g from college. how many of the personal site thank god for that. alleluia. all right. and it is also a very happy day that it is a happy day because as you know, given thinking about it come as your kids graduate it almost feels like a raise. and that brings a tear to your eye. now let me speak to the graduates themselves. graduates, please take just a moment to look around. look to your left, look to your right, hear the voices screening your name out there. [cheers and applause] all the people.

i don't think they heard me. i don't think they heard me. i said all the people screaming your name out is out there today. that's what i thought i heard. i would be happy, too. i would be happy too. now let me try to restore a little order because i be excited myself if i said in a stance and a be more excited said in a seat. if i was getting ready to get my degree i would ask the speaker to do just a few things. give me a little pieces of the puzzle and then go sit down and shut up. [laughter] i knew it so let me just you know give you my three pieces to the life puzzle. the first piece i think is applicable to all of us is simply failure is not final if they refuse to quit. i want to send one more time

because i think it is absolutely unequivocally important to empathize emphasized the simple fact that failure is not final if you refuse to quicker i was thinking back during president evans introduction of how i basically flunked out of high school as a freshman to i remember those days going up in a single parent household struggling hopelessly adrift in the wrong direction. i failed world geography. i think i'm the only united states senator to ever fail physics, the study of politics. and i went to the united states senate realize i have plenty of company. [laughter] it will take folks a little time to get that win. that also failed spanish and english. when you failed spanish and english, they don't call you bilingual.

they call you bi-ignorant. i had a mentor to believe in the in a way i did not adamantly believed that all things were truly possible with facing god and the power of a switch. [laughter] now, a switch is a southern apparatus of encouragement. [laughter] it was applied from my belt to my ankle as often as necessary, and i thank god because of the strength of my mother, literally and figuratively, i finished high school on time went to college and continued on the journey of life. i believe that the best days of this class, the class of 2015 is ahead of you. the things he would do for this country and this world have not

been imagined before. i believe the cure to cancer may be seated in the seat of for me. i believe the next technological discovery can be found in the hearts and in the minds of the students who are getting ready to work in the work force. i believe in you. i believe in you. the second piece to the puzzle is simply if you want to stand out in life stand up for someone who cannot stand up for themselves. [applause] if you want to stand out in life, stand up for someone who cannot stand up for themselves. and one classic example of this is a friend of mine a couple named molly and george green. they owned a very successful engineering company called general engineering lab. they spent a lot of years making

profit and then they started traveling the world, and through their travels they discovered that many of the challenges many other citizens in africa comes from the fact that clean water is simply hard to find. so they sold the business and decided to go full time into the mission of providing clean water in africa. and over the last several years they have provided millions of gallons of water all over the continent in the poorest areas of africa. i met last week a young lady, she was about 15, and she was diagnosed with brain cancer that impacted or affected are optical nerves, and she is now legally blind at 14 or 15 years old. but she decided that she would dedicate the rest of her life to serving kids like her. and so she started a problem for

kids with cancer that she has decided not to sit on the sidelines that to be engaged in life in changing lives for other people. my third piece to the life puzzle is simply to hold on to your dream. i hope and i pray that you have dreams consistent with, god is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that you figure. and if you hold on to god unshaken hand all things, all things i said all things -- >> all things. >> are possible. are possible for you what you said. it is possible for you to change the world. i am standing here as a living example that even a knucklehead the north charleston, south

carolina, can with a brain mama and to bring grandma can see a dream come true. one of my dreams and i would say this there are several dreamers who had the first taste of defeat before they experienced the most amazing taste of success in freedom. i think of walt disney. has anyone heard of walt disney? walt disney was fired from his first job because he simply was not creative enough. i know we've heard of oprah winfrey. oprah winfrey was far from a local tv station because she was simply not fit for tv. and some people have written off south carolina state university but i am here to tell you that the best is yet to calm.

[applause] i look around at all the graduates sitting in front of me, and i know that the best is yet to come. this is the universe that has graduated more general officers in our military, african-american general officers in our military 19 united states military generals, and perhaps any other school of its size. you see the best is yet to come. i will close because my dreams have taken all over the world and i've been working on my singing lessons. because my ultimate dream is to sing in front of thousands of people and hear the roar, the applause as i mesmerize folks with my singing voice.

and back in 1983 when is graduating high school a song that is stuck with me for the last 32 years is a song called hold on to your dreams by a group called wigi. will you go ahead and start the music, president? he said he forgot the music. how could pashtun never mind. i'm just going to sing it a cappella. would you all just talking out your? thank you very much. ♪ hold on to your dreams. [laughter] you all don't know good music. i'm just going to tell you the words. i'm going to tell you the words. the song simply says hold on to your dreams. believe in love and let love be

the light to show you the way. because life is going to be hard and sometimes it's even going to feel unfair. except for those who really care. who were there rain and shine sharing your dreams your heart and your mind. congratulations. [applause] >> kathryn sullivan a former astronaut who will do this in shipping woman to walk in space. she for three space shuttle missions including the one that deployed the hubble space telescope issues now a commerce undersecretary for oceans and a mr. announce the national oceanic and atmospheric the national oceanic and atmospheric administration. she was elected a commencement address at american university in washington. this is about 15 minutes.

[applause] >> president kerwin, esteemed faculty, friends and family and, of course, the graduates of the class of 2015 i am honored to join you today for this joyous occasion. graduations i was reminded of the first time i said on the launch pad at the kennedy space center aboard the space shuttle challenger but you didn't expect that did you? like all of you guys i was a dressed up that day in an uncomfortable for an outfit. [laughter] and forced to listen bunch of people while they drone their way through an elaborate ritual that just would not and. [laughter] and like it into station what was about to happen to me was a bit overwhelming. preparing to be thrust into uncharted territory accelerated debt terrified of what was to

come. like a lot of you i suspect, question if i was really ready for what lay ahead. sure, i knew every detail of the procedure that was unfolding around us and, of course, i was well versed in all the scientific experiments i was responsible for. not to become thoroughly understood every detail of the spacesuit that would protect it when i floated outside the shuttle. but i still couldn't help but wonder if all my hard work and extensive technical training had truly prepared me for my next step as the first american woman to walk in space. i'll take him for a start drone on that could affect you guys for that shall because american university provided all of you with opportunities that foster intellectual development, your creativity and your spirit. today you are united by that comment experience. but the real strength you take with you today comes from the

diversity of perspectives amongst you. as i look out upon this assembly i see future leaders eager to develop solutions to the problems of today and take on the challenges of tomorrow. for each of you today is undoubtedly a day filled with joy, relief come at a tremendous amount of satisfaction. it's the culmination of a four come in a few cases, five year journey. but for what it is a journey took a lot longer, about 31 years longer. since taking his first higher education class 35 years ago steve campbell studied buddhism and nepal, got married, answered your innumerable questions at the university i.t. help desk and never shied away from asking the hard question. when asked what it means to him to walk across the stage, steve doesn't hesitate. he explained that his education instilled in him a more detailed understanding of the

world and a more vivid appreciation of life itself. for a handful of parents grandparents, and then all those in the audience, this is a very special day filled with great pride. as you watch the very first member of the family received a college degree. what a fabulous moment and to administer chief but. [applause] -- achievement. so i suggested it is not simply a day to celebrate what you have in common as the class of 2015 but also a day to revel in your differences and to celebrate the environment at american university provided to foster learning about come and limited exploration of those differences. on this day we celebrate more than just your journey to this moment. we celebrate the capacity this journey has instilled in you for the road ahead, capacity, a

