from washington, "the mclaughlin group," the american original. for over two decades, the vogeico, committed to providing service to its auto insurance customers for over 70 years. more information on auto insurance at geico.com or 1-800-947-auto any time of the day or night. somewhere in america, there's a doctor who can peer into the future. there's a nurse who can access in an instant

every patient's past. and because the whole hospital's working together, there's a family who can breathe easy, right now. somewhere in america, we've already answered some of the nation's toughest healthcare questions. and the over 60,000 people of siemens are ready to do it again. siemens. answers. egypt, sphinx rising. protests in egypt are about to enter a third week. tens of thousands of egyptians assembled in downtown cairo to demonstrate against the mubarak government. 83-year-old hosni mubarak has ruled egypt 30 of those years. in response to the protests, president mubarak announced that he would not run for re- election when his current term

ends seven months from now. they want him to step down now! the protests have turned violent, and an estimated 3,000 mubarak supporters joined the demonstrations. these mubarak defenders were allegedly sent by mubarak himself to disburse the demonstrators. egyptian soldiers at first stood by over the violence. soldiers then fired warning shots in the air. but they did not intervene between the cracking factions. thus far in cairo at least eight people have died and 900 injured. here in the united states president obama asked mubarak to abc indicate now. >> what is clear and what i indicated tonight to president mubarak is my belief an orderly transition must be meaningful, egypt's overall military budget.

question, president obama urges president mubarak to leave office at once. what is president obama's rational for pushing him over the brink? >> the obama administration got out in front and it got too far out in front, john. all that violence occurred wednesday, the obama administration has been caught flat flood in the tide has begun to turn in favor of the government. mubarak's guys are in the streets, they've indicated they'll fight to defend him. the army stayed neutral. the israelis and saudis came out and said the americans are undercutting, stabbing mubarak in the back, an old friend, throwing him seemed to indicate that he wants to be there when the next president is inaugurated, and as of now there is no way in my judgment those protestors without the help of the army can remove president mubarak if he does not wish to go. i think the army and mubarak and all the the others know the

mubarak era is over but they want to see the future era very much like the recent past, where the army and the army's people are really in power, and i think ultimately they may prevail. >> do you agree? >> no, i agree with parts of what he said. the army is the legitimate and respected institution in the country. and whatever happens next, must have the backing of the army. i think the army is divided right now, because it's an army of conscript and they clearly feel sympathy with the people. mubarak has pulled back from an initial display of power. i think people are still nervous about what he'll do next. i think he's got to go, but in retrospect, step down quickly, and i'm wondering why at age 82 he doesn't just accept what is happening and find a graceful exit. i suspect that's what is happening behind the scenes, the search for that graceful exit. i think the president played it

very well. this has been a rapidly changing story, and he has to worry about more than mubarak's feelings. he has to relate to the egypt that will be there after mubarak goes, a population half of which is under age 24. >> you don't think he moved back from that position on friday? >> he's calling for a transition to begin, and that transition i think mubarak has taken some steps. he installed a vice president, the first in 30 years, and he has made other steps. whether he can catch up with where the demonstrators are, that may have passed. >> let me work this in. i'll get back to you. president barack obama in cairo june 2009, six his first year. watch. >> much has been made of the fact that an -- an african- american with the name barack hussein obama cube length president. [applause]

but my personal story is not so unique. the dream of opportunities for all people has not come true for everyone in america, but its promise exists for all who come to our shores. and that includes nearly 7 million american muslims in our country today, who by the way enjoy incomes and educational levels tare higher than the american average. >> this was a fine piece of rhetoric, and a good address, a very good address, in cairo, but it was attended by many egyptian college graduates and other youth who cannot find work today. do you think that maybe they cued off him to some extent? not that he inspired this kind of rebellion but he clearly is off color, he's very much of

them. he's thoughtful, he's young, and did it have a stimulating effect? if this can -- be done in the united states, why can't it be done here? >> i think the power of obama's example is not to be understated in the idea that he is really the first 21st- century international leader. but more so than his personal example, i think was the message that he gave in cairo during that speech, which was preceded by president bush, who spoke early and often about the need for political and economic liberalization in the middle east. that was what the iraq war was all about as well. but also if you're going to talk about the youth, at least in the initial stages of this revolt leading it, you have to look at the technology. because what existed -- what exists now in terms of facebook, social networking is playing a huge role not just in this revolt but the revolt we

