we will bring you a number of interviews with freshman house memories, starting with congressman steve russell of obama and then congressman brad ashford of nebraska, and congressman tom mcarthur. we will also hear from representative elect josh gottheimer of new jersey. >> every weekend, book tv brings you 48 hours of nonfiction books and authors. here is what is coming up this weekend. saturday at 5:45 eastern, photographer matthew christopher tells the stories behind a series of photos of abandoned schools, factories, zoos and beachfront communities across the u.s. in his book "abandoned america, dismantling the dream." joseph beck talks about his book, "my father and atticus finch." then at 10:00 p.m., afterwards, johns hopkins professor alan silberg ailed looks at new farming methods and technology and their impact on consumers, the environment and workers in her latest book "chickenizing farms and food." she is interviewed by dan glickman, former u.s. secretary of agriculture. most people in america have never really been on a farm. maybe they go to the county fair. but they don't know what it is to be a farmer, which is not a romance. romantic viewis of agriculture that i find exasperating because it makes it impossible to think about agriculture clearly. >> sunday at 11:00 a.m., megyn kelly talks about her life and career as a journalist in her book "settle for more." at 5:15 p.m., james rosen and christopher buckley, the son of the late william f buckley, discuss their book "a torch kept lit, great lives of the 20th century." it examines essays by impressive figures. at six: 15 p.m., medea benjamin looks at the relationship between the u.s. and saudi arabia in her book "kingdom of the unjust, behind the u.s.-saudi connection." for thew.c-span.org complete schedule. >> in 2016, c-span conducted a variety of interviews with new -- 114thf the 115th congress. this interview with steve russell of oklahoma's fifth district begins with a clip from the 2015 interview. [video clip] >> i think the framing of the constitution was a giant compromise. you had states that wanted autonomy. a road and need for communication and defense system that they could not really provide. to so they were willing ditch the articles of confederation for the constitution. and they labored over it. john j and james madison, alexander hamilton and many others, they debated. they studied. they looked at past democracies and wondered why they failed and determined we needed a republic, a representative republic with checks and balances, so that one side cannot assume the other. divided among-- the others. it was literally designed so there would be competing interests. i think, when you come to of need,ng circles that's where you can find a compromise. that's when you can find the things that most americans can get behind and you can do. >> we are with conyers men steve russell, fifth district of oklahoma. in 2015,alked to you you talked about the checks and balances in our system of government. coming into the new congress, we have the republican president now. how important is the function of checks and balances now and how does that happen with republican control and 70 areas? >> al republic has seen the pendulum swaying in government, in some rare occasions, in all the legislative branch and the executive branch held by the same party. as we look at it, our republic is pretty resilient. we have a judiciary branch. i think we have to respect the judiciary branch as an equal branch of government. we are unhappy with the decisions that have been made for one reason or another. if he just plays into the checks and balances to sew these appointment will be very important, that the american people has a chance to influence those checks and balances. >> in your world on the floor and in committee, how hard or easy was it for you to work with the other side of the aisle? gosh, i have a handwritten note from president obama that i take great pride in that. he saw eye to eye on a couple of things. many things we didn't. but one thing i learned as a warrior, you can always find common ground. when people are income fund, there's always something you agree on. you focus on that and you try not to highlight the differences if you can. >> you are one of several members, freshmen members from the 114th that we interviewed who were iraq or afghanistan veterans. what sort of influence or impact do you think your class of veterans have on the body as a whole and on congress as a whole? > i think a great deal. veteransthe combat from iraq and afghanistan, we were closely and in a bipartisan fashion. even on the fence legislation last year and again this year. eye on centralto issues and we came together in ways that have a big influence. when you look at the defense authorizations, there's an awful lot of amendments and legislation they came just from us. >> we are talking here at the end of the 114th congress, looking back over the past two years, what do you think your base conservation was? >> we've certainly become known for our targeting of waste, continuing oklahoma's delegation great dr. tome coburn. we have taken that mental. -- that mantle. and we have turned into true reform. bipartisanship, working with matt cartwright from pennsylvania, he and i worked as cosponsors of the megabyte act, which will save $4 billion just in software licensure reforms. even in this town, $4 billion is still. real money the gets people's attention. . so you can always find overlapping ground. >> looking ahead to the next