without objection we will enter it into the record. all right. i remind members that they have ten business days to make -- to submit questions for the record. i am sure the members will have follow-up questions for the witnesses. we will submit those to you. we ask that you please respond properly. members should submit their questions by the close of business on monday, august august 11th. >> thank you very much for your testimony provided without objection the subcommittee is

adjourned. >> during a briefing on monday on religious freedom secretary of state talked about the israeli-palestinian conflict. all of his remarks in their entirety online. here is some of what he said. >> as you all knowledge is returned from the middle east of paris where i had a series of discussions aimed at diaz could the conflict and that ending the rocket and tunnel attacks against israeli civilians and easing the suffering of innocent people everywhere in gaza, israel, the west bank. today we are continuing to work toward establishing an unconditional humanitarian cease-fire, one that could honor

even which begins now and we will stop the fighting, allowed desperately needed food and medicine and other supplies into gaza and enable israel to address the threat which we fully understand and which is real, the threat posed by tunnel attacks and soon be able to do so without having to resort -- that is what could come from the cease-fire. we believe the momentum generated and by a humanitarian cease-fire is the best way to be able to begin to negotiate and find out if you can put in place a sustainable cease-fire, one that addresses all of the concerns of all long-term concerns as well, begin to talk about the underlying causes of conflict and gaza. those obviously will not be

resolved in the context of a ceasefire, is sustainable cease-fire discussion. it is important to try to begin and to move and a process. that is what we're trying to achieve. alternately this conflict will be resolved. hopefully if we can make some progress the people in this region who deserve peace can take one step toward that elusive goal by stopping the violence which catches innocents on all sides in the crossfire and began to try to build a sustainable way ford. we also believe that any process to resolve the crisis in gaza and a lasting and meaningful way must lead to the disarmament of home loss of all terrorist groups.

we will work closely with israel and regional partners in the international community and support of the school. he continued to have these discussions, hour sessions to over there succeeded in putting a 12 our humanitarian cease-fire in place. then as a roll over time for that occurred there regrettably there were misunderstandings about 12 hours restored va to four hours restored to four. and so we're trying to work hard to see if these issues can be clarified in a way that allows israel to post a new authority, the other countries and of working through the initiative to deal to find a way to silence of the weapons long enough to be a will to begin to negotiate.

>> coming up and a few moments the little -- latest report of this loft of social security and medicare. the state department and report on religious freedom. after that the white house ceremony awarding the national medal of arts and humanities. a couple of live events to tell you about on our companion network. >> social security and medicare

will be solvent for of least the next 16 years. officials did set the programs are fiscally and unsustainable and need to be changed. this is a little more than half an hour. >> good afternoon and welcome. every year the social security and medicare board of trustees provide a report to congress. this morning the trustees met to complete their annual financial review and transmit the final report. would like to thank my fellow trustees, chief actuaries and their staffs for their hard work social security and medicare are with the adult the most successful social programs in our country's history. millions of americans rely on them. together these programs have helped drive vast improvements in the quality of american life

and social security but to cut the elderly poverty as today's reports make absolutely clear security and medicare are fundamentally secure and will remain so. the reports also remind us of something we all understand, we must reform these programs we want to keep vents out. the projections in this year's report for social security are essentially the same as last year. when considered of a combined basis social security retirement and disability programs have dedicated funds sufficient to cover for the next 19 years. after that time as was true last year is projected that tax and come will be sufficient to finance about three-quarters of schedule benefits. social security disability has dedicated funds sufficient to cover all scheduled benefits for two years. as was true last year rejected

tax income will be sufficient to finance on 80 percent of scuttlebutt offense. legislation will be needed to avoid destructive reductions in benefit payments to all rural populations. the omelet for medicare has consistently improved. this year the trustees reduce projections were near term spending growth. the trustees also project of the medicare hospital insurance trust of whatever resources sufficient to cover benefits until 2013, four additional years and projected an 13 more years i was projected of all last report released prior to the passage. the trustees' report and underscores the importance of making reforms to the social security and medicare programs. as the largest generation in american history enters retirement pressure is growing and we must make management changes now some would not have to make drastic changes later. the president has committed to

putting social security and medicare on stronger footing in this before achieved will plans. as he has consistently demonstrated, he is ready to work with congress and is prepared to make tough -- tough choices. in closing, i would like to remind everyone that this week marks the 49th anniversary of president lyndon johnson signed medicare into law. at that time johnson declared that this program would shine a light of hope and realization of those during that terrible darkness of despair and party. for decades medicare and social security uprighted dignity and security to millions of hard-working americans none of this will come through easy fixes, i am certain the policymakers and could well focused on creating serious

solutions were get the job done. >> our work is focused on access to buy quality, and affordability. the last one of those is our focus for today as we think about the trustees' report. as we prepare to mark the anniversary window that medicare is considerably stronger than it was just four years ago. the life of the medicare trust on has been extended to mccaw's growth is down, quality of care is improving, and it is easier to a for prescriptions in the chain important services of flu shots and diabetes sense. reporting we're releasing today as to the evidence on affordability. first of all the life of the medicare trust fund has been

extended. message report estimated it would be funded through 2026. 2009 that asman was in 2017 to be second, the report finds that medicare spending is growing slower than the overall economy. per capita spending grew at an annual rate of less than 1%, significantly lower than the growth per capita. finally, want to highlight the report's finding that the part the premier growth has slowed dramatically. preliminary findings suggest that provincial this same to $104.90 that there were in 2014 and 2013 to win a growth rate of 0%. well we need to continue to focus on the long term health of these trusts to all of these

factors to add up to a starter medicare to one that means we are better positioned to support parents and grandparents. thank you, and with that i will introduce secretary paris. >> thank you, secretary perry good afternoon. this year roughly one in five americans will receive social security benefits. older women because they live longer and are less on average during they're working lives are particularly reliant on social security, and it is important to acknowledge that a year ago we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the equal pay act . these gender which caps persist as women continue to unless over the lifetime.

