senator murkowski will deliver the congressional response. and i want to say that senator murkowski as a long-time partner of tribal communities and was the 2009 reset the ant of ncai's congressional leadership award. and a strong partner in the successful passage of the tribal law and order act. please join me in welcoming a true champion and a friend for indian country, senator lisa murkowski. [applause] >> thank you and good morning. jefferson, i am indeed humbled and honored this morning to provide a congressional response to your comments on this stage of the indian nations address. president keel has introduced me, but i stand before you this morning with a special recognition. it was less than a week ago when i was back home in the state that i was a tot did into the clink tribe, a member of the day should time clan, the raven clan and given a new name, and name that i am honored to present to you, oshawa key, which means lady of the land. and as one who has been blessed to have been born and raised in my state, to be welcomed into the

gwen: and if you're lieberman or murkowski, why not? >> it's an easy way to show bipartisanship.wen: something else to watch for at the state of the union. thank you all very much. it's been a tough week. we hope we helped you make sense of it all. the conversation ends here, but it continues on line with our "washington week" webcast extra. check it out. keep track of daily developments on the pbs news hour, and we'll see you right here next week on "washington week. good night. >> "washington week" was produced by weta, which is solely responsible for its content. funding for "washington week" is provided by -- >> this rock has never stood still. since 1875 we've been there for our clients through good times and bad. when their needs changed, we were there to meet them. through the years, from insurance to investment management, to -- from real estate to retirement solutions, we've developed new ideas for the financial challenges ahead. this rock has never stood still and that's one thing that will never change. prudential. >> corporate funding is also provided by boeing, norfo

. >> lisa murkowski gets upset in the al lags could senate primary, she's beaten, she puts herself on as a write-in, runs and wins back her senate seat. there is more than one mama grizzly in alaska. >> excellent choice. i think it's mine. >> boldest tactic, i am not a witch, i am you. >> monica. >> boldest tactic, governor jan brewer signing into law that arizona illegal immigration law. >> mort. >> the computer geniuses who >>> boldest political tactic. president obama's enlistment of former president clinton to take his place at the podium and sell skeptical democrats on the idea of extending all of the bush tax cuts. obama's calculation was that failure to >>> okay, here it is, best idea of 2010. pat. >> after a shellacking in 2010, barack obama embraces the bush tax cuts, works with the republicans, gets a deal, and starts bag up in the polls. >> eleanor. >> i'm going abroad. the coalition government, the unity government in england, conservative prime minister david cameron, and the liberal democrat deputy nick craig, and together they're able to take the heat as they're steerin

how will this affect lisa murkowski's status when she gets back to washington? guest: i think this purports he a unique position almost. you don't -- when you lose a primary challenge and win as an independent there is no question that lisa murkowski is a republican but what she has done is asserted her independence from mitch mcconnell and the senate republicans. look at some of the major votes that came through the lame duck session from everything from the "don't ask, don't tell" repeal to a couple of other things tt came through and she voted with democrats frequently, not a little bit. s she, scott brown, olympia snowe voteed a few times with democrats that the democrats,ed to pass. so it sort of takes away mitch mcconnell's ability to say you have to toe the republican line. she can say i >> the one thing we have learned is that economists are not good at predicting what actually happens. >> robert samuelson has written about politics, the economy and social issues for over three decades. he will join us sunday night on c-span's "q & a." now supreme court

that is the way murkowski has operated the last few years. she was one of the lead republicans on the climate change negotiations that ultimately didn't go anywhere but she was the one who republicans -- who democrats, rather, were talking to about working together with. there is going to be more of that, i think. she put herself in a very powerful position. host: reid wilson is the editor in chief of hotline. he is also contributor to sirius xm radio and you can listen to him in your car or on your home xm radio system. back to the phones. west river, maryland. joe on the line for republicans. thanks for waiting. caller: no problem. i appreciate the fact that your comment stator -- commentator seems to be somewhat trustworthy and not spewing the liberal media spin about everything. my congratulations to him. what i want to speak about is the basic untrustworthiness of the mainstream liberal media when in fact they have the ability to not only report stories but not report stories. and that is an insidious problem as far as i'm concerned. hos

