Transcripts For CSPAN2 Capital News Today 20121206

We will provide new money to support the partnerships. From april 2015, the governmental elites one of the funding and get people back to work. The gross funds are having businesses get back into the game. We are going to support businesses and technologies where britain has a Clear Technology advantage. We will extend our global lead in aerospace and support the supply chain for advanced infection. Weve also support British Companies to new emerging markets in asia and africa and the americas. And increasing the funding for the uk by over 25 a year. So they can help more firms build the capacity of overseas british chambers and maintain our countrys position as the number one destination in europe for foreign investment. We are launching a new 1. 5 billion pounds export finance facility to support the purchase of british export. [cheers] third, we are addressing the credit problems of companies we are providing it with 1 billion pounds of extra capital which will leave her either planning to help small firms and bring together existing ones. Fourth, we are going to cut business taxes go further. Let me tell you how. The temporary doubling of the Small Business rate relief scheme helps the small firms were 350,000 firms paying pay no right at all. The last government, we will end it in 2011, we have already extended its next april. And i extended by a further year to april 2014. We also confirmed the tax relief for our employees and shareholders. The energy bills provide Renewable Energy and we publish our gas strategy today to make sure that we make the best use of lowercost gas power, including new sources of gas and went and we consenting the creation of a Single Office of regulation. We dont want families and businesses to be left behind as gas prices come on the other side of the atlantic. [cheers] we are going to help our Construction Industry as well. The last government abolished property release. My humble friends, the members of the southwest and others show that this has blighted development in our towns and cities. The proposal for my colleagues, that we create a long grace. For newly completed buildings, it is a sensible one. And we will introduce it next october. The previous government also plans to increase the Small Companies tax rates 22 , and we have cut it to 20 . Unlike the small and mediumsize firms, i want to thank my honorable friend for their help in this area. Starting on the first of january and for the next two years. I am therefore going to increase by 10 fold in the annual investment allowance in machinery. Instead of 25,000 pounds worth of investment being eligible for 100 relief, 250,000 pounds are not qualified. [cheers] this Capital Loans will cover cover the total investment undertaken by 99 of all of the business in britain. It is a huge thing to all those who run the business to aspire to grow and expand and create jobs. Mr. Speaker, i also want britain to have the most competitive tax regime of any major economy in the world. I have already cut the main rates from 20 to 24 , and is expected to fall further to 22 . The helps British Companies, and frankly, has left other countries scrambling to keep up. They will have to try harder. I am cutting the main rate of Corporation Tax again by a further 1 . [cheers] in america, the rate is 40 . In france, it is 33 , in germany, in its 29 . From april of 2014, the Corporation Tax rate will stand at 21 . This is the lowest rate of any major western economy. It is an advert for our country that says come here, investor, britain is open for business. [cheers] [applause] mr. Speaker, we will not pass the benefits on to banks and ensure that we meet our revenue commitment. It will be increased next year. Making things contribute more as part of our major reform of the banking system. We also have to be on the side of those who want to work hard. I know how difficult many families have gone the cost of living. We have had to save money. But whenever we have been able to help, we have. We have helped counsel for two years running. And we are helping them to freeze again next year. We put a cap on the rises for the next two years. So commuters are not punished for traveling to work. We are forcing Energy Companies to families onto the lowest part of the gas and electricity bill. And we help those. Fuel is cheaper than it wouldve been if we started the labor crack down. [cheers] and i want to keep it that way as i mentioned to my honorable friends. There is a threepence rides and somehow it has suggested that until april. I disagree. I suggest that we can put it all together. There will be no fuel tax rises and not his real help with the cost of living for families as they fill up their cars across the country. And it will help businesses as well. And it means that under this government, we will have no increases for nearly 2. 5 years. In fact, they have been cut. Mr. Speaker, we have also help working people by increasing the amount they can earn before paying any income tax. When this government government came to office, the personal tax allowance set of 6475 pounds. Next april, and is set to rise to 9205 pounds. 24 million taxpayers have seen their income tax cut. 2 million of the lowest have been taken out of tax altogether. Because of the decisions we have taken today, we can go even further. The personal moments will rise by a further 235 pounds. That means the total increase next year of 1335 pounds from the highest cash increase ever. People will be able to add 9440 before paying any income tax and this is a direct boost the incomes of people working hard to provide for their families. It is 47 pounds extra in cash next year. 267 increases next year, people working fulltime on minimum wage will see the income tax cut in half. And we are of the 10,000pound personal moments. At this time, i propose to extend a further increase. That decision will stand alongside this decision that we have taken on operating. Meaning that a typical taxpayer will be better off next year. Mr. Speaker, we have help working people today. But i do not want to distract the Economic Situation we face in the world. The public knows that there are no miracle cures. Does the hard work and dealing with deficit and ensuring that britain wins the global race. That work is underway. The deficit is down. Borrowing is down. Jobs are being created. It is a hard road, but we are making progress. Everything that we do, we are helping those who want to work hard and get along. Thank you. [cheers] [cheers] mr. Speaker, today after 2. 5 years, we can see and people can feel in the country the scale of this Government Economic failure. [cheers] our economy this year is contracting. The conferred government borrowing is revised this year and every year. The National Deficit is not rising. Excuse me, it is rising, it is not falling. [cheers] i will say again that our economy is contracting this year. Government rowling is revised up and the National Debt is rising. It is not falling. There are people struggling to make ends meet. Middle and lower income families who are paying the price. Where millionaires get a tax cut and a 3 billionpound welfare handout to the people who need it. Let me spell out the facts. You might learn something. [cheers] [applause] [cheers] in june of 2010, our economy would grow by 2. 8 this year. In march of this year, he said it would still be grow, but they have revised down. Today we have learned that growth is not anything downgraded yet again. But it is confirmed following a double dip recession that our economy is forecasted contract inside this. Let me remind the house about the june budget. We have provided the foundation for economic recovery in our nation. We have set the course for a balanced budget and falling National Debt by the end of this parliament. And he said the richest pay the most detected. Far from securing our recovery, our economy flat lines. The chance to work, we expected 4. 6 growth, [inaudible] compared to 1. 7 and 3. 6 in germany and 4. 1 in america, falling behind in the global race. Mr. Speaker. What we learned today is that this year, next year, the year after that mr. Speaker. The longest double dip recession since the second world war. Now following the slowest recovery in the last 100 years. And the result of this stagnation is rising among our economy and as other countries move ahead. It has been completely derailed, mr. Speaker. The defining purpose of the government the one test they set themselves to get the debt falling by 2015 is now in tatters, mr. Speaker. What we have learned today is that is that government borrowing will continue this year, next year, and the year after that. We now know that your chances were years ago, borrowing is now forecast well above the 160 billion pounds of extra borrowing that it was forecasted in march. And the chancellor has confirmed that the Prime Ministers pledge to balance the books in 2015 is not met in 201415, 201516, or 201617. The fact is there is more borrowing this year, next year, and the year after, mr. Speaker. Now, i have to say that we will look at details when we get the figures. The chancellor failed to give us thesaid the borrowing would be expelling prior to this year. People examine the figures and we will find out in the coming hours. I dont know. I dont know bcause i have not seen figures. What i do know is there is more borrowing this year and the year after, and the result of that is that the oer shows more borrowing and higher deficits mean higher National Debt, mr. Speaker. The National Debt the Prime Minister should listen to this. The National Debt is going to be higher at the end of this parliament than the level inherited. [inaudible] it is no longer calling a percentage of gdp in 2015. It is risinandg 2016 and rising again in 2017, breaking the fiscal rules of falling debt upon which this entire credibility depended. In last years budget, the chancellor said that the deficit Reduction Plan on course and we will not waiver. On course for monopoly rent, he is drowning, mr. Speaker. Now, mr. Speaker, the chancellor is trying to claim the failure on borrowing and debt breaking the own fiscal rle and he is trying to claim that its not his fault. That no one could have foreseen it. He was warned that a tough time to cut the deficit, everything that we had to put in place could only work if the government first put in place this growth. It goes too far, too fast and allows experts to bail him out. He was warned in the eurozone, and that was not the purpose driven up the foundations of the house here in britain. Once again from the chancellor is trying to play high prices. Were negative growth this year. It affected all countries. I thought you were normally a model of restraint and stability. [laughter] good heavens, man. I dont know whats come over you. Calm yourself. Take a pill is necessary if necessary to keep calm. Take up yoga. [laughter] growth down, borrowing out, they dont like it, mr. Speaker. They do not like it at all. Once again, [inaudible] let me ask why over the last two years has britain grown by just one 10th of the growth rate of the g20 countries . And why has it been slower here than even in the eurozone . Mr. Speaker, its not the rest of the worlds fault. It is the policies that he claimed would boost confidence and secure recovery [inaudible] let me ask the chancellor whatever happens, this fiscal contraction in the economy which is contracted following the debt which has expanded. And i have to say the latest figures show that Business Confidence is falling. When the eurozone is in such chronic difficulty, it is simply restless and deeply irresponsible of this chancellor to plow on. We all know it is failing and that is the truth. What a wasted opportunity that statement was. The independent oer book that the measures concern today and the earth. Let me congratulate the chancellor. [cheers] [cheers] even though they all voted against it just a month ago. They all voted against it. And we welcome the payback in the nhs and [inaudible] fuel and caravan, whatever happened to the plans for the Investment Bank . And after yesterdays announcement of infrastructure spending, the extra money to schools is just a fraction the cost and cancellation of building schools for the future. A year ago the National Infrastructure plan started this. Why cant he see that he wont get this done without growth . Why is he not using the 41 get 100,000 new homes built . Why not attempting tax cuts, even the mayor to support that. Why not bonus cuts . The chancellor says he cant do any of this because it would lead to higher borrowing. Even his fiscal attacks about borrowing. This chancellors plan has given us morespwending and hir andigher deficits. It is a reality. Mr. Speaker, the truth is we failed on growth and the deficit and we have more of the same. Let me remind what he told the house in 2011. He said that we have already asked the british people for what is needed, and we do not need to ask for more. The chancellor comes back for more. Who does he think should pay . Not the 8000 millionaires to get over 100,000 pounds each in april. I have to say whatever happened to the mansion tax . And do they realize that even with these changes in the allowance the other things they comport it means that the average family is worth this, mr. Speaker. The chancellor claims that the decisions will be at the top. Can he you confirm that 1 billion pounds he is raising is part of the billion pounds that he gave in 2010. And its just a fraction of the tax cut. By the same time the chancellor is touting tax credits for working families and raising taxes and cutting benefits for the unemployed. Now, mr. Speaker, we do need to modernize our welfare state. Those who work and can work should work. No ifs, ands or buts. So let us be clear. The chancellor claims he would cut the welfare bill, but higher inflation and longterm unemployment means the benefit is forecasted to be billions higher. The clue is