between people thinking that he was doing a good job and people that voted for him. i think that the biggest thing going on right now is this anger that voters express. it is real. sometimes it expresses itself in a way that goes beyond the left or the right. anger reside in the middle class. the flight yesterday was really about the hearts and minds of middle-class voters. republicans did well in two states. host: there was a story today in

"the wall street journal" about conservatives moving into the senate race in florida. have you seen this there? guest: charlie crist is probably reading a sigh of relief today. if a republican would have won yesterday, some of the social conservatives in the party might have said they would be moving on. you are going to see that now. the argument that the conservatives will make is that conservatism did not fail, it was conservatives that failed conservatism. basically they got into power and started acting like democrats. i think did you will hear that. i think that there is a leadership vacuum in the republican party that will probably be filled by those most likely to run for president in 2012. host: melvin, democratic line.

caller: i am calling to reference the elections. about it being a referendum on the obama policies or not. no, because local elections and the elected people that were in office, johnson would not back them. the governor talked about raising taxes, jon corzine it was a thing with the people. at this time and age and the way

that money is, if you make those promises and they do not come through, the people are not going to vote for you. local issues come first. guest: that is right, yesterday is not a referendum on the president as much as it was a reflection of the public mood in america. in my mind it has not changed much since 2006. people wanting the country to go in another election, prepared to vote against incumbent parties if they feel that change is not occurring fast enough. i do not see it as much as a referendum on the president's, it will become one if we do not deliver on the change. host: if that is the case, what are the other races that we have to keep an eye on at this point? guest: florida is a great

example. i worked there for many years for bill nelson. charlie crist is not a candidate you would want to run against. in a lot of places around the country, republicans, if they do not do what they did in the 23rd district, to run candidates against the establishment, it will drain their fundraising and resources, causing a rift in the party where democrats can win in districts like new york where it had seemed impossible before. i think if there was a bigger message yesterday, the same message that republicans took too long to understand in 1994. they thought the whole world wanted them to move to the right on issues, which was not the case.

democrats seeing the 2008 elections as people wanting a government-run health care and a stimulus package for china and india, that played in some of the races yesterday, the leadership for the people who are particularly independent, this year and next year being the years of the independents, there is a swing back toward republicans, where they have very strong candidates running for governor and senate in pennsylvania and ohio, the early polls are very favorable to them. host: in illinois the republicans, running for senate, as well as in pennsylvania, new hampshire, and illinois. before we go on, there are some other races -- which are the

ones to watch them of guest: ? guest: i have to be careful, gerlach is a former employee -- former client, running against one of my current clients. [laughter] what we are going to find is that there are some moderates, the only republicans with chances to win in delaware. for anyone to not get behind him as a republican would be a major mistake. i think that republicans have to be careful half. if someone is going to -- it have to be careful. if someone is going to be with us 80% of the time, great. but we do not want to be kept in

the minority for too long. guest: gerlach, that seat, there's a real good shot there. host: we will take a look at a couple of other races as well. asheville, n.c., republican line. go ahead. caller: thank you for c-span. i would like to make a comment about all of the independent voters that seemed to be emerging more on the conservative side. i am a former independent who has come into the republican camp. i am also a tea party member and i only listen to certain media outlets. what i see, and the reason that i became a republican, and i would agree with the comment that conservatism did not fail,

but rather some republicans failed conservatism. when i look at the two parties, i see three different schools in the republican party. when i look at the democratic party, i see 900 different ideologies that have kind of banded together. when you take those three principles of the republican party, they might disagree some, but they have a greater tendency to actually agree. with the democrats, and this is the reason that i could not get behind them, it seems like the only thing that they agree on is that republicans are the bad guy. guest: i think that for a long time they have been the bad guy. look at the 2006-2008 elections.

the problem that the republicans have had over time, they have certain value issues, and they should. they are a pro-life, pro marriage party. but that became the definition of who they were and they did not do enough in addressing the problems of everyday americans. i think it is important that we get back to being the ones who also worry about how you can pay your bills, if your business is growing, and people feel that there is a dream that they can reach. that tomorrow is going to be better. host: what about the independent voters to vote a law of lyons? -- independent voters who voted along those lines? guest: our party is very

different from the republican party, we are far less homogenous. it is very diverse. but i think that is our strength. you even saw this in new jersey, john carr -- jon corzine one young voters. we have got an advantage with young people right now that can build and blossom the way it did in the 1980's when they moved towards ronald reagan. host: jennifer, burlington, independent line. caller: democrats and then having too many different views, i am an independent. i do not believe in voting along party lines. i think it is a strength for democrats to be willing to see

and touch on different views and incorporate them into policies that they put forward. that is one of the things that i think is a strength for the democrats. you cannot be all one-sided. you have to be willing to see a different side of the issue when it comes to policy in order to get the best bill forward for the american people. i think that when it comes to these gubernatorial races, i do not think that they had anything to do with obama. it was the candidates themselves who were able to touch on the local people as far as the issues that mattered to them. i think that they did a much better job. with jon corzine, he had a lot of problems going into it. he was not very popular, which played in a lot, especially with

being a former goldman sachs employee. i think that had a lot to do with the new jersey race. host: one of our twitter members wonders why no one mentions goldman sachs and core design. guest: my former firm did the jon corzine race, and i do not think that he lost yesterday because he used to be the head of goldman sachs. it was probably a source of concern for some people, but clearly there was a motivation. real concerns over the state of new jersey and what was happening. a big issue a few years ago in the governor's race. i do not think that that is what

