i'm back! aleve. two pills. all day strong, all day long. and for a good night's rest, try aleve pm for a better am. welcome on this memorial day weekend. i'm patrick murphy. at military cemetery was arlington to the beach of normandy, at parades in small towns and big cities, in quiet moments of reflection this weekend we honor america's troops who gave the ultimate sacrifice. coming up, i'm speak with v.a. secretary bob mcdonnell about the work he's doing for ours veterans and their families. and the progress that was made one year after the health care scandal in phoenix, arizona. first, this week i sat down with democratic house leader nancy pelosi as congress was in a fiery debate about the 2016

defense bill. ma'am, when you were speaker of the house, you made historic investments with veterans affairs. almost doubling their budget over those years. and you continue to do. that we're here memorial day weekend. why was that so important to you? >> it was so important because when we -- even before we had the majority we plant aid flag for our -- planted a flag for our veterans. we all have veterans in our family. my brothers my uncle died at the battle of bulge. that was part of the pride of our family. we owe veterans so much. we listened to veterans and said tell us your priorities, and we'll try to do what we can. then when we took the majority we did. >> yeah. let me focus on the current we're finding against isis and the national defense explosion act, nda. it just -- national defense appropriation act, nda.

it just occurred. why did you vote against the nda? >> the bill that was put forth was one that the secretary of defense even said was the road to nowhere. it undermined our ability to plan for the future and the rest. it had a budgeting gimmick that really used the overseas contingency count for a purpose that it was not designed to do. so it was fake budgeting, we wanted to have really a serious budget that enabled us to accomplish the mission. what is our security mission not one that just pretended to do so. it was interesting to us because this is serious. the oath we take is to protect and defend. that's our first responsibility to the american people. so this defense budget is important to us. and it should be taken seriously. >> yeah. and that -- the overseas contingency funds, obviously some of that was geared toward

isis, in iraq and in syria. you know, but let's be clear. the congress who's responsible for declaring war, hasn't done the authorization for use of military force against isis. i know you called for an up or down vote. >> yes. >> do you think we will see a vote for the whole floor? >> we can't give up hoping for one. we have to keep planning and calling for it. nearly a year ago, say the summer of last year, we were asking the speaker to give us an opportunity to vote for an explosion for the use-- an authorization for the use of the house. we thought it was important for congress to play a role. we wanted it no later than september. he said after the election. after the 1st of the year. we still haven't had it. he also said i think it's in -- the ball is in the president's court to do a -- suggest an authorization, which the president did. of course, there are terms like the duration. the president said three years.

the geography of it. and -- and the scope of it. that's all matter of discussion. but we haven't been able to have that discussion chair ranking member on intelligence adam shift, has been the leader on our side and insisting and calling for a vote on the authorization. we cannot surrender congress' responsibility or authority in terms of war. >> this past week, though when it comes to isis the mixed result -- unfortunately ramadi was taken over by isis. the same time, the army's delta force captured the money man for isis in syria. so obviously mixed results. do you think the strategy's working? what else needs to be done? >> it's an enormous challenge. and we have to fight it on every front, including the front of social media. that's a place where they have really made more advances than you would have suspected.

and that is where we have to fight them as well. this apprehension in syria -- well killing of one and taking of his wife as well as important intelligence information was a success. again, we have to fight them on all fronts. communication-wise as well as militarily. >> yeah, if you look historically, when we took out bin laden, all the -- when we took out that intelligence that we were able to capture and when we took out this isis money man, the intelligence not just from his wife but some of the documents that delta force captured should lead to a lot more gains against isis. we'll see. how about it -- a lot of focus focused, i know it's 2015 but are focused on the 2016 presidential race. you look on the republican side, jeb bush and marco rubio who have stumbled the past week when asked should we have gone to

iraq in the first place, knowing what we know now. do you think it will play a role in 2016, the presidential race, do you think it should play a role? >> let me say this. at the time we were taking the vote i had been the senior democrat on the intelligence committee. my statement was the intelligence does not support the threat. the terminology knowing what we know now no -- knowing what we knew then there was no -- intelligence did not support the threat. there was a gross misrepresentation to the american people as to the tensions and capacity of the iraqi government in terms of weapons of mass destruction. it was wrong then. the intelligence wasn't. there and i'm proud to say that a majority of our house democrats voted against the war because the intelligence did not support the threat. to hear the conversation of knowing what we know now -- no

