But that is the same thing, the other side of the coin. We measure different things. Why . So the cost savings would be in research and design. There are manufacturing inefficiencies that, but if you make slightly different of course. We have seen a preposterous situation over the years within europe, and this is going back a little bit, but different regulations for backup alarms on machinery. The decibel level, the sound, the frequency, it adds costs. Placement of taillights and lighting on machines vary from country to country. You have to make the same Construction Equipment with slightly different beeping sounds. Every time it is a change and it adds costs. It drives the costs up for nothing. That is something we need to drive out. That alone will help us all. Again, i think the comment about this not being a static world and our competitors are getting better. They have agreements we do not have. Senator kerry was talking earlier about the excellence in u. S. Higher education, how that has always helped us, training more and better engineers, but those days are ending. So our Natural Design advantages are going to be harder to come by going forward. And so we need those things, so we are not starting with a 10 cost disadvantage. In asia. What would it mean for caterpillar . We have a huge business in asia and growing. That is the single largest opportunity over the next decade or so. We intend to lead market. But again, i come back to the point that it is likely that a lot of those countries, a number of those, will do agreements with or without us. If we dont get tpp done. We will look into a market that we ought to be competing with. Ill move to africa because i am passionate about this. We watched the chinese really take over africa. Theyve come in with their own financing, their own engineering, sometimes their own workers to take over minerals, extraction, oil and gas, hydroelectric power across africa. I know, michael, that is on your agenda. But i am so pleased to hear that the crossover between commerce and the state, because that is what we really need. That is what china and others do so well. They combine all of their assets, all of their possibilities to go after business and try to win customers over. I think we can do that, and i really think the commercestate, nation can be very fruitful. We would like to help with that. It is a great opportunity. Ambassador, so trade Promotion Authority is a big issue. What do you see as the prospects in congress to get trade Promotion Authority, to get fasttrack . What would it mean if you do not . Can you negotiate these agreements if that is not a part of the equation . The president made clear that he would like to get trade Promotion Authority, that it is a critical tool for being able to move these agreements, make these agreements really never met them. Just this week, there was a hearing in the Senate Finance committee on ttip where senator baucus and senator hatch talked about the importance of moving forward on trade Promotion Authority, and we are working with the finance committee and the ways and means committee, both democrats and republicans, to try and move this forward as quickly as we can with his broad support as we can possibly have. We think it is a critical tool. Ultimately to getting agreements through congress. And that is why we want to get it done. Assume if you are rooting for some of these deals, you would like to see it the u. S. Government has a strong negotiating position as possible. Governments to not create jobs. But we do set the conditions for that to happen, so we work hard in tennessee. We have the lowest debt per capita. We have the lowest two or three tax rates. Great infrastructure. We have done all the things we think we can do to help this be a great Productive Work environment, but there are certain things that are out of control that dramatically impact jobs in tennessee. When i hear manufacturers tell us, we love being in tennessee and we love the work environment, but if we had this agreement in place, we could produce x more jobs. It is frustrating to me as a governor because it is something that is out of my control, but it is critical for me to lend that voice, whether it is in washington or anywhere else, to raise it. We have worked hard to set up a great working environment in tennessee. We think we have it. There are certain things that are beyond our control. So i understand everyone on this panel is an enthusiast to these agreements, but we want to be clearheaded about some of the competitive costs. In the constructionmining business, what you see as the competitiveness that would come from imports would be less expensive . What are the challenges you will face of some of these deals come to be . Well, that is a great question, and one we are battling on many fronts, and it comes back to the competitiveness of the United States. You get into things like education system, our taxing system, and all of the things that make u. S. Companies competitive visavis our competitors around the world. That is another broad subject. To have a level Playing Field between exim bank and tariffs and the ability to penetrate markets that are open is kind of the foundation of all of this. Past that, it is up to u. S. Companies to be competitive and up to the american government, certainly, to help us all be as competitive as we can to create manufacturing jobs and job growth. I look at it in those three steps of foundational work. The opening of markets is fundamental to starting the process. We export an awful lot from the United States. We work hard every day on internal label agreements. We have spent a lot of time on our education system. But if we do not have those markets to start with, the rest of this is sort of benign. We have got to be there to play. Again, in the auto business, what would you see as the competitive threats come to be from more imports . We love freetrade and we love competition. I can only tell you that made a strong over the last 50 years, from a