in the name, mr. Speaker. He cannot run a successful welfare to work program without work. And we know that the work program has totally failed with only two people in 100. We should be, mr. Speaker. We should be requiring every longterm person to take a job. Making sure that there is one there. Let me ask the chancellor. One of the thousands now struggling to find a new job. He has announced today that he is cutting for jobseekers allowance for the next three years. How can that be fair when he is cutting the top rate tax . How can that be fair when someone earning 220,000 pounds a year will get a top rate tax cut of 75 pounds a week in april, which is more than they get to live on, mr. Speaker. And i have to figure what we have learned tonight is not just hitting those looking for work. The majority of people lose the tax credit are people in work, millions of families striving hard to do the right thing, mr. Speaker. What kind of government leaves you can only have equal work harder by cutting their credits and you make millionaires work harder by cutting their credits. I will tell you. It is not a one nation government, mr. Speaker. No, they must really believe that the wealth will trickle down from the top. In october of 2009, we could not even think of abolishing the rate on the bridge. While at the same time, im asking many of our Public Sector workers protect their jobs. The chancellors words, he said that i think we can all agree it would be grossly unfair. What changed when nothing has changed. We now know that the chancellor cant say that we are all in this together without a smirk on his face, mr. Speaker. [cheers] now we f out thathe same old conservatives and liberal democrats have gone along with all of it. May i say, mr. Speaker, what a pity he not to see the honorable member be secure in her place. From the jungle, she may not have it succeeded in talking to the nation on many things. But she did think for the nation when she called the Prime Minister of the chancellor [inaudible] [cheers] mr. Speaker. No wonder this Prime Minister keeps on losing his temper. Because his Worst Nightmare is coming through. Economic credibility as part of an constant and unfair. Yes, he is the chancellor. Can someone get him out of here . [cheers] mr. Speaker. Fiscal rule is broken on every target that they set themselves. Failing and failing. 212 billion pounds more borrowing than they promised two years ago. [inaudible] unfair, incompetent, and completely out of touch. Before he heard my statement and before he let at the forecast. We dont jiggle the numbers in the treasury anywhere. Thats when he was in the treasury. The budget responsibility and that is the problem hes got. His whole honesty was about complaining it is going to. Thats not what the zero for cash shows and and deed his prescription is to borrow even more. He wants to put data. It is completely hopeless. He talks about the substance of policy. Heres a very simple points the labor party will answer. If they are against the cuts in income tax rates from 50p to 45p, while the reverse earthquakes is the simple possible question. It is coming in. Its been legislated law. So the question for him if he so against it, if he thinks its a moral outrage, will he commit to reverse their . Yes or no . [shouting] position number one. On welfare benefits, the chancellor grilled about welfare benefits. By the simple question again. With a support us against a welfare operating bill . What are they going to do on that . Are they going to vote for the bill or against the bill . Its a very simple question. Weve got now for the first time Spending Plans for 2015, 16. He said nothing about whether he supports those lands even though he hopes to be chancellor during that year. Does he support the Spending Plans . He didnt say anything about that. He talked about the three g and theyre shouting that need. The 4g license, were using before g license. Let me Say Something. Can i Say Something about the 4g license . Youve had 20 minutes and you didnt make any points at all. [laughter] we are using before g money including building colleges, one of which is for this city college in a town called morley and west yorkshire. [shouting] im not sure what the local mp would make at the decision that thats not the best piece of the money but he can look himself in the mirror and ask the question. He cant answer these basic questions. Let me have been making this final point. He tries to claim he tries to claim that all the problems in britain all the problems in britain began in may 2010 and theyre all the fault of this government. Literally, only the people claim that. There is not a Single Person in the labor party. This sunday Single Person in any business organization. This sunday Single Person in the International Bodies who believes that and the reason he has to maintain this completely incredible position is because if he admitted the previous government was responsible for the problems in our country, he would have to admit that he was responsible for these problems. [shouting] so out of necessity, not choice, the Labor Party Leader has a shutter chance for police were associated with the economic mismanagement led to problems than anyone else in britain. He will not let his policy move on. Hes a man trapped in the past. One thing the opposition needs to say is were sorry, we spent too much, we borrowed too much, we wont do it again. Im not mr. Speaker khan is the one thing the chancellor cannot say. Until it does come in the British Public will never trust him with the labor party with their public finances again. [shouting] mr. Andrew tai ran. They will be the bedrock of economic recovery. They need stability. I believe what weve heard today delivers them more stability. [shouting] does he also agree though that businesses are pretty early small need thanks that land. But that in mind, we need to examine the most radical to achieve this. First of all, opening that thinks it much more competition for lenders as the Treasury Committee has recommended, claiming that price Balance Sheets at the bank of england has bank of england has now been advocating in the Financial Stability reform and possibly even breaking up one or more of the stateowned banks to improve their funding. I think my right honorable friend makes a great point that many of the problems in our economy are formed by the credit constraint in the elevated thing funny kosko which i talked about was talking about the assessment of the economic forecast. There are several responses to that. First of all others the funding for lending scheme that is for describing funding down and thats a very important part of the lprs forecast. It has an impact and is part of our macro response. What i is also agree jesus got to do much more to encourage competition. Weve got new entrants in there, but i would say is i think we can go further. We do need a much more competitive banking system. Mr. David miller band. Mr. Speaker, at this time last year the chancellor told me not to worry about youth unemployment on the grounds that its his contract would take care of it. Now we know theres 450,000 young people. 179,000 up onto the work program and only 5920 have got a job as a result. 3 of those in the work program, less than 2 of the longterm unemployed. With the chancellor now agree both the chancellor now agree to look at the level of the wage subsidy to incentivize pay cut, to look the structure of the work program of the role of a parttime to give hope to these young people. The right honorable gentleman has interesting and intelligent things to say about welfare programs than happy to look at specific points he makes and ive read some of the work hes done here. Actually was quite a good job. [laughter] mr. John redwood. They feel the private sector recovery and the chancellor updated when we may be in a position prudently to make those Funds Available when you might start to make a profit for the taxpayer and what he considered the comments of those of us who think it does need to be flooded to have defensible banking. Chancellor. The again, i very much respect my right honorable friend plan. As an aggressive plan to reduce the bank elements of rbs. The plan is on track. As i said to this house earlier want to see more done and rbs is reducing the size quite considerably of its Investment Bank and of course its also had advice recently from the financial policy committee. I hope it takes that advice into account. Alistair darling. Mr. Speaker, the profiler pricing growth today looks remarkably similar to the same profile in 2010, which singularly trailed to materialize. Is that one of the reason businesses that target. Is there any reason we have more confidence the next set of figures which so recovered the ball to Capital Projects he announced today, which many support. Can you tell us how many were actually started here . The first thing id say to the right honorable gentleman is its produced by the budget responsibility. So this is the lprs has to happen to gdp over the next two years. Of course the reason why the forecast a few years ago were wrong was due to three things. One is the impacts of the financial crisis. Second, there is an Oil Price Shock in 2011, which was all her economy. And third weve spoken at length about. Not just on the gdp, but basically every western democracy. He makes a good point about capital investment. I think he speaks of experience that its often difficult to get these projects out of the door. We are speeding up the delivery in the capital is allocated as for the next two years. Due to start the commission and the next two years. Is the chancellor aware that since hes bowed down, the party has given their verdict in the answer is this, the latest 10 year bond rate for italy is 4. 5 from 2 and the british bonds are only 1. 8 . Its the markets account and not the parties that are the problem in the first place. Put my honorable friend remind us that we do get a daily verdict on the credibility of our Economic Policy for Bond Investors borrowing money more cheaply than anyone before us. Theres a real benefit for taxpayers and members of the public. We have to say 33 billion pounds in debt interestfree forecast have to pay in 2010. That is more than the entire defense budget. When the curators say down on the statement, just like on previous occasions like in 2010, when he made his first state to, it was a totally different story. Then in 2010, the promised the deficits and here we are two and half years later and called the National Health service. Now instead of being a bully that breaks the whole room, now is chancellor the exchequer, it wrecks the economy. Im not sure that warrants a proper reply. [shouting] mary mcleod. Thank you, mr. Speaker. 1. 2 million jobs created in the private sector. My constituents have gone to 1300 by 2015. Is that right honorable friend agrees me that they should be rebound in the economy and encouraging investment . By honorable friend is right. Jobs are being created. Of course its a tough Economic Situation. But we are rebalancing our economy and one of the things we do but im trying to expand on that for encouraging exports and investment by making sure overseas chambers of commerce are better equipped in these emerging economies. All these things are so important because one of the big strategic mistakes he made in the last 15 years as we did not expand in the same way germany did our market share in this emerging economies which have become so important. The Supreme Court will look at what was passed in 2008 a majority of six to very and they will say that as president. And indiana had a had a three voter i. D. Were talking about facts. They decided on the indiana case it was constitutional for them to establish. They did not say all of this state correct, he talked about indiana. Let me finish because he misrepresented what i said. [shouting] when i hear these accusations that the people voter i. D. Laws coming in now, disproportionately affect minorities, it implies to me that somehow with something missing in our brain, we have a sedan. To make him to fight americans get ids to vote and go through the processes to follow the laws, what are you telling black people, that somehow they are not good enough, they are lesser than . Acid bothers me about a lot of the rhetoric coming from democratic and the left, w. We would have to make special you know, there has to be a specialness when we do with minorities because they are too feebleminded. We really need to make concessions because they cant follow rules that everybody else. When you treat people like victims, i dont think they want to aspire. Why a Writers Institute . I think a Writers Institute is something thats very important within the culture. We are a culture of word, a voice says. Words are key to our imagination , our capacity to envision things. We ourselves are not completely tied to print on the page senses operating, but i think that theres no other art form so readily accessible other than perhaps film, which we were with, to. But there is something in literature that just captures the human spirit. Journalist and author bob woodward had an interview with blood it goes white house correspondent, mike allen. Mr. Woodwards latest book is the price of politics about a 2011 deathdealing negotiations in washington. Mike allen also interviews marco rubio. They discuss the budget and taxes in the future of the Republican Party. This is just over an hour. [applause] good morning. Welcome to playbook breakfast. Thank you for coming out so early. We are excited to have an amazing doubleheader today. We are going to talk to senator rubio last night gave one of the first formal speeches to the head to the future of the Republican Party. Well talk to senator rubio about that. Next we have bob woodward who has a fantastic book out on the last grand bargain negotiations is going to be in just a second. First, welcome to people in lifestream land. Will be taking your questions on hash tag