also means they have less to save for retirement and receive smaller social security benefits once the of stop working altogether putting more people to work is crucial to help the russian security as we have made huge strides in this area. eocene 52 consecutive months of private sector job growth. we have been keeping records since roughly 1940. the first six months of job growth in 2014 or the strongest since 1999. we have added roughly 10 million new private sector jobs since early 2010, and this friday we will have the next snapshot. the unemployment rate has dropped the last year. these are all critical issues that affect the financial health of the trust fund because the financial health of the trust

fund is inseparable from the health of the labour market. the health of the di just want is something that is noted in the report. one thing the we are doing at the department of labor is to ensure that people with disabilities have access. we are in the middle of implementing an important regulation relating the section five of three which is designed to increase about were a people with disabilities in the workplace. we're working closely with employers and other key stakeholders in continue to work closely with my friend and colleague on strategies to increase the number of workers with disabilities who could punch certificate. people with disabilities want nothing more than the dignity of work and a feeling of contributing to their communities. they want to pay taxes, and that is where we are working hard to ensure that we help them do so. our skills and training agenda

are critically helpful and strengthening the social security and medicare trust fund. a strong economy means of strong close to five strong social security and medicare system. >> thank you, secretary press. crucially important for millions of americans receive benefits. over siena annually reported. the social security trust fund reserves are projected to become depleted and 2033. at that time continuing income would be sufficient to support 77% of scheduled benefits.

this year the combined trust fund reserve depletion is unchanged. lawmakers should act soon to address this imbalance in order to gradually phase in necessary changes. this would give workers, employers, and beneficiaries time to adjust to whatever changes are made. long range shown in this your support, slightly less favorable . based on the assumptions the estimated 75 your long-range actuarial deficit for the combined social security trust fund increased in last year's report for taxable peril. this change can be attributed to the change in the starting year from a 2013-14. changing methods and assumptions

consider a loan that the trust on reserves are projected to become depleted much sooner than the combined security fund. this year's report again projects that day depletion will occur in 2016 in the absence of legislative changes. at that point continuing income will be sufficient to support 81% of scheduled benefits. a disability program is a vital part of this country safety net. not only of immediate importance for those who depend on them to meet everyday needs, it protects all insured working americans who would need to rely on this program to replace their income if they become disabled. we of these individuals is securely financed program that provides timely payments. at this time let me introduce.

[indiscernible] >> i would like to begin my remarks by thanking secretary lou, per well, perhaps the acting commissioner, all of our staff as well as the many dedicated staff of the offices of the chief actuary of social security and administration and the cms medicare hatchery office. since i am the sole republican i sometimes feel that i bear a special personal responsibility to vouch for the object to the integrity of the process by which these estimates are produced. in particular would like to think that capable staff of the treasury department for managing this process barely and skillfully identified the areas. most of all, want to thank my fellow trustee for the opera to do work with and learn from bob these past four years. it has been the single best aspect of my experience.

thus seems to have become our tradition is i will speak about the social security report and topple take on the medicare report. as had been said earlier, the long-term picture this year looks similar to last year's report. the short-term picture has grown more urgent. we're now about two years from the pollution are reserves of social security disability insurance trust fund. sachs upon the completion of these reserves there will only be sufficient revenues to fund 81%. it is certainly true that social security disability programs based distinct policy challenges but it is important to understand the financing challenge basic social security old age and survivors trust fund is just as severe. of the two sides the old age and survivors insurance trust fund faces the larger shortfall in both absolute and relative terms a long range shortfall is equal

to two and a half% of the program's tax base whereas on the disability side. together the combined shortfall is almost 3 percent of taxable peril. this impending depletion is primarily a symptom of financial stress that affect the 0asi trust fund. apart very reason we are hitting the depletion. first is that the baby boomers move through their years before they move on to the retirement rolls and many are in the process of converting for disability benefits and a shifting these financial pressures to the oas are fund. by any objective measure is getting late in the game to forge a bipartisan compromise. the projected shortfall on the combined trust funds is now substantially larger even to our large economy and tax base.

the 1983 amendments were intensely controversial and came far too close to not happening. more severe measures would be required to achieve similar success. elantra legislative action continues the less certain it becomes law makers will be held to successfully close the shortfall in a way that preserves the programs historical financing structure. each year that we delay we reduce the number and contribute to the solution and decrease the relative sacrifices. a couple of examples. but 2033 the required payroll tax right would be over 16 and a half percent, an increase of over one-third of workers social security tax burdens. on the other hand, if we reduce benefits across the board this benefit reductions would have to be 23 percent but would have to apply to people already on the benefit rolls. at that point it would no longer

be possible to balance solider reductions in benefits even if we eliminated 100 percent of the benefit. the moral is that a solution much further delayed is a solution less likely to occur, at least from the perspective of one that preserves the historical financing structure paris social security financing and a perfect but has been accepted by americans on a bipartisan basis for several decades. as we have all seen, it is not a trivial exercise to design a politically sustainable means of financing income support on the scale of social security. before i close lebanese say a brief word about the technical changes in this year's projections when long-term price inflation's, made a slight dollar reduction in the ratio of the estimated earnings relative the total wages which is

slightly worse in the picture because revenues are a function of taxable earnings. these effects are small. this along with the percentage point of increase together account for the increase from last year's estimate to a deficit of just under 3%. to summarize, or long term of what has not qualitative which changed. because disability and old age and survivors insurance are closely linked in terms of the basic benefits structures and are being strained by similar factors lawmakers would do well to act promptly. with that i turn to my fellow.

