democrat. the midterm elections are in 16 days. tonight's debate takes place in springfield, massachusetts. ♪ >> welcome to a debate between massachusetts senator candidates, incumbent senator elizabeth warren, a democrat, and the republican challenger, state representative geoff diehl . the debate is brought to you by the western massachusetts media consortium. i am pleased to be your moderator. here are the rules for the next hour. our audience members have agreed to stay silent during the debate. candidates have of 90 seconds to answer each question and up to one minute for additional thoughts or a rebuttal and one minute each for opening and closing statements. coin tosses decided the order tonight. the media consortium asks you the public for questions and many of the questions i last tonight were inspired by things you wanted answers to. let's begin with opening statements. senator warren, you are up first and have one minute. sen. warren: thank you very much. i asked the people of massachusetts to take a chance on someone who would never even run on public office before. you did, and it has been the honor of a lifetime to go down to washington and to fight for you and for your families. i made a promise that i would spend every day fighting to level the playing field for hard-working people, and that i would always be there for western massachusetts. i have held that up and i hope we get to talk about that tonight. my opponent here sees the world very differently. he did not just vote for donald trump, he became donald trump's campaign chair. and that means that he has defended donald trump's ugly rants and that he has embraced his dangerous policies. me, i think washington already works too well for the wealthy and well-connected. i go down there every day to fight for working families. to wg why thank you for hosting us. there are two things i hope people will take away tonight. the first is that i will be your full-time senator for the next six years. i will repeat that. i will be your full-time senator for the next six years. and the only thing that matters to me is what matters to the people of massachusetts. repeal ofy i lead a the gas tax saving taxpayers $2 billion. that is why i stood up to special interests to stop the olympics from taking $10 billion in a boondoggle. in fact, i want to stop the poisonous politics that has infected washington, d.c. and the obstruction that has been led by my opponent. i have spent more than a year talking with people, listening to them, not lecturing them. and that is why i would like to be your voice and i'm asking for your vote on november 6. ms. saldo: representative, the first question goes to you. flooding, which has troubled our region in recent years, is among the range of problems a recent u.s. support said that climate change is causing. canada is considering a national carbon tax. is that a viable option for paying for the impact that pollution, which scientists say lee's the climate change, can have on the united states? --. diehl: you cannot defy deny the fact we are feeling the effects of climate change. in massachusetts we have done a fine job of moving towards renewable energy. i voted for legislation that has increased wind power off our shores. at the same time we have been part of an agreement that has tried to make sure we are one of the cleanest regions in the country. i think massachusetts has been doing it very well. this affects not just inland obviously, this affects coastal areas with the flooding, but also be fishing industry. with warmer waters off our shores, we are starting to see different species coming in and our fishermen are trying to catch traditional cod and other fish and other species have gone in there. unfortunately that restricts the amount of fish that they can bring to go to market. when they need to do is to have more of a voice with the catch limits as well. unfortunately the fishermen in new bedford, one of our richest thets in the u.s., has had industry virtually come to a standstill because her have been 40 federal fishing license is not transferred. my opponent has been asked by new bedford city council four times to intercede and help with withient intercity -- hope fishing so they can have a stronger voice. that is part of the discussion when it comes to climate change. ms. saldo: let me remind you of the question, is carbon tax a viable issue to help the u.s.? sen. warren: it is clear to me we need to make a way for polluters pay for the damage they do. there's a lot of ways we can do that. i will start here locally and make ge paid to pull -- clean up the river. they agreed to but then once donald trump was elected they said, no, let's renegotiate. now they don't want to have to move the pollution they caused out-of-state. this is one of because sequences of what mr. diehl wants to do as donald trump's campaign chair. when donald trump with drew from the paris climate accord, not a people from mr. diehl. you want to talk about fishing? hasof the things mr. diehl said is he embraces offshore drilling. think about that and what that would mean for massachusetts. we have offshore drilling off the coast of massachusetts. one spill like the kind that happens in the gulf of mexico and all of our fishing industry is wiped out, our tourism industry on the east coast is wiped out, and a way of life that we have nurtured for centuries will be gone. look, climate change is real and it is urgent problem that we need to bear down on and we need to bear down on it now. to try to push corporations to do more on climate change. i will stop there. ms. saldo: one minute for rebuttal. rep. diehl: much like the senator who mistakenly thought i was on a police rally that was tied to some racist rally, she is also mistaken on saying i support offshore drilling. i was on the radio circle months on with jim and marjorie record as saying i am against anything that will affect our fishermen. thing, too, affecting 'sr environment, is the cfpd found on military bases out here. the other thing that is found on turnout gear for firefighters, causing health risks including cancer. companies like dupont who are manufacturing and have been responsible should also be held responsible. sen. warren: i thought that mr. diehl might want to go with what he said on wgbh to the people of massachusetts. 