p.m. eastern, american aaronsity professor bell talks about privacy laws in civil rights leaders. >> we must mark king now, if we have not before, as the most dangerous me grow -- most dangerous negro in the nation. sunday, vietnam war veterans reflect on lessons learned during the war. >> we learned the limits of military power during the vietnam war. we learned that as a society, as a culture, that you can't kill one idea with a bullet. announcer: american history tv, this weekend on c-span3. announcer: on the south lawn of the white house, president trump

was joined by vice president pence, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, and house speaker paul ryan after the passage of the trillion dollar tax bill. ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states, accompanied by the vice president, the speaker of the house, and the senate majority leader. ♪ [applause]

president trump: thank you, everybody, very much. these are the people right behind me who worked so long and so hard. it has been an amazing experience. i have to tell you. it has not been done in 34 years. actually, it really has not been done, because we broke every record. it is the largest -- i always say the most massive -- but it is the largest tax cut in the history of art country. and reform, but tax cut. really something special. [applause] president trump: this just came out two minutes ago, at&t plans to increase u.s. capital spending $1 billion and provide $1000 special bonus to more than 200,000 u.s. employees because of what we have done. that is pretty good. [applause] president trump: that's pretty good. and i have a whole list of

accomplishments that the group behind me have done in terms of this administration and this congress. but you have heard it before. records all over the place. that will continue and then some because of what we did. $3.2 trillion -- just think of it -- in tax cuts for american families, including doubling the standard deduction and doubling the child tax credit. a typical family of four earning $75,000 will see an income tax cut of more than $2000. they will have $2000 -- and that is, in my opinion, less than the average. you will have a lot more than that. [applause] president trump: one thing important for the great farmers and small business owners that were forced to sell their businesses at bargain basement numbers, we have provided for the most part the state taxes --

estate taxes wiped out. they can keep their farms in the family. that is a big factor. [applause] pres. trump: very big. this is going to mean companies are going to come back -- and i campaigned on the fact that we will not lose our companies anymore. they will stay in our country. you have been seeing what has been happening even at this prospect. they have tremendous enthusiasm right now in this country. we have companies pouring back into our country, and that means jobs. it means the formation of new, young, beautiful, strong companies. that is going to be very important. the pass-throughs you know all about. the small businesses are going to be big beneficiaries. we are going to bring at least $4 trillion back into this country, money that was frozen overseas and in parts of the world and some of them don't even like us. they had the money. they will not have the money long. [applause] president trump: it is very simple. when you think you have not

heard this expression, but we are making america a great again. you haven't heard that. [cheers and applause] president trump: i want to have them come up and get the glamour and the glory. i want to have a few of them come up, and they will speak for a little while, the shorter the better. that way we can get all of you. i want to thank mitch mcconnell. what a job. [applause] president trump: i want to thank paul. they will speak. paul ryan and mitch, it was a little team. we got together and we worked very hard. it was a lot of fun. it's always a lot of fun when you win. if you work hard and lose, that's not acceptable. i will name a few names and they will come up. people that i saw so much over the last month and over the last almost year. when you think of it, we have

not even been a year and we did the largest tax cut in our history. i hate to say this, but we essentially repealed obamacare because we got rid of the individual mandate which was terrible. that was a primary source of funding of obamacare. dan, where is dan? and don too. where is dan? pres. trump: between dan and don and lisa, you have done a very great job. a friend of mine called up about anwar. he said, you didn't get anwar. i said, tell me about anwar. he said, we have been trying to get it passed. tried it with ronald reagan and the bushes.

they tried with everybody. but we got it in this bill. we have mandate, and we have the tax cut and we have re.is bill, it is really >> the great chairman orrin hatch. tim scott, who has been so incredible. he is going to say a few words. where is tim? [applause] trump: you pick it up, he is younger than i am. i have it mostly memorized, but -- tim scott has been great. john, where is john? great job, john. rob portman, a real student of the tax world. thank you very much. i want to thank -- i said hello , weohn cornyn, pat toomey

rode together in pennsylvania, but where is pat? great job. he knows this business. susan collins, we want to thank. susan is around someplace. all friends, i look at these , we are worries together. kristi noem and diane flack, our .reat speaker paul ryan he is a great speaker. great job. .evin mccarthy kevin, what a job. we had fun. do we have a good time. steve scalise is braver than all of us. where is he? [applause] i don't know. he had a rougher year than most of us, but a hell of a way to lose weight.

not a good way, we love you, steve. great job. [applause] mr. trump: kevin brady. heaven. -- kevin. i mentioned at&t, but many companies have came -- come forward saying they are so happy. we will see something very special. we are bringing entrepreneurship back into this country. we are getting rid of all the knots and ties. jobs.tely, it means jobs, jobs, jobs. it will be a special time. we are in a special period of time and it will be even more so. maybe i could start with mitch and then we will go to paul and we will have a few folks come up and say a few words and we will have fun. mitch, how about you start?