. -- you have the summer caske -- lisa murkowski.was the american people saying we are tired of politicians name-calling and screaming at each other. get something done. if you want to run for president as a republican you will have to find a genial ronald reagan- style. nick rumley has it but that shrill -- mitt romney has it but that shrill hard right style will not fly. tavis: to your tech "the quiet world," it does seem when you hear alaska you think of sarah palin thanks to the media giving her so much attention these days. what does that do for an author putting out the first book about alaska? >> sarah palin's name is not in the index. she has not been that important to alaska's history. i am beginning my book with the glaciers of 1879 when ecotourism started providing an alternative to saving the beauty of alaska's, protection of polar bears and the caribou herds. that started coming about against the extremes of the gold rush and copper russia's. now there was a timber and now it is oil. it has always been a group of artists

there's remarks from alaskan senator lisa murkowski. >> thank you. good morning. [speaking in native tongue] >> my name is jacqueline john and i'm the executive director of the national congress of american indians. the nation's oldest and largest american indian and alaskan native organization representing the interests of tribal governments across the country. it's my pleasure to welcome our distinguished guests here today in washington, d.c., and those of you from the across the country for the 2011 state of twenty-one nations. i would like to acknowledge at this time some of our honored guests in the audience. first of all we have some of our board members. we have irene, we have david, larry, tara, mary ann mills, derek, and marge anderson. we also have joined here today by governor nelson, who is a pueblo and brian patterson who is the president of the united south and eastern tribes. chairman ernie stevens, jr. who traveled all night long to get here and to not miss his -- one of the state of indian nations who's the chair of the national indian gaming asso

senator murkowski is from alaska. congressman gosar represents the use part of austin including the udall homeland including the northeastern part of arizona and i married a north carolinian and i know the spirit that north carolinians bring to the political process so we're proud to stand here to answer questions after we give some brief remarks about what we'll be a historic night. the state of the union address was first broadcast in 1911. that was on radio. it was first broadcast on tv in 1947. president johnson first gave the state of the union speech at night in the '60s. and we believe that the custom of sitting in two parties with the aisle separating has probably started based on what the crs told us from the first broadcast in 1911. we're thrilled that 55 colleagues have joined us on our letter. we think there will be many more tonight who will choose to, if you will, bridge the divide. i think we all believe that the state of the union has become more like a high school pep rally and we want to change the t

the write-in candidacy of senator lisa murkowski. >> every year you have to wonder which state will count deep into november. alaska, you're it this year. congratulations. >> best nonpolitical political story, chelsea clinton's wedding to whoever that guy is. best double play t. two president bushes throwing a pitch at the world series. worst lack of diversity, elena kagan was confirmed. that means the entire supreme court attended yale or harvord law school. >> they all belong to the same club. >> worst photo op. congressman charlie rangel doing the two-step at his birthday bash while ethics investigators were cueing up the "we caught you" waltz. adding his name to the list of d.c. players who wound up on the wrong side of the moral compass. >> as my mother would say, this is trashy and enough of this. >> pop culture rolled out plenty of the best and worst, some trashy, some silly, some sultry, all approved for minors. it's all coming up along with the best tech, the worst celebrity and a double rainbow. >> oh, my god, it's full on. >> all the best, all the worst, 2010. i can get a cc fo

mill miller's announcement came a day after the state certified murkowski the winner. >>> now to your severe thunderstorms in the eastern gulf. sunny skies but low temperatures in the middle of the country. on the other coast a cold front pushing moisture. so they are looking at showers and mountain snow and a balmy new year's day for the >>> well, happy new year to you. we are starting off with some rain and the poe tense for some low snow in some of the hilltops around the north bay and maybe out to the east bay higher hills. you will see 30s and 40s to get your morning started. lunch to lunchtime still running cool. highs mid-50s in the warmest places today. more rain filling in later tonight into sunday morning drying out heading into monday afternoon. >> that's the news. now back to you, lester, and a happy new year. >> all right, thomas, thanks very much. >>> the new year is now just over eight hours long and let's face it already most of us have probably broken our resolutions or come pretty close to it. in a moment we'll show you how to keep them. but first the reality of new