drove voters away. the caller from vermont, they both said in the state caucus that if they can have that, diversity is a great strength. but we need the unity of purpose in washington. that has to be passing legislation. john used the point of cap and trade, voters simply want change. they will live with health care legislation and climate legislation that they do not totally agree with, as long as they see progress moving forward and that looks like we are helping to create jobs. host: here is the problem -- guest: here is the problem the democrats always run into. there are a lot of emerging viewpoints with unity around one

message -- we are not the republicans. it always seems that things swing back to the republicans once the democrats have to govern. right now you do see a rational democratic party. on the employee freedom to choose at they are already raising cain with that legislation, basically a big thank-you to the unions for their health are aired to designate. you are going to the blue dogs questioning that one as well. when republicans tried to get in, democrats point to these things and say this is why you do not want them. host: democratic line, good morning. caller: good morning. i have one question for the democratic strategist, i

consider myself a moderate democrat. my definition of a liberal is an open-minded person, and on the other hand a conservative would be considered closed minded, traditionalist. the democrats have to take back the word liberal. it seems like the republican party on so many occasions trump anything offered up by the democratic party. we make a big mistake in

allowing ourselves to be considered pro-life as opposed to pro-choice. host: mr. devine? >> the concern about abortions -- guest: the concern about abortions is a real one. we are seeing that played out in health care debate. whether or not we will have a health care bill that provides funding and a public option for abortions, that is a deep concern to the many people going right now and there is a debate going on in congress. i think that what we need to do as democrats is make it clear that if you are pro-choice, you are welcome. if you are pro-life, you are welcome. there are democrats in places like pennsylvania where

candidates feel very strongly about this issue and want to stand up. as democrats we need to make sure that they understand that the democratic party has no limits on a single issue. what we care about is the party that will work on behalf of working men and women that is dedicated to quality. that fundamentally we stand for helping people that want to help themselves. host: in maine they overturn that the same-sex marriage law. guest: i think that same-sex equality is going to take a long time to pass the hat -- to pass the test of the voters. it is hard to coalesce popular support behind this kind of fundamental societal change,, but i believe it is inevitable. i think the rights for equality

have taken a step. guest: 31 votes, and every time the vote to make marriage between a man and woman has won. i do not know if it will never change, but right now it is 31-0 in the vote count. clearly, that is part of the republican message. we make a major mistake if we make that the only thing the republican party is a -- is about. we became one of the biggest spenders at some point. we have to be able to get back at some point. host: chicago, republican line.

our guests are with us for 10 more minutes. caller: i wanted to say that i agree with everything that you guys have been saying. especially the republicans being in the minority for a long time now. democrats have a lot of groups of supporters. joe wilson really hurt his chances. the democrats are winning a lot right now. but one thing that the republicans have over the democrats -- host: houston, independent line. caller: why did the republican

establishment choose a liberal moderate candidate in the congressional race in new york? why did the republican establishment work against the election of an independent conservative candidate? we are going to leave your party, sir, if the republican party keeps doing this. we will leave and for our own party. >> that is a very fair question. i think that a lot of us wish they had done a primary rather than handpicking a candidate. more important, the passion and anger in your call is reflected by a lot of people. what they're realizing out there is that they still have a voice and i wanted to be known. the real challenge for both parties is who is going to tap

into the anger and give them a voice in 2010. we will be talking about that until november. guest: that is the kind of guy we want to fight over in real campaigns. host: who are the voices that reflect that in your mind? guest: the number of independent voters are growing. people that feel it was too much about their party. voter registration numbers do not mean the same things today that they did before. name some of the most important things you are a member of? more people were more inclined to mention a video club the they were in. many people are registered republican or democrats because they're forced to check a box,

but they actually swing their votes. host: tim kane, his party lost in virginia. guest: frankly, i do not think he had a lot of influence on what happened in that election, despite his position. virginia governors, from the day you are sworn in to power, you begin to lose power. i think that tim kane showed a way forward on winning in virginia, run as a moderate democrat, talk about issues like

economics. it was not done as well by deeds. host: was the president right to stay away from virginia? guest: he was never really in a position to affect the outcome in virginia. the composition of the virginia electric yesterday was fundamentally different from the composition of the electorate in 2008. there were far fewer minorities. if you look at the breakdown of the vote there it is not the same as it was one year ago. guest: what it really means is that hale's do not exist like it used to. people are not giving up their boats easily. the idea that barack obama

could come in and shift to the vote big time, it does not work that way anymore. host: the role of michael steele in all of this? guest: he is in a very tough situation. there is sort of a power vacuum in the republican party and he is trying to serve as everyone. he is in a tough position, particularly in new york where he was for the more moderate republican candidate. he probably has a bit of explaining to do this week, and he is a -- he is in a very difficult position. people are not giving him time to be the chairman of the has to be. guest: borowski got a lot of resources for the race, which is what he is supposed to do --

guest: he got a lot of resources for this race, which is what he is supposed to do. i would also recognize haley barbour. guest: who was the winner from last night? running the rga over there, they look really good. to win both of those comfortably gives them a lot of momentum. plus this is an organization that has had more success as far as republicans raising money, they are very good at picking a small number of races. you are right, haley barbour is the start today. host: michael, democratic line. caller: good morning, thank you for taking my call. in a fourth generation democrat who will be voting republican next time and i would like to tell you why, if you do not mind. first of all, the cash for clunkers program cost the

taxpayers $27,000 per car. the tax credit for home loans is going to cost the taxpayers even more. congress spent $240,000 for each job created when most were for state and federal government employees, which is nepotism and favoritism. the main focuses should be on creating jobs and dealing with the illegal alien situation, which is costing the taxpayers $200,000 every day. i would like you to address that, please. guest: i think that the focus must be on jobs. if we are focused on job creation and do not deliver, voters like year -- voters like you are going to vote for republicans in the midterm elections.