017, mr.mber 26, 2 diehl said quote, you have to have all the options on the table. anye, offshore drilling, and all places where we can get that energy in a reasonable way -- his quote -- i am all for. in other words, he says one thing somewhere else, becomes the massachusetts and says maybe not so much because he thinks the wbgh might not be so supportive. and he raised the point twice now about the rallies he attended. there was a rally in born organized by act for america, a group designated as a hate group and described as quote, the largest anti-muslim group in america. he was there on april 22, 2018. the photographs show the group in the back. ms. saldo: we're going to move on to our next question. the american outdoor brands corporation, smith & wesson, based right here in springfield, provides needed jobs. at the same time, guns produced in springfield have been used to harm others elsewhere, including in parkland, florida. how do you balance the need for those jobs in -- and keeping the public safe? sen. warren: i don't see these two things as an conflict. what we're asking for across america, what's our young people are asking for right here in massachusetts, is more gun safety. so that we have better background checks, so that people who are on the no-fly list because they are terrorism suspects cannot buy guns. so that we close the loopholes so people cannot go to virginia and buy guns with no checks and bring them back to massachusetts. so we can look into research on things like smart guns. this is really a fundamental question about who government works for. right now across this commonwealth and across america, people want to see some sensible gun safety rules put in place. after the shooting down in florida, we saw 14-year-olds, 16-year-olds, 18-year-olds come off the bench, and say please, we do not want to have to worry about being shot at school or on the playground. please make some changes. and what has happened? it has not happened. why not? even with widespread support, even the kind of widespread measures, no, because the nra holds congress hostage. my opponent is endorsed by the nra and the nra endorsement hangs on the fact that you do not cross the nra, and that means we will not get gun safety. representative, how do you balance the jobs here in springfield for public safety. rep. diehl: the history here in the city and in the region, obviously important to keep those jobs. massachusetts having been part of the legislature where we have, in my opinion, some of the strongest gun laws in the country, i think the next solution is national reciprocity. language passed through the house on its way to the senate. whoould allow people currently have gun licenses to be able to utilize them in other states much like how your current drivers license works. if you go to another state driving a car, you can do that. if you have the right to carry a gun in the state you can do that as well. there, i think what happens is we can take some of those laws we haven't massachusetts that are working -- have init massachusetts that are working and spread it. i have been in -- endorsed by numerous law enforcement organizations. i'm am clearly someone who understands public safety and law enforcement. my positions on guns are such that i think we need to have a secure border so that people are not coming into our country illegally and then coming into massachusetts and trafficking illegal guns. they are also going with drugs of to new hampshire and maine. they come back and use them violently here in massachusetts. we need to make sure our borders are secure and those people committing crimes, if they are not here legally, are deported. sen. warren: it is not just mass shootings. it is shootings that occur every day. eight children and teenagers die every day in this country from gun violence. it is our responsibility as the adults to change the laws and bring that number down. when my opponent talks about national reciprocity, what he is talking about is let texas make the rules for who will be able to carry a gun here in massachusetts. that is not going to make us any safer. the idea that massachusetts has stronger gun laws than anywhere else in the country keeps us safe, yeah, it keeps us relatively safer, but the problem is you can buy a gun in virginia and drive right back up to massachusetts. so that we cannot do this unless we do this at a national scale. the fundamental question, who does government work for? if this were simply about what most of the people in this commonwealth want, and most of the people in this country, we would have gun safety laws. but the nra will not allow it. rep. diehl: if senator warren returns to the senate, yeah, texas will be making the rules. if i go down i will have a seat at the table. because of my relationship with the administration and a majority controlled senate, have that massachusetts voice of reason. it is obvious that senator warren does not want this position as senator. she wants to be president, we all know that. she is campaigning in states more important to her than massachusetts. she was in georgia, pennsylvania, oklahoma, ohio, louisiana. senator warren, yes, if you basically are running for president for the next two years, we will not have a voice to provide gun safety. we will not have someone working for massachusetts every day because you will be continuing this two-year campaign to become the nominee for the white house. ms. saldo: let's move on. let's talk about something that has been talked about a lot in massachusetts the last two years, the legalization of marijuana. although many supporters have complained its rollout has been slow, massachusetts did legalize recreational marijuana two years ago. businessesmarijuana as an important industry for western massachusetts, and if so, do you see a need to assure the federal government will not interfere in this process? rep. diehl: i do. i think this is a states rights issue. they voted very clearly when they legalize not a limit the snow marijuana, but also recreational marijuana. my