>> good afternoon. thank you for your remarks. i found it a tremendous pleasure to work with darker over the last four years and want to extend my appreciation to secretary lou and the other trustees for their contributions to this process. also, to the staff that have represented them in deliberations throughout the course of the year. the staff have shown incredible dedication, commitment, expertise, and collegiality as we have put this together. and through the actuaries and their staffs to have been incredibly constructive. the prior responsibility is to assure the public that the

financial an actuary of analyses of abstinence and the reports are objective and that they employ the most appropriate assumptions and methodology is. as check indicated to both he and i agree that we can provide such a source to the public without hesitation or caveat. once again, we feel that we participated in an open and robust discussion of numerous issues that must be dealt with each year as these reports are put together. let me just say a few words about the content of these reports his bottom line message has been said before. i add my voice to the chorus that has emphasized that under current law both of these vitally important programs are fiscally unsustainable over the long run and would require legislative intervention to

correct. the sooner the policymakers address these challenges the west to certain the unavoidable adjustments will be. similarly, this is a law makers act the broader will be the array of policy options they can consider an israeli archery will be to crops solutions. says chuck is a focus on social security i will say a few words about the medicare report, one of them being quite what key. the first is that of light previous reports medicare part b cost projections are not current law projections in that they do not assume there will be in sharp decline in a position of the schedule payment rates as called for by the sustainable growth rate mechanism which lawmakers have waived every year since 2003.

instead, the projected baseline which is the moniker we have given to the prevalent projections assumes that lawmakers will increase payments by six tenths of a percent per year when the current fix runs out in march 2015. that adjustment will continue through 2023. six tenths of a percent increase is the average increase that lawmakers have provided over the decade that precedes march 2015 when they waived the s your rules. this baseline change should make the parts the cost projections a bit more useful than they have been when they reflected the effects of sharp production. current projections in which the world is more pessimistic

barstow presented in the report. contrasted with projected baselines and then explained in more detail in appendix c of the report. the second dimension of the medicare report arbor like to comment on is what reaction lawmakers and the public should have to the apparent improvement of medicare financial which a number of my fellow trustees have explained and it is real. nominal per beneficiary, but essentially unchanged and have grown slowly over the past four years. as has been explained, the premium is expected to be the same as it is this year and was in the previous year. the estimates for the 75 year hospital insurance actuarial deficit have declined.

it is now down to a .87. this report projects that the trust fund will be depleted and 20304 years later than was projected last year. last year's report moved the trust upon depletion date for 2024 it took 2026. some might be tempted to conclude that medicare maybe healing its financial melodies and that no further action will be needed. that would not be a prudent conclusion. projections of health expenditures remained highly uncertain. the project should trust fund completion date can bounce around. well, the depletion rate has moved six years further into the

future of the course of the last year reports said is worth remembering that between 2000- 2010 it moved in the other direction. a decade ago the projected date of depletion came 11 years closer. this volatility arises because the data off of which projections are made are subject to revision. going forward the trust fund balances and spending are reflected by the strength of the economy, new legislation, technological development, chefs and beneficiary tastes and behavior and changes in the efficiency with which health care providers deliver services to medicare beneficiaries and to the non elderly, disabled population. because of our limited ability to predict future courses

attended the session each of these introduces uncertainty. although i count myself among those who are cautiously optimistic that the recent slowdown in the growth of per capita spending will continue, our latest projections of indicates that medicare spending will grow faster than workers are raised for retiree incomes or gdp in therefore strongly concur with the admonition that is repeated in several places of the report "that notwithstanding the very encouraging experience over the past few years for the legislation will be needed to address the substantial financial shortfalls created by part a and the growing part because. the center lawmaker's office three out of the better.

>> thank you. or want to thank all of my colleagues supporting the effort. with that arctic a few questions . >> the wall street journal. a couple democrats propose changes the disabilities trust fund. your readers to 50 which fixes, solvency. in the past and they have a situation like this the measures taken in the short term at least to do with that was to do reallocation of the payroll tax

rates to support the disability fund. if you look from now until 2016 there is ruling no other alternative which could produce the desired results between now and then. so i think that it is going to be important for there to be legislation that does reallocate the payroll tax to support the disability fund. and as we go through the process of looking more broadly at the reforms needed to deal with the longer-term question i just want to underscore that we do have in our budget a number of provisions that would improve program integrity in the disability program. we will continue to push them forward, but they will not have consequence for the next two years of friction to do with the projected shortfall.

>> thank you. i'm amy goldstein. the report highlights the improvement in the longevity, two factors. a variety of features of the cme and a slowdown inpatient hospital expenditures. i wonder if you can talk about the relative proportions of each in explaining the improvement and what specifically at this point can make any difference? >> i think that what we see -- and we have talked about it today, what is happening on the medicare side. as the report reflects the error number of things coming the other. in terms of direct attribution the question at this point in time is our ability to get to

the level of the question your asking about the reid is something difficult to do that, and we have not done. will we know and with the report reflects some of the changes that were made how they're getting along with weather and thus the medicare had riches changes or other changes that have occurred. what it emphasizes is that what of it one has said it, we need to focus on longer-term texas, very much on social security because it is right in front of us in every 20 to do a couple things. long-term resolution and continue the implementation of changes that have been put in place and consider other changes. many of the problem of a in the

current budget before the congress there are additional changes that would produce additional savings. >> i've paribas i would like to ask the public trustees what is behind the ongoing slowdown in health care costs and how long it think that's going to continue. >> lots of things are behind the slowdown. as yet unknown better than most of whether is an active debate going on among experts in this area.

