To move toll be able the secondary market more ably. For firsttime home borrowers, i agree with ann. I feel the baby be cultivated so carefully has been thrown out of your bathwater responsible lending that took over the markets. I do not think we have to look find botho experience, underwriting guidelines, demonstrations that would give us a good roadmap on how to increase access to credit to firsttime homebuyers. The sooner we get to that, the better the sooner the country will be served better. You went over the history of the bubble and subsequent crash and how we came to this was edition. Experienced the bubble and crash again. We plan to monitor unintentional consequences. For theclear variable congress perspective is that home prices are rising. It is good for the economy. There is a negative side. We want we do not want to have to wrap it of a rise in rapid ofes and too a rise in home prices. Are indicatings that they are having a very accessing the construction loan as part of the regulation which they are unclear as to exactly which is exactlyk part which is the part. Related to the new world that is coming out in a few days, the 3 cap role, people will follow the 3 role. , will wellsppen in fargo take advantage of the fact that many of the Real Estate Brokerage costs companies cannot compete in this space . Out. Are getting shut it means less competition over time here at broadly, that will hurt consumers. That is something we need to continue to monitor. The pricen brings situation which is much premier to consumers. Thank you. I would like to thank each of you, the panel members, today for your input. It is such an important issue for us as realtors, not only realtors, bankers, regulators thomas consumers as well. Regulators, consumers as well. We all agree the bottom line is how can we make more loans through the work each industry which will benefit the consumer, save loans, and protect the consumer as well. Thank you. Thank each of you for your participation as well. Day. A great, chilly [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2013] fromlook at an article Bloomberg News talking about Chris Christie who received National Attention earlier this week when it was revealed that hads in his administration orchestrated a traffic jam as an act of political retaliation. The article points out that he will be unveiling his policy agenda for the year on january 14 but might have a hard time implementing that agenda in the wake of the traffic controversy. It reads that governor Chris Christie cast himself and his first term as a master of bipartisanship, willing to back legislation introduced by democrats and to praise and hug president barack obama in the wake of hurricane sandy. Say they give the to acrosso easy claim the aisle teamwork. Tomorrow you can see his News Conference from earlier this week addressing the traffic jam controversy. 10 35 a. M. E at eastern. Here is a brief portion. Good morning. Out to this office where i have been many times before. I come out here today to apologize to the people of new jersey. I apologize to the people of fort lee. I apologize to the members of the state legislature. I an embarrassed and embarrassed an email you sent by the conduct of some of the conduct of some of the people in my team. There is no doubt in my mind that the conduct they exhibited is completely unacceptable and showed a lack of respect for the appropriate role of government and for the people that were trusted to serve. I believe all of the whole who were at that did by this conduct deserve this apology. That is why i am giving it to you. I also need to apologize to them for my failure as the governor thehis state to understand true nature of this problem sooner than i did. Beenieve i have understanding now of the true nature of the problem. The following actions as a result. This morning i terminated the employment of bridget kelly, effective immediately. I terminated her employment because she lied to me. You can see that News Conference with governor Chris Christie tomorrow at 10 35 a. M. Eastern here on cspan. Next, the u. S. Chamber of givinge Thomas Donohue his annual state of American Business address and washington, d. C. He talks about immigration, immigration and trade. Following his remarks as a News Conference with the orders. The entire event is a little less than 1. 5 hours. Here are some additional seats if you want to move in. Good morning. Welcome to the u. S. Chamber of commerce here and i am the resident of the u. S. President. This is become something of a tradition for us to pick up the year with this event. A chance to take stock of the challenges to come and the opportunities to be seized. The u. S. Chamber president tom of the will outline some most significant ones in just a minute. Before going on i want to introduce a special guest. He is a friend of the chamber and he is a senator from ohio. As i said, he is a good friend. I would like to ask senator rob portman to stand. I appreciate you being here. [applause] as senator portman knows, the policy challenges that we face in 2014 are numerous, they are complex, and their consequential. Portman knows, t policy challenges we face in 2014 are numerous, theyre complex, and theyre consequential. Voters will make their voices heard at the polls later this year with potentially huge bearing on the way our Government Works and the policies our lawmakers enact. And all this against a backdrop of an economic recovery that has been slow and uneven. So we have our work cut out for us this year. The u. S. Chamber is going to continue to marshal all