personal feeling i think is different than what the voters decided, but i honor the will of repealeds, like when i the gas tax and thankfully the legislature left that alone. the will of the voters was honored. same thing with the marijuana law. i think it can provide revenue for the state, and it can provide jobs in our state as well. at the same time i want to make sure that we do not go about it in a way that is reckless. i think the legislature has attempted to look at colorado as a model. the only thing i would say at think is wrong is when the legislature intercept of the law and make changes to it. they increase the changes to the tax. what they did by creating in must higher tax, they treated a black market which will still be in marijuana would traffic illegally, undermining our law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day. undermining what they are doing having to do that. and undercutting the revenue we could potentially be bringing in through the new marijuana industry. , dosaldo: senator warren you see a need to make sure the federal government is not going to interfere in this process? sen. warren: absolutely a see a need for the federal government to be held from interfering. here's the problem. massachusetts legalized marijuana but the federal laws to not change. tryhat means as businesses to grow and establish themselves here in massachusetts, they face multiple problems. the first one is they cannot get their money into the banking system because banks are concerned that the money under federal law comes from illegal sources. they have a problem with taxes because all of their gains are treated as no business expenses because it is treated as unlawful. and of course there is always the risk that someone could be arrested for possession. so, i got together with a republican from colorado, the guy who right now is trying to help republicans take over the senate. we have worked on a bipartisan basis on a bill that we have written together that says once the state acts, the federal government should back off. it is a good bill, it has both democrats and republicans to support it. why is it not law? because the republican majority with mitch mcconnell not bring it to a vote. if you actually want to see this we need a democratic geordie in the senate to get a vote on this. this is one of more than a dozen pieces of legislation i have worked on since donald trump has been elected. the good news among all the others, i have managed to get them through and signed into law. i hope we have time to talk about those. ms. saldo: one minute for a response. i totally: again, agree the federal government needs to make sure the marijuana industry is allowed to grow not just in our state but other states that choose to do this. i think the banking industry clearly needs to be given a freer hand so marijuana cash can be processed. i think that has been held up for too long. the other thing is here in stillhusetts, we need to take a cautious approach because i think law enforcement has not been able to weigh in on how they can deal with things like operating under the influence. we are still trying to figure this out. it is still a path we're trying to figure out as this business was put on us by the ballot question. from the federal end, again, this goes to show why you need a republican with a republican-controlled senate, which i fully estimate this will continue to be after the midterms. because taking massachusetts's successes and that perspective down to washington and convinced fellow republicans across the country -- ms. saldo: thank you. one minute. sen. warren: i have a good bipartisan bill but i need some allies in washington. i need them not just on the marijuana law, we need them on all sorts of things. i stood on the floor of the u.s. senate when i watched as health care hung by a single vote. wants to go to washington and be that single vote to repeal health care for tens of millions of americans. yeah, i am trying to help people around the country in other states because i want some allies down in washington. the best way i can protect health care right here in massachusetts is to have more people in washington who care about health care. by the way, that repeal of health care that mr. diehl has embraced and donald trump and republicans have embraced, it would cost massachusetts more than $2 billion every single year and repeal the protections for people with pre-existing conditions. this really matters. ms. saldo: the next question starts with the. -- you. social security. are 15 years until social security is expected to pay $.80 on the dollar. do you see a way to fix the system to avoid those benefits being reduced? sen. warren: i appreciate the question but i think the frame a little bit with respect is in the wrong place. the republicans just gave away to giantlion corporations and billionaires through a tax scam. now the debt has ballooned. what have the republican said is very -- appropriate response? now is time to put social security and medicare on the chopping block. that is the republican blame -- plan. not strengthen it, put it on the chopping block. let me stop and say i will never vote to cut social security. i will never vote to cut medicare. these are basic programs that people have paid for and they are entitled to. the ideas that the republicans we running a scam saying will give billions of dollars away to giant corporations that profits, andrd then turn around and take it out on the backs of people who collect social security and rely on medicare. we don't need to cut social security and medicare, we need to expand it. i have already introduced legislation. i introduced it years ago. we need to move forward on making social security stronger financially, but make sure it is there for every one of our seniors. after a lifetime of hard work you should be entitled -- ms. saldo: that is your time. do you see a way so that benefits will not be reduced? my opponent has vowed to repeal the very mechanism refilling social security and medicare. 2017 which sheof voted against and has vowed to repeal, has now created new jobs, increased wages that create the payroll taxes that go into refill. we as a country are starting to see in just one year the effects of this tax reform bill getting us 4.1 gdp. record unemployment. 