i do not know if i would necessarily agree that he had command of all the facts, but he has command of the issues. he is listening to that loud voice out there that had a lot of impact in the new york vote -- race. conservative talk radio, the internet, a lot of information is going on. voters see this, they are angry. they grab on to this information and they come to conclusions. the bottom line is that president obama, who came into the worst economic situation since the great depression, with two wars and a constant threat of terrorism, to be perceived as someone who is turning this thing around and leading the nation, i think that voters will say that that is what they want and they will reward him in the next election. .

host: with that, you want to take that and wrap up? guest: what happens to often these days is that the republican party has been sued the become cheap democrats. -- is basically become cheap democrats. there is too much similarity we

need to take a look at how can we look at people at every economic level and make them realize that there will be better today than five years and 10 years and more importantly, the next generation will have it even better than they did. host: final thoughts? guest: by final thoughts is that today zolitics goes live. [laughter] host: you did my work for me. thank you for coming on. guest: we had a contest. host: coming up, we will hear from a representative of the swimming-drive -- swinomish drive. first, and that it from c-span radio. -- an update from c-span radio. >> president obama had to

madison, wisconsin today to talk about education. while the president focuses on education, congress is moving ahead on health care. the hill reports that the house might vote on health care reform on friday night at the earliest. this following an agreement with party leaders to post the final health care bills online for a minimum of 72 hours before a vote is called. on the senate side, climate change legislation continues to be considered in the energy committee. chaired by senator barbara boxer. live coverage begins at 10:00 a.m. on c-span3 television. there is word this morning that barbara boxer's senate seat is going to be challenged by former hewlett-packard ceo curley feria -- carly fiorina. former presidents bush and clinton and george w. bush are scheduled to debate each other

-- bill clinton and george w. bush are scheduled to debate each other at ready city music hall. this of the dollar-$100 tickets are scheduled to go on sale this sunday. >> last thursday, house democrats introduced the health care bill. this week, the bill comes to the house floor. follow the entire debate live without interruption or commentary only on c-span, c- span radio, and it c-span.org, and find out more on c-span's helped her up. -- health care hub. host: joining us is brian cladoosby, the chair of the swinomish tribe. what is important to know about this conference? guest: what started as a promise to the first americans is now a reality.

tribes across the nation are coming to me with president obama, made a commitment to honor and respect that first nation's citizens of the united states. host: to you, if certain issues in mind to talk to the president about? guest: my great-grandfather signed a treaty for the tribe, and we are looking for a commitment to honor and respect the treaties, the executive orders, the agreement, the federal statutes, that have been signed with our native americans. host: what would those trees involved? hos -- would those treaties and fall? guest: 1, natural resources. right now we're seeing across the nation, because we have been placed-based societies, and natural resources that sustain

us forever have been there for our people and they are disappearing. that is a sad fact. whether it be through climate change or global warming, whenever you want to call it, something is happening out there, and we would like a commitment from the president and the people underneath him that it will be looked into. host: you have input as far as issues of climate change. " would those be? guest: just the reality that it is happening out there. alaska is a good example. if you look at what is going on up up there, there are things in the environment that are changing for the alaskan people. their villages are being washed into the sea. that is a reality. there is video of that. examples of that are things that we can bring to the president to show him that there are impacts on our native communities. host: you have had a chance, you and your representatives, to talk one-on-one with the president? guest: i hope so. i'm not sure yet of the format,

but i hope that a number of a sport an opportunity to let him know what is happening in indian country. health care is another issue that is very important to us, other than the natural resources. artie's secured us health care for ever -- our treaties citrus health-care forever, the vast amount of lands that we look over. if you want to know about government run health care, asked an indian. host: why is that? guest: it is constantly under funded. you want healthy communities, and our treaties secured us rights from the government to have health care, and it is a national disgrace and now how underfunded the indian health services for native americans. host: to what degree? guest: well, i don't know of people -- people are aware of

this but we are still living in third world conditions in indian country. when you get up in the morning, you expect to be able to take a shower and go to the bathroom and shave. you just think that is normal for you to do that. well, in indian country, we heard yesterday from native american leaders that they still use outhouses. they don't have running water. they don't have electricity. those are a big concern in indian country and are things we need to address. host: our guest will be with us until 9:30, and if you want to ask him questions about the tribal nations conference and issues involved -- i also read, when it comes to health care, one of the things you were at the forefront of this telemedicine, as far as the ability to communicate medical information from area to area. how does that work? guest: we are starting to get

into 21st century technology to be able to make that a reality, but we are still -- we still have a ways to go to make sure that is in place for all of our tribes. host: you talked about climate change and health care. what other issues would be on the list? guest: we have had to endure extinction, termination, assimilation, as a people. we have hope that the president's -- the president's theme going into this, hope -- native americans look for the seventh generation. i don't know if you ever heard that term. host: no. guest: we look to the seventh generation. we are not short term, the now generation. we make sure -- looked to the seventh generation to make sure that what is here now is better than what we have had my granddaughter is seventh