knowing what we knew then. was wrong, and it was misrepresented by the bush/cheney administration to the american people. i think we have to get the record straight on that. >> when i was an army captain at won't, just back from my first deployment after 9/11 it was the iraq war. i remember someone who studied al qaeda thinking i didn't catch the connection between them and saddam hussein and iraq. but -- >> there was no connection. >> no, but i remember even then as an active duty military person questioning myself what what we were doing as a country. let's continue on 2016. when you follow politics, i always see democrats on the presidential year, it's lake a home game. the midterm election the democrats don't necessarily come out in force like they do presidential years. 2016 is going to be a presidential year. you need four seats to take over the senate and several seats, maybe over a dozen to take back the house. do you have any predictions or how are you feeling things are shaping up? >> i think it's too early to

make predictions. i can tell you on this that the house is in place, and the senate is in place. we're on a path of making progress toward a victory. it's materially to tell. and i would say in another six or eight months we'll have a clearer picture. we'll know who our attends are and when the candidates come forth, you have a better idea. whatever it is, whatever the outcome of the election i hope there will be a skpngs victory for the american people. that we will debate the issues whether the difference between tropics economics which has failed us and taken us near depression, or middle class economics which is the only way to turn the economy around is through bigger paychecks for america's working families. that's a debate we have to have. hopefully democrats and republicans will see the wisdom of going toward middle-class economics other bigger paychecks, better infrastructure, to take us into

the future. confidence in our infrastructure, in our economy, and, by the way, confidence in our campaign system by reducing the role of money overturning citizens united. >> when you talk about middle class economics, a lot of folks are concerned -- you look at the president's asia pivot and specifically the tpp, the pacific trade deal that is being debated and whether or not it's going to be executed or not. do you think it has relation to national security and economics and how do you feel the caucus -- there are a lot of democrats against it, how do you think it's going to play out? >> any trade agreement that we enter into in my view should increase the paycheck of america's workers. commerce climate change, security -- many of these things are related but should be done in a way that doesn't lose jobs for us but instead strengthens the paycheck. i believe that is what the

president's intention is. i'm hopeful that we can find a path to, yes, that we can find a path to a trade agreement that accomplishes all that we set out to do. i just traveled to asia to five countries. i went back again to japan for a day. on this -- largely on this subject. and it -- we made it clear there are some things that have to be done in order to get more votes to pass such legislation. more democratic votes. the republicans have the majority. the republicans want the bill that the president has put forth. they have the responsibility to pass it. we have a responsibility to improve it. that's what we're trying to do. the infrastructure in this country is crumbling. an estimated 63,000 bridge are structurally deficient. despite a massive amtrak derailment that killed eight people congress voted not to increase funding for amtrak.

remarkably less than 24 hours later. i asked representative police what he congress is going to do about the funding problem next. make sure that you let your voice be heard by using using #takingthehill. ♪ every auto insurance policy has a number. but not every insurance company understands the life behind it. ♪ those who have served our nation have earned the very best service in return. ♪ usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an auto insurance quote and see why 92% of our members plan to stay for life. right now, verizon is offering unlimited talk and text.

plus 10 gigs of shareable data. yeah, 10 gigantic gigs. for $80 a month. and $15 per line. more data than ever. for more of what you want. on the network that's #1 in speed, call, data, and reliability. so you never have to settle. $80 a month. for 10 gigs. and $15 per line. stop by or visit us online. and save without settling. only on verizon.

with xfinity from comcast you can manage your account anytime, anywhere on any device. just sign into my account to pay bills manage service appointments and find answers to your questions. you can even check your connection

status on your phone. now it's easier than ever to manage your account. get started at xfinity.com/myaccount welcome back to "taking the hill." we don't yet know what caused the derailment of amtrak train 188 two weeks ago. what we do know is there is technology available and track upgrades available that would make our rail system much safer. it is one of the many parts of america's infrastructure falling far behind. a big part of the problem is getting funding through congress. i asked minority leader nancy pelosi when that's going to change.

