on our live call-in program on sunday at noon eastern. his most recent book "the escape artist" debuted at number one on the "new york times" best seller list. join us for in depth, fiction edition with author brad meltzer , live sunday from noon until 3:00 p.m. eastern on book tv on c-span2. host: congressman brian higgins back with us to talk about the democratic party leadership elections happening this week. you were one of 16 democrats who a letter of nonsupport for nancy pelosi, how did you vote on wednesday? nancy pelosi. for i broke with the leader last june based on the issue as it relates to health care and protection for pre-existing

conditions to a demographic that gets clobbered by private health insurance. we talked about it over a three-day period and agreed to move forward and agreed to work in principle to get something done on that issue. it was good enough for me. host: you spoke with a leader over three days time? guest: i did, prior to thanksgiving. we reviewed what occurred in june with my experience with her and her senior staff. she was willing to listen again. we came to an agreement. congress, your vote is your legislative tool. this obviously, it is enhanced. i felt it was an opportunity to use it to achieve to larger public policy objectives. a infrastructure bill of

trillion dollars which not mine only. allow people to insurancere as an option. it is a popular health care system. it always covers pre-existing conditions. i believe it can save individuals 40% when compared with a gold plan on the individual market. is an aged demographic that is statistically older and their utilization is higher. their insurance premiums are much higher. in backing palu c higgins got what he wanted and so did she. a vote for her. quite she did. aloof and called her misguided at one point. >> i did. it was based on my experience with her senior staff. i felt as though they were not giving serious consideration to

an issue that was very important. i support of the affordable care act despite its flaws. he represented not a finished but a start. the democratic majority, we needed to hold up something affirmative to people to give us an opportunity to become a majority. this was an important issue relative to better health care, lower costs, better quality and a good political strategy. pointednted -- we had a disagreement on that. guest: when the congress adjourns what do you think should be first on the agenda? and infrastructure bill. the last time was 15 years ago. we have spent more rebuilding roads and bridges in iraq and afghanistan.

that is inadequate. deficientructurally bridges, tens of thousands of broken roads. ourwer systems that pollute rivers. it is nothing compared to what they need is. there is a tendency to look at infrastructure in terms of need. the need is clear and compelling. we have to look at it in terms of economic growth and job growth. a trillion dollar infrastructure bill would create 11.5 million jobs, 2.3 million a year. for 60 jobs every month months. you are adding $200 billion to the economy each year. that is a little over a percentage. we could potentially get to 4% economic growth if you do that as we did 20 years ago. had surpluses.

not deficits. a lot of people in washington talk about spending. what we really have is a growth problem. if we invest in the growth of the american economy through infrastructure we will see good growth. cut that some people say through dynamic scoring, trickle side, there has been a tax cut in human history to has ever paid for itself. the best you can hope for is a $.30 return for every dollar of tax cut. infrastructure pays for itself. in every dollar you spend terms of roads and bridges you get a two dollar return to the economy. that is a good investment. host: we are taking questions about the democratic leadership, future of the party and legislative agenda as well. phone numbers are on your screen. i want to go back to the vote for nancy pelosi.

the floor.o to she needs to hundred 18. do you think she will get the votes? guest: i do. there are different reasons why people oppose her. peoplee good principled by and large. i think that other members are coming along. here is the problem for me ultimately. these members were committed to blocking the democratic leader becoming speaker. there is no viable alternative. you need to stand up if you want to run for speaker. here are the reasons you are running. in the highly unlikely event that the effort to block her succeeds,ing speaker you are giving an opportunity for someone to grab it that has not earned it or is undeserving because they are not willing to stand up.

with the election of a new generation of leaders and other leadership positions, you are creating what has not been there in a wild. that is a bench. strength to assume a democratic leadership later ron. as you know, leader pelosi is characterized as a transitional leader. it is clear to what that means. i think that was good enough for me. >> cathleen rise, one of the democrats who voted against her, here is what she had to say. >> we need a leader see a transition. not a terribly productive conversation. there were no surprises today. we knew she was going to get a majority of the votes.

that was clearly what we have been saying all along. none of us want to take this to a floor fight. voters have to be heard. i'm hoping people have conversations in the future. >> people need to know when the leadership team plans on turning the reins over to the next generation of leaders. we just elected the most diverse group of leaders to the house in our history. they deserve to know when the ship is going to change. host: do you agree? guest: first of all i think it is good they are negotiating with her. we all have one vote. those votes are greatly enhanced in the circumstances. specific pointte at which they will leave undermines negotiating position

of house democrats that are now in a majority or will be when negotiating with the white house and the senate majority leader. i think again the democratic leader characterization of herself, as a transitional leader is clear about what the intent is. i am comfortable with that. others part of that group of 16 have to get comfortable with it. the fact they are engaged in a negotiation indicates that it is not going to succeed. i am confident leader pelosi will have 218 votes on the floor and that would be a good thing. host: let's go to dominic. i want to talk about nancy pelosi. i'm a union man. iran when the affordable care act was trying to be passed.

the union said you are not taking her health care away. unions were exempt because democrats can't devote against the union. every government employee was exempt. 155 million people exempt from the affordable care act. why we have to find out what wasn it before -- in it was 155 million people were exempt. host: good point. >> of americans like the health insurance they have, they should be able to keep it. unequivocal.e we need better options. i think the private insurance model is to screw people. they are profit oriented. the age demographic, their

premiums are too high. too many co-pays and deductibles. if you gave individuals an opportunity to buy medicare at their own cost, watch how quickly private insurance will change their behavior and protect people with pre-existing conditions. you need a public option. medicare is the best public option that already exists as a counterbalance to private insurance. it is a complicated industry. health care generally an insurance particular. the trouble starts when they need it. defined the coverage was not what they thought it was and the expense and co-pays and adoptable is our exorbitant. it knocks people around. a million people last year out for bankruptcy because of health care costs.