generation from the signing of the treaty. she is seventh generation from the treaty signing on january 22, 1855. our grandfathers' grandfathers' looked to this time where he was hoping that our children would have a better than what we had. we look to the setting for a future generations. host: i read this week there was an embassy establish. is that for more contact on capitol hill? guest: we have a national organization for american indians, the oldest tribal organization in the nation. we just opened a brand new trouble embassy in washington, d.c., -- tribal embassy in washington, d.c., and we had an opening ceremony. it is a way to bring more awareness but we have always been in d.c. for a good number of years, but this is a way to establish a home for us in d.c. host: brian cladoosby of the

swinomish tribe, he is their chairmen. first off, burtonsville, maryland, sean on the republican line. caller: hello, mr. chairman. i guess one thing i would like to talk about is the corruption that is rampant in the department of interior, especially indian affairs. there is a lot of corruption. the budget just got shot off 198%. that is where you guys are really getting screwed, the department of interior. i know that if you would like to get a job in the indian affairs bureau, native americans have first right of refusal. i apply for a job and was told that a native american wanted the job so i cannot get it. but that is not i would say.

but there is a lot of corruption going on in the department of interior and you should really look to them, beyond them hard court -- their budget increased 190%. host: mr. chairman. guest: you are right, over the last eight years, we have seen a lot of corruption in the department of interior and officials plagued by scandal. i'm not too sure about the first right of refusal by native americans i'm not sure about that policy. but we have always been coming back here and saying that we need the resources to make sure that we have, like i said, running water and sewer systems in place, that we have roads, we have infrastructure a lot of that comes from the department of interior's budget. increasing its 200% will hopefully just be a benefit for native americans. host: 10 i asked about the significance of your address? -- and i asked about the

significance of your headdrress? guest: we are a cedar people who use cedar for everything from our tools and clothes and baskets and headwear. this is a cedar-week basket from the pacific northwest. host: ohio, you are next. brian on the independent line. caller: i am wondering about health care amongst the native americans. are you suffering from the same issues that the rest of the country is suffering from? diabetes, hepatitis, cancers? and is there anything that is allowing native americans to get into the medical field to help alleviate any of these problems? is there any money that is

available to you all that you all don't have to provide for yourselves? -- for yourself through whatever treaties were talking about? i'm going to get off, but most of what i know -- you all get casinos. it is a crazy thing to me. do you make any money off of that? do you use that to help around -- to help your own people to make things better for you all? guest: great, thank you for that question there. there's a lot in there. health care is a serious concern in indian country. if you look at the statistics, it shows that native americans suffer hundreds -- 100% times higher than the general population when it comes to diabetes and alcoholism and heart disease and things like that. it is a serious concern.

as far as tribal members getting into the medical field, we are starting to see a generation that is taking education more serious, and our tribal leaders are starting to put more of an emphasis on education. in the past -- my grandfather was forced to go to a boarding school, forced on him by the federal government, the assimilation policy, to turn him into "white man." the left a sour taste in his mouth and that generations not. it was not a priority for them to push education on my parent'' generation. as far as casinos, there has been no marshall plan in indian country. the marshall plan that we have seen over the years, one of them was welfare, which was a failed system that took a proud people and put them on a system of welfare in the 1940's, 1950's, 1960's, 1970's. there was never a marshall plan

to create economic development in indian country when you come to swinomish, you do not have all the infrastructure that you have in adjoining communities like mount vernon and burlington where they have the necessary infrastructure for shopping and banks and fast foods and malls and things like that. these casinos have been the only thing in indian country that have provided economic development, but for not all tribes. people think that every single tried as a casino out there, and every single tribe is doing really well. host: the casinos are tax-free, correct? guest: we are a government. you have to think of tribes as a government, and governments have businesses in the jurisdiction and the tax those businesses to provide essential government services for their people. the swinomish tribe taxes that casino 100%, so all those dollars go into the tribe's general fund in swinomish to provide the essential

governmental services for our people. host: memphis, tennessee, brady on the democrats' line. caller: my father was choctaw and his mother was. he was from philadelphia, mississippi. i am an african-american. it is very interesting to me about the economic policies that our country has. my blood line -- it seems as though i am a native american and african american, too. i just wanted to know, is the choctaw included in what you're doing? guest: like i said, we have almost 500 tribes for this gathering with the present. i hope they will have ever presented of there.

host: stevensville, maryland, on the republican line, margo. caller: i want to tell the gentleman how i admire him for being on this show i think it's fabulous that the indian tribes are coming to washington to do something about their plight. i also have american indian lineage, which i am trying to trace. i don't know how to do it. i tried every way to find out what my lineage is, and i would like some advice from the gentlemen. also, i feel very strongly about what has been done to date of americans, -- to native americans and i would like to help. i want to know how to get involved, and also how to research my lineage and try to help. in the past, i talked to a senator or congressman -- i forget which one he was -- from

arizona. i met with him in his office did this i see as a serious problem in politics. guest: thank you, margo. i know there are many, many citizens in the united states that can trace some lineage back to their native american heritage. but i guess if you have an idea of what tried that yet -- tried that your ancestors came from, i would say to get ahold of that tribe -- all tribes have enrollment departments. start their first. host: follow-up question via twitter -- guest: that is a good question, joe. the simple fact is that we still have tribes that are living in third world conditions for a reason. they are out in the middle of nowhere. they do not have the population

base to create a casino. that is the myth out there that every single tribe has a casino and every single tried is doing fabulous now. that is not the case. if you look at the pine ridge indian reservation, our communities in alaska where there is just not the population to support a casino, they are in serious need of this infrastructure, and it is a sad factory many americans take for granted that they think that up in the morning and use the toilet and shape and put on their makeup and is a sad fact in indian country that that is not happening today. host: are you from washington state? guest: yes, sir. host: michigan, independent- mi -- depended line. caller: as to the casino issue, there are many tribes that do not believe in casinos. it's against their beliefs.