you look at what happened unfortunately, a week ago. i know it all too well with the amtrak train -- >> lucky for your courage. >> when you look, the american society of civil engineers rated the infrastructure a d-plus. that's not just obviously rail but the regular bridges roads, waters systems et cetera. what do you think -- what more needs to be done to really up our grade and be more competitive as a nation? >> this has been a challenge for us for a while. for most of the time infrastructure partisan issues -- infrastructure transportation problems have not been partisan. now we can add broadband and infrastructure for newer technologies that you named. under president obama, the republicans have resisted his initiatives to build confidence in our infrastructure. there's never going to be enough appropriated dollars to meet the

deficit that the american society of civil engineers describes. it's in the trillions of dollars. we have to think imaginatively of how we use the dollars we have. we have leveraged them through an infrastructure bank or whatever so we can -- no pun intended -- get the mileage out of it that we should. it's absolutely essential, as you see, from a safety standpoint. from a commerce, commercial standpoint, from a quality of life standpoint keeping people -- getting people out of their cars quicker, taking their children to and from school work whatever. and also from just the air our children and grandchildren breathe. economically, safety quality of life, and health-wise, it's absolutely essential that we do this. some of our water systems are made of brick and wood they're so ancient. >> you look at governor bloomberg and ed rendell calling

for infrastructure banks to take on the bigger picture. what about even with amtrak? you look at ridership, up 55% the last several years. yet in the house, the subcommittee not an overall vote, but they cut it just about 20% even though ridership's up 55%. do you think they'll reverse course? >> i hope so. and you know, i hope that this will be a lesson learned and drive home the message that more needs to be done. there's been an opposition to amtrak in the republican party for a while. let's put that aside and say, as you've said, the public is using, the public depends on it. we have to have the positive train control that was instituted in california after a serious wreck in california that took lives, positive train control is there. and we have to insist -- you know, we passed a bill in 2008

-- >> i was there. >> you were there. we passed a bill in 2008 that required that the system have positive train control which is the advanced technology which would have prevented what happened in amtrak by december 2015. california already has it. where the accident was. we have to do it throughout. there are some in congress who said, well, give it five more years to be put in place. we did not do that. and it is not just all public dollars. it's public/private partnership. >> yeah. when you look at the spot the frankford junction in philadelphia, where we lost the eight lives, over 200 injured. the same spot in 1943 79 americans were killed. >> same spot. >> yeah. so i think there's a lot of americans saying you know let's get on with it make that their happen. >> this is something that the public sector has to do for the private sector. and we don't have to do it alone. we can be doing it in a public/private partnership.

and we need to do it, and i feel confident that once my colleagues see what the opportunity is and the price to pay for lives, i mean we have to do it. >> yeah. yeah. probably the last question ma'am. the v.a. hospital, we had what happened in arizona, the v.a. hospital a little over a year ago. i know secretary mcdonald's -- there not a year yet. do you think that there's been enough improvement, and are you satisfied with that improvement? >> i'm never satisfied unless we achieve our goals and we're on -- going in the right direction. certainly it has to be intensified. more needs to be done because, again, we have a debt to -- that our veterans that we must pay, and time is a very valuable resource. and the time it takes for them to get service, whatever it may be, if it's too much time, then it's not enough service.

and i'm not -- when i say i'm not satisfied, i wouldn't be satisfied no matter what until our veterans are satisfied. it is going come back to the question about the dod bill. i want to say that i'm proud of the courage of my members to say this is not the way to go. when we go that way on the dod budget, the veterans' budget is not part of the dod. it's part of the domestic budget. so we -- everything else suffers if we don't budget fairly. when the speaker has said shame -- it's shameful that people wouldn't vote for the dod budget, i'm reminded that he himself did not vote for the dod budget in 2010 when we had an amendment to repeal don't ask, don't tell in the budget. only nine republicans voted for it then because they were so opposed to the repeal of don't ask, don't tell. let's do it right, let's get it done so our country is strong

militarily. but also in terms of the health education, well being, and services to our veterans who are outside of the defense budget. >> yeah. i remember it back then the debate of even the post-9/11 g.i. bill because jim web and myself and hillary clinton fighting for it, it wasn't paid for. we said well, this is part of the war funding in the sense that when you have less than 1% of america fighting the longest war in american history, since we passed it, over 1.1 million veterans have been served under the poemptst-9/11 g.i. bill. >> at the time, you heard this will help people re-upping to go to college. then we changed to say the service member or his family -- if he or she died in the line of duty, it went to a family member. >> yeah. leader pelosi, thank you very much for joining us on memorial

day weekend. on "taking the hill." >> thank you very much. i was on the amtrak train that derailed on may 12th. heroic actions i saw deserve a special "we salute you" next. when i'm shopping for a used car, i want to be comfortable. i don't want an aggressive salesperson breathing down my neck pressuring me into a decision. when i go to the supermarket there's no one pushing me to buy the more expensive cereal. i just want to shop like i do everywhere else. ♪ ♪ as long as people drive cars carmax will be the best way to buy them.