mr. mcconnell: mr. president, you made the case for the tax bill, but it has been a year of extraordinary, tishman for the trump administration. accomplishmenty for the trump administration. mr. president, thanks to your nominees, we put 12 circuit court judges in place, the most since the circuit court system was established in 1891. you hold the record. [applause] you have ended the overregulation of the american economy and that, coupled with what we did last night and what the house finished this morning, means america is going to start growing again. thank you, mr. president, for all you are doing. [applause]

speaker ryan: what this represents is a promise that each and everyone of us made to the american people last year. it is a promise that is kept today. [applause] mr. ryan: something this big, something this generational, something this profound could not have been done without exquisite presidential .eadership mr. president, thank you for getting us over the finish line. thank you for getting us where we are. [applause] i just want to say thanks. this has been such a team effort. i want to thank gary cohen and steve mnuchin from the president's team for what they did to get us here. i want to thank mitch mcconnell in the senate for getting us two, we are and these

orrin hatch and kevin brady. thank you for your leadership on this. it is really simple. the message to the hard-working taxpayers of america is your tax relief is on its way. that is what is happening. who have been struggling paycheck to paycheck, your tax rates are going down and your paychecks are going up. this is the kind of relief americans deserve. this is the kind of tax reform and tax cuts that gets our economy growing to reach its potential. this gets us better wages, bigger paychecks, a simpler tax system. this gets the american economy competitive in the global economy. this is one of the most important things we could do for all of the people we represent. this is generational, and we are so excited that we are going to launch next year this fantastic tax reform so that the american people can see how we can truly reach our economic growth and

our economic potential and if it weren't for all the leadership of the men and women up here this would not have been made impossible. lastly, i want to thank the american people for putting their trust in us and giving us this chance and this ability to make this moment possible. thank you very much. [applause] president trump: a man who has been working very hard -- thank you, paul -- very, very hard for a long period of time and last night was the culmination and i don't know if we will have bigger moments, but we hope to, but we are going to try, a special guy and good friend of mine, vice president mike pence. [applause] [applause] pence: thank you, mr. president for those kinds -- kind words. more importantly, thank you for your leadership. thank you for your boundless

faith in the american people. and thank you for keeping your promise to see this congress deliver the largest tax cut in american history before christmas of this year. merry christmas, america. [applause] vice-president pence: to members of our cabinet, to leader mcconnell and speaker ryan and all these members of congress, thank you. thank you for not only being here today for this special moment, but thank you for your leadership and support throughout this year. i truly do believe, mr. president, that this will be remembered as a pivotal moment in the life of our nation. a day when the congress answered your call and made history. but honestly, i would say to the american people, president trump has been making history since the first day of this administration. we have been rebuilding our military, standing with our veterans. just last week, president trump signed one of the largest investments in our national defense since the days of ronald

reagan. we have been defending our rule of law. illegal crossings on our southern border are down more than 50%. president trump has been restoring american credibility on the world stage, standing with our allies and standing up to our enemies. as the president reflected today, our nato allies are paying more toward the common defense. north korea is more isolated than ever before. this president has put iran on notice and put the war on afghanistan on the path to victory, and thanks to the leadership of this commander-in-chief and the courage of our armed forces, isis is on the run, their capitol has fallen and caliphate has crumbled across syria and iraq. -- their so-called caliphate has crumbled across syria and iraq. [applause] vice-president pence: but what brings us here today is that president trump also knows that american strength starts with a growing american economy, and from the first day of this administration, this president

championed free and fair trade. he rolled back federal red tape at record levels. we unleashed american energy and today, mr. president, you fulfilled the promise to millions of americans struggling in this economy, to cut taxes across the board for working families and businesses large and small. in august of this year, the president laid out his vision for a tax cut that would be a middle-class miracle and that's exactly what the congress passed today. [applause] vice-president pence: this tax code will put more money in the pockets of the american people and make our tax code more easy -- more simple, fair, easy to understand, it will make businesses across america more competitive, to create good-paying jobs and raise wages for hard-working americans. i serve with him every day. president donald trump is a man of his word. he is a man of action.