Humble Company with 4000 employees, to way north of 100,000. We are the most successful premium manufacturer in the world. In europe, which is still our biggest market, there is free trade and we are used a competition. We love to see you is the best. Is the best. We are not afraid of anything that is competition. Not skewed by protectionism. We are looking for unilateral, free trade that would grow our business. Same question. What are the advantages that workers and manufacturers and tennessee have that make you confident in a more level Playing Field they will prevail . A couple things. At the end of the day, it will be about having the right trained workforce, and we are doing everything we can to make sure we have enough engineers and enough welders and i. T. Professionals to provide the product. Is there a downside . And there are. We not only make cars and medical equipment, we also grow tomatoes. Our tomato farmers will tell you since nafta their sales are down. In the longterm, they say we are going to win. We realize you are opening up our markets to that process. We kind of believe in competition. We will take our chances in that world. Our job is to set the right structure, make sure we have the right environment, very predictable. And make sure we are training the right workers. We think we are doing that. Ambassador, some of the losers of the trade deals, some of the industries that face more competitions, is there a way to help those workers . Absolutely. When president obama came into office he wanted to make sure we were negotiating trade agreements that were, the benefits would be broadly shared and where we recognize that we need to take care of anybody who is displaced. That is why we have insisted that the trade adjustment assistance be part of the practice. It expires in two months. It is always been linked to trade Promotion Authority. Our hope is Congress Takes up trade Promotion Authority, that they will marry it with trade adjustment assistance so we can move this forward. Let me say one more word about that trade Promotion Authority there is a lot of misinformation. It is the mechanism by which Congress Gives us our marching orders. They tell us what to negotiate, how to work with them during negotiations, and what the conditions will be under which they will consider an agreement to approve or disapprove it. We work closely with congress throughout every trade negotiation, hand in glove. Trade Promotion Authority is the way that gets structured. This has been part of our overall trade agenda. We have to make sure we monitor the agreements and enforce them. We have increased our enforcement efforts throughout this administration by bringing more cases at the wto, using our trade laws, bringing in the whole government approach to our enforcement efforts to the interagency trade enforcement center. And that has helped convey to people that we want to make sure this works for American Workers and farmers and ranchers across the board. So you have a unique opportunity. You are here on a panel with the men who are negotiating these big the man who is negotiating these agreements. From the perspective of tennessee or caterpillar or bmw, what would you urge the u. S. Government to focus on, as they make these tradeoffs with all of the different interests involved in these negotiations . Ill start. In all of these, it is a series of compromises. My encouragement would be, and i will tell you that ambassador froman is one of the best at this. I have great trust in him. He start with the big chunks of things and whack those off, and you make the compromises in the places you have to, but you have to be as broad as you can across as Many Industries as possible to get it done. I know that is exactly how michael does it. It is hard to say, because unless you are in the room negotiating a deal, what you can compromise on. To me, as much as we can get broadly in these agreements, the better off we are all going to be. I am not going to stand i have a long list of things i would like to have done, but im not going to do that to you, ambassador. He knows what it is. I do not know i have a lot to add to that. In any negotiation you start with how much is at stake and i think there is a lot at stake here. My encouragement would be, do not let the 10 of the things that are the most difficult but still our only 10 of the things stop it from happening. I could not agree more. We should not strive for the best of all agreements. We should settle for a good agreement. If that agreement would include that we cannot do away with different standards, that we would accept the standards that we have in the u. S. And europe and likewise. So it would just make things easier. It is important to remember here, too, that there is a lot of change that has to come to the u. S. In some of these deals. I would go to agriculture as one that has frankly been a stumbling block for many, many years to get some of these done. As a result, the has to be managed as well. It is a very difficult set of negotiations when youre going after the backbone that has made our country what it is. Im afraid that is the same in europe. It is, and japan as well, for that matter. Ambassador froman, tell us the pathway from here. What does this next period of time look like as you and your staff at ustr try to come to a deal . As this discussion demonstrates, the challenge before us is that, even within the u. S. , we oftentimes have stakeholders with diametrically opposed interests. Our job is to figure out what the best approach is and support the greatest numbers of jobs, the most growth, the most benefit for the u. S. Economy. To come up with that requires a balancing, even among domestic interests, and then to go to 11 other trading partners in the case of ttp and ttip and figure out a landing zone where it is a winwin for everybody. Nobody gets 100 of what they want in 100 of the chapters, but we have to be able to look at the package as a whole and make sure that is serving our interests and