how much of it is due to a legislative changes, how much of it is due to pressures that are being exerted in the private sector and the public sector, lower utilization and dampening the growth intensity. i think we are probably many years away from being able to allocate these various factors with any kind of precision so the question was about how long this will go one. we have quite slow growth going out for the next couple years that is thoroughly as safe assumption with respect to the private sector as well. the increase in the burden being

placed on consumers outside of medicare through high deductible plans, increased restrictions on their choice of providers is certainly a dampening. so i have no definitive answer for you. maybe chuck will. >> i think there are four points i would make. the first is just the same. no one knows, and there is an active debate going on. how much of it was changes in the health care sector irrespective of recent legislation. in that debate is certainly not one that the trustees are going to settle. the second point i would make is that you have to remember that we are dealing with projections for the future. it is a great sensitivity to what we project in terms of

trendlines going forward. so the amount -- we are projecting a more favorable trend based on data received today. overall very little of that is in the past. some of it is in the box from but the amount that the feature has improved today is relatively slight. i am recalling correctly the reader think we're looking at a trust on the ratio of 72 the. it is a little bit better. most of the improvement is at the future debate we have to be cautious about an offering of the reality is that much better. don't get too hung up on the date of a charge trust fund insolvency.

one reason is because the muslim insurance trust what is only one piece of medicare and it's less than half. the trust fund balance to an amex is very different from the full security side. on the social security cyber you're relatively large buildup in the combined trust funds and a rather precipitous drop down projected in late 2020 s and really talk to thirties. and so the hospital insurance trust fund is different, starting out with a show a balance to begin with. it is going to have a shower of balance or years. you can have a slight nudge and it can cause that date to move by several years. again, it is the nature of the beast with insurance trust fund balances. we had a year recently. now we have one where it was four years for the route.

all along the trustees methodology has been assuming a rather substantial slowdown. rehabilitant assuming that it inevitably has to occur. but does not mean the reality is : to be that much better than our projection methodology suggests. a means that our projection methodology is being validated as being somewhat realistic. we anticipated a slowdown in national of expenditure growth. on top of that we are assuming substantial savings. in the latter years of the projection we are assuming a vastly decelerated rates of growth in medicare costs. again, while a more favorable trend is local and we hope it continues to will be after remember that we have been assuming for a long time that

this was born to play on a more favorable direction. >> we're trying to tick up 15 minutes for break-in that reconvene. that will be a jury of the senior administration officials. >> monday's white house briefing begin with comments by deputy national security advisor. he expects the european union will impose more sanctions this week. you can watch the entire briefing on line. here is a little boy would he said. >> in terms of the military equipment, there again those are the main elements in terms of

heavy weaponry those other critical elements. russia so comfortable is there a chance, and a clear possibility that he could be charged with war crimes? >> when it comes to russian authorities the record is clear. the russians have been directly supporting with provisional weapons. we believe that the as a 11 that was used to shoot down the malaysian airliner came from russia. we don't know who was operating in. the three top leading separatist leaders are all russian nationals. it is clear that russia has a significant influence over the separatist and could if it so desired get them to cease and

desist. in that sense their is a clear and ongoing culpability for events in eastern ukraine and for a failure to be escalate the situation and for the context in which all of this has happened including the shootout of the airliner. terms of pointing to exactly who pulled the trigger, that we don't know yet. the bottom line is through the ongoing support russia. responsibility for everything going on in eastern ukraine. [inaudible question] >> i don't want to get ahead of anything. the main point is to emphasize that russia bears responsibility and has the ability to discuss the crisis by moving it. that is what we would like to see. >> on our next washington journal we will talk to mississippi senator roger wicker about the house senate deal on veterans' health care. the ongoing debate over immigration and border security.

>> secretary of state john kerry released the annual report on religious freedom noting sectarian violence is displacing families are on the world. in his opening remarks he talked about the israeli-palestinian conflict saying is sustainable cease-fire is the only when the conflict will be resolved. this is 40 minutes. >> good morning, everybody. hell are you? is everybody good? of what you out here with me, if you would. come out here with me. thank you.

i am going to make a statement. and then i need to rush out of here because i have a phone call and about ten minutes. i will leave tom and david here with you. david is a nominee and therefore not going to be able to say anything, but i wanted to have a chance to introduce and to all of you. as we release the international religious freedom report which we believe it is a very important statement that underscores the major challenge around the world it is also a pleasure for me to introduce president obama's nominee to serve as our ambassador at large for international religious freedom. and he come away confirmed and if confirmed by the united states senate is going to lead our efforts to make progress on these issues of religious

freedom. rabbi david silverstein. before we begin i just want to say how very few words quickly and of the events and what is happening and what we're trying to do. i just returned from the middle east and from paris or have a series of discussions and at the escalating the conflict. easing the suffering of innocent people. in gaza, israel, and the west bank. today we are continuing to work toward establishing an unconditional humanitarian cease-fire, one that could honor and that will stop the fighting,

allowed desperately needed food and medicine and other supplies into gaza and enable israel to address the threat which we fully understand and which is real, the threat posed by tunnel attacks and to the will to do so without having to resort to come back. that is what could come from the cease-fire. we believe the momentum generated by the humanitarian cease-fire is the best way to be able to begin to negotiate and find out if you can put in place a sustainable cease-fire. one that addresses all of the concerns of the underlying causes of a conflict among those obviously will not all be resolved is important to try to

build and began to move in a process. that is what we're trying to achieve. that is the only way, ultimately this conflict will be resolved. the people in this region had desert piece can take one step toward the elusive goal by stopping the violence which catches innocence of all science in the crossfire and began to try to build a sustainable way ford. we also believe that in the process to resolve the crisis in gaza in a lasting and meaningful way must lead to the disarmament of tomas and of terrorist groups we will work closely with israel and regional partners and the

international community and support of the school. we continue to have these discussions. our discussions over there succeeded in putting a 12 our humanitarian cease-fire in place then as a rollover time for that occurred to regrettably there were misunderstandings. and so we are trying to work hard to see if these issues can be clarified in a way that allows the parties to allow israel, the palestinian authority, the palestinian factions, the other countries involved working through the egyptian initiative to be able to find a way to silence the weapons long enough to be able to begin today your sheet. now, the cause of peace and understanding is what brings us

