Transcripts For CSPAN2 Capital News Today 20121229

There is not domestic you. Thank you so much. Right behind you. I noticed mr. Ornsteins pantheon of views that are still in congress favor mr. Lugar will be in a few. It seems once they are on their way out or out the door, they say all the right things. When they are continuing to run, Olympia Snowe is another great example. What would you suggest we do as a public for others do to encourage politicians in office to the right thing because the right thing to do . Tom, you can start. Im curious because he done so much work and then whatever you want to say before. And then i guess, are we closer pass the time . I usually go over. We have many fascinating questions pending, most of which havent been answered. Let me try to run through a couple of them. The conservative wayne is now the party. Its been embraced by the party. Its agenda has been embraced by the leadership. The chairman of the Budget Committee, paul ryan, very able member is the archetype of that agenda, which should make every tea party are very happy. So its indistinguishable and date in no way to provide cover for all those moderate who want to do the right being. I dont think said people exist in the Republican Party. Listen, the answer is Grover Norquist no new tax pledge. That alone would free the Republican Party to engage in good faith, sensitive negotiations. Everybody knows that our taxes are now at an historic low in the contemporary era and theyre going to go out sort of naturally. And with the aging of the population, i guarantee you will be somewhere around 22 gdp. Wouldnt it be nice if we could acknowledge that and say whats the most bowl, efficient way to structure a tax system, probably progressive consumption tax direct it in ways to accomplish a whole host of object is. As long as you have that pledge to which members signed, its hopeless. The Republican Party cannot be a player in any constructive resolution of the problems confronting the country. There is no political space for a thirdparty to occupy. Its based on a presumption. We have two extreme parties and theres this great center to mobilize and im deeply skeptical that theres room for such a party and would really play a constructive role. Is it going to get worse than it is now instead of just looking worse . And are we en route to the status of greece . Not at all. The simple truth is we are almost close to a position with the status quo would solve our problems. That is to say the expiration of the tax cuts pretty much take care of our intermediate deficit problem and implementation of the cost saving measures strengthened over time in the aca will deal with their longterm health care problem. So we are not that far away and we have other tremendous strengths in our country that would allow us to make the kind of investment to transform the economy, to do with the reality of stagnant wages and a sense of diminished opportunities. We have strengths. We can do it. We need the public to rain and behavior thats destructive and we need political leaders to act forcefully. Given enough to Bipartisan Commissions and searched enough for bipartisan consensus. For sensible hard all politics along these lines. Norm, i particularly cutie take the money question. A couple political had a great shared that showed that Party Polarization in congress was directly correlated with increasing concentrations of wealth from increasing equality went together artisan polarization. And the money question you can handle so many different ways. Im really concerned about it posed Citizens United system with a federal Election Commission thats completely out of control and with other agencies unable to do anything about it. A lot of money coming in in ways that intimidate political actors until the policy process in a very bad way and the way that will only enhance the quality. One example from North Carolina riva Group Ventures who want to influence the state legislature on a bill prepared a bunch of model commercials that destroyed members of the legislature. When a gc comment had nothing to do a type of culture. It basically defined in this Child Molesting aliens out to destroy the fabric of america and show them the commercials and said if we dont get what we want millions of dollars could be spent on commercials just like this. They got what they wanted to give him money. The idea this is not correct team from Anthony Kennedy was on a different planet in a different universe than the real world of what we face. So theres all of that to do with the marketing model legislation written basically by a signature is biggest plugged right in. Its the gilded age brought up to the 21st century and nothing that we want. I was psyched to find places where i can take issue with tom. So i want to address the question, even if this question. I actually dont believe the rightwing represents the Republican Party. We have survey after survey that shows a range of issues self identified republicans do not take the same positions. The tea party consists of older voters who have no clue what the right budget would do on an Entitlement Program they dont want test for themselves, just for others. So its not clear to me to supplant necessarily the the way they want and they believe they are problem solvers still in congress. They are completely intimidated for being a little played out old. He still had a few who have taken not to do so. Mike crapo comments xp chambliss and tom coburn and the turbine on the other side actually step out on a limb here and it will tell you where we are in tribal politics that when barack obama praised mccain and six, and need to see a Republican Senate immediately sent an email to politico saying that kills the land. If he is for it, work instead. This is less about ideology now than tribalism. So thats the challenge we have and its not encouraging moderates are providing space. Its intimidating them. Getting into the question of every time i get people who live congress, look at republicans in the psyche been inside a tent we are breathing a gas and suddenly youre outside and say how could i have done not . How could i have acted that way . Whenever ideas is to create a Shadow Congress that consists of former members who span the spectrum, to start a common set of facts and have them debate not in the way congress used to because congress is never a great debating society, the genuine debates and discussions that are going to have huge audiences but can provide a model for how voters who yearn to have a discussion about options are. You conservative notion that there is something to Climate Change and have a great debate whether you do anything, a law, with a carbon tax or a capandtrade program or through some other mechanism that can actually give people a sense of what our tech choices are instead of having people say maybe scientists have something in an act or not unceremoniously. Small steps to provide us with opportunities to change the dialogue. We at usa today gallup poll that came back on monday. A third of republicans, not a nurse when they asked their ideology call themselves moderates or liberals. A third of the party. In this particular poll for the first time, republicans lost enthusiasm advantage in the president ial race in the reason was because declining enthusiasm. So theres not a republican in washington who describe themselves as a moderate or liberal, but the third of republicans in the country do. Just to allays this point, rahm emanuel i say the Republican Party steeply provided to turn this small Government Land and no Government Land. There is a truth that not far. I am told we are now at our time. I want mickey to come back with a few closing comments. A part of this but that hasnt gotten as much attention in season mention that i like the bromides we should ignore chapter, which i would reach of the political system will collect no, no. Third party to the, no. Budget amendment say no. Term limits they say no and Public Financing of elections no. But then i have a whole bunch of things they say yes to and i propose we have an election between the Shadow Congress and the Current Congress and then we can see who wins. So let me invite everybody to do closing comments. Just going down a couple of these. Does this represent the Republican Party as a whole. As citizens just said no, but it does represent is who vote in primaries. So its a matter of you cant he on the ballot. Every state in the United States has a sore looser law from which means if you cluster primary come you cant appear on the ballot in november. Those need to go. So its the primary voters who are represented in the party. Secondly in terms of what can we do about it, i dont know how many of you are your friends show up at a town meeting, show up for your member of the house or senate is present, participate in the elections, college the radio tv show. In other words, we need to get citizens engaged. Citizens are crazy. 42 of American People are registered as independent. They are fleeing from the party, but they need to be at this meeting can confront and be confrontational with their representatives and senators in favor not going to vote for you if you behave this way. The final question about canopy, repressive . You know, i got to testify on behalf of the American Bar Association to a committee in the house for the previous president announced thursday reassigning statements that he would decide for himself whether or not he had to obey the law. Republicans saw nothing wrong with that. Democracy is not about policy. Its not about policy outcomes. Its about process and i think as long as we continue to focus and do whatever we need to do to get the policy outcome i want, tell us process in constitution. Is that all repressive . How do you defy repressive . How about wiretapping without a warrant . Is that repressive . I do think we mourn a slippery slope than some people would want to admit. Season. Is briefly seen what an achievement it is to write a policy book about washington soldout on amazon. So congratulations to her two others. I want to thank my colleagues, mickey and season and e. J. Of course. We are really with you. Its a negative sounding title, but we to agree with you that there are things we can do, building up small things that can haul produce a lurcher and more informed collect during, changes we can make that would allow the Public Officials accountable in a way thats very difficult to do now that in the end clear signals from the public and responsible institutional changes, especially within the Senate Conservative political leaders willing to lay it out and not just say we all have to come together, but listen, this is how we must begin and be forceful. There is a Bright Future for the country im optimistic. I would just say finally, first, please buy the book. Second, please buy e. J. Spoke and please buy mickeys the. And please season, write a book. [laughter] [applause] [inaudible conversations] you dont always find many newspaper editors in many era and facing investigative reporting. Its not Just Economics. Its the discomfort that investigative reporting causes in a newsroom because its troublesome. Its not more than economics. If the ruffle the feathers of somebody powerful, that gets people to complain to the publisher and their stories about those kinds of things happening. We were fortunate to the 70s and almost all our career to work for people who were strong in that great in that area that the chips fall where they may. Now on booktv commercials and 70 annual festival in austin, texas, robert draer discusses his book titled dont ask what good we do inside the u. S. House of representatives. This is about 45 minutes. Afternoon. I have added smith, ceo and editorinchief of the texas tribune. Im pleased to be here at the old buddy, robert draper, magazine writer whose latest book is dont ask what good we do inside the u. S. House of representatives. Robert is a familiar face around the spurs, having spent the early part of his career as one of texas but my snarky writers. Be happy together is like dean martin and jerry lewis back on stage. Hes currently contribute letter to the New York Times magazine and National Geographic and correspondent for gq. Previous books include desert, biography of george w. Bush, comprehensive history ruins the magazine and a novel. Robert is a native of houston attended university of texas at austin. Please join me in welcoming robert draper. [applause] nice to see you. I thought we might start broad. Are we better off than they were two years ago . [laughter] i really have to answer that question. It really needs answering quite it does. Unit of measurement the democrats would use for Congress Performance are different from that which the republicans use. As Speaker John Boehner has said over and over, the second pass a record low number of those pixel of the congress that were not imposing regulations and not increasing taxes. Thats way one of looking on it. The way most people look at it attested to by record low popularity Approval Rating is that this is a congress that has been defined by dysfunction of the law, a congress in which has never been writer than none and where compromise is really seem to be a foreignpolicy, a policy foreign to the roast great deliberative body. To think of people who ran in 2010 and got elected with the people who ran before it ended now ascended to of leadership leave no with a solution or they were elected to not do things as opposed to do things . Again, from the class of 2010 and now i refer to the 87 freshman, the socalled Tea Party Class of the 112 congress, their belief is they are doing precisely what the people who elected them wish to do, which is rollback obama initiatives to cut spending. A lot of them thought the debt ceiling should not be increased under any circumstances and to that degree feel like i was. They basically believe their job is to