hunger, to continue exploring new perspectives. and that's why i'm so excited to be speaking with you today. at t-minus 31 seconds the elaborate countdown at the kennedy space center wrapped up and we got the final bill for launch. before we could link the shuttle left off the bat we were off to infinity and beyond. any worse or hesitation i felt before, it is seriously too late now. [laughter] within minutes we were over england and i got my first glimpse of this little blue marble called earth. i was overwhelmed by the beauty of our planet, entranced with our interconnected system and and flow with one another. from that vantage .1 can hardly make out anything other than and sea and land and atmosphere geographic border are no more visible than on the individual people that live within them. that cosmic adventure introduced me to an entirely new

perspective, one that dramatically shaped who i am today. junior time and american university, you have been blessed with an environment that encourage similar explorations, albeit with rather more gravity and certainly much better food. au shoji to engage with dissenting viewpoints come once the project consider the world in a different way and in doing so this university shielded you from the danger of collective acceptance and complacency. today this institution behind each of you a diploma to recognize your achievement. you will be told that this document attest to your accomplishments and will prove to people or potential employers, for example that you are ready and able to contribute to society. that's not quite right. your diploma is after all just a piece of paper. at dusk and from the complete theacourse of study at american university with some degree of success but that alone doesn't

say anything about the value of what you can't at american university. there is one thing on your diploma that does speak to that however. the only thing that speaks to that and it is your name on the certificate. your name represents who you became in reaching for this recognition. it represents the sum of all the investments you made in growing towards this day. it embodies those late nights and enter leopard cramming for next mornings exam, the thankless hours you spent working for internet on capitol hill. the resolve to press forward a check to dig deep to muster after just barely passing a class any subject goes well beyond your comfort zone. and the late nights that you spent mastering the concept not because it was on a test but because it had so completely captured your imagination and your interest. also your willingness to allow for differences you've

encountered to unite you with your colleagues and with other the people rather than to divide you and join you in the exploration of new points of view. your name on a diploma is also a reminder of the hard work and sacrifice invested on your behalf by the people who challenge and support to during your journey to this moment. for just like a rocket launch, college graduation is much more in a moment of individual achievement. in both instances not in the spotlight our many people who help us reach these culminating moment, many who stayed the late hours, struggled with impossible and put our quest before their own concern. remember and thank those people today, and carry the lessons of their sacrifice with you on the next leg of life's journey. pay their gift forward to others who are on trantor difficult

journeys. as of tomorrow and american university will no longer provide you with this wonderful space for intellectual exploration, this protection against complacency in groupthink that you're you are about to be ejected into a time of massive turbine global transformation. it's a time of stride and violent along national, regional and even tribal lines. and all of this is happening amid a systemic erosion of trust in public institutions. so next generation, how will you continue to grow through diversity, to expand your horizon ever find your perspectives? how will you develop the foundational understanding you leave this campus with into a force for good? are you ready? for me the experience of being in space led me to understand that the most pressing challenges of my world were, in fact, those that face us all collectively. circling the world every 90 minutes for days on end became

clear to me that all of us on earth are inextricably linked to each other as human cogs. there is no eye over them. we are one. and our very existence is completely dependent on the workings of the little blue marble that i could hold in the palm of my hand. and so i came to believe that i coded myself in the people who put me into space to make good on that unique point of view. it was this new found perspective that led me to leap into my next professional adventure, putting scientific understanding of the earth to work for all of us. and so when i returned to earth i built not found but build a career focused on achieving that outcome. my work at noaa has allowed me to make good on this and contribute to the problems does pressing enough times and most vital to our future the problems that do not discriminate based on race, gender or wealth.

these great challenges like so many of the past can only be addressed by coming together and thinking of the generations yet to come. this will take listening to each other, learning and reaching for new perspectives precisive have mine and learning that george street at american university has been instilled in you. as a community you've already proven your ability to check personal agendas at the door and work toward productive solutions as a collective. you've been subjected to more diverse background ideas opinions and experiences that many people ever, to know. and i hope you realize through those that it was only by taking the time to stop and listen that you were able to grow and learn. your experience at au has provide you with much more than academic credential to get it off into this world with ideas and ideals, with passion and

purpose, with a strong sense of what it takes to build communities and of how vital community is to life. so i am quite sure the answer to my earlier question about your readiness for the next step is yes you are well prepared for what lies ahead. in due time you will surely forget the principle, the construction of -- the name of monday's most famous impressionist painting, but you will not forget the habit of american university has instilled in you, nor lose a strong hunger to broaden your lens. we all must strive never to become complacent in our quest to seek out a more developed understanding of how our world works. and perspective is what allows us to find happiness and importantly true meaning in our life. your journey to new perspectives actually begins today. i encourage you to search for controversy for contrast as both revealing and catalytic.

to use your ears more than your mouth. where learning can only happen when we paused to listen. to take a challenging path always come after not be afraid of change. like gravity, it's just kind of everywhere and forever. resistance is futile. [laughter] and always be a better neighbor. i because it's expected of you but because it makes you a better person. and you do know it's the right thing to do. the gift of education and the habit of exploration have prepared each of you to be leaders in your careers, your communities, your families. cherish this and make it count. communities made up of people who listen keenly, think deeply come and act wisely are those that are most able and perhaps only able to create progress and peace. we owe this to ourselves. we owe this to each other and

we owe this to the little blue marble called earth. please know that each of you have my great admiration for full confidence as you take this next step i congratulate you and wish you each the very best of luck. [applause] him and the tell us about what to expect in the next couple of weeks and particularly on the republican senators interest in running forcall president. >> we will see a lot more people get into the presidential race. with the new funding period starting ing. june because he was a whole crowd of people jump inmp this week. we see bernie sanders of vermontbernie get in the race andsa we'll see one the republican side former pennsylvania senator rick santo santorum. and in the summer of course the and th in the su

debates start until be a competition in a large field that gets momentum and buzz. george >> host: also as well george pataki showing interest in this, former new york governor? >> guest: years. he's been off the stage for quite some time but i was with pat governor pataki a couple of a of the securities making a dogged advocate has had much momentum. people seem to protect himpeopeem to hav companies a lot of younger voters in the republican party thatm. he believes and served multiple terms in your. he could offer a record of experience. it will be a difficult task because he doesn't have the money he needs to compete. >> host: you talk about the debate efforts and there's a store in "the wall street journal" that takes a look at how some television stations orme tel loose networks are planning on whoevision to invite to a debate.invite t give us a sense of what the strategy will be.tegy will and also depends on polling, if i'm correct? >> guest: it will. it's going to be fascinating tol watch how this all unfolds

because the republican national committee chaired by reince priebus has dried up more control over the process thisth committe time.rol ov but thi the rnc is not taking the lead role in the dating who canho can be be asked to debate as a candidate. instead it'sst the networks that netwo are making these decisions. so fox news will host the first debate in cleveland in june excuse me come in august.they a they will have 10re people, allow people 10 people on stage and candidates. you have to be declared and you have to be in the top 10 on in polling according to the last five national polls. cnn is hosting an event.ebate. they will have almost to tears coming first to add a signature also on television. there's not really a process here that's uniform. it's going i to be based on the networks own decision and that's ' going to lead to unrest in the field and a lot ofs these candidates who are perhaps note perhapnot go to bed will be very

