Singer: There are other criticisms, of course.

Sestak: Yes.

Singer: One is that he helped create the program that allegedly conducted surveillance on Americans without wiretaps. Now it comes out yesterday that the NSA was also mining data from the calls of tens of millions of Americans. Should the NSA be doing that? Should they be looking at the phone records of literally tens of millions of Americans?

Sestak: I think it's very important that the executive branch follows the law strictly. I think it's very important that the executive branch make the legislative branch - the appropriate committees or individuals - aware of what they are doing. Because what has occurred here, not just in this case but when they wanted more expedited means in order to eavesdrop on calls from America to foreign nations, that they interpreted the law the way they wanted to at the executive branch.

The War on Terror is different. We used to like our wars over there. We like away games. Well the crux of the matter is now our wars, our times are here after 9/11. They're our home game. If we do need to have new procedures such as you read in the paper or what has occurred earlier where we were eavesdropping and listening in without going to the court, the proper court for permission, we should not do those things, should not do those things without coming back to Congress, which is closest to the will of the people, particularly the House, and ensuring that the law doesn't proscribe it and that the law permits it or other means are then established to let you do it. But you must come back to the will of the people in the House, in the Senate, in order to get that permission given. And so I think we've overstepped our bounds.

Singer: You talk about the home game as opposed to the road game.

Sestak: Away game. Yeah, road game - good way of putting it.

Singer: We are playing two away games currently, however, one in Afghanistan, the other in Iraq. Jack Murtha, a longtime hawk and very respected Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, came out and said recently and also in the past that it's time for America to see a strategic redeployment. In other words, troops should be coming home from Iraq. What do you have to say about those comments of your fellow Pennsylvanian?

Sestak: Jack Murtha, Congressman Murtha did our nation a great service when he first called for a withdrawal of military from Iraq within a year. I support that position. I have since the day I entered the race... I believe we should be out within a year, but let's say at least by the end of 2007, next year. It is extremely important that we have a date certain because we need to use that as a catalyst for the parties within Iraq to understand that we will withdraw and they must come together to address their issues. We also need it as a catalyst in order for us here in America in the bureaucracy to begin to plan for safe withdrawal.

The reason is this was never a clear and present danger. It is a tragic misadventure. There are so many things elsewhere in the world that we are not giving appropriate attention to. I know. I was in the Pentagon. I saw where the scope of our attention was truly focused upon - Iraq. General Shinseki had it right: it would take 200,000 more troops in order to achieve what President Bush has described as victory - a secular, stable government with the insurgency crushed. It is not worth this national treasure of ours to accomplish that when there are other things, including in Afghanistan, which we never, because we diverted our attention, accomplished what we set out to do and where Osama Bin Laden still may be today.

Singer: Let's move on to some domestic issues because I think it's probably a well-founded idea that you are very strong on international and defense issues, but you have relatively less experience on domestic issues - although, of course, you do have a masters and PhD in government related activities. The Senate just agreed with the House's bill to pass $70 billion more in tax cuts. At a time when the budget deficit is immense and the debt ceiling seems to be increasing every few months, is it the right time to be cutting taxes for wealthy investors?

Sestak: This debt that the tax policy and other policies of the Bush administration, of which Curt Weldon, the representative of this district, has voted lock step with, is criminal. What it has done has laid a burden on our children for decades to come of higher interest rates and higher taxes in order to pay off a debt.

We have seen over the years that our spending has increased in our government but our revenues have gone down as a percentage of GDP. We are relying upon other nations in order to fund our debt.

More than that, we need equitable tax reform. We need to protect the middle class. I say again, we need to protect the middle class. But I don't understand why a millionaire pays 15 percent as the rate on his taxes. And that's because the inheritance tax will be zero percent and his stocks and dividends will be 15 percent. He doesn't get wages. And that 15 percent is probably less than most middle class Americans. That's not fair.

So we do need equitable tax reform protecting the middle class and the lower income. But we need to ensure that we all contribute to our society, not just the middle class and the lower income.

Singer: One of the let's call it a "stealth tax," perhaps, that has been affecting Americans has been energy and gas prices, particularly in rural areas and suburban areas as commuters are forced to drive longer distances as opposed to urban areas where there seems to be better mass transit. Nevertheless, Congress and the President have seemed unable to deal with the high gas prices, and they continue to go up. What do you think the Congress should be doing and what would you be doing would were you elected to Congress?