obstruct barack obama and once there is a republican president in place from the two pass this initiative secreted Better Business climate, more and more Deregulation Committee funding of programs that have never quite been near and dear to them. Of course to Flash Forward a day, i suspect well talk about the debt ceiling fiasco of 2011. After that summer undertaken to the brink of a fiscal cliff, the thinking on the House Republican leader ship is maybe a tea party freshmen will go homehome, get yelled at by constituents and realize maybe compromise is not such a bad thing. They went home and the people who put at town halls tend to be that this is their party and those people tend to be tea party and they said why did video . You said you would not under any circumstances raise the debt ceiling. At best theres mixed messages and a great likelihood it will be a while before we see moderation. Is this for the leadership looks at the freshman, many of them second term members of congress and think if only we could control them. Isnt the case for leadership as it is out of sync or is the leadership secretly happy that freshmen are getting the blame or credit for doing the dirty work they probably politically would not be what to do as leaders of the house . Been the leadership is happy. They are happy that they are empowered. I suspect they wake up screaming because they dont have control. They leadership are referred to Speaker John Boehner, majority leader eric cantor, maturity with kevin mccarthy. Its not for this class of 87 freshman, class of 2010 he would be minority leader boehner. These guys came and not beholden by any means to leadership and made it clear from the outset that they were not going to be told to fall into line. The real problem for this Republican Leadership, but to prove to be the case if ever the democrats regain power is the enforcement tools of yesteryear arent needed of yesteryear, since earmarks have now been banned, since if the blogosphere you can turn someone into an instant martyr by stripping them of their committee assignments. Its very, very hard to use a stick in addition to a kerry. Theres a point in my book i refer to after the debt ceiling fiasco of the summer of 2011 when they come back in another resolution to fund the carpet because the Obama Administration hadnt passed a budget was coming up. The Republican Leadership of the ticket and easy vote and in fact the members voted against it. The appropriations committee, which designs continue dissolutions and others running those mysterious and insisted on a meeting with the leadership and said punish these members. Were doing everything he wants to do, cutting spending to record those in the schedule over it. They need to fall in line and boehner said we cant do that anymore. Dont make martyrs out of them. Son understood the debt ceiling or anything else. Is interesting that whole books have been devoted to the debt ceiling and specifically magazines to receive a grand bargain between honor and obama that fell apart. From a standpoint this wind and sails with all due respect to the authors of those stories and books because the bottom line is Speaker Boehner never had the votes anyway. Whatever deal he would have struck with the Obama Administration assert he has failed and would not have been able to get sufficient votes or he would have relied so heavily on democratic votes to do so that he ran the risk of an insurrection. There is a meeting during the whole showdown over the debt ceiling in which some of honors closest allies that in the Speakers Office and said to him, john, if you come back with the teal the fashion with obama that doesnt get more than 100 posts or so, canters already started a Whisper Campaign against you. We saw it happen with speaker gingrich and it can happen to you. Honor took that to heart and what are they from the deal shortly after that. Interplay between the leadership of the public site, but i have to ask this based on what she said. The president was initially not the record interview to the Des Moines Register Editorial Board seeking an ultimately did not get endorsement of that paper. One of the things he said was deeply cheap to get hit a grand bargain struck on the debt ceiling if he were reelected on november the sixth. It may not be possible if the freshman, now sophomores and members who command to essentially give boehner their blessing to cut a deal. Buyer may feel the same tests but now that he was last year. The grand bargain based on what youre saying may not be possible if obama wins under any circumstances. Ive been to a general election reporting for the New York Times magazine and in talking to jim messina, Campaign Manager of the Obama Campaign, david axelrod, Robert Emanuel and ascii none, how the next four years under an Obama Presidency given that the house composition before less the same. Most certainly going to be similar. Uniformly very unfair, and other verses as a talking point, with the fever will break, that the American People as they vote for president obama for another four years will basically be voting against obstructionism. Republicans would get the message and walk in a fashion towards the center. I cant see that happening at all. Thats their talking point. Are you any more optimistic . Governor romney is supposed to the president being reenacted that their son joe waiting for him after he gets into office . Now, im not. I wrote a story for the New York Times magazine on governor romney and specifically his time as governor day. About three weeks ago or so. The basic piece concludes is i interviewed a number of people and particularly the more conservative House Republicans are their chops. They believe this to be a great moment if mitt romney wins. A moment for them to legislate very aggressively conservative agenda. My question to several ways but what if that not so . Wouldve governor bob, president elect romney decides its not how he wishes to govern wallcovering and the motive is first 22 years when he was governor of massachusetts. They uniformly said they be disappointed and one of the stars at the tea party freshman class hes teaching them about says it will be an insurrection. People seemed generally boisterous. You say nothing at. The president promised us not behave like a conservative, its going to be the death of the Republican Party, but were going to burn it down. And is going to let that sit there for a second, but thats the great and am then asked the next question. Lets come back to the leadership. Specifically as individuals in a threesome with a do or do not work together, boehner, cantor and mccarthy. Characteristic uninsured and beginning the Speaker Boehner. John boehner is a washington my friend was not obvious choice to leave the Tea Party Class. Nonetheless he could be the Tea Party Phenomenon for the Freight Train that was then elected to be on the train rather than underneath it. Speaker boehner campaigned heavily for tea party freshman and also believes this present at republicans and indeed america with the great opportunity. His believe, for example, was this would be a perfect recipe for entitlement reform. If youre going after entitlement reform ideally to have bipartisanship and specifically democratic president so they couldnt walk away from it. So he believed he could leverage the deep conservatives and that the tea party into action. But he failed to do so. The tea party freshman at time i spent a great deal of time and i spent time with an awful lot of them, like him personally, found an admiral and a genial ceo. This certainly not as their real leader. That has been implicitly cleared throughout the 112 congress. Eric cantor, the majority leader is a bit different. Somewhat younger than boehner, a very clever guy, very, very ambitious, he has his own channel interesting than the obama white houses Vice President i. Theyre very close in a sort of need each other as Information Sources and they believed it was biden who is leaking to eric cantor is Speaker Boehner was pursuing separate talks with obama during the socalled talks of which eric cantor was livid and ultimately what data this talks almost certainly because the dynamics going on with honor. That is the excuse he gave was that democrats will low. This is how childish you . Guest the question im going to ask is if eric cantor what passed john boehner, he wouldnt hesitate to push them, would you . Guest is it eventempered sort. Unless the moment is absolutely right, you tend not to get ahead of declaring a mutiny. Host said there senescence . Interestingly, working more in the middle is the majority whip, kevin mccarthy. The carthy has been in for three terms and so in a lot of ways hes practically a freshman himself and recruited a number of the freshman, became an away the big brother to them, was a clever move on mccarthys part because the freshman from a block 87 have been the straw that has stirred the drink of the 112th congress. To the extent that anybody knows their wins, their sentiment, as kevin mccarthy. They are very close. They are two of the socalled young guns. The 30 minute heard of wisconsin, paul ryan and rights running mate. They sort of represent the Youth Movement and theres a lot of people who dont trust mccarthy because hes palpably ambitious, but also very close to cantor. This is the kind of thing washingtonians work themselves up into a frenzy over. The reality is there is not daytoday entry. More often than not these guys work in lockstep here but certainly their smallness of the debt ceiling one of them and you could see separate dynamics taken place between cantor and that had them both looking over their shoulders. You mentioned paul ryan and i cant go on without asking you about him and the role hes played in this congress and the degree to which his celebrity has embraced by other republicans who are presumably as ambitious as he. Hes the one who cried out. He was about the others to be plucked his neck from his running mate. If everybody in the Republican Leadership in republican ranks happy to see him there . Is there any resentment of him . Do they respect him as much for the brain and facility with numbers and all that . The due respect them. The people who resent and distressed paul ryan are the members of the socalled tuesday group, the group with a number of moderate republicans and they resent the imposition of the socalled ryan budget is the Republican House budget. That is used by the way had been kicking around for several years when he was the Ranking Member back when pelosi and democrats were in power. He would introduce that budget as the minority budget. 20, 25 routinely voted against. When the tea party with cavemen and when republicans retake the house and that ryan was chairman of the house Budget Committee, he was very, very clever to develop consensus among all these think tanks, leadership as well and the small number of moderates were drowned out and possibly the bill passed with four republicans voting against it, which was an astonishing consensus. I is widely admired amongst the freshman class. Hes a very clever guy. As my friend at the New York Times magazine wrote in his piece recently on ryan is hes been at this guys to put up the seat who makes you feel like hes about politics and not about politics. Hes practiced his own brand of politics. Showed romney and ryan lose on novembers nixon get reelected on the same day to receive in wisconsin and returns to the chorus . Is that okay with him and with that he okay with him will ryan with his newfound celebrity possibly displace boehner, cantor and the others in some sort of leadership role . I dont think thats the path hes interested in. He really likes being in the house. It is not in the white house, being chairs where the action is another democratic side, Kristen Holland made in the end to weeks from socalled leadership track to be the counterpart basically to ryan because he knew that was a highprofile assignment that would benefit as well. You mentioned the democrat survives me there are still democrats. You can be forgiven for thinking they were not any. We havent talked about the prospect of the democrats getting back into the majority. We dont and thats going to happen this time. How is nancy pelosi regarded . Divest you that the others. She was Speaker Pelosi coming a leader pelosi. It was in a given shed be minority leader after she lost the majority, but shes still in control of and doesnt seem to be insurrection to change dynamic there. There will not be any kind of insurrection. Its been interesting to see i interviewed minority leader pelosi for this book can talk to other people on the democratic side of the leadership. Following republican freshman, it is interesting to see these guys evolve one reason i wanted to do this the. One thing it did involve us their opinion of pelosi. They came to really respect her. She holds her caucus together a much more diverse caucus in the republican caucuses that she can count better than anybody in washington, specifically to 218, the number it takes to get to the majority. She can count the number to become House Minority leader and after she lost the speakership one of the dwindling number of blue dog democrat decided to run against her, she made it very clear very quickly the she of the boson had and a lot of people who had she not moved quickly minded supporters show the realist was not a good idea to be a losing cause some out there. Shes a very formidable person. Obviously what she also is is the face of the Democratic House and democrats at large and that has not been a good thing. After the democrats lost in 2010, theres a meeting that i detailed, a Democratic Caucus in which pelosi called quote doors, none of the staffers were present in pelosi said what said would ever take is just for the people defeated the selection for this to be the opportunity to vent what they like to vent. The linotype is very long. Some of them