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tv   Key Capitol Hill Hearings  CSPAN  December 1, 2015 8:00am-9:01am EST

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to make the effort. >> if i could just follow up on action at that point i think martha illustrates well, an argument, it seems to be implicit in much of paper and your book and what you just said that there wasn't this was a very organized, bush's management style for the transition, 2008, 2009, was indicative of management style of the presidency at that is consequential for his legacy. i think that's what i took from part of what you were saying, and then for shirley and anne graham i think the two digits of a bushes political ideology. it's not within orthodox conservative, was he a hybrid conservative, how did the policy, you're both saying rather look at his policies we have to understand is ideology, in overtime as how you view that ideology will shape how you view his legacy, right? possessing about there?
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okay. so different approach. >> let's focus in on the keyboard you brought up i think which is why we are here which is a question of legacy. and that is obviously, it's not too soon to do because we are here. so what do you perceive to be bushes long-term legacy? just at the context here for everyone. agenda president bush left office with a remarkably low approval rating. during that time there was a lot of discussion of the revived historical legacy of another in the left the white house with a remarkably low approval rating and that was harry truman who left of course from quite a blogger and some schooling was thought of as perhaps one of the greatest presidents largely to revision and largely due to david mccullough. consequently there was some discussion with in bush circles that long-term history will prove this out. look at truman as an example. i'm curious what the panel thinks of not only the font that
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bush's legacy will evolve over time what you think ultimate it will land up on? >> i think that bush's legacy will evolve. i think that, what did he leave, 19% approval rating? it's gone up now a little bit, that what, time heals all wounds to some extent. and that the bush legacy will is the war in iraq. so the question is, at i don't see that changing right now, has the war in iraq, have we as a society move past the war in iraq? added don't think we have. i think the bush legacy, as much of the talk about the faith-based initiatives and would talk about some of the other things that happened in the bush administration, george w. bush, the only thing that
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points are a big part of george w. bush's legacy is barack obama. had bushes presidency that ended so terribly, i do think the united states would've ever elected a black liberal as president. so really i think obama has bush to thank for his job. >> do you think we would've elected mccain speak was i'm not sure. second point i'd make is ordinarily, i think after
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vietnam that you be really owned the issue of national security. certainly from the '80s onward. i think bush changed that and that they should no longer helps the gop. and that's a big issue. whenever national security is prominent that no longer feeds into the gop's it about coral prospects necessarily. and i mean, look, at the end of the day the last point i would take is for mr. bush there is nowhere to go but up, so then necessary to stand will increase as figures go by. it couldn't get much worse, could? >> i think it's been going up, if the middle east is just such a volatile area. and in part it will depend, his legacy will depend in ways of how the people see what's happening in the middle east as a direct result of actions that
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we took. but i think that people remember george bush and september 11, and how he handled that and the response in afghanistan. so i think that is going to be a big part of it. but for my piece of this puzzle, legacy, his legacy is on transition. hopefully is going to be a standard that he set for how you leave office, the kind of information you gather, how long it takes to do it, how broad you cast a net to gather the information. and the way that you work with the incoming team. it doesn't only does it help the incoming team, but it helps the outgoing president as well. because of the goodwill that is built but also the materials he gathered, like the 40 memoranda that happily produced, that
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those becomes documents about the administration and what they did and how they saw things working through their time. site think a good legacy, at the transition out benefits everybody. >> if i could make an observation about your responses, that one of the fascinating things i think about legacy is a think of bush as so contentious still six or so years after his presidency. i think it's because in large part the answers that one gives to the question of what is bushes long-term legacy are interpreted or coded good or bad depending on where you are but the answer doesn't change. so, for example, professor so, for example, professor can imagine bushes long-term legacy is the iraq war. and by extension i think what it said his long-term legacy of the iraq war and the fight against global terror. >> i didn't say that. >> okay. let me, my apologies.
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you are ruining my point of the spear but it's an important distinction. >> so even with, a point which i would make is that bush's war on iraq is interpreted in different parts of the country as part of the war on terror to a different, to different degrees. so if one were to be in, let's say, i don't know, new york city, and one were to talk with the war in iraq, people immediately say, largely that was a mistake. and other places in the country people look at the war in iraq and say it may have not been run particularly will but it was done for the right reasons. and i think it's fascinating to me we could look at 9/11 or look at so many of the other issues and say that the reason that people give for liking this president are the same reason people give for disliking this president, but it's the same reason. if you know, i will accept you believe what i say.
