Transcripts For CSPAN3 Reflections On Richard Nixons Legacy 20170422

Where 26 years later we opened the new nixon library, already visited by more than 25,000 people since their opening in less than three months. I would be remiss if i failed to inform each one of you that our work is far from over. There is still money to be raised. Every campaign, right, would say that . I urge each and every one of you to sign up for a membership in court today or contribute online. I also invite you to stay connected with our emails. There you can dive deep into president nixons life and times and learn more about our mission and our goals. Our speaker today is the most famous economics teacher in america. Praise where praise is due, right . His comedic role is the economics teacher on Ferris Buellers day off is the most widely viewed scene of economics teaching in economics history. Office the cohost along with jimmy kimmel of the path Comedy Central game show win ben steins money the call for the American Spectator and noouz max and is a regular commentator on fox news and on cbs sunday morning as well as a frequent commentator on cnn. He is also written or cowritten roughly 30 books. Perhaps less known is that ben effectively got his start in politics working in the nixon administration. Bens father, herb stein, was chairman of president nixons counsel of economics advisors, one of the most senior members in the nixon administration. He wrote, among other pieces, the message to congress outlining president nixons proposal for Health Care Reform in 1974. There is no more a loyal friend around. Were luck kbri to have with it today. Ladies and gentlemen, ben stein. Thank you very much. Ive been in this room so many times. If its possible, i dont know if it is or not, but if its possible to not have those incredibly bright lights shining in my eyes. I was being given the third degree by the Chicago Police if they do that anymore. I start out every thought about Richard Nixon well, first of all, thank you so much to the people from the foundation and the library. Thank you very, very much. God bless you all. Maureen, gra et to see you. The thought that always goes through my mind very first thing, blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of god. Let me tell you why i love Richard Nixon. Not like. Not admire. I do like him and admire him, but love him. So did my mother and father. In our household nixon was god. In my heart Richard Nixon started when i was 7 years old, and he was running for Vice President with dwight eisenhower. I read a childs biography of Richard Nixon, and it said he was always being picked on and teased in the school yard when he was a child, and i identified with, that may be every child. There were lots of old comys that loathed him. Even at that age i plait made a vital. They liked to pick on him because he was sensitive. He was a vulnerable human being. He wasnt tough like ike. He wasnt tough like mr. Trump. He was a typical he was not a typical politician with the thick skin. He was a poet. A sort of artist. Intellectual. At every stable of his life, he was a sensitive boy on a school yard, and i identified. There was something about Richard Nixon that i for whatever reason, Richard Nixon was a born peacemaker. It started in a big way after, not before, when Richard Nixon was Vice President you should dwight eisenhower. Its little talked about. It was wildly off the rails. The main instrument that divide eisenhower used was his Vice President Richard Nixon who did the job with extreme finesse. Nixon was a peacemaker even when he ran for president in 1960. There are many people historians way beyond my league, and mr. Nixon won that election, and it was simply stolen from him in illinois and texas. He mr. Nixon declined the amount of jobs at jfk election in order to avoid a conflict during the difficult cold war. Its hard to imagine a modern day candidate doing that. It happened because Richard Nixon, the peacemaker, refused to make his own ambition more important than his love of country and peace. Learning about war and peace, much later, he said that he learned especially large amount from Charles Degaul who he loved, and he was a very impressive guy. He thought of degaul in some ways like him. He had come to office during greatly tumultouss times. Sham bells. Country in conflict in the streets. Need for peacemaker. He learned how to make peace and pull the country together. Thus, it was that one two one in 1968 against hubert humphrey, who was a genuinely great man. A genuinely fine man. Not a bully like politics today. He wrote me this. You and i were emailing back and forth about this speech. Riots and walks. The Chicago Democratic Convention in the state. Sorry. And the accompanying riots. Riots at berkeley with the National Guard in the streets. The peoples park up in San Francisco. The riots at San Francisco state. The riots of my undergraduate all matter, columbia. Riots over school butting in boston. Still one of the absolutely worst ideas in the history of american education. The assassination of martin loourter king jr. And robert kennedy. The war in vietnam and its escalation. A gift from the two preceding democratic president s and their liberal think tank advisors, the smartest of the smart and the best of the best gave us this endless war in vietnam. In fact, on the streets and in the living rooms