Memorial Day Service. What impact does God and the Bible have on the United States of America? Grace attendee and Member of Congress Jim Jordan provides the answer!

[0:00] Thank you, Gary. Well, as announced last week, having read this resolution number 397, I downloaded this from a website, Focus on the Family, and I was so struck with the content of it.

[0:22] And with this being Memorial Day weekend, I could not think of anything better than to share this with you and the implications of it. And I was prepared to read it myself.

[0:35] And then I got to thinking, what better person to read it than one who is a co-sponsor of this? And that would certainly lend a credibility and authority to it that is beyond mine.

[0:50] So with that in mind, I'd like to call Representative Jim Jordan here now. And I have asked him if he would be so kind as to share with you whatever part or parts of this resolution he would like to make any appropriate comments that he feels would be wise.

[1:10] And we look forward to that. And I want you to feel free to take all the time you want. And if there's any time left for me, that's fine. If there isn't, that's fine, too. Okay. Thank you. Thank you.

[1:22] Thank you. How many of you are a little bit nervous about the direction of the country? I've actually, every speech now for the past several months, and I give several back home in the district here, across Ohio, and of course some in Washington.

[1:36] But I start off with that question. The response is always the same. Every hand goes off. There's some nervous laughter. But I think it's appropriate. I've got to tell you, I'm nervous about the direction of the country. It is appropriate to be concerned.

[1:48] I told a group last week when I was speaking to them in Washington, I had never seen it like this, where in the article that Pastor referenced in Imprimus from Mark Stein is right on target.

[2:00] Liberty is under attack. Freedom is under assault. And, frankly, the values, those basic principles, those traditional values that I think make us the greatest nation ever, they are under attack as well.

[2:12] And so it is appropriate to be nervous. I was telling a group the other day, you think about just the liberties we're seeing being infringed on today by your government.

[2:23] And I would just start with two big ones. A few weeks ago, we did the budget, which sets the framework. How much of your money we're going to spend here during the appropriation cycle, which comes up over the next two months.

[2:35] And there were five different budgets offered. The one that passed was the Obama administration budget, which contained the largest tax increase in history. Obviously, when you raise people's taxes, you take away some of their liberty, less of their money to spend on their kids, their family, their goals, their dreams, the things they want to spend it on.

[2:53] But also in that budget was the largest spending increase in history. Now, there were five budgets offered. I tell folks there were two, if you can imagine this, which were even more left than the Obama administration budget, in that they spent the same amount of money, but they actually reduced what goes to the military.

[3:15] They cut the military. And then there was the Republican alternative that was a pretty good budget. I actually supported it. And then there was one actually that I offered on behalf of the Republican Study Committee. Many of the same members who are co-sponsoring this resolution supported that budget.

[3:28] We actually got 111 votes. I tell people the good news is we got 111 votes. The bad news is we didn't get 218, which is what you need to pass something. But just kind of highlight the way people in Washington see things different from normal folks.

[3:43] This budget balance, the one that I offered, didn't cut the military, didn't do anything to veterans, made sure Social Security was protected, actually let Medicare grow at an inflationary growth rate, but actually cut spending.

[3:57] I mean, you have to do that if you're going to balance a budget. Now, our budget didn't balance. We were the only one that balanced, but we didn't balance until the last year of the budget window, the 10th year. So, you know, we were running deficits until the very last year, but we ultimately got to balance.

[4:12] And we were viewed as – and we cut taxes in this budget. We did the things that I think you need to do to deal with the economic situation we're in. But we didn't balance until the last year of the budget window.

[4:23] And we were viewed as the radicals. We were viewed as the two conservative. And I told some of my colleagues during the debate, I said, you know, if you come back home and talk to the people I get the privilege of representing, they would say to me, Jordan, you big sissy, what are you doing taking 10 years to balance?

[4:39] You should be doing this in four or five years like we have to do with our business or with our family. But it just shows you the mindset with this kind of spending. Now, understand over the next decade, we are going to more than double the national debt.

[4:51] We're going to take the national debt over $20 trillion. It's unbelievable. You probably heard the stat that in the next six years, we will add more to the national debt than the previous 43 presidents combined.

[5:03] You heard that fact? I mean, it's true. And when you think about denying freedom and opportunities to people, this spending infringes on future Americans' liberties.

[5:14] That's what we're doing. We're denying opportunities to our kids and our grandkids. And this is serious. Think about what it's going to take to pay this off. $20 trillion over the next decade, we're going to take the national debt to. So to pay this off, you first have to balance the budget.

[5:28] Again, my colleagues didn't want to do that with our budget, which didn't balance until the last year, until the 10th year. So you first have to get to balance. Then you have to run a trillion dollar surplus for 20 straight years.

[5:40] And that doesn't even count the interest, which is now approaching a billion dollars a day. So it just shows you that what we're up against here is serious. And if we don't begin to get a handle on this, the liberties and the freedoms that we've so enjoyed in this country are really, really in trouble.

[5:57] And so it's appropriate to be nervous now, not to be too depressing. I know everyone's already depressed. But also remember, and I tell this to every audience, too, also remember this. In spite of what we're dealing with here, in spite of these concerns, and they're very real, very valid, always remember that this is America.

[6:14] The pastor talked about this in the prayer. This is America, the greatest nation in history, the greatest, a country where God is so richly blessed. I mean, we have overcome all kinds of challenges in the past, and I'm confident we can deal with them again.

[6:27] But we have to face it, and we have to get after it pretty quickly. And that's the message I've been telling everyone who will listen to me that I think is just so important to understand. Also, always remember this.

[6:38] There is an attitude in this country, and you'll see it in some of the things we're going to read here today. There is an attitude in this country that has always been willing to accept the challenge. I mean, it's what we honor and celebrate this weekend.

