Let me be clear about a couple things. This is not at all about the principle that every defendant deserves a competent attorney in his trial. It is not about the idea that somehow a person, a lawyer should be condemned for the crimes of his client. This was always about the principal that no one should be able to make a mockery of our criminal justice system, fan the flames of racial strife in america, join a dishonest international antiamerican campaign, along the way drag the family of a Fallen Police officer through three decades of hell and then be confirmed to a high post in the justice department. [applause] so why am i telling the story . It is not just to celebrate a conservative victory but thats ok. Once in a while, we need to do that. I think it demonstrates that when we stand up and we fight and we fight on principle, we can actually win. Sometimes even in washington, d. C. And this is what republicans need to do. It is what republicans need to do across the country. It is what republicans need to do in congress. We need to stand up to a president who thinks that the laws of america do not apply to him. [applause] we need to stand up to senator reid, who thinks he can marginalize republicans and the millions of americans who voted for us in the United States senate. [applause] and lets face it, we are not always going to win these fights. Especially not when the democrats control the senate and barack obama is in the white house. But we can win some of these fights. And if we demonstrate the ability to carry on the fight, the willingness to have the fight, and the fact that we will base those fights on conservative american principles, then the American People will trust us to govern and they will give us a chance to take this country back. Thank you very much for being here. Thanks for all that you do for our country. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2014] please welcome senior Political Editor at town hall. Com. Good morning. I need to begin with a Public Service an outlet for the young women in the audience here at seatac at cpac. In spite of media reports that he is about to be back on the market, stay away from congressman alan grayson. [laughter] his charms are difficult to resist what it is for the best and for your own safety, allegedly. N is onea rumor grayso outburst away from qualifying for his own weekend show on msnbc. [laughter] i am not even talking about lockup. Shades oftle, 50 grayson. Of this rumor was harry reid, it is probably bs. Are you fired up by senator cru z . [applause] to introduce our next speaker. He was the republicans point man in its exposing obamacare. Depictedng attack ad him literally wheeling an elderly woman off of a cliff. That was the punishment for the sin of advancing a plan to save medicare from insolvency. An empirically undeniable crisis for which the socalled party of science is the rest of solutions. Most challenging, he debated a deranged person for 90 minutes on National Television in front of 51 million americans and emerged with his dignity intact. Asset forndispensable modern conservatism. A policy innovator and a Solutions Oriented wonk with dreamy blue eyes. Congressman paul ryan of wisconsin. Thanks, folks. How are you doing . Great to see you. Good morning. Guy, thanks. What can i say about that introduction . Well, it is the most recent introduction i have received. When al asked me to speak at this year, he said, paul, i to save the best for last. So you are on thursday morning. [laughter] all i can say is it is great to be back. Thanks a lot, everybody. I appreciate it. Now the 2012 election didnt go exactly as we had planned. [laughter] last year, ive got to tell you, it was pretty tough to be optimistic after a loss like that. A year later, i think there are a lot of reasons to be optimistic. [applause] you know why . I think the left is exhausted. Our side is energized. And on election day, we are going to win. [applause] take the president. He released his budget this week. And from the looks of it, he is just doubling down. He is moving further to the left. His teammates arent much better. You notice they all kind of sound alike these days. All they talk about is income inequality. They say it shows party unity. What it really shows is that they are out of ideas. The reason they keep talking about income inequality is because they cannot talk about economic growth. They have spent five long years in power and all they have to show for it is this lousy website. [laughter] the president was remarkably candid when he said he would fundamentally transform the country. He has done his best to keep that pledge. In the end, i think hes going to fail. [applause] you see, now that the president is implementing his agenda, it is a total fiasco. Big government sounds good in theory, but it looks a lot different in practice. And we are learning this the hard way. This is our opportunity. For the president and his allies, this campaign will not be a sprint will not be a sprint or a marathon. It will be a 50yard dash. They will run from their record. They will point fingers. And they will try to make us the villain in their morality play. I dont think its going to work because they are going to overreach. Take just one example. The Little Sisters of the poor. The administration is trying to force a group of nuns to violate their conscience. The left is not trying to solve a problem here. They are trying to make a point they are in charge. Ive been in politics long enough to know that if you throw your weight around like this, you are going to be thrown out of office. That is not the way a Majority Party acts. A Majority Party welcomes debate. It brings people in. It does not burn heretics, it wins converts. And it knows people dont want to be pandered to. They want to be treated like adults. They want to be convinced. They want to be inspired. Thats why im excited about our team. The way the left tells it, the Republican Party is in this big massive civil war. It is Tea Party Versus establishment, libertarians against social conservatives. Discoursenfighting, look, i am irish. That is my idea of a family reunion. [cheers and applause] i dont see this great divide in our party. What i see is a vibrant debate. We are figuring out the best way to apply our principles to the challenges of the day. Sure, we have our disagreements. And, yes, they can get a little passionate. I like to think of it as creative tension. For the most part, these disagreements have not been over principles or even policies. Theyve been over tactics. So i think we should give each other the benefit of the doubt. [applause] but we, your representatives, we have to earn this benefit of the doubt. We have to offer a vision. We have to explain where we want to take the country and how we want to get there. Now there is a fine line between being pragmatic and being unprincipled. And sometimes its hard to tell who is here to start a career and who is here to serve a cause. But the true test is not what specific path you take but whether you move the country in the right direction. And we will. Look, from our governors in the states to our members in congress to the Tea Party Groups across the country, a conservative modern reform agenda is now taking shape. We are offering a vision and we have got plenty of ideas. You are about to hear from one of our leaders, senator tim scott. [applause] what tim scott and eric cantor are doing. They said, sure, lets make things a little more equal. Lets let every parent choose where their child goes to school. [applause] because we believe to help every child get ahead, every parent should get a choice. Take congressman graves. They want to give states more control over highways so they can build the roads they need. Because we believe families should spend less time in traffic and more time at home. Rubio wants to repair our safety net. He wants to streamline Government Programs and give working families a boost. Because we believe in this country it should always pay to work. We believe in the dignity of work. [applause] take congresswoman martha roby. She has a great idea. If you work overtime, you should be able to take more time off, paid time off, if you want to. Because we believe that working parents know best how to manage their own time and washington should just get out of the way. Take chairman dave camp. He wants to lower tax rates for businesses and families. Right now, the tax code is 10 times the size of the bible and has none of the good news. [laughter] here is the way it works. You send your money to washington and, if you do what washington tells you to do, you can get some of your money back. I have a better idea why dont you just keep your money in the first place. [cheers and applause] take obamacare. The way the president ok, dont take obamacare, but work with me, ok. Consider obamacare. The way the president talks you would think there is no alternative here and weve got plenty. Senator tom coburn has one. Tom price has one. Each plan has its virtues. But the unifying principle is clear. We believe you should pick your health care plan, not washington. [applause] once again, the gop is where the action is. Just as it was at the beginning of the reagan revolution. You know, people forget that cutting taxes was once controversial, even in our own party. Senator bob dole used to make fun of supplysiders like jack. He used to say that the good news is a bus of supplysiders went over a cliff. Seats weres is some empty. He warmed up to the idea. When he ran for president , he promised to cut tax rates across the board. That is what we call the battle of ideas. I saw this with my own budget. When i introduced my budget for the first time in 2008, i had just eight cosponsors, eight conservative backers who wanted to stick their neck out. Then the Tea Party Members got elected and now the house has passed it three years in a row. [applause] this is how it always is. You fight it out. You figure out what works. You come together. Then you win. Its messy. Its noisy. And