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[laughter] i think it's also important to note this question depends on where you are in the world. if you go to africa and ask what his legacy is, he's actually popular president because of what he did for pepfar and cervical cancer and aids. it's a remarkable how the president could have legacies not only that the country but throughout the world as well. that something i think will change over time. if i could ask one more question before i throw it to the crowd. one of the names that has come up numerous times in this conference that occurred was not george w. bush but jeb bush. and legacy or the looming prospect of another bush presidency. and to that effect one of the things i've been surprised by attending this conference is how little we've heard of george h. w. bush. is this not a name that is, quite frankly. i was wanting, such all experts on ideology if you could give us your sense, and this was touched on, where george w. bush fits within his ideology, vis-à-vis
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his father, vis-à-vis his brother, and then we see anything about the bush ideology writ large? you didn't like the last one so -- [laughter] >> that's a great question. george h. w. bush i thought was what is the most qualified people we've had for the president given us tremendous background in government. one of the problems with being president is there's no training ground. ground. being a innocent, somewhat of a training ground. i think being governor of a major state which is one of the strengths of ronald reagan was a huge benefit because they deal with legislatures. california has a strong executive. i think if you're in one of the panels of the sport, howard dean was taught about george w. bush was in the state, was essentially the governor has zero power, lieutenant governor actually has more power. he didn't have a strength of
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running for government. for president. what makes george h. w. bush, let me take that back. george h. w. bush was come as remember iran's in 1979 against ronald reagan in the primaries and it's a very bitter primary because he's with the moderate republican. ronald reagan is far, not far, to the right of george h. w. bush. there's no sense that george h. w. bush is ever really at the conservative. he's a business person who has business interests. remember his father was a very moderate republican senator from connecticut. connecticut is not known for their deep conservative political roots. certainly if they have -- but george h. to the bush is never really a conservative republican. but he did have some
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conservative republicans in this administration as we later saw, particularly a fellow named dick cheney becomes a secretary of defense. george w. bush, as i said, really is a hybrid. his political ideology is so deeply invested in his personal born-again christianity, and he carries, interestingly enough, some of his dad's moderate republican roots but he lived in texas. when you live in texas as karl rove did in 1994, moved into the right of who he had been before that. jeb bush is an interesting guy. jeb bush is, i would say, had been the most moderate of the three of them. he's married of course, his wife is hispanic. makes a big difference in who you are in understanding diverse
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cultures in understanding whether it be prejudiced. he lived in a very different world than either his father or his brother. he has, however, moved to the right to capture as we talked about, you know, you move to the right to capture either, new hampshire, south carolina. whether he can find his own political al all the only, i'm t sure know what jeb bush's political ideology is in the same way you did know what george w. bush's political ideology is. clearly he is more moderate than some of the other republican candidates running but can we find i think the question was, can we find a thread between them? i would say that there moderate conservatives who will move their political ideology as necessary. >> in looking for george h. w. bush and george w. bush, george w. bush learned from his father.
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this morning i think maybe it was ed rollins who talk about that and his press conferences and the way he handled the relationship with the media. george h. w. bush was are interested in relationships. he was interested in his relationships with people on the hill, with foreign leaders he would call foreign leaders just to talk to them, to establish a relationship so that when the time came that he needed to talk to them over a particular issue, ma that they already had an established relationship. and so he encouraged people to come to the u.s., foreign leaders, to come to the u.s. and one of the things he developed was he developed joint press conferences with foreign leaders, that all of his successors have followed.