"will go to maryland. angela. caller: hello. thank you for finally putting the public option back in the acm. the medicare buying and is great. it is going to cut bills and half and give them comprehensive coverage they want to worry about pre-existing condition denials. hopefully that goes well eventually you will lower it to everyone who has had a total of 10 years of employment that wants to buy in. it would sure feminists cannot -- medicare trust funds. . host: there is one thing people need to remember. why do private insurance 10

years ago fight so aggressively against the public option? they were not afraid it would not work. they knew it would not work. i think the federal government needs to do a better job on behalf of the american people to use the leverage we have. we have 58 million people on medicare. there's 30 million people that thehealth insurance at veterans administration. that is a lot of leverage. braids, are negotiating let's use the leverage republicans and democrats him and everybody in between, the american people and the federal government, to get 80 better deal for the american people, to drive down the costs and drive up the quality. host: he will go to a democrat. caller: i just wanted to say supporter of a big

nancy pelosi. i was wondering if barbara lee stepped forward. more progressive folks like her. she was one of the few who stood up against theq war. has done some great things like the affordable care act. i have respect for her but she refused to do anything about the crimes of the bush administration. we fear she is going to do nothing about the crimes of the trump administration. in fairness, nancy pelosi was adamantly opposed to u.s. intervention in the iraq war. i will tell you that was a smart decision at the time. taken out a bad the sunni by the name of saddam who ownsand you know

iraq today? iran does. that is too big a price to pay for the lives we have lost. the 6800 american soldiers and 4-6,000,000,000,000 dollars. a fairness nancy pelosi had strong and courageous position against the war much like barbara lee. host: a republican. caller: i did not like his comment about insurance companies and profits. most of youlk about democrats come up with the idea about this one payer. imagine if we had one payer for groceries. everybody on monday would go into the grocery store and load up on all the groceries they wanted because the government is

going to pay for it and tuesday the ball be nothing in there for them. with health care you're going to have to ration. it is going to end up like england, where they refuse to serve you when you get a certain age. , you of your ideas democrats always act like you are progressive. really what you are, you're just full of old stupid ideas that don't work. host: let's get a response. guest: thank's for the call print respectfully, we spend $3 trillion a year on health care. there is a difference between health care and groceries. health care is 18% of the american economy. we simply want to ensure that the money goes to health care and not just the profits of private insurance companies. you've got providers, doctors, fish dish and specialists, and

you have the patient. the vast majority of the money should be exchange between the two of them. i don't think you need insurance companies as a broker for that. that is where the rationing occurs. health insurance, if you look at any group of the biggest apartment is billing. what billing does is likely insurance companies. to get people coverage for the treatments a doctor determines they need. we are goingying to tip the playing field to the advantage of patients and doctors and other providers. is good.ere medicare prior to the enactment of medicare, less than 50% of older americans had health insurance. private insurance didn't want to write a policy for them. they used too much health care. it was not profitable for them.

is 97% of seniors who have health insurance. eep doctors, except medicare. the growth has been cut considerably to around the rate of inflation. that is what economists would refer to as coughing the cost curve. medicare has achieved that. to allow people to buy medicare is a health insurance option would properly influence and level the playing field in the private insurance market as well. hello congressman. and raised a democrat. the democratic party left me a long time ago after mr. reagan. there is no trust fund. the democrats spent that money

over 50 years ago. ,f it had not been for that medicare would not have a problem today. host: the house is coming in early. i want to get a response. ,uest: what i would say to you my colleagues in congress, my republican colleagues you should talk about the moral horror of passing on the debt and deficit to the next generation. , more debtave done and deficit in the history of the country. ist to me is something that egregious and something that we hope to turn around with investments in the growth of the american economy. last time we have budgetary surpluses, when we had growth at 4%. i don't quite understand the idea around previous

administration's providing huge tax cut is that were never paid for. there is not a tax cut in human history that ever paid for itself. we talk about supply-side economics, trickle down and the new term, it is just a rebranding of that old discredited theory. here is what we know. it just does not work. it is not ideological. it is commonsensical. if the color looks at the record he will see where the vast majority of debt and deficit has been accumulated. it has been under republican controlled washington. we will hear more from nancy pelosi, holding a news conference at 11:00 a.m. eastern time.

coverage of that, you can listen with our free c-span radio app. real quickly before the house comes in, will there be a government shutdown next week? host: my hope is that there will not be. my hope is that there will not be. people should keep something in mind. the most powerful branch of the federal government is the united states congress. branch ofowerful congress is the house of representatives. over the last couple of years the congress has been marginalized by the white house. it is afraid to act. 80% of americans have a low opinion of congress. you go to congress, you choose the constitutional powers you have to change neighborhoods.

my hope is, i would admonish and encourage my colleagues to live up to the constitutional obligations all of us took an programso, and promote that will grow the economy through health care and many other programs i think are important. >> >> c-span's "washington journal," coming up saturday agreementhe trade signed between the u.s., canada, and mexico at the g20 summit, and the status of u.s.-china trade talks. "hen "in these times contributor talks about her technologycle to use

to address climate change. a conversation on the future of u.s.-mexico relations. c-span to watch "washington journal," saturday morning, join the discussion. c-span, where history unfolds daily. in 1979, c-span was created as a public service by america's cable television companies. today, we continue to bring unfiltered coverage of congress, the white house, the supreme court, and public policy events in washington dc and around the country. c-span is brought to you by your cable or satellite provider. xavier bacera