remember, ben franklin was the first post master general, so clearly the whole idea is just the mad ramblings of a syphilitic brain. "i know, i'll glue a pretty little picture on the upper right hand corner of an envelope. i'll drop it in a box and two days later it will appear in another box magically across the country. then i shall fly a kite in a thunderstorm. french horns for all my friends." [cheering and applause] mmm, mmm, mmm, a snifter of mercury, mmm, mmm, mmm. besides, the post office's financial crisis is the post office's own fault. what kind of business model is the forever stamp? that's like chili's with their bottomless coke. by the way, i'll be back tonight, chili's. daddy's still thirsty. [cheering and applause] besides, we do not even need the post office anymore, right? >> people aren't using the post office. >> they have post offices all over the place. close down some. >> our money, the taxpayers' money, let the post office go. >> fedex and blackberry do a much better job anyway. >> stephen: yeah, blackberries are way better. you can't play brick breaker on an envelope.

one of my favorites is ben franklin. when he left the constitutional convention, one of the people on the street and asked him what kind of government he had given them, and he said, "a republic, if you can keep it." i think in many ways, they are one in the same. frankly, there may be some differences that people at some level view it, but i view it as almost interchangeable words. >> speaking of which, the aba has recently given attention to the problem of lobbying. in particular, the concern that, speaking of republics, that people will have access to money -- businesses, but others as well -- had higher voices whispering in the year -- can higher voices whispering in the year of congressman or more important, in the year of staff of congressman -- the ear of staff of congressman. do you think that is a serious problem? and what could they do about it? >> if you look at how the supreme court looks at even funding of judicial elections, which are meant to be different than legislative elections -- remember that we have

now, ben franklin may have been the first postmaster but now it really is about the benjamins and theost office says soon it will not be able to pay its bills much less deliver yours. i know, you pay your bills online. you send your e-mail and most of what shows up in your mailbox is junk. you say you wouldn't miss. i get that. but i guarantee you, you would miss that first class stamp and the 140 million or so addresses still served by old mr. zip here. so what to do? well, the usps is a quasi government organization. it has to make enough money to pay the freight but can't make the changes in how the operates like eliminating saturday delivery without the permission of congress. what business can run that way? the postmaster told the government he doesn't want any federal money. he wants enough flexibility to survive. the white house says it is sending a plan to do that, and i hope they know it absolutely positively should have been there yesterday. >> you know, i have to say, stop by the post office saturday before labor day and i'm shocked and appalled it's closed. the one day i n

doesn't act we will default so what's going on here why is the post office which was created by ben franklin more than two hundred years ago on the verge of shattering its doors today all the media story why is the post office is dealing with the problem of trying to remain profitable in a world of decreasing mail the real cause is actually something much much different . consider that this year like every year since two thousand and six the post office is legally required to make a five billion dollar annual contribution to a record top retirement account to pay for future retirees who are not yet even born no other company or government agency has been asked to do anything this crazy and that's exactly what congress during the presidency of george w. bush forced the post office to do and now this poison pill legislation from five years ago has pushed the post office to the verge of not being able to pay its bills so is this really just another example of conservatives manufactured a crisis so that they can privatized another essential government service or more on this i'm joined by chuck

are there any high rollers with ben franklin on the 100? [laughter] i promise you no one has madison's bill. they ghei him the $5 -- they gave him the $5,000 bill between grover cleveland on the 1,000 and sal monop. chase on the 10,000. so that's not very good places. but we do honor him as the father of the constitution, and there's no higher honor than that, few as high. and i want to talk about that this morning. i think he had another child almost as important, equally lively. i want to talk about that child as well. the way i want to do it is read the first chapter of my fourth coming book, "james madison," which touches on all these points and, um, just gives you an introduction to him. and we pick him up on an unlikely day. august 24, 1814, began as a typical summer day in washington; bright and cloudless, promising heat and humidity as the day wore on. for years james madison, the president, had fled high summer in washington and other low-lying cities for the healthier air of his inland home in the virginia piedmont. but this augus

for the amount of people that are out there that are dressed up like ben franklin, you know, they have them kind of a disproportionate amount of power. >> to be fair to him, when he came to power he said i'm going to try to change all of this partisan crap going on, i'm going to try to do it a better way. what he's found is he can't at the moment. it's like he's up against this express train of bile and he can't get anything done so he's finally having to get angry. he's taking a leaf from your book. >> no, he finally had to stand up and go enough is enough. part of the problem is he picked that -- the thing that we have our biggest problem is health care. baboons take care of themselves better than we do in this country. starting with health care, it just -- everything went into place. >> i just can't understand why he got so despised for doing that. he brought 30 million more americans into a health care plan who couldn't afford it and everyone says you suck as a president. i didn't get it. why does that make you a bad president? >> well, because they didn't sit down and talk to the