of its tool and resources to educates the public, to influence our leaders, affect positive change where we need it, and insure that america lives up to all of her promise. Technology will be central to those efforts. Today, were launching a revamped u. S. Chamber. Com. Including a new blog, a blog that will highlight the issues and policies the chamber is fighting for in washington and around the world. And well continue our work on Free Enterprise. Com with a new focus, a focus that will carry the story and messages of the benefits of the Free Enterprise system to audiences beyond the beltway and outside the policy arena. This morning, well get a glimpse of the major challenges and opportunities that lay ahead and who better to deliver that message than tom donohue. There are few voices in the debate today that are as powerful as recognized, and as effective as toms. Businesses of every size and leaders inside and outside government look to him as the head of the chamber of commerce of the United States for leadership. They look to tom for truth, for ideas, and for his inflapble optimism that america remains the best place in the world to do business, to pursue opportunities, and to achieve our dreams. We look forward to hearing from him today, so i ask you to please join me in welcoming the president and ceo of the u. S. Chamber of commerce, tom donohue. Thank you. [ applause ] thank you very much, jack. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for coming to the chamber. I occasionally, when i do a major speech here, i think about this room and i think about the ceiling. The history, the opening of the western world, the flags, this is the hall of flags or for those courageous people who set out on a voyage to achieve what nobody thought they could achieve, and the end result is the United States of america. I keep that in mind a little bit today while were thinking about our own challenges and our own opportunities. Assessing the state of American Business and taking stock of the new years challenges and opportunities, its a tradition. We established it over 15 years ago. This year im pleased to report that the state of americas business is improving and our economy is gaining strength. Since the Great Recession officially ended in july of 2009, the American Economy has struggled to regain its footing. The recovery has been the slowest and the weakest since world war ii. The 21 million americans who are unemployed, under employed or who have just given up looking for work, have paid a very heavy price and they still are. Middleclass families have not yet seen decent increases in their real incomes for a long time. Its convenient to blame all of this on the severity of the downturn, but lets face the facts misguided Government Policies have also slowed our growth and caused americans a lot of jobs and a lot of raises. We must fix these mistakes and not repeat them going forward. This year, we have an opportunity to turn the page. Overall growth for 2013 will probably come in just at between 1. 8 pr and 2 . We should do considerably better this year with growth accelerating to near 3 . Housing is recovering and overall Household Wealth is now surpassed its prerecession levels. This has boosted consumption, which is leading to more Business Opportunity and investment and some new hiring. Our economy is also benefiting from continued strength in Domestic Energy production and improvements in trade. Note to the president and the congress, let business do more of both and well generate more jobs and income than any Government Program can deliver. Alongside the positive signs are some pretty big question marks. Employers are concerned about the negative impact of obama care, the cancellations that swamped the individual market last year are expected to hit the Small Business market even harder this year. Many firms are stopping new hires and cutting workers hours because of the mandates of this new law. There are other uncertainties. Driven chiefly by Regulatory Overreach and concerns about markets at home and abroad. How will an avalanche of confusing and conflicting regulations on energy, the environment, Capital Markets, and workplace activities Impact Business operations just as things are starting to hum . What about europe, our largest export and trading partner as a block, it continues to lag with very slow growth. Any one of a dozen or more global hot spots could flare up at any time, which could seriously, seriously impact our prospects. Some degree of uncertainty will always be with us. The question is, how do we maintain and build upon the economic momentum that is finally taking hold . 2014 in 2014 the chamber will focus its tools, its talents, it capacities and its resources to advance a jobs, growth and opportunity agenda that we believe will benefit all americans. Our plan includes ideas to expand trade, produce more Domestic Energy, and improve our infrastructure, which together would create millions of good paying jobs. We will push for government reform to modernize a regulatory process that hasnt been updated since the time of harry truman. Well highlight the need to make thoughtful changes in entitlements, fix the flaws in obama care, curb Lawsuit Abuse, protect intellectual property and revitalize our capital mark markets by striking the right balance between legitimate investor protections and the freedom to innovate and take responsible risk. Were going to be a leader in efforts to improve education and training. It is a disgrace that our country has allowed so many children to fall through the cracks and so many of