political practice. Welcome cspan, welcome others who are watching. Were appreciative to the bank of america for making these conversations possible. We had a Great Partnership this year including the conventions so were very excited to bring the Sensitive Conversations about the issues driving washington thanks to the bank of america. Thank you to your colleagues. You may have gotten cards for your goal is to be bringing you into the conversation come is to think about which are going to ask. Without further ado, we will break and bob woodward. Mr. Woodward. [applause] saving seats with my notes. Ill pick this up. Which is your chair . You get the daddy chair. Thank you. The price of politics, which has become a bestseller as all your books too, looks at the last close over the previous grand bargain that didnt quite get over the finish line. What does that teach us about the current click negotiation . Well, its groundhog day. The question is who is playing bill murray. Such a repetition that the same player since same seats at the table with the same doctrines. So where this goes i think anyone who thinks they know is wrong. As you know they talk about the fiscal cliff. Some people say if the slope. Some say its a bungee jump. Somebody says it is seascape word trip thats going to go down and up and so forth. Bottom line i think its no way to cover. It is a giant mistake to have all of this innate pool of ambiguity. As i understand it now coming due at no more. It truly is a stalemate. Theyre not talking. You point out the same players and the players who matter most are the president , Speaker Boehner. What do we know about the personal relationship that might eliminate whats going on right now . Theyve started out last year when they were working on the debt ceiling and they had buber called the merlot and nicorette meeting come in other words, boehner would have a merlot and obama which you nicorette. You point out in the boat somehow when they took the official photo, both of the spanish. Yes, they had iced tea for obama. Of course boehner had a cigarette and they put the cigarette in the ashtray away from the picture. But they havent closed the deal on the personal relations and thats a shame. I think somebody said this month during your breakfast, you should sponsor a weekly dinner between obama and honor and everyone would agree to pay for it and let them talk and get to know each other. [inaudible] john collingwood. Thats right. What do you think . [inaudible] [laughter] a special round . Well, you know its a personal relationships, when john was the sba spokesman, he was often not helpful, but you could always talk to him and get him on the phone and if you have a good story, he would confirm it by laughing. A deep laugh that you run the right track. No laughter meant no. Overlooks lake the tide is going against republicans. Well, i think in the short political terms, yes. The polling shows republicans will be blamed. But remember, this is the obama era. Its going to go down in his economy. I asked people, who was speaker of the house during the Great Depression when roosevelt was president . Ill give a hundred dollars to anyone who can name for the speaker of the house was in the critical first hundred days. [inaudible] henry thomas remy. Theres a name in the history books. Point being Speaker Boehner is an important player in the sense that they cant, but its upon this job to lead and define. So if theres negative consequences here, particularly in the economy, its going to be in the obama era things didnt get fixed. Who is the australian finance minister who said the United States is one budget deal away from being a great country . Theres a lot of people in business suits inc. We are poised to do some really good things in the Global Economy of the United States but if we cant untangle this mass, its not going to happen. You more about the inner workings of our government than any living person. Every Single Administration of our lifetime. Youve been behind the scenes producing National Security notes. What nonsense you are talking. Are you now optimistic or pessimistic about the way the strong and finance minister posted questions . In the end, i think things will be fixed. The question is when and what price do you pay on the road to getting them fixed . You know, i dont think you govern by playing chicken. And i say that to democrats, republicans, the white house, the congress. They should sit down and really talk this out in the old joe biden way when he would do with Mitch Mcconnell just a couple years ago to extend the bush tax cut and the white house to call biden and will, whisperer. And the horse whisperer and one for you, one for me, one for you, one for me. Thats hard, but thats the way you make a deal. At this moment does it look like the image of a Christmas Eve company or steve or do week over the cliff . Who knows. Somebody who thinks they know is only guessing. Maybe theres some strategy in the white house that by a certain date a work something out. Really stop the morning with the papers. We still love the current papers. Mr. Woodward is assistant managing editor of the washington post, which says fiscal year earnings yet to face wall street as stock markets are convinced that the fiscal drama is going to work out. The Financial Times has the opposite headline. They say wall street anxiety grows. So which of these is more true . On wall street they live in the zone of eternal and im peaceful coexistence of optimism and pessimism. You can talk to somebody whos in the investment world on wall street and in the morning and theyre optimistic in in the afternoon their pessimistic. So i think probably one, you know, dont know. Both papers have great reporters and theyre talking to people about that and so forth. If you look, i would go with deposed in the short run because look what the markets have done. They have sunk. When he talked to people behind the scenes, off camera on your tape recorder is not, what do they tell you about what they could happen . I think theres a lot of real worrying. Worry about whether . Where we are going to fix though, whats the bottom line here . Fiscal house of the United States government, financial house not in order. Its in disarray in a way that no one would permit in their business. Bank of america mowbray, john . Would never permit this incoherence and what the policy is and what theyre going to take and. Less question about this topic. Based on reporting, what youve been behind the scenes, how do you think the president is willing to go . When i talked to the president in the summer on this committee acknowledged quite openly as bad politics for he and democrats to say we are going to cut medicare beneficiaries. He then went on and i think in the end, you cant be president and not be a realist. He said isnt tenable to not cut them because they are driving the budget deficit. The whole entitlement issue is the real core of this problem. A taxing issue, yes. The pyrotechnics. Theres the struggle between the republican and democratic view. They all know its the entitlement issue. So if you, but some some sort of fix, trajectory to make it somehow stable is the real issue. You have something from the boat. Your books are ultimately about the power, how its used, squandered, built spirits of the subtext of these events is how life works. And my favorite sentence in the price of politics is when you meet friends need friends comments to late to make them. Tell us what she learned about washington and life in the grand bargain. What is a hundred your lesson from how bad unravels . Evening would have been last year . They found a way to postpone everything. Again, they can postpone lots of the problems, the postponement is 15 and appreciate kicking the can down the road. It is postponed our decisions. They should make a hard decision. I think ive are hypothetical, weekly dinner between the president and boehner, if that occurred as a weekly golf game we should go back to golf, that would be such a good and fruitful thing. What is trying to particularly about president s, you are arriving at the question, who is barack obama . By use of in this world. Do you think we fully understand that barack obama is . Do you . If anybody does, you would. Now, im asking do you . Of course we always want to know more about the people. But do you think there is that kind of defined elements of mystery uncertainty in his actions and personnel . Yeah, of course. But may be in him one of the things i mean come you covered george w. Bush. I wrote for books on him. There was a lot of mystery about what bush felt yes, a gut player. As he said, his job was to put some calcium in the spine. But i think obama is a little bit more of an uncertain figure and quite frankly when he writes his own autobiography and his time as president and there is more excavation of all of this, were going to discover that hes working it out as he plays the game. Somebody with a little more experience under their belt might not be doing. Some other comments you he made about president obama including but she just said executive subtext or little disappointed or underwhelmed. I wouldnt say disappointed. It goes to the question of what is our job in the news media. Our job is to be, politico specializes in a 242nd, not in a hostile negative way, but you are asking and raising questions and thats the job. Look, whats happened in the last many decades in the presidency, increasing concentration of power. Theres the catastrophe in japan in the United States immediate need they want to say what is the president doing, what is he saying . With the policies . 30 years ago that wouldve been 11 of the questions, but it would be a central question. Its amazing what they can do. Obama has more power than bush. Yeah, i believe is your viewing of a better president than the inner workings of the white house than ever. Why is that our fault . It is in part our fault and the messengers get better and better and more skillful than is the barrier often. God knows how much time i spend breaking down but cannot log jam in the white house, saying and doing this book, ive got the stories come it got these notes, it got these notes and stable answer questions. Its not something where theyre standing on pennsylvania avenue same to the reporters, hold on, were dying to have you hold us accountable for what are doing. You do manage to break people down, but what the white house said were going to shut down. Alexis, no menace. Anyone who works at this will be fired if they work with woodward. But what she do . Probably do another book like john belushi or Something Like that. I dont know. Look, there is a sense of every white house, whether theyre misguided or not or on the right track that they are doing good job, that theyre sincere in their job is to listen. Our key is to take them as seriously as they take themselves when i set bush obama long memo saying this is what ive got to talk about. They look and say my god, somebody has worked a year on how i am doing my job. Of course im going to respond. That is an unusual technique. He wrote hundreds of questions for bush. But e. G. Send president obama before you talk to him . About a single space doesnt teach them the same be the key points and this is what i understand have been. Much of it was new. I think somebodys going to look at that. If it george bush the 21 page memo on one of the books and colleagues at the post said you finally have lost your mind. I love the finally. Yeah, theres no evidence in bushs whole biography that he ever read anything more than 21 pages. And he read it right away. Condi rice called me and said you are doing this book in this article is. We checked the president . I said sure. She said we will see you tomorrow. Has what you do got an easier or more difficult . Thats a good question. I think its more difficult because the message managers are better. They have staffs and they were kind of aggressive early. Im older and have less energy and that makes it harder. Tell us something about the obama white house. What does obama think of mitt romney . What does he really think . I think he feels romney is incompetent [inaudible] i suspect that one of the themes of the coverage of the campaign is that romney never found a way , either the method or the same of how to run against obama, whereas they thought he was going to be easy. What is the one thing you would like to know about president obama . I did ask him. I didnt put it in the book. He keeps a diary. Sod liketo ve access. [laughter] and decide i said you keep a diary craxi said yes, not on all this detail. Lets see. So im sure he will write a really interesting memoir. What did he tell you about that . That it existed. No detail. He didnt offer any of it or read from it or anything like that. Is it dictated . Is it written . Ronald reagan kept his diary. It was secret. And now they published all of reagans diary. I mean, who would have thought . Certainly obama much more a sense of history and literature and writing from his own books and so forth, which are very kind of addressed the question which the inner life i am living . Is interesting before he came president , its really interesting now in a subscription of inner life will be something if its candy. Im going to put in a freedom of information act request for obamas diary. Maybe its time on government time and maybe the diary itself is a gsa notebook or Something Like that so they cant make exception obviously. I worry what we dont know is marshaling more than what we do know. About what . About him, what hes doing, was striving and. Who is barack obama . Last question, about to get the hook. You are talking about the president is a man of mystery. You are a little bit of the minute history yourself. Everyone in the service fascinated by how you do what you do. One time he told me how youve reached a general who would take your call. Wouldnt take the call, wouldnt be interviewed and was a key general and radio silence. I