Allies of every single american for an entire generation. Now, last night the people of alabama elected a new senator who represents washington. Republicans control the senate face a choice. Will they allow senatorelect doug jones to take a seat among his colleagues before a a final vote on their taxct plan . We actually know something about that kind of choice in my home state of massachusetts. On january 19, 2010, massachusetts elected a new senator to represent them here in washington. The result was just as shocking to democrats as last night result was to republicans. It also came when we were in the middle of another historically important policy debate here in washington,a healthcare. A lot of people thought the democrats should ram through the final version of their bill in congress before brown could be seated. Now, i could stand your and read you a quote after quote after quote from republicans who now control the senate talking about how unfair that would be. How corrupt that would be, and how antidemocratic that would be. I could go on and on about how todays Senate Majority leader Mitch Mcconnell said this would be gamesmanship. But i wantt to talk about what democrats actually did. Democrats rejected the idea of ramming through the bill before seat in thetake his senate. Almost immediately jim webb a democratic senator from virginia called forf a suspension of any healthcare vote until after brown arrived. The day after the massachusetts election, Senate Majority leader harry reid said publicly we are going to wait until the new senator arrives, into we do anything more on health care. Massachusetts democratic senator john kerry held a a joint press conference with republican scott brown that same week where he said quote, seating scott brown as expeditiously as possible is important. We want to respect the election results, and nobody wants to delay this process. Andde president obama whose ente healthcare agenda was on the line said this. Heres one thing i i know adags want to make sure that this is off theat table. The senate certainly should not try toou jam anything through ad killed scott brown is seated. People in massachusetts spoke. Hes got to be part of that process. This wasnt an easy decision. Waiting for brown slow down the adoption of health care for two additional months. More importantly, it meant that democrats lost their filibuster proof majority. And as a consequence, the final bill could not achieve nearly as much as democrats had hoped for. But we did it anyway. We did it because democracy matters, even when it means that it might slow down a a presidet agenda. Democracy matters even when a senate seat held for decades by a liberal lion is taken over by a conservative. Democracy matters, especially when it is inconvenient. If were honest we know there hasnt been a lot of democracy about this tax bill. This is a bill that was written and rewritten in the dead of night beyond closed doors. Its filled with errors and unintended consequences. Its animated by a rotten wealth transfer from millions of hardworking americans to a handful of corporations and billionaires. But up until now we have at the principal that each state is to pick it senators. And those senators get to vote for or against the final product. Thise afternoon we are being tod the republicans have final tax deal. Nobody has seen it but we could be voting on on in the next coe of days. Mere is no reason to ram through that kind of massive restructuring of our Economic System before alabama gets its senator. In less republicans are concerned that their deal will not withstand a couple more weeks of public scrutiny. The election of doug jones will not change which Party Controls the senate. The election ofil doug jones wil not give him our democrats that power to block the tax bill, or any other piece of legislation. It will respect the people of alabama and their choice. It should happen before any more tax votes take place in the senate. Mr. President , id like to spk on another matter nowow and ask consent of a speech appear in the appropriate place in the record. Without objection. Mr. President , america entered [inaudible] let me start [inaudible] my apologies. Mr. President , almost 60 years ago america entered the space age. We pushed the bounds of Human Knowledge to do, see, acquainting great things that fund will change the way we live our lives. And the government was right smack at the center of all of it dedicating resources and manpower to exploration for science, medicine, engineering andog technology. Darpa was a product of that commitment and it was there at darpa that a a bunch of governt and government funded researchers created the internet. In the intervening decades what started in thaten Government Agency provided the Building Blocks for what we experience as the internet today. Creative minds in government, at colleges universities, in business and in homes and garages all across the country toys in tinkered and pushed us into the digital age. Today internet use is nearly universal. Although Internet Access remains limited in many rural and low income areas, students