>> and a a friend of the rndc our president, frances beineke. i thank you y'all for coming. my name is bob deans. i'm the director of federal communications for the rndc. and i'm not sure but what this says about my tenure here or what i'm thought of or my own stature but someone told me in the twitter age this may be as big as a big ever needs to be again. [laughter] so i don't know whether that's the case, but it is what francis set out to be. it is accessible. it is authoritative, and it is timely.

and it's very timely that you all would be here with us this evening. i do want to say a couple of words of quick thank you to some people. the washington staff of rndc and the new york staff of rndc has worked very hard to make this event come together and indeed to help get this book together on what was a fairly short time frame. and i want to give special thanks tonight to liz hyde and suzanne for all you did for this event. thank you very much. [applause] >> i would also be remiss if we did not say a very special thank you to our publishers rom roman & littlefield. frances is what we in virginia call an uncompromising woman. and frances says this book has to be part of the conversation while it is a live conversation.

our publishers embrace that as no other publisher anywhere in america could have. frances received the contract from roman & littlefield on september the 9th. on november the 9th, two months later to the day, this book was number 18 on amazon. that is a tribute to our publishers as well as to frances. [applause] >> i want to introduce, if i could, a very special guest we have here tonight with us. when president obama began putting his cabinet together a year ago, one of the very first appointments he made was to the administrator of the environmental protection agency. that was important because the president understood the vital role that this agency plays in the protection and preservation of our air, our water, our lands, and our health. and so when it came time to

appoint the best person he could find anywhere in the country for this difficult but vital job, he chose a woman who's a product of two distinctly american cultures. lisa jackson was born in the pennsylvania dutch country, and she was raised in the great city of new orleans. now, she knows what it's like to move with grace between two worlds. my mother-in-law came from new orleans. i know a little something about the kind of women that city can produce. [laughter] >> and if i can put it in the vernacular, they're not the kind of women to be trifled with. and in her first year on the job, lisa jackson has made that point vividly clear. to those who would sully our soils, to spoil our waters, or pollute our air, the message has been clear.

don't even think about it. lisa is watching. of it wasn't all that long ago that things weren't like that in this country. just 40 years ago, there was no epa. the federal government was not organized in a way that it could take on the polluters who threatened our waters and lands. and so the epa was formed in 1970 to begin to take on that role. that was the same year as it happened that a group of environmental lawyers shared office space in new york city. and that was the beginning of the natural resources defense council. like the epa, the nrdc is dedicated to policies grounded in sound science, the rule of law, and the public interest.

over the past four decades, we have journeyed together on a mission to safeguard our earth. seldom has that mission brought our goals more mostly in alignment than it has under the tenure of lisa jackson. with lisa watching, the epa has used the authority it has to question mountain top removal and to require special permits and special scientific scrutiny of those who would remove mountains to get to goal. with lisa watching, the epa has restored protections against pollution and a number of waterways that have been put in kind of a legal limbo by supreme court decisions. and with lisa watching, the epa has moved swiftly to call carbon emissions for what they are. a pollutant that is warming our planet and must be checked and regulated.

seldom have we walked more closely together, in fact, than we have in these recent months when we've joined in efforts to try to to finally do something about climate change. we know we can put americans back to work, reduce our reliance on foreign oil and help to create a healthier future for ourselves and our children. by taking on this widening scourge. and working together, the epa and the nrdc are making progress toll goal. it gives me great pride, the president of the environmental protection agency and protector of our lands, lisa jackson. [applause] >> wow! thanks, bob. what an intro. you can intro me anytime.

[laughter] >> well, i'm not going to take a long time here this evening. i just want to do a couple of things. the first is to thank you, bob, and thank you, frances, for the honor of addressing this crowd, so many friends and people who have been working on these issues for such a long time on clean energy, on climate but not just on clean energy and climate. the range of issues that we agree and thankfully don't agree because we need you to continue to push us. and make sure that we're thinking of all the angles are so broad at this time and so it's just lovely to have a few minutes to address you here. i would be remiss if i didn't remind everyone of a couple of things. there are a bunch of people watching lisa. one of them is clearly frances, and i'm afraid, too, she's not to be trifled with. [laughter] >> i also know that i have some epa employees here. i saw gina mccarthy, the

