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>> "washington journal host: back at our table this morning, congress man john larson of connecticut. let's begin with this continuing resolution that's come about in the last day. it looks like there will be another continuing resolution this time moving the parts of the government that need to be funded to march 8 and march 22. how would you vote on that? tha? guest: i would vote that we continue to keep government open. it is a travesty we have been operating on continuing resolutions and omnibus bills when as a congress we should get back to regular order. your viewers and listeners, to understand what we are dealing with, we are focused on the 12 appropriations bills which make up with the budget.

though should be taken up in a manner in which there are public forums and debates and votes on the hill. in this current mode of continuing resolution or omnibus bill -- both parties share some blame here. this is what frustrates the american people. what they want is congress to work together to get the job done on their behalf. it stops with -- starts with getting basic things done like the budget that impacts so many people, farmers for example. what is going to have been is essential the agreement is to have a continuing resolution to keep government opened at current level of funding. instead of shutting down tomorrow on the first, the government will remain open until the eighth at which time six of the appropriations bills will be taken up.

that is half of the bill studied to be done. and the remainder by the 22nd. to your question, i am in favor of voting on that come open it up and making sure we continue to fund the government at the levels that are required for the american people. host: if this continues, will conservative republicans get their way in there will be -- that there will be a 1% cut? guest: that is a great question, that is part of their strategy. host: why vote yes? guest: you want to keep the government open. if you are going to shut down government, how is that aiding or abetting the very concerns we have for the american people to make sure they are going to get the kind of funding -- for

example, finding in connecticut, that is 47,000 people -- funding in connecticut, that is 47,000 people impacted by this. i am good to vote on their behalf. the point about your question that i think is salient, why isn't congress working together knowing what is at stake in these budget bills? the answer becomes we are in that season and when you have a former president say don't vote on these issues, we would rather make president bynum look bad for the campaign -- president biden look bad for the campaign rather than do something for the american people so they will be able to be productive and to get the funding they need. everything from our military to government employees to work recipients. that is why i think it is important. host: let's turn to foreign policy and the israel-gaza war.

president biden said he expects a cease fire soon. has president biden done enough? guest: this is why the country should be proud we have someone in the white house who thoroughly understands foreign policy, who has the experience and the expertise and has made appropriate demands. he has struck a course that is supportive of israel, our strongest ally in the area, but not without making sure it is clear to netanyahu that we expect certain responsible things to come out of that. when you have a president that has been in there that long and is persistent in terms of what he wants and what is in the best

interest of the world and of israel and palestine. host: would you feel conditioned on future aid to israel given all that has transpired? guest: i think it depends on how things transpired? host: you have not seen enough? guest: present in netanyahu -- president netanyahu says he does not favor a two state solution. he is more conservative in terms of his projections and even the people in israel are concerned about the positions he has takes -- positions he takes. it depends on what those conditions are. clearly we stand with the president of the united states and the conditions he has asked for, including a cease fire, but also including making sure that

in gaza, we get a better handle on what is happening there and we follow the concerns the president has laid out. host: president biden president trump are headed to the border, having dueling events. is there a vulnerability on president biden and the border issue and his reelection efforts? guest: i don't think there is a vulnerability but the american people can see this for what it is. there is no question that we have a border problem and a border concern. the optimal thing to do this for congress to come together, like senator murphy did. i commend him for his efforts. we are on the verge of a deal that was struck with conservative republicans and

moderate to left-leaning democrats. all of a sudden, it went away. it went away because the former president would rather have it as an issue then solve the problem. where president biden will stand tall in his continued efforts to solve the problem. there is no question the border is an issue. linda sanchez has the most copperheads of immigration reform bill in congress. i support that. i also would have supported senator murphy's compromise that he worked out. that would resolve issues in a way that demonstrates to the american public that we are listening to them and here is what we are attempting to do in terms of getting our arms around

a very difficult issue on the border. immigration in general and how that needs to be performed -- be reformed and continue to address the workforce issues going forward which i hear from a lot of people in new england. all of which are comprehensive. what should be demanded here is that we work together. senator murphy laid it out perfectly to solve a problem in a bipartisan fashion. the issue here is to solve the problem, not to see who gets the credit, democrat or republican. host: sean in ohio, independent. caller: morning. i have you on speaker on start and i will switch you over. i appreciate you.