here today. sixteen years ago i was very proud to join my colleagues in the united states congress in passing the international religious freedom act, the law that mandates his annual state department report in order to shine the life -- light on the obstacles of so many people face as they seek nothing more than the ability to the will to worship as they wish. and the release of this report here today is a demonstration of the abiding commitment of the american people and the entire u.s. government to the events and to freedom of religion of my . freedom of religion is at the core of who we are. as bin at the center of our very identity since the pilgrims fled religious persecution and landed in my home state of massachusetts. many settled in the city of

salem witch takes its name from the words salaam. we are reminded that before long even their newly founded in order to get away from religious strife -- unfortunately religious persecution arrived on the scene. women were accused of witchcraft , and some were burned at the stake. emerging differences the train religious leaders in massachusetts and some congregations were led as a result of that to break away and to find -- found new settlements . ryland was founded by people who wandered through the woods leaving massachusetts and wondered for an entire winter until they broke out on this expense of water and named it providence. one hundred years after the

program to fund programs set sail to the catholic woman was executed on the boston commons with a crime of praying her rosary. we approach this issue, i certainly do, very mindful of our past and the of, as americans we have at times had to push and orchestral to live up fully to the promise of our founding. john went for born in england with his passionate faith and disagreements with the anglican church inspired him to lead a ship full of religious dissidents to come to america to seek freedom of worship. and on the deck he famously said in a sermon that he delivered before they landed, for we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. and they have been ever since then.

and they are today. and though we're obviously far from perfect, and we know that, no place has ever worked and so many different faiths to worship as freely as here in the united states of america. is something we are extraordinarily poor of. but freedom of religion is not an american invention. it is a universal value and is enshrined in our constitution ending green been every human heart. the freedom to profess and fractus one's faith is the birthright of every human being. that is what we believe. these rights are properly recognized under international law, the promotion of international religious freedom is a priority for president obama and perris for me a secretary of state. and making certain and we will continue to make certain that religious freedom remains in and for a part of our global

diplomatic engagement. the release of this report is an important part of those efforts. this report is a clear-eyed objective look at the state of religious freedom are on the world. when necessary, yes, it does directly shined a light in a way that makes some countries, even some of our friends uncomfortable. but it does so in order to try to make progress. today of all days and especially proud to be joined by president obama's newly minted nominee as i next ambassador at large for international religious freedom. when it comes to the worker protecting religious freedom is safe to say that he represents the gold standard every think

about the progress of the last 20 years in elevating this fight . david has been at the lead every step of the way serving as the first chair of the u.s. international religious progression, director of the religious action center for reform today is some and as a member of the white house council on faith-based and never of partnerships. but david's resonate is not just a list of titles or positions. that is why he pushed for the u.s. government to engage in partnerships with communities that were crossed racial lines. that is what he has worked to forge deeper partnerships with women to advance peace and development. and that is why he has worked to engage american muslim communities in their groups on global muslim baggage of affairs that is why he made it his mission to promote tolerance and

mutual understanding. have witnessed his exceptional skill, patients, ability to listen, sense of humor, and tenacity as an advocate of a course of my years on capitol hill. he is simply one of america's most compelling and committed forces on religion in public life, and i could not be more grateful for his willingness to now serve on the front lines of our global push to expand religious freedom. and i look forward to my hope, to his rapid confirmation by the united states senate. one thing is for sure, the rabbi is joining an important effort at an important time. when countries undermined or attack religious freedom and not only unjustly threaten the people that the target, they also threatened that country's

own stability. that is why we today and took menaced into the list of countries of particular concern. we have seen reports that people entered-10 or detained, beaten, tortured because of their religious beliefs. the government of turkmenistan has passed religious laws that prohibit people from wearing religious attire in public places or that impose fines for distributing religious literature. and the authorities continue to arrest and imprison jehovah's witnesses who are conscientious objectors to the military service. want to emphasize, this effort is not about naming countries to lists in order to make us feel somehow that we have spoken the truth. ..

>> and members of religious minorities are ripped from their families isolated in prison camps a resident

beaten and tortured and killed. we have seen reports individuals have been arrested for doing nothing more than carrying a bible. north korea is not alone. earlier this month christian pastor was sentenced told years in prison for peaceful advocacy on behalf of his church. last week i will come to the release from two young children who were imprisoned in sudan and governments have silence members with the repressive laws and harsh punishments and brutal tactics that have no place in the two differ century. u.s. iranian citizen pastor remains in prison and iranian authorities

sentenced him eight years behind bars simply because of his religious belief speaker. we will continue to stand up for religious minority community center in danger around the world after jehovah's witnesses to the muslims. we have a long way to go to safeguard these rates and the government use national security as an excuse to repress numbers. in russia government has used laws against what they have called extremism to justify crude measures against people of faith. in china authorities harassed christians and arrest the buddhist for possessing a photograph of

the dali lama and prevent weaker muslims for providing education to their children or fasting during ramadan. and dos pakistan the government will imprison the citizens and to confiscate and destroy a religious leaders are - - literature. this is the test but make no mistake these tactics will fail the test of history. one of the trans identified in the report is house sectarian violence continues to misplace families and devastated communities. thousands of muslims have been displaced in burma in the wake of sectarian violence and tens of thousands living in squalid camps and in pakistan militants killed more than