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he did the same with the press. i think he thought of the press as a group that he needed to deal with and have a good relationship with, and he often thought of those in personal terms. you think of his relationship with "time" magazine that was a very close one. and, in fact, at the memorial service for society, which delivered a eulogy which he couldn't finish because he was crying and so his sister read the rest of it. and they use it to encourage reporters when they came to kennebunkport in the summer to bring their families, and then they would, bush had a party for them. george w. bush did some of that, but not in the same way. because he was more distant from
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them in crawford. but i think, so george h. w. bush can't think of the press as a group you need to satisfy. he would say to his press secretary, well, what are they saying a? is the pressure building? because he understood that the pressure builds in that briefing room at its heart on a press secretary, and so when it built to hide he would say, let's do a press conference. when george w. bush cayman he wanted to make news on his terms, and you only had a press conference, dealt with the press when you have something specific that you wanted to say. >> we are not having our presenter storm off the stage, but she has to leave and let's give her a chance. thank you. [applause] i know we've run out of time but did want to take a couple of audience questions if you can maybe go for 10 minutes, if not a? did you want to respond speak
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with a couple quick points. one of the ways in which a lot of people try to make sense of george w. bush is to reduce psychology as sort of hardwired with a directive don't do what dad did. you can see this in terms of his writing in his book about his father. he learned the lesson of don't alienate the base or else pat buchanan will finish in a primary campaign. don't neglect, don't be over delivered a, be decisive. and talk about how you are from the sun belt, a western republic and not a moderate new england republican. i think there's a lot to that. in terms of the jeb bush, he would have to establish himself from both bush one and bush 2 would require some sort of clintonian triangulation which i won a sketchier. >> i think we've raised so many topics about ideology, policy, issues, transition, management
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and then through the course of the conference examining each of these topics in more categories. why don't we opened it up and see if we have a few questions that we can address in the time we have left? we have a mic. ed rollins is right there. >> at the end of his very superb conference, you tapped into something that's very instrumental. you have to remember george h. w. bush had all the time i would have wanted to be president even before a lot of people thought he was qualified to be president and got to be president because ronald reagan chosen reagan chosen at the less than at the convention and i was very involved in the first two choices. you could have to governors, to webster's next to each other. you could have a football player and a movie star. george h. w. bush was a
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wonderful man and i think history will basically reflect back on it but george w. bush was not his favorite son. george w. was his oldest son, never viewed as the politician and the family. jeb bush was a politician. they both went for cover at the same time and jeb bush would have won. george w. bush in that it ended up in the president. george w. examined i think closely the failure of his father because father got 37% of the vote and the most largest defection among republicans of any president other than william howard taft in 1941 teddy roosevelt rant against them. i think of a certain extent he was in his father's political some. he loved his father david. i don't think he saw his father as the governing model, and i think he thought that ronald reagan basically so dismissed by his father as i think a significant as he may be. i think you saw reagan as kind
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of a model and i think to a certain extent the george h. w., george w. bush relationship developed over time but i think that karl rove and george w. bush himself realized today conservatives the party was no longer in northeasnortheas t republican party. you could not lose 29% of republicans and be successful. you had to reinforce the base and i think that's what drove a lot of it. i think he started to touch on that. i also thought katrina, even though the war was never important, katrina was the breaking point. katrina was the point where people all of a sudden were saying, this is not a competent administration. you let an american city ground. you can't do that and be confident and a compilation of brownie and all the rest of it was a significant breaking point. that's the only thing i would say, just my own knowledge. >> thank you. >> i think one thing that's crucial to remember about george
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w. bush, especially in comparison to his father, and this is something that he has said that his father said, that his mother has said so it's not just the singer i'm just channeling their memoirs. that during childhood, during is truly formative years out in west texas his father was largely absent because his father was on the road as a salesman and trying to build his career. so consequently he's really thinks of himself in many ways as, idolizing his father and went to live up to his father as any some wood, but he also thinks of himself as his mother's son and how he relates to people. >> do we have a question from a student? i see a student right there. right in the middle. >> sorry, to the student here. sorry. you both -- okay. go ahead, that's fine.