Sestak: First, I would not do what this Congress has done over the last five years where Curt Weldon again voted lockstep with the President, lockstep with the President that gave billions of dollars in tax cuts to these energy companies. To the contrary, if we're giving tax cuts to corporations, it should be if they are able to demonstrate that they are using less oil, less energy as an incentive for them to do so. There should similarly be the incentive for the citizens of America to have hybrid cars. We should raise the amount of miles per gallon that cars have to meet. We should look at tailgate emissions and judge, not just on miles per gallon, but judge how much emissions are coming out of that as a better determinant for the future of trying to restrict the pollution that we have that comes out of our energy burning and tie that strongly to energy.

But what also this administration does not do, nor does the Congress exhort it to, is to try to work overseas with a nation such as Saudi Arabia that has vast reserves, that has vast capacity to produce more oil. If they were to open up the spigot, you would see the prices go down. The Clinton administration did this very well. But this administration, supported again by the Congressmen such as Curt Weldon, has taken an approach to the energy policy of just turning inward. They need to recognize that we need to engage other nations and tell them it is in their interest that the prices don't rise so that prices here, as we export to them, don't rise. We need to work with Saudi Arabia, particularly, and have them recognize that they can help their economy and the world by being better on managing the spigot of oil reserve capacity.

There's many other things we can do by pursuing alternative energies in a longer term strategic approach, from ethanol to solar energy to hydrogen. But these are things that not only has the Congress not pursued vigorously with oversight as well as legislation, but it's something that is not executed well within this Bush and Congress joint union that is more interested in tax breaks for energy companies than pursuing an excellent strategic plan towards final energy independence in the future.

Singer: Just a couple more quick questions. The first is you brought up Curt Weldon; let's talk about him briefly. His daughter, there are questions about her lobbying contracts, particularly coming in from associates of Slobodan Milosevic but also from certain Russian firms that have questionable relationships with the United States. There were a number of inconsistencies in his claims about Able Danger. And, of course, he came out with some pretty vicious personal attacks against you for your healthcare choices in regards to your daughter. Does he really have the gravitas to serve in the office of Representative?

Sestak: I don't have anything against Curt Weldon. I do have something about how he votes. He does not remember what it's like in his district.

Look, his ethical issues are his to discuss with the citizens of this district. I want to talk about the issues. I do think, though, they are indicative as you talk about some of the places where he had contact of how he has become more interested as a Representative to visit places like North Korea, 30 trips to Russia, Libya, Bosnia - and not his home district.

I mean I think that's the crying shame. He forgets that national security really begins at home. It begins in the health, the education and the economic promise of the people and their children here in the district. How can he vote down there in Congress to lay 46,000 people off of healthcare just before Christmastime? How can he vote for billions of dollars in college education grants and scholarships to be cut just before Christmas?

My take on it is the Secretary of State is paid to worry about the world. We want our Congresspeople to be knowledgeable, but what we also want them to do is to recognize that at home is where they need to focus.

Able Danger... I can tell you as a former Navy officer that Curt Weldon again has missed the boat. I established Deep Blue, the Navy's first anti-terrorism group right after 9/11, reporting directly to the chief of the naval operations, the head admiral of the Navy. And under his direction we tried to change the policies, the programs, the resources from what we traditionally were applying them to to the Global War on Terror. And I can tell you that Able Danger - much like the 9/11 Commission and Republicans like John Lehman have said - is much ado about nothing. That's in our wake.

Sure, we want to learn lessons. But what we need to do is focus on the future of the people here who truly do not have the proper healthcare, the proper education security, the proper economic security. How can we ask them to sacrifice for this nation if Representatives like Curt Weldon, voting with President Bush's policies, don't address those types of issues?

Singer: Last quick question. If there's one question you'd like to send out to the many readers of the progressive blogosphere - specifically to them - what would that be?

Sestak: It's the following: It's time to get this country going again. It's time to get this country going again with change. People don't feel secure in their individual, day-to-day issues that are most important to them when they wake up - their health, their education, their jobs.

Come out. Volunteer. Work in campaigns for candidates that really want to make sure that people are invested in, that their health and their education is such that our nation can be great and remain great and can remain a real beacon of hope.

Don't lose the dream. Keep reaching out. Remember, we need to keep our Representatives accountable when they go down to Congress for how they vote. Vote for someone - he doesn't have to be perfect or she doesn't have to be perfect on all the issues - but they need to be competent, they need to be honest, and they need to have an understanding of what really are the issues they're concerned about, because people in America are ready to sacrifice for a common cause greater than their individual pursuits, as long as their individual and family securities are taken care of.

Give Americans a chance to hope again, to fulfill their dreams, to feel like they have a fair chance. Come out and volunteer. Work for those candidates who are going to get us moving again. Because Jonathan, I can't wait to get going.

Singer: Terrific. Well, thank you so much for your time and good luck in your campaign.

Sestak: Thank you for the time, Jonathan. I appreciate what you're doing.

[THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.]