people of ohio. thank you so very much. thank you. -- and god bles the people of ohio. thank you so very much. thank you. ♪ [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> tomorrow, until biden speak in the campaign rally at the national railroad museum in wisconsin. our live wrote to the white house coverage begins at 4:10 p.m. eastern here on c-span. >> as c-span covers the republican and democratic party convention this year, here is what some viewers have had to say about candidates. >> i thought governor romney had to do two things attend in his speech -- explain why obama deserves not to be reelected and explain why he deserves to be elected. as well as giving some idea of the roots of his values. since this was an introduction to america at large. i think he largely did a good job. >> i thought the speech was a fairly good speech. it did reintroduce mitt romney to the american public. however, it did not change my mind. i will still vote for president obama. >> i watched the whole convention. i am extremely impressed. i was undecided. now i am decided. i am 100% a mitt romney supporter. >> i am an obama supporter. i think -- he made 12 million new jobs compared to romney who has to start all over. at this point, obama's record against what romney has done, there is no comparison. the ticket of mitt romney and paul ryan together against obama and joe biden -- there is no comparison. let president obama had the republican house. how does he get anything done? that is what we need to focus on. putting obama back in and let him finish what he has started. >> mr. romney did a fabulous job on this convention. he opened my eyes on a lot of things. his wife is, too. she did a fabulous job. my whole family will be voting for mr. romney. >> join the conversation every morning on "washington journal" at 7:00 eastern with your calls and e-mails on c-span. >> watch coverage of the democratic convention from charlotte, north carolina. every minute, every speech live here on c-span. next, president obama speaking at an iowa rally than a discussion about the 1972 democratic convention. after that we will show you peaches -- speeches from past democratic convention. now president obama campaigning in iowa, a few miles west of des moines. this event marked the kickoff of his road to charlotte toure, the site of next week's democratic convention. ♪ [applause] >> hello, iowa! [applause] oh, it is good to be back in iowa! [applause] >> we love you, mr. president! >> i love you back. that's why i'm back. [applause] oh, this is a great crowd. it's good to see my outstanding friends -- tom harkin in the house. [applause] leonard boswell. [applause] tom miller. [applause] and can everybody please give lucas a big round of applause -- not just for the introduction, but for his service to our country. [applause] and it is great to see all of you. [applause] we've got a spectacular day. college football is in the air. [applause] we will try to get you home in time to see the hawkeyes and the cyclones. i know we've got kickoff later. [laughter] and although you guys got to see the nationals and chris cornell perform before i got here - [applause] -- i just want you to know that i could not appreciate them performing -- i could not appreciate more them performing for us. so please give them a big round of applause as well. [applause] now, iowa, this is our first stop on the road to our convention in charlotte, north carolina. [applause] but there was a reason for me to begin the journey right here in iowa, where it first began more than four years ago. [applause] because it was you, iowa, who kept us going when the pundits were writing us off. it was in your living rooms and backyards and vfw halls and diners where our movement for change began. and it will be you, iowa, who choose the path we take from here. [applause] now, last week, the other party gave you their pitch at the convention down in florida. >> booo -- >> don't boo -- vote. [applause] it was something to behold. despite all the challenges that we face in this new century, what they offered over those three days was more often than not an agenda that was better suited for the last century. it was a rerun. we'd seen it before. you might as well have watched it on a black-and-white tv. [laughter] if you didn't dvr it, let me recap it for you. [laughter] everything is bad, it's obama's fault - [laughter] -- and governor romney is the only one who knows the secret to creating jobs and growing the economy. that was the pitch. there was a lot of talk about hard truths and bold choices, but nobody ever actually bothered to tell you what they were. [laughter] [applause] and when governor romney had his chance to let you in on his secret, he did not offer a single new idea, just retreads of the same old policies that have been sticking it to the middle class for years. they talked a lot about me. they talked a lot about him. but they didn't say much about you. [applause] and they spent even less time talking about what they planned to do -- not just because they know you won't like it, but because you've lived through it and you can't afford