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we will take both of those. >> we'll come right back to you. sorry about that. go ahead. [inaudible] will. [inaudible] >> you talked a lot about the transition and how important they are. with that being said, do you think there will be a different model of transition planning, depending on whether jeb or hillary, you know, win, then both are going to be running obviously, to think to be a different transition model based on who wins comprehensive team -- twentysomething inauguration? also do think that country depend on who wins we're going to have, might, like, what do
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you think the country's attitude will be if it turns out being exactly as expected which went up another bush or clinton? >> well, i think that obama has a stake in preparing the kind of transition that bush did because i do think it's important for his legacy as well as for whoever comes in. and i think in hillary clinton's case i think she will start early. she did in 2008, she had robert altman working on transition issues come and she has john podesta is going to be managing the campaign, and he certainly knew how to run a transition. one of the ideas in the past was that you can't have large agency
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review teams. you can't manage, you know, several hundred people. between the policy and agency review teams, there were 570 people, and it all worked very smoothly. so he knows how to run a transition. and i think that one of the things that's happened in the last few presidencies is that the people who have worked in transitions have built up an institutional memory is passed along. for democrats, after, when carter left office, harrison welford who was doing the white house peace gathered materials which were used for mondale. they then were developed more for, that went along with john kerry. he used that. jim johnson was running that transition effort, and jim
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johnson took the papers that they had developed and gave them to the obama team. and mike leavitt did a very good job in his information, too, will be brought over to have a the republican candidate is. so i think now there's just and a lot more information out there. so i think that we won't go through having a president elect who doesn't know much coming into the presidency. they will prepare well, no matter who they are. but i think both of them as a governor, jeb bush is going to be interested in management. i think hillary clinton as a department secretary also will be interested in management. because the stakes in getting off well at the beginning are huge because you have a goodwill
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both by the people, the people not only want you to succeed. if you look at the difference between what somebody's vote percentage was and then look at their gallup polls as they begin office, you can see a 20% rise in some of them. so the public wants to get a new president a chance, and they are listening and watching. they will tire of the president after a while and not too into his state of the union messages and that sort of thing, but he has the attention. but the difficulty is that he has the attention of the public but he's least able, or she, the least able to take advantage of it because they haven't covered and they are just coming in. and they are an inexperienced team. so that is the difficulty, but i think preparation, everybody recognizes that it's essential. it's not a matter of hubris or
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arrogance. it's something that needs to be done. >> thank you, martha. and great question. last question so make it a good one. >> thank you all. this is an awesome panel. i would just like to point out, or just the author come speaking as a student and as someone who's grown up in an different generation, my world is different than almost anybody on every panel. because we are a lot younger. that's not an insult to anybody. i guess all the students are, we are the 9/11 generation. we grew up with the tsa and the color days and the people with, submachine guns and penn station and everything. i would just like to get your reaction to the statement that george w. bush's legacy will be how we first started the war on terror and we basically changed the world in the way we live. our world is totally different now than it was 20 years ago because of the steps he and his
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administration took to fight terror after september 11 and i think that would be his biggest overall legacy into a rapport will get lumped in with the afghanistan war and all the other foreign policy things. i think that's he will be remembered. i just want to get your reaction. >> i think he is acting in response to the attacks on the united states. it's not as if we just went into afghanistan. he's responding to attacks. so people are going to remember the attacks as well. >> you know, i have to confess i'm not one of these people who keep saying 9/11 changed everything. rudy giuliani said so much almost got elected to higher office. i think it's important of course, god knows, but i think in the broader stretch of time it can be seen more as accelerating and exacerbating pre-existing trends then introducing things that were new. i mean, time will tell.
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speed and let me pick up on the point because that's a key one that one question we have to ask myself when think about the legacy of any later by president the particular with so much power and influence around the world is how much their policies actually matter for the long-term trajectory of the nation. they get blamed for everything and they get credit for everything but how much they really matter. one way to think about the legacy of bush it strikes me us remember that after the invasion of afghanistan there was a renewed excitement for the united states as being at the height of its unipolar moment. the united states might achieve hegemony at the end of the cold war there was something no power is going to do was go to the country. no one was asking that question in 2008. i don't think it was because of the policies of the bush administration pursued that were the cost of that change, but rather i think some of the policies of the bush
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administration pursued revealed that change, but the rest of the world have simply caught up to the united states in many ways, and with perhaps some people within the united states were at the time not willing to recognize and still may not be. >> i think it's a great question and it makes me think that maybe another five years to get to another george w. bush conference before obama because i think it's very difficult to say, 9/11 defined the george w. bush presidency but it will not be definitive for the george w. bush presidency and i think you look ahmadinejad, moving into the city anniversary of the voter rights act and you'll get johnson great society and vietnam and how he came to office and the transfer of power, and his decision not to run for reelection. with the passage of time i think you see the major tragedy, major, right, challenges, crises, tragedy and did you also
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look at the series of reactions. we talked about between has come up come economic policy, social security, immigration, medicare. so i think the answer is that it will be a large part of the presidency but i think a full evaluation of the transition and everything that martha brought up about the orderliness, again how many aspects of the art of the presidency. so i think this is a source for some debate about whether the legacy is decided no, i think that many part of the legacy means we can't, i would say that there is no single factor that would define the legacy, and as we look at ideology that our presidents place in american politics provides opportunities for action, that will shape how president bush responded to the challenges of his time. so i think with that, we're leaving on a note of continued reflection and gratitude for
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engaging in a series of discussion over the last three days. to be continued. thank you. [applause] ..