this revolutionary turmoil really felt like flesh and blood. The country seemingly was running out of control, and it was in this situation that the American People hired Richard Nixon to make peace and despite the near total hostility of the National Media and the liberal left that ran the university, thats what he did. Thats from john coin. Again, that was Richard Nixon, the peace maker, making peace at home. He slowly but surely end the the war in vietnam. Its hard to believe this. At the time mr. Nixon took office, 300 americans were being killed per week. 300 per week. There was no end in sight. Through skilled negotiation and the willingness to reluctantly use the stick as well as the carrot, Richard Nixon brought the north vietnamese people to the table and got our prisoners of war home and ended american combat in vietnam. There are many people who wonder why it took so long. The answer is, please dont record all of this mess if i may ask. There. Good. Just some of it. The answer was what nixon said himself. That the u. S. Effort totally sabotaged by the congress after Richard Nixon left office showed the world that the u. S. Was not pushed around once it had made up its mind to fight and there we were until congress plooufd otherwise a trustworthy ally. Saigon fell. Absolutely true. No doubt about it. The u. S. Had put up a heck of a fight, and the communist would have to pay a huge price if they ever wanted to fight us again. A generation of peace. A generation of peace. Thats what was nixon wanted to bequeth to the United States of america. He loved so very, very much. That is what you get. For the real stars and their families, the real stars were the ones who fought in vietnam and their families because the military families, the military wife, is the backbone of this whole cult. Is. He made peace with china. He was showing the russians that they could not win the cold war, and, thus, made possible the end of the cold war and the end of the soviet union under two truly Great American president s, Ronald Reagan and george h. W. Bush. He crafted the first strategic arms Limitation Treaty with russia, a treaty that no one would have thought possible during the height of the missile race. Only nixon could do that. Only nixon because no one doubted the hostility to expand communism and only nixon could do it because no one doubted his resolve, not to play politics with the survival of freedom. Nixon used to say over and over again, only nixon would go to china because and only nixon could end the war in vietnam and start strategic arms talks and treaties with russia. Richard nixon was also doing breakthrough domestic actions . Nixon with great unwitting help from the liberals and Democratic Party created a southern strategy which brought the Southern States genly into the gop camp by pointing out that the gop was for smaller federal governments and less federal interference with their lives. Rifd nixons Justice Department desegregated thousands. Not hundreds, but thousands of deep south School Districts that had been fought integration by endless delay. When our end took office after brown versus board of education desegregation was still very much up in the air. By the time he left office, there was no more segregation. Rn also created the philadelphia plan, which was the First Federal plan to have requirements for minority contractors, minority workers on u. S. Government projects. By his work, by his belief in terms of health and hospital admissions could bring every city in town. He started the Environmental Protection agency and the counsel and Environmental Quality and used them to start mammoth, mammoth work on creating more sustainable lakes and rivers and sea shores in america. He had other great initiatives too that never gotten acted, but laid the ground work for later enactment. He sent to congress in late 1973 and early 1974 the First Comprehensive National Health care plan. A plan that was greatly simpler and less expensive than obama care. His idea was really simple. It was baevgly to identify which americans could not afford Health Insurance and then send them a check to buy Health Insurance. This was a farreaching bill. As a young man, less than age 30, gichk the task of writing and sending it up to congress, it would have worked wonder and saved lives. Did he do anything else . Well, yeah. He had the First Comprehensive energy use and reduction plan. This was a plan that included every element of every plan that every other president has sent us since. Its so amazing to me when i see president obama several years ago saying weve got breathtaking independent new ideas. Were going to have alternative energy sources, wind power, wave power, conservation and tax incentives all to lead us off foreign independence after the horrific experience with the arab oil embargo. Every Single Initiative that every president proposed since 1973 was based on nixons proposals. He made mistake. Wage price controls and a complex and counter productive system on oil come to mind. They were serious mistakes. They were genuine mistakes. Very small mistakes in the currents of history. Now, heres the big question about nixon in my opinion. If all this was so great, if he did so many great things, why did so many people in the pundit and academic and media and hollywood world hate him . This is really the key question about Richard