yoplait has the only yogurt brands endorsed by weight watchers and your taste buds have always endorsed us. so, you know what this means... this is a real win win! yoplait, it is so good! ♪ ♪ ♪ at chase, we celebrate small businesses every day through programs like mission main street grants. last years' grant recipients are achieving amazing things. carving a name for myself and creating local jobs. creating more programs for these little bookworms. bringing a taste of louisiana to the world. at chase, we're proud to support our grant recipients and small businesses like yours. so you can take the next big step.

you know i tried one of those bargain paper towels. but the roll just disappeared. bounty is 2x more absorbent so one roll lasts longer. bounty. the long lasting quicker picker upper. when you do business everywhere, the challenges of keeping everyone working together can quickly become the only thing you think about. that's where at&t can help. with the tools and the network you need to make working as one easier than ever. virtually anywhere. leaving you free to focus on what matters most. ♪ if you're looking for a car that drives you... ...and takes the wheel right from your very hands... ...this isn't that car.

the first and only car with direct adaptive steering. ♪ the 328 horsepower q50 from infiniti. welcome back to "taking the hill." as you may know, i was in the cafe car of amtrak train 188 that derailed outside of philadelphia. eight people were killed and dozens were seriously injured in the accident. i was one of the lucky ones. people in my car were barely injured. one person a cafe car worker named miss bryan of amtrak, went above and beyond. despite her being visibly shaken and injured she sprung into action getting ice cubes for the injured in our car who couldn't exit themselves. they were being tended to by the first responders.

i was a paratrooper in the 82nd airborne division in the iraq war. ms. bryan acted like a paratrooper. she would have made a great teammate. even though this were downed 12,000 volt electrical wires on the tracks the philly firefighters and police officers were n their within eight minutes -- were there within eight minutes. on my car, they had to use a ladder and climb through the emergency windows to get in and tend to the seriously injured. there is not a doubt that those first responders stopped those who could have lost their lives. they were heroes. today, we salute mrs. bryant and the philly firefighters and police responders who so selflessly and courageously responded to this tragic train accident. now after the break, secretary bob mcdonald on the reforms he's making a year after the health scandal. make sure you lets your voices be -- you let your voices be heard using #tagthehill. newest energy superpower. surprised? in fact, america is now the world's number one

natural gas producer... and we could soon become number one in oil. because hydraulic fracturing technology is safely recovering lots more oil and natural gas. supporting millions of new jobs. billions in tax revenue... and a new century of american energy security. the new energy superpower? it's red, white and blue. log on to learn more. bring us your aching and sleep deprived. bring us those who want to feel well rested. aleve pm. the only one to combine a sleep aid... plus the 12 hour pain relieving strength of aleve. be a morning person again, with aleve pm.

with xfinity from comcast you can manage your account anytime, anywhere on any device. just sign into my account to pay bills manage service appointments and find answers to your questions. you can even check your connection status on your phone. now it's easier than ever to manage your account. get started at xfinity.com/myaccount

welcome back to "taking the himpt" the story broke -- "taking the hill." the story broke a year ago the allegation that dozens of veterans had died at the care facility in phoenix. at several facilities employees were doctoring records after wait time. gaming the system. while an internal awedility found no auto -- audit found no proof that it directly caused death, it found more than 120,000 veterans were forced to wait month for medical care if it came. the scandal brought the downfall of v.a. secretary shinseki. in his place, an outsider was brought in, bob mcdonald. west point graduate, paratrooper, who had retired as ceo of procter and gamble. i sat down with secretary mcdonald this week. we began by discussing the routes of the v.a. caring for america's troops who did not make it home from war.

