the fact that we can stand here today as president of the united states and as chancellor of a united germany is a

particular visit is laden with symbolic importance, and that the relationship between the united states and germany. germans are asking why obama has not been to berlin. has the united states to some extent lost its european calling? obama wanted to send a clear signal -- we stand by you. this relationship is important. it is not as if with previous visits they were downgraded. it is that this one comes at a very important time in obama's presidency and merkle's chancellorship. >> we will go to the republican color -- a republican caller. >> i wanted to let you know that your comments are very much appreciated. you handle calls very well. we really enjoy you. you are a great host. i want to ask your guest -- the euro has been so strong for the last few years, with the exception of the last two years. it has been a strong currency. all of the social benefits that germany offers -- how come german exports are so strong, and yet in the u.s. we complain we cannot compete against china because of the fact that wages are low? which is in germany are higher than the u.s. -- wages in germany are higher tha

particular visit is laden with symbolic importance, and that the relationship between the united states and germanyhy obama has not been to berlin. has the united states to some extent lost its european calling? obama wanted to send a clear signal -- we stand by you. this relationship is important. it is not as if with previous visits they were downgraded. it is that this one comes at a very important time in obama's presidency and merkle's chancellorship. >> we will go to the republican color -- a republican caller. >> i wanted to let you know that your comments are very much appreciated. you handle calls very well. we really enjoy you. you are a great host. i want to ask your guest -- the euro has been so strong for the last few years, with the exception of the last two years. it has been a strong currency. all of the social benefits that germany offers -- how come german exports are so strong, and yet in the u.s. we complain we cannot compete against china because of the fact that wages are low? which is in germany are higher than the u.s. -- wages in germany are higher than the u.s. since the c

the fact that we can stand here today as president of the united states and as chancellor of a united germany is a testimony to the progress, the freedom that is possible in our world. >> the chancellor is also going to discuss german trade and efforts to improve both economies. >>> a new poll released this morning could be causing some concern for president oe baa obama as he gets ready for his reelection campaign. gop presidential candidate mitt romney is in a dead heat for the president in a hypothetical match up. mr.obama and romney both get 47%. but when the poll includes registered voters, the lead is for romney. >>> there's already controversy on one of their potential replacement. eric rasmuss has the story. >> reporter: we heard from a couple of people out here that say they simply want a change. you can see not a whole lot going on. i talked to poll workers who say turn out has been light so far and there are still some big questions about who might be swept in to office. it might not feel like election day but voters we found at the poll for hercules. >> i want change. >> told us t

and germany and the president presented chancellor merkel with the medal of freedom, the highest honor. >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the unitednied by the chancellor of the republic of germany and professor sauer. ♪ [applause] >> good evening. michelle and i are honored to welcome you as we host chancellor merkel, professor sauer and the german delegation for the first official visit and state dinner for a european leader during my presidency. [applause] angela, you and the german people have always shown me warmth in my visits to germany. i think of your gracious hospitality. we thought we would reciprocate with a little dinner in our rose garden. now, it's customary at these dinners to celebrate the values that bind nations. tonight, we want to do something different. we want to pay tribute to an extraordinary leader who embodies these values and who has inspired millions around the world, including me. that's my friend, chancellor merkel. more than five decades ago, in 1957, the first german chancellor ever to address our congress, konrad adenaeur, spoke of his people's will of freedom and the millions of his countrymen fo

. >> the collapse of the soviet bloc has created a united germany much bigger than france or britain and offered the possibility for many new countries to join. elites saw the chance to push for further integration to bind his growing family together. >> this is created by. people have something like that. that does not mean that this is some delete idea which is shut down the throats of people. -- some elite that is shoved down the throats of some people. >> the elites began to run afoul of public opinion. france and the netherlands voted against the constitution. national interest was reasserting itself. these days, germany boasts the europe -- boasts the largest population in europe. it is the largest exporting economy. an increasing number of germans wonder why they should remain quite so closely tied to a european union that requires them to keep bailing out less successful members and so restrict their economic freedom of action. >> the need to finance huge deficits in greece or spain has produced anchor in germany. propping up the euro has become horribly expensive. that leads