said they lost price because of obamacare and apply to phone their spear for that. Others have deeply no one, just the nature of god unpopular president. They said that Speaker Pelosi, i have a lot of respect, but shed become the face of our defeat. Through no fault of mine, i campaigned as a moderate congressman. But governed as a moderate congressman. But it came for a campaign against me, all i did was run at a picture of you companies to pelosi as if we were best buds and if i run again against the guy who just beat me, though do that again. Thats their playbook and its a successful one. Pelosi was the Republican National of the dinner throughout 2010 after the big tsunami hit the tea party with republicans to power, took the sign down and put higher pelosi. Is pelosi leader pelosi or the president are problematic for democrats today in terms of their desire to regain the majority announced . This may be a distinction to level meaningless. Theyre both problematic and you dont find democrats that would be Barack Obamas hope anyway campaigning with the president. Do you see obama apparatus and policy apparatus for fund raising. Thats about it. A socalled dry to 25, that so many seats are necessary for democrats to flip in regain power. There appeared to be a moment in time, particularly after kathy hope 01 in upstate new york on taking chris lee seed, meant to scare platform and at the site that is going to be the winning argument, just simply to say republicans when they guaranteed but now its not efficiently coated to get them to maturity. Cogitate the moderator at the texas book festivals prerogative to talk about some of those freshmen alike did come in weaker old from Corpus Christi was a very interesting guy to Pay Attention attention to congressional delegation come hes more interesting and more fun to write about and to cover than the others. Why did you pick on him . Why did she pick him to write about them as you talk about into this group . The enactment of you who are texans know it in a different context. His grandmother is a liberal icon. Click ferrand pulled did not get politics from his mother. Perrin told karen told brand in the texas Congressional District that includes Corpus Christi and at the time included brownsville, a district of the 70 hispanic blake himself spoke no spanish and was a political unknown. In 2010 despite the numbers seemingly been overwhelmingly against them, a lot of voters stayed home and there is a Big Tea Party movement in the corpus area and won by 800 or 900 votes. Keep it a longtime democratic. Thats exactly right. But he arrived because first he was inexperienced in the ways that governments are politics at large arrived three and half weeks after everybody else did because of the recount. Farenthold, i followed his cumbersome and not to get a sense of the congressional experience and one was a citizen politician who could never quite catch it. I was sort of holding onto the medicine for dear life and never getting on top of it. He told me he had this recurring night there that he was alone in his office and there is no furniture for a phone that rang and rang and was never able to get it. He told us a group of business lobbyists, you know you have anxiety dreams are really big in the house of lake farentholds mind of going to school and looking down youre not wearing pants. You guys need to be the guys to tell me to wear my pants and tell me what things i have to be voting for. Remember farenthold said early he was to apply the model of politics and he said legislative or, seems like a parttime job to me. What that meant is during the first continuing resolution, where is this of everybody throwing out amendment, and hope in glorious progress, didnt understand what any of the more because he had no legislative director to explain. He had been a radio disc jockey and communicated quite well. He didnt have a congressional website because he used to run a computer business and he knew that to sort of put up a website that only cost x number of dollars to do. Theres only five companies in d. C. That have been gained secure to bid on that contract and he found the prices theyre charging were egregious. So he just didnt put up the site for a while. It became his worst enemy on top of which is often the case, his spouse became very, very interested in the personnel and lots of ms can cause great personal turnovers. So farenthold in addition to that most elected on a tea party ways. After he still elected, realizes hes the congressman 70 is panic. There is a solution. Oliver district and thats what happened to him. In the meantime he would have town hall meetings, hoping the tenets that show up, get to know them, but only to cardiac this would show it. But he would talk about the need to compromise, i attended some of these town hall meetings. Tea party we say we did not send you to washington to compromise. The before we open up for questions, i have to say who in gods name would want to do this . Unique serving in congress sound so i did. Why would anybody you say we denigrate Public Service in the country, dont give people the reason to run. You basically for a halfhour after the young people ever reason to do anything but run for congress. The institutional counterweight hezekiah spent a lot of time with, john dingell, democrat from michigan has been serving since 1955 and previous to him, his father served in the same Congressional District until his father died and his son ran and took his place. Dingell used to be thought of as liberal. No to think of him as a liberal now. Democrats dont because they marginalize him. They didnt find him liberal to keep them on as chairman of the all powerful commerce committee. I show it to you that even with democrats than it can already, even being removed from the pecking order of power is able to get things done. This oneofakind us how to pull strings on behalf of this district and get parts appropriated, to get bills passed. He passed his Pipeline Safety bill come essentially regulation bill during the Tea Party Congress almost unheard of. But ttango is a think a dying breed. His philosophy is to govern from the center. He began writing a bill, which means to bring everybody on board and get them in a room and talk about what they would like. Its not the way of works in todays zerosum politics with their idea, not the Republican Leadership, previously democrats go see the same thing about state our position far to the extreme, make them come in that direction and if we get something towards the center of k. Lets start there. Thats not the dingell way and unfortunately his ways dying. We have time for questions. Microphone in the center. Even our amplified, please use her outside voice so we can hear you up here. We will take as many as they tell us we can take them to tell us we cant take anymore, were going to cut you off. I have a specific question. Given the too big to fail banks are now bigger and more consolidated than other, and given that the doddfrank bill reforms legislation is diluted in and postponement of me, im assuming there will be another banking crisis eventually, maybe next year. Do you think of another t. A. R. P. Bill comes to the financial industry Drinks Committee think the tea party in houston go along with it this time or do you think they would stop in the end . Now is the answer. I think t. A. R. P. Is still a dirty word, particularly in conservative circles. Roy blunt, for example, now senator in missouri output type together and his party has never forgiven him for that. I think the point of view, whether its actually borne out or not is anything that acyclic causes more regulation of the banks creates more problems than it solves and im speaking now of course of the House Republicans. I dont see the composition ideologically speaking changing anytime soon, though it is interesting to see that in the Congress Come in the house of representatives, theres still a lot of people from the hotblooded class of 1984, Newt Gingrich resolution. One of them is now retiring, steve latourette, the moderate tuesday cloud is retiring in large part because it is discussed at the tea party. This is a guy who would have thought of ways was the forerunner, but who mellowed over time. Another way of looking is even the class of 1994 was nowhere as near conservative. Dear liberals i compare sin. You think of Something Like that comes up come the position will be that the banks go . I think boehner in the leadership will have a decision to make and hes not going to want there to be a depression on his watch, particularly if theres a republican administration. Romney supported t. A. R. P. And he supported it rather rapidly. I mention in that story than your times magazine about governor romney headed to decimate the financial crisis, when the Bank Meltdown was upon us and john mccain decided to suspend his Campaign Committees decision came as a result of a meeting he had with economic history team. A lot of these are big corporate donors and mitt romney was among them. All of those guys basically said take it. The small town looks bad or the next in fact romney went on the today show is that i support her. Governor romney has modified many positions. He is not modified his support of car. If theres a president on and continue be difficulties, under the circumstances can you guess it could be a recipe for more regulation. What impact if any decent changes in california, in their method for electing congressional representatives will have . And democratic versus democrat, republican versus republican in their system of electing. If i understand you right, you referred to now a Bipartisan Commission that did the redistrict team. I actually did a story for the atlantic month late on redistricting and mention this thing. There has been to believe by many politicians is that theres no such thing as a bipartisan board or nonpartisan board and they oftentimes point to the California Commission as a failed experiment because democrats manage to influence a series of emails obtained by propublic would suggest largely managed to influence a lot of commissioners. Having said that, theres a number of others dates in the u. S. Said to have bipartisan redistricting commissions. For what its worth, the reason this is ontopic as im often asked if this is the Worst Congress ever or if any event this is not what we wished congress would be, what with either solution . There are many that come to mind. Redistricting reform would be one of them because what happens is when we create these districts that are so rigidly red for so rigidly blue, we send to Washington People beholden to their party. As people have no incentive whatsoever to compromise and reach across the aisle. As long as we allow the Majority Party of any given state to send gerrymandered districts that will favor their party and he kept the Opposition Party, then we are perpetuating or exacerbating this political divide. The problem of course is whos going to pass this bill . Theres been a guy named john tanner who is the head of the blue dog democrat said during his last couple turned, he kept trying to bring it up during a democratic majority in nancy pelosi would hear nothing of it. She say that seems very interesting enough but never get scheduled. Since then, inevitably to democrat had been trying to get it on for consideration and no dice. Unfortunately to reform congress, congress has to play along and that seems unlikely to happen. I guess where its going to that 52 Congressional Districts in california and they have reformed their system and you have 10 districts out there now that have republican versus republican. At least one fistfight. That is forcing them to the center. It seems like its doing what youre talking about. And i mean, yeah, i do think some people appointed to the california example has been proved that this is a flawed means of reform, but still strikes me as a powder reform. Compared to what . Hey, mr. Richards, how are you . Lately the tea party has teeth and this may be starting to decline. Do you see any evidence to support this claim or is it just Wishful Thinking . Is Wishful Thinking. It seems like every month and a half or so theres a new sort of mini movement amongst the largely conservative opinion leaders. They start writing stories and send democrat about how the Tea Party Movement instead. The most recent evidence if mitt romney wins the vote because he moved towards the center. But i dont think the Tea Party Movement has been proved for your heart rate nation. This proof republicans have tilted right and if romney beats obama, it will be because hes one independent voters who move from party to party, election to election. To me the best evidence the Tea Party Movement is not here to stay, that at least entered the bloodstream is that the voting behavior of congressman. For example, the ryan budget, those in 2011 and 2012 when i came up for a vote, republicans who previously voted now go for it. The reason is that they failed to fail to vote for accountability primary by someone who will get to the right. One of the people i write about is a moderate republican in missouri and she voted against a couple of things, her voting behavior is not sufficiently raping i read erics and who wrote something sane hate tea party, heres a bunch of primary. That behavior strikes into the heart of legislators. If governor romney loses, the response will be we told you so. Ask him exactly. And that the moderates are ready. What do you see coming down the line considering the judicial appointment crisis . I assumed the idea that theres a lot of unfilled vacancies on the judiciary and how this new congress for the Current Congress will react. My book is about the house. I think the problem is this is a different issue and has to do with a particular senator to block a particular federal employment due to the rules and traditions of the senate. Theres been this afraid to reform