the ones we honor on this memorial day. >> these cemeteries play an incredibly important roemp the cemeteries were the or-- role. the cemeteries were the overinof the early v.a. we talk about president lincoln's address, he said to care for him who was born in battle his widow, his orphan. we talk about the important of women in the military, female veterans. but it was during that time the civil war, that 750,000 americans lost their lives. so think of 514 americans dying every single day for four years. the wasn't ready for that carnage. they buried soldiers on the battlefield. it was president lincoln when he created the sanitation committee, they dug up the bodies and identified them. we still have the records today. then he worked with congress to create 14 cemeteries around the country to rebury those bodies

identified with grave markers. so it really is the nucleus, it is the catalyst of what created the v.a. >> yeah. we actually have a new one in bucks county pennsylvania. >> you do? >> my wife's grandfather world war ii veteran from the navy buried there. and so hopefully someday i'll be there, as well. >> these are sacred places for our country, sacred places -- in fact one of the new issues intives we're starting it to take advantage of these places, to -- initiatives we're starting is to take advantage of these places to take young people sifblg civics and patriotism. we're putting together tours and information packets so schoolteachers can take their class to the cemetery and help teach history and civics to their classes. >> yeah. switch gears now benefit. the aid benefits. >> benefits. >> you've cut in your short time -- you haven't been here for a year but in that short time, about 74% of the claimed backlog has been cut. you know i know when we go -- i

was in congress, the time we called it the post-9/11 g.i. bill. there was a wait time with that which was cut when we digitized it. did you take some of the lessons learned and overall benefits and utilize that? >> i can't take credit for all of that. i haven't been here that long. allison hickey under secretary for benefits put in place a program when she got here to digitize the effort. that has led to the 74% reduction in claims that are beyond 125 days. magnificent effort. what the digitization allows, it's obvious, it allows individuals to work on the claim much more quickly. the other thing it allows is to move claims around the country to our centers that have the ability, the capacity to do more claims not just the one from the region. the third thing it does it enables people to work from home. if we can get somebody to work from home that saves them maybe two hours a commute which means they can get more claims processed.

digitization has been an incredible strategy and has improved the accuracy quality of getting it done, as well. >> let's turn to health care, if that's okay. one of the largest health care systems in the country. >> right. >> we're a little over a year now from the scandal what happened in the phoenix v.a. what did you take as a lesson? >> the biggest lesson i learned from phoenix -- that was my first trip, the week or so after i was sworn. in i went to phoenix and took a fundamental lesson. one, we didn't have the providers we needed. when i hit the ground -- that means doctors, nurses medical technicians. when i hit the ground, i heard from our acting director there that we were short 1,000 people. so we need the people. secondly i heard that our infrastructure was stressed. that we didn't have the capacity. and in a normal medical facility a primary care doctor will have three exam rooms. one where the patient gets ready, one where the patient

gets examined. one where the patient gets ready to leave. there in phoenix, we only had one. we had to work on both things. we had to work on hiring providers. we've hired over 900 doctors since i've become secretary. i visited 17 -- over 17 medical schools. i've talked to the ama. i've talked to the association of deans of medical schools to try to get more doctors. the other thing we've been working on is infrastructure. over half of our infrastructure is over 50 years old. and operating rooms today need to be larger than they used to be. now we use robotics digital technology. and our buildings are old. we've been working with congress to try to get more money for construction so we can have a system that will last many years. >> when we talk about the lessons learned from the phoenix v.a., there's an argument that some make it the v.a. only fired one person. is that accurate? and what -- do you need more assistance there? >> we've been pursuing the

accountability of employees if a strong fashion. we have to because it's the only way we can change our culture. since i've been secretary, we've terminated over 1,000 employees. we have 80 employees right now where we're -- around 80 that we're seeking disciplinary action against. we have 91% of our medical centers have new leaders or new leadership team members. so we've got a huge change in personnel. and accountability does matter. we're holding people kablg for what they've done -- accountable for what they've done and working hard at that. >> i know infrastructure folks have pointed to demographics of veterans in america, about 22 million veterans in america. but when you look at the world war ii generation about 16 million americans served in world war ii. about 5.5 million served in vietnam. but only about 2.6 million have served in iraq and afghanistan.