[6:50] The men and women who have been willing to put on the uniform of this country and go give their life for America. I mean, it is so appropriate we take time to honor them. And we have done that for 200-plus years of this country's history where we've been willing to make the sacrifices to meet the challenges that confront us.

[7:06] And we'll do it again. One thing I know about Americans is we are a stubborn bunch of people. We hate being told what to do, and we will, I believe. You're seeing it, too, play out right now where I participate in this.

[7:19] Some of you may have done the same in this key party phenomenon that got a hold of the country a few weeks back. And I did three of them up in our district. And it was great to see that the people always, and I say this all the time, that people always get it before the politicians.

[7:34] And thank goodness for that fact. And we'll get it again. This stubborn, rugged, tough attitude that has been there for 200-plus years will help us again. You guys know the old line about Americans.

[7:47] When most Americans are traveling down the highway and they see the sign that says 55, for most, that's not the limit. That's the challenge. I mean, that's just the way we look at it. That's just an attitude that's so a part of America.

[7:58] So I'm going to read, as the pastor indicated, this is a 16-page document. So I won't read all of it. But what I thought I'd do was read the parts that are appropriate to the founding of this country.

[8:11] My favorite point in a period in history from 1776 with the Declaration. It frankly started it all. The greatest, I tell people, the greatest words they ever put on paper next to Scripture were what the founders wrote down in the Declaration when they told the whole world why they were going to rebel and why they were going to rebel against the most powerful country in the world at the time.

[8:30] No one gave them a chance to succeed. And yet they were willing to state it and sign their names, committing treason when they did it, and put it all on the line for a place where freedom really meant something. And so I'll read some of the parts that capture when our country started.

[8:43] And then I thought what would be appropriate is to read about each of the presidents. And the document named so many of the presidents and their commitment to faith being part of the public life in this country and faith being so central to the American experience.

[8:58] And so I'll read about that. Let me first give a little credit. I told Randy. Randy Forbes is the chief sponsor. He's actually the chair of the Congressional Prayer Caucus. Wonderful Christian man from the state of Virginia down in military country, down by Norfolk and Virginia Beach and Hampton, down that part of the state.

[9:17] And it was interesting that we introduced this at a press conference on the National Day of Prayer. And the day before that, Randy and I happened to be on the floor.

[9:27] I think we're the only two guys to give a speech on the floor of the House regarding the National Day of Prayer. And mine was sort of by happenstance. Randy had his planned out, and I just happened to be down on the floor during the special order time period to offer us.

[9:40] That day was the day before the National Day of Prayer. And if you remember, our president, for the first time in recent history, decided not to participate publicly in the National Day of Prayer. And so I told our staff, I said, put together a speech for me.

[9:53] I want to go down on the floor and just read something. I think it's appropriate this week that some folks say something on the floor of the House of Representatives about how important this day is and how important prayer has been in our country's history.

[10:05] And it just, our staff put it together, and I happened to be on the floor the same time Randy was. And it was kind of funny when they brought the, normally I don't read, I don't like to read speeches. I like to just give them, but I had them write this one out.

[10:17] And I was reading it before I walked on the floor to speak. And I noticed that our staff had put in some lines about pretty critical of the president. And I'm not really custom to go on the floor of the House of Representatives and criticize the president of the United States.

[10:31] I go after his policies all the time. But so I called him back and I said, do you think it's appropriate we do this? And they were like, yeah, we think it is. And so I did. And then my speech was followed by Randy's.

[10:44] And Randy did just a great job. And Randy answered the question, if you remember, oh, probably two months ago now, when the president was traveling overseas and made the statement that we are no longer a Judeo-Christian nation.

[11:00] And Randy's entire presentation, he did this at the press conference again the next day and just knocked it out of the park at the press conference. But Congressman Forbes, during his speech, said that it brings two questions to mind.

[11:12] First, were we ever a Judeo-Christian nation? And second, if we were, when did we lose it? And he went about rebutting that and answering those two questions, both in his speech on the floor and at the press conference, following the activities of National Day of Prayer.

[11:25] And it was amazing to see Randy answer this, particularly at the press conference. Because it was a huge press conference. Several members who were co-sponsored of the legislation were there. Dr. Dawson and Shirley were there because the National Day of Prayer activities had just completed.

[11:39] And Randy got the question from a reporter about, you know, the president's statement. And just handled it so well. And so I have the utmost respect for Randy Forbes and what he's doing with this resolution.

[11:53] I'll just read parts of it here and then I'll take a few questions if that's okay, Pastor, at the end there. Thank you.

[12:28] Thank you.

[12:58] Thank you.

[13:28] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[13:40] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[13:51] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[14:03] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[14:14] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[14:25] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Whereas the 1783 Treaty of Paris that officially ended the revolution and established America as an independent nation begins with the appellation, quote, in the name of the most holy and undivided trinity.

[14:44] Whereas in 1787 at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin declared, quote, that's probably familiar to many of you, God governs in the affairs of men, and if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid?

[14:58] Without his concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel. Whereas the delegates of the Constitutional Convention concluded their work by, in effect, placing a religious punctuation mark at the end of the Constitution in the attestation clause, noting not only that they had completed the work with, quote, the unanimous consent of the states present, but that they had done so in the year of our Lord, 1787.

[15:28] Whereas James Madison declared that he saw the finished Constitution as the product of the finger of that almighty hand, which has been so frequently and signally extended to our relief in the critical stages of the revolution.

[15:42] And George Washington viewed it as, quote, little short of a miracle. And Benjamin Franklin believed that its writing had been, quote, influenced, guided, and governed by that omnipotent, omnipresent, and beneficent ruler in whom all inferior spirits live and move and have their being.

[16:02] I want to switch over and talk about the presence now, if I could. Whereas America's first presidential inauguration incorporated seven specific religious activities, including, one, the use of the Bible to administer the oath.

[16:15] Two, affirming the religious nature of the oath by adding the prayer, so help me God, to the oath. Three, inaugural prayers offered by the president. Four, religious content in the inaugural address.