that, but the party in power tends to go against his movements. Tennessee there been any change in that behavior intensive. We may have the same situation in the congress regardless of the outcome of the presidency. Republican majority house, barely in the senate could very well happen next time. Huberty said the tea party tired gemlike t. A. R. P. , but the creek was i apocalyptic moment in the survey to fill moment was when hank paulson said this is the past they would no economy on monday. Do you think with romney or obama if another such moment occurs, the Tea Party Types listen to people like that and still send the economy down the drain . Theres a moment tonight for more allies make the during the debt ceiling stand of it is real illustrative of the thinking of the more conservative flank of the Republican Party. The house leadership, boehner, cancer, et cetera. Asking your question because i cant speak specifically to that in the future. But they were concerned. They believe the debt ceiling needed to be raised. They believed the credit of the United States is a dangerous proposition. They believe the default would be a terrible thing for this country. Because they could see fellow members did not believe that to be the case, they brought in this former treasury undersecretary who served in the Herbert Walker Bush Administration to explain a dispassionate way what would have been put on the second came and went in the gasoline was appraised. He sort sort of gave her a Powerpoint Presentation with certain Social Security checks would go through how immediately all federal prisons would close and how it such and such a point Veterans Benefits would be cut off. I was very compelling evidence that this would be really calamitous. And yet some republicans stood up during the end of his presentation and said its outrageous that youre talking about is a set of washingtons reckless spending habits. Another guy stood up and said karl rove spoke this morning and you just read an article saying this is obamas problem. He seemed like a nice guy, but at karl rove spew better than yours. They were unwilling to listen to this show when amberson asked one of the tea party freshman. She said i. T. Party constituents who insist we shouldnt raise the debt ceiling. Can you explain what this is about . I dont want to lose my temper to them. Id rather use it to you. This guy said the thing is it then reckless spending and if these are consequences, so be it. Emerson went home and said wormy bequests of wine. I cannot believe i had a meeting with the type who claims to be a congressman. [laughter] although that would be a perfect base to land, we have one last question before we wrap it up. Given that you go to a lot of these house of rep meetings, town halls, community meetings, are you hearing more or have you always hear peoples day, if you just two days, meaning theres a correlation between doing some thing and in an result, what theres not a perfect is being considered, every more simplistic and what we believe can result from taking action than in the past . At town halls that i went to a republican town halls and overwhelmingly the sentiment in a lot of these town hall meeting was a feeling of distrust towards washington cant explain the public has lost control coming feeling the washington has not been active in best interest. A lot of these discussions have been about, you know, how the republicans will back the Obama Administration, making week, and ultimately overtaken. How they maintain that power once they got it. A lot of this is cloaked in the argument of what is good for america, but there is not a whole lot a policy prescription in there. Robert, thank you. Very good to see you. Enjoyed so much talking. Please buy his book. Thank you so much. [applause] appreciated. This event took place at the 17th annual texas book festival in austin, texas. For more information about the festival visit texas book festival dot court. You dont always find many is their creditors in any era embracing investigative reporting, but the point we have seen over the years is not Just Economics but the discomfort that investigative reporting often covers. Because it is troublesome. More than the economics. Ruffle the feathers of somebody powerful, that get those people running in to complain to the publisher. Stories about the kind of things. Very fortunate to this 70s and really almost all our career to work for people who are strong and upright in that area and just let the chips fall where they make. A pulitzer prizewinning Investigative Team will take your calls coming emails, and tweets next month on indepth. The pair began collaborative work of the coauthors of eight books, the latest on the the the trail of the american dream. Whats live sunday at noon eastern on book tv on cspan2. Book tv attended the book party for the publication of shooting from the lip, the life of senator alan simpson written by senator simpsons former press secretary and chief of staff. Among those in attendance former vicepresident dick cheney, lynne cheney, and Supreme Court Justice Clarence thomas. This is about 45 minutes. [inaudible conversations] were coming to you. Can you believe . Welcome we are here to celebrate your book. [inaudible conversations] thank you. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] senator, how are you doing . [inaudible conversations] i havent got my good shoes on, but im here. A big delay. Anyway. And you looked [inaudible conversations] picked up little extra down there. [inaudible conversations] youre here. James. As my wife arrived yet . I dont believe so. Coming with your cherry, where she . Demoralized. Immortalized . [laughter] immortalized in the you say. Can i say i . My name is don harding. The author of the book. Oh, yes. [inaudible conversations] it is. So modest. Here you go. Zero. [laughter] how are you . Says. About eight volumes. [inaudible conversations] i remind. You know jenny. He notes jim billington, of course. A great party. Jim, jimmy. Jimmy. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] elizabeth. Good of you to come. [inaudible conversations] involved. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] anyway, we love your christmas card. You did not have to do that. Okay. My god. Call the cops. [inaudible conversations] im a doctor. Well,. Are you . And. Could deceive. Animated. No, im going to go with it. Thats what david said to me. I, david. His show up. [inaudible conversations] kneele lee ufology was behind barbed wire. And. Has said he never told me. I didnt know. I didnt know that. [inaudible conversations] hes 101. Hal abrams over there. I worked for him in the 80s. I know. [inaudible conversations] hello, hello. And l. Abrams. Give him [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] longstanding. A relationship. Along the way. Anyway. I dont know. Much terrible. It is. [inaudible conversations] starting out. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] all my arguments. I have people worried about it. Grover said no. Look. When he takes 6 billion out and grover calls it a tax increase, he calls it ludicrous. I call it [inaudible conversations] honest to god. Would get in. [inaudible conversations] his hand is in there. Hes in there . Melson said he would. You might joining . One of our members. [inaudible conversations] i dont get any money at of this. No. The money all goes to the author. I dont get any. No, its true. Thank you so much. Youre very welcome. Ripped away from you. No. York getting in here. [inaudible conversations] i used to work with michael founder. The senator back in the 80s. Strom thurmond. This is my husband, greg. We are big fans of yours. I made it in my line of work. So nice to see you. Really drill deeper. First one. [inaudible conversations] thank you, senator. Great to see you. It will just tear their heart out. You have not changed a bit. [inaudible conversations] there you go. I know, right . Working for senator ever mouth. [inaudible conversations] in politics. Dougie then. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] the press secretary and the house side. Give me youre doing great. He gave me a lift. You want to know how i think . Here. Pay attention. Yours was the first name. The senate only had a couple of names on it. The chairman of the board. Eight years. Drive me out there. It was about six weeks ago. Doing great. Eight years was enough. [inaudible conversations] sometimes. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] im still here is your body guard, as your body guard. To is that over there . The bodyguard. My editors told me to ask you one thing. Anything you wish. To put the republican nomination. I was the party. Im 80 years old. I voted. Twentyone. All i can tell you is the public has an irrefutable ability to give each other the saliva test the purity and then they lose in the bids for four years. I have to remember that. But dont mess. The bids for four years. How did we get this. Well, 20 percent of you voted for ross perot, you jerk. [inaudible conversations] i told you he wasnt. I would have to say to my just wrote a check yesterday to romney. You did . I did. For how much . It was 4,000. I could have done more, but i havent got enough money. Sales in the book. I waited. Ipad stuff everyone in america with the coach chairmanship of this committee. And we know we have succeeded so far because we have to stop everyone in america. Erskine and i go all over this country. About 500,000 people. And we get a standing ovation. Bursting. How you stabilize Social Security, not a burden all seniors. Do something with medicare. It it doesnt matter what you call it. Collett. [indiscernible] anyway. Enjoy a little bit. I know. I know. I know. I didnt give a nickel. You have to change that. Still be in a few minutes. A good job. I read it first. Then i read it. And reading it. Its a lot more fun. Zero, all over. Thank you. All right. Hi, sweetheart. Are you kidding me . This is the only. [inaudible conversations] youre such a dear to come to this. Rely cute. A kiss him on the head. Are you kidding me . This man loves you. Is a great guy. We used to do a helluva lot of business. I really miss you. He saw that and said, debra, i have to go to this event. Working my way out. Shes forever there. A lot of people voted for her, john. And doing so well. I have everything. Well, almost everything. [inaudible conversations] you may forget this. My wife and i get married in that held baker room. Everything working. Well, we are still together. Theres nothing like it. Anyway, thank you. [inaudible conversations] tel are you . Im good. [inaudible conversations] im freelancing, working on my own book. My dad. [inaudible conversations] sees within. No. One hundred. Last time i saw you. I was down at st. Johns. You crippen there. Yes. [inaudible conversations] en is over there. So. Thank god. [inaudible conversations] i know who this is. David. [inaudible conversations] David Brinkley come back from the dead. How much are they . I dont know. I didnt write it. You didnt write it . Hello. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] right here. We have to get a picture. Am here because of you. I know it. [inaudible conversations] raise revenue. Are going to have to. We know what you make. The author and his wife. Don and becky, six years on this baby. Six . Im surprised they finished it in such record time the weight delayed. Whenever you like to tell. Stick around. Have told them i wanted you to read something. Im all packed up. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] have good of you to come. Test your wife. A bet you she did most of it. Extra care. And im going to then tomorrow. [inaudible conversations] i forgot about that. Its not above you. I didnt write it. Not to ask. [inaudible conversations] anyway, he doesnt go. I love the guy. Kissing him on the head. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] fix. That will be enough. I was just in the elevator. [inaudible conversations] how are you. And good. Good to see you. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] okay. Given year. Get in the year. One of my students. One of my finest students. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] you were a tiny boy. His father was judged alan barrett. Thirteen children. Nine boys, for girls. [inaudible conversations] thats great. I could have been your author. [inaudible conversations] were all here. You remember my wife. All the crew. [inaudible conversations] i can help you. I dont do that. Our you doing. Havent got me yet. [inaudible conversations] we were together at treasury. We get together every once in awhile. Works himself up. The guy with the radio. [inaudible conversations] they dont know your voice. Of coverage. Enjoy the christmas card. U. S. Be rambling the ears. Come al west again. Around july 4th. Let us know. Give us notice. A lot of people com. Sometimes i look at the driveway and then go into the basement. Anybody in there . [laughter] ive done that. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] thankyou for all your work. We need people like you. When needed. Thank you. Its great. Its great to see you. Youd like to get out here. [inaudible conversations] easier. The word in this same year. Lets get going. [applause] one. Good evening, everyone. I didnt hear you. Hi. I am thrilled to welcome you to this special evening for a very dear friend. Ethier at this fabulous hotel, the jefferson, i would like to introduce you to peter grossman, one of our cohosts. Will you come and say hello. [applause] thank you. Just very briefly on behalf of connie its an absolute thrill to be hosting senator simpson and his former chief of staff and biographer this evening. We are excited. Shooting from the lip, which i guess is fitting. Also very proud last year posted dinner on behalf of the commission and then tougher support it in its effort. At the Everybody Knows and the deficitreduction, not sure that anybody glistened after they get done, but at least they put in the effort. Thats a political, by the way. In a different in addition, connie noted that there is no surprise that based on senator simpsons record in the senate, has bipartisan support that he would be chosen to be echoed as chair of that commission. And lastly just want to say that as we understand, full access to senator simpsons records, diaries, volumes the mobile access to. I will say, the senator did mention he has been married 57 years. Anybody that gives full access after 57 years, i think thats pretty impressive. Connie really just wanted to welcome everybody and say were thrilled to be sponsoring this. [applause] i have the pleasure of introducing what i call the bravest man in the world, john hardy, the author of the book. I dont know how you possibly put all of this and one book and decide what to leave and and what to take out, just as someone who had senator simpson on msn b. C. , cnn, fox, you have changed the conversation about politics, culture, what is important in our country. Don had to put that all in how many pages . 460. Ladies and gentlemen, don party. [applause] wow. What a treat this is. Thank you. If i ever got in front of a crowd like this is set of sending in the shadows like normally do i should be very careful what i say because he said one day be the toast of the town in the next day youre just toast. So thank you all, thank you, peter. Thank you, tammy and can. An amazing guy. I met and commend the work with glen bailey and holly page. I met him 18 years ago in china. A great guy then to migrate dynel. If it hadnt been for him we would not be here tonight. So jackie, wherever she is. No, there. Without heard the invitation list would have been a mess. I have known allen and simpson for just over 50 years. I grew up in wyoming. I heard all the stories and i was a kid and then i tried to do them myself. He helped me out of that. I worked 18 years. Press secretary in the chief of staff, responsible for all mistakes. [laughter] when he went to retire and went harvard, i went to the smithsonian and those in charge of government. My wonderful wife, rebecca, who was right here, im telling you, i could not have been without her. She researched and put up the media before 00 in the morning and is amazing. So we were tired, when overseas and did a bunch of work for charities and children and blind people on the purse and came back and ended up on a sailboat. One day in 2005 the phone connected to some island to our. It rained. It was al simpson. He said, these guys want to write the story of my life. They dont know me as well as you do. Would you like to take a shot at it. Asset it was a good life. Just a second. Im having trouble getting the court out of this bottle of chardonnay. But i did. Why would i do that. Because i will give you access to everything in my life. Everything. I thought i knew a lot, but all the records, papers, speeches, personal letters from the family members to my was all there. Everything that i could possibly want. And especially the diaries. 6,000 pages with the diaries, 19 binders. Their reason that these are valuable is that they were put down as they happened. So at the white house or talking to gorbachev or saddam hussein. He took notes. Then he dictated into this diary that ended up being over 2 million words. So we set sail for the United States. Els said, how long is this going to take . I said about a year. That was in 2005. I said, something that is really important. People no. I was loyal to you. Youve been my friend for half a century. They will expect this thing. And its very important they do not think that after they read it. I said, you know, its going to be important that i tell the bad things and the failures in balance along with all the successes. Alice said to look, you do the right thing by telling the truth. Here, eyeballs, and teeth land on the floor as a result of telling the truth about me, so be it. Also said i had have editorial control. If you write anything in this book people will think. [indiscernible] so i held the contract for that. Allis said say what you want. Make it true. I did. The first three pages describe what its like to a push of flaming car off a cliff and burn down a house and shoot enough mailboxes to end up on federal probation. The reason that is important is that this is not a story about politics. Half of the have probably written books about politics. The bill goes here, the bill goes there. People slug it out. Whenever. This is a book about humanity, a human being. He happens to be a politician, but this is a story about a person who is extremely human, a person who puts citizenship ahead of partisanship. Thats why it was important to tell the story. And it goes back to the days in which republicans and democrats spoke to each other and respect each other, and it doesnt happen as much anymore. Call simpson was a great friend of ted kennedy. Spoke very late. People didnt know that, and they didnt understand it, and wyoming especially. So a little story and have to tell you. It kind of demonstrates the days in which there was because either one of these guys to get the microphone until the same exact story involving a town meeting in wyoming where people come in and raise their hands and are upset about something. And this meeting is going on. In the door comes ted kennedy. People can believe it. What is this guy doing in wyoming . Another guy stands up. Ted kennedy, hes here in wyoming. That guy is so horses. Simpson jumps up to rest of the back of the room, grabbed the guy who, when he comes back again kennedy says, good heavens, that was magnificent. I had no idea that this was kennedy country. Adelle looked at him and said, ted, its not. Its horse country. [applause] senator alan simpson. Well, this is beyond repair here. It several people have come up to me and said, let me tell you a new story. Go ahead. Im wired. Oh, well, ill save it for later. Anyway. If i start around this room, some wonderful people here, and im not going to do that. Havent had a drink. Will little later. I have to say, took the silver. What he really forgot to say is, when he was 17 he borrowed a car , a rental from chevrolet and drove it to seattle. It was not our rental. It was called stolen. And he came to me. I heard youre a mess. What about me. Youre a mess. Come on in here. Youre a very salvageable human being. So we were linked at the hip way back there. Thats a true story. He has done a beautiful job. Its a great book. I read it as a proofreader. Add taken up. And then i read it as a reader would read a book. It had a lump. A lump in my throat. Its there. The beautiful book, and i love it. Things could have been left out. [laughter] through, call then. Would you step up. [applause] and that said, i need 300 bail. Im working my way through school. I dont have 300. Just a there. I need to marry her. Saving myself for this primrose. And then in this room is another great and dear friend. And i wont tell you about dick cheneys experiences. Especially the university of miami which would make mine pale. I tell you, we ran together in 1978. He ran for the congress to my ran for the senate. Lenin taken danny and i have run every time one of those was running and neither of us ever lost an election. That is a tribute. And then back their standing right next to them, a little rascal i met behind barbed wire. He was in the Japanese War Relocation Center in heart mountain wyoming as a 12 yearold boy. Our skilled master said, were going to go to heart mountain and meet the boy scouts. I tell you, no one wanted to go. Where all around it, guard towers, machine guns, and it was one of those of the ten relocation centers. We really, he was smart just like dow was. We had a bully. He picked on last. We dug a little. During the night it rained like hell. He runs his tent pole that up. We just laughed. He said i left more than he did. Thats a french ship. Was that . You kept me up. When i read he was mayor, i wrote in. Armed with a fat kid. We started, of course, together in congress, served together on the board of regents. These are great memories. That goes back 47 years. I could go back to need in this chamber. She and i had some spirited words. And let me tell you, she and dave, when i was at harvard, most wonderful times together. Her father still playing virtuoso violin. We have a lot of fun. I always, if you cant forgive a person its like letting them live in your head. Thats not a funny statement. If you cant forgive a person, its like letting them live in your head rentfree. I mean to mature in the shower thinking, that some of a bitch. Hes out golfing. So what do you gain from that . And then, of course, billington working over here. Clarence thomas was here. Amazing things you go through. I met her. I say to people, why dont you move on. What is the purpose of keeping tabs. This seekers. I prefer the seekers. Anyway, billington is up for a library of congress. Another guy out there, real wizard. The staff wanted that guy. Im sitting next to ronald reagan. I said to mark bond, really love that guy. Im in his diary lot. All tell you. I think you want to think of this guy. Yak . Yes. Why would that be . He hates commies. And i said, not only that, he knows russian fluently. He can tell just exactly when those sounds by saying. Really . Three days later. The library of congress. Cray story line. He and nine, i know. I cant stop. We used to meet on conference committees. Hed say, look the more were going to get this done. Before the ten days is over. He named a guy. What you do something with the staff of that committee. I cant. Theyre tougher than i am. We get together and beat them to bits. We were on the study group. It is important. The word compromise means your web. That is madness. The executive director of the commission cochaired. From idaho. Im not going to go any further. A c1 of my students at harvard. And has cleared her throat three times. And none of you have heard it. I have heard it. I just want to say, were going to stick around. The test of an event like this, i go up. Al is the line. Better than anything you ever bought. [laughter] and so i now that i have finished my will be having one. There is something i wanted, if you have a book. I just want to scribble my name. You can get those out there. If you have a bucket you want me to do some personalization, leave it, but a slip of paper in their individually out it back. My dear palin, chief of staff, where is the . Anyway, the finest staffer i have ever known. You wear your crown in heaven. And becky, this is like the picture of dorian gray. I am falling apart, and this picture is eternal. The opposite. The picture age ten he never did. He sold his soul and ended up in a pile of bones. That is a beautiful thing. Anyway. Were having fun. To think that i do these things for just one reason, this wonderful guy right here. I never have seen a penny. Thank you for coming. Thank you. Stick around. Oh, my sakes. [applause] you dont always find main newspaper editors of any area and bracing investigative reporting. This not Just Economics. The discomfort that investigative reporting often causes and then as a room. Its troublesome. Ruffle the feathers of some of the powerful. That gives those people running in to complain to a publisher. Stories over years. Almost all their career, work for people who were strong in the pride in that area. The pulitzer prizewinning Investigative Team will take your calls, emails, and tweets next month on indepth. The pair have been there collaborative work in the 70s. The the trail of the american dream. Watch live sunday january 6 at noon eastern on book tv on cspan2. From the 12th annual National Book festival on the National Mall in washington d. C. , congressman john lewis presents his book across that bridge. This is about 45 minutes. [applause] thank you so much. Thank you for those kind words of introduction. Mr. Librarian, thank you for your lead. Thank you for your vision. Thank you for never, never giving out. Never giving in. Thank you for keeping the faith. Im so delighted and so pleased to be here this afternoon to see each and every one of you. Now, you hear that i did grow up in a big city Like Washington d. C. Or baltimore or Silver Springs or rockwell, alexander, atlanta, i grew up on a farm and rural alabama about 50 miles from montgomery. Outside a little place called joy. My father was of a tenant farmer. Back in 1944 when i was only four years old my father and save 300. He bought 110 acres of land. On this farm there was a lot of cotton and corn, peanuts, hogs, cows, and chickens. On the farm it was my responsibility to care for the chickens. I fell in love with raising chickens like no one else to raise chickens. Any of you know anything about raising chickens to mechanize events of those . Okay. As a little boy, placed them and waited for three long weeks for the Little Chicks hatch. Some of you may be saying, why do you. [indiscernible] well, from time to time another and would get on that same nest. There would be more eggs. You have to deal to tell the first from the ones that were already under there. Thats okay. Its all right. What hatch. Take these six. Raise them on yearround. Just give them to another and. More fresh eggs. When i look back on it it was not the right thing to do. It was not the moral thing to do, the most loving thing to do, the most nonviolent thing to do to keep on cheating of these setting hands. Seven he may be old enough to remember, especially in the midwest and in the south, we used said sears and roebuck catalog. Let me see hands. Very good. That big book, that big book, that heavy book, some people called in and ordering book among others the wish book. I wish i had that. I was never able to save 18. 