our values and that it is supporting what we need to support in the United States in terms of job creation, growth, and strength and the middle class. Those are our watch words. Everything we do is tied back to those three objectives. So we will be working over the course of the next couple of months on tpp. As ttip get up and running, we will try to achieve that objective. And hope there are no more government shutdowns to stop you. A couple of you have mentioned agriculture, which is not really represented up here. Though governor, you have the tomato industry in tennessee. I will use you as a proxy. What do you say to a farmer, to somebody who is being asked to make real concessions on what kinds of subsidies they receive for agricultural work . That is the difficult piece. I do not know the number, but i have seen the number that tennessee produces versus pre nafta. There ha hen. Couple of things. Number one, food is more about quality and number two, it is about access to markets. The farm to table deal has become a huge opportunity for local growers. Lets keep concentrating on the markets you know you can do well on with quality. We will specify tomato farmers. I am confident your tomatoes can be better than those brought in, lets all that. You can export to mexico quite easily, brazil there is suddenly a high tariff. What are the lessons of nafta over these last 20 years, and what implications do they have for how these agreements come to be . Nafta is a model case how we should move on. I would like to stay in the american context, to see how it works with south korea, where we have free trade as well. We are doing great with south korea, even though they have a strong Automotive Industry themselves. So, i think it really is about embracing freetrade wholeheartedly and work on it. Any lessons for caterpillar . I think virtually all of the imperial data and evidence would show that nafta has been a winner for all three countries, and especially this one. For our company, it has been huge. We have taken advantage of a Tremendous Oil and gas business in canada, a lot of development in mexico. And tremendous benefit to the u. S. Without nafta i do not know where we would be in mexico and canada. Mexicans and canadians i know would tell you the same thing. What is your experience with nafta 20 years later . If you go back to specifically, our exports to mexico were up 8 times. And to canada, up three times. Are their winners and losers in the process . Yes, but net the state is way ahead. Let me just add one metric, and that is basically only true because freetrade agreements we have around the globe in the last 20 years, our production, the last seven years i would say, where this is a model site, has gone up in the u. S. By 40 . But exports have gone up by 70 . It shows how free trade fosters growth. To close up, i would ask each of you to think through and give a couple of comments on a, what you expect world trade to look like in the next year and what you hope to see. What are the great opportunities, the great risks, and the most likely outcomes, things you expect to see out of both the european and pacific agreements . I have very high hopes that we will see a deal on tpp fairly soon and ttip behind that. With the job creation, and asia, europe, and the u. S. , i would expect to start to see the benefits of that a year to two years later, as we are starting to see with south korea and colombia today, as you mentioned, ludwig. It is not take very long to open the spigot on exports and imports once those tariffs come down. Standards are synchronized and so on. I would be pretty optimistic that it would help job growth and gdp growth in all three zones, but particularly this one. 95 , of our consumers are outside this country. We need to learn to deal with that. Governor . Directly, i do not have the number on the pacific, but with the ttip agreement, we think our exports will go up 35 , which is about 2 billion. You have to look at the context of the broader market. There are things working to our Vantage Energy costs in the u. S. Are going down. That is not true and a lot of other countries around the world. We can take advantage of that. The logistics cost of transferring goods are getting to be a bigger piece of something relative to the labor piece of that. So we can take advantage of that as well. I just think the market is turning to our advantage right now. It would be a shame if we did not create those additional jobs because of not having these agreements done. Ludwig . We should always keep in mind maybe tpp or ttip, freetrade supports growth, it supports new jobs, Foreign Investment, innovation. So in the end, the consumer benefits from all of that. It creates jobs. In a world of free trade, there will be production moving to those countries where there is freetrade, and free trade will always foster exports. Ambassador, if we are here a year from now, what are we going to hear . I share the governors optimism about where the u. S. Will be in this Global Trading system. When we look around the world, including in subsaharan africa, across asia, and parts of latin america, there is a Real Movement towards recognizing the opening markets, provided you do it in the right way, that opening markets can really drive job creation, growth, innovation. We look at what the Pacific Alliance is doing in latin america, what our partners are doing in subsaharan africa, the leading reformers and african countries. There is a desire to make sure trade is playing a major role in their development and investment. And the u. S. Stands to benefit hugely from this shift in the Global Economy, provided we can do the things we need to do here. Our because risk is getting our fiscal house in order, getting Immigration Reform done, and getting these things on trade through our congress, starting with trade Promotion Authority, which every president has had since 1974. But tpp, ttip, to make sure we are at the center of this network of agreements, together with our legal