congress,? what are your hopes and executions >> i'm very concerned about the posture of our military. i think many are on both sides of the aisle. we are always concerned about dollars and resources. but if we can't defend our public, then the all -- then all the other things don't matter. we see new partners that are trying to assist us in that effort. but we also see new threats that have emerged that are powerful old threats we did not imagine we would be facing again. and we have to get prepared and strengthen our military. so that will be a focus. foreign policy, there's great opportunities among our english speaking partners around the globe. also with the pacific and european trade initiatives. there are a lot of good things do.an and one neat thing about bipartisanship, most of the time, when we leave the shores, we actually see i tie a lot when it comes to -- ci to i a lot when it comes to for policy. -- wee a times have you eye a lot when it comes to foreign policy. trade is better than tomahawks and diplomacy is better than disaster. yeah, let's go get engaged around the globe. >> what is your goal on those trips? >> i've had the privilege to meet with heads of state, talk about the things that we share, things that are concerns. they ranged in where we don't want to be in conflict like we see in asia or where they deal in europe the refugee crisis that are really shaking the foundations of governance there. our i haven't touched on african and central african and southern african partners that are concerned about their stable countries becoming unstable about what we see in the northern part turnovers continent. there are a number of things we need to be engaged in. able to get home and hear from constituents and be with your family? rep. russell: sure. we have done an awful lot of engagement in our community back home. i have the capital city in my district. being an urban area, they are not always red meat like oklahoma is known for. i think that is reflected in our constituency. we have been able to engage and when we had things that might have been volatile we have been able to work through it quite well. when i was elected, foreign policy and defense were important and people knew that so they have allowed me to freedom and privilege to engage in that area. i also find time for personal time. i'm a voracious reader. i have read a lot of different things that are unrealitied to my time in congress. i have even learned how the fly and soloed an airplane for the first time in august. >> you learned how the fly while you were -- rep. russell: you bet. why not? you always have to keep yourself moving and stretched. i made a promise to myself that i would try to live a life of peace and without conflict and then i ran for congress. imagine that. but it is important that we try to have a moment where we can take a step back and enjoy our great country. we're so very privileged to live here. >> thanks for being with us. rep. russell: thank you. it is great to be with you. >> now a conversation with democrat brad ashford of nebraska's second district which took place after the elections. we begin with a clip of congressman ashford from 2015. >> as the campaign begins to unfold do you sense the republicans are moving to the right and your party moving to the left? rep. ashford: i don't know if the republicans are moving to the right particularly. i think the democrats need to be careful. in they have already lost a a great swath of the middle of the country. by not really appealing to people in nebraska, for example. kerry ran for governor, democrats were a handful. now it is 200,000. y sense is that john boehner is not a far right conservative republican. he is a pragmatist. that's my sense. i think some of the candidates, jeb bush, for example, to me, is an -- i really admired his father. is a very appealing candidate. i think if the democrats need to be -- bring themselves back into the center of the voting population like bill clinton did. i think bill clinton was a master at it. >> with congress brad ashford to have second district of nebraska. we just showed a clip to our viewers of our interview in 2015. you said democrats were losing some of their appeal in the middle of the country and republicans back then hasn't moved that far to the right. where do you think the parties stand now in 2016? rep. ashford: i think the trump phenomenon could not have been predicted in early 2015. i do think the democratic party does need to get back to the center and they need to talk directly to the needs of working people and that means specific, clear messaging that talks about what we as a party stand for regarding work, your children, college education, all of those -- college tuition, all of those issues -- health care, all of those issues that affect families. i think the messaging has to change. certainly more pragmatic le when i first came into office, the issue was destroying isis. that's where everybody was focused more or less. now that seems to be pivoting a way from that. >> you lose a close election this year. tell us about the things you feel you got done that you're proud of and some of the things left undone. rep. ashford: unquestionably some things for the distribute, the runway at the air force base, it is a national security issue. yoin, developing a center for infectious disease and research and training at the university of nebraska medical center, working on the hospital for v.a.. those are localized kind of things with national implications. really as i look