19. We kept on cheating. As a little silo wanted to be a minister. I want to preach the gospel. From time to time we would give all of those chickens together in the chicken yard, like you were here under this large tent. We would have church. My brothers and sisters and First Cousins would line the inside of the yard. Help make up the audience and the congregation along with the chicken. I would start speaking. I look back on it. Shake their head. They never quite said amen. Convinced some of those is a priest to tend to listen to me much better than some of my colleagues do today in congress. As a matter of fact, some of those chickens were just a little more productive. [laughter] at least they produce eggs. Well, thats enough about the story. One thing, they told me patience. They taught me to wake and not get in a hurry. Just wait. Be patient it would not have some water to a three days. The point to take three long weeks. Tommy patients. Never give up, never give van, never give out. Always keep your eyes on the price. So across that bridge love and reconciliation. Does a tuskegee. Later in nashville tennessee and living in atlanta, i saw the signs. White men, a colored man but as a little child i went to my mother, father to my child to my grandparents and great grandparents why. Just the way it is. Dont get in the way. Dont get in trouble. But in 1955 it the age of 15i heard rosa parks, Martin Luther kings inner. 1957 at the age of 17 and met rosa parks. Next year at the age of 18i met dr. Martin with a king jenner. The action of rosa parks inspired me to get in the wake of again trouble. Ive been getting in trouble, unnecessary trouble. Across that bridge is really a lesson about getting in trouble. Could trouble. And thats what i think in America Today we need more people to get in trouble. Something so right, so dear, so necessary to my get in trouble. Before we got in any trouble, dream one day, come to washington. 1965. We study. We prepare ourselves. As College Students to my School Students come in this city of national. Every tuesday night. An entire school year the group of los will leave. 6 30 p. M. We stayed up. What he accomplished in india. Civil disobedience. The great religions of the world. Dr. Martin luther king jr. We were ready. We would be sitting in, standing at theater are going out freedom ride. We would be beaten. We would be jailed. But we didnt strike back. Nonviolence as a way of living, as a way of life. Better to love them to hate. Reconciliation. One example. I first came to washington d. C. May 1st 1961. Food was good. And someone said, should be above because this may be like the last supper. The next day, may 4, 1961, we left washing 10, traveling from here on our way to new orleans. The first incident occurred in charlotte, North Carolina. Back in 1961, black people in way people could be seated together on a greyhound bus. Couldnt share the same waiting room, the same restroom facilities. Segregation was the order of the day. In charlotte, North Carolina in may 1961, young africanamerican man entered a socalled weight waiting room. He went into the waiting room and later into the barbershop and tried to get shoe shine. He was arrested and taken to jail. The next day, went to trial in the jury dismissed the charges against him. On the same afternoon, a yahweh gentleman by the name of abbott, bigelow, wonderful man from connecticut. The two of us tried to enter a socalled weight waiting room. We were met by a group of young men who beat some of the slaying of april were. The local authorities came up and wanted to know whether we wanted to press charges. We said no, we believe in peace and love and nonviolence. It was may 9, 1961. In february of 09, less than a month after president iraq obama had been inaugurated as president , one of the young men that had attacked us came to my Congressional Office on capitol hill and said mr. Lewis, im one of the people of the e. U. Will you forgive me . I want to apologize. His son had been encouraging his father to go out and seek other of. I said yes, i accept your apology. I forgive you. His son started crying, he started crying, i started crying. He gave me a hug, i hate that. Then i seen this gentleman three other times. He called a brother and i called them better. Thats what the movement was all about, to be reconciled. [applause] this book is about reconciliation. It is a fine analysis that we are one people, one family, one house, that we must be reckoned as, that those of us who live here in america, those of us who live on this piece of real estate must learn to live together as brothers and sisters we would be fools to start if you suggested. Delete a program called, who is the dean of the Civil Rights Movement, dean of black leadership, who at the whole idea about the march on washington almost 50 years ago would say from time to time, maybe our foremothers and forefathers thought came to this great land in different shapes. But we all in the same boat now. So it doesnt matter whether we are black or white, latino, Asian American or native american. It doesnt matter whether a democrat or republicans. It doesnt matter whether we are straight. It does another whether jewish or not psalm, christians, we are one people. We are one family. We are one house spirit thats what the struggle been about. [applause] this book, across that bridge is saying in effect they struggle is a struggle to retain the soul of america. Its not a struggled the last one day, one week, one month, one year for one lifetime. Maybe we take more than one lifetime to create a more perfect union. To create the beloved community. The community at peace with itself. Now you heard david tell you that i did get arrested a few times. And young people coming out children come up and said, how can you be in the congress if he got arrested . Last night he violated the laws. And i would say, they are bad laws. They were customs. They were tradition that we wanted america to be better. We wanted america to live up to the declaration of independence, live up to her creed, make real our democracy, take it from people and make it real. So when i got arrested the first time, i felt free. I felt liberated and today more than ever before, i feel free and liberated. You know, Abraham Lincoln 150 years ago freed the slaves. But it took the modernday Civil Rights Movement to free and liberate a nation. [applause] now i know some of you are asked and, where did you get the name, across that bridge, where did you get the title from . Life lessons and a vision for change. Just think if you sort years ago since this is an election year, hundreds and thousands of millions of people in american thought the old confederacy from virginia to texas could not register to vote. People stood in lines. Take a state like the state of mississippi in 1963, 1964, 1965, but voting age population of more than 450,000, but only 16,000 registered to vote. One town in my native state of alabama in the heart of the black belt, but population more than 80 , but that is not a single registered but voter in the county. In the little town of selma, alabama, only 2. 1 for blacks of voting age were registered to vote. People were beaten, people were jailed. People were asked to pass a test. On one occasion in msn to count a bar or so. On another occasion a man was fast to count the number of jelly beans in a jar. There were African American lawyers, doctors, College Professors failing the socalled religious test. We had to change that. Hundreds and hundreds of people had been arrested and jailed. In 1864, my whole organization to student, nonviolent coordinating committee, better known as organize something called the mississippi summer project. [applause] thank you. Some of you remember. For more than a thousand students, black and white College Students cavemen were. December 9, june 21, knit 1064, three young men that i knew could lead to young white men and one young africanamerican man went out to investigate the burning of an africanamerican church. They were stopped, arrested, taken to jail and later that evening they were turned over to the plan for they were beaten, shot and killed. I tell young people of the time that these three young men didnt die and be at home. They didnt die in the middle east. They didnt die in eastern europe. They didnt die in africa were central or south america. They died right here in their own country tried to get all their people to become participated in the democratic process. And right now there is an attempt on the part of several members of congress, both democrats and republicans to get the Postal Service to issue a stay on in honor of these three young men. [applause] so we had to work in as. We mobilize. We had to speak up, we had to speak out. We had to get in trouble, good trouble, necessary travel. After dark or Martin Luther king received the Nobel Peace Prize in december 1964, after president johnson signed the Civil Rights Act in july 1964, dr. King had a meeting with the president. When he returned from europe, told him we needed Voting Rights act. President Clinton Johnson told dr. King in so many words, we dont have the votes in the congress to get it out of my sight pass. Dr. Martin luther king junior came back to atlanta, but with a group of us. My organization was already involved. And selma, the harder the bite. The only time a person could even attempt to register to vote for the first and third mondays of each month. You had to go up a set of steps through double doors and get a copy of the socalled leaders attack. And very few people were able to pass that. A few days, late february 1963, 1965, and there is a protest in marion, alabama 35 miles from selma. Marion, alabama is the hometown of Martin Luther king jr. An incident occurred. A young man or the name of Jamel Jackson tried to protect his mother by a state trooper in a few days later he died at a local hospital and selma. Because of what happened to him, we decided to march from selma to montgomery. Since sunday, march 7, 1965 to about this time of day, 600 of us participated in nonviolent workshop. We line up in twos to a 50 master and selma to montgomery, to dramatize to the nation into the world that people of color in alabama once youre registered to vote. During those days, i had all of my hair and a few pounds lighter. I was wearing a back pack that became fashionable to wear back packs. And this backpack i had to boot. I thought i was going to be arrested, go to jail, so i wanted to have some thing to read. I had an apple and i had an orange. One apple and one orange. I wanted to have something to eat. I had to face into spanish. I was going to be in jail with my friends, colleagues and neighbors. I wanted to be with depression and teeth. As we were crossing the alabama river, my colleague walking beside me, a young man by the name of jose william said to me, john, can you swim . He saw all this water down below. I said no, jose. I said can you swim . We continue to walk. We came to the highest point on the independence bridge. Down below we sat Alabama State troopers. We continued to walk. We came within hearing distance of the state troopers and a member of the state troopers identified himself and said a major chunk out of Alabama State troopers. This is an unlawful march will not be let to continue. I give you three minutes to disperse and return to your church. Jose william said major, give us a moment to kneel and pray. Before we can tell the people back behind us to kneel and pray, that troopers said, officers advance, troopers advance. These men put on their gas masks, came towards us, beating us with night sticks, tramping us with horses and releasing the tear gas. Was hit in the head a state trooper with the nightstick, had a concussion of the bridge. I thought it was going to die. I thought i saw death. 47 years later, i dont recall, i dont know how i made it back across the bridge, but he too remember back in the church that we had left, and the churches more than two dozen people on the outside trying to get men to protest what happened on the bridge. If someone asked me to the audience and i stood up and said i dont understand it. Sending troops to vietnam, canada sent troops to alabama to return people whose only desires to give registered to vote, to march from selma to montgomery. 