500 shia muslims and brutally murdered 80 christiansen a single church bombing last year. the pakistan the government has yet to take adequate steps to bring those responsible to justice in nigeria boko haram has killed more than 1,000 people over the last year alone including christian and muslim leaders and individuals who are near churches and mosques worshipers and bystanders we have all seen the savagery and they're brita a - - brutality. the wholesale slaughter of the teeth reid muslims the forces of execution using women and children as human shields all of these acts of barbarism underscore the

state and just the other greek isil declared any remaining christians must convert, a pate attacks or be executed on the spot. repressive governments have been crystal clear about what they stand against the we have to be equally clear about what we stand for. we stand for greater freedom , a greater tolerance , a greater respect for rights and freedom of conscience. with this report i emphasize we're not deregulate telling people what to believe. we're not telling people how to live every day but asking for the universal value of tolerance, the ability to have a respect for their own

individuality and traces. we are asserting a universal principle of tolerance to abraham make faith faith, christianity, today's amanda is long meaning with the notion of the shared consent what is the common inheritance what does it mean to be brothers and sisters to express our beliefs with the understanding? answering those questions is the mission today. edmund burke once said all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. this report is the work of good men and women who were doing something profound is the face of bigotry and justice. and some of the greatest advocates are doing their part every day some of them

with great risk and danger in order to force light into darkness and with pakistan following those militant attacks members of the muslim community would for a human chain around a church to demonstrate solidarity against senseless and violence in egypt and then stood in front of a catholic church to protect the congregation from a taxi and in london and orthodox jewish neighborhood watch team hoped muslim leaders protect their mosque to prevent future attacks. there are many, many examples of people standing up for the universal deluge of tolerance and put themselves at great risk. many who we will never know.

but they will not receive prizes or recognition. the courage goes unremarked and that makes it remarkable because they put themselves on bow line for imprisonment or death or near certainty the sacrifice will be anonymous. believe me that is the definition of courage. while serious challenges to religious freedom remain i know the power of the human spirit can and will triumph. it is not just up to the rabbis or the bishops but all of us to find the common ground to let this be the common resolve to put it universal commitments into action. tom will speak further and be prepared to ask questions i ungrateful to you to be

here for this report and allowing me to introduce you to the president's nominee. thank you. [inaudible conversations] >> sorry i am not the secretary. thinks. [laughter] let me pick up where the secretary left off to talk about the reports and the highlights of which he already mentioned. 2013 international religious freedom report documents out, where, when religious rites was violated or protected in nearly 200 countries around the world

and reflects as the secretary expressed the united states to iran's religious freedom for every person. from my point of view is protecting our ability to hold in change our most deeply held and personal convictions. been deeply held and personal religious beliefs are often strongly protected. but the most significant abuses with large scale discrimination, persecution rarely a rise naturally from religious differences there is usually the additional factor of a cynical calculation by political forces seeking to maintain power or exploit differences for political ends. authoritarian governments cannot tolerate independent communities beyond state control. when i was visiting poland

in the 1980's and remember seeing how threatened communist authorities were by catholic committees in churches every sunday sanctuaries were created where people did not fear their government. buddhist monasteries in burma played a similar role is similar of the persecuted. likewise today the chinese government severely restricts the ability of unregistered religious groups to meador be handing them out rate such as persecuting their defenders. research chinese authorities to go as scheduled on august 7th to allow him to return to his family without harassment or restrictions. in tibet authorities control tibetan buddhist religious practices and the chinese

government severely restricts the religious practices of weaker muslims including banning fasting during for his teachers and others and targeting their religious community in response to the actions of the few on the increases the potential for violence land extremism. in vietnam multiple phase reported harassment throughout the year that it divvies government is making some progress whether turning over 100 church congregations to invite the un special on freedom of religious belief. and the only country on earth today and people under the age of 18 from participating from public religious activities.

and turkmenistan and people detained for religious regions suffering a beating and torture in denied the ability for worship or print religious materials. in sudan a lot is on the books prohibiting conversion from is long to another contradicting the constitution. these are all examples of government to practice their faith. abuses also happen when political forces exploit differences between their communities. pick a minority religious group and shia and sunni and use it to build support or at least to distract people. in burma if you fear or oppose the progress you

probably will not convince too many people to be with democracy but you will deny people across religious and racial lines with interfaith marriages and religious conversions so we have seen the 969 movement and the entire muslim sentiment from the country that has different communities running together. targeted rivers of the human rights defenders underscore the failure to have adequate security and earlier this year we were saddened by the murder of a lawyer and human-rights offender who despite the cuts was representing a university professor accused of blasphemy in the authorities continued to enforce those

laws with the community and well and iran he mentioned day pester the first to press for his release and decorate continue to persecute. secretary kerry already described the of the mind's inner be condemned sunday urged of followers to reject to paid fields and the sacrifice. and since then there has been a moratorium by a isis -- isil to expel shia from mosul to convert or face execution. in europe many countries see the rise of national political parties that

targets jews and muslims and in hungary. group did not speak out against recent efforts to rehabilitate anti-semitic world war ii figures we ears to a government to engage in constructive dialogue about plans to memorialize the 70th anniversary of the world war ii roundup of jews and minorities from the nazi forces and hungarian allies. in france concerned by the anti-muslin incidents as well as recent physical assaults to members of the jewish community. we applaud the french government continued effort to have further understanding for anti-semitic practices. as we have seen the exploitation of religious differences can have far reaching consequences religious freedom is

fundamentally about preserving respect for human difference in diversity necessary to keep countries from tearing themselves apart that is deeply obvious as we look to return today. then is why as the president said freedom manners to national security and the secretary also mention some of our strongest allies of cedars to work together to counter hatred and catholic volunteers in poland in students in malaysia organizing into religious marches in their neighborhoods we have also seen religious leaders take testing and with groups like lgbt. we hope this is the resources all over the world and religious persecution

and the spot light we are shining for those responsible to held to delegitimize and deters such acts. thank you. i will take questions. >> thank you for the report. in the overview that 2013 had the highest level in recent memory? can you quantify that? >> i think that the law gives them the power to some is the set the administration is using the power with respect to this

report. >> with the first question, i am weary when we talk about places were millions we've made that statement at the front pages of a look at places like iraq but we don't see the number is the people pushed from their homes or those and have a religious dimension. beyond that i don't want to throw out numbers because i don't think responsibly we could do that. >> the greatest of numbers of one of new the heat that

it is the appropriate tool in some cases with a variety of sanctions with respect to a number of countries and it stands for me and has with is effective with any particular case