back at it, it was my time on the armed services committee, three trips to the middle east. changing the direction of the fight against isis by funding the military in more re-robust manner, doing hits in a nonpartisan way, increasing the air war against isis. those kind of things happened within the last two years. i think those are accomplishments for the entire team. i was part of it and i was proud to be part of it. >> as you leave congress, what's your best guidance for your successor as he comes in? rep. ashford: well, you really is to be independent, i think, being from a small state, especially early in your career, i felt going in that i wanted to look at the issue in front of me, not necessarily the party solution to the problem. and i think that served me well. we have been named the fifth most bipartisan member and i think we have been independent. i think that's what nebraskaans want. that is kind of the base level standard for nebraska members. my successor is a good guy. had great career in the military. i think he would be wise to continue on that tradition. but i'll leave it up to him. >> you talked in our 2015 interview about fundraising. two years goes by in the blink of an eye, i suppose. tell us about how difficult the fundraising aspect of it is. rep. ashford: it takes away dramatically from what should be the focus here. it is not so much the actual fundraising itself but the pressure to rundraise. everything sort of morphs into that. everything political morphs into that whether it is a two-year term. i think it is really the citizens united impact allowing money to flow into elections without any idea where the money is coming from. my campaign for example, at the end of the day, it wasn't money raised by my opponent that influenced the election. it was the amount of money that came in from outside groups through the leadership pack on the republican side. millions and millions of dollars. well, i could never raise enough money to compete against that. we had groups that came in and supported us too, but i think the lesson from that is we have got to ratchet that down somehow and i know that is a constitutional problem and the court also have to test that again. we have gone way too far on having political money raising as a free speech issue. i don't think it really is the way it has morphed into the way it is now. it takes the candidates out of the game in many respects and gives the ball to these outside groups. >> in terms of the day-to-day operations and your job, as you leave, what would be your suggestion for how to change the process here on capitol hill? rep. ashford: well, you know, it is -- i come from a nonpartisan state. we don't do this. it is so different. we don't have -- we don't really have a rules committee in the traditional sense in the congress. bills come out of committee and move to the floor. i know that can be done in the congress. it is not done now. i think a much more free flowing processing of legislation is the best way to go. any movement we could get back to the committees having more control over how the debate occurs on the floor without the intervention over the rules committee. i know george norris actually in going back, i hate to do this to you but going back to 1908, led the effort against speaker canon here to -- to restrict the power of the speaker in deciding what legislation comes to the floor. i think we're kind of at that place again. >> going back to politics for a moment, tell us what it was like to campaign during this very intense presidential campaign. what was it like for you on the local level? rep. ashford: my campaign started the day i got here. my opponent announced that he was going to run and that we needed a change even though i had yet to find my apartment or my office. if i'm being flippant, i don't mean to be. i think the campaigning is way over -- takes way too much time and effort away from the process of governing for everybody in the house. how do we do that? i think -- i have a rule, actually joe manchin that is same rule in the senate. that is that you never work against the people you work with. so i would no more work against a republican than the man in the middle. if i'm working with a republican or any republican, i simply would not work against them. i think this idea of republican leadership and democratic leadership, people obviously supporting their own candidates but in a way, the money raising side and activity side, it really takes the actual member out of the process and it disrupts the relationships that exist between members just because they are people. so we take the human element out of it and we interpose this rather -- i don't know how the describe it. it is counterintuitive because your intuition is to make friends and develop relationships. this process of campaigning interfierce dramatically. i think -- there is no turnover in the house or very little. i'm one of the few turnover people. i come from a significant -- plus four or five republican district. it is always going to be a tough districts for democrats anyway. so i don't see what anybody gains by these kinds of tactics. >> what has been the hardest part about being a member of congress? rep. ashford: i suppose the hardest part mainly is just the slowness of the process and the not being able to -- i'm used to 16 years in nebraska where big issues where dealt with. never perfectly but the fact that we could not do an infrastructure bill and immigration bill. we need infrastructure reform. or infrastructure