[16:29] Five, civil leaders calling the people to prayer or acknowledgement of God. Six, inaugural worship services attended in mass by Congress as an official part of the congressional duties.

[16:41] And number seven, clergy-led inaugural prayers, activities which had been replicated in whole or part by every subsequent president. Whereas President George Washington declared, of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.

[16:58] Whereas President John Adams, one of only two signers of the Bill of Rights and First Amendment declared, as the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and the blessing of Almighty God, and the national acknowledgement of this truth is not only an indispensable duty which the people owe to him.

[17:18] Whereas President Jefferson not only attended divine services at the Capitol throughout his presidency, and had the Marine Band play at the services, but during his administration, church services were also begun in the War Department and the Treasury Department, thus allowing worshipers on any given Sunday to choose, excuse me, the choice to attend church at either the United States Capitol, the War Department, or the Treasury Department if they so desired.

[17:44] Whereas Thomas Jefferson urged local governments to make land available specifically for Christian purposes, provided federal funding for missionary work among Indian tribes, and declared that religious schools would receive the patronage of the government.

[17:59] Whereas President Andrew Jackson declared the Bible is the rock on which our republic rests. Whereas President Abraham Lincoln declared the Bible is the best gift God has given to men, but for it we cannot know right from wrong.

[18:11] Whereas President William McKinley declared that our faith teaches us that there is no safer reliance than upon the God of our fathers, who has so singularly favored the American people in every national trial, and who will not forsake us so long as we obey his commandments and walk humbly in his footsteps, as well said.

[18:30] Whereas President Teddy Roosevelt declared, Decalogue and the Golden Rule must stand as the foundation of every successful effort to better either our social or our political life. Whereas President Woodrow Wilson declared that America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness, which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture.

[18:52] Whereas President Herbert Hoover declared that American life is builded and can alone survive upon the fundamental philosophy announced by the Savior 19 centuries ago. Whereas President Franklin D. Roosevelt not only led the nation in a six-minute prayer during D-Day on June 6, 1944, but he also declared that if we will not prepare to give all that we have and all that we are to preserve Christian civilization in our land, we shall go to destruction.

[19:20] Whereas President Harry S. Truman declared, The fundamental basis of this nation's law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings which we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul.

[19:36] Whereas President Harry S. Truman told a group touring Washington, D.C., that you will see as you make your rounds that this nation was established by men who believed in God. You will see the evidence of this deep religious faith on every hand.

[19:48] I should point out David Barton does a tour, and I know many of you read David Barton, and I've been on part of the tour of the nation's capital. It is unbelievable when he actually walks you through the capital and highlights what President Truman was talking about right here.

[20:03] If you ever get a chance, and we can try to get this information to pastor and to the congregation. He just did one last week. But usually every year during National Day of Prayer that week, David Barton is in our nation's capital doing these tours, and it's worth coming down and seeing that if you can.

[20:25] Whereas President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared that without God, there could be no American form of government nor an American way of life. Recognition of the supreme being is the first, the most basic expression of Americanism.

[20:38] Thus the founding fathers of America saw it, and thus with God's help it will continue to be in a declaration later repeated with the approval of President Ford. Whereas President John F. Kennedy declared that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.

[20:55] Whereas President Ronald Reagan, after noting the Congress of the United States in recognition of the unique contribution of the Bible in shaping the history and character of this nation and so many of its citizens has requested that the president to designate the year 1983 as the year of the Bible.

[21:13] Officially declared 1983 as the year of the Bible. And whereas every other president has similarly recognized the role of God and religious faith in the public life of America.

[21:24] Whereas the first week of May, I just want to close with the finish with the end of this resolution. Whereas the first week in May each year should be an appropriate week to designate as America's Spiritual Heritage Week.

[21:38] Now, therefore, be it resolved that the United States House of Representatives, one, affirms the rich, spiritual, and diverse religious history of our nation's founding and subsequent history, including up to the current day.

[21:52] Two, recognizes that the religious foundations of faith on which America was built are critical underpinnings of our nation's most valuable institutions and form the inseparable foundation for America's representative processes, legal systems, and societal structures.

[22:09] Three, rejects in the strongest possible terms any effort to remove, obscure, or purposely omit such history from our nation's public buildings and educational resources.

[22:21] And four, expresses support for designation of America's Spiritual Heritage Week every year for the appreciation of and education on America's history of religious faith.

[22:35] And that's the resolution. Let me just say one last thing, and then I will take questions if you'd like. One of the things I sense when we think about this debate that's going on in our culture over whose set of principles are actually going to win, whose set of values are going to prevail, one of the things I sense right now is both sides are energized.

[23:00] The left, I've never really seen it quite like the left, because they control the House, the Senate, the administration. So many governorships, when you think in a political context, so many state assemblies, they're pretty energized.

[23:15] And frankly, you've seen it on, you've seen evidence of that recently with some of the things being passed in Congress, with the marriage issue, the gay marriage issue in Iowa, in Maine, New Hampshire.

[23:30] You're seeing a lot of, you know, energy on their side. But I also sense it on the side that I think the vast majority of us would be on, the side that says, you know what, there are some key principles, some religious truths and Christian truths that we need to defend and have always been a part of this country.

[23:49] You're seeing it on our side as well. We had an opportunity last – I participated in a press conference last week, a bill that I introduced along with a Democrat co-sponsor from Oklahoma, Congressman Boren, and a host of other – 30 other members of Congress to make sure marriage stays what marriage has always been.

[24:08] Marriage should be what marriage is. And this is in response to – if you follow this story, in the District of Columbia, the city council there approved a resolution saying they were going to recognize gay marriage from other jurisdictions.

[24:25] They were going to recognize it in our nation's capital. And we felt it was appropriate to say, look, this is the nation's capital. This is the capital of the greatest country in the world, and we think it's important that marriage be what marriage has always been.