its a little bit uncomfortable. But the center of gravity is shifting. Were not just opposing a president. We are developing an agenda, a modern, progrowth principled , agenda for our party. We are going to show the country that there is a better way. The way i see it, let the other party be the party of personalities. We will be the party of ideas. [applause] i am optimistic about our chances because the left isnt just out of ideas. They are out of touch. Take obamacare, not literally, but figuratively here, ok. We now know that this law will discourage millions of people from working. The left thinks this is a good thing. They say, hey, this is a new freedom, the freedom not to work. I dont think the problem is too many people are working. I think the problem is not enough people can find work. [applause] and if people leave the workforce, our economy will shrink. There will be less opportunity, not more. The left is making a big mistake here. What they are offering people is a full stomach and an empty soul. The American People want more than that. This reminds me of a story i heard from eloise anderson. She serves in the cabinet of my buddy Governor Scott walker. [applause] she once met a young boy from a very poor family and everyday at school he would get a free lunch from a government program. He told eloise he didnt want a free lunch. He wanted his own lunch. One in a brown paper bag just like the other kids. He wanted one, he said, because he knew a kid with a brown paper bag had someone who cared for him. This is what the left does not understand. We dont want people to leave the workforce. We want them to share their skills and their talents with the rest of us. [applause] people dont just want a life of comfort. They want a life of dignity. They want a life of self determination. A life of equal outcomes is not nearly as enriching as a life of equal opportunity. [applause] ill tell you, the party that speaks to that desire, the party that tries to make it concrete and real, thats the party that will win in november. We are that party. [applause] we are that party because that is the country that we know. And in a few years, i think we will look back at all of this creative tension. I think we will look back at 2014 as the time when we got it right. When we gave the country a real choice. When we earned back the peoples trust. That is the moment we are in right now. This is the party that is forming. This is the battle of ideas that is happening. And this is the party that is going to do this so that we can finally save the american idea. Thank you very much for your participation here. [applause] this is here. It is now. We are coming together and we are going to do this and youre here to help us. And we are going to look back at this time when we say that. Thank you everybody. And god bless. [applause] please welcome tim scott, u. S. Senator from south carolina. Thank you. Thank you very much. Do i see some south carolinians in the house . Cadets the citadel cadets, didnt they do a good job this morning . How many of you, like me, believe in the future of america. [applause] agenda focuses on the American People and not the federal government. Welimiting the government, empower the people. We do not need the Big Government and obamacare choosing our doctors. Do we . Forcingt need obamacare pizza places to tell us how many calories are on our pizza. Do we even want to know . When i eat my haagendazs ice cream, i went to enjoy those 129 2 calories and all 100 grams of fat in one sitting. Not wantou all do obamacare to increase the taxes on the tanning beds. Please note i said some of you. I do not really care about that tax. Just joking. You have got to have some fun at cpac. Americans andut selfdetermination. We are not about the government. The greatest assets we have cannot be found here in washington dc. Our greatest assets are not in washington dc. Except when cpac is in town. [cheers and applause] they are found in the thoughts and in the ideas of people in places like greenville or a orangeburg, and charleston. Not in the executive orders of this president. It instead end up wisdom of our Founding Fathers. And on the pages of our constitution. [cheers and applause] a smaller, less intrusive government means more resources for the creation of the next generation of entrepreneurs. The success of our economy is seen in the size of our ideas. Not in the size of our tax bills. We need to cut our taxes, not raise them like president obama wants to. Great news created and relationships. When people pool their resources and start Small Businesses. In their garages, at coffee shops, and at their kitchen table. I started my Small Business in a small apartment with friends. Our genius emerges from our classrooms, from our libraries, filas. Our chik i call them freedom fries. Those little waffle fries, freedom fries. That is where i met my mentor. He taught me the power of thinking. Some of you have heard i was a poor kid growing up in a singleparent household. I had lost my way. I had flunked out of high school as a freshman. Failed rural geography, civics. A u. S. Senator who failed civics. I thought i was the only one and then i came to the senate. Then i realized there might have been a couple that did not have civics either. Then i failed spanish and english. They do not call you bilingual, they call you biignorant. That is why i get so much credit to my mentor, he came along at the right time. The people whoy, change the path of young kids like me are sitting in audiences like this. He taught me you can think your way out of poverty. That citadel graduate taught me if you want to escape poverty it comes through the power of education. He taught me that. That is one reason why my opportunity agenda understands the necessity of a good education. Kids, nots that unions, should be the focus of our public education. [applause] that parents, and not bureaucrats in washington, should decide the path of their childs education. They should be free to choose. They should be free to choose homeschooling, Public Schools, charter schools, parochial schools. It should be the parents choice. Because when the parents have the choice, the kids have a chance. [applause] i think of one story from greenville, south carolina, a lovely young lady named rachel lewis, born with down syndrome. Optimistic, energetic, focused, smart little girl. Her parents fought tooth and nail for a year to keep her in mainstream classes. Unfortunately, after a year, she was able to win keeping her little girl in mainstream classes, but she realized the very teachers, the very system she had to fight with would now be in charge of educating her kids. She decided, i cannot do that. She found a little private treasure ind hidden greenville, south carolina. And that young lady went through school and earned her High School Diploma and today, she does not have one job, she has two jobs. We need to set free all of the potential in the kids in our country through school choice. [applause] finally, there are 4 million jobs vacant today in america. 4 million jobs unfilled. We need to prepare our adult learners to fill those jobs. We need to focus our attention on two facts. Every child does not want to go to college. Some kids can earn while they learn. We should have a dual track, one for college and one for the skills necessary to fill the 4 million vacancies we have today in america. [applause] my opportunity agenda does that. Let me close by saying as we unveil more about my opportunity agenda, i believe the best is yet to come. We will remain focused on the American People. God has already blessed our country. I believe it is our responsibility to make sure that that blessing continues. If this was the church, i would take up an offering. And ask you to stand for the closing benediction. You have already made the offering. You have done so with your time, by getting involved in campaigns. You are the backbone of the conservative movement and men and women like myself stand on your shoulders. God has blessed us because we have you. God bless you. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the host of the daily on the one america news network. Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for coming. Like fruit of the loom, i will be brief. Come on, you are here to hear someone else. I do host a daily Political Television talk show called the daily ledger. Named after me, on the one america news network. I will tell you more about that on saturday when i am up here. Right now, it is my honor and privilege to introduce to you the governor of the garden state, the state of new jersey, the honorable chris christie. [applause] all right, all right. Thank you. Thank you very much. Good to be here. Thank you for your warm welcome. I want to start off with a story from new jersey. A few years ago, our pensions funds and our Public Employee Health Benefit fund together was over 130 billion in debt. We put together a plan to do the things they should be doing here in washington. On entitlements. Age, end retirement costofliving adjustments, more penalties for early retirement and more money being put into the system by the people benefiting from it. After we proposed this, you can imagine i was popular with the Public Employee unions. We decided to do what we do in new jersey, not to go to the chamber of commerce and have a lunch. I decided to go to the new jersey Firefighters Convention. I went to the Firefighters Convention i was introduced and it was a longer walk to the stage than it was up here. That entire time, i was being bathed in the love of the public unions. When i got up to the stage, the person running the convention said governor, i am sorry for the reception. I came up to the podium and as they were booing the hell out of me i said, come on, you can do better than that. And they did. [laughter] and i said to them, i had prepared remarks today and i took them and i tore them off. And threwore them up them off to the side of the stage. Here is the thing, i understand that you