lisa murkowski the republican senator from alaska cosigned a letter with him. 19 senators have agreed including john mccain. ten of the 19 interestingly enough, a number of them republican, are women. maybe that will be the leader in civility but that is an encouraging sign. and even kevin mccarthy the republican whip in the house has sort of given it a semi endorsement anyway. but that's a step. we can sit and talk with each other and we're human beings. >> lehrer: why would that be important? >> because the chief dynamic in the congress is the herd mentality, my herd and your herd. i've stopped. when a member of congress starts telling about the other the party i want to stop listening because i know what will follow will be false. because they don't know the people this the other party very will well so they get this herd dynamic and it is materialized in the way they sit together and meet together and react as one with. and if you actually physically interspersed them i think would defang that herd mentality and actually have a material difference because the geographical way they

if we were going to take over -- lisa murkowski is the first candidate to win as a write in over 50 years. it is over hyped. if it were really that big, jon stewart and stephen colbert were able to triple the tea party numbers at this rally, it says something. i would never belittle the tea party. i understand why people are angry. spending is out of control. obama has done little to nothing. i'm just as scared as everybody else about a lot of things going on. i think it's poorly organized. i don't understand the message. if sarah palin is the leader, i'm not getting behind it. >> well, i don't consider sarah palin the leader. but i think that -- >> do you have have? with all respect do you know who the leader is? >> no. that's because it is grassroots. basically the whole things seems to be get the -- you know, go back to the constitution, stop trampling the constitution, stop spending so much money that no one can repay. >> listen, i'm as frustrated as you are. i completely agree. >> i just feel like the republican party better start listening to what some of the people are saying. you

but the idea is to move forward here and build on the relationships that senator murkowski mentioned that we already have. >> presumably when the president says something the democrats like tonight they will stand and cheer. >> sure. >> whether they're sitting next to plaun or not and republicans will likely sit quietly, whatever they choose to do. or do you have a different expectation with everyone sitting together like this, do you think it will actually behave differently and the country will see a -- >> i think they'll see a mix and i again, i don't have any set expectation of the behavior of my colleagues. you might see a few more standing ovations that include the whole chamber where because sitting together we realize that this -- these are ideas that the president is presenting that are good for the country. >> far too often if you watch, members of congress will actually watch their own leadership to see if they should stand or not. i think this is a perfect example of what true leadership is about. i mean far too often if you watch c-span, that you see members of congress

murkowski will be sworn in the next congress.er, miller was winning, because he said we have to stop this dependency on the government, we have to stop the handout and alaskans have to stand of their own -- but murkowski said, are you willing to lose this benefit, this tax exemption, this benefit, and alaskans overwhelmingly said, no, and they wrote the name into a firm that committed to government welfare. host: how you see the tea party shaping 2011? guest: the tea party, to many americans, including myself, was really the best thing that has happened to this country in a long time. you may talk about the flaws of the tea party, you may talk about extremists, but all parties can look at itself and find the same in their house. the tea party wants to return this country to financial discipline. to responsible and a focus on austerity. getting rid of the earmarks. i think when the congress tried to pass this trillion-dollar budget which over 6000 earmarks, i think it was the voices of the tea party, those coming in to congress an

murkowski of alaska. >> would you all please raise your right hands? do you solemnly swear you will support and defend the constitution of united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and that you take this oath freely without any mental reservation and you will well and faithfully discharge the duties that you are about to enter so help you god. >> i do. >> congratulations. [applause] [applause] [applause] [applause] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] >> the senate will please come to order. the clerk will call the names of the next group. >> mr. murray of washington. mr. paul of kentucky. mr. portman of ohio, mr. reid of nevada. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] >> could you all please raise your right hand? do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the con

murkowski of alaska. the vice president: please raise your right hand. do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that you take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter, so help you god? the group: i do. the vice president: congratulations. the vice president: the senate will please come to order. the clerk will call the names of the next group. the clerk: mrs. murray of washington, mr. paul of kentucky, mr. portman of ohio, mr. reid of nevada. the vice president: please raise your right hands. do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that you take this oath of obligation freely, without any mental reservation or pur