[24:37] And so we introduced this resolution, and it was amazing, biggest press conference I've ever been a part of. And it was great to work with the pastors in D.C.

[24:48] Just two weeks ago I met this wonderful, wonderful pastor, Pastor Bishop Harry Jackson. He actually has – we met in my office when we decided we were going to jump into this fight.

[24:59] And he's got roots in Ohio. He's from Cincinnati. He used to wrestle, so we just hit it off right from the start. And you talk about certain people you meet who are really in the fight.

[25:11] I mean, this guy is in the district as a church of about 3,000 in his congregation. And you can just tell a guy who loves the Lord and understands that this is a fight that they have to win.

[25:23] And he was so good at the press conference. It's something about sometimes politicians. I've talked to introduce a few of my colleagues. And then I had Bishop Jackson come up and speak. And sometimes these African-American pastors can really bring it, if you know what I mean.

[25:35] And he did at that press conference. And it was so good to be there and stand with these guys who are right in the middle of it. And I sensed that growing around the country where regular families, regular pastors, the people who make this country special in the first place are willing to say, you know what?

[25:53] We're going to fight for the things that make us great. And we're going to make sure America continues to be the greatest nation in history where liberty and freedom and these fundamental principles really matter.

[26:07] And so I'm encouraged by that. In spite of starting off with the depressing news, and we were all looking all gloomy-faced here when we were thinking about that, I think it's encouraging out there, too.

[26:18] Because I sense it on our side as well. People are getting fired up, and they're ready to defend the things that make us such a great country. I'll take any questions, and then we'll turn it back over to the pastor, if you have any.

[26:32] Yeah, Gary. What's the resolution right now? It's been introduced. Good questions. Been introduced. Has not had hearings. I actually sit on the committee where this resolution will go to, the Committee on Government Reform, Oversight and Government Reform.

[26:46] So we'll see. You know, it should be one of those that's a slam dunk. I mean, in some ways, it's apple pie, freedom, motherhood, and baseball, you know.

[26:57] So it should be one of those that – but you never know with this crowd, I'll be honest. And, look, I'm always nervous about being critical of the other party. I happen to belong to the Republican Party, as most of you know.

[27:10] Our party's far from perfect. And when I was in the Statehouse, I criticized our party, and the governor and I used to go at it. I felt like there were times I criticized Governor Taft more than the Democrats did when I thought he was wrong.

[27:21] So, and, you know, we all make mistakes. Our party's made mistakes. But I do believe the folks who are running the Congress right now aren't real sympathetic to what we read here in this resolution.

[27:33] But we'll see. Hopefully, Speaker Pelosi will allow to come up for a vote. And if it does, I believe it'll pass. Good question. Thank you. Anyone else? Your chance to yell at your congressman.

[27:45] You all paint my sour, you know. You can, yeah. What would be the basis of objecting?

[27:58] Look, there are people who just come at this thing from a totally secular view. And there are people who, you see it all the time. I mean, you're going to see it on this whole fight over marriage. You're going to see the other side.

[28:08] They come at it from just a totally anti-Christian view, as you would expect. And it gets, they get pretty intense. So, that's part of it. I mean, I tell folks, you look at the individuals who are running the House of Representatives right now.

[28:22] It's Speaker Pelosi. Obviously, she's the speaker. She's the boss. San Francisco Democrat. George Miller, chairman of the Education and Labor Committee. San Francisco Democrat. Henry Waxman, chairman. I didn't even get into these other issues.

[28:33] But you talk about our infringements on liberty. This cap and trade concept. This huge energy tax that's coming. It's coming out of the Energy and Commerce Committee. That committee is chaired by Henry Waxman, Hollywood Democrat.

[28:44] So, you've got three California Democrats who run the House of Representatives. And, I mean, I'll just be frank. They don't think the way we do. They just don't. I mean, it's just different. And they don't see things the way we do.

[28:56] So, there is certainly that mindset in Congress amongst some members. They don't value the same things we do. They don't see things the same way we do. And so, they may not want to have even something like this with the facts, with the history right there come up for a vote.

[29:14] Hopefully, that's not the case. Because I don't believe that's the majority of Congress. But I do believe that's the nature of the leadership. Thank you. Ms. Jordan. Can you speak to the importance of us, the AAA rating that we have as a nation, and are we really at risk of losing that?

[29:35] You're talking about our financial situation, bond rating, everything else. You know, I tell folks, as bad as those numbers were I gave you, because we are going to go to $20 trillion in debt.

[29:46] And, you know, I do believe, if you think about the Federal Reserve has tripled its balance sheet in the last year, there's a lot of cash out there. At some point, there are definitely going to be inflationary concerns. So, there are real concerns in a financial sense.

[29:59] And I know we talked about this a few months ago as well. Real concerns out there. But remember, we're still the biggest game in town. You know, in spite of the tough economic times we're in, we're the largest economy in the world by far, $14 trillion.

[30:13] The second largest economy is Japan, $5 trillion. So, we're the biggest game in town, the biggest economy. And I remember this, this was several months ago. We were traveling somewhere, and I was listening to the radio.

[30:27] And one guy made this statement. He was an economist kind of guy, and he was talking about the market and, you know, where we were. But he made this statement that stuck with me. He said, long term, are you going to bet against the American economy? You're not.

[30:39] I mean, you're not. So, it is, you know, we're more than twice, two and a half times the size of the second biggest economy in the world. So, we're still America.

[30:50] The military superpower, the economic superpower, and that's all good. My concern is we want to stay there. You know, I tell folks all the time, the world is a safer and better place when America leads.

[31:02] If some other country assumes that role, we don't know what that looks like. We know what the world looks like when a country with these kind of principles that we talked about, these kind of values, leads in a military context and in an economic context.