found out where hed lived and its the perfect time to go visit a general . At night, 8 15 because they wouldve eaten. If their home, theres a couple extra hours, so i knocked on the door without an appointment and he opened the door and looked at me and cannot quote him . Looked at me and said are you still doing this should . [laughter] bob woodward, thank you very much. [applause] thank you very much. You have a late night. Is bob still here . But would you like to ask senator rubio . Are you still doing this should . [laughter] asking the real question. This is a great chance. [inaudible] last night he talked about a new direction for the Republican Party in one of the things he taught about is education and how to make Higher Education cheaper, how to reform programs. What would be the number one thing you would do that you can do as a freshman minority senator . I dont think theres a number one thing. Youve got to do them all. The biggest obstacle we face as a 21st century student doesnt look like a 21st century student. Send each other graduated high school. Its a significant part of the folks going into college, but its also the 38yearold who decided to go back to school and get a degree. Does my sisters experience. Its a 25yearold who after 10 years has been stuck in the service area jobs and decides they want to empower themselves with skills. The great thing is technological advances will not only lower the time and cost of getting that kind of skill acquisition, but are going to make it much more accessible. We have to make sure student aid programs dont stand in the way of it. Let me give you an example. Right now what we have are the pell grant for the loan programs. The accredited institution. Ditto for credit courses. That obviously has way too is your traditional for you than great university. Nothing wrong with that. I went to the university of florida, a school about to crash louisville in the sugar bowl. Not any points to Mitch Mcconnell. What about the folks that dont want to do that, they cant do that . They want to take it on the course of the school year and on my credit from the school of you we shouldve credit courses that were not discriminating against people to allow skills. We have to have loan programs to reflect a 21st century student. The second thing i do is make sure students have more information and thats why sponsor the right to know before you collect which means before you take out the load students will be given information on how much ot to graduate. This is how much you can expect to make if you graduate at the super in this is how much you i you still want to get the philosophy major, thats fine. But it doesnt pay a lot of money into a 150 grand. Not hurt republicans talking about these topics. Louisiana governor bobby jindal [inaudible] i dont know about that. The challenge for the conservative movement and every movement to two your principles associate with her would ever tested and proven by time in history. Applying this principle to 21st century. Now we have to apply them to the 21st century. Now we have to apply them to the 21st century. Now we have to apply them to the 21st century. I said last night i graduated college with 150,000 in Student Loans, which means law school or undergrad. No other way to pay for it. A combination of pell grants, stafford loans and Student Loans. I paid off the proceeds of my book available on amazon. Com. I never wouldve been able to go to school with that. There were pell grants and student loan programs. I would not be a college graduate. You talk a little bit about how fortunate we are, who we are. You talked about how foreign accident during your dads shoes. Youd be a very opinionated bartender. My parents came to this country relatively unskilled and uneducated. My dad went to the fourth grade or Something Like that. My mom, not much more. They grew up underprivileged circumstances. In the 20th century they were able to find jobs if they could own house, buy a car, take a vacation. We never had everything i wanted, but we have had more than we needed. To contribute to the miracle of the american middle class. Being raised by parents like that somewhere else would not have meant what you think here. I would not have gone as far. I would be stuck somewhere else. You have more than you need it, but you were a kid. Did you realize at the time . You realize as an adult. What i always realize that i give my parents great credit that from the very beginning, the chill deep to us that there was nothing they could do, but in essence theres no limits to how far you can go. We had meant us because we got here kind of day, dont know the language as well, but you guys can be anything you want. Theres no reason why you cant. I cant tell you how port that is for a young person to not only have dreams, but believe that dreams are possible. If i worry about anything is said to many Young Americans are training or believe the streams are accessible to them because of circumstances they grow up in. The government has a role to play in that. James, and covered her speech last night pointed out the word that was missing from your speech. He didnt mention mitt romney hhotel three weeks ago was the leader of the party is mitt romney going to disappear . I hope hes not going to disappeared and i do hope he has a continuing role. Very few people have done what hes done covering for president and thats not accurate. He got a lot of those are the truth is he won a lot of states. He did is 49 to one. He won places and has a lot of supporters. But its also been successful at life. I told him this, too. Mitt romney is a role model as a person, father, husband, community leader. He is a lot to offer the Republican Party. I dont know exactly what that will be, but im excited because he has a lot to continue. One of the issues to talk about in the coming year is immigration. The big enchilada is in the ration reform. Yes or no, cannot get done . I hope so. The next year some hopeful. It is to be dealt with comprehensively, but not a comprehensive bill. The reason is these constituencies deserve to be done was squarely for what they are in consensus for all of them. We can reach consensus on border infrastructure in you verify and immigration and stem and hightech profession. We can build strong consensus, which need to have a functional one. Theyre not easy. Theres intraparty debate. Theres some sort of alternative to the dream i that accommodates about in the future. If you do all those things are still left with are here to document it. Its not easy, but easy entree and easier to do with those folks on documents with each of these other issues. They will avail themselves of a Guestworker Program or alternative to the dream that a reform illegal immigration. The American People will say you did you verify importers security so we know it isnt going to happen again. Now we can be the most compassionate people in the world can do this for what it is. We could depoliticize the issue and solve it. And then theres that odd, but just from what i follow that. We need to do with it. For american purposes. It cannot be what is destined to become much the single greatest nation. In a few days after the election when republicans vote didnt have the president has been disbanded voters like a 44point gap. Right away they said we need to do something aggressive on immigration. But it wasnt a couple weeks. Republicans already couldnt agree on what needs to be done. How do you get your own party on the same page, devout democrats . I disagree. I dont think thats its happening. What happens is the concept of Immigration Reform is one of consensus on the details of Immigration Reform with every major piece of legislation. We have millions of people who come here illegally. A lot of them come to me and say weve done it the right way and we didnt pay the fees, the churchgoing may somehow affecting the legally legally it would have been faster . It didnt seem right, so people are troubled by it. Thats one example of one debate we will have. Theres going to be invited to bid in the democratic party. As labor unions im in favor of a Guestworker Program. They will have an internal party debates. Theres no magic solution. Its important to do and i believe we can. Last question on this for years from now were sitting here. What is the likelihood that congress has passed and the president has signed . I think its more than 50 50. Im really optimistic about it, but i certainly believe portions of Immigration Reform can be done with quicker than others. My hope is for the good of this country. About a lot of old friend. This is from 2006 when you were florida official 100 innovative ideas for floridas teacher. A lot of these are still talking about, but one of the promises he said we should make to the people is life without you said you favorite life without exception or predators. You want the issues talked about his human trafficking, exploitation of children. Why has the United States been so slow at the . Is hard to believe we have a domestic problem. For us, human slavery is going somewhere else. Its hard to accept its right here. Sex trafficking isnt horrific thing. Theres a lot of United States, but also labor trafficking. Numerically theres more in that category. We shouldnt overlook the fact is people sleep in it collects basically as indentured servants and we have to do with that as well. Was the single biggest thing you think should be done to alleviate child sex crimes. Awareness. People have to believe this exists. Their signs and sometimes we ignore it. One thing we do in south florida as great a strain folks at entry point, there is science and progress of human trafficking. Awareness part is important. They have to take the place when the internet for Law Enforcement because a lot of times they find themselves into prostitution and get treated as perpetrator rather than victims. If ecologists force them into a perpetrator but in fact we are the dems and they have to give him for certain judicial system to treat a women as victims and put them in a setting with a pull themselves away from drug addiction or whatever its supposed appendices seem to keep them trapped. First i want to ask you a couple twitter questions that have come in what weve been talking here. One is whos the best meter in washington . Robert griffing. [laughter] why did the majority of americans reject the Republican Party . I think it was an election. It was a very close election when he looked than others and differences between. There is their Free Enterprise may maintain we need to improve on the way they connect those policies of the everyday life of everyday people. Why has there been this failure to connect . Im not sure this one issuer when we send him i havent had time to think about why it hasnt happened, but he needs to happen. The principles we stand for are the only way for us to stabilize in our middle class. How worried are your consequences the Republican Party [inaudible] you need from the voters perspective . Gaming demographic changes . You know, i dont think any voter in america obviously voters are locked into one party or the other. The Fastest Group are those who vote for candidates, not parties. They look for people who understand the issues and anxieties in the hopes they have and offer real and concrete policy legislation and appropriate role for government to play in addressing those anxieties they face. So we are one election away from doing that. We always are, but we have to recognize what it is and concentrate on doing it. How much of a danger to republicans is posed . I wouldnt call it a danger. Its a challenge. You wouldnt . Know, take what you stand for and convince people its better for them but what the other side is offering. Sometimes people forget the art of persuasion. Its not just that people are for. Sometimes politics and oftentimes they should be about understanding what is the right thing for the country to convince people its the right thing and thats the import part of the put up a process that seems got lost recently. [inaudible] look, the hispanic voter is large in this country who also happen to be liberal democrats. Theres nothing wrong that our mind to do to change that. Theres a significant number of hispanic voters who vote for the candidate, not the party. A lot of things happen before the ticket came together that hurts our opportunity to do it. For shelley the Republican Party for many years as the antiillegal Immigration Party as most americans are. We need to be a proillegal immigration. Basically putting concrete postals like i intend to do another symptom to do to show we are part of the fact that every year 1 Million People immigrate to the United States legally and permanently. Theres not even a close second. Number two, legal immigration, not an important part of heritage, but important part of our future. When you talk about illegal immigration, youre not talking about playing the role. Youre talking about people, human beings who are here for the same reasons people have been here because they cannot provide and theres this country is where they go. Thats the reality. These are real human beings and thats why such a big issue in Hispanic Community because its not a statistical issue. You know somebody that been under the circumstance in your heart breaks even if you know what theyve done is legally wrong, morally you feel for them because she realized by the grace of god that could be you. We did a column this week, behind the curtain. Before that gervasi said he didnt want to be pigeonholed as the hispanic candidate. He wanted to be known as a conservative solution oriented leader. Ethnicity does not or. Ethnicity is a big part of curiosity. He felt pressure in the area . Its not that i dont want to be this candidate per se. I come from where i come from a deeply influences who i am every single day of my life. I grew up in a fit of the face of certain and circumstances. People whose lives are the kinds of things i