of all ages go online to access educational tools and conduct research for many school assignments. Entrepreneurs and Small Businesses sell goods and transact business online. Families come together to watch the internet and Broadband Services have become an important part of our lives. And government is just ass important now as it was back when the internet was created. By enforcing and implementing Americas Communications law and rules, the federal Communications Commission, the fcc, plays a Critical Role in making sure that the internet remains fair and open. In 2015 the fcc enshrine that commitment in an open internet order, establishing netne neutrality rules, strong Public Interest rules that prevented Big Companies from deciding how or when we use the internet. Rules that have the overwhelming support of the vast majority of americans. Republican or democrat. But Big Internet Companies dont want the fcc to work in the Public Interest. They want the internet to work for them. Long before the fcc passed Net Neutrality rules, those giants are working to establish control over the open internet. And after Net Neutrality rules were passed, they stepped up theiryi attack deploring armiesf lobbyists and lawyers, and investing massive amounts of money to bury Net Neutrality rules. And now they got that champagne chilled and ready to pop open. They have a president and a gop controlled congress thats more interested in stuff in the pockets of the rich and powerful than taking care of the workers, Small Businesses and entrepreneurs, students, children, the sick, the elderly, and just about everybody else. And President Trumps choice to lead the fcc, ajit pai, is designated to transform is the fcc from agency that works in the Public Interest into a big business giveaway group. He has been a vocal opponent of Net Neutrality rules for a very long time. After President Trump won the election, pai gleefully declared that Net Neutrality is days were numbered. Pai claim that nondiscrimination rules harmed giantt Internet Companies by making more difficult for them to create new and better products. He thinks that if these giant can discriminate against Small Businesses or individuals, that these giants can pick who gets the fast lane into your Television Set andon who stuck f on the dirt roads. If these giants can dictate which startups get a foothold and which ones are left on the ground, then the giants will be better off. Of course hes right. The giants will be better off. But everyone else will be worse off, a lot worse off. Chairman pai is so committed to these internet giant that is willing to rewrite the federal rules in order to help them out. And hes even went to rewrite the rules so that state and local governments will not be allowed to pass any Consumer Protection laws to protect their own citizens. Chairman pai notion of a fair and open internet is one that works for the highest bidder, and it just leads everyone else behind. Tomorrow the fcc will vote on whether to eliminate the protections that ensure that the internet remains fair and open to all americans. Protection that the vast majority of americans support. Pai has barreled full speed ahead despite disturbing reports that potentially hundreds of thousandssa of comments submittd during the Public Comment period were fake, and he has ignored the fccs responsibility to turn over documents of consumer complaints about discriminatory behavior by internet providers. If the fcc eliminates Net Neutrality for production, jack Internet Companies pop open those champagne bottles. You have the power toth block access, to filter content, to charge more. Three powerful ways that they will pick the next round of americas winners and losers. Thats just not the way should work in america the internet doesnt belong to Big Internet Companies. It belongs to all of us, and all of us should be part of this fight. Net neutrality matters. For the entrepreneur working roundtheclock on a shoestring budget to build an invention that can change the world, Net Neutrality matters. For the small Family Business that depends for Online Customers to keep its lights open and its doors open, Net Neutrality matters. For the blog writer a local day to bring us Important News about archimedes, our government and our world, Net Neutrality matters. For every american who use the internet for any reason, Net Neutrality matters. On genuity is americas dna. Packet is that spirit of curiosity and adventurous put us at the forefront of the search for whats next. Government works best when it make suret that everyone has the resources that make that possible. In massachusetts, the messages chapter of the aclu fights for the future and countless other groups have led the fight to defend Net Neutrality and help citizens make their voices heard. I urge every american to speak out about why Net Neutrality matters. And i urge the fcc to abandon its plan to kill Net Neutrality rules, and instead asked our fcc to defend an internet that is fair and open to all. Thank you, mr. President. I yield. The senator from oregon. Mr. President , i introduced the senates first