[31:15] That's a good thing. You guys know the old joke. The only people who don't get that fundamental fact is the editorial page of the New York Times, right? Regular people get it. So, that's why it's important we have the right kind of policies in place to maintain that preeminent position in the world because it's a dangerous world out there.

[31:34] But from a financial, economic sense, we're still the big player, and that's good. Now, there are concerns. I mean, just look at the numbers, and I know we've talked about this in the past.

[31:47] China has a billion people, a billion three. We have 300 million. They have 1 billion 300 million. India has 800 million people. So, those economies are quickly growing, emerging economies in the international marketplace, and with that kind of population, that's a concern.

[32:05] And so, all the more reason why politicians need to get it right for a change. I always tell folks there were points in the past where politicians could do dumb things, and it didn't really matter.

[32:16] We were going to win in spite of what the politicians did. Now, we're in a framework where it's incumbent upon the elected officials to do it right for a change because the competition is stiffer.

[32:28] You're making me think of it. How many saw the opening? Maybe I shared this with you before. How many saw the opening ceremonies to the Olympic Games last summer? Did you see the part where the – I normally don't like the opening ceremonies. I like the sports, but Polly likes the opening ceremonies, and so I was watching it with Polly.

[32:42] But I actually enjoyed this one. But remember when all the men were on the field and they were beating the drums? Do you remember that scene? And it was like – it was impressive.

[32:53] And then Bob Costas made a statement that – I mean, here's Mr. Announcer himself, Bob Costas. He made a statement that really hit me. He said, it's kind of intimidating. And I thought that was an appropriate word because it was sort of trying to tell the whole world, we're here, 1,300,000,000 of us, this kind of – this kind of effort, this kind of show we're putting on.

[33:11] And intimidating, I thought, was the right word. And so that's what we're facing today. But the short answer is, I gave you way too long, is we're a $14 trillion economy. We're still the biggest game in town.

[33:22] People still want to invest in America. I'm not in favor of bailing out California.

[33:35] They recently rejected tax increases. Has any of that come to Washington and gotten some of the liberals who said, gee, maybe we ought to rethink all the taxes?

[33:48] Yeah. No, you're right. But we're not going to be able to lower taxes with the current makeup of government. You're right. It was interesting. There were, I think, six issues on the ballot in California, five tax increases, and one that limited what politicians could get paid.

[34:02] The only one that passed was what politicians could get paid. All the tax increase went down like a rock. So, you know, again, proving the point that we all understand, the people always figure it out before the politicians do.

[34:13] On the marriage issue, I said this at the press conference, every single time marriages went to the vote of the people, marriage remains what marriage has always been. It's just the politicians and the judges who mess it up.

[34:24] The people get it every time. And that's what's comforting and reassuring is the American people, 304 million of us, the people largely get it. The people understand this, what we read this morning. So, you're right.

[34:36] That's what scares me about, as I mentioned, the leadership in the House of Representatives, three Californians. You continue to pass some of the things that are being talked about now, tax increases, huge spending increases, which have already happened, this energy tax, this further nationalization of health care.

[34:50] You continue to do those things, and the whole country is going to look like the mess California is in right now. And that's what concerns us, and, again, that's why I keep talking about it. Margaret Thatcher had a great line. People ask me all the time, what can we do?

[35:02] And Lady Thatcher said this. She said, you win the debate before you win the vote. And so, our job, my job, frankly, is to communicate with the American people, engage in a conversation about where we're headed, what needs to happen, and how serious the policy proposals are.

[35:18] Because we can't win a vote right now in the House of Representatives. We can win a few every once in a while, but we can't really win on the big things. Our job is to debate and talk about it, energize the American people, hopefully, and then subsequent elections down the line, that's where you win.

[35:37] And Thatcher had that down, and that's how she changed so many things in the 70s and 80s in Great Britain in the right direction. Bill? I know that your influence, having spoken to you before, is more than political.

[35:55] There was a congressman, I think you mentioned, who was from Florida, and you gave him some exercise tips. And how is he doing? You know, the sadness is he got beat in the last election.

[36:08] Maybe my tips didn't help him. But he lost a lot of weight. He was in good shape. He's a good man, Rick Keller. Unfortunately, he's a tough district, one of those 50-50 districts.

[36:18] And in a year where the trend and the momentum were in the other direction, unfortunately, he lost a real close race. But a good man. I haven't kept up to him. Actually, now that you bring it up, I should check and see how Rick is doing in Florida.

[36:33] But he had lost about 100 pounds, and he was exercising and doing things right there. Thank you. Mr. Britton's got one there.

[36:47] Back to your budget that you worked on in your group. Can you tell us where you made savings? What type of thing? Not everything, but... Well, yeah, lots of problems.

[36:58] One thing you do is you limit the growth in discretionary spending. You freeze it, and then you actually begin to ratchet it down a percent a year. So that's where you picked up the biggest savings.

[37:09] We did pick up some savings in Medicare in that we only allowed Medicare to grow at inflation, 4%, versus the trend of late for Medicare has been at 7%.

[37:21] And then we limited Medicaid growth to... Well, actually, we allowed Medicare growth, inflation plus. We limited Medicaid growth to inflation, which was 1%.

[37:33] So you do things like that. Then you actually eliminate programs. And what we did is we did... The Government Accounting Office had a list of programs that were redundant, that were ineffective.

[37:46] I mean, study. This is actually the government itself looking at, federal government looking at the various federal government programs. I mean, how many of you just would guess that there's probably some redundancy in the federal government? So you do that, and you can actually eliminate programs.

[38:01] And it's... You know, look, I'll be honest, it's not easy. You know, one of the things politicians love to do is hand out the money. But when you're faced with the situation we are, and everyone with any common sense knows where it's going to take us, you have to begin to set priorities and make some tough decisions.

[38:18] And that's what our budget did. But what's interesting to me is people said, oh, you can't do that. It'll be so draconian, so bad. Truth was, it wasn't all that bad.