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>> the president of pair gray has the floor. -- [applause] [inaudible]. >> translator: the president of the french republic, francois hollande, secretary-general of the united nations, mr. ban ki-moon, president of cop 21, ladyies and gentlemen, heads of state and governments, excellencies, i would like to reiterate president hollande and
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his government and the french people the most heartfelt condolences and our utmost solidarity. in light of the horrendous crimes committed in paris on the 13th of this month. we and our generation are living at a critical juncture. we have the enormous and pressing responsibility of tackling the environmental challenge that we are living through and this conference is an opportunity for nations to adopt ire gent measures in order to curb the causes of, and consequences of climate change. in his encyclical, his holiness, pope francis, provides a stark
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warning. in order to face this crisis and protect sources of life, he states that never have we so hurt and mistreated our common home as we have in the last 200 years. and now today it is up to us to change history, beginning today, in order to reverse the failure of past climate conferences. paraguay has great potential for sustainable development with valuable natural resources, abundant fresh water, fertile soil and wide-ranging biodiversity that is of global significance. paraguay is the greatest per capita producer and greatest exporter of clean renewable power in the world. we have hydroelectric dams.
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paraguay is one of the few countries in the whole world that consumes almost 100% electric that is of a clean and renewable source. it is has the world record for production of 2.3 billion-megawatt per hour which avoids the use of 440,000-barrels of oil per day. and with that then, it avoids the emission of 88 million-tons of carbon dioxide per year. it protects more than 1000 hectares of forest, according to the world wildlife fund that produce oxygen for over 20 million people. the other dam protects
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22,000 hectares of forest and mitigates carbon dioxide emissions to the tune of 20 million tons per year. we produce food for the world. food that is obtained through good agricultural practices with low emissions of greenhouse gases in our productive processes. paraguay has 18.5 million hectares of forest representing 45% of our territory and has value of 2.9 hectares of forest per capita. 15% of our nation correspond to protected wildlife areas. in paraguay we are renewing our public transport fleets, investing in new technologies that are multimodal and
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efficient for reducing the use of fossil fuels. we are carrying out historic investment in in health infrastructure to improve the quality of our water resources and the quality of life for our people. we are undertaking a national for rest station, reforestation program to reduce pressure on native forests, developing a sustainable energy framework. though paraguay does not make significant contributions to global emissions we suffer from consequences of climate change. a commitment as part of this convention paraguay has present ad proposal national contributions and actions for low carbon growth. president, we know the agreement adopted in conference is very
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ambitious and it's a challenge. it is nothing less and nothing more than the protection of our planet in the face of devastating effects of unbridled consumerism. the success of this dialogue will pave the way for countries to improve the quality of life for the most vulnerable sectors. we today have not only the opportunity but also the responsibility to draft objectives for a new agreement on the climate and preserve your future for future generations. i will conclude my statement quotes once again pope francis in his fame must encyclical letter which is landmark against indifference, often occurs in periods of crisis which require bold decisions we are tempted to think what is happen something not entirely clear. superficially, apart from a few obvious signs of pollution and deterioration, things do not look that serious.