frustrated. >> host: the wall street also includes a compilation of polls by real clear politics about who started were. robert costa talk to love it and little t into see if you go there. does this invasion and long primary process and those of the gop want to? >> guest: it sounds almost fanciful to say it but because this field of more than a dozen contenders, this could actually go all the way to the convention and this is something that top republican officials have relayed to me privately or its a thought that's not seen as something that could happen, absolutely but it is a possibility. because the process has been a long kick him to these debates and then the primary itself will have a lot of contest together early next year. because of the super packed and would allow candidates can get an angel benefactor and survive

for a long time and the way that newt gingrich did last time rick santorum did in 2012 ubc candidate even if they're not winning primaries stay in the race. the media coverage and the bus a strong debate performance provides also will refuel. so this could go long and it could be a very long contest. >> host: while the heavy on the phone emission bernie sanders. tells about what to expect in burlington vermont, today. >> guest: this is someone who is a self-described socialist, probably so. he is a true progressive, so he'llitwill be a competition and threat for hillary clinton. the former secretary of state is wildly popular in the democratic party but she has some skeptics as welcome those people who wanted elizabeth warren to run. they are disappointed bernie sanders is the next best choice to look for him in iowa to try to connect with the grassroots progress is there, the liberal voters who are antiwar anti-big

bank. and the new hampshire neighboring vermont his home state he could also be some who could put up some significant support in numbers. but we will have to see if he can be more than a fringe candidate in the polls and think he will be because at this moment he is the only other real alternative to hillary clinton. >> host: you called him a threat. you really think that? >> guest: a threat, not perhaps in terms of winning iowa new hampshire at this point but think back to 2004 howard dean with his message and momentum and just although bit of money and a lot of young people supported him was able to really become a threat to john kerry. ernie sanders because iowa has been a state and past has gone too far left candidates. if you can get 35% in iowa and then go into new hampshire near his home state, he can provide a problem for clinton not for the nomination but he could easily

pull it to the left and maybe become a threat eventually. the legacy house of representatives robert costa the reports on these for the "washington post," thanks for your time this morning. >> guest: thank you. >> the u.s. senate is meeting next for a pro forma session did not legislative business as expected. they will meet again in pro forma session. and return for a rare legislative sunday afternoon session at 4 p.m. eastern. they will debate on sunday what to do about the patriot act provision that expires sunday night at midnight, measure to extend the domestic surveillance provisions and changed local data collection was blocked before the memorial day recess. live coverage of the debate on c-span2 and next up the pro forma session in the u.s. senate on c-span2.

again when for the senate to come in for a brief pro forma session. they'll have another one on thursday and back on sunday for legislative work. on the expiring provisions of the patriot act. one senator bernie sanders is back on in vermont with the campaign was set to begin at 6 p.m. eastern. he is running for the democratic presidential nomination. we will have live coverage of that from burlington over on c-span again at 6 p.m. eastern.

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>> a live look at the us capitol wait for the senate to come in for a brief pro forma session. we understand it may be pushed back a little bit this afternoon. the senate is coming back sunday afternoon at 4:00 o'clock eastern for legislative work on what to do about the expiring patriot act provisions those provisions expiring sunday at midnight. brought before the memorial day recess. that measure passing in the house but not yet in the senate. back sunday to see if they can do that. pro forma lively gets underway here on c-span2. >> the new congressional directory is a handy guide

to the 114th congress with color photos of every senator and house member bus by our contact information and twitter handles. also, district maps, for them up capitol hill for analytic congressional committees, the pres.'s cabinet, federal agencies and state governors. what state governors. order your copy today. 1395 plus shipping and handling through the c-span online store. >> sen. bernie sanders is holding a rally in burlington, vermont, the place where he won his 1st election by beating longtime incumbent democrat by ten votes. live coverage of today's rally at 6:00 o'clock eastern. all this week while congress is in recess we are showing book tv prime time at 8:00 o'clock eastern. tonight the focus is on economics. and then at 9:10 p.m.

you can watch the event tonight at 8:00 o'clock eastern. south carolina republican governor governor nikki haley delivered this year's commencement address the university of south carolina graduates. she is currently serving her 2nd term as governor. the 1st woman to serve in the role. she spoke for about 15 minutes. [applause]

>> thank you very much. i want to thank the pres. and the board's. as dollar of indian parents if you know in the indian community there parents raise you a voyage to be one of the things my dr. lawyer engineer. now i can tell that i made it. i'm a dr.. thank you very much. members of the faculty and staff trustees families, friends from most of all to the distinguished members of the university of south carolina's class of 2,015: me say this it is a great day in south carolina. it is true. i say that often. the wonderful thing about our state is that each day

brings with it a different reason to celebrate. it is something i never take for granted something we should all be proud of. today is different. mark twain once said that there are basically two types of people people who accomplish things and people who claim to encompass things. the 1st group is less crowded. today because of the people filling this arena because of your hard work, dedication sacrifice talent we have made mr. twain's 1st group a little more crowded. to the faculty sitting around me let me say thank you. thank you for shepherding through this wonderful university the next generation of south carolina's leaders. thank you for being a tutor, mentor friend. the great american poet and educator robert frost said i am not a teacher but i we

will know he can. you have awakened awakened in young minds entrusted to you a desire to learn from an ability to achieve command a capacity to lead. today is your celebration. to the parents and grandparents, brothers and grandparents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles i can feel the pride radiating from you. it should. nothing of great consequences ever realized along. make no mistake earning a degree from such a prestigious university is an act of great consequence. you will hear it from your graduates today but you will hear it from me as well they could not have done this without you. the support of family means everything. and to the graduates the class of 2,015 from this proud clemson tiger, i say congratulations. i knew you were going to build me on that one.

the last two years some of you did it in for some and three maybe some of you did it at five. i was a five -year-old. you have called the university of south carolina your home. it has it has been a place of talent and success friendship and heartache lesson after listening for both inside and out the classroom. over these years you have grown changed, and now you have graduated. you have completed this part of your journey and now the world awaits anxiously to see what you will do next. believe believe it or not it was not that long ago that i sever use it faced with the choices of the challenges and the uncertainty but most of all the opportunities that lie ahead of you. i have long believed in the benefit of reaching out to those who have been where i am going to have walked on

the path i am soon to travel anytime i can save a few steps it took for -- the pitfalls been a thematic that is a huge opportunity for valuable advice. for your family and friends that would humbly like to share some things i have learned along the way. first, trust to your. the 1st female prime minister of israel once said the following trust yourself create the kind of self that you will be happy to live with all your life. make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny image box a possibility in the flames of achievement. you don't need to look anywhere outside yourself for confirmation. your matters. you know yourself better than anyone else does. that will be true forever. you know what is right and what is not.

you know what will make you proud and what will make you strong. that knowledge is a wonderful thing if you trust it. don't shy away from who you are or for what you know. your your core beliefs and the intuition they drive means something. trust the. trust your gut. it will serve you well. second push through the fear. life is easier life is easier within our comfort zones, but it is also a lot less interesting. in the 1960s my parents were living in india were both born from families of privilege, well educated secure and had all of the comforts of upper class families in that place and time. life was fine and would have remained so.