50 years since we have had unemployment at the level is at now. massachusetts is actually beating the national number on unemployment. massachusetts is benefiting greatly. 80% of massachusetts residents received a tax cut because of this tax reform bill. but senator warren joins nancy pelosi and calling it crumbs, saying that the people were not getting what they were due, which is finally a break from federal government. we seeing people having more jobs, having higher wages. statesachusetts, our revenue has exceeded one $.2 billion in unanticipated tax revenue because of all the investment companies are putting into it. i want to add, my wife and i own a small business. we have had it for almost 17 years now. and you know what? it is time for government to finally help us with the largest corporate rate in the world to allow us to reinvest in our businesses. 90% of businesses in our country art 20 employees are lower. warren, somenator people have suggested raising the retirement age. what do you think? sen. warren: that is the wrong approach. the right approach is to put money into social security that it takes to meet our obligation. let's be clear. what the republicans want to do is run a scam on the american people. the scam starts by cutting revenues to the federal government. the idea that somehow the federal government is getting reacher, check the facts on this. the debt is going up and the republicans are saying openly -- this is not even a secret -- time to put social security and medicare on the chopping block. that is people, what they depend on. for me, this one is easy. this tax break was a scam from the beginning. xon alone gets more in tax breaks the 95% of all the people in the commonwealth of massachusetts. those brakes did not go to small businesses. they went to giant businesses, because that is who the republicans want government to work for. ms. saldo: rebuttal, send question. raising the retirement age to 72. rep. diehl: we should not do that. government is taking in record revenue. they have never taken in more tax revenue than before. what is needed is sending someone to washington who will also cut spending. on beacon hill octagon special interests to repeal the index gas tax when i knew we were wasting billions of dollars of taxpayer money. it was not going where it was supposed to. 50% of the gas tax was going to the mbta, which had $6 billion of deferred maintenance. they were asking us to fill it over and over again. we found out a year later $25 million have been stolen by a fund manager, then went to work for another company to take that money. revenue andment has you have the fiscal discipline to make sure it is spent where it is supposed to. that is why you have to send someone who is willing to stand up to things like the olympics. senator warren, her rating on cutting spending, zero. ms. saldo: the next question goes to you representative. president trump has called people names. flakes, he has used ethnic slurs. does the name calling and personal attacks come in washington these days affecting governing? if elected, would you do anything to combat these kinds of attacks? it isiehl: you know, disappointing to see how washington is functioning now. i do not follow the same path the president does and how i legislate, how i deal with people. at the same time my opponent has made comments that are pretty disturbing as well. she said anyone who voted for the president was part of an unusually -- ugly stew of racists. when republicans wanted to fix health care we wanted blood money from the american people. she has called to abolish ice. you have rendered that undercuts law enforcement. you end up having people like a cambridge supporter of hers that put a $500 bounty if someone would shoot someone from ice. that is how low things have gotten. i want to be different. i have not acted like that. i certainly will not follow the path of senator warren on trying to villain eyes and put us together. that is not what our country needs. when i go down to washington we will follow by example on that. if you look at the president and his track record, i will say we are finally seeing economic benefits from him being in office. we're seeing international benefits. a year ago we had north korea threatening our allies with nuclear weapons. and now a year later, we are seeing them having repeated meetings with south korea, even thinking about doing the olympics with them, which i also did not think is a financially good idea. ms. saldo: senator warren, for your part you have often criticize president trump and name-calling,, yet your came -- you went on to say calling members of the president's staff bloodsuckers and henchmen. how do you justify calling president trump out for his name-calling but then using language like that? sen. warren: we called him a mosquito, you are right. but here is the deal. what we are really talking about is hatefulness against groups, against how it is to depict the most vulnerable and really go after them. and i understand. my opponent stands here, he sounds reasonable, he says this is not what he wants. but look at his own record and who he is been supporting. he toward the border with the leader of a group that associates with rights of premises and wants -- white supremacists and wants to return to a time where gays stay in a closet and blames jews for 9/11. he supported naming black lives matter as a height -- hate group. he stayed on as trump's campaign chairman even after the access hollywood tapes came out. he got the endorsement of vice president pence, who spearheaded legislation to permit discrimination against lgbtq people. that is ultimately what this is about. this is about ugly slurs. and who is going to support that kind of ugliness that turns americans against americans, that turns people against people, that says if there is a problem in your life it is their fault. that is what donald trump and his campaign chair, mr. diehl, both support. rep. diehl: senator warren was just at a rally against justice kavanaugh. with one of the most