extraordinary head of our office of air and radiation. [applause] >> for whom i'm grateful every day. and i'm sure after a drink, she's grateful, too, to have joined us. [laughter] >> any other epa folks? hi. [inaudible] >> thanks for coming. nice to see you. so listen, and the second thing i want to to talk to you tonight for just a second is clean energy and to say, listen, thanks for allowing me an opportunity to talk about why clean energy is simple, commonsense. we need to get the word out. so this is very timely messaging indeed. that clean energy, commonsense for our economy, commonsense for our national security, commonsense for our environment for the future of our planet, for our children and for our grandchildren. when you see north carolina growing clean energy jobs at twice the rate of overall jobs,

or tennessee, or iowa -- growing clean jobs at seven times the rate of the average or south dakota, who managed to beat them all with 19 times the job growth in the clean energy sector than in overall job growth, we know that it's commonsense and good for our economy. when we see billions of dollars other countries, many of whom might not have our security interests at heart and every year see ourselves despite rhetoric after rhetoric watching our increasing reliance on fossil fuels and on oil that comes from offshore, leave us vulnerable, we know that energy independence is a commonsense solution for our country and for our national security. but for me, most importantly, when we see polluted air, when i see water that is literally in parts of our nation today making people sick, when we experience historic droughts or in my loved

hometown, horrendous historic flooding, we know that clean energy is just pure commonsense for our environment. for reducing climate pollution, reducing other pollutions and confronting once and for all the threat of climate change to our planet. now, some people might think it makes sense to stick with the status quo and i bet frances is going to have something to say about that. there's a lot of talk of simply ramping up our existing supplies but we have been down that path before and i asks all to remember it. in 2001, we saw an energy plan focused on fossil fuels. supporters of that plan said it would lower costs for consumers. it would lower costs for businesses and it would, too, reduce our growing dependence on foreign oil. but here today we know that plan didn't work. it didn't work for our security. it didn't work for our businesses. it didn't work for our environment. and it certainly hasn't worked from the standpoint of jobs.

by 2006, crude oil prices were up 143%. gas prices had gone up 71%. natural gas was 46% more expensive and dependence on foreign oil had increased to 65%. and that's not counting the $4 a gallon gasoline we saw just over a year ago. and simply increasing our domestic fuels does nothing to reduce air pollution. it won't help the millions of american children like my own who suffer from asthma. it won't allow our smoke-clogged cities to finally breathe easier. nor will it do anything to reduce the prevalence of cancer and other diseases that are increasingly linked to burning fossil fuels. so i ask you all to please compare the options we have. on the other hand, the dirty burning fuel supply we use today has gotten more expensive, it's damaged the health of our kids, it's damaged our communities and

it's resulted in billions of american of dollars going overseas rather than keeping that money here in our own economy. on the other hand, clean energy has created jobs. as market share has grown, as technology has progressed, the cost of clean energy has and will continue to decrease. and it's put us on a strong course towards improving our national security, our sustainability environmentally and our economic competitiveness. in broad terms, clean energy jobs are up. and clean energy costs are down. while fossil fuel costs are up and the money we pay for that fuel is increasingly sent to other countries. the question for me, i think, now is which of these two paths that's so clearly that we want to follow. i thank each of us for illuminating those paths and helping us make that choice. we have much work yet to do and i know you'll be pushing us on. thanks so much. [applause]

>> they didn't tell me that i would have the honor of introducing a woman who i now can call friend. there are many things you do when you find out that you might actually be named as the next administrator of the epa. and one of them you do is called the head of the nrdc. you'd be crazy not to. but what i found when i spoke to her, and it wasn't my first time, was not only a personal warmth and a professional level of support as a sister and as a friend, but a voice that i could turn to just for some commonsense ideas. and a constant supply of support and energy. so, ladies and gentlemen, i give you author frances beineke. [applause]

>> thank you so much, lisa. i just want to say that we are so privileged at nrdc and in the nation to have an epa administrator who is so committed to protecting the environment, to ensuring that citizens all across the country are fairly treated to healthy air, water, food, and who -- those who have suffered particularly from disproportionate impact over the years from lack of environmental quality are so high on her agenda. so i am a huge admirer of lisa jackson. i'm also a friend but so grateful that the president has appointed somebody who for whom environmental protection is the mission of her life. who will do everything in her power to ensure that the future of this country and the well-being of our citizens are protected going forward. so she is a total champ. and we're so lucky to have her as part of the environmental