system, our education system, our access to energy, could make this a platform that every country around the world wants to be in. That is a Great Potential for the United States economy and for job creation and growth at home. With that. Thank you so much. [applause] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2013] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] a i never expected to write book on cancer until i was diagnosed at a relatively young age, 36. I was astonished at how different was going through treatment than what i had heard about cancer, what i had asked be, and i sort of expected it, i expected it to , wereelloiled machine care obviously was not guaranteed, but people knew about my particular cancer. And what i found was something really am a really different, so i cannot help starting to write about it. Survivor explores the Economic Impacts of cancer tonight at society nine equities on afterwards on book tv on cspan2. More now from the commerce summitent business with, by penny pritzker, then treasury secretary jack lew. To eye, everyone. Good morning, everyone. Ofm so thrilled to see all you here. For the first ever selectusa summit meeting. As you may have heard, we are sold out with 1200 attendees. Is this leaders from 58 countries and across the u. S. Are here today. Yourm welcome to all of from all of us in the obama administration. Let me be clear [laughter] [applause] summitbe clear this. S about you it is all about business. It is all about connecting investors with me the us. Let me start with community ies. Let me start with a story. When the Selectusa Program was just starting out, an Austrian Company that makes auto parts was considering investing more in the United States. So we went into action. The Commerce Department counsel the company on how to successfully establish a new. And in the United States the u. S. Ambassador in austria met with the companys leadership. And we connected the company with these statelevel leaders that they wanted to meet. Year,esult, over the past the company has invested 62 Million Dollars in its new facility in cartersville, georgia. Just two weeks ago, they started moving in. They are bringing in new equipment and gearing up for production. They plan to hire hundreds of next fiveer the years. We are hearing more Success Stories every day. At this very summit, i understand that we have a japanese i. T. Solutions provider that expanded its new york plants in 2011 and created 50 new jobs. A chemical manufacturer from germany that is investing over 40 million to expand three facilities across louisiana next year, and a portugalbased frugal Food Processing company that Just Announced plans to make its first u. S. Investments, creating 100 jobs in idaho. So where are our folks from idaho t . I hear you are out there. Congratulations. [applause] america is open for business. For centuries, the u. S. Has welcomed investments to our shore. Our markets have provided a longterm and unmasked returns for investors. Today, the u. S. Is the largest recipient of or in direct investment in the world. Last year alone, more than 160 billion of Foreign Direct Investment flowed here. Total foreign stock and access are measured not in billions, but in trillions of dollars. We are releasing a new joint report today from the Commerce Department and the white house. It shows that the time to invest in the United States is now. Meore president obama asked to take this job, i was an entrepreneur and a Business Leader for 27 years. Some of thersthand factors that ceos like you consider when choosing where to invest. You look for a strong and growing consumer base. Here in the u. S. , Consumer Spending drives two thirds of our economy. Those consumers are starting to regain their footing. Retail spending along with the housing and stock markets are coming back. You also will know that the vast ideas and technologies flow from americas universities and colleges. We have 15 of the top 20 universities in the world. Federal government provides our universities with more than 40 billion a year for research and development. Global businesses need to have a presence near this Fertile Ground in order to stay on the cutting edge. Our universities and businesses are a key reason that nearly 30 of the worlds r d spending happens within our borders. Of course, you also know that graduates coming out of United States universities and Community Colleges have the skills, the talent, and the productivity you need. For those of you whose Companies Need energy, particularly manufacturing, americas affordable and Abundant Energy is particularly attractive. America now imports less than half the oil that we consume, 2000 five. 0 in also, our jobs and natural Gas Production over the past five years have led to a drop in prices of more than 60 . This is the reason south africa announced a commitment to making a record breaking investment in louisiana. [applause] up to 21 billion for facilities that will create 7000 construction jobs and about 1200 permanent jobs. Were going to hear from them later today. In addition, we are the most open economy in the world with 20 freetrade agreements. Because of our existing agreements, Companies Operating here have a platform to access nearly 700 million Global Consumers representing a combined 7 trillion in gdp. That will grow as we work to expand our freetrade agreements with two new agreements the Transpacific Partnership and the transatlantic trade and investment partnership. America also has a longstanding commitment to rule of law. You can depend on our rules of the road to stay constant and transparent. Including our Gold Standard in intellectual Property Protection as a supported by the Commerce Department. I could go on and on talking about everything from our infrastructure to our innovative supply chains and much more. All of these positive facts and trends have driven independent to rank the United States as the number one location where ceos can be confident to invest. T kearney are saying