they knew they knew america was a place of unlimited opportunity and they wanted those for the children even if it meant starting over. so they left going into the unknown with $8 in their pocket moving 1st to canada and then later to the small rural town of bamberg south carolina. i don't pretend to know the depths of the fear that they felt when they landed in columbia across the world from their home away from their friends and family placed different from anything they had ever experienced nor what it felt like waking up each day the only indian family in the small southern town mom determined and dad proud history of but i know whatever fear they felt the push through. they raised four children made friends micro-business,

but micro- business, but the life command a little more than 40 years after they arrived my parents stood on stage and watch as their daughter was born as the hundred 16th governor of the state they adopted as the home. [applause] >> thank you. i learned that courage was not the absence of fear but the triumph over it said nelson said nelson mandela. the brave man is not he who does not feel afraid but he who conquers fear. don't be afraid of being afraid. push through it. triumph over it. find the fear and convert. for concord. for if you are not putting yourself in situations that make you uncomfortable then you have something to do. third actions matter far more than words. it is not what you say but what you do the people

remember you for. the story of america is the story of men and women of action. george washington susan b anthony the roosevelts, rosa the roosevelts rosa parks. these icons of american history change our world not by what they said that what they did. even those words we remember so well mean what they do to us today because of the deeds we know they represent. the declaration of independence would simply be an elegant letter if it wasn't for the courage of he and his fellow revolutionaries who put not just there freedom but their lives on the line in a war against britain. the gettysburg address money or 272 words still taught to every school child 150 years after they were spoken derive their great power from abraham lincoln's towering strength from a

strength that enabled him to stand behind those words do what was right command free the slaves. even martin luther king's i have a dream speech perhaps the most important piece of american rhetoric in the 20th century would mean less if we did not know he spent his entire life working each day to make that dream a reality. his words matter, of course but they mattered so much more because he lived in. it is not it is not what you say but what you do that will ultimately define your life. live with that understanding knowing that your words matter far less than the actions they take and that those actions are the greatest window into the person that you are. fourth whatever you do be great at it and make sure people are hungry for. i no i have quoted a few

giants today and ella today, and ella frost meyer, 24 but this comes from a place much closer to home and to my heart my my mother. it was her mantra and she drill that into me from a very young age. growing up my parents at an upscale women's clothing score. truly a family business. we all participate in one way or the other other after school or on weekends or doing our free during our free time. when i was 13 our bookkeeper decided it was time to move on and she asked my mother who she should train as a replacement. my mom grabbed my arm and said train her. the outgoing bookkeeper was all out of sorts. a 13-year-old could not keep the books for a growing a growing retail business. my mom was insistent. teacher. she will be great at it. it is that philosophy to my mom's philosophy to always, always be great that i have carried with me through every stage of my life because if something is worth doing it is worth

doing great. it is worth being remembered for. finally, remember that after today the represent more than just yourself. you represent the entire university of south carolina be proud of be proud of the university that is propelling you further along the path to adulthood. it it is an amazing place, one that has given you experiences and friendships you will no doubt treasure for the rest of your life. but make the university just as proud of you as you are that. act with integrity be honest work hard take risks, give back to my be joyful. you are a gamecock now and forever. that means something. for many of you i am sure it feels like this is the greatest day of your life command it should. it is an it is an amazing

compass no matter what path brought you here. but what makes me so excited for you and so proud for the chance to play a small role in your celebration today is that i no if you want them there are far greater days in your future. so enjoy today hug your mom or dad, brother or sister thanking professor call your grandmother share it with your friends. tomorrow get back to work because we can't wait to see what the university of south carolina class of 2015 does next. thank you. god bless you. may he may he continue to bless the entire state of south carolina. [applause] >> oklahoma republican senator james langford delivered remarks at

oklahoma state university commencement ceremony. elected to the senate in november 2014. previously he served as the us representative for oklahoma's 5th congressional district. his remarks were about 15 minutes. [applause] >> good morning to you. it is my art to get a chance to be here. this is number 23. isn't this romantic? i took her to a commencement for our anniversary. later we will have a nice romantic dinner and cuddle around the tv and watch weather like everyone else. welcome to oklahoma. graduates, congratulations. it is a big day for you and your family. i hope you enjoy and take this end. in the moments ahead you are able to

remember well. there are a couple moments in life that you will get free advice rendered strangers. this is one of the. if anyone finds out you are graduating immediately told strangers will go great, i have something to tell you. this will happen again when you get married in the given you get pregnant. at that.you just smile nod. you want to say do i no you but you don't. take it take it from a filter out what is helpful and junk what is not. you just randomly start telling them advice on life. enjoy it. that's the nice thing about the neighbors together. i will throw a couple things that you today free advice that you can filter as you choose but i want to be able to put a few things together number one is this get out of debt. i no the irony of someone

currently serving the united states senate talking about getting out of debt. i get that. [applause] but i we will tell you that this is one of those things that you will want to get off your back as quick as you can. do whatever do whatever you can to start knocking that out as fast as you can. a real car real furniture. all those things in the days ahead as you start to land a job in mortgage and all the wonderful responsibilities. knockout the debt as fast as you can. you will be grateful to have after back and to be able to focus on other things in life. reconnect with your faith. i am amazed at the number of students i interact with that had a practicing faith up until they got midway through college. this is the united states of america. for those that choose to have faith my encouragement

to live the faith that they have had to be able to walk in that. it will always be meaningful. if you grow cold and distant in your faith the engage. there are there are a lot of terrifying moments that are both terrifying and exciting including today because for some of you as you graduate you suddenly realize there is adulthood: monday. for some of you you have successfully postponed that by getting a masters degrees in. [laughter] but that terrifying moment of realization you should have that moment also be a moment where you want your faith. how many of you have been to the united states capitol before? [applause] when you get there there are a series of a series of paintings down in the rotunda under the big cast-iron dome which looks

like it currently has an iron maiden around it for construction happening on the dome. the dome itself is our 2nd don't. the 1st one was what and copper. that rotunda actually predates the dome above it. the dome was built during the civil war. the paintings underneath that were built the last of those were put in about the 1840s. my favorite was called the embarkation of the pilgrims. the the paintings are to depict the beginnings of america is to read 1843, the moment america began command it is a painting of a group of individuals on the deck of the ship home around an open bible praying as the ship is leaving from europe. that moment that was captured is terrifying but this reassuring reconnection to something very important. we don't know where we are

going but god will be there we get there. i encourage you to reconnect to faith. third -- [applause] i encourage you to heal family hearts. i get more personal as i go. in the days ahead your relationship with your family will be more important to you than what your diploma yesterday. i have met many students that as they went through high school and college that more and more disconnected with the family a broken relationship. i'm. i'm leaving, heading out command does not matter because of moving out. what does it matter? is too much work to fix the family her. i will tell you for the rest of your life every birthday every thanksgiving every christmas every mother's

day every father's day you will regret that decision. my mom was a librarian. i don't know i don't know how smart your parents work but my mom was a librarian. a librarian knows everything but she doesn't know she knows where to find. i grew up with my mom being the smartest woman on the planet. but somewhere around ninth-grade to bump into a wall or something happened because she just started deteriorating. just got worse and worse and worse as i went through high school. but about but about my sophomore year of college she started gaining from my academic wisdom. she back to jean's level. there is this path of independence that all of us go through.