hope government policy can speak to. Theres no way to escape that. I know people who struggle with immigration issues. That applies to a broad swath of americans. The issue the sand at Community Faces are not that different than what Everyday Americans face. As we speak americans get ready to take their kids to school this morning and theyre worried about what my parents used to worry about cautious how we make those at the end of the month, how to meet get the chance better than we did . The Political Movement that can best identify concrete things in government to address those are the ones that will be discussed. Given the way Party Operatives think, the way Party Officials income of the reason media thinks, how do you avoid [inaudible] i dont really worry about it. I am who i am. I am marco rubio. I come from where i come from. Im proud of where it comes from. It doesnt make me better than any of us, doesnt make me more qualified, just makes me who i am and i intend to continue to share that not for ethnic purpose, but for a policy purpose. It allows me to relate and hopefully to apply Public Policy. But i care about programs and Student Loans . It would be a wouldve a College Without them. Thats a good thing in Public Policy and thats why we have a representative republic in. [inaudible] senator, you have said ive heard you say that the Latino Community is quite conservative, socially, issues fiscally as is the Africanamerican Community in a lot of ways. Yet, both communities rejected your party. Beyond Immigration Reform, what kind of policy should the party put forth . Its not just a message, not just rhetoric that could track this back, like for instance a lot of talk during the campaign about the children of immigrants in schools. What else can they offer and can you get it by the party . First of all, issues that appeal to minorities are the same that appeal to everybody else. Whats the number one issue that hovers over this . The growing opportunity cat between the hopes and dreams many people have been a chance to accomplish, particularly what my parents were able to get into, what are the impediments of that . Two major things. Number one, an economy that is that creating and a lot of people with middleclass jobs. Theres a disproportionate number of minorities who fall in that category for a lot of reasons. [applause] romantic. [laughter] there are you going to celebrate . For going to get a dinner intricacy the lincoln moving. This is to the first 15 manson and the want to know if its real. Yesterday the root of the republican do is scenario. With you vote for the senate bill, extending the bush tax cuts for 92 people instead of thats it. No more. The New York Times today wrote about that as a fallback position. Would you support that . Adelle want to feed into this to stay apocalyptic. Im on his accountant there enough people, a majority of people in this town and understand that what theyre playing chicken with is the most important country in the world. We on the bridge of before it talk about fiscal, we are here because of the last fiscal cliff that created a scenario that led to this ridiculous idea that i voted against. Lets put a bunch of bad things to happen at one time because that will force washington to do something. We have to avoid doing damage. Avoid doing harm. We need to look for a way to accomplish that in the short term. And then we have to have a conversation but getting the fiscal house in order. Its fundamentally true. We spend a trillion dollars a year more than we taken. We have to address it. I approach this issue with the belief the only way with me that in order is to rapid economic order. What the president is proposing does not raise enough revenue to make a significant dent in the debt, but it will make a dent on job creation, particularly middleclass. Thats why i oppose this plan. I think we should do real tax reform. There are loopholes. Theres one for being able to write off your yacht as second home. Lets go after things like that, but not as a Revenue Generating mechanism. The way is to rapid economic growth. Is the only way, and then you have to hold the line on future spending. The circumstances under which you would vote for a tax increase . I just dont think thats a solution. Thought about up pledge. The number one issue is to grow the economy, not about tax higher or lower. I believe the proposal will her job creation. Heres why. Any errors in billionaires have the best accountants and lawyers in the country. Deliver you want a tax cut. These guys will maximize. The small as corporation on it cannot afford to do all these logistics in the tax code and end up getting creamed. They have to get the money from somewhere. Here is three things they can do raise prices which is bad for consumers, cut back on Infrastructure Investment which is bad for manufacturing are taken lay off workers, cut hours, or not hire them. Its not about a pledgor millionaires and billionaires but growth. It hurts growth. The president has a tax increase that will help grow the economy. Im interested to hear about it. You would vote against the fallback plan. I will vote against any plan that hurts growth because its our only solution. And not voting for anything that hurts growth. More likely have a deal by Christmas Eve, new years eve . I think something will happen. This is too much a state. Something will happen. President to a Christmas Eve and new years. Yes. I know these guys. When the cameras are off and people are being people and not just senators on television, people get it. Its important. Hopefully we will get there in the short term. By christmas. Optimistic. Because the little ruckus in the block is for a few weeks ago your answer to a question from gq. How old you think the botox with the answer. There is no scientific debate. Established pretty definitively. I was referring to a theological debate which is a Pretty Healthy debate. And not a theologian. But to set the table. You begin your answer by saying im not a scientist. And not in a position to the extent there is any kind of debate, not the position to mediate that. Come up the logical debate, a theological debate is how you reconcile what science is definitively established with what you may think your faith teaches . From me when it comes to the age of the earth there is no conflict. That greeted the heavens and the art. The scientific advances have given us insight as to when he did and how he did it. That is i have been able to reconcile and. Of the people of a deeper conflict. We should have the freedom to teach her children whenever it is a belief which means teaching of science. They have to know the science. Parents or to teach in theology and reconcile as they believe and see fit. Nothing does the point of president was making back in 2007 when he was asked the questions. Thats one of us sang. Excepting that context. Its a love for a half billion years old. Obviously. And our faith teaches that is not inconsistent in the beginning of nothing that created the heavens and the year and science has given us insight as to when he did it. The more science learns the more im convinced. You have a very fascinating journey. Catholic. Your family moved to nevada. Your family. D the ib thlogi and now ithink ou go o mass anttend services. En and saie catholic. Churchs teaching. Participate fully. In addition to tt einteract withnd have gone to know the church in south florida. Blackwood. A great pastor and teacher the reward. To be quite frank with you, its not much different than Roman Catholics to like watching Billy Grahams except that i get to go in person. I have grown in my faith. Im a Roman Catholic and support one of a percent the Teaching Authority of the church. Have a deep appreciation for bury hundreds of thousands of peoplehe slvation. A lot of people i know, thats just kind of a big deal. In the real world a lot of people said, yeah, ive done that too. This sum sum is are we go both. You can never have enough to guide. [laughter] as you go fourth. The national canada. Youll be asked a lot of tough questions. When does life begin . Conception. At think science has established that. I wish there were more folks in this town who were deeply committed to science and the belief and science and would not ignore the scientific fact. Pretty brave about saying the age of the earth. This amount pretend its a great mystery. Why did your comments cause such well, first of all, it caused a ruckus in that group. Not a Single Person in the supermarket asked me about the day before thanksgiving. Lets be clear. What. The bloggers fair. And beyond washington, by the way. Let me say this. I like this kind of stuff. And i Say Something that triggers conversation and allows me the opportunity to talk further of things i believe income im happy. To you regret your answer . I think of russia would have given a better answer, but we went from talking about hiphop and then make up pivoted to the tariff. It caught me offguard a little bit. The point is, the point ellis trying to make. At the automated. You earlier today. I wasnt. Of those make the point. Obviously if i had the immense as a tenant type that none of what a bit more succinct. Thats fine. Another hard question. Is whole section on the check until you that faith teaches it is. And also teaches that there are a bunch of other sins that are no less. It teaches that covering your neighbor and what your neighbor has this in. So there is in a person in this room and isnt guilty. I dont go around pointing fingers. Im responsible for my salvation and my familys and for inculcating my family what our faith teaches. They become adults and decide how they want to apply that. As a policymaker i can tell you that i am informed by my faith and my faith in forms man to land. But not as a way to pass judgment. Outpost on the New York Times bestseller list. Its confirming a lot about the challenge in that conflict in afghanistan. The difficult conflict with multiple spheres to it. Obviously the direct conflict with making sure there is not a safe zone. But internally you have tribal rivalries that have to be played out or sometimes a u. S. Corporation in one city with one group of people creates resentment among and other. There want to rebuild neighborhoods, but they dont want to be seen as lackeys of the americans. Gives you a strange dynamic and gives you insight into the impact that history has been to the support of the world that is used to congress for thousands of years. It been able to create a relationship and hedge their bets. Apart from the human tragedies, your heart breaks when you read about someone he just had a baby a few days earlier, spoke to his wife before he went on a mission and nine helicopter crash. Your heart breaks and reminds you of the human cost and also reminds you of the logistical challenge. Did this book makes you regret operation afghanistan . No. I just think it reminds us of the challenges of the. The end of the day after ana says it afghanistan is important. You dont want to create a safe haven for people to the be able to come back and reconstitute, but its also about pakistan. To have an unstable afghanistan where radical islamist well on elements are organized as a danger to pakistan and its nuclear capability, and they are concerned about that. The rate cut had never happened without the presence. The future matters in terms of regional stability. Thats why im so cautious about the way we disengage because if we disengage in a counterproductive way its going to lead to greater chaos and perhaps even a setback. All lines that have been lost in the blood that has been seven will have been for naught. What you make of president mubarak. I dont know him well. From what i no as he ever cause you . I spoke to him a few times. Gracious of the comet when my daughter was injured. Your 12 yearold daughter. Shes doing great. Thank you. But let me to say that i have deep admiration for the way he has been able to balance the hardest job in the world with the most important job as a father and husband. As a man and of all model i have deep policy disagreements. The swim grateful we ever publicly can debate it. What and you learn from the way hes handled his roles . Well, i think hes done a great job. Raising two young girls. Very intense scrutiny, but also the way he divides at this time. Hes never missed a Parent Teacher conference. The president of the United States has never missed a Parent Teacher conference. None of us should. You draw parallels between him and fidel castro. Has not accurate. Ive never said that. There is no parallel between fidel castro and barack obama. Hes never been elected to anything. And never run for office to put his name. Im not sure where you got that from. Ive drawn parallels between places where government dominates the economy and the direction the president and some of his party want to take us, but you would goes well beyond that. Not just about government dominating the economy. Going to jail for access the internet coming getting beat up on the side of the church because he dared speak out against the gunman. That doesnt happen here. To you feel less free than you did four years ago . I dont know if just the right way to put it. Our future economic options are being significantly diminished by some of the choices that have been made by the president and his party. Out give your real world example as of federal employee i am blessed to have a chance of a federal savings account for health care. After a survey. I wish more americans had those. You know what i use that for . Use to pay my copayment. When i have an accident on a golf corporate to pay for it on the care. Now they changed it. Instead of being able to save 5,000i can only say 2500. Now if i want to buy ad bill because they have tightened my daughters braces and shes in pain i have to get a doctors prescription to buy an overthecounter medicine and pay for with my after a slight. Thats a dumb thing. Yet the law of the land. So i think its