germany has a leadership role in europe in that respect. the unitedmany being an advocate and a partner. host: can you tell us about that? talking about the pomp and circumstance, i think that she is getting a 19 gun salute. what is the difference and why was this applied today? caller: right? cut short by two? if you have ever heard these gun salutes, even five would be a lot. they are loud and impressive. everything here is dictated by protocol and tradition. a head of state gets 21. a leader of the country, as e is, gets 19. it is as simple as that. either way it will be quite a show. host: as far as dinner is concerned, is this an official dinner or a state dinner? caller: there seems to be some dispute about this. it's -- has been referred to both ways. i have seen news releases that refer to it as a state dinner. but purists will determine that it cannot be a state dinner if the president is not the head of state. either way, whether it is called an official dinner or a sta dinner, it will be one of the grander evenings in the obama administrati

the president really focusing on the strong historical alliance between the united states and germanyhan ever, saying that global prosperity and security really depends on this partnership, and those are ideas that were echoed when chancellor merkel spoke this morning. she talked about the alliance that we have in afghanistan and also said she supports the emerging democracies in north africa and the middle east but there are contentions hovering over the entire visit, the main one libya, chancellor merkel did not support the nato-led military strike in libya. at bea ma looks forward to talking about with her and one other point of contention vermont know's monetary-led policy. timothy geithner critiqued it and vice versa. this trip is really about shoring up those ties, focusing on the things the two nations do have in common so this is a theme we're going to see play out but when they do speak in that press conference just momentarily we can expect them to talk about libya, afghanistan, potentially you could hear the chancellor weigh in on the troop withdrawal so that's what we're l

germany are more important than ever. indeed, they're indispensable to global security and prosperity. [speaking german] >> as two of the largest and most dynamic economies, the united. and their ability to compete and innovate in the 21st century. [speaking german] >> as members of the most successful alliance in human history, our commitment to our common defense is also a pillar of global security. from completing our mission in afghanistan, to preventing terrorist attacks, to achieving our vision of a world without nuclear weapons. [speaking german] >> and finally, as people around the world imagine a different future, the story of germany and our alliance in the 20th century shows what's possible in the 21st. wars can end, adversaries can become allies, walls can come down. at long last, nations can be whole and can be free. [speaking german] >> madam chancellor, the arc of our lives speaks to this spirit. it's obvious that neither of us looks exactly like the leaders who preceded us -- [laughter] [cheers and applause] but -- but the fact that we can stand here today as president of the united states and as chancellor of a united germany is a testament to the p

but if you say are there deep and fundamental divides in outlook between the united states and germany, i think the answer is no. when merkel makes it through this tough patch, i think she will probably re-emerge as the strong leader that she was before and the strong leader that both europe needs and the united states would like to see emerge. >> charles kupchan, thank you for talking to our viewers tonight. all of talk's events can be found on our website along with the menu and the guests that attended tonight's state dinner. c-span.org and all of the highlights will reair saturday night, 8:00 p.m. eastern time on c-span. now we'll bring you to the news conference between the two leaders from earlier today. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states and the chancellor of the federal republic of germany. >> good morning again. it is an honor to welcome my good friend and partner chancellor merkel back to the white house. we had a wonderful dinner last nigh

finally have her say, she entered politics, rising to become the first east german to lead a united germany, the first woman chancellor in german history, and an eloquent voice for human rights and dignity around the world. >> suarez: president obama said he hopes to make a return trip to berlin. at the end of this visit, though, both leaders said their meetings helped strengthen the german-american relationship at a very challenging time. >> ifill: we'll be back shortly with an update on the huge fires in arizona. but first, this is pledge week on pbs. this break allows your public television station to ask for your support, and that support helps keep programs like ours on the air. >> woodruff: for those stations not taking a pledge break, we have a science story about the search for effective treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder, or ptsd. it comes from wttw's "chicago tonight" and is reported by jay shefsky. >> reporter: on the face of it, the cause of post-traumatic stress disorder seems obvious. if you live through a terrifying event, you may be left more than 2,500 firefighte

united states was on the eve of war. if you take yourself back to 1939-1940 the rest of the world was already at war. japan have long invaded china. germany invaded poland by 1939. united states had not entered the war but it was a world war. franklin roosevelt knew the