17 of us were hurt and admitted to a local hospital. The next day dr. Martin luther king jr. Came to visit with us and he said he had asked religious leaders to come to selma. Tuesday, march 9th, more than a thousand priests, rabbis came and walked across the bridge, walked across the bridge. [applause] so we made a lot of progress. But theres still the bridges we need to cross to create a more perfect union, to create the beloved community, but because that day, president Andrew Johnson came to the congress on march 15 and made one of the most meaningful speeches at any american president had made in honor time on the whole question of civil rights or voting rates. We call it the we shall overcome speech. He started his speech tonight by saying i speak tonight. He went on to say a time, history and faith in man for freedom. More than a century ago at lexington and concorde, at appomattox and selma, alabama. He introduced the Voting Rights act and before he could quote the speech, he said can we shall overcome. I looked at dr. Martin luther king junior. We were watching when did john didnt in the sitting together in the home of a local family and selma. I looked at dr. King, he started crying a wheel started crying to youre the president of the United States you the theme song of the Civil Rights Movement, we shall overcome. Theres other bridges to cross. You must cross them with faith, hope, love and peace can be reconciled with our brothers and sisters because we are one family, one house. We all live in the American House and continue to cross that bridge. Thank you very much. [applause] this event was part of the 2012 National Book festival in washington d. C. For more information, visit loc. Gov book us. You dont always find many news tapir editors and the everett embraced investigative reporting. The point of seeing over the years is not Just Economics. If the discomfort it often causes in a newsroom because its troublesome. Is that more than the economics. That case those people running in and do stories about this kind of things happening. We were fortunate to the 70s and almost all are couriers to work for people who are Strong Enough great in that area and let the chips fall where they may. With surprise when he teamed a Donald Barlett and stephen still take your calls, emails next month on in depth. The plan had began collaborative work for the coauthors of ebooks. They contend the level of hyper partisanship has resulted in a dysfunctional political process marked by adherents to Political Party platforms above all else. This is about an hour and a half. I think word ready to begin. I moderate a lot of panels. I always say the greatest insult ever directed to me this ram david brooks. Is not a powerful insult . When i have strong views come i try to be the queen of face, staring, staring balanced about things. I am not fair and balanced because my feelings about norm and tom. Norman, two of my favorite people in the world and i cannot tell you how excited i am that they have become celebrities in the think its a great thing for them, a great thing for the republic and im just honored to be here with them and susan and mickey wouldve agreed to join this great discussion. I want to begin by saying this event is the live webcast. Attendees are encouraged to live tweet the event. The hash tag even worse is where you should send your comments and books will be available for purchase an autographed at the conclusion of the event. Are there any other announcements and a teammate . We can go straight into the main event. Tom mann is a senior fellow at perkiness. He is chairman chair, had a governmental studies program, got his ba in Political Science from university of florida in this animated phd from the university of michigan. So he speaks for the heartland of our great country. Any cd automobile industry. [laughter] and was opposed by stopping production of the units sold. The electors are solid in all and is on every show known to humankind. Theyve often competed for the most quotations in any given year than all of our media. Norm is a resident scholar at the representative for Public Policy research. The election analyst for cbs and has written for every publication on the face of the earth dirty and tom both have been on the news hour with jim lehrer, nightline, charlie rose. He has another heartland are, Ba University of minnesota phd from the university of michigan, which is where you guys met. I just have to say that one of the reasons why i think that tom and norm for so much attention is because they have been spending their entire lives being so moderate and reasonable that when they get mad, they really must be something wrong. So why dont i go to norm and tom and then i will introduce susan and mickey edwards. Its a great honor to be your colleague. Thank you so much. Susan and mickey, i really appreciate your coming and all of you for participating in this event. Norm and i have been friends and colleagues and collaborators for over 40 years. I know it shows on me. It doesnt show on him, but people often ask me when we collaborate, with the division of labor . Finally i got a book cover that pretty much lays it out. I mean, you see the subtitle, how the constitutional system collided with the new politics of extremism. On the left is your constitution beige. A slightly worn. On the right is the harsh color inside extremism. Orenstein is that the politics of extremists. Just so you have this straight. I also want to announce this will be her last public appearance before entering the witness protection program. [laughter] i mean, maybe we should have followed the full script of Hans Christian andersen and enlisted a child to blurt out, the emperor wears no clothes, but we werent smart enough to do that. Actually what i want to say is the response to the first 10 days theres no worry less of commentary, i learned what it means to go viral, a very instructive lesson from norm son. But its been very heartening. Maybe fat said it really ugly hate mail, another 5 constructive criticism and 90 thank you, guys for saying this. Prominent among the scores of people who email does than 90 are self identified republicans. Ordinary citizens and some elected officials and Party Activists as well. A fair number of reporters, both of whom take a heap and i really hurt by it. I think its fair to say, to comment that we feel at each passing day it brings more reinforcement of the argument we make in this book, the latest of courses Richard Lugars defeat yesterday in indiana. Not so much the fact year old man who served seven terms in the senate, six, was running for the seventh turn, lost his election. These things happening. But it is the nature of the case against him that he collaborated with the enemy. I would eat barack obama, that he voted for Supreme Court justices nominated by obama, that he supported president pushes t. A. R. P. Program. It really is quite telling to see how his opponent undermined him by saying that hes gone over to the dark side. He tells us a lot about the problematic summer politics right now. Then we had that incident on the campaign trail, i think it was yesterday, when in a town hall meeting setting, a woman tied up in typed about the abuse of the constitution by the president and how he should be tried for treason. Well, people make sharp statements. I remember john mccain react into a Statement Like that in 2008 and really just drawing the line and say what kind of a person mr. Obama was. In this case, mitt romney just passed it by. The sentiments are so strong you dont want to confront or engage that. He said when asked by a reporter later to be true of course not. Third, House Republican Budget Committee is now proceeding to do two things. One is to insist on lower overall discretionary name, then was agreed to in the law that came it the end of that dreadful process of holding the debt ceiling hostage. So unilaterally, they declared that a floor for kind and not a ceiling. And now its a way of avoiding sequestration of the Defense Budget had proposed a really remarkable set of additional cup acts and means tested programs of one sort or another. I even saw the columnist in this lucid analytic reporters, david rogers at politico show his emotion in the course of writing about that. And of course we had yesterday a successful republican filibuster on the Senate Democratic plan for extending a lower student loan rate and financing it in a particular way. I noted in New York Times that this is the 21st successfulsuesr republican filibuster in this congress. Most of it is not a few of cose consequentialqu as the filibustr was in the first two years because there is a Republican House in any case and democratic wishes from the white house ando senate are likely to be b realized. But the fact that its been sobo commonplace and is taken for fr granted that in most press reports the word terror never is elevated to the story of because its a procedural motion. It didnt. He 60 the 60 votes it needed. It shows you how much the filibuster has become so routine. Listen, our argument can be summarized briefly. One, we have a serious mismatch between our political parties, polariarer highly polarized, internally unified, hyper strategic in their partisan behavior in congress as parliamentary lake, relentlesslt oppositional when they are out of government, under the presidency, that they are nderating at a parliamentaryt ki system with the behavior can bee useful in redacted and in thearn separation power system with routine filibusters with midterd elections, with the possibilityy of divided Party Government that frankly is such a mismatch that it doesnt work now. Econd poin the second point, the one thats got the most attention is that the polarization that exists between our parties is not symmetric. There is one party that has really gone off the tracks, thae has become an insurgent that is more ideologically extreme, that rechecks several generations off economic and social policy, stretching back as far as a century ago, the scornful compromise at the level of the individual republican identifie who doesnt have much use for a fax for evidence, for science and perhaps most important of all the really questionsa legitimacy of the Opposition Party and the extent to which they are real americans. This is something weve had individual essay, but never has it seem to be good our major pa. The third point that we make is in the interview never fix these things without the public stepping up and running in party is that have gone ms, but alas the complications of accountability in the system, number one, and number two, the way in which these events and our demands and the battles are portrayed to the public through not the partisan press, which has its own aspects, but through the Mainstream Press by respected some able, highly professional reporters that leads to a kind of balance, a false equivalents that they are both implicated. That, we argue, has the effect of demobilizing and disarming in public that might otherwise be in a position to do something better. Thank you. Thank you very much, tom. And now we want term to norm. When i was first described to me, i said this book is just like that eric clapton album that was imitated many times. It was called norm unplugged. [laughter] thank you, e. J. I want to start with a plug. This is the only book which should be capturing the attention of those that care about the public will system. E. J. Has a book coming out that is margolis called our divided political heart. What is the subtitle . The battle for the american idea in an age of discontent. Now you know why i love these guys. I might have suggested a new subtitle. Thank you. But please, by them both and they both make a Great Holiday gifts. Mothers day is coming up, off fathers day follows. You know he started by talking about the 40 plus Year Partnership that tom and i have had come and over that period of time we have tried three scrupulously to be fair minded and not take sides. We call them as we see them, but for me it has always been a point of pride that i can go and give a talk to people and some come up afterwards and say we couldnt tell from that what side you were on triet for 40 years weve done that and writing the book wasnt an easy thing to do because that is going to change. There are going to be some people who see us, see me in particular as having taken sides. So i often get asked why did you do this and i fink fact is for both of us we spent 40 years building some capital and the imputation, and theyre comes a point you feel like you need to use that because the stakes are too high, the consequences are great, and we both believe that we are at a really critical point in the system. We face huge problems in the country, short term and long term, and if we are going to reach the system of problem solvers and end up with people who say things like richard murdock, the new republican nominee for the senate in indiana said yesterday, which is my idea of compromise is when they move to accept my position. If that is how we are going to be faced with making policy decisions that are going to be very tough and painful but for americans, if all major changes in the social policy whether they expand government or contract the government, the disrupt peoples lives almost by definition and you cannot make that work and create a sense of legitimacy in the system where people face shortterm pain. For the promise that it will improve their lives or the lives of their children in the future. If we get rid of people like Richard Lugar in this process and the merge with people who have a very different perspective. The fact that we have gone through a number of years we have been moving in that direction and that people are not held accountable, there hasnt been a price to pay for obstruction, for hostagetaking and a lot of other bad behavior in politics motivated us not just to write this book but also to take on a press corps that we think to a much greater degree than it should has fallen back into a comfortable position of saying we report both sides. Part of this is because we have seen the emergence over the last 20 years of the fairly substantial and effective lobbies on both sides that may have started with accuracy in media and move to share. Journalists like most of us dont like criticism that may be more of the most of us dont like criticism and in particular the Mainstream Press that has for many years been hit with the idea that its a liberal press to be hit hard from the right with the idea that you are tilting in that direction brings out a desire to overbalancing and in this case it is an over balance where the balance becomes as we have heard from many reporters our obligation is to report both sides of the story. And my response to that is all right, so if you have a hit and run driver, do you say that when he comes up and says its his fault if he has equivalence with the victim and that is and the journalism, it is to report the truth and in this case, we have decided to report what we believe is the truth right now and that reflects not a briefing for one party. I have no desire to carry water for the democratic party. And i have no desire to simply turn the republicans into a version of the democratic party. We need vibrant parties that have Different Centers of gravity and that compete with a lot of vigor and bumping Heads Together but also have an understanding of the nature of our political process is different from the parliamentary system. It is a system where if you are going to reach a level where people in this extended republic accept those decisions that are made, you have to find some broad bipartisan