saw nearly two years ago that began in iran. so i think all of these elements are now coming into play. >> you think there's a redeeming factor in hosni mubarak's role? in other words, for the young population and for the whole population of this uprising, so to speak it, wouldn't be where it is today in an uprising position were it not nor some of the benefits that they have gained in the 30 years of mubarak's rule? >> when i think that's partly true. i think if anything, the fact that the food prices have gone up dramatically in that part of the world, when you have 40% or more of the population making $2 a day or less did affect a different side of it, which is that a lot of these people are living at the margins. and i think there was a sense as there is in many countries that the leadership of mubarak or around mubarak have done very well, especially the military. but having said that, he has been a steadfast ally of the united states for 30 years. and the only way -- it's absolutely fair and right to

think that this is time for him to leave. but if you want him to leave, we did it in the wrong way. which is to do is publicly, humiliating for a arab liter. so when we spent a special envoy whose mission was leaked, namely he was going to ask mubarak to leave, he gave him a very brief meeting and said i don't want to talk to you again. this man has around as an ally and expects to be treated for an ally for 30 years, and we should found a better way to get too him. i want to say one thing. let's just remember this -- in tehran there were hundreds of thousands of people in the street. iran water our principal enemy in that part of the world and this administration said nothing. but here we take a 30-year ally of the united states and we start publicly attacking him. that was exactly the wrong way to do it in that part of the world. now the saudis, jordanians, most of the other countries are enraged because they feel he was not badly -- he was bandly treated and not treated with

respect. >> hold on. i want to pick up that point, because this goes to that. okay. now a big arab authority, a big one, the secretary general of l this -- >> the message has been sent -- the message has been received. it will ne6co2the same again. i firmly believer the arab world in one year's time will not be the same as we see it today. >> and will not be the same. question, what is the chance he will run for president himself? >> pretty good. he's head of the a an league, transitional figure. the mubarak era is over. but this is a soldier, a man of honor. he sent his troops to fight alongside -- i'm talking about the gulf war and here comes this diplomat and said, hey, get out, they're humiliating him. >> why did obama do it? because he wants to be on the side -- because they knows it's a done deal. [everyone talking at once] >> because he =&5went back to h

-- sort of moderate left-mode, this is a facebook-twitter revolution, i'm part of this. >> oh, come on! >> he got too far out in front [everyone talking at once] >> you make it sound like this is storm sort of fad he wants to get on the twitter bandwagon. >> he wants to get out in front of things. >> like at all the dictators this country has stuck with too long. he has served our purposes well. he did not -- served his people very well. he has run -- >> who decides that? >> we are not deciding it. he is deciding it. he's still in power. and this president is giving him a nudge behind the scenes, which is something that he needs ái >> no, no. >> publicly. now when he [everyone talking at once] >> when he says no, he means now. that's not the way to do it. >> a transition which has begun! >> he's telling him to leave.

>> that's right. >> i agree completely. the administration mishandled this from the beginning and it's not unlike -- >> why? why? >> how they pvágndled the israe- palestinian negotiations and it blew up in their faces. diplomacy 101 is especially when you're dealing with austal word ally like hosni mubarak is take this behind closed doors. don't have the american president give a big declaration. the other point he raised, musa is now the choice as of this moment of the muslim brotherhood. they are now working this crisis so they can ride the tide to seize power. and if they grab power in egypt, they -- >> hold on. >> they will consign 82 million egyptian to the darkness of the islamist rule. and don't make any mistake about it, let's not be naive. >> really bad guys over there? >> they are the bad guys. and i'll tell you -- [everyone talking at once]