united states. we have a broad base of an exchange of students, we have cooperation, we work in space, we share a lot of the -- i mentioned the 2000 american soldiers that are present today in germanyd indeed in my country. let me say this on a personal note. without the united states of america, in all probability we wouldn't be here to stand before you today, over coming the cold war required courage from the people of central and eastern europe and what was then the german democratic republic but it also required partners over many decades. when one had long lost hope of immigration to europe, many, perhaps, didn't even want this anymore, but the then president george herbert walker bush said germany, it is something that deserves support. so there are a lot of tasks that we have in common, a lot of challenges that we need to meet together. we're doing this in the spirit of freedom, of shared values. we want to bring these values to bear on the international agenda, and we were dealing, and ever since the month of january, with these issues, and spring -- in syria, in tunisia, in egypt, libya. it's a very great challenge. but if i remember, let me take you back perhaps to the pe

united states. we have a broad-based exchange of students, cooperation of science. walked in air aerospace, had a lot of success. i mentioned the 50,000 american soldiers present today in germanywelcome indeed in my country. without the united states of america, i would in all probability not able to stand before you, overcoming the cold war, required courage from the people of central and eastern europe, but it also required the steadfastness and western partner of many decades, one had long lost hope of integration of the two germany, and europe. many perhaps didn't even want this anymore. but the then president, george walker push said european unity is the decent thing it deserve, so there are a lost tasks that we have in common, a lot of challenges we need to meet together. we're doing this in the spirit of freedom, of shared values, we are dealing, and ever since january, with these issue, and the arab spring, and syria, in tunisia, in egypt, in libya, that is a very great challenge. if i remember, let me take you back perhaps to the period after the second world war, when, through the martial plan, germany was able to get back on its feet again. i see this as a task of

well one area where the united states and germany are collaborating along potential new sanctions against iran now at this morning's joint press conference with the german chancellor president obama threatened to slap more sanctions against iran over its nuclear activities but despite fresh warnings from the united states as well as israeli officials about tehran's quest for the nuclear bomb pulitzer prize winning journalist seymour hersh says the obama administration is actually exaggerating the iranian threat not to mention ignoring its own intelligence because latest piece a new yorker magazine has sent shock waves throughout washington and he sat down with me and r.t. to discuss what's behind the hype on iran there is based on the notion that you know that somehow iran has a bomb or is going to get a bomb soon that's ridiculous because every bit of evidence they have from their own intelligence community the the the people in the top of the bad government know there's no weapons there we've known that for years we've been looking for years after years after years we support the sancti

well the united states and germany may have their differences when it comes to iran the leaders of both countries are speaking out in one voice following today's press conference president obama said that he and chancellor merkel both feel ron's nuclear program is a major concern and both are warning of a new sanctions against iran as a result of the results pardon me but fears over tehran's quest for the nuclear bomb are just hype that's at least according to pulitzer prize winning journalist seymour hersh who says that the obama administration is exaggerating the iranian threat and in fact include nor in its own intelligence take a look based on the notion that you know that some iran has a bomb or is going to get a bomb soon that's ridiculous because every bit of evidence they have is from their own intelligence community. that the people who talk with the very government know there's no weapons there we've known that for years we've been looking for years after years after years we support the sanctions program that's designed to stop the punishment is it's aimed at stopping the ira

ended we're still in or the united states is still in germany. states are still in korea united states is still in japan as many critics of the obama administration have said that despite how many people that he the president is going to announce a withdrawal about there will always be and there may be a u.s. presence in afghanistan for decades to come and that u.s. presence that will be want to support the afghan military and police i mean they claim they're actually ready to step in and provide security it doesn't really look that way that they can manage their own affairs after this point. well i've talked to several afghanistan experts over the past few weeks on radio on the borders of russia and that is that's the opinion of some folks in afghanistan and of course opinion of others saying that no the afghan forces are not ready that the american advisers and soldiers need to be there to help train them to combat the taliban and other forces but then again we have the issue of are there possible peace talks or private talks with the taliban ab

coming back to the quote that you ju read i don't think the united states and germany are further apart than they have been in the past. i think the problem is that you don't have leadership in the rope andhe united stes has deficits, people are tires of the wars if iraq and afghanistan and poob has in me sense rediscovered europe. that's why he spent a week there last month. and mirk elf say we believe in the transatlantic partnership, you're our partner but when push comes to should have, where are the europea and one of the things obama will be saying to mirk kel behind closed doors, we need more germans, we need more europe, we need you to step up to the plate because right now i think that europe is underperforming and they don't have a lot of political momentum, there are t leaders there who about to be ready to provide that political momentum and i think obama is anointing america el saying, come on, we need you. >> need you to do what? >> well, to lead on getting the global economy going. >> but how could germany could that. >> germany can do it -- >> it has an export economy, t