focus. we need tax reform. we need to think about how we're going to look at the world globally. those are huge issues that affect jobs today. and we don't do anything about it. it is unbelievable to me. we didn't shut the government down. we accomplished that. >> lastly, what is next for congressman ashford? rep. ashford: i would love to come back some day. i love doing this. i love legislating. that's what i do. so some day maybe the opportunity will arise when i can continue to serve in a legislative capacity. i just love serving my state and my people and my constituents. it is gratifying. i love it. i love the issues. so some day san francisco, not, i've always been engaged in public service in omaha, one way or another. there is always going to be -- i'm sure there is something they need me to do when i get back. >> congressman brad ashford, thank you for being with us. rep. ashford: thank you very much. >> now a conversation with congressman tom mac arthur. we'll begin with part of an interview with did in 2015. >> we saw a news article that said you have a regular practice of entering the house chamber through the doors on the democratic side of the although. why do you do that? rep. macarthur: i started to do it i think just you know sometimes you go in one side and sometimes you go in the other side. but i stop and talk to people. ever since, which has really been most of my time here, i do it every time now. i see my republican colleagues at different event, social events. i have plenty of opportunity to be with my republican colleagues, but less so with my democratic colleagues. one of the things i observed even before i took office, during the orientation process is that partisanship is sort of built into the d.n.a. of this place and if you're not intentional about overcoming it, you just slip into being a republican or a democrat with very little interaction. so it may seem like a simple gesture but for me, it is an opportunity to get to know people. >> have you seen other members trying to make that ntentional efforts at bip? - at bipartisan? rep. macarthur: i think colleagues of mine believe we were sent here to make the place work. you cannot do that if you are only focused on your own party. you can do it some of the time but on issues where its could go one way or another, if you don't cultivate real genuine relationships with people in the other party, then i think those are lost moments. >> congressman tom mack arthur from new jersey, we just showed our viewers and you where you talked about walking in on the democratic side of the house. we head into the 115th congress with republicans in control of the house and senate again and now a republican president. what does bipartisanship look like and what did you learn from the 114th and what does it look like going into the 115th? rep. macarthur: i still do that actually, two years later. i think bipartisanship means working together with people that don't always see things the same way. i think it is really important that republicans now that we control congress and the white house, we have -- in my view, we have to really make sure to be careful to do that. the members here from the other side also represent about 750,000 people apiece. and we can't have half of our country angry with our direction and the other half happy with it. we have to find ways to work together and i intend to do that in this next congress. >> clearly something resonated for you. you come off an election winning re-election, a republican winning in the district i understand that president obama had won twice in a row, 2008 and 2012. donald trump wins that district. you win in that district. what's going on in your district that -- rep. macarthur: it is a good question. what is going on in my district is what's going on across america. we have people that see things differently. it doesn't need to make them enemies. in half of my district, i have far more republicans than democrats and in the other half of my district, i have far more democrats than rans. i won both of those counties. i did it by making sure that i paid attention to what people on both sides of the aisle insist on and i clearly donald trump, president-elect trump, clearly presented an alternate path that appealed to enough americans that he has been elected and we have to respect that, but we also need to be careful to work with both sides and make sure the government actually works for ault all the people. and i'm committed to that in this next congress. >> what were some of the legislative efforts that were your big successes in the 114th and some of those constituent everytimes as well? rep. macarthur: i'll start with the second part of that question because it comes first. i have to serve, as every member of congress does, we have to remember our constituents fir and foremost. they sent us here and while we represented the whole country and look at the whole country, we very specifically represent the 750,000 people that are back hope. so i've been very accessible in my district, whenever i'm back in new jersey, i'm out and about. i have a lot of town halls, coffees with the congressmen and just make myself accessible. we have recovered now about $4 million for constituents on individual case work. we have opened thousands of cases and i'll continue to do that. we've had forums on everything from the opioid abuse problem which is rampant in my area to sandy relief efforts that haven't gone well. first and foremost for me is constituent service and then on the