are angry. I understand that you feel deceived. I understand why you are booing. I do not understand why you are booing the first person to tell you the truth. The truth is if we do not change these tensions, you are not going to collect them. That is the truth. The fact is, for each and every one of you, you may hate me now, but 10 years from now, after ive made the changes that need to be made and you are collecting a pension, you will be looking for my address on the internet to send me a thank you note. For saving the retirement for you and your families. The amazing thing that happened was, after i was done with those remarks, and i ended, i walked off the stage and two thirds of the audience was cheering. Here is the reason why. And what i want to talk to you about this morning. The fact is, we have to Start Talking about what we are for and not what we are against. [applause] the reason for that is very simple. It is exactly what i said to cpac in chicago in 2012. The reason we have to Start Talking about what we are for and not continuing to rail what we are against is because of one simple reason. Our ideas are better than their ideas and that is what we have to stand up for. If you need any further example of that, look at what is going on in terms of what they are for in washington. What they are for is the leader of the Senate Democrats stands up and rails against to american entrepreneurs who have built a business, created jobs, and created wealth and philanthropy in this country. Harry reid should get back to work. And stop picking on great americans creating great things in our country. That is typical. It is typical. Is contrast between what happening with governors and what is happening in washington. There are lots of examples i could tell you about. Governors are about getting things done. Governors are about making government work and keeping government out of peoples lives. We have lots of examples of it. Look at what has happened in wisconsin with my friend Governor Scott walker. [applause] scott walker stood up for collective bargaining reform. You know what has happened to the Teachers Union in wisconsin . The Teachers Union membership is down 60 because scott walker made it voluntary to join the union in wisconsin. People are voting with their feet. John kasich stood up against the crazy ideas the democrats had in ohio that was causing economic depression in that state. What you have now in ohio is lower taxes and more jobs and an Unemployment Rate that is lower than the national average. That is getting things done. How about michigan . Where Governor Rick Snyder has made michigan the home of the uaw a right to work state. In florida, rick scott has taken an Unemployment Rate that he inherited well over 11 and brought it to under the national average. And because of free market, conservative ideas, has created over 450,000 new private sector jobs in three years in florida. [applause] that is because governors, republican governors, have stood up and done things. Not just talked about them. What you see in washington is people who only want to talk. They cannot stop talking. The most dangerous 10 feet in washington is between anybody who wants to Start Talking and a camera. This is what they are about. You can see it in examples not only with the dysfunction in congress, but one story that i love about the president. You remember when they set up this whole supercommittee thing . Way back when they were trying to resolve the budget problems. After the supercommittee got nothing done, what did the white house say . The white house said the president never met with the supercommittee because he knew they were doomed to failure. Man, that is leadership, isnt it . You are the leader of the government. You see something going off the rails and you decide to stay as far away from it as possible. My question now is the same question i had then. If that is your attitude, mr. President , what the hell are we paying you for . [applause] leadership is about getting in and getting something done. And making the network. Leadership is not about standing on the sidelines and spit balling. That is all we see all across washington. It is not what we see in the states. Here is another thing we have got to stop doing. We have to stop letting the media define who we are and what we stand for. [applause] when we talk about what we are for, no matter what state we are in, our ideas win. Look at what we have done in new jersey. A state that barack obama won by 17 points in 2012. Today, the fiscal year 2015 budget i proposed a week ago has 2. 2 billion less in Discretionary Spending than the state was spending in 2008. If you had said a blue state would do Something Like that, you would have said we were crazy. Government needs to be smaller. We have 6000 fewer state employees in new jersey than the day i was sworn in as governor. [applause] for the first time in 105 years, teacher tenure has been reformed so we can finally have accountability in the classrooms. Teachers who teach stay and teachers who dont go. [applause] when they said it could never be done, now twice, for the First Time Since roe versus wade, new jersey has elected a prolife governor of new jersey. [applause] this is what i mean about the media. I got asked the question, last year. Governor, you are very popular in a blue state, how can you export that to the rest of the country given the intolerance on social issues in your party . Let me ask you a question. You say the republicans are intolerant . At our national convention, we have had people like colin powell and Condoleezza Rice speak. Even though our Party Platform and i do not agree with their position on abortion. Tell me the last prolife democrats who was allowed to speak at a democratic convention. By the way, dont strain yourself because there has never been one. Theyre the party of intolerance, not us. [applause] we have to take these guys on directly. You know i am shy and retiring and i do not like to speak my mind, especially regarding the media. What we need to start saying is, we are not going to put up any longer with them defining who we are. We have to say what we are for. When we say we are prolife and we are proudly prolife, we need to be prolife when they leave the womb as well. For every step of their lives. It means we have to be in favor of an educational system that is accountable so that child can have a worldclass education. It means that we have to be in favor of a society that creates opportunity and jobs for them, not one that has the government control what they think is good or fair in our society. It means when those children fall victim to disease, like drug rehabilitation, we need to rehabilitate those kids. Because every life is precious. No matter where they are in society. We need to make that difference. When we say we are proudly prolife, we have to be prolife throughout their entire lives. Not just through parts. When we say that we want to make a difference in our society, we need to make a difference to the type of freemarket reforms that have always worked in our country. We do not need, mr. President , your opinion on what income inequality is. We do not have an income inequality problem. We have a opportunity inequality problem. Because government is trying to control the private market. [applause] in the end, we have the type of people in statehouses throughout this country who can make a real difference in our countrys future. We have to stay focused on the task at hand. As i travel around the country, as the chairman of republican governors, what i feel more than anything else is a frustration in our country with everyone who believes that government no longer works for them. Government works for itself. We need leaders who are willing to say, not only that we are against obamacare, which we are, we need leaders that are going to say were against higher taxes, against a bigger government. Against intrusion into our constitutional rights. We are against all of those things, but we need to talk about what we are for. We need to talk about the fact that we are for a freemarket society that allows your effort and ingenuity to determine your success. Not the cold, hard hand of government determining winners and losers, which has been what this administration has been all about. [applause] we need to make sure that we say we are for america being a leader in the world and we are for a Strong National defense not one that allows other , countries to run us over all over the world. [applause] when other people around the world are struggling for freedom, they look to an america that was an example to them as to how a free and open society could govern itself. After the last number of years of dysfunction in washington and lack of leadership in the white house, those folks are finding it harder to look at an america they want to emulate. An america that is governing itself effectively and providing to its people a safe and civilized society. If we want to once again lead the world, it is not just about the might of our arms, it is about making ourselves an example of how a free open society that treasures liberty over all else can govern itself in an effective and functioning way. We are not doing that. We are not the only losers. The rest of the world loses when we dont do that. We need to charge out of this conference over the course of 2014. Keep the house of representatives, win back the senate, win more republican governorships, and show people that republicans know what we stand for and we know how to get things done in this country. And to lead the world again. [applause] to do that, i will remind you of one simple truth. We do not get to govern if we do not win. It is not only bad when we do not get to govern because we do not get to change our society. What is worse is they do. They are doing it to us right now. Please, let us come out here and resolve to stand for our principles. Lets come out of this conference resolved to win elections again. That is what i intend to do and i hope you will join me. Thank you very much. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the honorable bobby jindal, governor of louisiana. [applause] thank you very much. Thank you. What a great honor to be with you today. I will start my remarks with a heartfelt and sincere apology. I mean this. I spent a lot of 2012 going around the country saying president obama was the most liberal and most incompetent president in my lifetime since jimmy carter. Having witnessed the events abroad these last several days, as we have seen the president of russia invade a neighboring country while our president wants to downsize our military. While our president brags about the increased spending on food stamps. Seeing a president who does not understand that a Strong America leads to a peaceful world. Seeing a president who does not understand that a weak america leads to instability. Who does not seem to understand that our allies and enemies alike need and want a Strong America. You know, we have long thought and said this president is a smart man. It may be time to revisit that assumption. [applause] or at least to make a distinction between book smart and being truly wise. Today, let it be heard and i hope he is watching, to president carter, i went to issue a sincere apology. It is no longer fair to say he was the worst president in my lifetime. President obama has proven me wrong. [applause] i did not come here today to talk about foreign affairs. I want to talk about this president s assault on the American Dream, his assault on poor children in louisiana and his assault on religious liberty. This president has a very different idea about the American Dream than the idea shared with me by my parents. This president talks about class warfare and dividing an ever shrinking economic pie. The American Dream i learned about was a country where the circumstances of your birth do not determine your outcomes as an adult. An america where we can do better than our parents. An america where every child is told you can be the first in her family to go to school. You can be the first to become a doctor or lawyer or start your own business. How many moms and dads have told their little children that anybody can grow up and become president of the United States . Unfortunately, in 2012, we learned just how true that is. [laughter] essential to the American Dream is making sure that every child gets a great education. There are millions of American Children trapped in failing schools. In louisiana, we are doing something about it. We have done many policies, i will tell you about two. Number one, we worked hard to put a great teacher in every classroom. Great teachers are the most important things we can do in the classroom to improve student learning. Kids with Great Teachers earn thousands of dollars more on average. Studies show that if your fourthgrade daughter has a great teacher, shes more likely to go to college and less likely to become pregnant as a teenager. I dont need to tell you that. All of us can remember the Great Teachers that got us to where we are today. Everybody says they are for Great Teachers. Look at how we hire, fire, pay and promote our teachers today. In louisiana we decided to do , something about that. Wouldnt it be special if we hired, fired, compensated our teachers based on how well students are doing rather than how long the teachers have been breathing in the classroom . [applause] we have changed our tenure laws, hiring laws, firing laws to link teacher advancement to student achievement. Unions do not like that. They said wed do not have a problem with you evaluating teachers. We just do not want it to achievement. That is like going to a Football Game and saying, do not worry about the score at the end of the game. If it is not about student achievement, what is it about . The second thing we did, we have to make the dollars follow the child instead of forcing the child to follow the dollars. What does that mean . That means that every child learns differently. Some children will do great in a public school, some children will do great in an online program, some children will do great in charter schools. Parochial schools, dual enrollment programs. But we trust parents to make the best decisions for their children. [applause] in new orleans, 90 of our kids are in charter schools. We have doubled the percentage of candidates doing reading and math on grade level in five years. We have done course choice so kids can start in Public Schools and take private courses throughout the day, but we have established a statewide scholarship program. So kids can go to the best schools selected by their parents. The unions do not like this either. They said, parents do not have a clue when it comes to making decisions for their children. Parents do not have a clue. I cannot think of a better summary of the disagreements between our side and their side. This president and allies, they do not trust the American People to make decisions. A group of moms told me, we make decisions for our kids every day. We know the needs of our children better than the bureaucrats in baton rouge or washington. We have grown this program in double digits every year. We have saved taxpayers millions of dollars. Academic scores are getting better. 93 of the parents are happy with the program. Who could be against giving choices to parents . Eric holder and president obama, that is who. [applause] the department of justice has taken us to federal court to try to impede this program. We have the department of justice trying to stand in the schoolhouse door to prevent minority kids, low income kids, kids who have not had access to a great education the chance to go to better schools. Over 90 of these kids are minority children. 100 are in low income families who would otherwise go to c, d, or f schools. Moms tell me, this is the first time their kids have brought home homework. The first time their kids are wearing uniforms. First time their kids are thinking about going to school beyond high school. It is immoral and hypocritical for the attorney general and the president to deny these children the same choices and chances they would want for their own children. Children only grow up once. It is especially cynical to use those same rules designed to protect these children to trap them in failing schools. I have a message for eric holder and for the president. We will fight them every step of the way, even at the supreme court. To defend these childrens rights. [applause] but it might make you wonder how in the world does the government get to the point where it thinks it can take away the rights of children to get a better education . Well, i would argue this is what happens. Bill clinton famously said the era of Big Government is over. Never has somebody been so wrong about something so important. In political discussion today. This is what happens when government gets so big. I actually agree with David Axelrod on something. He was trying to defend the president. He said the president could not possibly have known what was going on with the federal government because the federal government is so vast and expansive. That is exactly the point. If i couldve gone back in time over five years ago and said to you that your government would grow the deficit from 9 trillion to 17 trillion, would you have believed me . No. If i had gone back in time and said your government would use the irs to target conservative political groups, would you have believed me . No. If i had gone back in time and said the government of the department of justice would be spying on the ap and reporters, would you believe me . No. If i had gone back in time and said our ambassador and other americans would be killed in libya and the administration would blame it on a youtube video, would you have believed me . No. If i told you the secretary of state would have grown so frustrated answering questions from the senate, she would finally say, what difference does it make . Would you believe me . No. If id gone back in time and said even though we cannot afford these entitlement programs, the administration will create a new one, would you have believed me . No. It is amazing to me what we have seen in our lifetimes. In just these last few years. It is not just a government so big they can take away educational choice, the government is now infringing on our religious liberties and religious freedoms. About a month ago, i gave a speech at the Reagan Library about religious liberty and this administrations assault on our freedoms. The most famous recent case, the hobby lobby case. The green family faced 1. 