>> the bad guys are now the good guys. >> i don't think they're the good guys. hosni mubarak -- >> the army controls the string of power. this issue will turn on what the army does. mubarak was sitting next to anwar sadat when the brother assassinated him, one of great people of that country. it was the muslim brotherhood who assassinated him. he killed him. [everyone talking at once] >> if their democracy comes one man, one vote in egypt, let me tell you, the muslim brotherhood will initially get 25 to 33% of the vote, and the arab streets -- will be reflected. >> the u.s. approval in egypt is 12%. president n

remains. and if it's a diverse democracy that does emerge, the muslim brotherhood will have a role. and -- and -- and you can't -- if the president said nothing throughout the crisis you would all be sitting here criticizing him for. that. >> sometimes diplomats -- >> the re volts in tune's 'ya and tunisia and egypt worldwide pattern of instability and radical political change caused by the world economic crisis. what do you think? >> my view is it started off i think currently it 3hi the arab and islamic world. but i'll tell you, to the degrees that they have democratic elections in the air on world, they'll vote to sever

ties with america and to be hostile to israel because that's the mood of the -- >> i don't agree with that at all. i think mubarak has stayed in power because of all the demonization of the elements within his society. and they've got to be other voices that have come out and we've seen them in the streets. and in terms of what is causing this, it's not just economic woes, it's a case of rising expectations. people see through twitter and facebook and everything else there's another world out there, and the regime that mubarak fresh has to come to an end. >> we have fallen into a trap of romanticize what the a an street would want if they were given true democracy as we understand it. because when you look at recent polls of the egyptian people, 75% say they would lyekis lamb ic law and -- 65% say they would like the rein institution

>> if the world egypt of course included, the united states included, we're not in economic crisis, crisis too strong a word, we're not in this economic crunch that we're in, the world is in it. do you think that this revolt against mubarak would have occurred? see i'm in the sure it's the financial crisis that produced it. undoubtedly it contributed to but i think the real issue there was simply it is a fact this you had a de spot ic regime. they attempted to take the wealth of that society for a small group. that was apparent to a lot of

people and they just resulted. the social network contributed to it. the food prices contributed to it. a whole series of things contributed to it. >> i think if the world were not in the economic crunch which is felt particularly in countries of them. he's issue two, happy 100th gipper! >> we go forward today a nation mighty in its youth and powerful in its purpose. about our alliance that's strengthened, your with our economy leading the world to a nag every expansion, we look to a future rich in possibilities. >> úuthe great communicator, th gipper, dutch, the teflon president, ronald wilson reagan. had sunday marks the 100th anniversary of ronald reagan's birth. born february 6, 1911 in illinois. marriage, jane wyman, 1940. divorced 1949. three children with wyman,

daughter maureen who died in 2001, and daughter christine who died in infancy. and adopted son michael. marriage, nancy davis, 1952. two children with nancy davis, today an active grandmother, by the way. son ronald prescott reagan and daughter patty davis reagan. religion, chiefly presbyterian. political party, democrat, 1932 to 1962. republican, 1962 to 2004. college eureka college ba, radio 32 to 37. film acting 37 to 65. screen actors guild board of directeddors 41 to 47. screen actors guild president, 47 to 52. and 59, campaign for republicans. dwight eisenhower, richard nixon. barry goldwater for president 52, 56, 60 and 64. governor california, '67 to

'75. republican presidential nomination, ran unsuccessfully twice for, '68 and '76. u.s. president, '81 to '89. defeating president jimmy carter. died june 5, 2004, 93 years of age. bel air, california. as president, ronald reagan tackles historically high inflation and unemployment, during his presidency inflation dropped from 12.5% to 5.5%. and unemployment dropped from 9.7% to 4.4%. reagan launched a defense build- up against the soviet union and remain forever grateful, unquote. question, what characteristics did ronald reagan possess that other post-war presidents have lacked? pat, you worked for him. kepre-world

war ii depth of belief in the goodness and greatness of his country that can't be replicated by any post-war generation. a man who had great convictions, the courage of those convictions he would often say, well, if this doesn't work out, can always go back to the -- >> he never knocked the united states. >> he -- america was great, an ideal in his mind. and the idea of communists could ever defeat america was beyond his conception. >> and along to introduce a little reality into sometimes his sunny idealism was his wife, and would you like to say nice words about her. and she's still very much with us. and she encouraged him to meet with the soviet leaders and she had on overcome a lot of conservatives once the white house, you were probably one of them, pat. and she was a force for moderation within the white house, and we've convenient her on that path since she's left of the white house as well.