counterproductive on things, but i hope we can change that. Less free . Of the court going to be less prosperous as long as government continues in the direction it is going now. There is no longterm solution to longterm debt problem, and its caring people. There are afraid the longer this goes to high and the likelihood of massive tax increases. And 20 years ago we may have had more flexibility in that regard. Under a lot of countries that are there would rather be here. We need to make sure they stay here all come back. We were told, spend the next couple of years working on legislative accomplishments. The middle class agenda, emigration. That the job of the senator. I dont know why thats newsworthy. And then after the midterm elections, 2014, sometime after that you make a decision about whether to run for president. Will we take for you run for president . To be honest with you, i enjoy a publicservice. And of this is the answer everybody gives, but i dont know how long that can i can be in public service. I think all we need to decide is to be want to continue to do that in the senate . Squad, will return to the private sector . And there are a lot of factors. Part of it is with you feel a calling, fire to do it, not just because people to you should. Part of it is whether your family can sustain it. Four years from now all my kids will be four years older, some entering their teenage years. Pretty challenging times. So all of these things are real factors that kill into account. Part of it is you have something to say . That can keep only do things like that if you have something to say. Here is what the point is. Am i better off saying it in the senate or some other capacity . I have a job now, and the best thing i can do is to do the best in canada in july and up because what i have learned from watching others is that if you do like your job at your job you always have other options, opportunities present themselves and sometimes unexpected. I never thought i would be a u. S. Senator. And never had any ambition for federal office to read that opportunity presented itself as a result of some of things variable to accomplish rao was the speaker before the house. That same principle applies. And maybe commissioner of the nfl. I keep putting that out there in the hope that someone would say we have to interview this guy. Its a competitive process. Are you likely to run for president . I have no idea. Adjust on now. What i should focus on is being a bit u. S. Senator before a u. S. Policy. In a few years on an up to decide whether want to run for reelection, run for something else, or calling give someone else shot. Hereabout to get touch here. Penultimate question. Florida is a very competitive state. To not underestimate the political observer and genius of the obama turn up machine. Actively and to you there is a Restaurant Managers that we go to, the Catholic Church can be right next door there is a storefront. The folks were in there, tall, 14 months before the election. What a day doing . Fifteen months. What could it possibly be doing . Registering voters. Identifying voters and turning them out in ways that have never been done before. And admiration for what they did and cant wait to copy it. And to improve it and bring it forward. On the other hand, some of the factors, florida is a state the people of very anxious about the future and particularly about their opportunities stay in the middle class are due to the middle class. For whatever reason at the end of the day as a movement did not do a good enough job of convincing people that our ideas or their right antaeus, and thats where we need to get better. What republicans learn . Well, whoever has the high ground on technology is going to win the thing thats important. One lesson is the you want to make sure from attack on to a prospective your state of the art and communicating a message and identifying people of support you and in short that they are voters. A supporter that is not a voter is not much use on election day. Investing. Its there. The technology of 2012. It can be done, but it has to be invested in, priority. Part of it is no ones fault. Some financial problems. Spent the better part of two years in the party out of a financial hole which did not create a lot of time space. Its part of the we need to do. You still need to have a marketing department. You also need to have a good production and print department. It policy instead of your methods to communicate. Do you tweet . I tried to. No one has ever sent a tweet on my behalf. I control my own feed because its authentic and real and lies about sports and it popped. The dolphins back. I have to be. What devices . Devices . Iphone. Yes. And the it i use an iphone. Come in handy. Thats right. And use an iphone. I have to upgrade the ipad. The iphone. Onion track. I think its the four. Last question. You wear a lot of hats. Football coach for your his son. Defensive back. It was a tremendous. And a great time. And as much fun doing and. Pile on pictures and hear. What is your tip . You know, it has to be fun, but the most important thing you can do is teach them the fundamentals of the sport. In a couple of stocks just about being a better player. You can teach a kid early on the catchable, all the right, and tackle a proper form you will keep them safe and having fun. If you dont call was the pickup have bet its hard to break later. But the focus on head injuries as the time teaching my son had a tackle properly. Use of make it fun for them. Well, winning is fun. You want them to strive for that, but the great thing about competitive sports is that it forces you to work with the people to accomplish your goals, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. Very little you can do by yourself. You can be the best running back, but if you cant get anywhere, the same thing with the receiver, you can be wide open, but if im lucky apollyon not going to score. That applies to life in the ability to work with this collaboration, use less skill of competitive sports and in particular the extraordinary gain of american football teaches. What youll for christmas. Record by the dolphins. Many were better off. I know i should in higher. We are honored to have you here. We appreciate you being here. Thank you. Tankful to the bank of america for this partnership president. Thank you for coming and sorely. Thank you for a fantastic conversation. Thank you. Coming up on cspan2, a Senate Hearing on hurricanes in the Recovery Efforts. British officials present a report in the house of commons on the economy and budget deficit and later a Senate Hearing on political instability in the african nation of mali. Tomorrow morning on cspan2 the head of u. S. Military operations in the pacific will hold a news briefing. Took over the Pacific Command in march of this year. You can watch it live beginning in 9 00 a. M. Eastern. This weekend on American History tv, follow Harry Trumans eldest grandson to hiroshima as the city appeared to mark the dropping of the atomic bomb. Everybody has their own few. I dont want to argue the history. The novel. [inaudible] we are joined in washington to discuss meeting and put bomb survivors and the inspiration for his trip. Today the Senate Hearing that the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy and the government Recovery Efforts. It will hear testimony. First, a panel of senators from States Affected by the storm. Just over two hours. Could morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us. A hearing on the recovery challenges before us to the super storm sandy. We are here today to evaluate the response and Recovery Efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy which struck the northeastern United States in october 29 asked to largest storm system in u. S. History clearing the lives of more than 120 americans, destroying over 340,000 homes and over 200,000 possesses and leaving more than a half million families without power, he, or Running Water for weeks. I understand in a few neighborhoods and a few buildings in new york and new jersey that still is the case. The scale of this disaster has created significant housing and transportation challenges, and a successful recovery will require a sustained effort from government, private sector, and volunteer organizations. By and large the federal gunman response to Hurricane Sandy has been robust, and it needed to be. Fema has provided over 14 million meals over 16 million liters of water, one half million blankets and over a 9,000 tarps. Delivered 9 million gallons of gasoline to over 300 gas stations, over 270 million gallons of salt water were pumped out of transit tunnels at the peak of their response. 17,000 federal personnel were involved in over a 11,000 national guardsmen. This was all necessary because of the devastation and described earlier, but also for under 90,000 people have registered for temporary housing and other individual systems. I want to commend the thousands of first responders, volunteers, and neighbors who worked tirelessly to help those in need and continue to do so as this committee is taking place this morning. The president and numerous Administration Officials a ban on the grounds to survey the damage, meeting with state and local leaders in neighborhood organizers. The federal government provided over 2 billion in relief. In nine states have been declared disaster areas as a result of Hurricane Sandy and up the services will require significant resources. That is why i call upon congress to enact supplemental disaster legislation before a 104th congress adjourns. Not a lung is of it tied up in knots. This is not the time. Congress did not require them, and we did not do so after Hurricane Katrina andrea. Other examples of catastrophic destruction. In responding to this disaster and disasters such as hurricanes in the congress should focus on helping those in need and rebuilding communities as quickly as possible. It is absolutely critical the administration go forward with the cspan request. And the stand within the last 15 minutes there have been reports about requests, size, and condors. I know many of my colleagues were present today and agree with the region need to advance a supplemental. Of a Court Hearing your suggestions regarding the specifics of the program it can be utilized to best meet the needs of your constituents. Has sent two letters to the president related to many asian Recovery Efforts associated with hurricanes in the end of the disasters on going in this nation and there are quite a few a copy of each letter will be included in the official record. The first included a list of recovery tools that the gulf coast leaders found effective in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina hundred. Responding to katrina and three. You like to make some of those available to minorities. Many of our existing laws simply do not meet the needs of communities impacted by catastrophic disasters. Others present in this bureaucratic hurdles to be and we learned this lesson painfully after hurricanes katrina and narita. And fortunately the legislative solution that we fought for an active in the form a limited their application. We should not repeat history. The senator is here with us. Collins is not, but in spirit of have worked vigorously on this and i want to thank them for there. Me to continue to Work Together to finalize the consensus package of reform. A few elements would include more flexible Disaster Recovery grants versus regular community development. A very different needs and the community is developing normally and when a committee is trying to do a rapid recovery after a catastrophic disaster. Streamlining public assistance by advanced funding on the basis of reliable estimates for damage and facilities can only help community move forward more quickly eliminating the and arbitrary penalty. Also something i suggested. All police stations, fire stations, libraries, schools instead of one of the time would make a tremendous difference. And establishing an independent arbitration procedure. Disagreeing about what is it will go on indefinitely. There will be irrational and and and a decision made. Also allowing families to use individual assistance for disaster related to health care expenses. We found it impossible for parents to get back to work without a place for children to be in day care. Costeffective, and not sure what 5 million would mean to a study of new york. 5 million is not much to offer. So those i just a few suggestions. Im looking forward to others. My second letter called for minimum of 5 supplemental disaster funding to go toward the corps of engineers mitigation project that will buy them taxpayer exposure to future flood risk. Our government continues to dangerously under invest in flood protection infrastructure. U. S. Communities and taxpayers are incurring an exorbitant Disaster Assistance causes as a result of this practice which has become a practice, a dangerous one. The National Institute of Building Sciences issued a congressionally chartered report determined taxpayers save 4 for every 1 invested in small mitigation measures. Yet the corps of engineers new construction budget for the entire nation is only onehalf billion despite a backlog of 40 billion. Hurricane irene torch to the same region of the country last year bid. The northeast faces continued threats from noreasters and additional extreme weather events reflecting a trend of more frequent and costly disasters in this country. Last year alone we experienced president declared disasters, 14 of which exceeded 1 billion in damage, the most of recorded history to be a rising sea levels, more active hurricane season, increased development of our nations coast clearly revealed that hurricane irene in sandy or not 1of anomalous of events but part of a continuing in troubling trend. We cannot retreat. Backed by Financial Resources and political will, just like our nation cannot abandon the strategic Mississippi River delta which