host: shot -- sean, holland -- hold on. caller: as far as the fiscal negotiations, approximately. when i do a continuing resolution through the end of fiscal year 2024 and congress works on a package for 2025? it will force president biden to get his budget delivered. just do a continuing resolution. host: congressman, where you able to hear that? guest: yes, i can hear that. host: go ahead and respond. guest: quite frankly, that is where we are headed.

i would prefer we respond in regular order. in descendant -- in the senate and the house, this has become the modus operandi of congress dealing with the continuing resolution. when it comes down to a point where if we don't act the government will shut down, in view of that, we pass a continuing resolution to keep the government open and funded at current levels. you are thinking about this in a logical manner, i bet a lot of americans feel the same way. why don't we operate under a continuing resolution? there are so many things on the agenda that we should be operating in regular order. what do i mean by that?

voting. this is something the public should demand of congress and their representatives. voting in regular order first within the committee of cognizance and then on the respective floors of the house and senate. and then going to conference committees where that is needed if a bill needs to be sorted through. the ukraine bill we discussed that the senate passed with, white margins. the house r

host: prairie hill, texas, steve is watching there, a republican. you're on with the congressman. caller: yes, ma'am. this man here, this mr. larson, he's just carrying the water and trying to cover up for biden. my niece seven months ago, she lived there eagle pass, her and her parents. she broke her leg and they tried to take her to the e.r. unit there around eagle pass. they pay taxes and built that hospital, her and her family and all her relatives down there and they could not get my niece in because it was covered up with illegals. and the people coming across the border illegally, they're supposed to get shots for polio, hepatitis a, hepatitis b and they're not doing that. and then you're allowing those people to come in and get in our

schools around our children that are unvaccinated and this larson is covering up for biden. host: we'll take your points and former president trump is going to eagle pass, texas. guest: i assure you i'm not covering up for anybody. but listening to you speak, i certainly can appreciate and understand your frustration and most importantly, i hope -- was it your granddaughter that needed help and assistance for her injury was taken care of. there's no question about the fact we have a question on the border. the question then becomes the resolution on how to solve that. you may have heard me say i commended senator murphy for

comingup a bipartisan solution that would have both sides working together and whether you think i'm a prop for president biden or whether you disagree with president biden, whether you favor president trump, that's your right as an american. what is needed by congress is to work together comprehensively in a bipartisan fashion and get this done. when i say bipartisan, i'm including with all those governmental entities, whether they be state or local along the border, whether it's texas or arizona or wherever the borderline areas are, then we ought to make sure we're working a collaborative basis to solve the problems. i can only wish your granddaughter well and feel badly and understand your anger. host: charlotte, north carolina.

democratic caller, jay. caller: thank for you your service, representative larson. i have three questions for you. are there any pilot programs pertaining to character discharge of grades for veterans with clear unmistakable error? and my second question is, how do you feel about court? is there basically a website or places the everyday citizen can go or everyday peoples in america can go to look for high wage union paying jobs because it's one thing to go out and look for a job online and knock on the doors and sit in for interviews but when you do online searches, the company displays but it doesn't display what the company stands for pertaining to what it is the employee in lieu of what the employee gives the company. you can't look up a company and

see how much it pays -- you can see how much the job pays but you can't see the benefits the company gives you for working for them in lieu of a union. and my last question is, what bills are there that you guys have recently passed, i want to say in the senate, pertaining to smart grids that will help us basically, for lack of a better word, upgrade the maximum energy and water efficiency in the evenings when people get home? host: i'm going to have you listen then through your television. congressman? guest: jay, i'm going to have to have you go back to the pilot. did you have something in mind with a specific pilot -- host: it's not on the line