[38:28] We were able to do the right things, maintain our defense, maintain our benefits for veterans, keep the promise of Social Security that we need to do. So we were pleased.

[38:38] But it takes a little discipline. One of the things that, in my humble opinion, you just don't see much of in Congress. And with your permission, I'll make a little comment.

[38:51] You mentioned about how we are the leader in the world and our influence and so forth. And quickly, I'll share this. I was in Brazil in Rio de Janeiro showing a moody science film, A God of the Atom.

[39:04] This was to a university. And they were ready to hang me when we got through with that because it showed the atomic bomb, etc., which was dropped on Japan and all. And I said, we're sorry for the suffering and the bodies and things through generations that were hurt by that.

[39:20] And I said, which country would you have preferred got the bomb first? For example, Germany? Oh, no, no, no, no. Russia? No, no, no, no. Japan? No, no, no, no.

[39:31] Then I said, Brazil? And they said, Deus me livre. God help us. And it was a good indication of how others can think of it when you really narrow it down to a specific point.

[39:43] Well said. Now, as much ridicule as the United States of America takes in the press, in this whole debate we've had about, oh, we need to improve our relations with Europe and our standing and our perception by the Europeans, the truth is deep down you talk to most Americans, or most people around the world, if they had to answer the same kind of question, they'd say, you know, we're glad that America is in the leading role that they're in.

[40:06] I really believe that. So, good point. How can you eliminate all of the junk and the trash that's in the, well, I don't know if it's the budget or not, but how you operate that have been there for years and years and years and no longer belongs there, and yet we continue to pay for those, I don't know what you call them, but we continue to pay.

[40:39] Right. A couple things. First, on just a practical level, process level, and I'll do this coming up, and we go back in June and July, we'll do the appropriations process. We did that budget, which spent all the money, set all the money.

[40:52] Now the appropriations process actually allocates it for the various programs. So during the appropriations process, I'll offer a series of amendments to non-defense appropriation bills, which say we're going to freeze spending at last year's level.

[41:06] And I'll make the argument that, look, A, it's going to save us money. Step one, in a longer process to deal with the financial situation we're in. But two, when you freeze the spending, it forces you to do what we should have been doing all along.

[41:20] Make tough decisions. Because right now what happens is whatever the baseline is in this budget year, whatever you spend this year becomes the baseline for next year. And then it goes up, and then it goes up. And you just, the band plays on.

[41:32] Until you freeze the spending level, you never have to decide which programs make sense, which are wasteful, which are fraudulent, which are redundant. You never have to make the tough decisions. And so I'll make the argument, let's just freeze.

[41:44] Let's do step one here and begin to prioritize. And it's, you know, as I said, it's not easy. It's the old, I had a coach in high school, a wonderful guy. He talked about discipline every day.

[41:56] He was our chemistry teacher, our physics teacher, toughest teacher in the school, toughest coach in the whole stinking state. And he talked about discipline every day. Discipline, you've got to have self-discipline, Jordan.

[42:07] Discipline's doing that. He had a great definition. He said, discipline's doing what you don't want to do when you don't want to do it. And basically it meant doing it his way when you'd rather do it your way.

[42:19] But it meant doing it the right way when you'd rather do it the convenient way. And it's the one, it's the biggest element missing in Congress. No one wants to do it. No one wants to make a tough decision and figure out, you know what, we're going to have to tell this interest group, you're not going to get as much money next year.

[42:35] For me, it's because I've always focused on, you know, look at what's going to help families. Look at where we're headed. The facts are the facts. And you just tell them, we can't help you this year with more money because look where we're headed.

[42:46] So I don't think it's as hard as some people think. But unfortunately we've just got not enough people who are willing to make that call right now. When you have a bill, there's so much fork on there.

[43:00] How, sometimes there's pages and pages and pages. How can you get rid of that? Bernie, same answer. There, again, there's some process things that we're working on doing, which I think are helpful.

[43:15] So that those earmarks or proposals have to actually see the light of day. They have to be listed on a website. They have to have a full hearing, a full debate.

[43:28] All those things are helpful in a process sense. And we certainly support those of the, you know, there are some, some legislation don't request any.

[43:38] There are some that request very few. But the openness is usually the best policy. And so that's, that's the one thing we're working on. And frankly, if we could eliminate them, I'd be for a moratorium on them as well.

[43:49] We've, we've co-sponsored proposals to just say, all right, let's freeze. No more, no more quote earmarks until we get a handle on this situation. I think that makes sense. The argument on the converse side is, if you don't, if you don't allow Congress to begin to target some money, remember, we're, we're, we're the body that actually starts all the spending bills, according to the Constitution.

[44:08] If you don't allow Congress to be able to target some of the dollars, then the president will have even more power, the executive branch. That's valid, but, but frankly, right now it's, it's out of control and a moratorium would be the right, right approach.

[44:20] And this doesn't have anything to do with the budget, in essence. But it has something to do with, with the spending of our religious heritage.

[44:32] How do you call, counteract the statement that President Obama made that this country is not a Christian nation?

[44:43] Yeah, with documents just like we, just like we read this morning. That's exactly right. That's why Randy, Randy Forbes and Mike McIntyre, head of the prayer caucus, are right on target with, with this, like, this resolution.

[44:58] You just, you just continue to, as Thatcher said, you continue to talk about it and bring out the truth and bring out the facts. And when you do that, as I, as I believe, the American people will embrace it. Last one, anyone?

[45:11] Right here. I guess we got last two. I'm sorry, go ahead. Well, the truth is, we bailed them out and we got to the bankruptcy anyway.

[45:25] So, and if you saw in the Chrysler deal, they're going to forgive the, they're going to forgive the loan. So, they just decided your money is, I mean, this is the craziest thing I've ever seen.

[45:36] I argued, we had the, we had nine people in front of the Judiciary Committee on Thursday about the auto situation, specifically the crisis situation, the dealership situation.