that if you want to build and hire somewhere in the world, the United States should be top of your list. We are makingusa, it easier than ever to do just that. We want to open the first or to making investment here in the United States. The president himself understands this. Two years ago, he saw all the great reasons to invest here that i just highlighted, and he said we should be doing more to help businesses like yours who have questions about how to invest here. To address your issues. Our Foreign Commercial Service officers throughout the world. We asked them if they could build on their great work of promoting exports and to start to engage with foreign businesses that want to invest in the United States. They are now trained to do that in more than 30 countries. Along with a core team here in washington on a very tight budget, we have achieved some early results. To hundreds of investors around the world who had questions about investing here. We havey short period, successfully guided over 20 companies through the steps it takes to invest here, such as understanding our regulation. Helped buildwe major deals worth millions and millions of dollars, and of course this progress is a team effort. Has worked with over 50 Economic Development organizations around the country , many of whom are here today. Economic the Development Professionals in the room . Are you here . I see you. There you are. Let me talk to you for a moment. I want to applaud you because you are where the rubber meets the road. You are letting folks know why your particular community is right for investment. I hope you have your pitch prepared for the next two days. Business leaders want to hear about your local assets, your workforce, and your programs and incentives for bringing a company to your city or your state. Warning to the Business Leaders and ceos here these economic pros are not shot. Not shy. Seriously, making connections is perhaps the most important reason that we are convened at this summit. We all know that relationships are the fundamental Building Blocks of doing business. You need to meet the right people, the relevant people. In my experience, the right inp erson relationships can often mean the difference between a no or a yes. Ar vision is for this to be highly valuable and efficient summit where investors can hear from experts about the Overall Investment climate as well is Economic Development leaders about specific opportunities. That is why we play you all here under one roof. Of the next two days, you are going to hear from about 40 of the leading minds in u. S. Business investments. Lets get started with day one. Over a dozen ceos are moderating and speaking on panels today. Including a panel after our next occur, which valerie will moderate. It will feature bill simon from walmart, andrew livers from dow, larry fink from blackrock, and director Gene Sperling of the National Economic council. As a point of personal privilege, i want to thank gene for his leadership and hard work in supporting selectusa. We would not be here today without him. So thank you to gene. This afternoons panel will put a spotlight on partnerships between United States universities and the private sector with Buck Peterson from georgia tech, Patrick Oshea from the university of maryland, and and whitaker, the ceo of sanofi north america. In addition, you have two sessions of Breakout Sessions with even more worldclass speakers. They wills that was begun everything from advanced manufacturing to the strong u. S. Energy environment. To our deep technology and Services Sector and much more. I honestly had no idea how you will choose which sections you will attend because they will all be informative and stimulating. In addition, of course, you are going to hear from a number of my colleagues throughout the administration over the next two days. I hope everyone here is as excited as i am to hear today from the leader who had the foresight to launch selectus a two years ago, president barack obama. From my perspective at the Commerce Department, we want to do Everything Possible to serve you, not just in the next two days, but also in the weeks, months, and years ahead. For example, in just a few weeks, selectusa and the American Chamber of commerce in spain will hold a today events at barcelonao 21st and madrid. Next april, we will be in the largestgermany, manufacturing show in the world. It may, we will be at the Technology Conference in houston, the Worlds Largest oil and gas conference. Next november, we will be in mechanica,for auto mech a global auto mechanic event. Will bring city and state Economic Development face toface with investors in mexico, japan, and europe. If those of you in the room think it would be fruitful, we could look for hosting regional conferences around the United States. Weve let us know your thoughts at that. Thats on that pier we know we need to move your pace the pace of business. We know we need to be outcome driven, helping more United States and foreign firms get the tools and information you need to invest here. My personal commitment to you you rightht now to now is that we will do just that. Before i close, i want to offer special recognition to those of jain,day of the hindu, faith. Ikh we are honored that you will join us at this humble time. We hope youll join us to celebrate the festival of lights. [applause] so with that, i am least to say that this summit is officially open for business. And more importantly, america is open for business. Your business. Thank you all very much. I am really thrilled to see you here. [applause] so now i have a great ledger ledger. I am delighted to introduce to you a first keynote speaker, treasury secretary jack lew. Hand on thea steady tiller of our economic team. Simply put, jack is the embodiment of the best of america. He hails from a middleclass family from queens, the son of an immigrant who married his high school sweetheart. With this foundation, jack has worked his entire career to help ensure that more americans