. >> ben franklin. >> everyone shows up. >> very excited.it is about how to put america back on top and make america number one and how to make america rich again. frankly, no one better than donald trump to talk about how to be competitive, and get what you want out of any deal and any negotiation, whether real estate or, frankly, whether you are a country negotiating with another country. >> marji ross, may 2011 and you say this will come out in fall 2011. >> probably the experts, for better or worse, at crashing bucks. because we do so many current events, news driven books, we do something that most of the rest of the industry does not do. we put books on the fast track. we know that when we have captured the imagination of the audience, we want to get that book out as fast as possible. we are putting this on the fast track and we will have it out there before christmas and we are very excited about that. >> well, you have a couple other books we want to talk about. let's start with newt gingrich's most recent book. >> very excited to be

. >> and ben franklin would sit in the next event.ed the maker fair and going on in new york. innovators, puts go their creations on display and sharing the passion that drives them the goal, to share that passion to a new generation. julie banderas is in the new york newsroom. >> julie: more than 500 inventors are sharing their expertise at the fair. it's put on by the new york hall of science. the people in the project run the gamit from a fire breathing dragon to a lifestyle board game mouse trap. they it has something for everyone and do hands on project like this one. in case you don't recognize what you are looking at, let me explain. it's a sushimi tabernacle car. it's got about 150 singing fish and lobsters on it. it's computer controlled. here is one. >> what i do a little bit of everything and building a car like this. a little bit of everything. little bit of electronics and mechanics. you just got to have a lot of persistence. >> julie: even though the main goal is entertainment. it's cutting edge. organizers say fairs lik

we said historically speaking ben franklin was the first postmaster general in 1775.the stage coach was utilized by the postal service, steamboat, railways. all these new modes of transportation to get the mail where it was needed through rain, hail, sleet and snow. then the pony express. 1860. fabled and short lived, but still something iconic. 1918, there were planes. so the postal service utilized them to deliver air mail which was really forward thinking at that time. the highway postal service began in '41 when railway travel started to decline in the united states. and then 1963, you see the advent of zip codes. that helped them process mail more efficiently. it helped them deliver more mail faster. so these were all examples of new technologies and the irony, of course is that it is this electronic everything today that is threatening to really take the post office down. >> now a lot of people are questioning, does the postal service, you know, is it really needed? >> and there are a few main schools of thought. one of them, there are some business leaders who

as ben franklin said, well done is better than well said.s well. you have been there in congress. what is going on here with the president of the united states? you have had a speaker of the house not returning a president's phone call three weeks ago. you have a president of the united states deferring to the national football league to a football game in terms of giving a major speak about the biggest crisis we face in this country, jobs. what is going on? >> harold? >> i guess people want to see the packers explain. i think your point, that's the question every american is asking. >> he has to fix it. >> it's almost like when clinton, when these guys, the democrats in '94, they asked if he was still relevant. he was. he's a great speaker. tonight, he's got to call on different qualities, different powers and remind congress that politicians and government, their standing has never been lower. we are being challenged. we have to put aside what our differences are. lay off for simple things. whether republicans endorse it, lay out three or

paraphrase ben franklin. easy to say, a challenge to implement. this is crucial. thank you. >> senator widen. >> thank you for this important session. i want to ask a couple of questions about intelligence reform. let me start with you, director petraeus. you're the current cia director. have there been instances where you have said frank god there is a -- thank god there is a national counter-terrorism center? can you give some examples since you've had both of these experiences where you looked at specific instances and said, this is a place where intel reform has many big difference. >> this past weekend where we were working through to confirm the various threats streams. there was a credible threat and it was an important one, and just because of 9/11 but of all the pieces that were coming together. it started with information gathered by individuals. we very quickly -- the ctc within the cia began piecing all this together and open up the dialogue with the ntct. that is how you get into the law enforcement agencies and sherry threw up the rest of the interag

