About the transition to a biden presidency. This is live coverage on cspan2. Political aspects that are still unfolding but were facing a lot of challenges that require that the kind of continuity that a country is known for, one government can hand over to another government, the landscape in the tools that are necessary to do with these issues especially in the middle of the pandemic and our hearts go out to all those who are affected around the world by the pandemic and we hope the 2021 would be a brighter year. Thank you for joining us and i will turn it over to toni. [inaudible] as we wait for toni i will just say that all the presenters that i have described have deep reservoir of experience on the legislative side of the aisle. Theres toni right there. Welcome. Shes actually at reading right and were delighted to have you join us. So over to. Thank you. Thank you, stewart. I really appreciate its an honor and privilege to be here. Meridian has been very much a part of my persona
Transitions, sunday night at 8 00 p. M. Eastern on cspans q a. Former House Speaker john boehner joined a discussion on the Incoming Biden Administration and the 117th congress. The mir i hadian International Conversation also included former transportation secretary Rodney Slater who served in the linton administration. Ms. Verstandig thank you, thank you. Its an honor and privilege to be here. Meridian has been very much a part of my personal and professional life and i very much appreciate the opportunity to be in dialogue with this distinguished group of panelists today who are both friends and colleagues and i think that group is very much representative of the things that you just laid out. And theyre the themes of disgraced democratic experience this great democratic experience that we here in america undertake and have undertaken for the last 240 years. But it is a Bipartisan Group and if i can just add a p. S. On my personal bio, as everyone who knows me well, not only do i do
2021 index of u. S. Military strength. This is the seventh edition of the index and the index has come one of the flagship publications. Our goal has been unchanged. It is to provide both the leaders of this country and the American Public a premiere open source and author tatetive of Armed Services and their ability to protect the nation. I think we have not only achieved that goal but continued with this effort. And this years edition is the best ever. In addition to our usual subjects, it includes National Security concerns and one of these is the emergent of the new space force. We have a new chapter on the subject of space this year and look more hearing from the editor of the new index in his presentation later. Today as part of our launch, we welcome a speaker with decades of matters, representative Mac Thornberry. He was the first elected to congress in 1994 and has supported a Strong National defense since. He is currently the Ranking Member of the house Armed Services committ
I am proud to say it led to the first bipartisan package in decades. It took time and a willingness to acknowledge that no party has a monopoly on good ideas. M proud of what we are what we created together. Although we were already holding these hearings in our committee, we require that others hold them also so that all members have a chance to be heard in front of congress. Hopefully, more good ideas have the chance to see a light of day. I couldnt ask for a better partner than our Ranking Member, tom cole. We come from different parties, but we share the same dedication to this institution. What this is really all about, a wellfunctioning house allows us to tackle the issues that can make a positive difference in peoples lives and that is why we already for prep congress and the first place. Before i turn to our ranking on the job to for the house of new parliament parliamentian. Mr. Jason smith. Mr. Cole and i have said a lot about him to his predecessor. And he and his predecesso
Knows me well, not only do i do National Security and Foreign Policy, but having served and worked on the hill, and i have a very much, in my d. N. A. , the essence of bipartisanship. For me, looking at this biden transition and where were going with that transition, its very much anchored in the clarity of what i call roles and responsibilities. And those roles and responsibilities are on behalf of all of us. As americans. And were all standing together, because as you said so well, were faced with challenges here in america. But theyre global challenges. So americas leadership will be executed with the degree of humility and transparency and we look forward to engaging with our colleagues on capitol hill, with the American People, and with our friends in the global landscape. Leagues on capitol hill, with the American People, and with our friends in the global landscape. So with that may i turn over and ask our colleagues, i would like to get into this transition period we in the Nat