that's good. we have guts creation to creation to say we're not always living in your parent space bar. when there is a broken relationship i don't care working from and how it started, but it ends when you actually reconnect when you look each other in the eye and said can we start over again. some of those to start today the halftime and the storm shelter letter that you can start some of that conversation today. he'll is broken homes. many people many people i talked to about a lot of things and what is going on has been a lot of time

talking about that the offense command federal directives toward big issues we deal with on a common basis. broken families cannot be fixed by washington dc. the biggest issues we face are families that are struggling to stay connected to each other and committed to each other. that is the decision you will make command i encourage i encourage us to termination around by turning our families around. [applause] number four, and i only have 14 of these. i'm kidding. number four is serve. there are a lot of things you do to make money. as president wants you to get out of here tomorrow and a great job represent the university well make money, and be a good donor. but you know as well as i do -- >> we will break will break away. take you live to the senate for a brief pro forma session. no legislative business is expected.

the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the clerk will read a communication to the senate. the clerk: washington, d.c may 26, 2015. to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1 paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable roy blunt, a senator from the state of missouri, to perform the duties of the chair. signed, orrin g. hatch president pro tempore. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the senate stands adjourned until 8:30 a.m. on thursday, may 28, 2015.

those provisions expiring sunday at midnight a measure to extend the domestic surveillance provisions and change both the chief of change both data collection. blocked in the senate before the memorial day recess. life senate coverage thursday in this sunday's legislative session here on c-span2. next up we take you back to oklahoma state university in addition to senator lankford they heard from ambassador joseph west from who gave the graduating class his commencement address. ambassador westfall is us ambassador to saudi arabia. [applause] >> good afternoon everybody, graduates of the college is a business of agriculture.

it is great to be with you. mr. pres., thank you for the honor bestowed on me this morning and for the honor of allowing me to address this class. students i think we have thank a lot of people and i think we have missed one of the most important elements in your lives when they are sitting all around the arena i think you should give your votes for your families and friends a big hand for what they have done. [applause] now, in 1970, 45 years ago i graduated from college and attended my commencement. in 2060, 45 years from now some of you will be attending or giving a commencement speech somewhere. so how will the next 45 years shape and influence your message? how will the society that you have been a part of those the graduates sitting before you? you will be the 1st generation to look back

reflectively on most of the toy 1st century rather than looking toward it. if there is one certainty in your life it is that your next four decades will be different than the 1st two decades that have brought you here. we can speculate today the population growth will be a factor as well as environmental impact technological change and if today is any indication climate. you will tackle many problems in these next four decades that are likely to include war crime terrorism, poverty disease and intolerance to name a few. of these problems will be related to a variety of factors associated with the developments in such areas as science and medicine and

education, politics civil society, law, religion command i could go on. let me go back and rewind the clock a little bit to an earlier generation that made it possible for me to graduate from college in 1970 and be with you here today. in his book the greatest generation tom brokaw journalist author former nbc news anchor wrote about the generation that lived through the great depression of the 1930s. men and women who fought tyranny and evil and then came home to rebuild the nation. some of some of you here today may have benefited from the post- 911 g.i. bill but it was the original g.i. bill enacted in 1944 that gave a great boost to that post-world war ii generation as tom brokaw stated in his book they gave the world is

science, literature, art industry and economic strength unparalleled in the long curve history is his men and women gave birth to my generation, the baby boomers command we have come to know how much we benefited from the country we inherited that became the envy of the world. now my generation also experienced war. we fought the cold war and the vietnam war and witnessed the civil rights movement. conflicts and events that sometimes created a divide between our generations. the values of my parents generation were framed around personal responsibility around duty to country honor faith. they were shaped in large part by the trials and tribulations that they endured and had to overcome.

my generation lived my generation lived through the fall of the berlin wall and the vietnam war and all these things made us challenge the unquestioned patriotism of our parents generation. civil rights and the war on poverty focused our commitment to ending segregation and reducing income inequalities. one year before i1970 the us landed amount and an event that unleashed the innovative and competitive spirit of the american people, the impact of which is still being felt today. the civil rights movement i talked about earlier offered an opportunity to redefine race and gender relations. today our country is far stronger because of the courage and sacrifice of those fuel the. it was these issues, an event the test of my generation.

i call college graduates entering into lifestage your generation will not be tested by the endless possibilities before you. as i sat through my commencement address back in 1970 listening to senator margaret chase smith republican senator from maine i wondered if i would be sent to fight in vietnam or i opposed with most of the class sitting around me. i ended up i ended up not being drafted and instead settled on academic and government career. little did i no that 28 years later i would begin nearly a decade of leadership in the army fighting wars in iraq and afghanistan and working to put into effect the most sweeping policy changes since the truman administration and to the segregation of the force and in our case the end of the policy of not ask don't tell

in the policy to allow women to serve in combat roles. when i graduated from college i could not have imagined the vicious act of terrorism the bombing of the federal building in oklahoma city 20 years ago this year and the subsequent attack on 911. i would not have predicted that in 2,008 we would endured the worst global financial crisis since the great depression of the 1930s command i certainly would not have predicted 45 years of higher education and government service by the pres. of the united states asking me to be the united states amb. to saudi arabia responsible for our relations in a country that is of great strategic and economic importance and one of the most complex and embattled regions in the world.

i also would not have predicted that i would set out from new york is to work on a masters degree at oklahoma state university. back in those days most of us in new york that the rocky mountains were in pennsylvania. guess who was my commencement speaker in 1974 when i finished that masters degree? richard nixon for president richard nixon. we held that ceremony here at osu. it was a warm day. the president did a good job command he really talked about the generational change that was about that. his address was well received and of course as all of you know i was may of 1974. in august president nixon had to resign from the presidency because of the watergate scandal. he concluded his speech that day by noting that in 26 years the graduating class

of 1974 would 1974 would usher in the 21st century. we all thought that was a huge deal. he closed the to our post- boomer generation. on that knew year you will look back on this day and then judge your generation. let me tell you what i think you will be able to say. yours was a generation that was there have the strength and stamina to see that america played a responsible so that we did have piece in the world for a generation. yours was the generation that helped america become self-sufficient and energy developed the food resources for ourselves and other nations so that the level as far as the possibility for nutrition was raised not only for ourselves but for all people. yours was the generation during which great strides were made forward in terms of fighting the scourges of disease wherever they existed throughout the world

most most of all the yours was a generation that asked questions not afraid of controversy, but a generation that when the chips were down was strong in the mind strong in the right believed in what we were doing. i say to you when the year 2,000 comes i am confident that the members of the class of 1974 we will look back and say yes, we met the test. ours was the great american generation. you know, i think he was right about that. all the things he said in 1974 have evidenced in today's society. let me conclude by suggesting some of the issues you may want to consider for your commencement address and 2060. if you're asked today what will resume the most many may answer the threat of terrorism and the fear of violent extremism. today the middle east is one -- is at the core of that