[45:47] You know, 177 dealers are going to go out of business in this state. And it's, in my judgment, being made by the 10 people who sit on the auto task force. These people have no, and in fact, I asked this question, the 10 people who sit on this auto task force, which are now running, it's government motors now, not general motors, government motors, you know, running the thing.

[46:03] None of them, not one of them has any experience in auto manufacturing, manufacturing in general, or in running dealership. I mean, it's, it's amazing what we've done.

[46:15] I argue we crossed a line, a very dangerous line in this country, two months ago when President Obama told Rick Wagner to take a hike, that he can no longer be the CEO of General Motors. And when you got, when you got the government deciding who gets to run companies in this country, and not the stockholders and the board of directors, it is a scary, scary position we find ourselves in now.

[46:35] And what that led to was this crazy deal with Chrysler. This is amazing to me. The union owes 55%, yet fiat's in control, yet the federal government gets appointed. A majority of the board, this is the craziest thing.

[46:46] Who knows who's running the company? And the truth is, it's the government running the company. It's these 10 people who sit on this auto task force. And I, I, there was a Wall Street Journal back last fall when we first debated all this bailout fever and the auto bailout.

[47:00] The Wall Street Journal had a headline, do you want a car built by Congress? Right. It's worse. Now it's, do you want a car built by bureaucrats? Because it's not Congress, it is the bureaucrats.

[47:13] I mean, that's why I voted against every single bailout. When you vote against the auto bailout in the district I get to represent, you know, we got a Ford plant, we got a GM plant, we got Honda is our biggest employer, you get some phone calls.

[47:24] But you can't start down this, we never should have went down this road. It is very, very dangerous. And now we're winding up in this crazy situation where the government's running the financial industry, now running the auto industry, looking to try to run completely the healthcare industry.

[47:38] This is scary. And that's why when, back to the statement I started with, how many are nervous about where we're headed? We see it. And it was interesting this week, we do, and some of you participate in these, we do these tele-town hall conference calls, and I got two questions this week.

[47:53] We did one on Monday, we did three this last week. And I was a little concerned that there might be some citizens who say, you know, it's a tough economic situation out there, maybe we'd be better with security of the government.

[48:05] And, you know, but I was so encouraged because I got two different occasions. Both happened to be, the one lady I remember on the call, she said, my husband served in World War II, retired from General Motors.

[48:19] And I forget, she was an older lady, obviously. And she said, he's passed away. She said, I'm nervous about my healthcare. But she came at it from this perspective. She says, I'm nervous if the federal government takes it over, that when I need some kind of treatment, they're going to make me wait forever.

[48:36] And I thought, and I thanked her for her, you know, her family's service to our country and all. And I said, but you know what, you're right. And that's what I'm afraid of. So it is dangerous where we're at.

[48:47] And it's why we've got to get this stopped. You can't have the government trying to run private sector. Well, the Chrysler deal, here's the other thing. Now think about this. This was scary to me as well.

[48:59] Remember, the President of the United States came out and did the press conference. We had this negotiated bankruptcy we were going to go through. But these, a handful of these investment firms wouldn't go along with the deal.

[49:12] And he ridiculed these investment firms. These were the secured creditors. In a bankruptcy proceeding, these are the guys first in line. And they were going to get 29 cents on the dollar. And they said, we don't want this deal.

[49:23] We'd rather go through, follow the rule of law, go through bankruptcy court. And frankly, they have a fiduciary responsibility to their investors to do that. So they were doing the right thing, saying, we have a responsibility, the people who invest in our company.

[49:36] And we're investors in Chrysler. We want to go through bankruptcy. We're going to get 80, 90 cents on the dollar. And the President came out and ridiculed these guys for doing their job. And saying they should have taken this deal that was put together by him and Tim Geithner and Rahm Emanuel.

[49:49] So that's the scary position, unfortunately, we find ourselves in. And it all started, I hate to say, with the Republican president, who I believe is a Christian man, when he started the bailout last fall with financial institutions.

[50:02] We never should have started there. If you ever had any question about the slippery slope in government, you can see it with this. Because remember, first they said, oh, it's just going to be Bear Stearns.

[50:15] Well, Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac. Well, Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG. Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG, Citigroup. All those five plus the auto one.

[50:28] All those five plus auto plus the $700 billion TARP program. And then auto two. It just shows you once you start down this path, it is tough to turn around.

[50:38] We never should have went there. Hopefully we can turn around. I think there was one other one that I will sit down. I thought I was going to be up for 10 minutes. Oh, I'm sorry.

[50:51] All right. Okay. Three years may seem like a long way away, but caucuses are going to start in January 2012, and it's fairly safe to assume that Barack Obama will try and run for reelection.

[51:03] In addition, in 2012, there's got to be a lot of gubernatorial seats up for grabs and Senate and House seats up for grabs. What, in your opinion, can conservatives do right now and until then to make sure that we try and win some of those seats back and eliminate some of the left wing that's in?

[51:24] In my opinion, it's real simple. Stay focused on the principles that make us special, that frankly are what the party I belong to, the party of Ronald Reagan, are really about.

[51:37] Stay focused on those. And it's really four things, I think. If you think about the modern Republican Party, the party of Ronald Reagan, it's strong national defense, lower taxes, controlling spending, defending traditional values.

[51:50] Now, there are lots of other issues that also come into there. Common sense energy policy, one that makes sense. Immigration, following the law on immigration, welcoming people who want to come for the right reasons but making them have to follow the law.

[52:01] And there's a lot of things we can talk about. But in the end, it's really about those four principles. People ask me all the time, who's going to be our candidate? I have no idea. But my guess is the person who can put two sentences together, who can articulate those four principles the best, that's who our candidate is going to be.

[52:17] Whoever that person is, I don't know. But that's what we have to communicate over the next several years. And the individual who does that the best, I think, is the one who will be the candidate for our party and be running for president, hopefully give us a chance.