to repeat it. [applause] see, it turns out that we don't think making the middle class pay for another budget-busting $250,000 tax cut for folks making $3 million a year or more will magically translate into jobs and prosperity for everybody else. we don't think families will be better off if we undo financial reforms that are there to prevent another financial crisis, or rules that are there to protect our air and our water, protections to make sure your health care is there for you when you get sick. [applause] we really don't think the best way to strengthen medicare is to give seniors a voucher that leaves them to pay any additional costs out of their own pockets. iowa, they have tried to sell us these tired, trickle-down, you're-on-your-own policies before. they did not work. they've never worked. they won't create jobs. they won't cut our deficit. they will not strengthen our middle class. they are not a plan to move our country forward. [applause] we believe in something better. we believe in an america that says our economic strength has never come from the top down. it comes from the bottom up. [applause] it comes from the middle out. it comes from students and workers and small business owners, and a growing, thriving middle class. that's what we believe. [applause] we believe in an america that doesn't let how much money you've got determine whether or not you can afford good health care or get a higher education. [applause] we believe in an america that leads not just by the force of our military, but also with the strength of our ideals and the power of our example. [applause] we believe in an america where no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, no matter where you come from, no matter who you love, you can pursue your own happiness and you can make it if you try. [applause] >> four more years! four more years! four more years! >> that's what the last four years have been about, iowa. and that's what this campaign is about. and that's why i'm running for a second term as president of the united states. [applause] now, this thursday night, i will offer you what i believe is a better path forward -- a path that grows this economy, creates more good jobs, strengthens the middle class. and the good news is you get to choose which path we take. we can take their path or we can take the path that i'm going to present. [applause] we can choose whether we give massive new tax cuts to folks who've already made it, or whether we keep the tax cuts for every american who's still trying to make it. [applause] i have cut taxes by a total of about $3,600 for the typical family. [applause] and i'm now running to make sure that taxes aren't raised a dime on your family's first $250,000 of income. [applause] that's the path forward. but you're going to have to choose it. it will be up to you. you can choose whether we cede new jobs and new industries to countries like china and india or germany, or whether we fight for those jobs in states like iowa. [applause] my opponent's experience -- he likes to talk about it -- has been investing in companies that often were called "pioneers" in the business of outsourcing jobs. and when his advice was to "let detroit go bankrupt," i said a million jobs were at stake, an iconic american industry is at stake -- i'm going to bet on american workers and american manufacturing. [applause] and today, the american auto industry has come roaring back. [applause] that's the choice. unlike my opponent, i want to stop giving tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas. i want to start rewarding companies that create jobs right here in urbandale and des moines, right here in iowa, right here in the united states of america. [applause] that's what we're fighting for. you can decide whether "borrow money from your parents" is an acceptable answer for a young person hoping to go to college or start a business. >> booo -- >> or you can say let's make sure america once again leads the world in educating our kids and training our workers. [applause] let's help more young people go to college ready to learn. let's hire more great teachers -- [applause] -- especially in math and science. [applause] let's help more americans go to community colleges to get the skills for the jobs they need right now. [applause] governor romney wants to end the college tax credit we created that's saving families up to $10,000 over four years in tuition. i want to extend it. [applause] in america, higher education can't be a luxury. it is an economic necessity and something everybody should be able to afford. that's what we're fighting for. [applause] iowa, you can choose an energy plan written by and for the big oil companies, or you can choose an all-of-the above energy strategy for america. [applause] at a time when homegrown energy is creating new jobs right here in iowa, when farmers are helping to create new biofuels, when once-shuttered factories are churning out new wind turbines - [applause] -- my opponent wants to end tax credits for wind energy producers. he said new sources of energy like these are "imaginary." his running mate calls them a "fad." nearly 7,000 jobs in this state depend on the wind industry. these jobs aren't a fad -- they are the future. [applause] and i think it's time to stop giving $4 billion in taxpayer subsidies each year to big oil companies that are making money every time you go to the pump. [applause] let's give some of that money to homegrown energy sources like wind that have never been more promising. that's the choice in this election. that's what we're fighting for. [applause] it's up to you whether we go back to a health care system that let insurance companies decide who to cover and when -- >> booo -- >> -- or whether we keep moving forward with the new health care law that's already cutting costs and covering more people and saving lives. [applause] now is not the time to refight the battles of the past four years. now is the time to move forward. [applause] this november, you get to decide the future of this war in afghanistan. governor romney had nothing to say about afghanistan last week, let alone offer a plan for the 33,000 troops who will have come home from the war by the end of this month. [applause] he said ending the war in iraq was "tragic." i said we'd end that war -- and we did. [applause] i said we'd take out bin laden -- and we did. [applause] >> u-s-a! u-s-a! u-s-a! >> today, all of our troops are out of iraq. we are bringing them home from afghanistan. and as long as i'm commander-in- chief, we will serve our veterans as well as they served us -- [applause] -- veterans like lucas, who got his education thanks to the post- 9/11 gi bill -- because nobody who fights for this country should have to fight for a job or an education or a roof over their heads when they come home. [applause] that's what's at stake in this election. on issue after issue, iowa, governor romney and congressman ryan will take us backwards. but the story of america is about moving forward. and soon you'll get a chance to choose a path that will actually lead to a better future. but over the next two months, the other side will spend more money than we have ever seen on ads that basically tell you the same thing they told you at the convention -- the economy is not doing good and it's obama's fault. [laughter] they know their economic plan isn't popular. go figure that raising taxes on middle class families to pay for new tax cuts for billionaires and millionaires doesn't go over that well. >> booo -- >> so that's not what they're going to talk about. they're counting on the fact that you get so discouraged by these negative ads, that you decide your vote doesn't matter. you'll decide that you can't compete with $10 million checks from wealthy donors. i'm counting on something different. i'm counting on you. [applause] and i need your help. first and foremost, i need you to go to gottaregister.com to make sure that you are registered to vote. now, this is gottaregister -- i'm sorry, any english teachers who are in the room -- [laughter] -- it's not "got to," it is "gotta" -- g-o-t-t-a register.com. and once you're registered, then you got to go to gottavote.com. [applause] that's g-o-t-t-a vote.com -- to find out how to cast your ballot early. because in iowa, you don't have to wait until november 6th to vote. you can be among the first to vote in this election, starting september 27th. [applause] that's gottaregister.com; gottavote.com, because we got a lot more work to do. we "gotta" lot more work to do. [laughter] we've got more good jobs to create. [applause] we've got more homegrown energy to generate. [applause] we've got more young people to send to college. [applause] we've got more good teachers to hire. [applause] and we've got more good schools to build. [applause] we've got more troops we've got to bring home. [applause] we've got more veterans we've got to take care of. [applause] we've got more doors of opportunity to open to every single american who's willing to work hard and walk through them. we've come too far to turn back now. [applause] that's why i'm asking for a second term, iowa. and if you're willing to stand with me, and join with me and knock on some doors with me, and make some phone calls with me, and if you're willing to vote for me in november -- we will win polk county again. [applause] we will win iowa again. [applause] we will win this election. [applause] we will finish what we started. and we will remind the world just why it is that the united states of america is the greatest nation on earth. [applause] god bless you. and god bless the united states of america. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] ["we take care of our own" by bruce springsteen] ["learn to live" by darius rucker] >> during the conventions, we are using social media to take a closer to the conventions and give you a behind-the-scenes look at using twitter. we will see what delegates are tweeting and viewers are tweeting. facebook, we sharing images and pictures as well as the major speeches from the convention. we are taking your reaction and reaction from delegates and on google +, we're having conversations with delegates and reporters. all this will be featured at the seized bank invented hub at c- span.org/campaign2012. >> visit our convention hub find out what other viewers are sitting on facebook, twitter and tout. all at c-span.org. >> a discussion about this election of a vice-presidential candidate at the 1972 democratic convention. from "washington journal," this is 35 minutes. guest: joshua glasser and joins us to talk about his book the 18 day running mate. welcome to the program. talk to us about what went into the peaking of thomas eagleton, the senator from missouri, to be the running mate of george mcgovern in 1972. guest: thomas eagleton was one of his last six kurt president -- vice president of candidate. he wanted ted kennedy on the ticket. everything told him that ted kennedy, despite its being just a few years after, but given the best shot of being his best running mate. attaching nixon in the fall. as the political director said, the only question was about ted kennedy was how many fingers they were willing to lose to get him on the ticket. george mcgovern kept thinking that kennedy would say yes even though he hinted to him and told them that he would say no. finally it comes down to the final day of the convention. they are without a vice- presidential nominee george mcgovern goes through a series of choices before settling on thomas eagleton after others recommended him. others had declined the ticket. and it pointed to thomas eagleton as a good option -- and they pointed to thomas eagleton as a good option. moments before deadline, the governor gives him a call. he says george, before you change your mind, i hastily accept. the book details that series of exchanges. and what goes on after to lead to this ticket -- to get them all. host: talk about that phone call and why up until this point, thomas eagleton had not been betted in a process we come to expect in modern-day politics. they look at everything. your tax records, your school records, your health, your physical and mental health. none of that was looked at with thomas eagleton before the offer was made. guest: great question. the thing you have to remember about this convention is george mcgovern did not have the nomination going into it. nowadays like with mitt romney for example, he had the nomination for months before his convention. he had time to vet his running mate. george mcgovern was not certain he would be the nominee. he still have the challenge from his so-called anything -- anyone but george mcgovern coalition that contested his nomination on the first few days of the convention. so his death focused on -- his staff focused on the various challenges from the more established and of the party that did not like george mcgovern and what he was perceived to stand for. it was actually thomas eagleton who told novak that george mcgovern stood for amnesty, asset, and abortion. that is what he was branded as. that did not come out until later that it was thomas eagleton that told novak that. and also george mcgovern's staff consider the vice-presidential pick something that george mcgovern thought was personal. there were not going to get into that decision. it is one of the biggest raises a presidential candidate is going to make, who he will run with in the ticket, the fall. this was something that the staff perceive he considered very personal. host: we will let our viewers and listeners know they can get involved in the conversation. of the picking of senator thomas eagleton by george mcgovern to be his running mate in 1972. this is the 40th anniversary of the so-called the eagleton affair. 202-737-0001. 202-737-0002 for republicans. 628-0205 for independents. you can also send us messages via social media, twitter, facebook, and e-mail. getting back to joshua glasser -- when did the information start to come out, when was exposed or they found out more about senator thomas eagleton's mental illness and that he had gone through some electroshock therapy? >> had some grumblings -- they had some grumblings in his past even before. nothing was entirely certain then. right after thomas eagleton announced the grumblings are getting louder and the whispers are no longer whispers, and george mcgovern's campaign here's a little bit more later that night. but what precipitates the revelation is an knight newspaper reporter who goes out to st. louis for a routine background piece on the vice- presidential nominee. thomas eagleton was a senator, well-known in missouri, and d.c. because he chaired the colombia -- district of columbia committee. people beyond that did not really know. so hoyt goes out to st. louis and the first thing he does is goes to the st. louis post dispatch offices and looks at the clip files. the clip files show a very productive public servants, elected to office at age 27. served as attorney in st. louis, attorney general then sent -- then general and then a rapid rise to center. and he notices gaps corresponding to short clips that say he is in the hospital for tests. that raises his concern. at the same time as he was flying out to st. louis, houyt's office in detroit and the detroit free press get a phone call saying he had shot the therapy -- shock therapy. they wanted to get it out. the caller called the george mcgovern campaign offices in d.c. so there are these to anonymous calls that really get the newspaper, hoyt and the washington bureau chief investigating and at the same time, the george mcgovern is now asking thomas eagleton questions about his past but it -- it is the newspaper of bentley, in part to the campaign in south dakota with a series of allegations about thomas thateton's past precipitates the disclosure and press conference in the middle of the dog days of summer. the campaign is on vacation. and this causes an incredible storm. one thomas eagleton aide described as being trapped in a hurricane, what happened. the revelations come out. >> we are talking with joshua glasser, the author of "the 18 day running mate." he comes to us live from new york. our first call comes from selling, massachusetts -- salem, massachusetts. caller: i always thought when ted kennedy refused the nomination that george mcgovern turned to kevin white and then when he told kennedy, kennedy nixed kevin white. but joshua glasser said everyone refused it. can he give me the story behind kevin white saga? guest: you have that right. i did not go into too much detail but all that is in the book. i've will go into it now since you asked. white -- so mcgovern asks white, says you are on the list. the very short list. send us over some more information. -- on your biography. while they're coordinating and doing that, since kennedy was his first choice, george mcgovern said i feel like i cannot select another massachusetts politician without first asking ted kennedy. kennedy takes a few moments to think about whether he is going to -- what exactly he thinks about it. george mcgovern convinces him to think over accepting the nomination himself. this is an hour and a half before the 4:00 p.m. deadline before -- for selecting a nominee. still contemplating the idea that he might take the spot. at the same time, once word gets out that george mcgovern is reaching out to white, john and others on the massachusetts delegation are outraged because it did not like the way white treated the george mcgovernites during the nomination contest. white had been a muskie supporter. part of the more establishment and of the party. host: kevin white, his position was what? guest: he was the mayor of boston. well known in massachusetts politics. well-connected but not really a national figure. the democratic party in 1972 was incredibly divided. sort of like the republican party now in terms of two separate wings of the establishment and of the party. i do not want to compare the new politics but in a sense, there were -- more right wing and the republican party today. it was a very contentious convention. when it comes down -- out that george mcgovern selects white, the massachusetts delegation will walk out on the convention, feels like he can no longer choose white. host: let's take another call in houston, texas. a libertarian. caller: this is a great discussion. can you elaborate on the all but mcgovern coalition? guest: anyone but mcgovern. he was perceived to be the leftists and it -- candidate. he led the party reforms. 1972 was the first year of the new rules for selecting a presidential nominee. it took the nominating process out of the back rooms and to the people. no walker could it be that -- no longer could it be that some lost the popular vote in the primaries would somehow become the or get more delegates at the convention and be able to actually win the nomination as that happens in 1968 in some of the delegations. so mcgovern let those reforms, took power away from the establishment and of the party and sort of in the process alienated much of the astonishment. as mcgovern was presented as more radical and as his supporters -- they seemed to some more staid members of the party. it was the 70's. anti vietnam activists. the way it looked on tv was not the best. not the best for some of those people. so it became -- how could we let this guy who will lose us the nomination be the party's nominee? host: let's continue the conversation and from lexington, missouri. caller: i am a political science major and i really appreciate the campaign management strategy you are using. but i want to touch base on past history. from somebody from missouri in the truman administration had developed a highway system that eisenhower picked up on. i am writing a letter to barack obama to see if i can get him to initiate a defense system -- host: let's stick to the focus of this conversation. are you old enough to remember when eagleton was a senator? how much -- how much was known by the people in missouri politics and could anyone have gone to george mcgovern before he made the offer to thomas eagleton and say this is not the guy you want to pick to be a vice presidential nominee? caller: he was very popular. it was another man named dansworth also. he was very big in the state at the time. the campaign needed the midwest backing. guest: the missouri press heard grumbling of thomas eagleton in but it had a policy of restraint of -- a politician's personal