our workers to be left behind. And were determined to make 2014 the year that im migration reform is finally enacted. The chamber will pull out of the stops through grassroots lobbying, communications, politics and partnerships with our friends in the union and faithbased organizations and Law Enforcement groups and others to get this job done. Now the pundises will tell you its going to be hard to accomplish much of anything this year, after all, dont you remember, its an election year. We hope to turn that assumption on its ear. By turning the Upcoming Elections into a motivation for change. Its based on a simple theory if you cant make them see the light, then at least lets make them feel the heat. In primaries and in general elections, we will support candidates who want to work within the legislative process to solve the nations problems and who understand that business is not the problem, business is a part of the solution. We previewed the aggressive efforts of the that the chamber has planned for the Midterm Election with a recent victory if alabamas First District as well early advertising success in support of probusiness candidates. In 2014, the chamber will work to protect and expand a probusiness majority in the house and advance our position and our influence in the senate. The Business Community understand whats at stake. They respect our political team, support our strategy, and understand the powerful impact our brand can have in pivotal elections. This means that well have all the resources that we need to run a most effective Political Program in 2014. The chamber will also be working on many other important activities outside the congress and the administration. The National Chamber litigation center, our inhouse Public Interest law firm, is going to be more active in the courts than ever before. We will be working with governors, mayors, state and local chambers, and many others to improve educational efforts, training and job opportunities, for students and workers. Our hiring the Heros Program will continue its successful effort to find good jobs and new careers for veterans and military spouses. Our institute for legal reform and work place Freedom Initiative will be active in many states to stop Lawsuit Abuse and to counterbalance be some of the policy of organized labor. Meanwhile, our International Die vig and Global Intellectual Property Center will be all over the world working to open markets and protect intellectual property that is developed and used here in the United States and around the the world. I think you can see that the chambers agenda is not only national, its local, and its global. Let me make some additional comments on just a few of the priorities that i have mentioned. Weve got a great opportunity this year to spur jobs and growth by expanding International Trade and investment. The administration is now more focused on trade. The wto is standing again following the xleeg of its landmark trade facilitation agreement. Now it is time to move quickly to pass trade promotion authority, tpa. Tpa allows the congress to set negotiating objectives for new trade packs. It requires the executive branch to consult with the congress and it gives congress the final say on any trade agreement in the form of an up and down vote. Bipartisan legislation has been written and will be introduced very soon. Were going to do all we can to make the case for its approval. What new opportunities will tpa create for us . The first is the transpacific partnership. We are within striking distance of concluding an agreement that is critical to americas economic and strategic leadership in the world and in the worlds Fastest Growing region. But we must have a high quality agreement that opens markets for manufacturers, farmers and service providers, and forces the digital and creative economies and tpp must include strong intellectual property protections in order to earn our unqualified support and that of the congress. The chamber will also lead the Business Communitys efforts in support of a trans transatlantic trade and Investment Partnership that will be with the eu, and remember i said they need economic stimulus in a big way. Were also working on a trade and Services Agreement with an expansion of the wto information it technology agreement. Put those all together, there are going to be more jobs, going to be more economic growth, and theres going to be more Global Economic success. Were pushing bilateral investment treaties with china and other countries as well as much needed improvements in intellectual property protections, especially in india. And with 20 years of nafta success under the belt, its time to move the north American Partnership of nafta success under the belt, time to move the north America Partnership to another level, working together to Gather Energy and build a Competitive Position in the world thats second to none. Whether a company does business around the world or just in their neighborhood, the Global Economy beyond our borders now has an impact. Thats why the Chamber Takes very seriously its unique role as the global voice of American Business. Lets turn to another key part of our agenda, and thats to advance and protect Americas Energy revolution. In 2012, Unconventional Oil and gas alone added 284 billion in gdp. Generated nearly 75 billion in federal and state tax revenues and supported 2. 