battle between the majority that want piece and security and prosperity in a minority that want tyranny and domination. great challenges faces in the middle east bringing in a comprehensive enduring peace to israel the palestinians plan their neighbors including an agreement with iran negotiating a political solution to the conflict in human in dealing with the threat of nonstate actors like isis and al qaeda. how we address these challenges today will greatly affect your generation tomorrow. the agreements we sign the solutions we put in place you will inherit. you will on them. how will will they affect the way the world sees america? your relationship with the global community? if you believe like i believe that the united states is stronger as an engaged constructive partner how you strengthen

connections with people around the world and break down barriers to improve the world around you will determine what you will really say in the year 2060. think about it this way. when you stand at this podium 45 years from today the world will be a different place and your advice to graduates will likely be unpredictable by what is true today. the world you are inheriting today is smaller more populated more integrated, and far more impatient for as the gratification in the world my generation inherited. when you deliver that commencement address in 2060 we will what you say about the ethics of genetics and robotics address the significant challenges posed by religion, cultural differences from population growth and the threat of global health. will you have visited mars? how will you make yourself relevant with technology make your job obsolete he

will live longer than me because of greater access to advanced medical treatment. what will you do with an extra 20 to 30 years a productive life? how will changes in climate affect the availability of food and water? you will be living those years alongside more than 9 billion people who we will populate the world by the time you give that commencement address. it is also predicted by 2043 no ethnic group will constitute a majority of population making the united states a truly plural nation willy's population demographics create stress and tension? will a more diverse population foster greater innovation and productivity? of the internet continue? certainly will it continue as it yesterday and what will be the impact to society of society as a

result? will the university look like? all professors still stand in front of a classroom and deliver lectures? more than any other generation before you you will need to address the inevitable consequences of globalization protectionism nationalism aggression and other actions that dividing collide. in the next four decades of the century you will share all of these issues with all the people of the world. thus. thus i urge you to think about the words of president obama. this is what he said. recognizing our common humanity is only the beginning of our task. words alone cannot meet the needs of our people. these needs will be met only if we act boldly and the years ahead and if we understand that the challenges we face are shared and our failure to meet them will hurt us all. for we have learned from

recent experience that when a financial system weakens in one country prosperity is heard a rumor. when an new flu infects one human being all are at risk when one nation pursues a nuclear weapon the risk of nuclear attack rises were all nations. when violent extremists operate in one stretch of mountains people are endangered across an ocean. when innocents in bosnia and r 4 are slaughtered that is a stain on our collective conscious. that is what is meant to share this world and the 21st century. that is a responsibility a responsibility you have to one another as human beings. so let me say to you i have great confidence that you will act boldly.

more capable than any other generation before you delete us to the future and share the world in the 21st century. you, your children and grandchildren we will understand better than all of us that came before you the challenges that you will share with the rest of the world. i tell my six grandchildren that they will witness and participate in a new era of invention entrepreneurship and innovation that will change the course of history as you ponder these questions i posed the thing about the tools you will need to sustain our america with its greatness and don't be afraid to use them to engage and challenge the complacency and do not be afraid to change. it is essential for survival. congratulations to all of you and when you get home think your grandparents and your great-grandparents. that great generation that made it possible for me to be here you to be here to

man will have made it possible for future generations to be here as well. thank them for thank them for what they did. i bless all of you. congratulations. [applause] 's. >> former whose ceo jason tyler delivered the commencement address at unc chapel hill. he graduated in 93 with degrees degrees in business administration, journalism command master medications. he now runs a subscription video service. this is about 20 minutes. [applause] >> how is everybody doing? okay. i have to capture this with the self he.

do me a favor. let's go. okay. i will tweet that under #unc sophie. okay. thank you. thank you members of the faculty and members of the board of trustees. thank you for the kind of. it is an absolute honor to

address you today and to congratulate the graduating class of 2015. that's right. so as the chancellor beautifully covered earlier today is mother's day. none none of this would be happening today if not for your mother's love and the estimated 51,392 hours of labor that was required collectively of your mother's to bring your graduating classes smiling faces into this world. thank you mother's. this is a spectacular day in your lives. one one that will prove to be among the most memorable of life's mileposts. i am particularly excited to be here today given that i

too went to the university of north carolina at chapel hill. my freshman year i lived in the architectural triumph that is in james dormitory. i am a product of the kenan flagler undergraduate business school. in addition, i am also a product of unc's school of journalism and mass communication. which is soon to be rebranded unc school of media and journalism which is a fantastic moment of change for the school. it has been an absolute pleasure to be back on campus this weekend and to be welcomed by chancellor with a southern hospitality that can be found nowhere else on earth. your been mighty kind. so it must be said that

this year rather than choosing from any number of nobel prize laureates or political luminaries to be your commencement speaker you have chosen me the guy best known for making it easier to watch recent episodes of south park and family guy. [applause] so assuming that there were know jedi mind tricks involved it is clear to me that you have chutzpah and marcy. these two things will serve you well in life. i would like to share my story with you this morning. i i share it in the hopes that you may find some benefit. it is a story of dreams failure and loss perseverance and one unfortunate run-in with the authorities in southern california. in any event my story goes like this.

in 1993. in 1993 i sat in the same bleachers you currently find yourselves in adorned in my carolina blue graduation gown excited to graduate. my mother and father were there enjoying the glorious pageantry of it all. that day my parents got to meet the girl that i began dating months earlier junior at unc. perhaps you are experiencing similar family moments on campus this weekend and on franklin street. life is pretty good. in the months prior to my graduation i did everything i could to land a job in the machinery of hollywood. my dream dating back to when i was a kid was to follow in the footsteps of walt disney i had always been fascinated by stories well told and how disney leveraged technology in the interest of making them better.

for most of my senior year here i wrote to every executive i couldn't hollywood. the sum total of five months of letter writing and phone calling was a cavalcade of knows if i was lucky to get a reply and one informational interview for a movie production. the informational interview was to be conducted at universal studios in los angeles a few days after my graduation. i was not exactly off to a great start, but i was hopeful that things will improve. soon after my graduation ceremony ended that someday i kissed my girlfriend goodbye and gave big hugs to my mother and to my father. i made the cross-country drive in my 1982 subaru hatchback in record time trying to make an impact in los angeles doing something i love.

now, this is where the story veers from the expected command it is the 1st i have shared. a day after arriving in los angeles and on the heels of my informational interview at universal studios my mother cheerfully but bravely share the news over the phone that my dad had taken his life. he was 47 kind, loving husband of 27 years proud and wonderful father to six children accomplished professional having put himself through school are in 3 degrees. the man i admire most who taught me so much was gone from this world three days after our last simon is very stadium. things went poorly in the weeks and months of follow-up. that movie production job did not work out the way i hoped.

i was hired the oscilloscope this was also the time that i learned with the help of the northridge california police department at the cal state northridge parking deck was not looking to welcome recent college graduates living out of their subaru hatchback at night. i soon found myself working for a temp agency back, the east coast installing shelving at t.j. maxx that was undergoing renovation. i was personally lost and professionally about as far from my dreams as want to be i mentioned this part of my story because i want all of you to know that in your moment of personal and professional adversity that are sure to come you will not be alone. [applause]

everyone in the stadium everyone in this world has struggled and will struggle with personal loss and professional fill you. adversity is a necessary and important part of life. adversity strengthens us in ways that success cannot. the mountain peaks of one's life may get the headlines and the facebook posts but the valleys believe me command is your journey through the valleys that will define you. back with my dad and i took i took a cue from how my mom had always persevered through adversity. for 30 years she helped my dad successfully battle manic-depressive disorder.