legislative side, i'm very happy with the heroin bill that we got passed. i'm continuing to work with the opioid task force to try to conquer that. and i'm thrilled with the preservation of the tanker at the joint base and i'm going to continue to work on that as well. >> on the sandy efforts in our original interview, you were critical of fema on their efforts towards helping families in new jersey and in your district in particular. where do things stands now? rep. macarthur: i'm still critical of fema. i don't think there has been enough accountability. i still have thousands of people that haven't gotten a fair shake from the federal government, the very agency set up to help victims of disaster relief. these people are still fighting the fight. i don't think there has been enough accountsability. it is one of my ledge slavet priorities from the 115th congress is to make sure -- part of fema is being reauthorized. i want to be at the table during that react adviseation. i want to make sure there is more accountability and make sure we continue to have a backstop that helps people in disaster-prone areas. >> what do you plan to do differently heading into the 115th congress? rep. macarthur: that is a good question. i certainly intend to continue in the things that we talked about, bipartisan efforts, focus on strong national security. maybe i intend to get more focused on some of the national flood relief issues ch. i think there is more that needs to be done in the heroin abuse. i'm very concerned about that. so i may be taking a deepe dive into some of the things that i started in this first congress. >> what do you think when the congress gavel sns in january, what should be the first issue the house takes up anyway? rep. macarthur: i think the american people have made it clear they want to see reform to the healthcare system. they want sozz reform to our immigration system. in my view, in all of those reforms, we have to make sure we do it carefully enough that we don't leave people behind. i think tax reform is essential if we're going to get our economy growing again. my guess is those are in fact the three areas we start with. >> you come to this position after a successful career in the insurance business and running a foundation. what has been the most -- your favorite part of this new job as a congressman? rep. macarthur: just being here. look at the room we're in. we're in a statuary hall, the house of representatives. the people's house. it is an incredible privilege to be here and to represent my neighbors in the u.s. capitol and that never gets old for me. i will have six blocks -- when i'm here, six blocks from the capitol. i look at the capitol dome the entire way to the office in the morning. it is just a tremendous privilege to be here. >> new jersey's congressman tom macarthur. thanks for being with us. rep. macarthur: thank you, bill. himer esentative got spoke with c-span recently. he defeated congressman scott garrett. >> josh gottheimer, tell us about your experience here in washington. you are not new to ashington. goipt had been a lot of years. i spent most of my career on the private sector. it is great to be back. what i've been most excited about is the chance to work with and sit down with democrats and republicans. during orientation, it is an opportunity to spend time together. what i'm seeing is there is a lot of common and a lot of issues. it has been great. >> democrat new jersey representative of the fifth district. what did you do during the clinton administration? rep. gottheimer: i was a speechwriter for president clinton and i most recently worked with the chairman of the fcc. >> also worked with the ford company. what did you do? rep. gottheimer: i worked at ford motor company, corporate advertising, and most recently at microsoft where i did corporate strategy. >> what does all the background mean for the job you will do out here? how do you think that is impacted what you do? rep. gottheimer: it gives me a great perspective on bringing the public and private perspectives in. one thing that is so important, talking to folks here, how do we solve problems and dig in? i really ran on this idea that we need to get our taxes down and cut unnecessary regulation and standby veterans and first responders. bringing the perspective of being willing to sit at the table and get things done and worry less about partisanship, you cannot come to the table and scream at each other. you have to solve problems and move forward. that is hopefully one of the greatest assets i am bringing to the table. >> why did you decide to run? rep. gottheimer: i think most of us are incredibly frustrated with what is going on. you see what is going on here and it has been too little in terms of solving problems. people are focused on creaming and being nasty versus getting things fixed for people. i am really eager to hit the road and start working hard from the beginning and really find a way for common ground. whether that is tax reform or infrastructure or doing right by families, i think there's so much opportunity to work together and that is what ou're hearing. i will tell you i'm most heartened by -- democrats and republicans in terms of wanting to make progress and deliver for people. >> you are here because you to field representative scott garrett, republican. did a lot of work on financial issues. do you plan to do the same? is it important to the area you represent? rep. gottheimer: financials are most critical to where i am from. we'll see what happens with