3 million in fines because of their refusal to provide products that are contradictory to their faith. This president seems to believe our religious rights start and end in the pews on sunday. I knew this administration did not like the Second Amendment. I thought they might still like the first. Make no mistake about it, their assault on religious liberty is also an assault on the freedom of speech and the freedom of association and other rights that are so important to the founding of this country. This country did not create religious liberty and freedom. Religious freedom and liberty created this great country. [applause] you may have noticed, i got some attention for standing up and defending the duck dynasty family. When they got in a little bit of trouble. [applause] you may have thought i was defending the Robertson Family simply because they are from louisiana. You may have thought i was defending the duck dynasty guys because my kids are huge fans that watch every show and buy every duck call and wear every bandanna they can find. I stood up for their right to speak up and articulate their beliefs because i am tired of the left that claims they are for diversity. They are tolerant and for diversity except when you dare to disagree with them. [applause] we must not let them silence the greens, the robertsons, people of sincere religious conviction and faith across this country. I am not for lawsuits. I am not about suing people. But we have a constitutional scholar as president. It strikes me he might benefit and we might benefit if he actually reads the constitution every now and then. [applause] this president graduated from some of the best schools in the country. If he would like some free advice, i would consider suing Harvard Law School to get his money back. I am not sure what he learned in three years. [applause] i will tell you this. I have started apologizing to president carter. I want to close with this. This administration has assaulted our religious liberties and has assaulted the American Dream and is trying to redefine the American Dream so that success is defined by government assistance. That is not the American Dream, that is an american nightmare. The reason i end so passionate and the reason i am so optimistic, i am convinced our best days as a country are ahead of us, not behind us. Our children and grandchildren will inherit more opportunities than we inherited from our parents. What gives me confidence is not washington or our legislators. The genius of the Founding Fathers was to trust the American People. Several decades ago, my parents reached this great country with the conviction that if you worked hard, you could create a better quality of life. They were not looking for a government handout. There were not looking for government assistance. They were looking for the opportunity to get a good job. My dad went to the yellow pages calling company after company until he could finally convince somebody to hire him. He tells his new boss after hours of calling, who offers him a job monday morning, that is great. I do not have a drivers license or a car, you will have to pick me up on the way to work monday morning. Starts work that monday. Six months later i was born. I was what you call the preexisting condition. There was no obamacare or anything like that. There were two guys that shook hands in the hospital. I want you to think about this. My dad shook hands with the doctor and he said to the doctor, i will pay you in full. I will pay every month as much as i can until i pay this bill in full. That is exactly what they did. No contracts, no paperwork. No government program. Just two guys in a hospital in baton rouge, shaking hands. [applause] ive asked my dad, i do not know [applause] if you can pay for a baby on layaway today. My dad would always tell my brother and me this, i am not leaving you a famous last name or inheritance, but i will make sure you get a great education. If you are willing to work hard in this great country, there is no limit to what you can accomplish. That is why we must fight so hard for school choice. That is why we must fight so hard for religious liberty. We have to fight to restore the American Dream. It is not about american programs, it is about pursuing those opportunities. There is a rebellion brewing in these United States of america. We do not want to become like europe. Were all blessed to live in the greatest country in the history of the world. Thank you for fighting the good fight for the American Dream. Thank you very much. [applause] good afternoon, conservatives. Great to be here, isnt it . Let me tell you, we all know that over the last six years, thereve been plenty of things to be depressed about. Sometimes when you get up, you do not even want to flip on the tv or open up the paper because the destruction from this administration. As in every battle, heroes emerge. All of us remember a few years ago what happened in florida. A senate seat opened up. Most of the bigwigs eagerly endorsed the city governor. What was his name . Charlie crist. You remember charlie crist. It was no surprise they liked charlie so much. He is everything they love. Strong poll numbers, healthy bank account, and not a single strong conviction on policy. He was putty in their hands. One state legislator had the courage to stand up and be a conservative alternative. Marco rubio thought he should lead because his ideas were better. We remember what happened. He won big. His election proved that idea still matter, that conservatism still works, and that washington often gets it wrong. Senator rubio continues to get things right. From reforming poverty programs to encourage and job creation, stopping obamacare bailout, standing up for religious liberty and human rights, marco rubio is leading on ideas that matter to conservatives. We salute you, marco rubio, and we welcome you to cpac 2014. [applause] thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much for that kind introduction. It reminded me of that race from a couple of years ago when i came to cpac to speak in january of that year, it is pretty impressive when you get to washington. You start looking around the room and you see soandso on meet the press. Look at soandso. You start wondering, how did i get here . About six months later, you look around the same room, and you say, how did they get here . We are at that phase now. Thank you for this opportunity to speak to you for a moment. It is a critical moment in our countries history. I think youll hear that from every speaker tonight. Let me share with you something i hope you believe with all your heart. We are facing true challenges and real obstacles, there is not a single nation on earth that i would trade places with. There is no other country i would rather be. [applause] that doesnt mean we dont have challenges and problems to confront. I am convinced that despite the bad leadership we are getting today, we are on the verge. I know that cpac draws a lot of the younger americans. I want you to believe that is possible. The opportunities are extraordinary. They make possible for america its best moment ever. Speakers will tell you our greatest days are yet to come. I know that to be true, but we have to overcome the challenges that we face. Our Economy Today is living through a moment of extraordinary economic and security. The Global Economy has completely transformed in our lifetime. My grandfather used to remind me that when he was born, there were not even airplanes in the sky. Before he turned 70, an american walked on the moon. This presents real challenges for economy. It also presents real opportunities. That requires us having tax codes that encourages investments. That requires us to sell more of the products that we have to markets around the world that can afford to buy american oil and natural gas. This administration has failed in this regard because the policies they pursue have never worked and they work less now than ever before. They love to sell Big Government as a way to help those trying to make it. What they dont tell you is they hurt the people trying to make it. Big government, if you are a Big Corporation or a multibillionaire, you may not like the government, you can afford to deal with Big Government. You can hire law firms and lobbyists. If you are trying to start a business out of the Spare Bedroom of your home, probably in violation of the zoning code, you cannot deal with runaway regulations and complicated laws. That is why we are not getting the sort of investment and innovation that our country desperately needs. American companies have close to 4 trillion cash sitting in bank accounts. That is more than the entire size of the german economy. So long as we have runaway debt and runaway regulations and a tax code that discourages investment in america and the Health Care Law that must be repealed. [applause] because their policies fail, they resort to what the left always resorts to. Dividing people against each other. They go to americans who are struggling and they tell them, the reason why you are worse off is because someone is doing too well. It is someone elses fault. The only solution is to give government more power to go after those people. It is unacceptable and that is holding us back. This notion that we will pit americans against each other on issue after issue is something we should never accept as a people because it is never been who we are and it is not who we are right now. The good news is the primary cause of the challenges as a president who is done in three years. Our other challenges are little more difficult. That involves the world around us. The events of the last few weeks remind us what we are talking about. I grew up in an era where people used to tell us, College Professors telling us that we had to accept the spread of communism and the existence of the soviet union as a permanent thing. Perhaps, even accept the notion that they would be on the rise will be good be on the decline. Fortunately, we had a leader in the white house that did not accept that notion. By my second year in college, the berlin wall came tumbling down and so did the soviet union. I want you to take a moment to look at the world around us today. It is truly as challenging as that period of time was. In asia, china is making increasing territorial claims. They claim they control islands that do not belong to them. In north korea, they not only have Nuclear Weapons, it they are developing rockets capable of reaching the United States. In latin america, and illegitimate venezuelan government is slaughtering people in the streets. Cuba continues to be a dictatorship. In the middle east, iran is trying to acquire Nuclear Weapons and the capability to become the dominant power in the region. Al qaeda, which was once a cell hiding out in caves, has spread into five or six different cells. In europe, Vladimir Putin is trying to reconstitute the power and the influence of the former soviet union. I say this to you because of the number of young people here today. I want you to extrapolate what the world would look like in 10 years if this continues. If you inherit world for the chinese get to decide who gets to ship products to the South China Sea and all the countries in that region are tributaries to them. If you inherit a world where north korea can blow up california with a nuclear weapon. If you inherit a world where iran can reach the east coast of the United States and can wipe israel