there's folks in washington that are calling for complete privatization, let the veterans go back go to private doctors. you know, what do you say to that argument? and do you think that's where we should be investing money and ton brick and mortar? >> i think you make a good point. the total number of veterans is declining. the problems that occurred in 2014 most americans would think occurred because of the wars in afghanistan and iraq that have been going on for more than a decade. that's actually not the case. the analysis i did business analysis i did, said the problems that occurred in 2014 were because of the aging of the vietnam veteran. when i graduated from west point in 1975 there were two million veterans over the age of 65. in 2017, there will be ten million veterans over 65. as we age the injuries that we got when we were in service become much more chronic. and you obviously have a longer list of issues. so as i -- as i did my confirmation hearing i talked

to many members of congress. and some of the senators said to me you know, would you tell me if we should just blow up the v.a. and give out vouchers. what i discovered is the v.a. is not only essential for veterans it's essential for american medicine and american people. three-legged stool. take away any one of the legs the stool falls over. leg one is research. we spend $1.8 million on research that's led to three nobel prizes. it's led to seven lasker award. we invented the nicotine patch. we did the first liver transplant. we did the first implantable pacemaker. a couple of our doctors i think vented the shingles vaccine. it was a v.a. nurse that came up with the idea of using a bar code to connect patients with medicine electronic medical record. we know more about prosthetics than anyone else. we're on the cutting edge of traumatic brain injury. that research is very important. second leg is training.

we train over 77% of doctors through our residency program. we train nurses. we have the largest work force of nurses in the country. and that training becomes very important. third leg is clinical work. dealing with our veteran population every single day. and some of our very best doctors participate in all three legs where we have an affiliation with the best medical schools in the country, a system that omar bradley set up in 1947. and as a result, take an example of our facility in palo alto our chief of staff there is also a professor at the stanford medical school. if you're a veteran, you're getting great medical care because you've got people teaching it to brand new doctors. >> yeah. the west won't mission is to develop -- west point mission is to develop leaders for a lifetime of service. that character development that lasts with graduates forever. what are some of the character lessons that you learned, whether was t was in the 82nd

air force division or p&g? >> i learned really two lessons. character being the most important trade of a leader. lesson one is the importance of taking responsibility. that first day at west point as a new cadet, you learn to anything that happens, you only have four acceptable answers. yes, sir, no sir and sir, i do not understand. i use that sir i do not understand, a lot. i think i told you that story. i would get in trouble. i kept forgetting the fourth answer, no excuse, sir. a very tough answer to give, but it's important because it accepts responsibility for what happened and says i'm going to do my best that it won't happen again. certainly that's one of the things we're trying to embrace at the v.a. we're trying to own the problems, whether or not we were here when it occurred, and trying to fix it as soon as we

can. the second thing in character is this importance of doing the harder right rather than the easier wrong. when we were putting together a program of long-term improvement, i got comments of well you're not going to be here -- you're only going to be there a couple of years. you're not going to be able to get this done. i said, i can't live with myself unless we do the right thing. that's why we put together the my v.a. initiative about improving customer service, being veteran-centric, taking care of employees. if we don't take care of employees, they're not going to take care of veterans. improving internal support services, the scheduling system in phoenix that was a problem dated to 1985. doing strategic partnerships because they're force multipliers for us. and last but not least creating a culture of continuous improvement. we're teaching employees about lean six sigma and having them take responsibility for

improving the processes in the v.a. so we can improve altogether. >> yeah. how about the summer service. can talk about what is that, what's your san francisco. >> you know one of the things we found coming into this role, there's so much good will in the american public. thank goodness there is. having been a veteran during the end of the vietnam war, i'm so glad that the american public today is appreciative of what our veterans have done. what we want to do is take advantage of that. again, it's consistent with the strategy of improving our strategic partnership or taking on strategic partnerships. what we want to do is rally the american public and rally our veterans to demonstration how we can help connect them to help us better serve veterans. whether it's things like helping preserve a cemetery as a sacred ground helping us clean

whatever, that cemetery. or simply being a navigator of a veteran within a hospital. >> what's one thing are you hoping that people are doing this memorial day weekend as it relates to the veteran? >> my dream would be that every single american this memorial day tries to do at least one thing for a veteran. doesn't matter what it is whether it's transporting them to a v.a. facility, the boy scout putting flags out in the cemetery which is what i used to do as a boy scout leader. it doesn't matter what it is. helping a veteran walk across the street. whatever it is it's touching a veteran and just saying thank you for what they've done. next, i talk with fellow iraq war veteran, u.s. congressman seth molten about the recent isis victories in iraq and syria. right now, verizon is offering unlimited talk and text. plus 10 gigs of shareable data.