future of this country and also here with us tonight. i also want to thank all of my colleagues and friends from nrdc and from the environmental community from the hill, from all the agencies who are here because this book, "clean energy commonsense" is really an endeavor for all of us. it's a product of my career but the career of everybody in this room because we are linked in our efforts to advance environmental protection. advance solutions to climate change and ensure that we do have the clean energy future that does make commonsense for the country. when that does create jobs in this country that addresses security issues, that ensures that our carbon emissions decline. that's the purpose of the book. and the reason -- and i have to thank bob deans because he told you the schedule and there would be no book without that partnership. he's an amazing colleague to work with on this. but what we wanted to do was to

really go out and have a book that could talk to the american public and here in this room i'm here with people who work on this issue every day who are passionate about it and who have studied it in great detail and great depth and know more than anyone. i can assure you. that's not true across the country and there are people each and every day who continue to be unsure. last week i was in chicago speaking at the economics club. 250 people there. the first question was, i don't really believe you. i don't believe that the science is there. it wasn't the only question either. and i was at a dinner party in the bronx where i live the other night, same question, is it really true. it is true. we know that. the science is in. and people need to know what the science case is from authoritative sources. the purpose of the book was really to present -- it's short and you can read it on the

plane, pick it up in the airport and put it in your pocket and get the full story. that the science cases then -- that there's serious impacts already occurring. there's ecological impacts. there are serious humanitarian impacts. it's a humanitarian crisis as well as an environmental crisis. that the security authorities from the cia to the pentagon have this very high on the agenda. that we have to address and must address them now and the other part of the book that is really important, if they get through that part, there are really solutions and that is what we're all about. that's what we're working on here in washington every single day. we know what the solutions are. they're available now. we need to put them in place. and we need the help across america to do it. so in the end it's a call to action. we want people across the country to participate with us. and we want them to feel that they understand the issue. by picking up the book and reading through it, we're hoping

that they will take action and really call on their senators and their elected officials to finally get us on a trajectory that reduces carbon emissions. that creates a clean energy economy for this country, that unleashes tremendous opportunity for american workers across the country. lisa and i were in gary, indiana, with the steelworkers -- i went to cleveland. when you go to that part of the country you really feel the loss of the jobs. you want to be sure. you want to do everything in your power to make sure that these jobs are real. that they're available and that we unleash them as quickly as possible. and so that gets us to the competitiveness issue because it's not only in the united states where there's a lot of eagernesss in to unleash the clean energy economy and those who have been to china recently and you can see it's happening there. and i want it to happen here. so that we are the leaders around the world and we really set the pace for how we move to a low carbon economy that takes

us down a very different road. and that protects the planet and all the planet systems and all the planets people in the process. so i want to thank you all for being here. i'm happy to sign any books if anybody wants me to. but more than anything, i want to thank all of you for the work that you're doing on behalf of the planet because the point about this issue is, it is so broad. it crosses all sectors and it will take all of us. and we're going down the right path. so thank you all very much. enjoy the evening. and thank you for being here. [applause] >> oh, thank you so much. you're my hero. >> oh, thank you. >> look at this. we're already way up on the charts. >> isn't is that great to see. >> isn't that fantastic? how did you know? >> no work was done at our office today. everybody was going on amazon every hour.

>> i didn't know how quite to find it but that's really fun, right. and we'll do more projects together. >> i would love to do more products. >> i don't know how you did it so quickly. >> this is our publisher, marcus. >> thank you so much. this is a great partnership. >> yes, it is indeed. >> it's fantastic. no i just said that. let's do more. we want to get out there and talk more broadly and have it published and out in the marketplace and not just be our product, puts enormous credibility on it and the fact it becomes marketable and it's actually moving up the charts, you know, that gives an endorsement of what the topic is. so you guys guessed right. >> yep. absolutely. >> thank you thank you. >> well, thank you. >> i don't know if we could do anything quite so quickly again. come and take a picture. these are our publishers. get the publishers. they should -- this is their product.

>> you want me to take a couple? oh, great. >> here i'll pull it up. without them, there would be no book. >> steve, get over here for a second. this is our head of manufacturing. steven driver. >> oh, thank you so much. >> he's the one who got the print schedule in two weeks. >> great, great. >> a lot of people made this a success. >> no, you really went on overdrive. i'm sure you did. how often do you do things that quickly? >> not often. >> not often. >> occasionally. >> it's fun when we do. it's to see it all come together. >> it looks so good. thank you. it looks great. did you guys do the design? >> yes. >> it's really nice. >> bob talked about the concept. >> yeah, bob a great concept. >> she designed the cover. >> in-house. >> the trim color was mine.