. >> with numerous diplomatic meetings in private. we are asked that he consistently knows it is never okay to punish people for talking to others about your religious beliefs. >> of those could trees and

it applies to the freedom not to believe of a particular faith. >> one. >> last year they had a human rights dialogue and is there any timetable for this and what is the status? your ad here have the vuitton ag have a formal dialogue this state's and i cannot agree said the highest level with their armored concerned and officials of a first-aid

them we have to fight spect really have the edge of -- structure without the correct d sinn churches see there but then to release this report we heard tear in her china and it was to abolish as of so this is a warrior in training? >> there have been cases like that and we are aware like the one they you just

mentioned is runways should take it away with the value you stand up for bid of those experts of crime control could you elaborate? >> i will keep them short to >> so much of the middle east there is one region that is will capture by christians but the ideal report did in other

communities to be our clients but it did tinker's them. >> [inaudible conversations]

>> in recent years is obvious will be heard doing with other actors lake change she didn't note grooves in the mirror in the decision refect time that the cat responsibilities

often came into for the repressive practices that enabled the non state groups to grow and flourish. its ability the thank you for coming. >> thank you. . we will get your thoughts. joining us is warrant a. she is with politico. has >>host: we have congressional reporter with "politico" lauren french. the house has its own house take up the leio

bill and ppening this week. of contention in that republican caucus about this bill. is there enough for border security? you're going to see john boehner reallyin mccarthy working their conference this week before they schedule a vote to ensure that if they put it up they have the ability to pass it. democrats will not be joining in their efforts. host: democrats will not vote. why is that? >> there are some reasons. anti-pelosi is opposed to changing that 2008 anti-trafficking law in conjunction. as as fine doing it process of legislation and doing hearings and having that go through normal order. she doesn't want that to be

supplemental because that is immigration policy. there is also the amount being spent. it is much left than what the president had asked for. democrats are not going to come and do what they have done when speaker banner has not been able to call off republican votes. that is unlikely this time. the headline from your colleagues on this issue is they face a big test. it where are the sections in the gop coming from? >> what you see here again is those conservative members of the party of the believe most spending in emergencies should be offset.

you have some border state members really want to see more border security measures put in there. you have those who disagree generally with how we are handling immigration. they want to see much more there. this is an interesting group that is opposing this. it could lead to trouble for the gop. story on have another the politico site. here is a quote from corn and. wings of both the democratic party and the republican party willing to do nothing on this if they don't see what they want? either no revisions to the 2008 law or spending for the

republicans? >> that israel for republicans. have beenthink they the leading voice on immigration reform. for the august recess they don't think they will be punished if nothing happens. they want to see it done. people have called it shameful. they are standing strong that they wanted separate from the anti-trafficking law. in the republican party you have a split between people who say they will get punished i latino voters in the midterm elections. there are some who don't see that as a threat. you're going to see that play out to that -- throughout the entire week. is a slamdunk for doubts

-- senate democrats? a slamdunk is hard to the senate. there is so much acrimony in that chamber. leader andmajority mitch mcconnell get along. it is more likely they will pass something. is it something the house could pass? that is highly unlikely. do the two bodies have to go into conference committee? can they do it before friday which is when the senate leaves for a five-week break? some say of course we should keep working and stay. some say would be against the law to stay past the august recess. it is some procedural archaic rules in the house bylaws and

say they have to recess by august. it would be archaic. nobody would be going to jail. those who really stick to the letter of bylaws are talking about that. a question for our viewers. should congress finish this before they leave for the five-week rate? reached between the house and senate on the veterans affairs health care bill. can this get past the wings of a post -- both parties by friday? >> this is much more likely. we really thought it was falling apart. wereummit democratics criticizing. it looked like they were walking away from negotiations.

they accused each other of giving up. we are hearing that bernie sanders and jeff miller have reached a deal and come much closer. theire going to unveil proposal for how to fix it. and could actually get past sent to the president before the august recess. host: we will have coverage of that news conference. this is a $15 billion price tag. that, what are some of the highlights? anyou are going to see ability for veterans who have been waiting for medical care to leave the v.a. system and take care privately at the v.a.'s expense. if they live far from a va hospital, 40 miles is the

agreed-upon distance, you will secretary the.a. ability to fire senior managers accused of mismanagement. they can obviously fire those who are ill performing. timekes a very long because of federal rules about letting employees go and their process to appeal. this was one of the reasons the controversy started in the first place. v.a. more to come on this deal in the house and senate.

>> this bill makes certain readdress the immediate crisis of the veterans being forced onto long waiting lines of health care. for a the the eighth to hire the person now it needs to put a permanent end to the waiting room it addresses a serious problems of accountability to make sure honest and competent senior officials do not remain employed there and in addition provide significant benefits for veterans and their families. they must be considered

appropriated as emergency spending as is taking care of the men and women who use those weapons and part of that mccain bill that passed the senate to fund the mechanism in this bill. sufficient sums of money must be provided to immediately and unacceptably long waiting periods throughout the country. this bill does that by contracting out with medical providers and community health centers in defense facilities as was contained in the house bill and we basically except that language. this agreement consisted that the mccain bill allows veterans from debt

v.a. facility to get their care -- care outside the e.u. should not have to make that trip you should go to a provider in your community. this bill has $10 billion for contacting out of health care and those veterans more than 40 miles away. acting v.a. in secretary gibson and other organizations made it clear to make sure that v.a. has the personnel they need in this bill will provide $5 billion to strengthen those capabilities. the legislation passed in the house unanimously and the senate to authorize funding in answering 27 major facilities in 18 states that cost $125 billion.