>> the reason i'm a conservative is because of ronald reagan. because i was very, very young when he was president of the united states, but everything he stood for just instinctively struck me as correct, and what i found so amazing by reagan is he was unafraid to stand for his conservative principles. >> well, i worked with him for four-week period and i found to my astonishment every issue that came up he got the point right away. he was very, very decisive and he had the capacity to inspire this country and rebuild the confidence of this country in its future, after a couple very, very difficult years in the -- from the preceding president. issue three, bulls in motion. the economic just came out and the bulls are hoping if not running. daily index stock market up, breaking 12,000 this week. monthly index, item unemployment down .4%, 9.4% in december to 9.0% in january.

yearly index item consumer spending, 2010, up 3.5%. item household income, 2010, up 3%. item gtb growth, 2010, up 2.9%. question, how upbeat are these statistics? >> well, the one that is upbeat is a stock market. but that's a reflection of not only corporate america cutting costs which means cutting employment, but also very, very low interest rates and reserve. i think our economy is very weak. we have virtually no recovery in terms of employment. it's about literally one-third the normal rates of increases in employment in the first four quarters, after the bottom of a recession some this economy is growing very slowly. the unemployment numbers for january were very weak. the housing numbers are very weak. we're not out of the woods. >> jobless recovery, jobless recovery? >> we have created roughly 90,000 jobs a month for the first year out of the recession. that is not enough to equal the number of people who come into the labor force every month.

>> is bernanke's easing two, is that going to contribute any way to easing it or is it not working or what? 72 well, we have had the biggest fiscal stimulus and the easiest monetary policy in the history of this country and still at this minor level. it's not working. >> it 's my story, i'm sticking to it. >> the economic indicators are very mixed bag but when you look at the two primary pillars that have political resonance as well as economic resonance, unemployment and the housing sector, and in both situations we're facing still very dark days. and when you look at this unemployment number, the official rate went down to 9.0%. but that is because so many left the job search. in fact, from december to january, the number of people who stopped looking for work actually went up from 2.6 million to 2.8 million. they're just totally discouraged. you look at the housing sector as well and the housing prices continue to collapse around the

country. and without recovery in housing you're not going to get recovery in any other sector. >> there's been a lot of talk about overhauling the tax code. do you think that would relieve this economic situation particularly the joblessness of it? >> i think the tax code should be overhauled, corporate tax needs to be brought down. get rid of loopholes. but that won't work immediately, john. we're -- obama is heading into basically into the second half here and this is a surprisingly anemic recovery. lot of us thought we would be doing better. it sounded like -- >> are you giving adequate consideration to obama's green energy underwriting subsidies? oh, come on! >> you don't think that's a good idea? pumping into that? $5billion? won't that turn it around? >> no. >> no, it will not. >> this is a recession provoked bip a financial crisis. every other recession we've had since the end everywhere was caused by excess inventory or plant and equipment. >> what about the windmills?

will they help news. >> a lot of hot air [everyone talking at once] >> mubarak's future, the president is traveling to all of these places around the country talking up all of the initiatives. >> ge! >> and he's got the ge guy, mr.- - at his side. >> ge investing in green? >> hey john, who builds the windows, the chinese are building the windmills, selling them to us! >> they're stealing our green energy market! >> when you're talking about wind and solar, you're talking about massive government subsidies. >> forget green! >> the private sector has to be the sector that will pull us out of that! >> i want to know how bad conditions really are! >> conditions are very weak and none of our fiscal programs have worked. we'll need a massive infrastructure program that will take some time to put into effect to rebuild. > these photos speak for themselves. we're honored to note that

ronald reagan was a fan of the "the mclaughlin group." in 1985, president reagan took the podium at the third anniversary salute for "the mclaughlin group" photographed here. also the president invited the group to the white house for a friendly chat about current und vogeico, committed to providing service to its auto insurance customers for over 70 years. more information on auto insurance at geico.com or 1-800-947-auto any time of the day or night.

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