i can say this, also. first of all, i have deep respect for american indians. i served with some in vietnam. american indians served the united states military in an inordinate percentage as opposed any other population in this country the one you to know that i am deeply grateful -- want you to know that i am deeply grateful and i made the bonds with men in those situations. but my real question goes to the constitutional issue. in 1948, american indians were granted united states citizenship. it seems to me that having treaties -- that would nullify the indian treaties. treaties with american citizens seems to be a little -- it seems extra constitutional. i am not calling to get in an argument with you. but i would like your bent on

that. it just seems to me to be a little duplicitous. guest: thank you, michael, and thank you for your service in vietnam. my grandfather served in world war i. my uncle served in world war ii. both my uncle's served in vietnam. you are right. if americans served this country at a higher percentage than any of the -- if americans served this country a higher percentage than any other group -- native americans served this country a higher percentage than any other group. it was 1924 that native americans became citizens of the united states, and not 1948 as you did it. but my grandfather served in world war i before he was a citizen of the united we, the first citizens, were the last ones to be granted citizenship of the united states.

host: next, democrats line. caller: by lineages cherokee indian. -- my lineage is a cherokee indian. i feel for this person. but i understand how -- like i said, i understand how he feels. i am on disability, with a lot of problems. being on disability, i feel -- you know, not getting my race for the next two years, it is hurting. -- raise for the next two years, it is hurting could with the capital and obama come up with some anything's -- coming up with so many things to cause

taxes to be raised -- host: do you have a question for our guest? guest: yes, that is the question. with more taxes coming up, that would be more taxes for the indians, too. guest: that is another myth. native americans to pay taxes. some of the tribes have gotten into economic development and to pay all the taxes. i personally pay taxes to the federal government native americans to pay taxes. host: columbia, tennessee, you are next to our guest. caller: yes, am i on? host: yes, sir. caller: good morning, c-span. thank you so much for this open window to all three branches of our government we need more table working for us as your station here has done for us.

but to this native american indian, i have deep respect for you and what you stand for, and the people you stand for. i think it is a crying shame for the americans to look at what we have done to you and your nation and your people. i know that the blacks had a right to cry out for in justice but i know that the hispanics have a right to cry out for injustice. if there is ever a nation of people who has a right to cry out for injustice, it is the native american indians. like in 1948, people were talking about how much you had served for your country and died for the liberties that you and i enjoyed today. i'm a retired schoolteacher and i have seen in the classrooms where just about every minority is given the liberties to have american history devote time for

their race or nationality, and here you, as an american native indian, has lost a lot of your land and a lot of respect and your culture, and yet american people have somehow turned around and just not taken notice, and i think it is a crime. guest: thank you, sir. yes, we have had to endure the policies of extermination, the policies of termination and assimilation. and we survived. we are still here. we are going to be here forever. we just have to create a mindset that things are going to get better for the native americans in the united states. host: what is your stance on education policy in the u.s.? guest: there is a serious achievement gap. the national average dropout rate for native americans is 50%, and that is something that we need to work on really

closely. each tribe needs to have a good working relationship with their school districts. i know the swinomish tribe and the school board have a great working relationship. we've had a tribal member on that board in that position for going on three decades now. that is where it starts. education is the key to getting people out of poverty and drug addiction and alcoholism. host: is that why the 50% dropout rate, or are there other factors? guest: there are many, many factors. we need to break the cycle, whether it is drugs and alcohol or education. those are the keys. when we have educated tribal members, they are productive in society and they give back to society. the number one key right now for the tribes is to get our tribal members educated. at swinomish, our kids graduate from high school and get a ged, we give them a $20,000 scholarship to the school of their choice.

we wonder how to give them full scholarships to the school of their -- one they hope to give them this bowl scholarships to the school of their choice. host: last call is from florida, democrats line, rob. caller: my mom is a full blooded sioux and i own a business and i do pay taxes. i was just wondering what my tax form is for being a native american and owning a business of my own good as or is it your kitchen, i was wondering about education, to -- as far as education, i was wondering about education, too. guest: i'm not sure about a tax form for native americans. i think it is the same for everybody. host: he asked about education, which we just covered. we have a comment on twitter.