off the face of the earth. If you inherit a world where russia continues to hold its neighbors hostage because of dependency on russian oil and gas. What do all of these countries have in common . These are totalitarian governments. All the problems of the world, all of the conflicts of the world are being created by totalitarian regimes who are more interested in forcing people to do what they want them to do and truly achieving peace and prosperity and respect for the rights of others. I outline all of this to you for the following reason. There is only one nation on earth capable of rallying and bringing together the free people on this planet to stand up to the spread of totalitarianism. There is only one nation that can do that and that is ours. The United Nations cannot do this. In fact, they cannot do anything. [applause] that does not mean we will be involved in 15 wars. It also does not mean that we can solve every conflict. Without american engagement, the world is not just a possibility, it is a real probability. I do not like to make these issues of National Security partisan. It is important that our country be united in moments like this, but we cannot ignore that the flawed Foreign Policy has brought us to the stage. We have a president who believes by the sheer force of his personality, he would be able to shape a global event. By going around the world and giving key speeches and places, he could shape the behavior of other people. We do not have the luxury of seeing the world the way we hope it would be. We must address these issues before they grow unmanageable. They threaten not just our freedoms, but our economy. That is the true challenge that we have in the 21st century and we must confront them with a series that requires an american Foreign Policy deeply rooted in our moral principles. The notion that every human being has rights given to them by their government or leaders, are right it is given to you by your creator. All human beings have these rights. Why the principle that any government and any leader who violates those rights is an illegitimate one. The president loves to point to Ronald Reagan and says that reagan talked to russia. Why cant we talk to iran . Reagan dealt with the soviet union because they had Nuclear Weapons and he wanted peace. But he never accepted the soviet union. He called them what they were an evil empire. He never relinquished the moral argument that what they did was wrong and unsustainable. He never ceded that ground. We look the other way at these violations of human rights that occur all over the world and these countries that accept them as a normal type of government. There is nothing normal or acceptable about a government that does not allow you to worship as you please. There is nothing moral or acceptable about a government who forces women to have abortions. There is nothing acceptable about a government whose slaughters people in the streets. There is nothing acceptable about a government that jails political opponents. There is nothing acceptable about government that sponsored terrorism. We should never accept any of those things as a legitimate form of government. [applause] what i advocate to do with that america must be involved in leading the world. Americans have never wanted the role of telling people what to do. We cannot ignore the reality of who we are. We cannot ignore the global importance of this nation and we cannot ignore the implications to our future if we fail to step up to this call. If you think high taxes and regulations are bad for economy, so is global instability and the spread of totalitarianism. If you think obama care hurting our economy, it is. So is china controlling the South China Sea. The foreignpolicy issues of our time have deep economic ramifications. We need leaders that understand our role in the world. We need to be able to afford it. Which means we have to have an economy that sustains it. The good news is we have everything we need to succeed economically except the leadership in the white house. We have been blessed by god with natural resources. We have been blessed with a hardworking and creative people. We have been blessed with a system of government that we need to reinvigorate, not undermined. We will have a Strong Economy that will not only sustain and provide for people, but will make the world a safer and better place. Do not take for granted what we have. Do not fall into the trap that some of us do. Taking for granted what we have in this country. What we have in america is the exception, not the rule. Almost everyone who has ever lived on this planet did not get to choose their leaders. They did not get to choose their life either. You were stuck doing whatever your family and your parents were stuck doing before you. What made us exceptional and different is that anyone from anywhere can accomplish anything. If we lose that, it is so difficult to recapture that. That is something worth fighting for. Every time i talk about how special america is, some commentator will roll their eyes and say that is something americans tell each other to make themselves feel good. You have the right to believe that. I do not have that option because i have seen with my own eyes. Let me close with a story i have rarely told. I wanted to share with you today. When i was running against charlie crist, my dad was diagnosed with cancer. He was very sick. Even though he switched parties, he was independent, now he is a democrat. I had a primary. My dad was nearing the end of his life. I remember going by to see him that day. My dad had not been out of bed for a month and a half. He was fully dressed and sitting in the wheelchair. That night, he was going to go to my victory party. That night, by the end of the night, he could not make it. After he passed, why was that so important to him . The normal answer is that was your dad. It was so much more. My dad at nine years of age, his mother died and he had to go to work. He struggled, he never made a lot of money. He was never rich and was never famous. He wondered what his life was all about. Do you know what gave his life purpose and meaning . Seeing us being able to do the things he never could. Evening us the chance to achieve the kind of life he wanted for himself. That was his American Dream. That is why i know america is special. That is why i know she is worth fighting for. That is why i know that is what we will do. God bless all of you. Thank you. [applause] please welcome wayne lap ierre, nra Vice President and chief executive officer. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank uyyou. It is great to be here with you today. Thank you to all of you for having me. I really appreciate that warm welcome. There must be some nra members out there. You, i would like to thank you for being here today with me. I would like to thank you for your support and digital ends and protecting our freedom. It has really made a difference. You have made a real difference in this nation, and making our freedom safer. Thank you very much. A little over one year ago, the nra offered a simple, honest, and effective proposal to make our schools safer. And media elites responded by calling me every nasty name in the book. You remember. But americans responded differently. In city after county after school board after statehouse, teachers, parents, legislators, police agreed with us. They put Armed Security safeguards in place. [applause] history has proven again the truth. President obama and antifreedom activists firearms in the hands of good people save lives. [applause] theyolitical elites, cannot scape. Nationalngs in the media cannot change the godgiven right of good people to protect themselves. [applause] for that fundamental human rights, the nra stands unflinching and unapologetic. And in defense of our freedom. Members 100 million gun owners, will not back down, not now, not ever. I assure you that. You know, freedom is never has never needed our defense more than now. Almost everywhere you look, something has gone wrong. You feel it in your heart. You know it in your gut. Something in our country has gone wrong. The core values that we believe in, the things that we care about most in our lives are changing. You wrote in. Eroding. Our right tospeak, gather, our right to privacy, the freedom to work, to practice our religion, and raise and protect our families the way we see fit. Those are not old values. They are not new values. They are core freedoms. Freedoms that have always defined us as a nation. As we are here this afternoon, we feel them slipping away. All across america, everywhere i go, people come up to me. I have neverne, been worried about this country until now. But say it now with anger, they say it was sadness in their eyes. I have never been worried about this country until now. Are worried about the economic crisis, choking our budget. We are worried about providing Decent Health care and a College Education for our own children. We fear for the safety of our families. It is when neighborhood streets that were once filled with bicycles and skateboards and laughter in the air now sit empty with silence. In virtually every way, for the things we care about most, we feel profound loss. We are sad. Not because we fear something is going wrong, but because we know that something already has gone wrong. Why more and more americans by firearms and ammunition. Not to cause trouble, but because that america is already in trouble. Sooner or later, reckless government actions and policies have consequences. When government corrupt the truth and breaks faith, the entire fabric of society, everything we believe in and count on, is set in jeopardy. Dishonesty and media dishonesty have went together. Linked together. They have joined forces to misinform and deceive the american public. Lets be straight about it. And media elite are lying to us. You know they are. [applause] they lied bills into law. They passed legislation they have not even read. They eagerly defend them on television. Health care