transports more tonnage than any system in the western hemisphere and produces one fourth of the countrys energy supply. We refuse to abandon the worlds most important financial and commercial center. Instead we must improve their resiliency of our communities and byron and essential services and vulnerable populations with smart planning and welldesigned recovery and rebuilding tools. We have the ability to reduce the consequences of Severe Weather permitting flood risk through smarter landuse guidelines, building codes, and Fire Protection improvement. The state of new york has requested 9 billion for mitigation measures. The state of new jersey is seeking another 7 billion for the same purpose. I commend Governor Cuomo and christie including strategic mitigation needs in their funding request. Both of these leaders have demonstrated incredible compassion and concern for the people whom they represent in have been highly effective set the disaster began and may also include mia bloomberg, and many other local officials the and did the job there were elected to do. I look forward to hearing, witnesses today. My colleagues whom i have the deepest respect for and have been engaged in many conversations with them, as i am all too familiar with what theyre going through. I am looking for to their suggestions. Our first Panel Includes senators from the affected areas in the interest in time i have asked each one to limit their statement to four minutes, but their entire written testimony will be included in the record. We will take documents or papers that they want to submit to help us build the most robust response that we can. Before i introduce the panel of want to introduce the Ranking Member senator coats. I want to then turn to senator cochran, vice chair of the Overall Committee and then recognize senator mikulski, and longstanding member of this committee, and we are happy to have her back on the day as this morning. Senator lott and burke, whenever he shows up will also be recognized. Thankyou. I will be brief because we want to your former colleagues. First of all let me just say that all of us here on the panel express our sympathy to you and your constituents, the loss of life, those injured, homeless, suffering. Weve had an incident in indiana , a tornado. It does not begin to compare with the depth and scope of what cover government now has to deal with relative to the impact of this particular storm. We understand a little bit of what youre going through. I know the chairman has experienced something of that magnitude that many of us are grateful for the response of fema and our continued efforts to try to determine how we mitigate damages for the future. Given our current budget situation theyre just simply is not enough money to go around to fund all the essential functions of the federal varmint. So we need to be smart in terms of how we apply current aid and also learn lessons from the situation so that we can take appropriate mitigation procedures for the future. I noticed yesterday in the New York Times there was an interesting article relative to one particular city. It my daughter lived there just after college. A graduate program at st. Johns. Her husband working in queens, and they have a home which is no longer there. They moved out some years before those coastal towns, we need to find ways to protect with potential rising sea levels, more serious storms hitting her come and, need to look at ways to mitigate that because we dont want to be back here saying you have to do this all over again. I look forward to hearing from our members and that regard, but also secretary donovan. Let me just say, the issue of how we go for and how we balance of the south with the dca in the camps is simple. It will have to work through it. The chair has suggested options. A lot of this is caught up in negotiations going on in the impact. Im anxious to hear from the second panel as to what if we this sequester is applied what it does in terms of their ability to provide the necessary support. With that and will try to move this forward. Thank you. I am pleased to join. Here to tell us what we need to know about the practical consequences of the storms. We will hear from them in a welcome them. I cannot think you and the Ranking Member for having this hearing. At this time as we go into the Holiday Season of hanukkah and christmas week and doing a lot in our communities. But the coastal area really appreciate this. A man chair, it is a sad day. Were here to speak for the efforts of the people of maryland. We have one san day today. Woke up on the lower shore to this headline, u. S. Denies aid to maryland storm victims. This is the picture of the face of maryland during the storm. I will show you the picture of the face of the lower shore this point. You have been down on the shore. A frequent visitor. You know of the shore, the people, how hard working your, how patriotic care, and you know the demographics. You talk about will people. The commercial fishing. Hair culture. There are rich in pride and patriotism, individualism, but there are often very cash poor which is what has happened to us. We have some of the most prosperous counties in america. We also have some of the lost poor. Of the makati surrounded by three sizes of water. The people love to come down from National Geographic to take pictures about how clean and lovely and charming we are. They want to hear the songs. Right now were seeing the blues. Were seeing them here. We have all kinds of criteria. Weve motos you, the Eastern Shore and will mature worried about is that the very country that they serve, the very taxes they pay, the country where they send their sons and daughters to fight, they are the 2 , not the top 2 percent, the 2 percent of go to war and fight for america. It was up this country to take a look at their rules and rant and take a look at how we can get them held. Statistics. The president said he would cut through red tape. We want him to do it. Thank you for a cure passion and effective advocacy on behalf of the people. If you want to join the panel in youre welcome to pull up a chair. Were going to go in seniority order which is the custom of the senate. The most Senior Member would be the senior senator from a york. I may be more senior, but he is more powerful. I appreciated. Thank you. Holding this hearing and during those of us who represent states and people hard hit by Hurricane Sandy a chance to the corestates needs and the supplemental appropriations bill considered by the subcommittee to enable us to recover. Of want to say that honestly i cannot think of a better person to lead this effort that you. Obviously you have been schooled in the pain of being hit by Hurricane Katrina, but beyond that and understanding and empathy, you have become the leader in the senate on the whole area of Disaster Recovery. A very glad your car in a position. Hurricane sandy American History. It was that serious. And it calls on us to come together as we have after every other Natural Disaster in the country. What never was to help our neighbors in the best American Values cents, to pick up what he said. We will do that, and we will do it without requiring offsets which has been the norm. It is an obvious that the people of new york and new jersey suffered more than the people of connecticut from Hurricane Sandy i know you will hear about that from your representatives. We did suffer in connecticut. The second is we are part of a critically important economic region, critically important for the country, certainly in terms of the fiscal strength of the country, but much more. Part of what i hope he will keep in mind is helpless revitalize this center of economic strength which really benefits the entire country. Going to connecticut we suffered an estimated 600 million in damage great. Its evidence by the photos of the year. What is most interesting is the photo on the left which is a house in danbury. Most assume that the damage occurred on the coast. Up in the northwest part of the state quite far from the water, but there was a tremendous wind, and it knocked down the tree which devastated this house and a lot of power in these areas. The other photos to the right, fairfield, by the beach. The water came we in. Bottom left, you have a house which relief voting them of flooded creek and the end to the right in bridgeport just a street devastated by water damage. All of this for us is a cumulative which is to say that it is on top of the destruction caused by two other events in the last year, a hurricane irene and then by winter storm offered. The total cost of damage from these three storms of the last year is almost 2 billion which is a very significant amount for a small state like ours which incidentally has its own budget shortfall. Madam chairman, as your reference, we seem to be entering an age of increasingly violent storms. At think we really have to think carefully about whether and how to rebuild and locations we know of vulnerable and likely to be hit again which means as we go forward we have to take some vision and think about how we replace critical infrastructure. For instance, during each of the three storms in connecticut in the past year. We have most seriously been impacted by a longterm Power Outages as a result of our aging electrical distribution system. Therefore i hope we will use this opportunity to up some power lines underground move measures of stations away from the store. Other mitigation projects include front want protection , rhoda improvements, gardening or relocation. The estimated cost for similar projects, and towns, and infrastructure, estimated by our gunners office at 3 billion. The failure to adequately fund mitigation and resilient efforts will only lead to greater federal spending in the future as extreme weather events, including an unchanged continue to increase sea levels, warm oceans, and lead to more devastating storms, thus more damage. Finally briefly i want to urge that the supplemental be written in a way to include connecticut and all funding sources. This is not always been the case. The state was severely impacted with Tropical Storm arlene, the executive branch chose to deny us the opportunity to at least apply for some proportionate share of that funding, particularly under the cdbg grant program. We ask that you write this in a way that allows impacted states to have the ability to apply, given that at this for a new stage of recovery more people in connecticut have registered for fema assistance than either of the previous storms. It would be unfair to leave connecticut out of eligibility altogether. I think my colleagues before allowing me to go first. Thank you. Thank you. Senator, youre next. Is there a time frame . Im sorry. On dont know why i think youve been around here the longest. Maybe because youre the loudest. I would defer. His state suffered such grievous damage. Thank you. Thank you. I think my colleagues for his always present courtesy. My colleagues here. Ron joined together. And just want to thank you for being such a strong leader. He called the day after the storm, offered guidance because of what your area has gone through, and it is invaluable to us. Want to thank Ranking Member codes as well. He has been an open year and a very sympathetic ear terry a time of tragedy in need. Senator cochran has been in all of our meetings. We thank you, and its great to have an ally. She will be a strong fighter as she has been. I was pleased. We have said many things about this storm. A lot like to focus on something pau was talked about, mitigation. The tragic storm was an unfortunate wakeup call for new york. Much more must be done by the federal, state, and local government in our region to protect and modify our vulnerable infrastructure computer storm surge in activity. New york has no choice. We must simultaneously rebuild and adapt to protect against future storms. We have to do both. A waterfront region, and it is abundantly clear in the path of violence knew whether realities of modern infrastructure that powers and moved to york was not built to withstand mother natures wrath in this rapidly changing climate. Sandy reminded us of a very stark reality. We can either invest in protections now or we will pay more later. I would like to spend a little time talking about the mitigation issue in two areas. Fema and localities and flexibility to mitigate against future disasters of we can save taxpayer money. The electric grid. On long island, Public Power Agency Long Island Power Authority suffered unprecedented damage to an unprotected system. 4,500 polls, 400 miles of electrical line, 50 of one under 85 substations victims. 