and we, as ben franklin said in 1787, we will become a by word down through future generations because we had the greatest country ever given to mankind and we became irresponsible and lost it. it's time for major changes, and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 12-a of rule and we can create something of lasting value. we create items of values for customers around the world and create good jobs for our employees and help build our community. as americans, we know how to compete and win on a global basis. but our country needs a little bit of help to get out of this recession. we all know that there have been a lot -- there has been a lot of talk about creating jobs. but today, the president of the united states came to west star to see firsthand what we do and what we need to compete in a global economy. it's important for all of us to stand with our president as he works to focus congress on doing something real about helping to get america back to work. the time for talking has passed. now we need -- now we need to send a message to congress, it is t

as ben franklin said, without his concurring aid, we will succeed in our political building no better than the builders of babel. we'll be confounded by a local partial interest and we ourselves shall become a byword down through the ages. so whether anybody believes in god or not. as the founders did, over 1/3 of the signer of -- signers of the declaration of independence were not just christian bus ordained ministers, but to take one's eyes off one's self and put them on something higher and greater avoids the kind of engorgement, the self-satisfaction the self-emphasis we've gotten into. that's the reason you run up twls of dollars of debt without any regard for the children, the grandchildren, the generations to come. and i have to make this personal note reference. it break misheart to see that in college football, nobody loves college football more than i do, i tend -- i attended texas a&m, a lot of people are excited about texas a&m perhaps going to the southeastern conference for money. all about money. the traditions of texas a yavend m make it unique and i think the greatest

what is your next book and would you consider doing one on ben franklin, lincoln or washington?>> i don't know what my next book will be right at the moment. i'm practicing putting my feet up and taking a bit of a breather. i spent four very happy and busy years writing about a greater germany and it was in many ways the most enjoyable and interesting experience of my writing life. i always have a marketing list if you will a shopping list of ideas that i keep coming and i've been keeping it for years. future books and right now i think there are 27 ideas on the list. so i'm going to have to live a very long time in order to do it. [applause] but something happens, something clicks. my daughter was here speaking yesterday and she mentioned the same feeling and i have never heard her say that before. it was thrilling to me to feel she has this same idea. it's all well and good to say such and such and so and so would make a great subject for a book. probably they would. first of all i'm not interested in the subject so much as i interested in the story. when james billington comp

ben. i mean, we're just friends. so you guys don't have a history? what? uh... (splutters) (laughing) no. (quietly): just... ♪ i'm not crazy about these light fixtures. kitchen's too small. what's next? 607 franklinle announcer ] the epa-estimated 42 mpg highway chevy cruze eco. perfect for finding your way home. ♪ [people caughing] they're smart. they can outsmart their humans. and their canines. that's why they deserve the smartest choice in litter. so we make fresh step scoopable litter with carbon, which is more effective at absorbing odors than baking soda. fresh step. your cat deserves the best. look for new fresh step, with better odor elimination than ever before. look for new fresh step, (moaning) wow. that was very enthusiastic. you are amazing. i didn't know that there were people in the world with as much passion and-and fire as you. me? dude, you are open about your feelings. you drink like a bass player. you bang like a jungle cat. i'm just trying to keep up. well, the difference is, this doesn't come naturally for me. i'm living my life to the fullest because, due to certain circumstances, i have to. oh, my god. please don't tell me i just slept with another reality show contestant

ben weedeman. >>> and sarah palin takes a swipe at one presidential rival. but is she in the race or out? i'm not crazy about these light fixtures. kitchen's too small. what's next? 607 franklin st. ♪ sea bass... ♪ ooohhh! ♪ i like it. yeah, i love the kitchen. [ male announcer ] the epa-estimated 42 mpg highway chevy cruze eco. perfect for finding your way home. [ grandpa ] relationships are the basis of everything. [ grandma ] relationships are life... if you don't have that thing that fills your heart and your soul, you're missing that part of your life that just fulfills you. ♪ [ male announcer ] for us at humana, relationships matter too. the better we know you, the better we can help you choose the right medicare plan. that's why humana agents sit down with you to figure out your medicare options. and we have nurses you can call anytime, even at 3 a.m. because when you're on the right humana medicare plan and taking good care of yourself, then you can be there for the people who matter most. [ grandma ] my family is my joy, my hope... they are my heart. it's the reason we get out of bed in the morning... [ grandpa ] the reason we fall into bed at night sometimes. [ gran