reach their economic dreams. A great, affable manner, jack began his career as a legislative aide, rising to forme senior policy advisor former House Speaker tip oneill. Eventually, he joined the Clinton Administration and rose to serve as director of the office of management and budget. He worked at nyu and then in the private sector for citigroup before returning to government with the obama administration. In 2012, he served as the white house chief of staff, and for the past eight months, our nation has been very fortunate to have him serving as treasury secretary. For me personally, when i first took this job as secretary of commerce, jack made me feel like such an integral part of the team. Welcoming me with open arms with humility. Ful i will be forever grateful to him for the generosity. Dedicated, even killed, what smart, integrity. These are just a few of the many words used to describe jack another word im proud to call him his friend. Ladies in german, to help us get started on the right foot with an overview of the u. S. Economic and the importance of investment here, please welcome United States treasury secretary jack lew. [applause] thank you, penny, for that kind introduction. Its great to be here with you this morning. I want to thank the Commerce Department for hosting the first selectusa summit. Im here with a simple message. We do not take investment in the United States for granted. We know its important for jobs, important for our businesses and its important for our prosperity. In our increasingly Global Economy, the United States cannot settle for the status quo. Thats why president obama made fueling americas competitiveness the cornerstone of his economic policies. Our economy is the largest in the world and looking to the future, we need to make it stronger by improving worker training and education, upgrading our infrastructure, and growing our manufacturing base. The truth is, there are additional things we can add and do to make america Even Stronger as a magnet for investment. Before talking about what make ours economy such an attractive place to invest, and what we plan to do to make it even more attractive, id like to start by saying a few words about the state of the World Economy. Theres broad evidence of recovery across the global landscape. Economic conditions, particularly in advanced economies, have improved, but theres no doubt that global command is not where it needs to be. In too many countries, unemployment levels are unacceptably high, especially among young people. As i said before, leaders around the world should make strengthening demand and creating jobs a priority to we can unlock growth thats robust, sustainable, and balanced. Looking at europe, it seems the long recession is slowly fading even as critical steps have been taken to restore financial stability. This is good news since europe is so integral to the u. S. And Global Economy. Nevertheless, growth in europe remains weaking with domestic remains weak with domestic demand particularly. Its critical that surplus countries contribute more to demand as deficit countries undergo adjustment. Europe must also press forward on measures to address high unemployment and the formation of a strong banking union. After years of economic weakness and depolice station, japan appears to be turning an economic corner. Economic growth has improved and policymakers have demonstrated a commitment to economic transition. This will require a careful balancing of fiscal policy and reforms that increase domestic demand. Economic growth across many emerging market economies remains positive but has slowed somewhat. The slowdown is primarily because postcrisis stimulus has waned. The demand for exports has fallen. Credit conditions have tightened. While these head winds will put pressure on some emerging economies going forward, most emerging markets have strengthened their institutions and frameworks over the past decade, and this will help increase their ability to adjust to the shifts in capital flows. In china, the worlds second largest economy, policymakers have also made substantial commitments to reform. Growth there continues to remain relatively robust but theres a question of thousand to sustain robust rates of growth over the medium turn as the chinese economy rebalances toward domestic consumption and away from domestic investments and exports. At the same time, china needs to increase the flexibility of its Exchange Rate regime and permit more access to capital and more open access to markets. The success of this transation matters to the United States, to Asian Countries and the Global Economy. China is currently conducting a series of highlevel meetings designed to reform their agenda and we look forward to see how and we look forward to see how that plan evolves in the coming weeks. As we meet this morning, there really has never been another time when the World Economy has been so interconnected. Its clear that what happens across the Global Economic landscape matters to us here at home. Our prosperity grows when other countries succeed. Economic challenges abroad reduce Economic Activity here in the United States. And we have a stake in each others future. We need the world to sustain greater growth and the world continues to need the United States to be the backbone of a stable Global Economy. Now when you look at the United States, while we still have work to do to speed up growth and create more jobs, we have been making significant progress. And one of the reasons we have been making progress is because the core of our economy is resilient. To fully appreciate that resilience, its important to remember how much things have changed since the dark days of 2008. Five years ago, our economy was hit by a devastating financial crisis that helped trigger the worst recession since the great depression. Our banks were on the bridge, our Housing Market was in trouble and our Auto Industry was sliding toward the abyss. In fact, in the months before president obama was sworn into office, we were shedding roughly 800,000 jobs a month, and our economy was shrinking at an 8. 