yeah, 10 gigantic gigs. for $80 a month. and $15 per line. more data than ever. for more of what you want. on the network that's #1 in speed, call, data, and reliability. so you never have to settle. $80 a month. for 10 gigs. and $15 per line. stop by or visit us online. and save without settling. only on verizon. appears buster's been busy. yeah, scott. i was about to use the uh. i've got a much better idea, lad! scotts ez seed uses the finest seed, fertilizer and natural mulch so you can grow grass anywhere! thanks, scott. ez seed really works! get scotts ez seed. it's guaranteed. congratulations. you're down with crestor. yes! when diet and exercise aren't enough, adding crestor lowers bad cholesterol up to 55%. crestor is not for people with liver

disease or women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. tell your doctor all medicines you take. call your doctor if you have muscle pain or weakness, feel unusually tired have loss of appetite, upper belly pain, dark urine or yellowing of skin or eyes. these could be signs of serious side effects. i'm down with crestor! make your move. ask your doctor about crestor. i will take beauty into my own hands. olay regenerist. it regenerates surface cells. new skin is revealed in only 5 days. without drastic measures. stunningly youthful. award-winning skin. from the world's #1. olay your best beautiful if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a biologic...

this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain and protect my joints from further damage. this is humira giving me new perspective. doctors have been prescribing humira for ten years. humira works for many adults. it targets and helps to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers including lymphoma have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. talk to your doctor and visit humira.com this is humira at work

welcome back to "taking the hill." today in iraq government troops and shiite militias are attempting to retake the city of ramadi which fell to isis earlier this week nearly unopposed. in a new interview this morning, defense secretary ash carter had no kind words for the iraqi forces. take a listen. >> the iraqi forces just showed no will to fight. they were not outnumbered. in fact, they vastly outnumbered the opposing force. yet, they failed to fight. they withdrew from the site. and that -- >> joining me now is democratic congressman seth bolton retired marine corps captain who served four tours in iraq. he now sits on the armed services committee. congressman, thank you very much for joining us here on "taking the hill" once again. >> it's great to be back. thanks. >> congressman, first of all, you just heard secretary ash

carter, do you agree with his assessment? have the iraqis lost the will to fight? >> yes i think that's absolutely right. really it comes back to what the fundamental problem is in iraq that's allowed isis to move in and blossom in the absence of the iraqi security forces. it isn't that the iraqi military isn't well trained enough. they've completely lost faith in their government. isis didn't defeat them when they swept in from syria. they put their weapons down and went home. that's why the only long-term solution to get isis out and to get the iraqi government back together is a real political solution. and fortunately we've just been talking about military solutions now. i don't think we really have a long-term plan. >> yeah. congressman, i know this is personal. you know, as a nation we've lost a lot of the marines fighting and -- and soldiers fighting for the control of ramadi during the war. what does that mean to you, and how do you see it in the hands of isis right now is. >> it's incredibly frustrating

and disappointing. i went back to iraq for the first time since 2008 with a small delegation of members from the armed services committee a couple months ago. i saw many of the things that we had fought for during the surge really squandered. and it's very sad. and one of my roles one of my responsibilities i see in congress now is to make sure that that doesn't happen again. that if there are american troops back in iraq or if we have a military action again we don't have to repeat it just five years down the road. >> yeah. the fact that you have the voiced -- the least number of veterans serving in congress than before world war ii. this comes as congress is debating the 2016 defense bill. congressman, you voted against it along with most of your fellow democrats in the u.s. congress. what was your objection, why did you vote no? >> my fundamental objection is that we are trying to pay for our national defense through a budgeting gimmick whereby we pay

for the base defense budget with overseas contingency operation funds. it's a way around the budget caps. and it tries to pretend that we can fix our budgeting problem and pay for our national defense without really dealing with the underlying problems with our deficit. it was the most difficult vote of my short career in congress. because there's never a time when i want to vote against the funding and the authorization for the troops on the front lines. but we've got to get this right. if this is the time to take a stand and make sure that we fund our defense properly so that we can meet the incredibly complex threats around the globe and support those troops on the front lines, then this is where we have to make that decision. >> speaker john boehner said -- and this is his quote -- this vote is about whether you support or men and women in uniform. what's your response adding