strong Net Neutrality bill back in 2006, and i rise today to give my strongest possible condemnation of what the federal communication committee, commission said, mr. Pike, seeking to do which is to roll back protections that ensure truly free and open internet for our people. This is, colleagues, a handout. It is a holiday gift to a collection of giant Internet Companies to increase the profits at the expense of the consumer. And, mr. President , before actually begin my remarks, senator franken ic is on the floor as well, and i would just like the public to know how important his leadership has been on these issues. He and i have partnered on these issues ever since he came to the senate, and he was on the key committee, the judiciary committee, hes been a go to figure in a key spot on this issue. And iue just want to continue ts discussion, senator warren is terrific presentation. I know my colleagues will speak on this as well. I just want the public to know that senator franken has made a big, big difference for the consumer on these issues. And those of us who have been toiling in these precincts are very appreciative of what hes done. Mr. President , i want personal for people to even understand what Net Neutrality is. Because i think, senator franken and i talked about this over the years, a little confusion of what it is. Net neutrality means that after you payes your Internet Access fee, you get to go where you want when you want and how you want. It is the essence of ensuring that everybody gets up, gets a fair shake, that all bits are created equal. It is the foundation of what has kept the internet free and open. And i think if i get into my kind of prepared remarks, i want people to understand what happens if you dont have Net Neutrality. If you dont have Net Neutrality, in effect Big Companies can manipulate who is going to win and who is going to lose in the marketplace. And they will continue to manipulate who wins and who loses until and after we get both fewer services and the consumer gets higher prices. So this is not some kind of abstract discussion. And let me just flush out some of these remarks for a few minutes. I i know my colleagues have been waiting as well. Since the origins of the internet, the defining feature has been that all information, all bits as we know it the same fair shake. If youre a s big company or a momandpop ice cream shop with a website, your content gets in everybodys homes at the same speed. Thats what Net Neutrality is all about. Net neutrality keeps Internet Service providers from favoring one type of content over another. Now, the market has changedcc since 2006, because the market for access to the internet has changed. Where once there were legions of dialup providers and dsl resellers, we were seeing a few monopolies, duopoly is dominating neighborhoods across the country. With their power to dictate where you could go and what you could see on the net, they had and continue to have the power to suppress those sites in the services that you would have chosen yourself in a free marketplace driving them out ofb business. And i thought again to lay out what this means for people who are following this. That means instead of netflix, youtube or amazon, you could be forced to get your video content from something called go 90, whatever the heck that is. It certainly isnt a service that has been able to compete in a Free Internet market, but all that changes when verizon can charge you more to get to you tube oryo facebook that cost to reach their own service. Without strong Net Neutralityne protection, at t might provide, and we always put it in quotes, free data, free data for customers streaming hbo. Pretty good if you watch hbo, but it could, without netto neutrality, start other creators and subscribers necessary to survive until soon enough, as senator franken as pointed out in some of our discussions, free data is gone. Thats it. Free data goes away, and the american consumer, which is my fear, when you think about what it really means to somebody sitting in minnesota at home. I seeee my colleague senator merkley from oregon as well, you know, the free data goes away and what i described in the consumer at home in minneapolis for oregon is stuck with your choices at higher prices than they have to date. That is what the loss of Net Neutrality means. I care deeply as my colleagues do about innovation of startups, Small Businesses. Senator warren was eloquent on this point. Theres going to be a lot of people, if it wasnt mean to me, what it means is i have just kind of walked people through an example is that that typical person is going to be stuck with fewer choices at higher prices. Two years ago tom wheeler, then the head of the federal Communications Commission, put in place strong framework, something with teeth that was enforceable called title ii of the Communications Act to make sure that the government, the fcc, have the tools to protect Net Neutrality. Now, chairman wheeler, like chairman pai, worked for industry, for much of his career in washington, but rather than serve his former employer, tom wheeler said ongoing