3 annual rate. There was real concern that the United States economy would not bounce back. But it did, thanks to the tenacity of the american people, the determination of the private sector, and the bold, decisive actions taken across government. Right away the president moved to pull our economy out of the recession. He worked to put out the financial fires, stabilize the automakers, and jump start growth. In addition he pursued policies to fuel our economy into the future. That meant investing in education and infrastructure, fixing a Health Care System that was broken, creating new rules so our Financial System works better for consumers, and investors, and locking in lower taxes for 98 of all americans. And lowering barriers so entrepreneurs and businesses can innovate, grow, and hire. Because of these measures were moving in the right direction. The positive signs are real. Since 2009 our economy has been expanding. Over the past 43 months, private employers have added 7. 6 million jobs. In fact, businesses have added more than two million jobs over the last year alone. And the end of this year, and the beginning of next year, show signs of further progress. The Auto Industry is growing again, manufacturing has increased. The Global Market has improved. American Companies Like ford and apple are starting to move operations back to the United States. We sell more products made in america to the rest of the world than ever before. The cost of health care is growing at the slowest rate in years. And our deficits are half of what they were when the president took office. So we have seen the United States economy make a turn around. Our economy is actually recovered faster than any other advanced economy. Just as its becoming more expensive and more difficult to do business in other parts of the world, our economy is becoming more competitive and more attractive. Business leaders from around the world tell me all the time that theres no other place where they would rather do business. On my very first trip as treasury secretary, i visited a plant in georgia and saw firsthand American Workers producing electronic equipment that would be added to Construction Machinery for export to china. The plant is owned and operated by siemens, the germanbased engineering company, and its one of 130 facilities they run throughout the United States. Siemens has invested more than 125 million in the United States over the past decade and invests about 1 billion every year in research here. When asked about it, they said, america produces better than anyone. The heart of our ability to produce better than anyone is our people. Our workers are talented and productive. Our entrepreneurs are the most determined and innovative. At the same time, were the largest Single Market in the world. We have a deep infrastructure that connect this is vast market through pipelines and roads and bridges. Our universities attract the best and brightest minds from around the globe. On top of that, were experiencing an Energy Revolution in america. Today the United States is less dependent on foreign oil than at any time in more than two decades. We produce more oil at home than we have in nearly 25 years and more natural gas than any time in history. This transformation is driving down energy costs for consumers and businesses. Our increase in Energy Production is not limited to oil and ghass. Gas. Energy and Renewable Resources like wind and solar doubled in the president s first term and we will continue to make investments in these cutting edge technologies. So our economy has made progress and that progress has made the United States an even better place to invest. But i want to underscore for everyone here that we are not satisfied with the current pace of job creation and Economic Growth. We know that there are things that we can do to invest in american skills, american innovation, and american infrastructure. So that the United States remains the most attractive place around the globe to do business. Taking action in these areas is good for growth and its good for job creation. While the process create unnecessary anxiety, congress proved it can still do what is needed when it came together on a bipartisan basis just two weeks ago to reopen our government and raise the statutory debt limit. Its now time for congress to make a progrowth, projobs agenda the focal point. This will strengthen our economy at home and further cement the United States as the best place to invest, hire, and grow businesses. Let me point to the key areas we can make a difference going forward. First as democrats and republicans meet to produce a government, they have an opportunity to forge an agreement focused on restoring our longterm Fiscal Health while making targeted investments to grow our economy. They should do this use this occasion to replace the corrosive, across the board cuts known as sequestration with fair and balanced deficit reduction policies. Its crucial that we close wasteful tax loopholes, eliminate costs where it makes sense, and use some of the resources we free up to invest in a few key areas like manufacturing, infrastructure and education. Second, congress should finish comprehensive Immigration Reform and send a bill to the president for his signature. The senate has already passed Bipartisan Legislation and its awaiting passage in the house of representatives. This immigration legislation would strengthen our borders, chart a path to earned citizenship, and increase Economic Growth by more than 1 trillion. It drives growth by attracting highly skilled scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs to our country. It will bring greater investment in the United States from beyond our shores, create new job opportunities, ignite new consumer demand, and spark business activity. It would do all of this while increasing payroll tax revenue that will reduce our deficit and put Social