guest: while. -- wow. i would google that. there are so many great authors out there who have written about the history of native americans. i probably would not do it justice to throw out just one neighb -- just one unnamed. i would google native american authors and that would give you a good opportunity to read about native americans from and it american perspective. host: after tomorrow's conference, would you say to this administration as far as how you go from attending a conference to doing anything that would provide directly for american indians? guest: that is a great question. i do not like to go to meetings to meet. i like to see goals and out comes and benchmarks. i would hope that the president and his administration listens very carefully did not give us

two years and one not for a reason. -- god give us two years and one mo -- two ears and one mouth reason. i look for wood to seven more gatherings like this with the obama at -- look forward to seven more gatherings like this with the obama administration. host: of the swinomish -- brian cladoosby of the swinomish tribe, thank you for your time. our last segment focuses on the auto industry, with a ford reporting signs of life in the third quarter. justin hyde from the "detroit free press is our guest. we will be right back. >> it is 9:30 a.m. eastertide economists expect the fed to keep rates exceptionally low for

an extended time to give the recovery lasting power. congress in session today. the ap reports that george miller is seeking a quick floor vote on a bill to guarantee 5 paid sick days to workers if their employers tell them to stay home with swine flu or similar contagious illness. the h1n1 flu is the topic of a hearing this morning. that is expected to question -- chairman is expected to question the head of the cdc. more on the situation in afghanistan. president hamid karzai's challenger in the recent presidential election accuses the current government of wasting the lives and resources of its western allies. and says the government cannot rein in corruption and cannot be trusted the former foreign minister, a day after -- the former foreign minister's comments come a day after people

were gunned down in helmand province. there have been talks about power-sharing agreement but no deal has been reached. those are the latest headlines on c-span radio. >> c-span's documentary of one of the most stunning buildings in washington is now available in dvd. it takes you inside the court and place is only accessible to the justices and their staff to read here about the court's history and traditions from the justices themselves. own your own a dvd copy of "the supreme court." it is $9.95 plus shipping and handling. >> "washington journal" continues. host: longtime reporter of the auto industry, justin hyde of "the detroit free press" joins

us. a lot happening in the auto world. what happens today? guest: we get our first look inside with the new chrysler-be at partnership will look like -- chrysler-fiat partnership will look like. a sense of where their financial state is going to be, and the outlook for the company. we have not heard much from them since chrysler emerged from bankruptcy and sergio marchionne was installed as the new executive. host: what kind of information we hope to learn? guest: i think we -- what we're looking for is a sense of where the company is going. gm and ford posted small increases over a terrible october 2008. chrysler does not have a lot of new product in the pipeline. there is a lot of concern about how quickly fiat and its

products and technology into chrysler. there is a sense of having problems under control and how fiat adjust the myriad challenges. -- will address the married challenges. the government, at least at the obama administration of all, has tried to take a step that coul - put back. it would be removed investor. as part is getting involved in gm and chrysler, it was going to be as hands off as possible. that does not necessarily apply to some of the actions taken by other parts of the government. congressmen have been tried to influence decisions that gm and chrysler make at the dealer level. we have a little more clarity into what gm is trying to do, especially with the decisions like the opel decision, not an indication of what the chrysler decision will be. host: what about the opel decision? guest: it was a surprise.

gm agreed to sell off opel to a canadian consortium parts maker and a russian automaker. there were a lot of labor concerns in germany and spain and england about the future of opel. gm agreed in theory to make the deal. but then a couple of things happen. german politics intervene, the eu intervene, concern that germany was favoring one deal over the other, and the new gm board was installed, led by edgar, the former chair of at&t. -- at whitaker, the former chair of at&t. yesterday they came down and said that the financial improvement was enough that they want to hang onto opel. attorney in humans -- german unions a like to go on strike is a fluid situation there the will to other governments to

help restructure opel. >host: the story that interested us and having you on was ford. it is showing signs of life. guest: it is the first profit making cars in north america since 2005, a key milestone. generated $1.3 billion in cash. ford, because it was able to avoid bankruptcy and because it had a fairly fresh line of new vehicles coming out, has been able to pick up some share and steam over gm and chrysler. it just got a few issues to deal with. the first is the economy. there is concern about where the economy may be had from here and how long this mini-recovery in the auto industry will go. ford was not able to get an agreement with the uaw over a set of concessions in union contracts and is working on reducing its debt. it has a far higher debt load

than gm and chrysler. it is a bed of the competitiveness disadvantage. host: did ford take any government money? guest: not for restructuring. it has taken months to advance technology vehicles, but those are all other makers. -- has taken loans to advanced technology dubose, but those are all automakers. host: is it simplistic to say that ford did not take any government money and found itself back into a proper pole condition and these companies that did -- profitable condition and these companies that did take money are struggling? guest: ford was preparing for its problems and the downturn. years ago out of town and mortgage every company and had to create a nest egg for the downturn. it was far more able to handle

the severity of the downturn we've seen than gm and chrysler because it made the cuts earlier and because it was able to remake its line faster and meet the quality of toyota and honda. host: 2 calls. misery, democrats line. caller: it was chrysler and mercedes over in europe. i'm wondering what exactly happened in europe? did that calls the downfall of chrysler in restructuring -- and the restructuring of chrysler and to become a private company as well? guest: it was not so much european economic conditions so much as it was that time was not able to turn around in a way that -- daimler was not able to

turn around in a way that satisfied its shareholders. in a lot of the changes it tried to make to keep its place as a major automakers simply did not fit. chrysler sold -- daimler told chrysler to cerberus before the current downturn came. but chrysler was so weakened over the years that it simply cannot survive the severity of the downturn that came along. host: randall on the republican line. caller: hey, how are you doing? i used to work for chrysler. i remember that chrysler wanted to come back to detroit and built a home base there, but the corporate tax was -- i think germany was at 14% and i think we were up to like 35%. do you see any future with the government might the work our corporate tax so that we can bring more -- lower our

corporate tax so that we can bring more industry to the united states? guest: lowering the corporate tax rate to repatriate industries is a pretty hard sell right now. you can billet as the jobs growth issue, but a lot of corporations have been able to find ways around tax issues even when the rates are higher. germany may have a corporate tax rate, but the rates may not be as significant as the ones you face. even though the rates may be higher, there are breaks and advantages that corporations can take advantage of in the united states to avoid paying that level of taxes. the u.s. economy is going to have to grow more rapidly to seek more new business start up and get jobs going. host: jimmy, hollywood, florida. good morning. caller: good morning, how are you?

