how can people keep the doctors and plans they have if their employers opt out? >> i guess i wouldn't necessarily subscribe to this notion that presenting a public option with better choice and more competition will result dramatically in employers dropping what they already have. the notion of injecting public option, we believe, will do exactly what i said in terms of choice and competition. having somebody ensure that, there is an affordable placeholder in the market. i think we'll have a dramatic effect in terms of driving down cost exactly what the president talks about each and every time he talks about health care. >> the complaints on capitol hill without government option

would drive private insurance out of business. how can he make sure that doesn't happen? >> i think the president outlined pretty clearly yesterday the principle to ensure that if you like what you have, you can keep it. at the injection of an option that ensures greater choice among those that don't have access, and competition drives down cost is an important that has to be preserved in this entire debate? >> how can you promise if employers are in charge of providing insurance for their employees, how can the president say -- >> the injection of competition will drive down cost or other insurance companies will follow. you can't set a market based in the marketplace is set that is so vastly out of black people have to make decisions. . .

could you get some back here gripes. >> by the first zero some? >> 11, can i just as corn? >> let me work my way back so i am sure the 11 questions that major has had during the short

time together but let me give a chance for some third and fourth row to break that record. >> thank you, robert. had to ensure that party is in the stimulus package armets? in florida and 200 staff are going to been laid off at a time when the transition department will spend $300 creating a passageway for turtle so they can't safely cross the highway. is that a priority? >> i have not looked to the entire report. i think that ed and i would point out the number of and accuracy is an assembly the entries in the report are simply wrong. >> error bottle on that one and i guess the broader question is is it possible they stimulus package to prior address in a way to ensure the money goes to the worthy as projects? >> absolutely. that is exactly this system that

the president has set up. that is the priority of any recovery plan and i think that a reasonable look at spending thus far d notes that is happening in this case, that the priorities are being met, that funding is going to wear is needed. but look, you are using an example of state budget priorities. as i said earlier in relation to california, there are very few entities, business, states, the federal government that are leaning to the type of dramatic counter we have seen in the economy. i think that is why the president endeavored to seek a recovery and reinvestment plan that would actually make a difference. >> robert, the mayors are very happy, early on in this administration saying they had a friend in the white house when

the president was engaging them on the recovery plan. now they are very upset about the white house not crossing the picket in line to talk about that. is a good of the holding neglected for one city? >> no, i think the administration has denoted pretty clearly that obviously we have worked with officials at a city, county, state level particularly that relates to the recovery plan, but i think as the statement from a says clearly, not a policy to cross the picket line. >> so and i'm going to go hypothetically but i want a real answer. [laughter] >> a little contestation. >> is that a real word? here is the deal. if the conference was in another

city, would in the high profile white house official have attended if it were in another city that did not have any --? >> let me see if i'm accurately paraphrasing your question -- if there wasn't a picket line that we would uncrossed what we go? >> in another city? >> again our policy is we don't want to cross the picket line so there is not a picket line in smith will then that is where the conference is we will go to the conference. >> another conference in july, the naacp we understand it looks very favorable the present could be speaking to the nation's oldest civil rights organization? is that true? >> the president has spoken on a number of locations. i have not seen the final thing -- i assume strongly that he will go. and looks forward to honoring their historic commitment.

>> the message, he has gone to the hispanic america, what is his message to black america and the first african-american president? >> let me not get ahead of a speech that hasn't been written. >> thanks, 13 questions. [laughter] i will settle for two. on the visitor login -- >> i am leaving. >> on the visitor's log issue, while the policy is under review you have denied to requests from msnbc and then was quoted by nbc -- and as nbc say that in essence there should be the right to hold secret meetings in the white house and give a few examples when that might be needed. is it the position of the white house that you need to hold secret meetings on occasions here, and us -- >> i think there are obviously occasions in which to the

president is going to meet privately with advisers on topics that are of great national importance, yes. >> so then how does that square with a policy that we reached that might end up in a visitor logs? >> again, let me not concluded their review that is under way. >> secondly, -- >> i don't have one. i will see if they have one. >> cnn is reporting -- >> is this two or three? >> just want. [laughter] can i just want big microphone or one big question? >> both. cnn reported the state department officials are working with a twitter and other social networks to keep communications open with iran. is that something the white house is involved with?

>> i will check. obviously as i said earlier insuring an active and free press on the ground as well as communications either through texting or twitter are incredibly important. i think, david, you are seeing the yearning for change to that the president talked about and the president has talked about right now. i think the peaceable demonstration and that during especially my youth and iran is heartening for the world to see and is important for the world can mack you said that u.s. interest with iran hasn't changed since last thursday or friday. is it fair to say the past u.s. addressing the interest has gotten much harder because we have been to the last week? and as a going to be much more

difficult to build engagement strategy with ahamdinijad as president after a disputed election? >> well, i've seen quite a few people in the last 24 hours discuss a more vigorous policy engaging iran, quite frankly that i have seen in any number of months. i think again i go back to what i said just a moment ago, i thank you are seeing the yearning for change. i think we are witnessing something that we believe -- in the world is witnessing something that is tremendously important. >> roberts, on the war funding, the republicans have announced they're going to vote on a bloc against the war funding measure. does the administration believe republicans or democrats will vote against are putting our troops in danger?