anti-semitic voices in the u.s. right now. that is how -- senator warren herself is one of the main reasons that we have this lack of dialogue, this poisonous clinical environment. talk about pitting people against -- racist from front to back. you said the criminal justice system is racist from front to back. i want to know who you're talking about because you backed away from that. whether it's the law enforcement officers, the correction officers that are sitting right here. which ones are racist? you said from front to back they're all racist, that creates division and anger in our states and cities. we've had four officers killed. two shot and two kid. ms. saldo: we have to leave it there, sir, one minute. sen. warren: i didn't call anyone a name like that and you know that. we have law enforcement who work in the judiciary and every part of the criminal justice system and i work hard to support them but we also have a serious problem in the criminal justice system. let's look at the data. for the exact same crimes, study after study shows that african-americans are more likely than whites to be arrested, to be prosecuted, to be found wrongfully convicted and to receive harsher sentences. we have a problem in the system and frankly, that problem starts right down in congress with the things that we make unlawful and it goes all the way through the system to how we treat people after they serve time and they're trying to come back into their communities and be part of them. we need to have a grope -- grownup conversation, a real conversation about this. ms. saldo: thank you. our next question will focus on hurricane maria. destruction from the hurricane saw people flee the island and relocate to western massachusetts and there are still families here in the region without permanent housing. senator, should elected representatives be doing more to elp puerto ricoen natives? sen. warren: absolutely. but i want to start this earlier in time because i have been working with people in puerto rico long before maria hit. puerto rico has a terrible dealt problem where wall street vumture investors have been picking the bones clean of their economy and keeping it from moving forward. and then when maria hit and donald trump gave such a pathetic response. basically turned his back on american citizens and again, i never heard any complaint from his campaign chair, mr. diehl. we hurt our fellow citizens. many had to flee the island. some came here to massachusetts. i have pushed from the beginning to get housing and assistance we need for people who have been displaced as well as help for people on their island in rebuilding their instra structure. the trump administration has balked, denied, twisted amount every thing and refused to do it. . i've been to puerto rico since maria hit. i took a delegation. congressman neill was with us. we were there to visit and try to learn first hand what was happening and what was happening was shameful. it never should have happened that our fellow citizens would be left behind after such a devastating event. ms. saldo: do you agree with the trump administration's response to puerto rico? rep. diehl: senator warren -- warren's response shows just how possessed she is with donald trump and using his name any way she can. donald trump is not running here and massachusetts. but you and i are. i've certainly talked to the puerto rican community. in fact, when the lawrence disaster happened, when the gas line explosions occurred in lawrence and north andover, i was there that night. you were out of the state, as usual, not in massachusetts to be there when they needed them. i know you came in the next day for photo ops but it i -- i was out with the national guard when you were in passive and oklahoma campaigning. i was with families who couldn't have showers working because the gas lines and heat wasn't work. i've been here dealing with families right here in massachusetts when the time hits. you want to hit on president trump so you can continue your run towards the white house. great. but help people in massachusetts. that's what it's supposed to be all about. that's what i'm all about. sen. warren: my opponent may want to explore the facts bhfment the explosion hit niffles washington, d.c. doing my job and i got on an airplane as soon as i could and got to massachusetts. i was speaking that night to people who were part of the disaster relief. but here's the fundamental question. who's mr. diehl want to go to washington to work for? he says for the people of massachusetts but he repeated lip defenders donald trump. he commeerp leads to donald trump. donald trump's response to a disaster relief was to throw rolls of paper towles at people in puerto rico. donald trump's sfonls was to give himself an a and claim only a handful of people were killed in the disaster instead of the actual number of people and where is mr. diehl every time? he's there to cheer donald trump on. you say that donald trump is not mere. the question are we going to send somebody to washington to cheer on donald trump. ms. saldo: representative? rep. diehl: i guess we've move on in the fort reeken disaster and on to donald trump. this shows how much one person seems to be completely fixated in a president that she can't work with in a congress that she doesn't feel is doing her job. at the same time we have republicans that are effectively leading this country, bringing us back economically and we're seeing a resurgence in the american work force and that's giving us, again, revenue in the state that's allowing us to provide relief when there's a disaster here in massachusetts and at the same time provide revenue we need to respond to puerto rico. a country that is obviously economically having really tough times and i'm glad that massachusetts was able to send response forces down to help in puerto rico. i want to make sure is citizen -- sure the citizens of this state, if they come from another place or are here now, that doing ome country is well. ms. saldo: do you think it has an impact on her job performance or ability to -- [shouting] ms. saldo: i'll ask you that we've asked you to be quiet. [no audio] ms. saldo: sorry for that