>> it's fabulous. >> thank you. >> he's wonderful, by the way. i mean, i can't tell you, amazing guy. >> he's the happiest i've ever seen him? >> is he? >> what is that? no, he gave a great speech, didn't he? i'm going to give him my job. [inaudible]

>> i hope you enjoy it. >> i can't wait. i'm so excited. [inaudible conversations] >> frances beineke has been with the natural resources defense council for over 30 years. she became president of the organization in 2006. she co-authored "clean energy commonsense" with bob deans. and to find out more, visit nrdc.org. >> i'm here with vali nasr

professor of international studies at tufts university and author of a new book "forces of fortune." who are the new muslim middle class? >> well, it's people who's livelihoods are connected to the private sector, it's integrated in the world economy, they're businessmen, their financiers and they're also professionals but they are people who are like middle classes in asia, latin america, people we identify as part of the new globalization forces, new economic forces. and we often don't see them in the middle class. we always think about extremists or authoritarian government or fundamentalists. we don't think about social classes in the muslim world the way in which they connect to economics and why do they matter in terms of all the things that we think about the muslim world. >> you focus on iran in this book. how diversion are the social classes in iran? >> well, again when we think about iran we don't realize that iran has a fairly vibrant middle

class. there's been significant amount of economic privatization in iran in the 1980s and 1990s. it produced the middle class. was tied to economic activity in the private sector. even though most of iran's economy is dominated by the government, still there is a large part of the middle class that depends on private sector activity. it is that private sector and the middle class in iran that is responsible for iranian cinema, for cultural activity and for demand for political freedoms and reforms. when we see iranians take to the streets demanding better results for the elections or demanding political freedoms, these are people who also want integration into the world economy, better relations with the west. they want economic advancement, and so even the backbone of political change in iran is the middle class. >> how large is this middle class? >> in some countries they are larger and some are smaller. in countries like turkey there

are 20 to 30% of the population. in pakistan or parts of the arab world at about 10 to 15% of the population. they're not -- typically, they are not the largest force but the one who account for the most economic dynamitism and the sector of the economy they are most active in which is private sector activity is the one who will ultimately hold the middle east by its boot taps. -- boot straps. it's the pivotal role that they will play. >> the rest we look at the middle east and we think of religion. but in your book, you talk a lot about capitalism. and business. can you discuss the dichotomy between religion and capitalism in the middle east? >> well, religion and capitalism can coexist the way they do in america. you have businessmen in america who are evangelical or fundamentalist or church-going. it's the same in the muslim world as well. what makes a difference is capitalist muslims who are

integrated into global economy tend to favor interpretations of religion that supports their economic activities and serves their interests. in other words, they don't favor extremism because extremism is not good for business. because extremism does not interfere with integration of global economic trends. so when we look at countries like turkey, dubai, malaysia, indonesia, we see middle classes that are getting enriched by global economy that see their future and interest in global economy are religious but the kind of religion they follow is in some ways globalization-friendly so it's conservative. it's pious but it supports capitalist activity and living harmoniously with others in a a global economy. >> what ramifications do the business class have on american foreign policy? >> well, we don't pay as much attention to them as we ought to.

we don't think of the fact that what transformed china, transformed india, transformed latin america, eastern europe and asia created stable, prosperous democracies was the middle classes in those countries that were dependent on private sectors, that were integrated global economy. and we don't think that in the muslim world you're not going to get them to wear brazil, argentina, taiwan wear where it becomes empowered in the muslim world. so we're looking for the solution in the muslim world without looking at what is the force that's supposed to produce a solution. i think a change agent in the muslim world ultimately will have to come from the middle class and from the capitalist business sector associated with it. >> vali nasr, author of "forces of fortune," thank you so much. >> thank you.

>> merman obermayer looks a look at his last great friend, william rehnquist. it's 45 minutes. >> and i would like to see i'm very flattered that so many people came out here on a rainy day. and i also acknowledge that you're here because you're interested in bill rehnquist. he was a fascinating man. many people -- even those who knew him fleetingly and those by reputation felt a deep affection for him because he was a remarkable man who believed deeply and i will explain some of that but i have to start by addressing the question all of my friends ask and i ask myself, why would a happily married man who had no need for more money or more worldly acclaim, who is