and in that noble and successful fight she chose to face adversity with courage kindness, and optimism. i picked myself up eventually summer 93 making an important observation on the way. when things get tough i believe that we as a species surprise ourselves with how much strength we have deep within strike that we may never have previously known or been aware of. in the most trying times in unimaginable circumstances that wealth of strength can be drawn upon. we find that we can persevere. you can persevere. this leads me to the 2nd part of my story and this is a story about doing what you love taking risks and

never stop. i will be the 1st to admit that my career is not for most people and has been filled with unusual moments of taking risk. i got my 1st real job at the walt disney company by drawing myself into a comic strip rather than sending a resume. upon upon graduating from business school in 1997 with the debt level that approximated savini's gross domestic product is true. i jumped into a modestly salary home that a relatively small private company in the pacific northwest that was trying to sell stuff over the internet about that internet company my friends and family thought i was insane the other given the uncertainty and the traditional opportunities that would be forgoing.

but i was intoxicated by a very simple thing that this company offered. [laughter] ..

that i loved and passionately believe in and i am glad that i did. doing what you love pursuing your own path is often the most unsettling option at the outset. the path that's others have traveled before you, those are the path that's have greater visibility. they appear to be lower risk. they play better in conversations with the aunts, uncles and the neighbors. don't fall for it. you are better than that. you have the strength to go your own way. remember, i know that each of you has the bucket loads. i made the decision in 2007 to jump into a new chapter. this time to build a team from day one and to help to build accompany with a mission to reimagine how television programming was delivered. we decided to call the company hulu. in the earlier days ahead of

hulu's launch. the company and my decision to lead and help to build it were very publicly considered truly horrible terrible ideas. we were called clown co by the smartest people in silicon valley. the digital counter even ran on one of the tech industry's most respected websites to track just how many days it was going to take for the company to implode. it's true. the early days of human ewe were among the toughest in my career. i kept remining myself of the phrase that is was attributed to winston churchill. when you are going through hell. keep going. [laughter] here is the thing that i can't emphasize enough for you here today. most people that you run into, in life, including the smart ones, they will be a

verse to new things. they certainly were in my experience at human ewe and at amazon. the typical human response in the face of the new is to ignore, mock or dismiss it. new is scary. new is the unknown. most everyone does not believe that the new will work until it does. if you think that the world is broken in a certain way, and you have a great idea to fix it do yourself a favor and follow your convictions relentlessly. the path that i described will be an uncertain one. don't let the fear of uncertainty, of not having all of the answers to be the thing that holds you back from pursuing your dreams. at your age it is very natural to have so many questions. who will i be?

what do i want to do? where should i live? what makes me happy? it is easy to feel alone in this uncertainty. to feel bad that you don't have all of the answers. all of the details figured out though it emz so like your friends do. as you get older, you realize that no one has all of the answers. it turns out that life is an exercise in living with the certainty of uncertainty. human ewe ended up working out. consumers were ready for the new way to enjoy their favorite tv programs. none of this would happen in my career had i not chosen to ignore the conventional wisdom and pursue what i loved taking considered risk as long the way. when i found myself going through hell to keep going.

before i finish and let you get back to watching family guy on human ewe, i would like to bring thing full circle. here to keenan stadium. the girl from carolina the one from my own graduation that i mentioned at the start, well she is actually here in the stadium again today. she has four small humans in her wake that keep referring to me as their father. [laughter] [applause] >> i love you jamie more than you can know. i better get some brownie points for that.

[laughter] >> my motheral happens to be here today in this special stadium. [applause] my mother is taking in the glorious pageantry one more. and inspiring me each day with her choices of courage, kindness and optimism. and so now, grad waisting class of 2015. this is had your adventure begins. my wish is that you make it the most epic adventure possible.

dream, dream big. take risks. fail. pick yourself back up again. always always remember this. there is no adversity capable of stopping you once the choice to persevere is made. it h honor in the highest privileges to address new morning. i am rooting for each and every pun one of you. thank you and congratulations. [applause]

[applause] >> bernie sanders is holding a rally in burlington vermont. he beat long-time incumbent to become mayor. c-span will have the live coverage of the day 6:00 eastern. all this week as congress is in recess. book tv prime-time 8:00 eastern. to fight the focus is on economics and hall of mirrors. and then at 9:10, author of house of dead. and 9:30 henry paulson and author of we are better than this. and how the government will spend our money.

10:40. who wrote coined. and prime-time tonight, c-span. and freedom of speech. speakers include professor william marshall >> welcome to this afternoon session. i am bob brinkman at hofstra

university welcome to our beautiful campus. we have great sustainable efforts and our generation plant that produces green energy for us every day. thank you all for being here. today we have a very interesting set of papers and very esteemed panelist that's could be discussing it. afterwards i hope we have a great conversation going from the audience. today with us we have david cohen from the university of akron. john hopkins urine. and justin vaughan from boise state university. stephen knot from the naval war college. unfortunately could not make it today. and commitments in

washington. and after the papers and afterwards opening up for conversations. so without further adieu many of the first paper is we must work ever day to improve, the creation and the evolution of the homeland security infrastructure and in the gob white house. ter application o'sullivan. and i want to thank this conference this. is the third. and the presidential. and george bush. and a lowly graduate then and presented a paper on white house chief of staff a critical paper. and into the panel and he

was given a copy of the paper by andy card and proceed today read the not tire paper highlight that can as he went along and so if i can survive. and basically, survive and public speaking. from then on. and it is an interesting and first experience. and so looking forward to the 22 1/2 days of the conference. and functioning of the white house homeland security apparatus following 9/11 that would include the office of homeland security and homeland security defense council and the structure functioning for both organizations of course the position of homeland security.

and in our paper we pay particular attention to the historic evolution of the evolution. one things that is neat about our project is data from the papers and drawn from interviews conducted by three with the personnel. and high level staff that are working in hoep homoand are working in conjunction with the security council. and data from the various presidential document and executive orders and homeland security presidential direct ivs. so if you go back to september 11th, it was a classic triggering event to use the terminology of jones and really bush. the bush administration was given a great opportunity of those that would be able to reshape and restructure the organization of the federal

government like no other fdr and abraham lincoln. and provying clear support for the president bush's anti-terrorism policies. and the federal level. and particularly the beginning of the white house itself. and and 85% of respond ants said that another terrorist attack in the united states are likely somewhat likely. and in sweeping change. and refrain that everything changeded on september 11th. and united states government to defend against and defeat the threat of terrorism. and none the less you know. recommend ages for creating what became eventually the department of homeland

security were inissuely resisted and dismissed by the bush administration. because you know. those ideas were mainly coming from the democratic congress and the thought of that sweeping change really had not registered with the administration yet. and the urge to continue the bureaucratic politics as usual quickly evaporated as accusations of you know warning that's would go unheeded after 9/11 and intelligence farrell's began to leak in the immediate days after 9/11. so something would need to be done. and with great enthusiasm the administration quickly embraced the idea of a homeland security apparatus within the white house. and president bush announced in the televised address on september 20th as you could recall some of you to the joint session of congress the notion of creating this white house apparatus along with the cabinet level position that became the

homeland security adviser. and october 8th the plan was formalized when president bush issued the executive order 13228 that created the office of homeland security to how's the president. and ohs. and it was tasks with a responsibility. and including and getting together the federal state and local agencies to provide better intelligence to the present and to thwart future attacks. and 13228. also stipulate lated that ohs would be to be lead to the assistant to homeland security. and homeland security adviser. and ohs. in the direct our. remodelled after the modern day version of the security staff and the national security adviser. that was of the model that was going forward. a major difference between the two is institutions was that ohs was a creation of the executive order and nsc was a statutory creation that was born out of the national security act of