policies, economic allcies, foreign affairs, seem repeatedly wreck less reckless. The irs is now a weapon. A weapon to punish anyone who disagrees with us. That means every one of you. They try to regulate our religion. They collect our cell phones and email data. Benghazi, fast and furious, obamacare, massive unemployment, a debt that will choke our grandchildren, and one executive order after another. Here is the deal. Rather than expose government dishonesty and scandal like they used to, the media elite whitewashed it all. Move on, they tell us. There is nothing to see year. Here. Move on. One of americas greatest threats is a National News media that fails to provide a level link field for the truth. P laying field for the truth. [applause] entertainment, ratings, celebrities. A deliberate spinning and purposeful use of words and language. To advance their own agenda. You see it every day in this country. Here is how you know the media is lying they still call themselves journalists. They have never been honest about the nra. They hate us. Just for saying out loud and sticking up for what we believe. As if we have no right. So, they try to ridicule us into oblivion. For shame us into submission. Moralre their indignation should be directed into their own mirrors. Their intentional corruption of the truth is an abomination. Never, i meanll never, submit or surrender to the national media. [applause] people and our country have become so weary of all of the government and media dishonesty. The all too commonplace corruption, the lies that most americans have stopped listening to in this country. That is why the state of the Union Address was largely ignored by the public. It is why, according to a recent americansof disapprove of washington. It is why a majority of americans in poll after poll do not trust the white house. They do not trust congress. Either not much trust political party. They sure as heck do not trust the national media. We do not trust government, because government itself has proven unworthy of our trust. We trust ourselves. We trust what we know in our hearts to be right. We trust our freedom. World, uncertain surrounded by lies and corruption, everywhere you look there is no greater freedom than the right to survive and protect our families with all of the rifles, shotguns, and hence guns that we want hand guns that we want. [applause] we know, in the world that surrounds us, there are terrorists and home invaders, drug cartels, carjackers, knockout gamers and rapers and haters, airport killers, andping mall killers, killers who scheme to destroy our country with massive storms of violence against our power thator vicious chemicals could collapse our society that sustains us all. So, i ask you, all of you here today do you trust this government to protect you . We are on our own. That is a certainty. No less certain than the absolute truth. That the media elite continue to deny. Just as sure as they would deny our right to save our very lives. Thatife or death truth when youre on your own, the surest way to stop a bad guy with the gun is a good guy with the gun. [applause] what i have just said will be sneered at and ridiculed as fear mongering, by the very same people who produced the Television Shows and movies that graphically depict and glamorize every evil act i just mentioned. [applause] so let them sneer. They cannot change the truth. They cannot change the fact that all over america, there are more than 100 million good guys and good gals too. Good americans with guns, and a bunch of us are here right now. We are good americans. We all love our country. We are not about to stand idly by as the dishonest political and media elites try to strip our values away. The nra, all we believe in and fight for, it has become a metaphor for the core american freedoms that all of us want preserved. It is a with the nra, massive declaration of individual rights. An unwavering determination to secure the survival of everything that we cherish. Our struggle is noble. Likeminded people are coming together to protect and defend what makes us free. We are exactly what our Founding Fathers were and envisioned us to always be. I will put it to you. Do you believe that declaration . Let me hear you. Do you believe it . Are you willing to stand and fight for your rights . Things that i two need you to do. First, go to the nra booth here your name to a declaration of individual rights. Sign that declaration to day and add your name to millions of other patriotic americans like you all over this great country. I want you to stand behind your declaration and back it up by joining the National Rifle association. [applause] America Needs you. As part of a larger, stronger, tougher and growing nra. It is how you resist. It is how you tell the world. You are going to fight, youre going to protect everything you care about. Trust. Dignity. On or. Honor. Kindnessy, courtesy, to be as accepted as we are accepting of others. The freedom that only comes through the Second Amendment and the bill of rights to the u. S. Constitution. [applause] to live without fear and tyranny, as responsible good people who exercise our right to bear arms. Our families, our communities, and our nation. The nra proudly stand for the america we all want. Where we can speak and gather as we choose, unashamed of our patriotism, unflinching in defense of one unifying principle. Individual freedom for all. [applause] our Second Amendment in this country separates us from every other country on earth. It makes us stronger than other countries and it makes us better than other countries. To save all of our freedoms, there is no nobler cause than saving the Second Amendment. This is your moment in history. Your national movement. It is your time to join us to stand and fight. Our opponents are shrewd and skilled at spinning webs of deceit. Their coffers, i know you know this, their coffers are full. Their sights are set squarely on this falls election. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise. This election is going to be a bareknuckle street fight. They are going after every house seat, every senate seat, every governors chair, every statehouse they can get their hands on. They are laying the groundwork to put another clinton back in the white house. They fully intend to finish the job. To fulfill their commitment, their dream, of fundamentally transforming america. That i guarantee you will not recognize. Words, the nra will not go quietly into the night. , i promise you that. [applause] with millions and millions of americans just like you all over this country, that are going to come together. This election is going to be won or lost on every street and every corner, in every coffee shop, in every store, and every church. Where every nra member lives and works in volunteers and campaigns. Those nra members, those great americans, they are the real muscle of our clout. I ask all of you, and everyone watching this on tv, become one of them. Join us and together we will stand and fight and win back and take a car or country. Country. Ack our stand up right now. Do you want to save america . They need to hear you all the way to the green rooms of msnbc and all the way over to the white house. Will you stand with us to defend your freedom with all of your heart . Are you proud of your individual liberty and ready to fight like to keep it . The nra to restore our american values. Never ever back down and always put all of your heart together as americans. Let stand and fight for freedom. Thank you very much. Thank you. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, please welcome donald trump, chairman and president of the trump organization. Thank you very, very much. There is no teleprompter. We do not have teleprompters. How many of these people are using teleprompters . They said almost all of them, so we cannot do that. I just left Trump National in miami. A great place. Millionpent 250 rebuilding it and making it the best resort in the country. I felt harder woods morning, ernie ells, and i just saw tiger woods this morning, ernie els, and phil mickelson. They said where are you going and i said i am going to cpac. Write down the road, right down the road, i am creating jobs. On the old one month post office, which is an incredible building. Tremendous numbers of jobs, lots of money going into it. It will be the most luxury as hotel when we finish. It, right onoud of pennsylvania avenue, right next to the white house. Between the white house and congress is an interesting place to be. I have to tell you that our country is in serious, serious trouble. Trillion our debt. How do you pay off 17 trillion . Nobody ever heard that expression before. Trillion. We have debts that nobody can comprehend. Yesterday, right in our face, they devalue their currency. For those that do not understand evaluation, what theyre basically doing is saying we are really ripping you big league. Nobody has ever done it better than us, but now we are going to do it again. The reason they did it, everyone was surprised. Our leadership is so weak and so pathetic that they can get away with that. They are taking our jobs and theyre taking them big league. China is not the only one. The others are doing the same thing. They have no respect for our leader and they have no respect any longer for our great country. It is so simple to solve. What we need is a Strong Economy. What we need is jobs. You hear these phony job numbers. Is probably 21 or 22 . When you give up looking for a job, it is like they consider you employed. It is amazing. They changed this. You could days, if not find work, you could not find work. Today, such a huge number, probably like we had the worst numbers in 36 years. With all of that being said, when you look at what is going on, we have a president who just today came out with his lowest job approval rating. 