anymore. he was talking about veterans. and a pilot for -- i was trying to get to his point but it wasn't clear. i think his notion about a website with good paying union jobs is an excellent idea, etc. i don't know that's government's responsibility but it's not a bad -- it's a good thing and perhaps this is something the labor department should take up and make sure that on their website they're doing this. but listen, you can never go wrong with good paying union jobs. i think one of the great virtues of unions in this country of ours is what they've done on behalf of the average citizen and how they've uplifted pay. and we need more of that, frankly, greta, in this country with the issues being what they are in terms of what people are earning and the great disparity. i hope we get to talk a little bit about social security with regard to that. i think his last question was a

bill for -- host: smart grids, updating the grids. guest: it's a noble and good idea and something that should be pursued. host: going back to social security, what did you want to add? guest: here's the deal with social security. here's something i think every american should be upset and focused on. we haven't enhanced social security in more than 50 years. what do i mean by that? didn't bob dole and president reagan do -- yes, they did in 1983, some 40 years ago. they extended the solvency of social security by raising the age. we have 10,000 baby boomers a day becoming eligible for social security.

we'll surpass 70 million people on social security next year and yet those benefits that were in place when richard nixon was president have not been changed. we have a cola that's inadequate. people haven't received an increase in their social security payments. there are more than five million americans that worked all their lives and get below poverty payments and three million people are paying taxes on social security that shouldn't have to do so. and for those who have been prevented brew government teachers and municipal employees, from getting their benefits, that deserves to be repealed so they're able to get those benefits. for close to 40% of the american people, the only pension they'll

have is social security and on average that's 18,000 per mail, 14,000 per female. living on that amount of money, people aren't going out and buying tock options with this money, they're buying the essentials they need to survive. and this is why it's so critical and why this wealth disparity exists and i commend president biden for saying why don't we pay for that, too. and how do we do that? we lift the cap of people making $400,000. i hold town halls all the time and every time i go out to a town hall meeting i say raise your hand if you're making more than 400,000 dollars. funny thing, no one ever raised their hand at any of those. point being that even wealthy people understand that people making $125,000 are paying

throughout the year into social security, why shouldn't they? bill gates stopped paying in january. millionaires stop paying in february their social security. somehow i think when the american people understand this and understand that this will both pay for social security and extend its solvency into the future but provide the benefits that people actually need and by the way, the best economic plan we can have for the country, where do they spend that money? right back in the district and the communities they live in. where do they spend it? at the grocery store and the pharmacy and the local gas station and pay for their rent, etc. this is what keeps our genius of f.d.r. and what he knew was needed in this great system of capitalism we operate under. you need to have that balance, that safety net that is actually

paid for by people. it's an earned benefit. it is not an entitlement. companies pay the other half but get a write-off for it. it's the individual who paid for this and especially those baby boomers, 10,000 a day, will look at that fica, wait a minute, this is what i'm getting? this hasn't been adjusted in more than 50 years? come on, congress. wake up. guest: are you taking action in that in congress? guest: we have bill proposals. we haven't been able to get a vote on it and hoping we will and hoping viewers and people away the country start saying hey, wait a minute, this hasn't been adjusted in more than 50 years? and this is what people are actually making?

28 million americans and that's the only thing they have? and five million americans pro have worked all their lives and get below poverty checks from the federal government for social security. it needs to be corrected and the00 ought to be demanding congress take action. we have something called social secured 2100 and does all those things, has an across the board increase, repeals, n.g.o., make sure the disability system of social security, more veterans rely on that than they do on the v.a. this is not an entitlement but an earned benefit.

this is not anything you'll get from the private sector. i'm from one of the insurance capitals of the world and went to the aetna school of insurance. they talk about three legs on the stool, those three legs being your personal finances, what you've had and what you've been able to put together and other assets like your home and pension, etc. and the third leg is social security. the nation's number one insurance program, number one anti-poverty program for the elderly. and until the child tax credit becomes permanent, the number one anti-poverty program for children. host: congressman john larson, we appreciate the conversation as always. thank you for being here. guest: my pleasure. >> a live picture from the westin hotel, tyson's corner, where we're shortly expecting remarks from candidate nikki haley, her second stop in the commonwealth. earlier she rallied with

supporters from virginia. live coverage here on c-span.