1 million jobs. We have more Recoverable Conventional Oil and gas off our shores than the Proven Oil Reserves of europe and asia combined, yet 87 of it remains offlimits to the oil and gas industry. We have enough recoverable cold to power our economy for more than 200 years. We must have this vital resource, prudently, safely and vig rougs rously. We must support and develop our Nuclear Energy which today provides more than 20 of our power. And we should continue Smart Investments in viable terns and renewables and Greater Energy efficiency, which as you know is the ultimate effort in protecting the environment. Americas new era of Energy Abundance gives us an unrivalled opportunity to transform the United States from a nation dependent on imports, to a significant in fact getting them from people all around the world. It means instead we can be an exporter and that we can attract new manufacturing from all over the world. And over time, trillions and trillions of dollars of investment to our country. Yet the progress we made so far has come largely in spite of National Policy rather than because of it. We need to thoughtfully open more federal lands offshore and onshore. And we must remove and guard against unnecessary restrictions, delays and regulations. Theres no better example than the keystone xl pipeline. We have idled American Workers and deeply offended our most important ally for the purpose of shallow domestic politics. We are calling on the Obama Administration to put american jobs first, before special interest politics, and improve this project now. And we doesnt only mean the chamber, it means the American Business community. It means labor, it means people on both sides of the political aisle. Next week, our institute for 21st Century Energy will unveil the new energy works for the u. S. Its a new initiative which contain the more than 60 recommendations to help our country seize its Energy Potential and unleash the benefits across our entire economy. I encourage you to watch for this program and announcement, and the chamber will be working to advance these proposals throughout the year and throughout the elections. Trading around the world and moving energy across the country requires a safe, seamless and modern infrastructure. Families workers, visitors, tourists and our environment needs these services and these facilities. We need it to speed mobility, conserve energy, clean the air and save lives. The chamber will work for a multiyear reauthorization of the nations core Surface Transportation Program which expires at the end of september, and were asking congress to complete its work on a major Water Resources bill as well as soon as possible. However, our nation wont have the money to invest in infrastructure, to invest in national defense, or much of anything else, until we stop ignoring what i call the big smelly elephant in the room. Americas unsustainable entitlement programs. Make clear we are not talking about taking away from people that are depending on them. The recent improvement in the budget deficit is only temporary. We still have a serious overspending problem. We still have piles and piles of debt and entitlement programs are the primary cause. Last year, the chamber began an effort to wake up the nation to this reality. It hasnt been easy. And it hasnt been that successful. But were not going to rest or stop. This is the most predictable crisis in american history. In ten years, thats ten years from now, the total price tag, annually, for social security, medicare, medicaid will reach more than 3 trillion. Were basically going to increase federal spending between this year and ten years from now between 2013 and ten years from then, by 2. 5 trillion. The share of the budget to pay for these programs plus the interest on our debt will expand from 65 of the budget last year, to 76 in 2023. Now, look, demographics are destiny. You cant change them. In shortterm. And theres no way around it. Americans are living longer, who ray, im for that. Each and every day, listen, each and every day, another 10,000 baby boomers retire. And that will add up over 17 years to 77 million new retirees. In just another month, congress and the president excuse me, ill thats go away in a minute. Will need to raise the debt ceiling yet again. Under no circumstances can this National Debt be defaulted on. It would be the end of the American Financial system. Under no circumstances can this nation risk default. But it is also time to deal with entitlements. Producing more energy can help generate lots of new revenues to help pay for entitlements. And Stronger Economic growth is essential, but even those two things wont get us all the way there. Its time for our leaders to act like leaders, to tell the American People the truth and to craft a fair, sensible plan to reform and save these vital programs. The entitlement crisis and Rising Health care costs are closely linked. In opposing obamacare, the chamber repeatedly warned congress and the administration of the many flaws in this massive legislation. By the way, we we didnt know about many of them. Nancy pelosi said well have to pass it to find out whats in it. The administration is obviously committed to keeping the law in place. So the chambers not out opposing it. We have been working pragmatically to fix those parts of obamacare that can be fixed while doing Everything Possible to make regulations and mandates as manageable as possible for business. In 2014, we will work to repeal some of the onerous health care taxes. Repeal, delay or change the employer mandate and give companies and their employees more flexibility in the choice of Health Insurance plans. Last year, we organized the Health Care Solutions council. We brought people in from outside of the chamber, from all over