we have all been outraged this bill contains language to allow the secretary to fire people and begin the for those who are underperforming in kids the 21 day period of appeal. this bill contains positions included and improve delivery of care to veterans and expands the scholarship program to include surviving spouses of armed forces who died in the line of duty and also after the post gi bill also regarding tbi. with money it will provide

$17 billion in to the v.a. health care with the $5 million offset

[inaudible conversations] ♪ >> ladies and gentleman of president of united states and mrs. michele obama. ♪ [applause] >> thank you. we'll come to the white

house. it has been 200 years since dolley madison saved the portrait of george washington that hangs in this room of did the ising british army so you could say the white house is always supporting the arts. [laughter] i'm glad to say michelle has never had to save any paintings that i know of from bow or otherwise but we do believe in celebrating talented americans of their achievements in the arts and humanities so thank you to the cheers of the endowment of the arts and humanities for their outstanding work and think members of congress including a great champion of the arts nancy

pelosi for joining us. [applause] the late great maya angelou once said of bird does not sing because it has the answer but because it has the song. each men and women today have a song. for others for the drive and passion to with the world. you did not cultivate your song for accolades or plus no medal for your work and

with those accomplishments to enriched the lives of about our country we could never take for granted that great documentary or novel the extraordinary piece of architecture with that incredible work of art or what we find unlocked with a simple movement the moments that you helped to create the moments of understanding for joy or sorrow to add texture to our lives they are essential to it so we thank him with the life of achievement and i will close

by saying something that to a place in 1862 in this house coming together leading of the cabinet to have the "emancipation proclamation" and instead they began to read out loud the story called highhanded outrage at utica according to one account after he finished at chapter he laughed and laughed his cabinet did not. [laughter] so he read them another chapter in they still sat there in silence. finally he put the book dylan and said gentleman why don't you laugh? but to make clear i will not try this in my cabinet

meetings and certainly if i was presenting the "emancipation proclamation." [laughter] but what linkedin understood. [laughter] is that the arts and humanities is not just to be consumed with every have a free moment but we rely on them constantly. we need them. they help us live. once again we think the honorees have met the president's high standards in the complicated world and challenging times to share a song with the character of our country and we are extraordinarily grateful. it is by privilege to present these metals to each of the recipients after their citation is read. [applause]

senate the national medal of arts goes to julia alvarez the 2013 national medal of arts. [applause] for extraordinary storytelling and poetry and prose looking at things of identity and illustrates the complexity of navigating two worlds of the human capacity in the face of oppression and. [applause]

excepting of have the brooklyn academy of music. [applause] the 2013 national medal of arts to brooklyn academy of music for innovative contributions to the visual arts. 150 years has showcased the visionaries in the emerging artist who take risks and push boundaries. [applause] joanne harris. [applause] 2013 national medal of arts

for supporting creative expression in chicago and across the country for decades of leadership and generosity to rich hour cultural life to help artists and singers and musicians bring their talents to center stage. [applause] bill jones. [applause] 2013 national medal of arts for his contributions as a dancer and choreographer known for provocative performances plant modern and traditional dance and provocative and challenge us

and inspire us to greater heights. [laughter] [applause] john cantor. [applause] 2013 national medal of arts for his contribution as a composer. more than half a century he has some life into broadway, a television and film through songs that invoke romanticism and wonder and moral dilemmas across generations. [applause]

jeffrey katzenberg. [applause] the 2013 national medal of arts for lighting up our screens of opening our hearts for animation and cinema he hasn't raised new technology to develop the artist or telling and transform the way we experience film. [applause] >> maxine kingston. [applause]

the 2013 national medal of arts for her contributions as a writer her novels of nonfiction have the past influences the present and voice strengthens asian identity to shape culture about gender and race. [applause] albert thasos. [applause] the 2013 national medal of arts for rethinking in reid making documentary film in america. one of the pioneers of

direct cinema offers depiction of people and communities across the globe nearly 60 years. capturing raw emotions his work reflects the unfiltered truth of our shared humanity. [applause] linda ronstadt. [applause] the 2013 national medal of

arts for her one-of-a-kind voice said decades of remarkable music drawing from a broad range of influences to conquer america radio waves to help pave the way for generations of women artists. [applause] todd williams. [applause] the 2013 national medal of arts for their contributions to architecture and arts education for public and private did deliver it designs have a profound

effect on the lives that interact with them and they're teaching and service has inspired young people to pursue their passions. [applause] james terrell. [applause] the 2013 national medal of arts for his ground-breaking visual arts capturing the powers of light and space he builds experience is that force us to question reality.

challenging perceptions that only art but the world around us. [applause] national humidity's medal recipients -- eumenides not all recipients. mr. adams. [applause] the 2013 national humanities medal for broadening the study of literature as a scholar and writer and critic he has expanded our perception of the romantic tradition to explore the

modern concept of scott self expression and western culture influencing and inspiring generations of students. [applause] excepting on behalf of the antiquarian society allen dunlap. [applause] the 2013 national humanities metal for safeguarding the american story for more than two centuries the society has amassed the unparalleled collection of historic documents serving as a research center for scholars

and students connecting generations of students with their cultural heritage. [applause] >> david bryan davis. [applause] the 2013 national humanities metal for reshaping of our understanding of history. he has shed light on the contradiction of the union founded on the brodie yet existing half slave with have free and his examination of slavery and what drives us to keep making moral progress in our time. [applause]

million to very. [applause] the 2013 national humanities metal tube will young for a lightning in our view of the world as a scholar of east asian studies he has fostered a global conversation based on experiences shared by all cultures helping to bridge differences and build trust. [applause]

. .