38 . [applause] yeah. I am so torn. In a way, i would love to see him do a great job. I would love to see him put the country back. I would like to see him bring the country back. But we all know it is not going to happen. We all know it is not going to happen. His disapproval rating is 54 . When you think of that, it is inconceivable. Were getting into jimmy carter territory. I never thought i would see anything like that again. I lived through that time and it was not a good time. We are pretty close. Maybe by next month we will have surpassed the late, great jimmy carter. That is the way it is. That is the way the country is. You know, i want to see something happen that brings the country back. I want to see the potential that this country has. I am working so hard and i will do these things. Al has done an amazing job with cpac. He really has. Where is he . He has done an amazing job. Everybody wants to be here, when he calls, you come here. We get our point across. The people in this room are people that want to see this country be great again. It is very simple. Someone said who is your audience . Someone said who is your audience . Who are they . And i said these are people that love the country, that want to see it be great again. It is very simple. Just one of those things. We have a big election coming up in 2014. I believe that the republicans, and conservative republicans the word conservative is very important. Conservative republicans will take the senate. I believe that. I think that is going to happen. [applause] in 2016, youll probably be running against hillary. I think it will be a tough race, but by that time, it will be so bad that the republicans will likewise take that. Can actually and obamacare, which is a total catastrophe. A total catastrophe. The problem is that in 2016, if you look and study it like i do, all of the problems are being 2016, afterthe year the election. I do not know how the Republican Leadership has allowed that to happen. But it is happening. I have read a lot of reports saying that were going to drift along. 2018 are going to be an economic disaster. Do you know . Whoever is president , good luck. You have to be very smart. You have to be very sharp. That is the way it is. After the016, election, 2017, and 2018, economic disaster. Some say economic catastrophe. We have so many issues to think about in this country. We have some problems. We have so little leadership. It is all about the leadership. She agrees with me, i love her. She agrees with everything i am saying. I like that. At what has been happening over the last couple of days, russia and putin. I was in moscow a couple of months ago. I own the Miss Universe pageant. They treated me so great. Presenten sent me a with a beautiful note. I spoke to all of his people. Doingok at what he is with president obama, he is like toying with him. The dayhe olympics, after the olympics, he starts with ukraine. The day after. How smart. He did not want to do it during the olympics. Boom. The day after. The athletes leave and the day after he goes in and takes crimea. He is taking the heart and soul. That is where all the money is. I was surprised. I heard that the other day. They were saying most of the wealth comes right from that area. That is the area with the wealth. That means the rest of ukraine will fall. It is predicted to fall foai rly quickly. Like this country, if we do not make this country great, it will fall. It has already fallen. Look at our bridges and roads. We are becoming a third world country. When you see what theyre doing in ukraine, it is just a question of time. Putin isup now, very friendly with iran. Iran is causing us tremendous problems. Iran, afghanistan, iraq is now selling to iraq its weapons. Iran has already taken over, essentially, iraq. It is amazing. We lost tremendous lives, so many wanted warriors. These are great people and i know so many of them. I try to help as many as i can. So many are so badly wanted. Wounded. These incredible people came back to this country and what have we gotten for it . We spent 2 trillion in iraq. Then we pulled out. I took a lot of heat from certain people. When we went over there, i said we are taking the oil. People said what a horrible thing to do. Have you ever heard the expression to the victor belongs the spoils . I took such he. At. C. Tually, it was al at cpa i comet pay us back with back in the frontpage news. Trump is a horrible human being. He wants to take oil from a sovereign country. Please. [applause] unbelievable. You know who is taking the oil now . Iran. Iran. And what people do not know is that iraq is the second largest oil reserve in the world. Who knew that . I knew it. Taking a couple trillion is peanuts. They have 18 trillion underground. Three. Two, maybe people went nuts. Now you look at what is going on in afghanistan. You have karzai treating our president like he does not exist. They make a deal. I am not advocating staying. Frankly, i want to build this country. I went to build these schools. I do not want to build a school in afghanistan, a road going to the school. What to give built up and then blown up four times. They keep rebuilding and rebuilding. You go to brooklyn, new york, and you cannot have schools. You go to iowa and you cannot have schools. We do not have any money because we are spending in other places. They do not want us and i do not want them. It is amazing. In afghanistan, they make a deal. Karzai says i am not signing a deal. They are so stupid. They give me bundles of cash. Who is the soldier . Think of this. Maybe i have a couple hundred bucks and mike pocket my poc ket. Who is the soldier who carries 50 million . Have you heard this . Who is that soldier . I guarantee you, unless he is really honest, he is really rich. We give all this money. Now were up to 1 trillion. It was just revealed that our friends from china were fighting the war here on the other side of the mountain, a lot of people do not realize, but they did not think afghanistan had wealth. It has tremendous wealth and minerals. We are fighting and getting blown up on the other side. On the other side of the takingn, we have china, out all of their minerals. This was reported, big league the other day. I said it two years ago. I have a lot of friends in china. Businessweek did an article about the things the chinese most want, different elements. The sings they want. They had 10 of them. The top 10 things. Me. Riends respect they say, youre right. They live in china. They say youre right, i cannot believe we get away with this. The thing they most want anything trump, can you believe it . They love me. I have the largest bank in the world from china, biggest bank in china. They are tenants in one of my buildings. They say we will never leave, we love you, we love the building. They are smart and they respect you if you are smart. They do not respect the student pid people. That is what were dealing with. Obamacare has to be changed. Immigration we are either a country or we are not. We either have borders or we do not. [applause] so, you know, you have a border, you have a country. If you do not have a border, what are we . Just a nothing. I feel strongly about that. As conservative people and someblicans, many of you of you are so conservative you do not want to be republican, and i understand that too. As conservative people and as republicans, when you let the 11 million, which will grow to 30 Million People in. Ido not care who stands up, do not care if it is marco rubio, you will not get one vote. Every one of those folks goes to the democrats. With that, you have to do what is right. Of the 11 million votes, which will go to 30 million in the not too long future, you will not get any of those folks, no matter what you do. No matter how nice you are or how soft you are, no matter how may times you say to take down the fence. You will not get the votes with immigration, you better be smart and you better be tough. You better be careful. Thing. Say one other medicare, medicaid, Social Security. I listen to people come in and say how we are going to dismantle it and knock it out. I am a friend of paul ryan and i like him very much. I do not like what they are saying. I want to make this country so strong and so rich and so powerful we have so much energy and so much money under our feet, that we do not have to take away peoples Social Security and medicare and medicaid. You want to stop this abuse . Theres plenty of that. We do not want to do that. We had a vote of Tea Party Members. These are strong Tea Party Members. 79 said do not touch my medicare. Do not touch my medicaid or my Social Security. They got elected. I want to make the country so strong, and you can do it. Were sitting on top of something that is so amazing. Such incredible wealth. The way we solve these problems is, tremendous wealth, tremendous job production, strengthen our military. We have weakened our military. They want to cut our military. [applause] about what to putin were going to get. He said we do not want you to use those missiles. The bottom line, very simple. Make america strong again. Make America Great again. We have such unbelievable potential. We have to use it. We need the right careers. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. Our coverage of the conservative Political Action conference continues today starting at 10 10. Fridays lineup includes senator rand paul, mike huckabee, and Texas Governor rick perry. On saturday, cpac will feature nude gingrich, and coulter, and sarah palin. We will also have the straw poll. Coverage begins at 12 40 eas tern. Inch join the conversation on facebook and twitter. On cspan today, will washington journal is next. Later, live coverage of cpac. And in about 45 minutes, we will talk with former nra president david keene. Reid. On the program, joy a conservative Political Action conference is holding its annual meeting here in the washington area. As is the 41st year of this conference. Chris christie was one of the speakers yesterday, along with senators cruise, rubio, and scott. Perry, mike huckabee, rick santorum, rand paul, and Grover Norquist are among the speakers. 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