with the strong support of these members of congress, president donald trump delivered a great victory for the american people. [applause] vice-president pence: we made history today. but as the president said when we gathered this morning, a few of us with a few less hours sleep than usual, we are just getting started. and i can assure you this president and the entire administration will not rest and relent until the forgotten men and women of america are forgotten no more. so thank you, mr. president. thank you for your leadership. thank you for your love of this country and the people of this country. i know in my heart with the strong continued support of the members of congress who are gathered on these steps and with god's help, you will make america great again. [applause] president trump: thank you,

mike, very much. a friend of mine, a very, very special man, tim scott. tim, i would like you to say a few words. he came in and he would solve some problems that, we were not looking good -- too good a couple of times, but tim was a tremendous help. thank you, tim. [applause] senator scott: mr. president, during one of those conversations that we had, we talked about ways to improve distressed communities in this country. 52 million americans living in distressed communities and legislation that could move those communities forward. and you said yes. and as a part of this tax reform package, the investing and opportunity act, has been included, which will bring trillions of dollars into more communities because of your willingness to listen. [applause]

senator scott: the president said i only have about 45 more minutes, so i will get to my -- [laughter] senator scott: he didn't say that. ok, got it. let me just say to those americans who are watching this process, this is not about washington. it is not about the left, but -- not about the right. it's about single-parent moms who are looking for a reason to be hopeful in 2018. this tax reform plan delivers for the average single mother a 70% tax cut. for the average family who's working paycheck to paycheck, looking for ways to be hopeful about their future and have an extra night for dinner out at a restaurant.

this tax reform package cuts -- nearlys by yearly 60%, and because of folks like marco rubio and ivanka, when you think about folks with kids in the household, this plan doubles the child tax credit and makes about 70% of it refundable. this is a plan that we can be proud of. because it speaks to the hearts of everyday americans. [applause] president trump: diane black, come on up. thank you. [cheers and applause] ms. black: thank you, mr. president. i want to thank all of the folks who are standing behind me because it has been a team effort.

when we talked about doing tax reform and the tax reform and jobs cuts act, that is what the american people are going to benefit by. as tim has just said, it is the average american. that's the reason why we did this tax reform. we looked at those right in the middle, those families that need the assistance and help and relief to be able to live their lives the way we are promised with the american dream. honor to stand here with the president of the united states, the vice president of the united states, who have been an integral part in making sure this happens. i want to thank kevin brady, who i know hours and hours and hours worked hard to make this happen in what was really a short period of time. and some of the folks that are being left out right now and i know we have thanked them before but i want to thank them publicly. and that is all of the staff that has worked so hard in both the house and the senate to make this happen. [applause]

ms. black: now we can say merry christmas to the american people because we are giving them a huge gift for christmas. a break in these taxes and an opportunity for our jobs to grow and give them a bigger paycheck. and so i want to say thank you, mr. president. thank you, president trump, for allowing us to have you as our president and to make america great again. [applause] president trump: thank you, diane. we can say merry christmas again. people are saying merry christmas again, and we like the sound. i want to ask lisa murkowski and dan sullivan to come up, from alaska. they have been really working, and don young is here. the three of them. dan, get over here, dan. lisa? senator murkowski: mr.

president, i don't know if you recognize, this is a very historic day and this is the beginning of winter solstice. it may not feel it right now, but winter solstice is the shortest day, the darkest day. for us in alaska, we had pretty dark days recently. but with passage of this tax bill and with passage finally almost 40 years later to open up the 1002 area, this is a bright day for alaska. this is a bright day for america. [applause] senator murkowski: so we thank you for that. we thank you for that. think about it, 31 years we have been working on tax reform. 38 years now to open up anwr. this has been a multigenerational fight. and i look to some of our friends from alaska who have come 5000 miles to be here for

the vote last night and today. [applause] senator murkowski: to those who live there, to those who raise their families there and to those who are looking to live for generations, know that our promise to you today is a bright future, one where we care for our environment and we care for our people, and we also care for our country in providing a resource that is needed not only by the united states, by alaskans, but by our friends and allies. this, mr. president is what energy dominance is all about. [applause] senator sullivan: mr. president, i want to thank you and your administration. i want to thank secretary zinke. he is doing a great job. senator murkowski said it very well. this administration has come in

and recognized this incredible, incredible resource that we have in our nation. developing our energy is good for jobs. it is good for energy security, good for manufacturing, it's good for the environment, because we have the highest standards in the world, and it's very, very good for our foreign policy and national security. mr. president, sir, you released your national security strategy just a couple of days ago and in there, you talked about the economy, which is what this tax bill is all about, but you talked about energy dominance. and i want to thank you and on behalf of all alaskans, and the american people, because it's the right policy and we are finally, finally doing it. thank you, sir. [applause] mr. young: thank you, mr. president. i want to thank all these guys standing behind me, these ladies, the people who helped me do this. this is 37 years i tried to get this passed.