Security and medicare in a more stable footing. Another bipartisan bill that can strengthen our economy is the farm bill. Bipartisan legislation thats already passed the senate is designed to protect americas farmers, ranchers and provide a safety net for americas most vulnerable children. The farm bill conferees have an opportunity to Work Together to develop a bipartisan package to promote Economic Growth and job creation while ensure that needy children are wellnourished. Over the years, democrats and republicans have come together to foster Economic Growth, job creation and investment. We can see that bipartisan bo gress as we Work Together to reform how we tax businesses while upgrading our infrastructure to meet the Economic Needs of the future. Let me be clear. The president is committed to Business Tax Reform. This will help create and retain good jobs in the United States. The fact is, the United States now has one of the highest statutory Corporate Tax rates in the world. But as high as that rate is, it only raises about an average amount of revenue as a share of g. D. P. When compared to other advanced economies. Our code is also full of special interest tax breaks and loopholes while hurting others that are investing in the United States. We can do better. And we can do this by broadening the tax base and lowering tax rates in a way that doesnt add a dime to the federal deficit. The president put forward the details of his tax reform and pleadmead clear his commitment to Business Tax Reform paired with an infrastructure package paid for with onetime revenue. We have a real opportunity ahead to seize the mantol tax reform and establish a simpler, fairer and more competitive tax reform. They share much in common with the approach the president has put forward. Theres no reason we cant start with the substantial policy areas we agree on and come together to find common ground. In addition to reforming our tax system, we must finish the work of creating new trade agreements that are free and fair. They must open up markets for americas businesses and must add to the millions of american jobs that are currently supported by trade. As Congress Comes together in support of trade deals, well help expand the biggest market place in the Global Economy and reinforce the position to invest and export. To that end, were working to complete a Transpacific Partnership. This will boost exports and level the Playing Field in the asia pacific. I want to point out that the United States welcomes investment from around the world, from every type of enterprise and all sectors. We are committed to mane taining the most open and transparent investment environment. Our process for reviewing National Security of Foreign Investment in the United States focuses solely on National Security considerations and reviews are pleated within a period of one to three months. So as we press forward, we know where we need to focus our efforts. The priorities just outlined are clear and doable. They amount to Real Solutions that will make a real difference for our economy now and in the future. And id like to close by thanking the Commerce Department for hosting this summit, as well as everyone in this room for coming today. America has always been known as the land of opportunity. A place where you can make it if you try. And have no doubt, opportunity in the United States is very much alive and well. Its alive for our workers, its alive for our businesses, and its alive for all of you who invest here. Thank you very much. [applause] nexon season, washington journal live with your calls in the days latest news. After that, newsmakers with health and Human Services secretary kathleen thelius talking about health care line problems with the healthcare. Gov website. John foster dulles had recently died when a super airport was being built, and president or president eisenhower immediately announced that it would be named dulles airport. While, kennedy did not want to name it, but there was pushed back, so they named it after dulles. You can still see the film footage of kennedy opening the airport with eisenhower there and allen dulles there, and he pulls becky korten, and behind the current is a giant bust he pulls back the curtain, and behind the curtain is a giant bust of dulles. I went to see it while i was writing this book, and i cannot find it. I started asking the security guards where is the big bust of dulles . Nobody had even ever heard of it. It was a long process, and finally, eggs to the washington airport authority, i was able to discover that the bust had been taken away from its place in the middle of the airport, and it is now in a closed Conference Room opposite baggage claim number three. I find this a wonderful metaphor for how the dulles brothers, who earth time exercised shattering power and were able to make and break government have now been effectively forgotten and airbrushed out of our entire history. With john foster heading state and alan as cia, the dulles brothers led both overt and covert operations for a good portion of the cold war. Find out why the ramifications can still be felt some 60 years later with Stephen Kinzer tonight at 8 00 on cspans q a. Journal,washington we look ahead to the 2014 midterm elections with charlie cook, the editor in publisher of the cook political report. He will talk about next weeks elections for governor in virginia and new jersey. Farzad oft, roberin a bloomberg businessweek. Then an update on the latest in syria, including an effort to locate and destroy the countrys chemical weapons with mona yacou bian. Washington journal is next. Host good morning, it is a back to work week for both the house and senate. Secretary of state john kerry making an unannounced visit to egypt today. Detroit and new york electing mayors. Voters in new jersey and new york will be electing a new governor. Morning and we are going to begin with a new gallup poll, asking you about the state of your life and your thoughts about the country in general