interruption. thank you so much. so the question was, do you think that senator warren's native american heritage impacts her ability to represent massachusetts in washington? rep. diehl: you know, it's not about senator warren's ancestry. it's about integrity in my mind and i don't care whether you think you benefited or not from that claim. it's the fact that you will tried to benefit from that claim that i think bothers a lot of people and has been something that you've been unable to put to rest since the 2012 campaign. look, i don't care what percentage she claims to be native american. i just care that i'm 100% for massachusetts and will be working for the people of this state and that's all i have to say on that sup. ms. saldo: senator, when we spoke in march for an interview and i asked you about whether or not you would take a d.n.a. test, you told me that you believed that the issue of your native american heritage had been settled. why did you change your mind and recently release the results of a d.n.a. test? sen. warren: you know, one of the things i see now is that confidence in government is at an all-time low and i believe one way we try to rebuild confidence is through transparency so i really made an effort over the past several months. i've put 10 years of my tax returns online. anybody can see them. i have put things about my family's history on line. ms. saldo: i ask you to not interrupt the candidates. please continue. sen. warren: i have put my employment record on line and ah, ultimately i took an d.n.a. test because i am an open book and it's all out there, it's on the internet, anybody can take a look. because at the end of the day, this isn't about me. this is about what's happening to working families all across this commonwealth. i'm not somebody whoever ran for office before but i'm a kid who wanted to be a public school teacher and by the time i graduated from high school, we didn't have the money for a college application, much less for me to actual go to college. my big chance was a commuter college that cost $50 a semester and it opened a million doors for me. i am the daughter of someone who ended up as a january toirp and i got to be a professor and a united states senator. those opportunities are disappearing for other kids. i'm in this fights for them. ms. saldo: representive, i'll give you a chance for an extra minute if you'd like it. rep. diehl: she's talked about her background. i didn't get into politics until i was 40 years old. i felt it was a calling, not a career. my wife and i own a small business. i was on the finance committee in my town but i felt like the system of beacon hill wasn't working for my district that i was ultimately elected to represent. i've cut tax in office because i felt that was important for families to get ahead. now my opponent supports things that will massively increase people's taxes and by the way, there's only one millionaire with a mansion in this room up here and that is senator warren. who by the way falsified her tax records when she took a $50,000 deduction for clothing. i don't have that time of clothing bill even with a wife and two daughters. it is about a system that may be rigged and unfortunately we have a senator who seems to be using that system. ms. saldo: you have one minute for rebuttal. sen. warren: mr. deem says he's not a millionaire but there's no way of know nag because his taxes are not online. he hasn't revealed them. yeah, he's filled out disclosures, disclosures with huge ranges. in fact, mr. diehl has revealed exactly the same number of tax returns that donald trump has and that's zero. for me, what this is really about are we going to be transparent about who we work for. i put everything out on the internet and you're right, there's a mistake on my taxes. it made no difference in how much i owed. there may be other mistakes in it. i don't want this fight to be about me. i want this fight to be a a be the next kid who needs a chance to go to school. i want it to be about health care and people who are about to retire. ms. saldo: our next question is about commurement rail service. commuter rail service from eastern -- winter massive eastern -- east to boston is seen by many here as a necessity. what if anything, do you think congress should do to secure money for a potential project? sen. warren: so this is one of my projects. make the investment in infrastructure to get high-speed rail. and by the way, we also need to make sure we're investing in communications so that all of the berkshires is covered on communications. you can't be part of a 21st century economy without that. but here's the problem again -- the republicans have given away a trillion and a half dollars to the most profitable corporations, to billionaires, so when they talk about oh, yeah, they've got some infrastructure plan. turns out it's not real. it's all smoke and mirrors. it's all, let's see, the federal government will put up $1 if the localities can put up $4. how will the federal government put up $1 they're going to keep that work that otherwise had been going. to cities here like springfield. we just can't be doing this. this is that fundamental question, who do you think government should work for. the republicans, donald trump, mr. diehl says make it work better and better for a thinner and thinner slice at the top instead of making the investments in infrastructure that we need right here in western massachusetts in education in building a future for everyone. ms. saldo: and that's time. what, if anything, do you think should be done at this level to secure rail funding east to west? rep. diehl: senator warren and i talked before in started about how we both were in traffic to get to the debate. i've been out in my campaign r.v. driving across the street. sometimes you lose your wi-fi, sometimes you lose your cell phone connection. we do need communications infrastructure. that will loum central and western massachusetts to bring some of the businesses that are currently overcrowding eastern massachusetts. it's great that the sea port in boston has g. e. and med med tech and these companies coming in and building new headquarters in boston is