it proves one thing, perseverance overcomes intelligence any day of the year. [laughter] mr. young: i thank the president, i thank you mr. president and my two senators. this is a team that cannot be beat. we will do what is right for alaska. this bill does what's right for this nation and the great land. we will be great again. thank you, mr. president. [cheers and applause] president trump: he's a pretty popular guy. pretty good. i want to ask orrin hatch, a special friend of mine. i can tell you that, somebody that spoke really well of me when it wasn't exactly the easiest thing to do. he was just always in there, always fighting for all of us and did a fantastic job as

chairman. orrin, say a few words, please. [applause] senator hatch: mr. president, i have to say that you are living up to everything i thought you would. you are one heck of a leader and we are all benefiting from it. this bill couldn't have passed without you, couldn't have passed without the alaskan delegation and leadership in the house and senate, paul ryan and mitch mcconnell, and the other leaders as well. all i can say is, we are making headway. this is just the beginning. you stop and think about it, this president hasn't even been in office for a year and look at all the things he has been able to get done. by sheer will, in many ways. i just hope we all get behind him every way we can and get this country turned around in ways that will benefit the whole world. but above all, benefit our own

people and bring us all to a realization of how really great america really is, and how the rest of the world depends on us. i love this country. i came from very humble roots, and i have to say that this is one of the great privileges of my life to stand here on the white house lawn with the president of the united states who i love and appreciate so much and with these wonderful colleagues and cabinet members who stand behind us. and to see all of you and realize that you care, too. all i can say is god loves this country. we all know it. we wouldn't be here without him. -- where we are without him, and we love all of you. and we are going to keep fighting, and we are going to make this the greatest presidency we have seen not only in generations, but maybe ever. god bless all of you. [applause]

president trump: paul ryan just said, how good was that? another very special man who has worked so hard, knows it inside out and backwards. kevin brady. [cheers and applause] mr. brady: thank you. this is a a historic day. it's an exciting day. and i knew i was going to be here with you to mark this momentous occasion, so i wore my houston astros today because they are still the champion of the world series. [applause] brady: i figured today you

would give me some slack on that. look, this is a historic day in so many ways. and it didn't happen just by itself. people often ask, when did you know or when did you know tax reform could be achieved in america for the first time in 31 years? my answer is always the same, november 8, when president trump, you were elected president of the united states. that's when i knew it was real. [applause] mr. brady: when you put together the great ideas on tax reform from inside and outside congress and i see many of you here today with us, remarkable leadership and courage from the men and women behind me in the senate and especially my colleagues in the house, when you put together remarkable leadership in the house and the senate, of the work that was done in the white house, gary and steve, vice president pence, and mr. president, your willingness to make this your commitment to go

across the country to sell the need for tax reform and save the table with us and on the phone with us to get this done, but for your leadership, we would not be here today. thank you so much. [applause] mr. brady: let me finish by speaking directly to the american people. there are three dates you need to put on your calendar. the first is new year's day, because on new year's, our country will have a new tax code for a new era for american prosperity, new year's day. [applause] mr. brady: in february, look to your paycheck. hard-working americans will see the result of the hard work of this president and this congress to make this tax reform possible. it will show in your paycheck. and then april 15, that hated day -- [laughter]

mr. brady: this april 15 will be the last time you ever file your taxes under this horrible broken tax code, because you'll have a new one for the future of your family and your small business. [applause] mr. brady: this is a great day for our country, great day for our economy and great day for america. thank you, mr. president. [applause] president trump: thank you for a fantastic job. and another man who is with us all the way, whenever i called, he was there or we get back -- would get back within minutes, kevin mccarthy. [cheers and applause] mr. mccarthy: to the president and vice president, during that campaign, you listened to voices no one else was listening to. you listened to those who were trying to get a pay raise, or that parent that was fighting for their children or that

person who always dreamed of being an entrepreneur and creating a small business, like you did, mr. president. and you know what? for all those people, you heard them. we would not be standing here today if it wasn't for you. doesn't matter if you were overseas fighting for america. so many people back here got your phone call fighting for tax reform. this is a big day for america. this is america's comeback. [applause] mr. mccarthy: come february, check your check, because that will be the pay raise of the vote for donald trump. that will be the beginning of the next century, america's century. thank you and god bless. [applause]

president trump: so i just want to conclude by saying this will indeed be a very big day when people look back at our country, a whole different attitude, a whole different way, and i really want to end by looking back and thanking all of those people standing behind me that worked for years. this was the culmination of a few months' work, but they have been working on getting this done, whether it's mitch, paul or kevin or kevin or orrin. they have been working on this for years. years and years, and i just want to turn around and thank them all. they are very, very special people. thank you very much everybody. [applause] stars and stripes forever

♪] >> ladies and gentlemen, please remain in your seats until the president has departed.

>> ladies and gentlemen, please remain in your seats until all members of congress have departed. >> next, reaction from senate minority leader chuck schumer and house leader nancy pelosi, to the passage of the tax bill. the two democratic leaders also spoke about the 2018 elections at this 30 minute news briefing.