Program Highlights
Gary Johnson responds to world leaders gaffe, says politicians mostly wear “empty suits”
Asked to clarify his comments in September about not being able to name a world leader he admired, Gary Johnson provided a pivot, saying it is hard to admire politicians because they often wear “empty suits.” Within the U.S., Johnson said most politicians are more concerned about getting reelected than foreign policy.
Gary Johnson: The U.S. should form a strong partnership with Mexico
Speaking at The Washington Post Monday, former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson said If there’s any country we should join hands and be aligned with, diplomatically and economically, it should be the country that lies along our Southern border. Johnson, who called NAFTA a success, also opened up about being the only current presidential candidate to support the Trans-Pacific Partnership, believing that overall the agreement will create more U.S. jobs.
Gary Johnson calls for the elimination of several government agencies
Speaking at The Washington Post Monday, Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson said several government agencies should be removed due to lack of function and purpose, including the Department of Housing Urban Development, which he said has “more than outlived its usefulness.” Additionally, while acknowledging that there are productive areas within The Department of Commerce, an agency he has previously said should be removed, on Monday Johnson said the agency is made of “crony capitalism.” He also said he didn’t know what the Department of Homeland Security actually does.
Gary Johnson: Entitlements should be devolved to the states
Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson argued Monday that the way to reform Medicaid and Medicare is to "devolve those functions to the states." Johnson argued that a “one size, fits all” entitlement strategy doesn’t work in Washington. The former Governor of New Mexico also called Social Security “bankruptcy” for the United States. Offering two solutions in means-testing and raising the retirement age, Johnson said he would like to see parts of Social Security “self-directed.”
Speaker
Libertarian Presidential Candidate, Former New Mexico Governor
Gary Johnson is the former two-term Republican governor of New Mexico. Raised in North Dakota and then New Mexico, Johnson graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1975. Johnson started a construction company in 1976 which grew into a multi-million enterprise in the decades since. We won the governorship in 1994 as an upstart Republican candidate, making a name for himself over the course of his time in office as a libertarian-minded conservative. He’s been active in libertarian causes, including marijuana legalization, since leaving office and is an accomplished athlete, having climbed Mt. Everest in 2003.
Interviewer
National Political Correspondent, The Washington Post
James Hohmann is a national political correspondent for The Washington Post.
Program Highlights from The Daily 202 Live with Tom Vilsack
Hon. Tom Vilsack: Democrats struggle to speak to rural voters
Speaking to The Washington Post's James Hohmann Tuesday, Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack said Democrats struggle to reach rural voters. "We don't do as good of a job at speaking directly to rural voters," he said, noting that the party generally reaches other minority groups. Despite this, Vilsack says there is an opportunity for Clinton to "drive a wedge" between her and Donald Trump in Iowa, who he says has wavered on his position on renewable fuel standards, an issue important to rural voters in the Midwest.
Hon. Tom Vilsack: Rural America is underappreciated for its economic contribution
Speaking to The Washington Post's James Hohmann Tuesday, Hon. Tom Vilsack said rural America and its agriculture economy are "not appreciated enough" for its positive impact on the economy. "We have a functioning agricultural economy and because of that successful agricultural economy we've bben able to urbanize," Vilsack said.
Hon. Tom Vilsack: Not enough resources to treat opioid addiction in rural areas
Speaking to The Washington Post's James Hohmann Tuesday, former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack said rural populations are disproportionately served by addiction treatment centers in the U.S. "This is an issue that costs us $25 billion unnecessary healthcare dollars," Vilsack said. "It is incredibly important for us to focus on this."