reactors in all germany is the fourth largest economy in the world and the largest economy in europe and generates about a quarter of its electricity from nuclear power just like we do in the united states that already germany has shut down seven reactors in the wake of the focused human disaster and is now committed to doubling its renewable energy output by twenty twenty two also currently germany employs nearly four hundred thousand people in the renewable energy field germany will join italy is the first two nations in the g eight that have officially gets nuclear power switzerland also announced plans to completely car about nuclear from its energy portfolio with their last reactor slated to. lows in two thousand and thirty four so here in the united states to me still have no plans to drop to clear power and switch to renewables and haven't really had an a long term energy plan since reagan so is what we're seeing in germany and switzerland an example of what government is capable of that it's not completely captured by special interests here to talk more about the issues jack spencer research fellow in nuclear energy policy at the heritage foundation jack welcome great to

we think of the term branding the country japan technology china the factory of the world germany precision united states may be too much financial market you think of russia what brand comes to mind. if today's one if one does come to me what i can say about that i live here in russia for a long time and i've watched a lot of changes and improvements happen over the send to fifteen years i had to describe russia in short i would say it continues to be a country in transition with considerable long term potential is that a brand that's the brand in my opinion it is because i'm not sure how else you could describe it because we won from one system and we went from one brand another brand and so we're in turn this into i mean create their own model here in russia i would say it's not going to match the model you'll see in other countries but what i can say is it has considerable long term potential not short term but long term i think the vision is there the policy vision is there on behalf of the president's administration in the government it's just the biggest step is taking this syrian policy an

contin they should levels of lake geneva within the next two months research from switzerland germany the united states will carry out physical chemical micro biological experiments given that lake geneva is the main source of potable water in the region well the nearest submersibles more used to call in siberia they also reached the border all ocean in two thousand and seven and bagged than part of the russian expedition presidential envoy to the north and south poles. planted a titanium capsule on the arctic ocean floor to symbolically claim what could be an itchy reserves beneath the sea and again this time a capsule of the russian joe graphical society was on the lake geneva in his seventy second year russia's number one goal amount he was willing to take to the depths once again. as a politician i feel it's better to me. and one of the participants of today's comes from a renowned family which actually invented. hello mr i don't you tell us more about your father grandfather. grandfather or. first ride to the stratosphere. to the but this case to go to the deepest spot in the ocean he built

we think of the term branding the country japan technology china the factory of the world germany decision united states maybe too much financial markets you think of russia what. if if the.

service members in germany are also believed to ha ive so could this spread to the united states? icials say highly unlikely. scientists think it originated in raw vegetables in europe. so now every shipment of those items imported into the u.s. from germany and spain as a precaution is being tested before being released. and point 0.2% of u.s. imports come from those countries. those who are stricken are being treated with dieialis, transfusions and a u.s. produced antibody. it's the best doctors can do against a germ they haven't had to battle before. >> again, that was nbc's michelle kaczynski reporting. the cdc says this strain is highly toxic and its incubation period up to 12 days. so far, all the cases have been linked to northern germany. experts say there's no risk unless you live there, travel there or have close contact with someone who did. >>> still ahead, we've got rob mayeda with our complete rainy forecast. >> an unbelievable forecast by june standards. take a look at the satellite view. you can see theound area of low pressure just offshore. even though the main ra

the second book is on that second period when the united states exerted unprecedented extraterritorial sovereignty through the reconstruction of germany and japan, through the reconstruction of the european economy with a marshall plan to the occupation of hundreds of bases around the world, the occupation of south korea. the united states found itself ruling other people for the first time on such an extraordinary scale. and it was a role to which americans were unaccusme

the '60s and '70s of that is on the second period ran the united states exerted unprecedented sovereignty through the reconstruction of germany and japan to the reconstruction of the european economy and then the occupation of south to reinvent then they find themselves for the first time on such the extraordinary scale. and then national political life it was not an easy sell especially coming so soon from the 30's but but then found itself abroad to rule others abroad but yet to it is thought to do so often by attacking who are challenging or otherwise dismantling colonial structures getting in the way of american interest with the events unfold paying at the moment but it looks at the changing role in the world. >> host: 60 million americans were in uniform during world war ii what kind of a political power do they come home with a 1945? did they wield the power? >> they came home with an extraordinary presence remember the veterans of the first world war were greatly embittered with the '30's of the depression with utterance it doing on street corners than being routed from the capital and the bonus riots and consequently