Nixon and the one that is most depressing about the human condition. I have a very smart sister. Shes three and a half years older than me, but she looks much younger. She said to me many years ago the simple truth about life. Your basic human being is not supper a hot item. Nowhere was this more true than in the context of the haters of Richard Nixon. Partly because he was the sensitive kid on the school yard and they could read his distress when they attacked him. His pain was like blood to sharks. To drove them wild with the desire for mo every more blooed. Some people say the hatred of nixon was about his anticommunism. It was a ceological phenomenon. His enemies hated him because they could hurt him. Every few months the New York Times will have on its front page a leak or something thats been discovered in the media, some snip et of tape of rn supposedly saying antisemitic remarks. From this goes the most vial myth of the president ial history that Richard Nixon was a racist antisemite. The truth is so completely different from that. Richard nixon surrounded himself with jews and appointed jews to high office ever since the earliest days in politics. He had a jewish General Council and was also a very good musician, by the way. A jewish top Foreign Policy advisory and the incomparable Henry Kissinger. Jewish chairman of the fed, arthur burns. What more do people want him to do . Convert or be bar mitzvahed . Its incredible. Yes, used a few country club cliches about jews in private talking to bob haldaman, but when it came to action, he was the very best friend to jewish people that theyve ever had. He was above all else the savior of israel. When egypt and syria had invaded israel in the young gipper war, they were caught in their own flatfootedness and the antiaircraft missile supplied by the soviets. Those missiles in their radars nullified the usual enormous israeli air superiority. The egyptian and syrian seem to be about to take jerusalem. Gold to my ear. Gold to my ear. Had already laid out suicide pills for her to take. Richard nixon left israels defense in a way no other president ever had acting with the brilliant help of dr. Kissinger. He airlifted to israel the most uptodate black box and rockets were jamming and destroying the soviet supplies radars. Within hours they started showing up on the battalions field. When the israeli crossed the are ed sea and surrounded cairo, the russians hinted that they were about to send paratroops in to fight the israelis. Nixon saw their bluff and went to def com 2 and told the russians we would use every means to stop them. Every means. After the only lasting peace treaty in the middle east, between israel and egypt was signed. No president has ever done more for the state of israel than Richard Nixon. Truman did not send arms to israel. Lyndon johnson did not lift a finger for israel. John f. Kennedy, darling of the liberal jews, did not lift a finger to help israel. Only Richard Nixon. His help to israel was on a biblical scale. Effects the best friend to israel. Then along comes watergate. It was an attempted and badly botched coverup. No doubt about it. We never ever have learned why the they were going into the Democratic National committee headquarters. There wasnt anything in there that wouldnt be on the front page of the New York Times next day anyway. It wasnt plotted to it wasnt bringing call girls into the white house. It was a coverup and lies were told. Compared with other mistakes, it was pretty small beer. Certainly was not enough to drive otherwise gifted peacemakers from office. Certainly was not enough to torment a man whose only goal was a generation of peace. Well, the real story of Richard Nixon, again, is not about what nixons psyche is like. He was a peace lover. Im going to have to do what my old friend jim how many of you remember the herald examiner . Yeah. He was the editor of the herald examiner. I on he used to say that you would give a speech by telling them what you are go going to tell them, and you tell them what you told them. Let me start with another avenue. I believed in him, and i loved him so much that i knew i would lose my job, and it didnt stop me from working there. The people i worked with at the Nixon White House were by far the smartest, funniest, most dedicated people i ever worked with, and i worked with some very accomplished people at yale law school, at the fdc where amazingly we all worked very hard at the wall street journal where i got to work with the genius bob bartley and his dear, Dear Colleague george malone, and the super smart brilliant comedy people i used to work with in hollywood who arent so funny anymore. The people at the white house were the only ones that i have stayed in close touch with over the years. My boss they dont make them smarter or with more writing talent than path. The handsomest, bravest man on earth, besides my inlaws, the denmans. Well, they were really amazing. The two brothers, both silver star. Pretty amazing. Longterm connection with rn has been all these people have been longterm connections. We had a Great Research star. You never hear about them, but there was a wonderfully lovely woman, intelligent. Became a very successful lawyer named ann morgan. Her boss whose father had been a german Rocket Scientist working on the v2. Maybe we wont talk about that. With tal incident exploding off his lips