use my experience in how companies operate, how they treat consumers, tom wheeler said im going usei the experience i have working in the private sector to design and implement constructive and effective Consumer Protections. What a contrast between the two chairs for the federal Communications Commission. Both from industry, both of them did well in industry, and we consider that a good thing in america that you have a prospering private economy. Tom wheeler used it and that expertise to help the public. Thats not what were seeing today. Now, mr. President , there is a need to fix what isnt broken. Their strong Net Neutrality protections in place right now. Since the 2015 rules went into place, our economy has grown up around thisua leading principlef equal access to information and customer. The day before thanksgiving chairman pai released his proposal to strike down the 2015 rules that ensure real Net Neutrality and would also prevent states from introducing their own approach to Net Neutrality. Rather than listening to the millions of voices who spoke up on behalf of real Net Neutrality and against this proposal to allow pay for play by what i really call, senator franken, trickledownun telecommunicatios policy. Just let the big guys make as much money as it want and may be something eventually down to rural minnesota or rural oregon. Chairman pai is going to keep pushing pay for play and is expected to ignore the will of the public and demolished Net Neutrality rules. The first key vote tomorrow december 14th, and what ive been doing, spend a good chunk of my waking hours, obviously got the tax issue, indocin four. This isou enormously important, too, to tell the American People this is a time to make their voices heard. My message to the American People on Net Neutrality is get loud. This debate is far from over. We know chairman pai plays a strong hand tomorrow. Theres a question about that. But then it goes to the courts. A number of our colleagues are looking at approaches on the floor. So i want as much as anything to make sure that the American People know that we understand, senator franken, senator merkley, political change doesnt start in government buildings in washington, d. C. And trickledown. Its bottoms up. And if ever there was an issue for bottoms up, its Net Neutrality. Not only are the majority of americans oppose to the proposal, many of the comments he has elicited for input are fake. These fake, its a been a tribute to bots a false identitieste are linked with russian ips bikini argument that this agency have two medications commission has a transparent process with comments from the American People is not true. This is not government for the people. Thiser is government for special interest. Just a couple of other points, and let me wrap this up for my colleagues to be able to have the floor. The chairman, chairman pai, has been out there arguing, falsely in my view, that without title ii protections big cable will make more money and use those profits to invest in infrastructure. This is whatlhe i call the trickledown theory about telecommunications. First of all, the existing regime was called title ii. Toughot rules. Not as been a roadblock. Affect cable giant continued to invest in the broadband infrastructure even when strong Net Neutrality protections were put in place in 2015. Publicly available documents show that investments by internet p Service Providers was 5 higher during the two years after strong Net Neutrality rules were adopted van for the two years prior. Comcast, for example, has increased its investments by 25 since c 2013. Big cable and their own statements show that none of the major Internet Service providers to hold their investors that Net Neutrality protection negatively impacts their investments. That is based on publicly verifiable documents. But what we have is chairman pai making this case, oh, my goodness, western civilization is going to end if we dont get, without getting rid, if, chairman pai is making the argument that Net Neutrality provisions with teeth are going to be pretty much the end of investment and sort of western civilization as we know it. Public documents show otherwise. Publicly available documents show otherwise. Now, the fcc chairman once claimed that a policy of all interNet Neutrality would be another way to go. Any talk of a voluntary solution to Net Neutrality is just nonsense. Allowing an Net Neutrality provider to follow Net Neutrality, that has got about o as much chance of working, theres about as much chance that the big Cable Companies will honor voluntary Net Neutrality as there is to get a bit and william white, my tenyearold twins, to voluntarily limit the number of desert theyin have dinner not going to happen. Not going to happen, folks. Not going to work for open and fair access to the internet. We work with ava and bill white. On the same exact day the fabric indications commission produced this rulemaking rollback title ii, comcast remove the pledge on its website that it does not prioritize internet traffic to create paid fast lanes. So much for voluntary policy. In my view the only