the chancellor, who grew up in east germany, said that without washington's policies during the cold war, she would not have been able to come to the united states capital today. >> when the wall and barbwire divided germany and europe, america stood firmly on the side of freedom and resolutely with us germans as we made our way toward unity and freedom. we will never forget this. >> the two world leaders are making a concerted effort to show that the great trans- atlantic partnership remained strong. >> i will be taking an in-depth look at german and u.s. relations later on in the show. here in germany, authorities are continuing efforts to find the source of an e coli outbreak that has killed 23 people. bean sprouts with the latest product to come under suspicion. scientists found no traces of e coli bacteria in the packages of bean sprouts taken from the refrigerator of a man who got sick. they were grown at a german farm that has been temporarily shut down. many consumers are concerned about the killer bacteria. they are avoiding eating certain raw vegetables. there is a huge economic component to this e coli outbreak. >> european uni

united states. because of the superpower germany issue and various others what we've seen is losing some cooperation but for the most part the two countries tend pursue hello policies and with with very minimal coordination between them so for example in face and one on missile defense a whole range of important issues they have the same position very overlapping but they don't tend to act in unison and so it's not really been a fear of a russia china alliance against the united states it just hasn't really developed that way and you could see why i mean both countries are very important relationship with the united states they don't want in danger so we have to go worry about going back to the triangle or diplomacy of the cold war what about across the atlantic should europe be concerned about russia turning its attention eastwood's a rule is perhaps some people may say that russia is turning its back on crisis stricken europe and looking elsewhere. europeans concern they have of course is access to russian oil and gas and not only from russia itself it is passing through i think the europeans of a

deficit of nearly four hundred ninety eight billion dollars so what lessons of any can the united states take from germany's economic sense that's i mean this country found a way to thrive if this by high taxes lots of social welfare benefits high wages all things that folks here in this country are say are business killers right so how do they do it and what can we learn from our friends across the atlantic will join me now to discuss this is tom hartman author radio talk show host and also the host of the big picture here on r t tom thank you so much for joining us you know when it comes to the political rhetoric here in washington if anyone brings up the european economic model i mean we hear whoa is me this is evil code word socialist what we possibly learn from those lazy europeans abroad who work less than us and pay more and have more benefits and social welfare nantz and yet germany's doing really well what can we learn from this country when it comes to our economic crisis what would you go to trade germany has very very colorful. carefully calibrated trade policies particularly have to do it taxat

in the united kingdom she's available in germany house bill and if you want hotel the old waverly return example search of the mill stone hutto some old country house holiday inn the bull moose house the rim branch the creamy the chesterfield the montague the child the royal the rubens her child. receives new finance minister takes office with the hard task of convincing people to accept further austerity cuts the second the wave of bailouts casts a shadow of the future of the eurozone nations like turkey only a desperate to join up with nothing to rethink. criticizes the state's role in the russian economy and slams corruption for threatening the country's development and speaking at the international economic forum so this book reinstated his commitment to modernization drastic measures to create a better investment climate. and the e.u. plans a third set of tougher sanctions against syria as a crackdown on protesters to news reports of me claiming at least sixteen lives on friday some experts warn the sanctions could take a pretty big start to mention. well the sports news now is up w

germany last month. more than 2,000 people are sick, including several here in the united states. ospitals in northern germany say they are overwhelmed as they struggle to provide enough beds for people sickened but the outbreak. some health inspectors believe it can be traced back to a festival attended by 1.5 million people in the port city of lubeck, one month ago. >>> new hope that a prince can help prevent breast cancer in some women. the drug could prevent breast cancer from occurring in the first place, and women considered high risk. it has already been approved to treat the disease. now this is providing new hope for prevention. >>> people in san francisco likely noticed a huge red ribbon sitting on top of san francisco's twin peaks. it's been there since last month to help mark the 30th anniversary of the first a.i.d.s. case in the city. 30 yearsing a 20d, years ago today, the a.i.d.s. epidemic first started when a feds report was released. we'll talk with a doctor who served at san francisco's health developer in 1981. >>> ceo steve jobs on medical leave since january wi