for example, lisa murkowski, scott brown.hey have joined forces with democrats on some issues while remaining republican. both of them voted on the repeal of don't ask, don't tell. obviously, someone like senator lieberman constantly playing that role in the middle. so you have these members of congress who can and will play a pivotal role, especially in the senate, too. we have a number up for reelection in 2012. all of those elected in 2006, a lot of democrats were sort of from red states who came in on that wave, and will be having to defend their seats. senator tester, a castle, -- macaskill, webb. host: in that same had a net of partisanship, who will in the white house be watching in the congress for who they can work with? guest: first of all, the mcconnell-obama relationship has thawed a little bit. not to just focus on the headlines, but john boehner is someone who they feel they have had the opportunity to work with. last year, he took a plane ride with the president, watched the super bowl, thought that they could

eyes will be on senator lisa murkowski of alaska, as well as others like the two senators from maine -- collins and snowe. chantilly, virginia, where we are joined by our caller. mauricio? what do you think about the constitution. caller: it is one of the best -- it is the best competition on the plan. unfortunately we are not using it. why are we not using it? it was intended to protect the liberties of the people. and to have a government that works for the people. unfortunately nowadays, the government is not working for us. we are working for them at the end of the day really. paying taxes and everything. and everything is going up. if we read the constitution, if you guys read the constitution, it is for that, to protect you from the government, from a corrupt government. that is what it is for. that is why the founding fathers wrote the -- constitution, for protection for the people. host: let us look at a piece from "the washington post" in the politics and nation section. ruling on birthright citizenship. state lawmakers launching an effort to deny automatic citizenship to u.

i have been joined by senator murkowski from alaska. i am senator udall from colorado. what connects all of us is the we are all westerners. i married a lady from north carolina. i know the spirit they bring to the political process. we believe that the custom of sitting i. we are thrilled that 55 colleagues have joined as president -- us. we have many more that will bridge the divide. we want to change the town and should the public that we can work together. i'm think the aisle that has come this time to climb the mountain. we want to turn something to build on that in a positive way. i believe these colleagues are standing behind me on these positions. they have found ways to step across that divide. there are a lot of ways in which the structure promoted this to work together. we cannot sit together. how come we face the real challenges that the country has. we could develop a 21st energy policy. it'll focus on jobs. we can continue to build on this gesture. i know this can have a real effect on the way the we were together. stay tuned. we will propose some addition

i put that question to senator murkowski as well. >> yes. >> as i mentioned, i think all of us believe that this is a good first step. i think it is important when you use the word commentating. it is important to emphasize correctly the word that we are speaking about. it is not comedy. >> there is some general support for ending the practice of secret holds. i think there is a general sense that we ought to expedite nominations. and i know the minority -- there is a case to be made about the under review. i have a set of proposals that i think would meet some of the concerns of the minority. we hope it will ripple through the way we do business. >> can you point to any concrete moments or actions that will come out of this? should this go out to the chamber on a regular, daily basis? should the seating arrangement be changed? >> i think they have instituted something that works well with their committee. we should have a chance to rub shoulders. what we are trying to do is not go back to the accrued old days -- but when there was more time to interact personally. the good news is if

facts about the 112th congress in the senate. 51 democrats, 47 republicans, and that includes lisa murkowski. a two independents. of that group, at two -- 2 independents that caucus with the democrats. what is this article about, bob cusack? guest: they go at it on that the senate floor regularly but they are friendly there have been times where they got into a heated legislative battles and apologized for going too far, harry reid did that a couple of times in the last congress. here we have a situation where harry reid is working with a diminished democratic majority. looking at the next election where 23 democrats are up for reelection and only 10 republicans. mitch mcconnell is actually in decent shape to become majority leader if the bug -- political winds continue to blow on the republican side. but this is a relationship that both these adopted -- guys are dealmakers, legislate wars. some are saying the senate is going to function much better with this type of smaller majority, where harry reid cannot ram a health-care bill with 60 democratic votes for those who caucus with democrats.

murkowski of alaska. the vice president: please raise your right hand. do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that you take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter, so help you god? the group: i do. the vice president: congratulations. the vice president: the senate will please come to order. the clerk will call the names of the next group. the clerk: mrs. murray of washington, mr. paul of kentucky, mr. portman of ohio, mr. reid of nevada. the vice president: please raise your right hands. do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that you take this oath of obligation freely, without any mental reservation or pur