way the potential of the net to be fully passed is by ensuring that one from a content is not provided a preference over another form of content by their Internet Service provider. The Trump FederalCommunications Commission is barreling had to level Playing Field that is so crucial to innovation and free speech. And i close only by way of saying that this is also a lifeline for the start of spirit so startups are dreaming of being the next youtube, google or ebay. This is not about google or ebay. Ebay. This is about the startups. And i would be staying to my colleagues, senator franken, make his remarks on Net Neutrality other than the fact were about to start the tax conference. But i close my remarks were i opened them. Senator franken has been our go to person on these issues since he came to the senate here we are so grateful that he looked at this issue through the prism of what is what it means for the person without power and clout. And i want to thank him for his leadership. Mr. President . The senator from minnesota. I would think the senator from oregon, my friend, for his extraordinarily kind words to you, too, been a leader introducing the first Net Neutrality in 2006 before i came here. Mr. President , i rise today to talk about tomorrows vote at the fcc on a proposal that would throw out the strong Net Neutrality rules that americans have fought so hard for. Rules that ensure all content on the internet receives equal treatment. From bob brand from broadband providers, regardless of who owns it or how deep the pockets are. Plain and simple, these rules are about ensuring that the internet remains a platform for innovation, economic growth, and freedom of expression that it has always been. As i reflect on my time in the senate, there are of course moments that stand out as particularly significant. One such a moment came in february 2015 when American Consumers and businesses celebrated the fccs landmark votes to preserve a free and open internet by reclassifying broadband providers ass common carriers under title ii of the Communications Act. While i had long urged the fcc to ground Net Neutrality rules in agencies authority, under title ii, it wasnt just the outcome of this vote that made such an impression on me then or now, as im looking back. The fccs 2015 vote came after the agency received nearly 4 million Public Comments, making it the den most commented on fcc issue by a factor of three. And the vast majority of these comments urged the agency to enact strong roles protecting Net Neutrality, protecting the equal treatment of all content on the internet. Which has been the architecture of the internet since the very beginning. Americans from across the political spectrum organized to ensure that their voices were heard, and he were this was democracy in action. And now as chairman pai pushes forward to undo the open internet order, weve seen another aweinspiringri demonstration grassroots advocacy. Millions of americans from every corner of the nation and background imaginable are joining the Movement Online and in the streets to ask the chairman to rethink his dangerous proposal, and to preserve Net Neutrality. When things get tough as they have time and time again in the last year, americans have resisted and protested. Its these movements thate. Make the difference. Just look at the republicans failed attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care act. But ironically the kind of civic participation that has inspired so many of us u in recent month, and has affected real change, depends in no small part on an open internet. If the chairman ultimately has his way we will be entering a world where every voice might not matter. A world where a handful of multibilliondollar companies have the power to bury sites offering alternative viewpoints, or control how users get their information. Or a world where the deepest pockets can pay for fast lane while theirto competitors stalln a slow lane. See, it is because of Net Neutrality that people from across the nation can connect with each other, share their ideas on the internet, and organize a community effort, just like the project Net Neutrality protests we havet sen at verizon soars across the country. Ive spent nearly entirely of my time in the senate pushing for strong Net Neutrality rules. And ive always called it the freespeech issue of our time, because it embraces our most basic constitutional freedoms. Because unrestricted public functioning of our democracy. Now perhaps more than ever. They need to reserve a free and open internet is abundantly clear. So we cant give up now. Three years ago the fcc established strong Net Neutrality rules, and millions of americans voiced their support for them. The fcc must maintain and fully enforce the Important Court tested rules that are already in place, and perhaps more importantly the agency must respect the democratic process and the voices that made himself so clear in 2014, and over the course of the last few months. Theres just too much at stake. Thank you, mr. President. Mr. Mr. President . The senator from oregon. I think my colleague from