and finger tips, a super, super genius and much missed since he depart from this either several years ago from pancreatic cancer. There was my neighbor in california, and dear, dear friend. A genius and a man of startling loyalty and expert on politics. Still very much on the scene here in southern california. More than anyone else, though, john coin whom i have already mentioned. Breathtakingly good writer, and my amusing and insightful genius neighbor on the other side of the aisle was. He went on to become the chief speechwriter for president reagan. Its been over 40 years. Were still very close friends. I communicate with him almost every day. Their judgment is almost always infallible. Theyre the only colleagues i ever worked with that i still stay in close touch with him. We all have a great up until the very last moments. We believed in and trusted him. We at first thought his slogan that he wanted a generation of peace. They were just slogans to be worked in the speech. We came to believe that he really meant them. We were grateful for a chance to work for peace. None of us had ever had any doubts that he was the best possible man or person to be president. Nothing that has happened since 1974 has changed that belief. We saw him as a man of peace and a statesman. We also saw him as an incredibly kind man. As some powerful democrat i think maybe norman maylor said how could he be a really genuinely bad person if he had daughters like julie and theresa . We worshipped them. I would say john and i especially worshipped julie, and also lovely trisha and the always grateful and elegant mrs. Richard nixon. To think of her i dont think there was a day when my colleagues i didnt feel proud to be there. Nobody i have ever worked with has ever provided so much laughter and good humor. Even in the very darkest moments. We never thought r. N. Was guilty of anything meaningful. His accomplishments in peace far outweighed anything bad he had ever done, and i had an incredibly special and incredible treat, which has been a legacy in my life. My father worked two floors above me. He was then in a position where i could walk up two flights of stairs without much trouble. I had gone from the worst possible job, trial law, to being a speechwriter, and now an immense amount of time has passed. 43 years since mr. Nixon left office. I stood just a few feet from him. You can look it up on youtube. Rn farewell to the white house staff. There i am a much, much thinner version of me chewing gum and crying at the same time. My mother and father are nearby sobbing their eyes out. My dear friend pat contain also with tears in her eyes. And mr. Nixon gave an astonish iring speechl. Youll never hear a more honest speech in your life. Really you are never going to see a real life soul being tortured and tormented in the flames of his haters the way you see it with nixon. Yet, come out with immense dignity and poetry. Mr. Nixon did not live in the age have covering up his pain and makeup. Whether the speech was over, i can still recall walking out of the room with tears in my eyes, walking out the doors of the east room and then on to the truman balcony to watch the helicopter take off, and as i say, i was sobbing. A genuinely fine man, fred down of south carolina, really great man from the textile business the white house staff rallied around to help each other. Peter flanagan helped me. Bob bartley helped me. He was not at the wlis, but he brought me up to the new york, rather, to be a columnist for the editor page of the wall street journal. Julian david and i became friends. That same afternoon that americaon resigned, i do something thaul of our speech writers do. Meet with groups of high school which college students, and that day it happened to be a group, and they were terrified what is going to happen aisrael they wanted to know without mr. Nixon. They still loved nixon in israel, and they should. The record of his work as a peace maker is astounding. Its incredible. Im an economist by training, and economics as we know it really no longer exists, but in the 43 years before mr. Nixon became president , about 93 million human beings were killed in washz wars, revolutions. If you count the years from rn res birth in 1913 up until the inauguration in 1969, 126 Million People were killed by violence. I dont think any of them wanted to die. In the 43 years since mr. Nixon left office, roughly 11 million have died. Obviously way too many. Mostly in civil wars in the third world. That still is a very large number. The difference between the roughly 100 million killed in the 43 years before nixon took office and created the lasting structure of peace and the 43 years since then when onetenth of that number had been killed, that is a glorious achievement. How did he do it . He was incredibly well informed, and he knew history. He didnt just learn about the world by watching tv talk shows. Not that im knocking anyone who does that. He read books. He met and talked to world leaders. He tauks talked to mao say tongue and Charles De Gaulle and to churchill. He read and knew history. He knew about the congress of vienna. He knew there were only three major powers on earth. They would not survive plieg an active role. Theres an incredibly famous line in one of the books that every human being must read if he or she is allowed to read, and that is the book 1984, and