[52:32] I'm sorry. I was going to. All right. We are going to stop after a little while. I guess the pastor's in control. He kicks me out whenever we want. Go ahead. We'll go here. Over here. Okay.

[52:43] As a retiree, the last couple months on my retirement, I've gotten more money under the cut. Okay. But I have also read a couple times retirees were not addressed under the code.

[53:00] So at the end of the year, we'll be paying back the money that was cut. So we'll address that. Yeah. This is, without getting too calm, this is all about withholding tables from the IRS.

[53:10] We actually did a letter, Congressman Tiberi and I, on this very situation. If you're a retiree under the Obama administration budget, which had this making work pay tax benefit for some Americans while raising taxes on other Americans a lot more than the tax break they're going to get.

[53:28] But this making work pay tax cut, it will impact retirees on their withholding. So you're getting more money in your check right now, but it's not being adjusted for withholding.

[53:40] So you're going to get hit with an unexpected tax burden come next April 15th. We think it's worked out now largely because we jumped in and said, look, IRS, just do what you did before. Publish a couple different withholding tables so that you won't be faced with that additional tax burden unexpected.

[53:56] It's not additional. Unexpected tax burden next April. We think we have it worked out. But we can specifically help look at your situation if you contact our office, and I'll get you our number after the service here.

[54:09] I think it'll be okay. We have one right here, right? Did you want to go? Okay. Go ahead. Because we are a great country, and the country was formed by great people who believed in and followed God, we have become a very complacent people.

[54:36] We've allowed our God-given liberty and freedom to be taken away from us, incrementally. In answer to the question back there about what we can do, we are still Americans.

[54:52] We have a great country to preserve. We start at the grassroots. We find and support those of us who get it, as you referred to.

[55:09] Those are the ones that we need to elect, starting at the ground level and working up. We can get back to being a great country, but because we've let it go so far, it's going to be a long and bitter battle.

[55:28] But we are battle-prepared people if we just acknowledge our God and get behind the ones who do get it.

[55:41] Yeah. I've often said that. Let me think of a couple things. I mean, that was well said and so true. So, again, this weekend we get to honor those people who've done what you described, sacrificed so much for our country.

[55:55] And you think about the founders. That's why I always like to – that's why I read the part about our founding. You think about what these guys did. I forget who – put together in a pretty succinct way. We think about Jefferson and Franklin and Adams, but most of the guys who signed that document lost everything, who signed the Declaration.

[56:12] And so there's tremendous sacrifice. Specifically about our party, I have two questions here. I've often said the party I belong to, the Republican Party, we're a lot like the nation of Israel in the Old Testament.

[56:23] We get it right for a while. We mess up. We have to head out in the wilderness. Finally get it right. Get back in power. Do a few things right again. Mess up. And you're seeing that pattern, frankly, right now.

[56:33] So we – hopefully, if we can get back in power, we'll do it right for a longer period of time. But I think what you said was right on target. It's a great country where a lot of people made sacrifices.

[56:44] And we can do it again. We can do it again. All righty. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Oh, you're chicken.

[57:00] What I ask him to ask you is about our state rights. How can we get back our state control of us and get it away from the federal government?

[57:12] Now, you're seeing – this is another encouraging thing. With the whole Tea Party phenomenon, with, I think, this energized sense you're getting from folks on the values fight on our side, you're also getting the state rights movement, if I can call it that.

[57:27] This is the Tenth Amendment. You know, power is not – that should be reserved for the states. This is important. You're seeing some of our western states – even had the governor of Texas talking secession.

[57:38] I think that's probably a little radical, but – not probably, definitely a little radical. But it's good to see that. And that's the way that – the guys that we talked about in here, Adams and Jefferson and Franklin, these guys, that's how they saw it.

[57:52] They thought the states were – where innovative things could take place and where the power should largely reside and the federal government should be much smaller. As we all know, that's sort of been turned around. So it's a good thing to see.

[58:03] It is a very positive thing to see. Thank you all very much. Have a wonderful Memorial Day. Thank you. I can't tell you how much I appreciate your being here, Jim, and what you've shared with us this morning.

[58:23] And thank you all for the excellent questions. They've been very penetrating and thoughtful, and it shows that you're really engaged in the issues, and I appreciate that so much. When you were talking about the health care situation, I was reminded of a bumper sticker I saw.

[58:42] It says, if you think health care is expensive now, just wait until it's free. And there's a lot of truth to that, really, a lot of truth to that.

[58:54] I want to thank you again for your presence and remind you of the handouts on the sound desk back there, if you would pick those up, please.

[59:05] And next week, in addition to what I will be presenting, there will be some further handouts. One in particular is an eight-page essay by Dr. David Noble, who runs the Summit Ministries.

[59:17] And he is one who is expert at educating our youth in a biblical worldview. He's been featured on Focus on the Family a number of times, and he has written an absolutely dynamite article that explains the ins and outs of socialism and what it is and how it is that we are headed in that way, despite the fact that many people are shaking their head and saying, no, no, no, we're not going socialistic.

[59:48] Read this and critique it. And whatever you can find in what he says that is not true, please bring it to my attention, and I will bring it to his.

[60:02] And with that, would you stand, please? Father, we are grateful this morning for information that has been dispensed, and we now look to you for the wisdom that we need in implementing it and acting upon what we've heard.

[60:20] Thank you for the wonderful and incredible heritage that we enjoy as Americans. Friends, it is something for which we are very grateful, have little cause for pride, but great cause for gratitude.

[60:36] And we recognize that we are a people to be reckoned with around the world because we have been a people who has reckoned with our God. And we want to continue that.

[60:47] We want to revitalize it. We want to renew it. And we look forward to practical ways that we as a congregation can help do our part in this little corner of the world to point this great nation in the right direction again.

[61:04] Dismiss us, we pray, with your blessing in Christ's name. Amen.