wonderful but there are a lot of people who need nose opportunities, those jobs in western and central massachusetts. if we have the communication, that incentivizes businesses to come here. as far as rail, i totally agree. we're currently having a tough time affording the rail we have. maybe we need too look at private industry. i know senator warren said you didn't build that when she first ran for office. she said it was government roads. i have to tell you, it was the chine shops in holyoke and bedford. they provided the hospitals that took care of people, provided the money to build those roads. ms. saldo: thank you, and senator, one minute. sen. warren: so, this is the standard republican playbook. saying you're all in favor of infrastructure. somehow the public sector doesn't really have to put up the money. private sector is going to do it and guess what, the infrastructure never gets built and that's where we find ourselves in massachusetts. how many times have politicians like mr. diehl stood up and said yeah, we need that high-speed rail. i'm totally in favor of it but when it comes to be, won't vote to put the funds in to build the high-speed remain. we ought to be putting real money in at the federal government level and we could do that except for the fact that the republicans, mr. diehl, donald trump, have given away a trillion and a half dollars to billionaires and giant corporations. it's the ultimate question of who government works for. it shouldn't be working just for the rich and powerful. infrom structure is how we build a future for all of all the. ms. saldo: representative, one minute. rep. diehl: when we did the gas tax ballot question in 2014, we knew exactly where a lot of the money was going and where too much money was going in massachusetts we're number two to new jersey for what we spend to maintain our roads. when we want to build rail, we need too much the money available and not waste. in other areas. massachusetts spends $675,000 per mile per year to maintain our roads. the national average is $145,000 per mile per year. that's new hampshire. their roads are in pretty good shape. massachusetts could be spending their money more first quarter cy first quarterly, and that would leave us to put the money where we need it. whether that's building rail or try new lines to get more people two to and from job locations that are going to help the economy and pay the taxes that build the rail. ms. saldo: census data tells us that the hispanic population in western massachusetts is growing and according to the pew research center, the number of dults eligible to vote has steadily grown yet their numbers voting has steadily declined. have you taken steps to reach out to them when you're campaign something referee: sure, you attend parades, you go door to door and different communities. i've been to launches, i've been to new bedford, marching in their parades, people of all races. it's not campaigning about trying to reach just one segment but as far as the hispanic community and not voting, that's not good to hear and programs they're feeling a lot of people are feeling, a disgust with washington and the way it's functioning. maybe distrust with puigen -- beacon hill. we have more and more ballot questions going on every year instead of legislators doing their job. we have to decide nursing levels, marijuana laws. casinos had to be put in the hands of the people. why aren't lawmakers doing what they're supposed to be doing? if any one segment of our state is not happy with politics and politicians, i get it in this case, people look at me regardless of their background saying here's someone fighting to make sure money is in their pocket, make sure jobs are out. -- there. ms. saldo: senator, has your campaign done things to reach out to minority voters since you've been on the trail? sen. warren: we just don't do this during the campaign. of course we have. but i try to live this every single day. i live it with who's on my staff and i live it with very -- every activity that we take. we trial to be a very inclusive office and try to get people involved everywhere. i think that mr. diehl is going to have a problem in this campaigning if people realize that he defended donald trump's racist takes on a latino federal judge back when donald trump was running for office and mr. diehl was his campaign chair and every time donald trump gets up and talks about the problems in mexico and the problems he sees about mexicans, he's saying to the latino community mere in -- here in the united states that he doesn't respect them and mr. diehl does not step up and push back on that. that's the core participate. he turns to the question about voting. voting is really a problem right now in the united states. why not have one political party in the united states, the republicans, whose plan to hold on to power is to keep american citizens from voting. voter suppression by telling people it just doesn't matter. everybody in washington is the same. voter suppression with voter i.d. laws, with jerry mannedering, by saying they don't want that that -- to hear about the russian interference. mr. diehl has spoken up on exactly zero of those props. ms. saldo: you have one minute. rep. diehl: i think senator warren wants to cherry pick my record, overlooking things like the fact i've tried to speed up immigration in massachusetts. when i was on the ways in means academy else on four years on beacon hill, i heard the same complaint about the backlog of people trying to become kiss -- citizens and i want to make sure that everyone who's eligible is come in and be a citizen. right here in massachusetts, in our country. i heard that the judicial population of about 300,000 in our state at the time, with the budgets they were given from the federal and state government, they were only able to process about 1,500 people a year so it's an artificial backlog that congress is unwilling to tackle, nwilling to fix. i want to go i want to go to washington and make sure that we speed up immigration so that people who want to be citizens, part of this growing economy, i want them to become citizens. ms. saldo: thank you. senator warren, you have one