>> i would nose with some irony -- i would note with some irony some new message position of republicans on capitol hill. as i said last week, i think there are many important reasons to support to the supplemental funding. ensuring our efforts in afghanistan and iraq, the commitments that we have made to pakistan to help, and as i said last week the extremely important efforts as in the world health organization t-notes we have reached internationally a pandemic stage, the important money that is there for the preparation and response to what we and others throughout the world as soon will be another visit from h1n1

this fall, i think for any number of reasons the administration strongly believes a vote in support of all of these measures is too late important event their reasoning they say is because of the i am finding. 1998 john boehner said that given the crisis we have around the world of the u.s. needs to provide leadership, the only real avenue is the imf. interesting change of position. >> have you gotten his response on that? look, again -- the president made a commitment at the g20 to ensure that as we watched an economic downturn, we watched an even steeper downturn in exports which hurts not only, it hurts

all countries but it hits particularly developing nations. this is important relief to ensure that we have strong global trade. i don't think given where we are in the world economy that we would want to see a pullback in that commitment and i think we should understand that exports create jobs right here at home. >> robert, what is the recent delay week after rick and some are saying because we're losing ground in this world in discussions. >> unfortunately the scheduled year is always a work in progress and for those reasons the meeting has been i think rescheduled to i think the 25th and i have it off the top of my head, but the president

remains committed to working with congress to seek changes in our immigration law but that doesn't, that is not shifted because the meeting got pushed back in the schedule. >> the house majority leader said he has reason to believe the president is considering an executive order that would prevent the release of detainee abuse photos -- is that something the president is considering? >> all i'm going to say on this is the president has committed to all interested parties that he intends to do what is necessary to keep those photos from being released and that he intends to keep that commitment. >> [inaudible] >> i will get into private conversations can i thank you very much. a historian victor davis hanson

decides what he terms quote, the president's politically correct canard, that the renaissance was fueled by arab learning and the president's statement that abolition of slavery and civil rights to the u.s. were accomplished without violence as two of seven presidential errors in my question, does the white house believe dr. hansen is wrong or do you believe your speech writers and the president and made some mistakes? >> i have to hand it to you that you have in only one question covered some five or six centuries of world history. [laughter] >> mistakes. >> well -- >> white house mistakes. >> should i ask you a question and you respond or should i give an appropriate response? at least you're not winning into raving thing answer to such an historic place significant and important question. not familiar with the work of

the esteemed historian, i haven't seen it. i can assure you that not knowing who this historian is i will put my money on our speech writers. >> thank you very much. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]

>> non-event with patrick leahy of the vermont talk about the supreme court nominee at her confirmation hearing is scheduled for july 13th. from the university of washington d.c., this is about 35 minutes.

>> i am, indeed, a privilege to be the joseph professor of public interest law at the university of the district of columbia, david clarke school of law. i am also privileged to serve as many of you know as a the president of the leadership conference on civil rights and for those of you who don't know what the leadership conference is the nation's premier civil and human rights coalition with over 200 national organizations working to build an america as good as its ideals. and so today the introduction of this year's black juror is a very special honor for me. there are few individuals and i can honestly say without fear of contradiction, even if you're in congress who exemplify the integrity, the passion and commitment to building and

america that we all want to live then. ted kennedy is one, john lewis is another. and so is the man i am privileged to introduce this morning, senator patrick leahy of vermont. [applause] now as of the son of irish and italian parents in vermont, a state where his father was used to see signs like -- no irish need apply, or no catholic supply -- and during a less progressive era, i suspect bags packed leahy understands what it means to sometimes feel like an outsider in the land of their birth. i believe that as a major reason why senator leahy speaks out so loudly against injustice, whether it takes place inside or

outside of our country. is probably the trade i most admire of him. you can occasionally see it in his eyes as he thunders against the denial of an important symbol right war when he speaks of the dangers of trampling on checks and balances or civil liberties in the name of national security. and with the kind of criticism he has earned over the years from people like dick cheney. [laughter] including some nine bridges that i won't repeat here. it is obvious that he has been remarkably effective. even when senator leahy himself wound up being a target of terrorism during a wave of the anthrax attacks in 2001. leading to his being under 24 hour and a police guard, he never set aside his principles. and he continued to speak out