politics to that? >> i think it's shameful that he's talking about this in terms of politics when it's the republican leadership that's led us down this path of using budgeting gimmicks to pay for our national defense. when the chairman of the joint chiefs, the secretary of defense came before the arms services committee, they were very clear. they said that the budgeting caps under sequester are hurting our national defense, and we have to fix that problem. not find some short-term way around it that the department of defense says does not allow them to do the proper investment and planning in our national defense. but truly fix the problem. when i got a chance to question the chairman of the joint chiefs, i asked him if investing in non-defense places like basic scientific research if failing to invest in those areas hurts our national defense as well. he was absolutely clear. it does. when we look at the closing gap between us and china, how china is catching up so much it's not just about putting money into bombers. it's putting money into education and basic scientific

research so we can maintain the lead that america has had the last 100 years. >> a lot of folks would agree with you, in saying it's time to nation vote at home. congressman, it's memorial day weekend, thank you for your service in the military and the marine corp and now in congress. >> thank you for your service as well. up next, honoring patrick ward. you're watching taking the hill. sfx: engine sounds introducing the new can-am spyder f3. with a cruising riding position and the most advanced vehicle stability system in the industry... ...you'll ride with a feeling of complete freedom and confidence. visit your can-am spyder dealer and test drive one today. the new spyder f3. riding has evolved.

we all enter this world with a shout and we see no reason to stop. so cvs health is creating industry-leading programs and tools that help people stay on medicines as their doctors prescribed. it could help save tens of thousands of lives every year. and that would be something worth shouting about. cvs health, because health is everything. hey pal? you ready? can you pick me up at 6:30?

ah... (boy) i'm here! i'm here! (cop) too late. i was gone for five minutes! ugh! move it. you're killing me. you know what, dad? i'm good. (dad) it may be quite a while before he's ready, but our subaru legacy will be waiting for him. (vo) the longest-lasting midsize sedan in its class. the twenty-fifteen subaru legacy. it's not just a sedan. it's a subaru.

welcome back to "taking the hill." this memorial day weekend, when we honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, i'll will thinking about section 60 19 and patty ward. section 60 of the arlington national cemetery is the remains of veterans who have been laid to rest. 4,486 in iran and 2,257 k in

afghanistan. travis mannion's family started a foundation honoring the fallen by challenging the living. making sure the sacrifice of our heros are never forgotten. the foundation ensures there is ser visionvice to others in america and overseas. i'll also be thinking about the 19 paratroopers who i served with in iraq in 2003 and 2004. they never made it home. i carry their names with me and ever never forget their ultimate sacrifice. tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. i'll be at a memorial in philadelphia. i was named after patty ward who helped the vietnamese orphans and his soldiers. he earned a silver star for his heroic actions in vietnam which, unfortunately, led to his death.

his memorial will be this weekend, and we'll be thinking about all of our heros who gave the ultimate sacrifice. and those who are the best and brightest of our nation. thank you for joining us. i'm patrick murphy. can a business have a mind? a subconscious. a knack for predicting the future. reflexes faster than the speed of thought. can a business have a spirit? can a business have a soul?

can a business be...alive? ♪ me and you, ♪ ♪ and you and me. ♪ ♪ no matter how they tossed the dice. ♪ ♪ it had to be. ♪ ♪ the only one for me is you. ♪ ♪ and you for me. ♪ ♪ so happy together! ♪ now there's a rewards program that lets you earn points at one place and use them at another. introducing plenti. ♪ ♪ ♪

when it comes to rewards there's plenti together. ♪ ♪ ♪

from pie to eggs to shoes. >> look at that. that is quick. >> politicians show they can dish it out and they can take it. >> he didn't think. he just went bap. >> from a slap in the face -- >> i couldn't believe what i was seeing. >> -- to chewing over a piece of legislation. >> there are people pulling her hair, trying to get her to spit it out. it is unbelievable. >> lawmakers engaged in all-out brawling. >> nothing is under control. you know, just violence. just rage. >> and which of these slip-ups gets your vote for most embarrassing? >> uh-oh. you hate it when that happens. ♪ what is your name ♪ >> politicians like you've never seen them before.