the committee assignments. regardless of what committee i am on, i know what i am focused on. we have a lot of big issues on the financial front to make sure our country continues to lead the world, especially in new york where i am from a new jersey, really the key to the global financial sector. so many other issues. small businesses need to thrive. getting our taxes down and cutting unnecessary regulation is critical. i feel if we do the right thing and do right by our communities and make sure we get, in new jersey, make sure we do everything to help the economy forward, bring jobs in, make sure the companies who are there stay there. the world is our oyster in the future can be credibly positive, but it will take a lot of work. that is what people want. they want us to work together. that's what i'm very focused on. >> where did you grow up and what was your childhood like? rep. gottheimer: good uestion. i grew up in north jersey not far from where i live now. i went to public school. my dad owned a small business, my mom was a schoolteacher. i learned like most people the value of hard work, but also the importance of giving back when you can. my dad always taught me, the private sector leads the way. it is important to make sure we do everything to thrive but also standing by people who stand by us. which is why i spent a lot of time focusing on standing by first responders and make sure we do right by veterans, women's issues and families. i have a 4-year-old and a 7-year-old who remain the most important things in the world, and my wife, but i think we both agree the kids come first. as a parent, what guides me every day is doing right by them. i think that is what drives a lot here, their kids and grandkids. it is why we realize at the end of the day what is most important is building a good future for them. >> what did your kids say when they find out you won? rep. gottheimer: my daughter -- we didn't find out until about midnight. my daughter had fallen asleep. my 7-year-old, we woke her up and it took her a few minutes to come out of the haze. my son had a lot of cookies so he was running in circles. but they were both very excited about it. it is a thrilling time. it was a great chance throughout this process to teach them about democracy and how it works. no matter who wins, the country will move on and that is most important. you get to teach them about the different branches. i am excited for them to come down here and see what we do. this is about their futures. it is exciting to have them be art of it. they are not wearing the pins around anymore, but they were very into it. >> you went to public school, to go to the university of pennsylvania, to harvard. ow will that help you? rep. gottheimer: it gave me a good education,an and i met a lot of people out here. i think education is critical. i was aforted so many opportunities. i am grateful for that. i am really hoping to bring these experiences to bear here. that is what you're supposed to be. it all affects your values. i really hope i bring what i learned from president clinton, the time we had surpluses a great economic growth, incredible fiscal responsibility with balanced budget and law enforcement. there are certain values i learned that will carry through now. it is important to find the middle. i believe there are extremes on either side. everything in moderation my dad always told me. i think that is a good place. can we find this place where we can work together to move things forward. >> thank you for spending some time with c-span. appreciate it. >> next a conversation with congresswoman brenda lawrence. we'll begin with part of an interview with did with the michigan democrat in 2015. >> you mentioned leadership, and we should point out that you were elected by your peers as freshman whip and appointed as senior whip. why do you think they gave you those assignments and what does it mean to you? what do you hope to accomplish? rep. lawrence: the senior whip as by renney highwayier. said you do know i'm a freshman, right? he said yes. when i look at your background and the path that you have taken and the skills and voice a senior he said as whip you are hearing the chances, the legislation and the bills and you are sitting there as to bring perspective. how does this impact? what do you think is good about that? what i want to do is continue to bring that skillset that i have that i'm so proud of to the discussion of federal government. we were a freshman class of some amazing people with. we have stayed really close. and so to have the class with their trust in me and i sent t a news to tell me what we're doing to different members to make sure we keep that closeness. >> congresswoman brenda launches of michigan, we asked you in our interview in 2015, you talking about your leadership role in the freshman class following this presidential election, what are you telling your freshmen member about the road ahead in the house? rep. lawrence: i tell them to expect a very, very demanding pace. some of those come from legislator where is they have a time of day that they vote. i asked them to understand that i came in thinking the other side of the aisle, those people that i have found some of the republicans to be amazing individuals. that was kind of surprising to me. and then also to understand that you need to keep your passion. while we have to work together and legislate, you can't -- you have to have a core sense of what you believe in. what your constituents wants and you have to -- your