minnesota for being a champion on whether we have government of and by the powerful, or government by and for the people of the United States of america. We have seen issue after issue after issue this year on health care, on tax reform, and that one Net Neutrality, and i thank him for his advocacy. Mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that might in turn, alicia, be granted privileges to the four for the balance of the day. Without objection. I thank you veryal much. Last night we had an election. I put many of my colleagues, republicans side, said elections have consequences. But now we see that they are attempting to deliberately slow down the opportunity for the new elected senator, alabama to come in and serve in the u. S. Senate. They took a a different view wn the question was a special election in massachusetts when a republican senator was elected to take the seat once held by ted kennedy. And the democrats concurred in the president of the United States, president obama concurred that he should be seedy, that nothing should be jammed through in a fashion that tried to bypass the weight and opinion of the people of the state of massachusetts and who would represent them. But this chamber seems thread under this majority leadership thats only try to trample the people of alabama who said with a stand last night, but this Chamber Wants to deny them that voice here on the floor of the senate. Now, back in two years ago in june 2013 there was a house election in misery, and republican was elected to that empty seat and jason kantor, the democratic secretary of state in missouri said absolutely he should be seated missouris eighth district, and jason smith, the candidate chosen by missouri was seated in the house of representatives motley within 18 hours. Within 18 hours. So the people of missouri could have fair representation. The democratic senators, democratic president , a democratic secretary of state in a Southern State said honor the people of the United States. So i call upon the majority leader to defend the people of alabama and seek their senator, and do it under the same 18 our standard. Now, we are here to talk today about another issue of powerful versus the people. And we have seen time and time again over the course of the last few months the president of United Statesin stand up for the powerful trying to crush the people of the United States,d trying to rip healthcare from 30 million americans in order to get special benefits to the arichest americans. We have seen the president of the United States sign in the oval office a major which would enable a measure which would enable a powerful company what it is dealing with the consumer, enable that powerful company to choose the judge, to pay the the judge future business. What kind of fairness is that for an ordinary america up against that powerful companies with a powerful, gets to choose the jobs . And yet republican colleagues voted overwhelmingly to crush the opportunity of an ordinary citizen versus a powerful company in a consumer dispute. And then we have the tax bill if the tax bill that says if you earn less than 30,000 you get a tax increase anddd if youre in middle class, 87 million of you, will get any increase in your taxes. By the way well get several trillion dollars to the richest american a most powerful corporations. Another example, a bank heist on the national treasury. Our treasury to deliver benefits to the best off, to the richest in america. Now, oregon is about 1 of the population. And if you take 1 of 1 trillion, thats 10 billion, i can tell you what we can do for families in oregon 10 billion. Can invest in needed stronger economy for a lot of people to work a living wage jobs. A we can add teachers to our Public School classrooms so that our classrooms are better opportunity for our children to learn and to thrive. We can make college more affordable. We can improve our Community Health clinics, make sure health care is available to all which is so critical to the quality of life. But no, ill republican colleagues say lets gives this money to the richest americans. Lets raid that national treasury. Thats because we have fundamental cycle of corruption in campaigns that is enabling such a bizarrely inappropriate bill to ever get heard here on the floor of the senate. I say bizarrely inappropriate because our government wasnt founded to mimic powerful kingdoms of europe that are governed by and for the richest. We had a vision of government by and for the people. And now we have this issue of Net Neutrality. Once again President Trump and republicansce weighing in to crh ordinary people in favor of a powerful corporation. Now, the internet has become essential to all of us in our daily lives. We can sold it to where to go to a restaurant are what movies are playing. Wet stand up and check in on the internet to find what the sports scores are and whats the latest news. We order our airline tickets. We do so many things in ordinary life, and yet here is President Trump saying we want to take that level Playing Field of fairness for consumers across america and let some