host: fine, sir. caller: i have a question concerning the -- host: keep going. you are cheering feedback, so turn down your tv and just keep talking with your question. we will go next to providence, rhode island, democrats line. caller: my name is christopher young. i wanted to know what you thought about the credit treaty that is going to be signed by obama double the limit our ability to -- that will eliminate our ability to compete globally and the auto industry will have to be under the carpet market, which is really owned by goldman sachs -- they on the exchange that will exchange these carbon credits. this treaty will simply supersede the united states

constitution. we will not be able to opt out even under the supremacy clause of the constitution, which allows the constitution to the overall power over agreements and trees. this will supersede the supremacy clause. also, what you think about the fact the goldman sachs -- that goldman sachs was the lead organization behind the collapse of the banking system and now they will lead the carbon market in the united states? we are reducing our ability to compete globally. host: we will have to leave it there. you put a lot on the table. guest: automakers have been living under carbon restrictions for decades. the original fuel economy regulations were essentially carbon regulations. both europe and the united states, governments have been ratcheting up mileage standards. a level that all lawmakers have

signed onto it this is a target that the industry has been living with for many years. it is further along than many other industries in trying to identify and rectify. a lot of automakers have said in the past that they favor the carbon trading market. the house and senate would leave the auto industry to its own devices. and with that it tried to work on some kind of greenhouse -- would let it try to work on some and a greenhouse gas control scheme. we have bills in the house and senate looking at putting carbon controls in the united states economy -- epa has the power to do so unilaterally and that worries people in congress. there are questions any manufacturing states like michigan and worries about whether extreme carbon limits

will have an effect. copenhagen will be the arena where a lot of the questions get asked out. host: a report on the auto industry -- what did it say? guest: one thing is that the auto industry is unlikely to get a lot of its money back. it did sort of the warning to the treasury that it needs to keep a close watch on the investment to undermine them in a way -- the government has put in a total of $81 billion on the industry, $12.5 billion into chrysler. the obama administration made this statement that the money that went in before bankruptcy they considered essentially lost. it was going to keep the company's doors open and operating before they fell into

bankruptcy. they want to use the metric of tracking the money that went in after bankruptcy. they give $30 billion to gm after bankruptcy. the former head of the task force says that investment is worth about $25 billion right now. unless gm and chrysler reache levels of market value that they at scene forever, something like $67 billion for gm and $55 billion for chrysler, the government will not get all of its money back. it was one of those issues that will take several years to develop to see how companies do on the market and see how treasury can unwind its stakes. the administration said it is an ongoing investor in these companies and must to get out as soon as possible. host: kansas city, you are next four justin hyde. caller: the question i had is why didn't the government let gm and chrysler go into regular and lips and come out as new

companies and start from scratch -- regular bankruptcy and come out as new companies and start from scratch? guest: the problem they saw with a regular bankruptcy was that it was going to take several years to complete. gm has been struggling to find enough money to get out of bankruptcy. the process they used it essentially create new companies coul. they are separate from pieces of gm and chrysler left in the former automakers. the key driver of this was speed. they wanted to get these companies out and 30 to 60 days. by doing so, they were able to structure the deal in ways that they thought preserve a lot of jobs. it did preserve retiree health care for rabat -- or about 750,000 workers cou.

there are lingering complaints today that it overruled the rights that the should of had in bankruptcy. host: what is the outlook? guest: it is still very tough. michigan is struggling to balance the budget, revenues are falling. unemployment in detroit and michigan are among the highest in the nation. although employment has started to come back a little bit cash for clunkers boosted auto sales and the industry started wrapping up again and it was one of the main reasons ford was able to report profits. it is roughly the way it was in october to doesn't -- in october 2008. the hard question is how many of those jobs will ever come back. it will really depend on where the economy goes over the next year or so, with the ship of the

recession is a flat line, -- the recession is a flat line, gradual rise, or ups and downs. host: are automakers good to see the numbers they had with cash for clunkers and is there sustainability there? guest: debris was that, but clunkers -- the worry was that of cash for clunkers was what to suck all the energy out of the market. although since it returned to the levels they were pre--- note mobile sales returned to the levels that were pre-cash for clunkers. there is a lot of variation in the estimates, and several people who believe that given what is one on in employment and personal income and the sluggishness of the economy, the sales may not be come back. host: louisville, kentucky, independent line, michael.

caller: i love your show. my question is how much influence does detroit have in the automotive industry? how much of motown is left in motown? guest: there is still a good part of motown left in motown. gm headquarters are still in detroit. ford, chrysler, gm still represent a significant part of the domestic auto industry, and you still have a lot of research and development that goes on not just in detroit but for the auto -- the other automakers. toyota, hondyundai -- in other companies go through detroit because there is the center of brain power they're prepare -- r brain power there. other countries are trying to build their own auto industry'i.