minute to responsible. sen. warren: i want to talk about something i've actually been able to do for young latinos and young african-americans. and that is 4,500 people right here in massachusetts who got cheated by for-profit colleges. i helped get auto of -- all of their student loan debts erased. that means they'll have a chance to go to school to build their lives without that student loan department. $700 ed to delelt $-- million that will be available for student loan debts, for people who go into public service. that's police officers, firefighters, people in public burden and that dealt disproportionately right now is bourn by latinos and african-americans and by kids just trying to make something out of their lives. for me, this isn't just about doing something in the abstract oar election season, it's something i live every tay. ms. saldo: according to the pioneer institute, it's easier for out of state students to get accepted for the university of massachusetts than for massachusetts residents. what, if anything, should be done about that disparity? sen. warren: thing is about money and admitting students who are going to pay higher tuition bills. we need too help young people who want to get an education. whether it's technical training, two years, four years or an advanced degree. it's like the investment in infrastructure. it helps build a future for all of us when people can get an education. i went to a commurement college that cost $50 a semester. there's nothing even close to that in massachusetts right now. why? because the investments are not made in young people who need help to get an education. 1/2epped we have a trillion dollar student debt loan burd than america. ms. saldo: you'll get equal time, representative. rep. diehl: first of all, one way to make colleges more afford sble make sure that we don't have jobs, teaching positions that pay $350,000 to teach just one counter. i think that might be one way to make it more affordable. by the way, really disappointed see harvard involved in a discrimination situation at their college. taking people not because they're the best and brightest but because they want to change the dynamic mix of the state. for me, education should be for people who deserve it because they've worked hard to get there. i think state schools should give preference to massachusetts residents. ms. saldo: thank you. closing statements, one minute. sen. warren: this country is in trouble. health care hangs by a thread right now. student loan, dealt burden. people are get -- dealt burden. people are getting crushed. the republicans are threatening to cut social security and infrastructure is falling apart around us and projects we need have been set aside. yet the republican response has been try to repeal health care and at a time when corporate profits are through the roof, give a trillion and a half dollars to giant corporation and the bill names. the way i see it the house is on fire and mr. diehl wants to go to washington to be a cheerleader for donald trump, to defend him when he makes ugly slurs and two to embrace every one of his dangerous policies. not me. i got into in fight because i think washington works great for those at the top. i just want to make it work for everyone else. ms. saldo: one minute. rep. diehl: we've seen again that my opponent is fixated on donald trump. she's fixated on the white house and not your bhoust thousands. i want to be your full-time snarkts something that she won't even commit to on national television. she won't admit that she's run for president. that if she were to be reelected. she would spend the next two years campaigning around the country. the only thing that matters to me is the need of the people of massachusetts. that's my track record for the last eight years in the legislature and that's going to be my track record for six years in washington if given the opportunity. i will make sure that government works for first quarterly with more accountability and make sure we stop the poisonous politics that has affected that city. this seat was once held by ted kennedy, who would work -- work with republican presidents and representatives to deliver. ms. saldo: thank you so much. that is all the time we have tonight. thank you again to the candidates, for our audience and for you at home joining us. hank you and good night. dd [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2018] >> two campaign rallies monday. former president barack obama in las vegas in the nevada democratic party get out the vote rally. live coverage at 4:00 p.m. eastern. president trump at a rally in houston to support senator cruz and his re-election bid. both live on c-span. you can watch live at c-span org or listen on the live radio app. also, virginia's first district u.s. house debate. live coverage at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span 2. it's also online and on the radio app. >> with the midterm selections -- elections just days away, watch the competition for the control of congress on c-span. see for yourself the candidates and the debates from key house and senate races. make c-span your primary source for campaign 2018. >> this week on "the communicators," university of pennsylvania's annenberg school communications professor, joseph turo on web policy issues. >> most policy are not designed to protect your policies but to give their lawyers an idea of the kind of information the companies about you often share about you. so if you go to a retailer, say kroeger or target or walmart. they'll tell you they use just about everything you do in rhythm to them. they use their information, they share parts of your information and they even buy information about you that will sort of complement the information they already have. >> watch "the communicators" monday at 8:15 p.m. eastern on c-span 2. >> here's what's coming up tonight on c-span. next on x and a. joel richard paul, professor at the university of california, hastings law school in san francisco, talks about his biography of chief justice john marshall. t 9:00 p.m., british approximately theresa may takes questions -- prime

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