for balancing safety with freedom and against irrational hatred that followed 9/11. he was with us for example, when the leadership conference held a vigil at the national japanese-american memorial to patriotism to join us in speaking out on behalf of arab americans and six americans who were being scapegoatism in many of the same way as that japanese americans have endured 60 years earlier in the same environment he put politics aside and fought to make the patriot act more protective of civil liberties and letter was one of only a handful of senators to vote against its renewal because it clearly wasn't striking the right balance. speaking of hate crimes, i should point out that with the killing last week of officer stephen tyrone jones at the holocaust museum, it appears that we may be seeing a new

perhaps a boulder phase of the hate crime problem and i know that this be one who has long been one ever our strongest allies and the effort to pass is jogger hated law would agree on the need for more aggressive congressional hatred. now of course, as chairman of the senate judiciary committee, senator leahy will be presiding over the confirmation proceedings for judge sonia sotomayor who i am thrilled to know, is currently in line to be the first latino american member of the united states supreme court. perhaps we can hear and i suspect we will more about the confirmation process when senator leahy takes the podium in just a moment. i should make one final point -- senator leahy recently reestablished the judiciary subcommittee on human rights in the law. a move that i strongly support and hope will help to eliminate what is essentially an

artificial distinction between what we usually referred to as domestic civil rights and what we call a local human-rights. the first apparition take a course is to restructure the u.s. civil rights commission but i will say that for another day. [laughter] now before coming to washington, senator leahy was the state's attorney in vermont for eight years. he was first elected the seventh in 1974 and has the distinction of being the first and only democratic in vermont's history to ever hold that office. he also has an even more interesting distinction i believe of pain the first and only u.s. senator to ever be indoors for reelection by his own opponent. [laughter] fred tuttle, let's hear it for fred. [applause] that happened in 1998 and in

obviously speaks volumes about how proud of the people of vermont are two have a senator leahy represent them. ladies and gentleman, please join me in a very warm welcome for it senator leahy of vermont. [applause] >> thank-you. [applause] thank you all very much, thank you, it is great to be here. michael, i told you earlier you remind me so much of your late father and, of course, dr. session, dean broderick and especially my dear friend, wade henderson. the longtime president of the leadership conference and

civil-rights and now the joseph brow junior professor of public interest law here. i have to do tell you wade and i have worked on so many things and it is kind of funny in the judiciary committee, you can see when the debates are going on i am ready to tear out what little hair i have left and i will look avert and weighed in the back kind of giving me a smile or a thumbs-up and say what the heck, let's keep this thing going, we are going to win eventually. the [laughter] and we usually do. so it is great to see the students here. you are going to law school as such an exciting time. you have a president who is committed to restoring their role of the united states around the world on such important issues as human rights and economic recovery. i think when he was asked by some students here, french and

german students in europe, they said is there really change in america and use as i am a black man named barack hussain obama, how much more change to do you expect? [laughter] i say when i go abroad people coming up and want to shake my hand and they say are un american, the weekend after changing planes into gaulle airport in france where before the french have been rather hostile towards us and i would say excuse me, are you an american, yes i am an american and am so happy for america. i am like, okay. [laughter] i think about when i was in law scolol was by another young president, john kennedy was president while i was here at law school, and the senate to i have had the privilege of working with his youngest brother, ted kennedy for the

past 35 years on some of the most pressing issues in this country and next month as weighted said in the senate judiciary committee is going to hold hearings on president obama sustanon nomination of the judge's sonia sotomayor to be associate justice of the supreme court to of the united states. and we were meeting about this and as the breeze -- my chief counsel is here and a question was asked are we going to get her confirmed, you better believe we are going to get her confirmed. [applause] take that into the bank. just think of the number of the her nominations -- the first nominee to the supreme court, the first nominee and well over a century to have been nominated to three different federal judicial offices by three different presidents, george h.

w. bush district court, president clinton to the second court of appeals, and now president obama to the supreme court and, of course, she is the first hispanic nominees to the supreme court. being first is not always easy period of some of you may be the first and our families to attend law school or even attend college. i know that my family came around 1850, to vermont, and i became the first leahy to receive a college degree. my sister the second one. judge sotomayor was all in the third and a third class of women admitted at princeton. she graduated summa cum laude and phi beta kappa. she run on and excelled at law school and became -- began her legal career as a prosecutor in new york city end of the da of

manhattan, bob martin baller wrote a wonderful op-ed piece in the your time say what a wonderful prosecutor and she was. i remember when president clinton has nominated her to the second circuit to. republican controlled senate to put a hold on her nomination, they tried to block her and i made more than a dozen speeches on the senate urging those who placed anonymous call on her at least have the courage to come forward and say who you were -- they didn't. the end in june 1998 there was a call and on wall street journal that said we all know there were tried to hold her up because they were afraid that president clinton might nominate her to the supreme court if there is a vacancy. when the supreme court ended without a vacancy the republican controlled senate finally released her