1 Million People were without power. And for over two weeks the country watched as an inept and unprepared utilities struggled to even communicate let alone restore power. Did not do enough target the system or flood prove substations. That type of system that allows you to use computers and sensors to respond to adages, learn where the damages and communicate with customers. The lack of investment and foresight is now costing us bigtime. It does not give me pleasure to report to this committee that we will be submitting an estimated 800 billion be embarrassed and built the fema. It would be penny wise and pound foolish to give 800 million without helping hardin and modernize an electric grid and will stand up to the next door. I have asked the administrative to allow us to use the authority under section four of her sex to incorporate a significant stabilization and mitigation plan in to any reimbursement the issue. It is imperative this process start now. It is my understanding that this week new york state began discussing a system wide mitigation proposal with the authority submitting a large plant are in the system as opposed to individual worksheets, and bankers the committee to work with us on this. Guinness back. Lowes the supplemental relief bill with the necessary mitigation funding to prevent the massive damages for the next dorm . Or we will roll the dice get away with the market price now to see the tab skyrocket. That would be silly. We know the Public Infrastructure would be automatically eligible it it would be crazy not to protect this. I a ask that the entire stephen be put on the record. Also from West Virginia as well. Without objection we have been joined by a the vice chair of our committee and he will give a short Opening Statements. Thank you mad them chairman. My apologies. I wanted to be here out of respect to my a colleagues to help present the case for funding of the resources that weve underwent during this storm. Even if there are only a few couple hundred homes to them that this as far as their lives are concerned. Not only are the seashores in the interval part of that Economic Opportunity but to those who owned the second homes move there now it is the first home. There is no asset to more valuable than the home that they own. Madame chairwoman i thank you for your help and your leadership and asking in this unanimous consent my full statement put into the record. Thank you very much senator lautenberg i look forward to working with you in working with the states that have been devastated. They give very but to for the opportunity to testify for the effects of hurricane zandi as we decide what to do. I will extend by a sympathy for my colleagues that were affected by the storm. We did suffer a significant damage we know the outcome could have been worse if there was a slightly different track. To prepare and respond to sandy also craig few gay his assistance Common Knowledge knowledge, and also to the federal coordinating officer who did a great job. I am mr. Donovan i am glad he is here today. Hurricane sandy was the third major disaster to strike in three years. Which includes South Kingston and dunes were obliterated and homes and local railways exposing underground septic tanks and pipes. Off the coast of the army corps data system recorded the largest wave at 47 feet. We had Severe Damage. With issues under the stafford act preliminary damage reports show 40 million to the Public Infrastructure that will likely need to be covered by other agencies including channels, roadways requiring significant funding the department of transportation and army corps. Rhode island felt the effects of the downturn today it ranks second of unemployment. Recovering from a third major disaster will be a significant challenge. And the size by governor chafee who wrote to the president about our problem i would ask that a copy of his record be entered into the record and i also request any aid offered by a the committee be available for this crisis. Providing the state relief with federal funding and Economic Development as well as assistance has been important to past disasters and again will be posted sandy. Going into longterm mitigation we should be mindful of the long term impact of the sea level rising. There smallscale measures to be undertaken as well. In particular region not a ignore their responses include section 103 small beach erosion and section 206. The states and communities these could be enormously beneficial after disasters. Also the need for robust funding including free Disaster Mitigation and has targets of recent these are critical for the smart planning to minimize disaster damage. I want to think your efforts over the years we hope we can find ways to go forward. Thank you very much. Thank you for mentioning flood mapping data is critical to get right. Senator gillibrand has joined us. Can she proceed . Thank you for being sojourners with your time. Senator klobuchar is sitting for me so i can come in. Thank you for holding the hearing. I cannot tell you how much your words of support have meant to all colleagues 1 2 than affected by superstore arm sandy per cryer biffle with those productive conversations Governor Cuomo, the appropriators, leaders, thank you for being so thoughtful and helpful for helping with the recovery of our families need. As use suffered through Hurricane Katrina and the enormous work to build new orleans york advocacy was extraordinary. I appreciated when you said that the way new york stood bayou, that was kind. I also want to talk how it affects our families and what type of recovery it is taking to rebuild. Millions of peoples of lives have been affected. 40 new yorkers have died and millions had to give the can damage to homes, businesses, families. One storey pedro from Staten Island. When he saw the twin towers fall he determined he had to protect our nation and entered the service, and iraq and no Security Guard at a prison and raise their kids on Staten Island with two children. Two and six years old progresses superstore hit, pedro directed his family to seek Higher Ground but he stayed in the home because it was a model but the flood waters rose and he became so frightened he thought he would not survive. He called the say goodbye then he could swim with broken ribs to a neighbors house and survived. Despite that time he is now not receiving the aid that he needs to rebuild. He could file insurance claims capped at less than half of his value and fema only offered 2,800. He has no choice but to declare bankruptcy bankruptcy. He lived through 9 11, represented derogation in iraq, courage, dignity now fighting for his own life to save his family and home. You have heard the so many times, senator coming in your own state and committee. Thank you for understanding how important this is in for letting us testify. We have to rebuild our state. We have been hit hard across long island, the hudson valley, homes are destroy aid and businesses are rubble. New yorkers are tough. Like your stay, they can get knocked down but get back up. We could focus on how they get the tools now over 300,000 who seriously damaged, a 265,000 businesses, 238,000 have filed fema end thousands are homeless. We estimated damages of birds of 38 million that is a conservative estimate based only on the damage reported today to only those who have been able to file claims, insurance, flood insurance. These are conservative members. We do not feel this is the extent of damage. This is that breezy point. A whole neighborhood was raised by fire it will take enormous effort to get that up and running. This shows the power of the storm a boat in the middle of the art. Yard. Firefighters in lower man hadnt the height of the floodwaters, we talk about the number of tunnels that are flooded the saltwater gets into the subway system to destroy the electrical system. Rebuilding takes investment. Many were destroyed. The last photo shows how much land area was affected. The purple area received a the most damage also the red area of was affected. It crushed the areas with high density of population. That is why the cost is so extraordinary. Thank you for holding this hearing and to recognize your leadership and to ask to please meet our needs to rebuild. Thank you. Thank you to the Ranking Members mikulski and senator lautenberg our neighbors and i have been sitting here thinking, we are used to be sitting where you are because we have the storm from time to time, we have noreaster but barry roommate day tornado maybe a drought but we are blessed. Maybe not as bad as the use suffered that it has been hard wrenching. We want to say thank you for being neighbors as a nation of nabors. Of big shot out to fema and army corps of engineers and continue to do great work. I am pleased to be here to speak for them all the delaware did not receive the devastation from our neighbors to the north we suffered widespread flooding damages to homes and businesses. Providing a bluff have been badly depleted even from small storms the roads that connects our state to maryland but the for those to be damaged or replaced but i wish i had a large photo. But to run up and down the state to ocean city we had a fourlane bridge and we just replaced it. The old bridge is gone. It is amazing. Five months ago we were using that bridge. As a major link. We experience widespread storm damage. We continue to work with officials to see the extent of our losses. Preliminary assessments from connecticut and new jersey jersey, this will sound modest but we need between 7. 5 and 9 million. For preparation, response and prepares. Fish and Wildlife Service and army corps still has their own assessments but they tell us it will be tens of millions of dollars for repairs. This seems like a small number but with the state budget they will need assistance through fema. If an ounce of prevention is worth it is we must mitigate the effect of future storms. This is the recurring theme especially is Climate Change increases the severity of the coastal storm. The army corpshas built extra projects and in delaware and down the east coast in no small part to the separates they performed exceptionally well with billions of dollars of damages right along the a romantic ghost line. And to help protect almost 20,000 homes. But it paid off we must find ways to have properties from years to come. We need to look no further figures state how to strengthen our efforts with these devastating forms. Thank you for letting us come today. To treat us as neighbors the issue will be on the other foot. Thank you senator carper. You can count on us to be the neighbor that you need. Chairman, i want to thank you and all the members for your continued interest as a champion for the federal Government Partnership and responsibility we appreciate that very much. Merrill lynch did better than our surrounding states the places where devastated. I urge the committee to do everything we can to bring people back to their lives Merrill Lynch suffered Severe Damage with how i and sustained winds over 70 Miles Per Hour per hour after hour record amounts of rainfall, over 9 inches. Storm surges was devastating. To complement our a Emergency Responders to bring together the resources to Work Together to save lives and property. An incredible effort providing leadership and as a result we did mitigate loss of life and damage. The western part there was an unbelievable blizzard 30 issues fell and one county. 15,000 homes were without power. Almost every home. This is happily share. Heroic efforts were dto save peoples lives. But they are still recovering. I just want to underscore we understand collective damage. You suffer as any committee of the storm, homes that are not habitable. 32 is below the poverty line. They have homes they cannot live than. They look to us forhelp. They expect the federal government to be a partner and we have to make sure we can help them in their and of need. This commiee is determined to do that. I fully support your efforts the supplemental appropriation to what is necessary to provide funding the way of committees have been adversely affected we apprecia t declaratn with our public facilities. One to join acquire we reinvest in resiliency the federal government has invested we have put additional sand down because it is a buffer we had a severe storm ocean city was pared a lot of damage as a result of the invesen we have t continue to make those investments and i hope we can take a vantage opptunities now to invest i have a resiliency bill we will have more storms behalf to be prepared. Help the communities of have been damaged and invest to mitigate the damage of the future. Thank you senator landrieu and one to join to think you personally for your calls unsolicited contact with me for having this hearing. What do think the sba, secretary napolitano mr. Fugate as visited to see firsthand to see the damage and secretary donald been has been in contact numerous times the federal government has responded promptly to the crisis and were grateful to them. The storms have created a new normal. This was the fourth in 19 months. The cost is cumulative. We strongly urge we are a included in the supplemental that did not happen the last time but we urge connecticut be made eligible but long term, the mantra has to be in bus now or pay later. These investments to work has shown by the 17foot high barrier to block the 11foot storm surge and it saved 25 billion estimated dollars the place had to be operated manually where it is pumped and investment of 1 million saved 25 million. The numbers tell a story of the sea wall, dunes, retreat meant plants come infrastructure, upgrades, re placement of power lines, micro grids. We know what works. And what we have to do and we will have an extraordinary dividend Going Forward say being in the billions of dollars. I will conclude by addressing a question i am asked often. Will fiscal austerity, the fiscal cliff, the fiscal challenges better so daunting detour or impede a recovery and rebuilding in the wake of sandy . Were the United States and become together whether katrina comment tornadoes, hurricanes, flood s, earthquakes, across the country, we are a community we know what has to be done to the innocent victim of the storms. We demonstrate the courage and perseverance the real heroes have shown again and again across the country the most recently in connecticut , ed new york and new jersey. Those who risk their lives to gave up looking after their own properties to rescue and help others and that is the spirit that will pervade the consideration that goes to the victims of the latest dorm. Thank you. Thank you. That is a perfect transition to the next panel. The senator asked an important question is a move forward with our courage and determination ii those of the constituents i think we will be in good hands with what i believe as been called upon us a 10 traneight country is Strong Enough to multitask. To with those Opening Statement then to secretary fugate . I am sorry. Is it reversed . Secretary donovan. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. In response to hurricane zandi i know you followed reports of the region we heard about that today you heard about the man the injuries and tragic loss of life as well as the structural damage and power ous across the region. With deep roots i