the country. And their report contains many useful and practical reform ideas that we will pursue. And anybody who would like to have a copy of it, just let us know. All responsible parties need to Work Together and be more open to change because this nation still needs True Health Care reform that controls costs, improves quality and expands access to the uninsured. Turning to our next priority, the nation is in the midst of a historic expansion of regulatory activity. Do you know federal agencies are churning out 4,000 new regulations every year. The doddfrank bill alone has 398 rulemakings and only half not even half of those have been finalized over three years of work. Our center for Capital Markets, Capital Markets competitive in this, is pursuing a practical agenda to make sure job creators have access to capital by fixing or replacing some of the provisions of the doddfrank bill that simply dont work as they were planned. While also pursuing regulations to act in areas that the law did not address. Now were also very concerned about the department of educations proposed gainful employment rule which discriminates against private sector colleges and universities. This is wrong and this is unfair. These institutions can play a major role in helping our nation close a serious skills gap. Were going to do everything we can to change or stop the rule as it is currently written. Another serious regulatory challenge, which by the way, is very abusive, but i think its absurd is the sue and settle process. With a wink and a nod, an Interest Group sues the epa. They agree on a settlement. They find a court to bless it. And even get to collect legal fees, courtesy of the american taxpayer, with no transparency and little opportunity for public input, new regulations are then imposed on business and our economy and those that proposed it walk away with a check. Between 2009 and 2012, epa settled with Interest Groups at least 60 times, creating some hundred new regulations. In 2014, the chamber will continue to work directly with federal agencies and with congress to win changes and improvements to obamacare, doddfrank and many other regulations. And when these efforts fall short, and they will, sometimes, and the regulators insist on overstepping their bound, then well know what we know how to do and well head to the courts and sue them. Were also making the case that government needs to reform the way it writes and enacts rules and regulations. The chamber is Building Support for legislation that would modernize the regulatory system, streamline the permitting process, and blunt the abusive practice of sue and settle. The chamber will also continue to make a compromise tax reform policy and activity a high priority. This is complicated this is a complicated issue for the country. By the way, also for the chamber. And especially for the Business Community and heres why. Everyone likes compromise tax reform, in theory. Until its their favorite provision thats up for elimination. And theyre all in there to see us why those three provisions and those four provisions and those five provisions cant be touched. We need compromise, progrowth reform that lowers rates on both the corporate and individual sides of the code and increases our global competitiveness, and we must simplify a system that has been accurately called a monstrosity. Legal reform, on the other hand, will be a major focus of our work as well. Our institute for legal reform is fighting the expansion of lawsuits on every front. In the congress, in the federal agencies, in the states, and even around the globe where u. S. Companies are being sued by american lawyers who have moved overseas to take their business to a place where they are not as aggressively challenged. In this election year, i will be very engaged in Voter Education efforts on state attorney general and state Supreme Court conn tests. On the federal level, we helped convince the house to pass the f. A. C. T. Act, to avoid fraud and double dipping in the Asbestos Settlement process. Were hoping the senate will follow suit. We need reasonable reforms in the false claims act. This is an important tool to uncover and punish fraud by government contractors, but it is also being stretched and abused in ways that actually discourage companies from developing strong Compliance Systems or from coming forward with reports of mistakes or instances of wrong doing. Ladies and gentlemen, the proposals ive highlighted with solidify our recovery. They will help create jobs and expand growth. But before concluding, there is a third part of the chambers agenda i would like to speak to, and its all about opportunity. You may have noticed that theres been a lot of focus recently on the subject of inequality. It seems to me that what we should really be talking about is equality of opportunity. How do we give everyone a fair shot at the American Dream . And by the way, 50 years ago, when Lyndon Johnson pressed the Poverty Program in this country, thats exactly what he said. Equality of opportunity. The fact is that we have Many Americans who who are successful, and that should not be seen as a problem. The fact that Many Americans dont get a fair chance to succeed, that is the problem. Lets focus on the real problem and do something about it. We know what doesnt work, getting stuck in stagnant growth as we have been for the last five years, that doesnt work, and doubling down on those policies of tax and spend and regulate and mandate, that wont work. So lets talk about what will work. Instead of devicing more ways to slice up the existingno