in which they say if you want to imagine the future of the human race, its a boot stomping on a human face forever. Richard nixon said thats not going to be the world if i have anything to do with it. He knew there was genuine evil in the world, and only the u. S. Could stand up to it. Britain and france are no longer major powers. Many times when i got to visit r. N. In california after he left office, he would say this theme over and over again. Theres nobody else to do it. Theres nobody else to stand up for the decency of humanity in the world, chept the United States of america. He didnt want to retreat into a little america. He wanted a big america that would be well armed and always aimed at peace, and he wanted a Strong America that would not allow communism to expand. It was his view there had to be a power balance. As i just said a moment ago, by 1971 there are only three Major Players and the strongest militarily might have been the u. S. S. R. It could be counter balanced by the u. S. And china together. That would be a power balance that would make the russian leaders always think twice before they acted. When r. N. Offered the hand of friendship to joe and mao setong, he created a world in which russia, as it was then now the u. S. S. R. And russia and the u. S. S. R. Are different countries, they were hemmed in and would have to make peace. A Strong America and nato on one side and a fiercely independent china on the other. It was all one master stroke engineered by r. N. And his mega genius right hand, dr. Henry kissinger. The populace of china at that time was very roughly one billion people. About 650 million of them have been lifted out of dire poverty and into something passed middle class status all thanks to nixon opening up china. That is an achievement that nobody else could even consider. There came to be something that i would call and imagine has been called this many many times, Something Like the nixon doctrine, which said we would not let the ussr expand and the u. S. Would help any nation whose independence was threatened by the soviets, and it was for this in many ways that r. N. Rescued israel. He did admire israel, but he did not want a soviet proxy, egypt, to hurt israel. He made the soviets think twice and termed israel into a longterm entity. Now i say again, a lot of time has passed, a lot of water under the bridge, but what is our world today except the lasting structure of peace that nixon left us . Yes, america had to leave saigon in a great hurry, but vietnam is now a largely capitalist nation and friendly to the u. S. Keep you eye on iran. We have competitors but no one seems to want war with us now. We have had a huge accomplishment, and there is never one single cause. But a big one is the peacemaker, richard m. Nixon. By knowing the power of diplomacy, strength, stuff, and audacity, he put us on the path to a long stretch of peace for the usa. The lasting structure of peace was not just a slogan, it was the real thing. Now as mr. Nixon said in his farewell address to his white house staff and i strongly recommend that you watch that. It is Just Brilliant theater and brill yat psychology. We look to the future. The structure of peace could use some reinforcement, some nails and some varnish, but we still have the structure of peace that Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger and the millions who served in uniform created. What was the legacy of Richard Nixon . I asked john coyne again last night. He put it very simply. Very very poignantly for the era in which we live right this second. Politically, he gave a meaningful voice back to the sigh silent majority whose middle class americans who were dismissed by the political elitists who reasonable recently sent donald trump to the white house. He currently altered alliances and recalibrated the balance of power in the world. The massively, there was a host of programs and policies that were well articulated, and a wealth of programs that formed the basis of todays environmental legislation. Domestically and internally as bob dole put it and as we have up here in the front of the library, we have all lived through and continue to live in the age of the sink, and our country is immeasurably better for it. I asked a smart guy, a genius and he said of r. N. s legacy, Richard Nixon was an inspired man who lived to serve humanity. His life was a Great Success story, because despite the malice of his detractors and his own shortcomings to leave a legacy of peace. He has been vindicated by history. I cant hope to do better than what john and r. N. Have done. So i end with this couple of thoughts. Ladies and gentlemen, when you goes to sleep peacefully in her bedside, think of what john kennedy said. We ask god to go to work for us and to go to work for our great country. But here on earth gods work must be our work. Richard nixon did that work, and he urged the highest praise. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of god. When my friends ask me when im toiling, writing for Richard Nixon i think of a conversation i had with a wonderful friend in the beginning of that hot august of 1974 when so many republicans were turning their backs on Richard Nixon. And he said something that has been on my mind ever since. He said i will never turn my back on the peacemaker, Richard Nixon. Thank you for having me here. [applause] thank you, thank you very much. Thank you very much, thank you very much. Youre very kind, thank you very much. Youre very kind. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. If some people have some questions, it would be my great pleasure to answer them at your leisure. Gentlemen youre going to call on people. Ill walk around with the microphone. Thank you again, mr. Stein. You are very welcome indeed. President nixon was a great advisor, more specifically an advisor to those holding office. What tvs that the device do you think he would give to president elect donald trump and president obama for that matter . It is interesting. This brings up a sore spot with me. My friends a couple years ago wanted to write a book called what would nixon do about what would nixon do about all the Foreign Policy and domestic challenges we faced. We wrote a proposal i will get your question. We sent it to a few publishers, and nobody nibbled at it. Some fellow recently did some research and came up with a brilliant discovery that Richard Nixon had some interface with a woman who had some interface with another person during the 1969 paris peace auction. That made the front page of the New York Times and has become a big, big book. If its a slam at nixon, it gets to be published right away. If its praise of nixon, forget about it, nobody wants to hear it. So this is my thought. What would nixon tell trump . Get good visors around you. The fact that there are billionaires does not make them particularly brilliant people. The skill of making money is a totally different skill from the skill of being a diplomat or a general or the head of the pentagon or any skill involved in government. I think he admires greatly people who make money, maybe even too much, and i think you should be thinking of people who have more skill in government and more background in government, and i do not believe that a person who is tarnished and ruined by having served in the government. I greatly respect will serve in the government. I do not think he should sigh away from them shy away from them. I think he should take his time. I dont think he needs to rush with anything. Four years is a pretty long time. Also i would say the media mr. Trump, the media is going to you and dutch all over you and treat you like dirt no matter what you do. Get used to it and pretend like you are on a faroff planet. You dont even hear them. I keep thinking that mr. Trump should be saying talk to the hand. Because the head dont want to hear it. Next question to your left, sir. Mr. Stein, thank you for being here. I have the pleasure of living on the street, so i enjoy this place frequently. As an economist and as someone who is active on the tv and news circuit with your fellow economists, comment, if you dont mind, on the status and state of current economic knowledge and thought. I have seen you weve all seen you tangle with a number of people over the years that dont seem to appreciate, maybe, classical economic theory like you do. And i would appreciate your comments on this day of current economic thought. That is a great yet. As i said in my remarks, economics is in a shambles. We do not know a lot of things or a lot of things we didnt know do not seem to be true anymore. Why it is that with the creation of a huge amount of money and very, very easy credit since the crash of 08, 09 there has been almost no inflation. We do not know why. People see more traumatized by the crash, but we think it is because there are strict limits on lending requirements. But we see no good reporting on the economy on television at all unless they interview warren buffett. He knows a lot. Its interesting, even buffett, hes a genius, even he doesnt have an answer to the serious economic problems we face. And we have one, giant, enormous mega problem and that is the underclass who refuse to learn skills, refuse to get off their ass, refuse to get off welfare, refuse to go to work, how do we get those people motivated to learn skills and go to work. I do know what the answer that is. I do not think esther buffet or mr. Trump knows what those answers are. And its considered politically incorrect to even bring it up. I would say that coverage of the economy on television, by and large is pathetic. Back of the room to your right, sir. Sorry . Where was the other question coming from . Back of the room to your right . Thank you. Im a chicagoan. My father was a democratic precinct captain for 30 years. So i know the Democratic Party and i know what it has done. But i am appalled at what has happened to california. I feel like were living in a gulag. We are. Where the government is oppressing us at every turn. What advice do you have for those of us who want to fight this. Not escape it but fight it and defeat it . Give up. [ laughter ] we live in a im 72 years old and i think we live in the least free america we have ever lived in in terms of Political Correctness, the ability to stand up and say whats on your mind. There are certain topics that are completely off limits you cannot say them at all. You cannot even breathe them. I have a son who is 29 years old. He is threatening to report if i walk down the street and say, wow, theres a pretty girl walking down the other side of the street. He is endlessly threatening to report me for sexism. Thats the way it is in america today. And the government has something to