vote is your vote. >> democrats picked up a few seats in the election but you're in the minority still in the house. what's that passion? what is that core interest of your constituents that still carries on into the next congress for you? rep. lawrence: my constituents constantly use the word, we need you to fight for us. we need you to understand, have a very diverse population. issues of immigration. issues of criminal justice, issues when it comes do i education and funding of those core things that we need in our community, they say we need you to fight. we understand you're the minority but we never want you to sit there and not stand up and be a voice for us. >> given that the house and senate remain republican and a republican president, what do you think the pace will be like in the 115th congress? rep. lawrence: this is going to be a difference because we have the checks and balance of a veto. we don't now. i don't know how the trump administration, the republican agenda, how they are going to align. so that's going to be interesting to watch. the democratic party, we are ing to really enhance, revamp and really solidify our message and our platform. we must. this election taught us a lot. >> what is the most important thing you have learned in these first two years in office? >> i rep. lawrence: i have learned that my vote does matters. i learned that finding out the reason why -- what is the real core of the language of the bill? what are we trying to achieve? is this -- even though it may not be my bill or my language, will it impede my core values? will it be in contrast? lit move america forward? >> you have plenty of michigan legislative experience. in terms of learning about the bills and the language in bills and the amount of work that you have to cover, compare and contrast, here and in the house and your previous work in other elected positions? rep. lawrence: in other elected positions, i had the latitude, the time and luxury of knowing and owning every piece of legislation. i knew everything as a mayor that moved in my city. here it is so important. you have to bring on qualified staff. they have to be people that will invest and strengthen you and keep you informed because the pace here is one that i have never experienced in any other office i have held. >> you said even on a losing vote, every vote counts. tell us about what you feel is your biggest accomplishment, whether that was a piece of legislation or something that may happen for a constituent. rep. lawrence: one of my bills, if i first bill was about foster care. i have found my voice. foster children do not have a family or a parent to advocate for them. they are wards of the court. what we do in legislation to support them and protect them. i in the education bill passed that in every school district, t that takes federal dollars investing. start are children grag graduating? that was powerful for me. now i'm on the caucus here. i'm going to make a difference for those children and that to me is a major sense of accomplishment. >> how difficult or easy was it getting republican support for measures like that? rep. lawrence: it was bipartisan. at is something that was refreshing for me. we no longer need the strong labor workforce. we need a skilled trade workforce. that's been bipartisan. we are building that caucus to say in america, we legislatively have to have an agenda to build a workforce so they can sustain our economy and move it forward and be competitive. >> you mentioned bipartisan success and foster care and now into adoption. give us another area in the 115th you think there might be an avenue for you to work in a bipartisan way with republicans. rep. lawrence: transportation, infrastructure. i was one of those voices. infrastructure and transportation is one that both candidates talked about in their agenda. that is a place that i have a voice coming from michigan, coming from the area where i have water, i have international borders, i have automotives, roads and bridges, i was a mayor. these are things that i can bring a voice and i will be fighting for infrastructure and transportation. we are almost in the third world condition in america and we need leadership in that area. >> you won re-election obviously. your state went for donald trump. tell us briefly about your election experience and what you're taking away from other michiganners on donald trump's win. rep. lawrence: we as democrats need to make sure our message is inclusive of all people. we have been the conscious, i feel in our government where we are the voice for those who don't have a voice. somewhere we missed our target when it comes to rural america and white america. we need to make sure that our message is inclusive of all people, which is what we stand for and i have learned that from this and i'm going to work with our democratic party to make sure that never again does any segymingt of our community feel that they are not part of our agenda. >> congresswoman brenda lawrence from detroit, michigan. thank you for being with us. rep. lawrence: thank you. >> in 2015, c-span conducted interviews with new peb members of the 114th congress. following the 2016 election we spoke with some of those members for a second time about their first terms. this segment with republican lee zeldin of new york begins th a clip from that 2015 interview rep. zeldin: i usually go to sleep around 12:00 or 1:00 and 6:00.p around 15k >> when you're in washington, where do you live? >> i stay in my office and my hotel room. it is