this year's eve and will be hosted by actor and humorous john hodgeman. you can watch it live at 9:45 p.m. eastern on c-span. today, patrick leahy talked- about dozen nomination of judge sotomayer to the supreme court and the confirmation hearing. senator leahy is introduced by the president of the leadership conference of civil rights. this is 35 minutes. [applause] >> good morning. it is indeed a good morning. i am privileged to be the professor of public interest kalashnikov year at the university of the district of columbia -- of public interest here at the university of the district of columbia. for those of you who do not know, the leadership conference is the premier civil and human rights coalition with over 200 national organizations working to build an america as good as its ideas, so today, the introduction of this year's lecturer is a very special honor for me. there are few individuals, and i can honestly say without fear of contradiction, even fewer in congress who exemplify his integrity, his passion, and commitment to building an america w

entertainment will include the singing group sweet honey and the rock and actor and writer john hodgeman. live coverage at 8:25 p.m. eastern. >> how is c-span funded? >> i have no clue. >> maybe some government grants? >> i would say donations. >> advertising for, for products. >> public money, i'm sure. >> my taxes? [laughter] >> how is c-span funded? thirty years ago america's cable companies created c-span as a public service. a private initiative, no government mandate, no government money. >> during friday praise today at tehran university, iran's supreme leader ayatollah khamenei gave a speech about the elections that set off several days of protests. this portion lasts about an hour, courtesy of iran's state-run tv. >> translator: in this sermon, too, i recommend all the respected brothers and sisters who have attended here, i recommend them all to piety and to refraining from evil. what i'm going to raise in this sermon is the issue of the election which is the topic of the day in our country. for the time being. there are three issues i want to address, three different groups. t