powerful companies decide who gets the supplied information to what websites are not of information and which ones were going to slow down. Who are going to put in the fast lane and who were going to put in the slow lane. You know, the internet is so critical to freedom of information, this is an assault on freedom of information. It was James Madison said the massive and diffusion of knowledge is only guaranteed of true liberty. The advancement and infusion of knowledge, and yet my colleagues and President Trump what to give powerful companies the ability to control what information is shared in america. Think of a highway. You haveha a highway and everyoe gets to use it, and you can be in a slowing if you choose because you want to save fuel or you can get in the fast lane about somebody whos going more slowly, but you dont have someone saying hey, you know what, were only going to allow the richest americans to drive in the fast lane with going to allow the most powerful corporations to be in the fast lane. And for the rest of you, you get to go in the slowly. I dont care if theres a truck going 25 miles per hour, you will be stuck behind it unless you pay me a whole lot of money to get out of that lane. The internet for the rich and powerful is wrong. And we have to stop it. And if the federal Communications Commission doesnt get the message this thursday, we need to overturn their rule here on the floor of the senate. Now, i get a chart each day showing me the call some yesterday. And here i have a parsing how many people called about Net Neutrality and which side of the issue did they wait in on. 544 people called in favor of Net Neutrality, and according to this t chart, zero people called in favor of powerful corporations instead controlling the internet. Now, since pinafore and we did one call so lets make it 544 to one instead of 544 to zero. Have the option issue that kind of race of ordinary people weighing in and said dont let the powerful take over our internet. A level Playing Field for consumers, levelwe Playing Field for distributing knowledge. A level Playing Field for entrepreneurs so that the new startup can compete with the googles and amazons of her country and replenishing its websites. I ask you if you had a choice between two websites last night to follow the election in alabama and one was in the fast lane i could replenish its numbers instantly, and almost all get to go so slow your numbers are going to take five minutes to get t posted, which side would you have gone to . Well of course you would have gone to the site that could update quickly. And thats the point that we shouldnt allow powerful companies to extort americans over the information going to the internet. Not fair to american citizens. Not fair to american entrepreneurs. Not fair to distribution of knowledge and must defeat it. Thank you, mr. President. Watch cspan3 today at 10 30 a. M. Eastern for live coverage of the fcc vote on Net Neutrality. The vote is to roll back Net Neutrality rules passed during the Obama Administration and his intent to reduce regulation of the internet live today at 10 3, cspan. Org or listen to it live with the free cspan radio app. Jefferson probably knew more about more things that any single man in north america. And i include franklin in that it would be his only rifle. And everyone was impressed by jeffersons extent of his knowledge adams was smart but he did not have the breadth, but yet some depth in history and law that jefferson didnt have. Not because jefferson couldnt. He just wasnt as interested in the law as adams. Sunday on cspans q a professor and historian gordon would on his book friends divided about the relationship and differing political views of john adams and thomas jefferson. Adams was a realist. He did not believe that all men are created equal picky about all men are created unequal picky did not believe in american exceptionalism. We americans know better, are no different than other nations. Jefferson is the opposite. He is and to nurture. And that i think is what most americans believe. Thats why we put so much in other words, we are all born equal and the difference is we are subjected to different environments. Thats what education is so important to us americans and was important to jefferson. Professor and historian gordon would sunday night at eight eastern on cspan. Next, an oversight hearing for the Nuclear Regulatory commission. The senate and farm and Public Works Committee heard from the commissioners chair and to commissioners. Topics included uranium on exports to canada, europe and asia, morale, budget cuts, Nuclear Storage safety, and cybersecurity. This is just over 90 minutes. Good morning. I called the string to order. Todays oversight hearing will be look at the Nuclear Regulatory commission, the nrc. Id like to welcome kristine svinicki, commissions, welcome. Im sad to say the Commission Remains without its full strength of five commissioners picked this is a situation im eager to resolve intuitively the Commission Functions best with all five commissioners in place. Im assault support of nuclear energy, as a vitalpo