do with that. But i think the idea that the government can prosecute you for any kind of political incorrectness is outrageous. Its inbelieve. Its incredible. The wall street journal i read a very good editorial couple of days ago about the atrocities in chicago are those for African Americans tortured that white disabled kid and make them say terrible things about things, and the wall street journal very correctly said these there should not be hate crimes, hate crime is a political concept. They should be charged with attempted murder, not a hate crime. [ applause ]. I would like to see an end to the kind of Political Correctness in the government sphere and other sphere. I would rather be called a every day of my life then see the kind of Political Correctness we have now. Somebody else ask a question. Hi, thank you, mr. Stein. My dad came over on a naval boat from the philippines. God bless you. My question is threefold. I believe since i just turned 50 there is more racial tension than there has ever been before. Like, i had my purse checked out there, and no one else did. No, im just joke. My question is that why is that isis why do you think isis that hatred. Why are the children of our country being able to be brainwashed . I dont know. This is a really good question. This is what i think it is and im wondering if you think Richard Nixon would have a light on this subject. I think Richard Nixon would be appalled by any kind of racism in policy. In terms of what people are saying to themselves and their friends and to their families he would want people to be able to say anything they damnwell pleased. In terms of policy he would be horrified. It is true, that you are the only person who had your purse checked, that is terrible. I dont know why. That was my question. Oh. I already answered that question. That wasnt my question. So you have another question. Do you believe our country is more vulnerable more now today than it was 50 years ago based on the racial tension and isis and the fear mongering . I think there has been a lot of fear . That we have been involved in a war against terrorism for 16 years and dont seem to making much progress has been very maddening and frustrating, and i think in terms of racism and stirring up tension in the country, the fact that president obama did not just get up and say look, im on the side of the police, that is it. Im on the side of the police, that is it. The police enforce the law, i am on the side of. The police. Ok, yes sir. Mr. Time, anticipating mr. Stein, and then to repeal for obamacare, what is your recipe for replacement . I think the plan mr. Nixon had when i was a young man and still had a full head of black hair was a good plan, which is just to survey the population and see who can afford to buy health care from whoever sells it and give them a check to buy a policy. This idea of breaking everything down into a million pieces and trying to glue it back together just hasnt worked. Ladies and gentlemen, ben stein. Thank you very much. [ applause ] this weekend on American History tv, saturday at 7 00 p. M. Eastern, georgia tech history professor gregory nobles about John James Audubon and how he helped pioneer citizen science. The artistic work, of course, but also his field work. He was very, very good at what he did and he did it with no binoculars or field guides or iphone apps and i think the proof is in the painting. And in lectures in history, on abraham lincoln. His views on slavery and the dred cscott decision. Have there is this no restraint on taking slaves into the territories. Sunday, Opening Ceremony of the museum of the American Revolution in philadelphia. The speaker, joe biden, david mcculloch, the museum ceo Michael Quynh and journalist and author cokie roberts. Its my hope that this museum inspires you to become those active, involved citizens in this very great country because history has his eyes on you. And then at 8 00 on the presidency, talking about Florence Harding and the precedent she created as first lady. She had been in hospitals and in dire straits medically. She could relate to what they were going through. It was interesting because out of this veterans cause came the veterans bureau, right . This was the first time the United States had a bureau, what we would call the v. A. Today to take care of the veterans. Saturday is earth day. And well cover the march for science rally, including speeches from scientists and civic organizers as well as musical performances live from the National Mall in washington, d. C. At 10 00 a. M. Eastern on cspan. This week on q a, david mccum mcculloch. There are a dozen books about mccarthy but there is no biography of the senator who had the backbone to stand up to him first. Do you remember how you went about preparing for that speech . Hardest as i have ever worked on anything i delivered from a podium. David mccullough on the american spirit, sunday night at 8 00 eastern on cspans q a. The 18,000 square foot Richard Nixon Library Reopens after a makeover. The renovated museum tells the former president s story through larger than life photographs, touch screens and video of nixons speeches and his eventual departure from the white house. Heres the reOpening Ceremony. Its 50 minutes. And for todays invocation, please welcome monsignor lawrence baird, pastor of our lady of Mount Carmel Church in newport beach