1947. thus bush had a freer hand to be able to create adapt and to change the ohs than was the case with the nfc. and also because of the ohs was a presidential creag. and not a congressional creation the director of ohs was not subject to the senate confirmation and nor required to be testified before congress when called. this in fact became a major source of frict with the use of budgets.

and so news reports regarding the creation of ohs were with concerns and lack of authority for the new ohs director. so both bush and register sought immediately to taft down criticisms and in the weekly address president bush made clear that ridge would have total access here, as well as the full support of the federal government as well as tom ridge would report directly to me and have the full support of the entire government. and the statement of support that in fact that he wouldn't be some be of importance. and assessments of the first several months of the new office reported ohs wasn't

functioning up to standards that the bush administration had set. and that many of the resisting change. and of course they would have no tools to be able to pumping punish the agencies. and it became you know. apparent quickly that without the authority that ridge did lack the necessary clout to numerous turf battles that you know ensued almost immediately. so by the spring of 20002, numerous media report surface that had the bush administration was rethinking that objections to the formal department of homeland security. and now, often one thing that was overlooked in the executive order that would create the office of homeland security was section five of the executive order and created the homeland security council that was a cabinet-level advisory council modelled after the national security council.

and like the nfc. homeland security meetings with the president off continue occurred in the white house situation room. and one of the thing that showed the difference i think with the two organizations was based on the office proximity to the oval office and the homeland security adviser never achieved the status of that and the national security adviser. and they both had an office homeland security advisory office was in the basement and the national security advisory was located a few doors down from the president. this is a clear indication of the prestige and access to bush that would be earned and not granted outright. if you know anything about west withining raechlt you no he how important it is to have an office. and close as possible to the oval office even if it is a broom closet. that is better than a spaceous office one floor up and one floor down. in terms of creating the

department of homeland security on june 5th, the bush administration kind of shocked the political an establishment by unveiling a plan for the dhs and bush announced the nationally televised address. and the plan was developed in secret. and many of the people in the administration had no idea that the administration was even going down that road. and um. of course the proposed governmental reorganization required the vehement denials for the need for the new organization. they had denied that for several months. legislation took just over five months to make away through congress that is rapid for such a large and massive restructuring of the federal government and we are talking about 22 existing agencies and 2 2,000 plus many employees that were taken from other agencies and some created and mashed together in the new organization that began

to function march 1st of 2003. and ridge left his position as ohs director and immediately became the first director of the department of homeland security. quickly, the title 9 of that legislation, the homeland security act. made permanent the homeland security counsel. and institution lied the council that exists for the day in the white house. and is still functioning. ohs no longer exists. you know. in the first year of fiscal year 2002 27 million to run ohs. and 130 individuals. two years later. ohs no longer existed the functions absorbed by the homeland security staff. the number of the employees to 35 and the budget will salooning to 7.2 bill million. i will hand it over to my colleague terry sullivan to bring it home. >> all right. i will keep this brief.

needless to say the homeland security act was strictly about terrorism. and to prevent the vulnerability. minimize the damage of the recovery from the terrorist acts in the united states. and obviously as we all know. hurricane katrina and three to four years later was a tremendous wake-up call to this man day. one of the thing that we do in the paper is to chronicle the position of fema and of the federal emergency management agency and the fact that it has a former director that of dubbed it had become a stepchild of the age see. so basically to the terrorism mandate. it is important to note that even after katrina. the terrorism mandate remains on the floor. to this day remains in the department of homeland security though there is an expansion of the natural disaster mandate.

but this is attention that clearly existed in the white house apparatus as well. and continues. we argued to be the point of contention as well. and that the dhs and also the subsequent obama administration change of which the staff of the homeland security council of put under the national security council, i think it has become evident that the national security terrorism mandate is still largely at the floor. there are questions that we will have to start to discuss in the conclusion can whether there is going to be more of an institutional particularly a leadership role that deals with the natural disasters and growing sets of national disasters. natural disasters are increasingly a problem with the united states. slow ones and a cute ones as

well. tremendous over a million-dollar weather disaster that's are on the rise as we saw this last winter. and so the question of what homeland security is continues to be the ongoing issue. and so grief brief leash the lesson that's were learned among the many that we will not have the chance to get into it is clear from the rich discussion that's we have had in our interviewees that we have the flexibility. and the adaptability of the small team of the people. many of whom had work together in other agencies. the department of transportation and otherwise. was key to being able to burn through a lot of the red tape and the turf. in the beginning so, ohs, and hsc staff and the people that were tasked to that were lean mean. and essentially able to subvert in many ways the say the nature of the national security council that was

the big kahuna since 1947. and so many of the other bureaucratic you know. issues and problems of which are moving forward, flexible. and in many ways what became a more normalized institutionalized department of homeland security and even as a case may be within the white house a more integrated hsc. and so i think that it is going to be an interesting discussion of those that are a larger project and among other things we are hopping to find out some of the details about how people saw transitions in the later stages in the obama administration as it occurred. and it is evident that this small team from the a leadership percent pctive was able to help to corrall agencies and people that

might not otherwise have been willing and able to do so to respond quickly as one of the participants where multiple times that they unlike the 1947 national security council did not have the luxury of the time hsc. and apparatus of the threat of terrorism potential, additional terrorism. and trying to change attire on a truck when it is going down the highway at 60 miles per hour and they did an amazing job to adapt to the circumstances of the time. and cutting through the red tape. and essentially. setting a stage for them. the normalization and this greatest reorganization of government since world war ii. a creation of the department of homeland security. we will leave it at that. [applause] thank you. thank you for that presentation. we will move on to the next

paper which is strategic staffing after 9/11. and george bush's national security guard by boise state university. thank you. professor brink man i am honored to be here. they have acknowledged that this is a confrence series is, tree, the reputation. and i am delighted to be apart of this this year's event. and before i get started. thanks to the center for putting this on. and to richard for putting together the great program. as that program indicates the title of my paper is strategic staffing after 9/11. and focuses on the george bush administration's utilization of what are often called presidential policies czars. and particularly how bush used these policy czarres to manage key aspects of the war on terror and at various

times and various ways in the years following the terrorist attacks of september 11th 2001. research that i presented in the paper. that i would talk about this afternoon, comes from abroader project of czars in general. and my partner in the project. dr. jose villalobos owes and i are publishing a book this summer to focus on the evolution and the rise of presidential policies czars as a managerial tool for those of that you are starting christmas shopping early. it will come out in june. and it is a fit into the stocking and if you are celebrating holidays in july. i am happy to autograph them. we will talk after the panel about that. in the meantime the research that went into that book was motivated by that of which president ob