but it is still a significant global player and there is technology in detroit that can influence the global market. host: someone on twitter cassockasks -- guest: it is hard to say. we are in the early days of the cip bankruptcy -- >cit bankruptcy. it was pretty sluggish in michigan to begin with. it will be a long time before we see other industries picking up the slack. host: to you happen to know where millington, michigan is? guest: i'm afraid i do not pe. host: where is it located? caller: northeast of flint, maybe 30 miles. host: go ahead, sir. caller: the question i have for

the news reporter is one of reply to start exposing toyota and the problems they're having -- are we going to start exposing talia the problems they're having with the crashes? and fair trade -- japan doubled the price of thit. i'm interested in fair trade and not just free trade. and when is the news media going to get off our back and quit that nothing our products and start exposing talia -- that nothing our products and start exposing toyota? guest: we have not shied away from writing about toyota. the largest recall in history. concerns over acceleration problems. it's an ongoing investigation toyota has said that it believes there is no problem outside of the format, but there are questions surrounding that.

the open some investigations concerning the acceleration in the past. -- there have been some investigations concerning the acceleration in the past. toyota is having to deal with that problem right now prepar. i do not think it is being ignored by anybody. on fair trade -- the free trade deal is not really going anywhere right now prepa. the obama administration is taking a harder line than the bush administration did. the trade issue is actually more of the currency issue at this point. because of the u.s. dollar's weakening, you are seeing a strengthening in the japanese and korean currency that will affect the ability of japanese and korean auto makers to compete as well as the gap in the past. it may create a breathing space for general motors and chrysler as they try to get their business back on their feet in

the united states. you have to look at the consumer reports study showing that ford had quality equal to that of toyota and honda. gm was a little bit behind, but still relevant and competitive. chrysler still lacks. host: a lot of electric cars coming out in 2010. will they be price for the average consumer? guest: this will be expensive. the question is where the expense -- the incentives will be. with that chevy plug in hybrid, they're talking about a sticker price of around $40,000 p. they will be expensive and rare to begin with. it is still an experimental technology in society. seeing how well people adapt to these vehicles -- is their consumer base large enough to sustain electric vehicles on a full scale? how much this government going to put towards the effort?

host: catherine on the democrat's lead from providence, rhode island. caller: high, justin but we cannot compete with slave labor. -- hi, justin. we cannot compete with slave labor. nafta and all these other agreements are competing with slave labor in other countries. we will not come back until we get rid of them. on the climate change conference coming up in copenhagen in december, what i read is that they will be installing a world government did is a very sinister think they are doing. they are trying to make it seem like they're just trying to help the environment. guest: let's start with trade agreements first.

there was a deal negotiated that would have the would be cut tariffs on vehicles from south korea. -- have lowered tariffs on vehicles from south korea. the deal is basically stalled in the united states congress. he will not see a lot of free trade movement, at least right now, given everything else that congress has on its plate and the sensitive nature of it. the concern is that if you start messing with trade and tariffs anin an economy like this globa, you could have side-effects worse than any problem you are trying to cure. host: atlantic city, a bill on the independent line. caller: the unemployment extension, and why the republicans keep turning it down for political favors. it is ridiculous. people are starving in this country and it is going out into other countries. you will see an uproar in this

country is nothingness -- an uproar in this country if nothing is done . guest: michigan leads the nation in unemployment. host: who is still actively involved in day-to-day working as far as the in administration is concerned, overseeing the companies that got money from the government? guest: ron bloom, one of the heads of the task force, still is in that role and is extending the will to look at u.s. manufacturing and how the government might be able to expand its ingrowth as well. host: are the meeting on a regular basis? guest: chrysler put out business plans to end the get regular updates from gm and chrysler and ford. but they have tried to walled

himself off to a certain degree and not get into the day-to-day workings so that they could be having influence. they are not giving visas to certain chrysler products or telling gm that it needs to be -- goes to certain chrysler products or telling gm that it needs to be more fuel efficient. the administration was worried about being seen as overly involved and that companies and opening a pandora's box. host: california, democrats line. caller: i don't know if you are already covered this, because i just woke up and tune in, but i would like to know if gm is going to release -- rerleaseleae the ev1. it is a shovel-ready product that what the people to work and i think would inspire them. we need an affordable and beautiful electric car.

i saw that "who told the electric car?"and the looks like gm had a good part of that. if they were boycotted on that and they started to go bankrupt, maybe they should go out of business. we need an electric -- we needed an electric cars 10 years ago. if you could comment on that, i would appreciate it. guest: i am sorry to report that the ev1 is probably gone for good. it was a small car even by today's standards. the technology has been superseded by many other developments since then. gm is focusing on the cheverly vault -- chevrolet volt. that is its key focus and into electric vehicles. ev1 -- there will be many other electric vehicles coming down the road. kessel motors is doing pretty

well. they are going to be expensive, probably a little smaller than what americans want but the question will be is there a market, a group of people like yourself large enough to support that kind of economy in the united states? host: what are suv sales like? guest: suv's and trucks came back last month -- suv's have been down for awhile but the cops came back a little bit as well. toyota can cut him that -- pickups came back a little bit as well. toyota tundra to it up. host: how does this affect gas mileage? can the government easley announced cafe standards?