a big closet. great camaraderie there are so many of us. >> is it because it is expensive to live in washington for a congressman? rep. zeldin: for me, i just remember a few years back, when i had visited here. chris gibson ones of my battalion command ers at the airborne division. i remember in 2010 the class coming in and i remember thinking then, wow, if i was elected as part of that class, i think i would be doing the the exact same thing. there are a lot of different factors to it. i enjoy it. it might be the army in me. i have an air mattress put down. it is all good. >> we're with congressman lee zeldin of new york's first distribute. in this our interview this 2015, we asked you about your sleeping accommodations on capitol hill. you said you were sleeping on an air mattress in our office. are you planning on upgrading? rep. zeldin: i have upgraded. i'm on a roll-away. no longer on an air mattress. i'm still one of the many members who stay in our office here. home for me is back on long island. while we're here from the moment i wake until the moment i go to sleep, non-stop working. >> besides your personal comfort, what is the biggest lesson you learned in the first two years? rep. zeldin: there is actually a lot that gets done where republicans and democrats, liberals and conservatives work together. but there seems like to be no room for a lot of national media to talk about when everything positive gets done. telling people when their government is working for them. you go back home and you ask people what their thoughts are and what their perspectives are of their government, their concern, they are pessimistic when things don't get done when they should, that's right, they should be upset. we don't come back with enough good news. i noticed monoi first term on education, infrastructure, overhauling the sustainable growth rate, almost 250 times the republican congress and democratic president worked together to get something across the finish line. aufrl lot of american public is not aware of that. >> what is another issue you talked about in that 2015 interview, you said your district had the second highest population of vets in country. what has congress done and the administration efforts? rep. zeldin: there have been a lot of bills passed by the house to help our veterans on so many different fronts. no matter how much has been done or anything that we will do, the fact is there always will be more that should be done for our veterans. as a new administration comes in and a new secretary is picked and the future for the department of veterans affairs, there is a lot more that can be done with the way hospital construction budgets is being run, the relocation incentive bonus program, overmedicaiding patients, wait time lists, accountability, culture, some st. louis to get changed. there is a lot more that can be done with the next congress and the new administration. >> the new administration already laying out a very aggressive platform for the first 100 days. leader mccarthy laying out a very busy schedule for the house. what are your hopes and expectations for the first part over the 150th? >> i expect it to be very busy. there is a lot to do. on the senate side, on top of all the legislation and appropriation work that confirmations and cabinet members, of a new supreme court justice, on the legislative front, on the appropriations side, from obamacare to border security, tax reform, infrastructure spending, reforming, improving our v.a., there is a lot of work to get done within the first 100 days. >> have you mapped out for yourself how you're going to balance all of that work and balance the needs of your constituents back home? rep. zeldin: well, the good news is a lot of what i described is not just for our country but more my constituents back home. we have on the first congressional district heard from many constituents who are deeply concerned with the way obamacare has impacted their families, their employers. they care deeply about these border security issues and the need to improve our tax policy. we do have a lot of local specific priorities that we're going to be very focused on, at the same time a lot of the border national topics that are being debated and are all set up for action in 2017, those are important for my district too. >> you won your first race with nearly 60% of the vote. how difficult was its or was it difficult running for re-election given the tenor of the presidential election? rep. zeldin: my best advice for anyone who becomes a member of congress when they ask what is the secret? it is to do your job. over the course of my entire first term, when we're home in the district, theemails, the mail, trying to get certain goals across the finish line. having a good team. responding to constituents. there is so much that gos into a productive first term that a lot works itself out when you get closer to that time for constituents, voters to be heading to the ballot box. >> what didn't work for you in the first two years? something perhaps the voters don't know about but you're thinking to yourself we're not going to go that routes, you're changing things in your office or the way you approach your day-to-day work or the economy on the floor? rep. zeldin: the experience mend make me and my entire team better prepared for serving in congress. a lot of those freshman lessons that you learn as far as staffing, how to get a bill in committee and communicating with the media and the public and a lot of those freshman lessons we didn't