leadership consensus coming and that means collaboration. It doesnt mean heres what we are going to do and if you want to come to us, thats fine. If you dont, screwed you. It doesnt mean we are going to obstruct because thats the way to get ahead even siblings damage to the country along the way. We have to shed some blood during the course of a resolution to be the means something different. Our political and heroes include people like barbara, called to whom wed indicated a lot with pat moynihan in the book several years ago the broken branch and includes people like lugar. It includes people that have been very strong conservatives. If you read his statement after his defeat which reflected some considerable degree of bitterness but also as a jury eloquent statement about what we need in our political process and this is a statement coming from a guy that said i your everyday moderate. In fact he said people often said during the course of this campaign but dont you just become an independent and he supplied a republican, ive always been one and i will be one that i believe in the values of small government, less taxes and all the things i reflect what conservatism was and presumably ought to be and jack said partly today in reaction to the defeat if we continue to move towards purity we will move to the relevancy, and along the way, the country and effect is going to go down the tubes and to the clarion calls from people like chuck hagel and alan simpson and lugar and jack danforth, not just from us, that ought to shake people up about where we are and where we were going and what we hope would have been with a degree of penetration that astounded us from the Washington Post piece before the book was all the credibility that we had built up it wasnt just a couple people coming from one end of the spin from but saying its all the fault of people at the every end this is the case of a system that is grown and dysfunction as one party has become as we say and insertion of life here and it becomes to move to your relevancy and needs to move back to where it was where we had a system that had plenty of imperfections that work to solve short and longterm problems that has the tough decisions would make. The first was one of norms great lines that weve been talking about in this book if you want to understand the book we believe they move from say the 40yard line to the 25yard line but they point to outside the stadium all together. The next is the journalist politicians said look we politicians have skin and a few journalists have no skin. Susan is the wall street bureau chief for usa today where she writes about the National Politics and she has won awards in the charnel beauford prize for distinguished reporting on the presidency and the memorial award for the deadline reporting on the presidency and coverage of the presidency and a whole lot of other awards. Shes a regular guest host of the show on npr. In wichita kansas she received a bachelors degree from northwestern in journalism from columbia where she was a pulitzer fellow and would be followed by mickey who is a Princeton University Woodrow Wilson school of Public Policy international affairs. He was a member of the Republican Leadership and served on the budget of the appropriations committee. Hes taught in addition to teaching at princeton hes taught at harvard and hes shared various passports for the constitution project a brookings and for the council on Foreign Relations to read he is the Vice President of the aspen institutes Public Leadership Program and is the latest book the party versus the people, how to turn republicans and democrats and two americans. There will be published by University Press of this summer and i promise before you leave he will baptize all of you. [laughter] for people i have so much admiration that i quoted so many times on the stories. I have a think a little bit of news which is i found out the title of the next book that is coming out between you can figure out from 1992 renewing congress sounds pretty positive in 2000 the permanent campaign. A canadian of antiyearly positive. They are at least pretty neutral. 2006, the broken branch sounds a little perilous. Its even worse than it looks. The book is wrong for your lives. [laughter] they will just be marching up and down holding a sign. They take on many institutions elsewhere. Let me talk for a moment about some of the things they say about the news media, which is appropriate to criticize. There is a lot to criticize about how we do our jobs and how we ought to do them better kuwait we talk about the institution that journalism is doing more for truth telling on the tv ads and that is something organizations including my own is trying to do this year. I think that there has been some move in the last few years to do when you just talked about which is someone says something is black and someone says its white you cant say he says its white and he says its black. The two specific story lines that push journalists to be more willing to call someone to say the truth or not is the movement because we felt early on in the Obama Campaign it wasnt enough to say he was born in kenya, obama denies being born in kenya. That didnt tell the reader slowly enough what the truth was it continues to come up you say so and sos said it was kenya he is born in hawaii you go on and stay as fact and what we believe to be true. There was a time when i think a lot of news outlets would report Climate Change skeptics with a kind of equal force with people are doing for Climate Change, and i think now when you see reports on the Mainstream Press their likely the overwhelming predominance of the scientific opinion is in favor of Climate Change or be leaving in Climate Change. The one thing, you know, there is nothing in this book to fault exactly, but the one thing i think that might get kind of underestimated in this book is the degree to which it is a conscious choice. Our whole group of voters. If you look to the criticism that Richard Lugar made of richard murdock, and murdochs defense of himself as it is the same thing. He said he doesnt want to legislate. He said i dont want to legislate. He said he would make the compromise necessary to get things done. Murdoch said thats exactly what i want to do. If you let me im going to throw sand in the gear of government and prevent things from getting done. I dont agree with that consensus that has been with washington for so long presenting a different path. And that is true with of the rise of the Tea Party Movement of 2010. Voters that voted for the Tea Party Candidate or not tricked into the kind of tactics that supporters of the Tea Party Movement were going to fall back to washington. They said they were willing to take the government to the in of the cliff and over the cliff because they said that was the only way that they could achieve the kind of political and that they wanted to see. So, and the ending seems to me that the fundamental problem here or a fundamental problem is dealing with such a lack of faith in government and such a disconnection the disconnect from the federal government and such a suspicion about the role of the federal government that has led a significant portion of americans to want to elect candidates that do exactly what they said they were going to do which is to stop things from happening in washington regardless of the consequences. Thank you so much. I want to correct was excellent. I want to correct one thing i said. I said mickey would baptize you to write i realize among others we are joined and appreciated by the ambassador and we would only be baptized if you wish [laughter] hes already a citizen and minnesota. Well, first of all, i want to say that its a great pleasure to be able to be here with tallman and norma. I have been a friend of theirs for a very long time. There are no to political scholars that are more respected and who have more credibility with the American People and tom and norm, so im delighted to have a chance to be here and help them sell as many books as possible. You are not allowed to leave unless you buy their books and of course i work with susan and e. J. For a long time, and treat we used to be given to be here and may be a part of this. What can i add . First of all, i agree when you talk about its even worse than it looks. I agree it is. If you really examine what is actually happening on the hill and in every conceivable way how the decisions are made about who gets to sit on what committees after destruction, how the decisions are made every day in terms of whether or not to allow opposition groups to offer amendments to the process. Also if you actually saw this in detail, it is worse than it looks. It is much worse. I would say theres a couple things that i would add. It was certainly right in what tom said that the beginning that the problem isnt equal between the two political parties. You know i ran the books for years ago called quote code reclaiming conservatism declasse in the people that call themselves conservatives today have no idea and some weird ideas that others dont understand what the constitution is so i am not going to take the role of defending the Republican Party at all. I will say this book can do a better job of arguing that there is also called on the. But when barack obama wanted to and republican nancy said we won the elections and we will write the bills and the democrats were controlling the house and what the republicans have done since which is to use the closed rules to prevent the amendments from being offered and to shut down the debate and the consideration of alternatives. So, i do not dismiss the criticism of the Republican Party and dalia agreed that the party has become more walked in against compromise which is the essential ingredient of the nation of the 320 million people. Its compromise. And if you shut off as a Republican Party has done, it is a terrible problem. But lets not let the democrats off the hook because they have also been partners in this and there were just a couple of u. S. House members who lost in their primaries as a part of the democratic clarification process. So, what we have here is a system where both parties are focused i have the subtitle of the book that was written not by me but by the affairs and the atlantic magazine how to turn republicans and democrats in two americans is because they are focused on party to be focused on party and vintage. How we win the next election . And i have argued that and i think tom and norm both agree with this, too to a large part of the problem is a suspect so when you look what happened yesterday to indiana and lugar i think there was a terrible thing that he lost but when Robert Bennett lost in utah and the primary when Joe Lieberman lost in connecticut he lost the democratic primary and when mike castle lost in delaware he lost in the republican primary i dont know what would have happened if he had been able to run we have created a system in which the parties themselves can prevent the voters present the voters choosing among their options and you have close parties that are dominated by the people fought half the most ideological and that is what moves the process forward they do that in the Congressional Redistricting and as i mentioned in how the parties choose. I think tom is a great guy and a very smart. He probably knows about economics. If he were a member of my party i would say you are great you can be perfect and i will put you on the ways and Means Committee if you promise you are going to stick with the party lines. So i guess what im saying is. It is not only of the people that are either elected and how they behave but its the system that allows these people to dominate and become our officials Decision Makers in washington. So having thrown that in there i would just say this is a really good book. Its a superb book. And i agree with what norm said. Given their reputations which are still. It took a lot of courage to write a book like this and i admire them both for doing it. Thank you. I feel like heres what i would like to mask and i want to remind people listening on the webcast they can send their thoughts using the hash tag evinworse. Let me start with a question to you, norma, and the question to susan because the question is mckee has really laid out the question that probably lots of people want you to answer which is you have singled out the republicans. You see they are the insurgent out fliers but theyve done a lot of things wrong, too. Can you explain why they are different and then to susan i will give you some time to think about it. I am sympathetic to i write an opinion for the column so its easy to me that heres what hit me this morning when i was looking at the coverage of lugar which is during this primary he was regularly described as a moderate, and i looked up the rating from the American Conservative Union and its 77 . That is a spectrum that is pretty skewed to the right that is more than threequarters over and that struck me that the very language of a reporters use end up being a concession to change the situation that doesnt even acknowledge. So i would like you to sort of think about that. Thanks, e. J. I didnt want to say good things of the panelists before they spoke. Its a thrill to have both of these people here that our role models, and i could add to that can be on a few rows to the sign he was serving in congress when he was a country and because he stood up for the constitution, and for article 1 of the time when his colleagues were trashing it for their own political purposes, she is a true conservative and the kind who used to solve problems and susan is the kind of journalist we used to have a lot more rough. So, having said that, a lot of what she said is true there are no angels. The democrats have manipulated the process, dispensed the regular order when they felt that it was in their interest than particularly during the 40hour pe