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and the planet could continue as it is for some time. such evasiveness serves as a license for carrying on with our present lifestyle and modals of production and consumption. president, excellencies, let's change history and let's wake up and hear the urgent call to look after our sources of life. let's not lose sight of the fact the final goal of our efforts as governors is the well-being of our peoples with deep respect for human dignity. thank you very much. [applause] >> translator: thank you, president. morocco will host the next cop. his majesty muhammad vi has done a great deal of work to combat climate for years among us. as he lost his voice he unfortunately will not be able
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to deliver his statement which i will be read by his royal highness who i give the floor to. mr. president, secretary general of the united nations, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, his majesty muhammad vi, i'm his son gave me honor of making royal statement at the 21st conference of parties, united nations framework convention on climate change. praise to god. peace and blessing be on the prophet. ladies and gentlemen, distinguished heads of state and
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governments, secretary-general of the united nation, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, our meeting today in paris is not and no longer can be one of those summits and conferences that the community of nations regularly puts on the agenda of international relations. allow me to say frankly that it will no longer be the case, because the paris conference, and the one that my country has offered to host in a year's time in marrakesh will be instrumental in shaping the future which we are duty-bound to bequeath to our children. our children whom we do not want to see deprived forests, oceans, coastlines and all these natural resources which are the hallmarks of mankind's most valuable heritage, a heritage
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which is threatened today because the international community has been unable or unwilling to come together in time and muster the means needed to have better control over its own destiny. today we are aware, all of us, of the devastating effects of global warming on the planet, and of the urgent needs to match words with deeds. your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, what is at stake in our discussions is neither idealogical, nor diplomatic nor economic in the traditional sense of our previous discussions and meetings. we all now realize that the threat is global. indeed there is not a single country, region or continent that will be spared of consequences of climate change. doubt and skepticism are no longer acceptable. nor will it be possible to
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continue using the alibi of wrong priorities. the community of nations has for far too long turned its back on our children's destiny and future. for a long time we chose to turn a blind eye. for far too long, we have delayed the moment of awareness. we have been playing with hypotheses that have proved to be ways of evading the issue but the facts speak for themselves. ice sheets are melting. sea and ocean levels are rising. shores are gradually being eroded. water sources are becoming scarce. agricultural output is threatened. increasingly deadly floods coming on heels of droughts just as distressing. that is why i have to deliberately chosen to avoid technical analysis or academic
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discourse. instead, i want to pay tribute to the scientists and specialist who is are experts in the field. we have to make sure that unanimity which is not easily and instantaneously obtainable in this area does not become a deal breaker that would justify foot-dragging by some and illusions arising from the inaction of others. in this respect we must patiently, resolutely and determinely build what is possible and obtainable. only through effective action and tangible results that we can overcome reluctance and resistance. your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, in keeping with this perspective that of realism and anticipation and action i should like to mention the strategy that the kingdom of morocco has been implementing for more than half a century. to begin with, water, the source
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of life and crucial daily concern for every moroccan. what were to become morocco in this respect if not for the dam building policy which is groundbreaking farsighted policy initiated in the 1960s, by our refather, our late majesty, king hassan ii. may he rest in peace. central structural accomplishments for morocco's future we sought to strengthen it which has allowed the kingdom to have 140 large dams, nearly a third of which have been built during the last 15 years. thanks to this policy, morocco is successfully dealing with the effects of drought while in some developed countries, amid seasonal rain gives rise to a warning that exceptional severe drought is feared. the kingdom's commitment, committed action, is also illustrated by the development
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of water sheds make it possible to channel water without destroying or disrupting ecosystems. morocco has also developed, without some difficulty defending when negotiating with its partners a responsible fish orreries policy to protect its fish stocks. excellency, ladies and gentlemen, since the world became aware of the urgent need to address climate change in rio in 1992 the kingdom of morocco has resolutely sought to insure proactive policy on sustainable development and environmental protection is in line with the global efforts of the international community. it has done this through a series of constitutional, legislative, institutional and regulatory reforms. the environment charter, the green morocco plan, the green investment plan, the ban on gmos, and the recent law on plastic waste, all clearly
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reflects our commitment and consistency. more recently, and in line with the same approach favoring long-term objectives the king kingdom of morocco has become one of the major actors in the global energy transition around the world and especially on the african continent. thus the objective of securing 42% set for the country's energy mix to be drawn from renewable sources by 2020 has recently been increased to 52% by 2030. more rork co's ambitious, substantial internationally determined contribution under the united nations framework convention on climate change confirms the kingdom's avant-garde proactive approach. building on this irreversible commitment, morocco is bidding
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to host the cop 22 in marrakesh in 2016. that is why i made the tank gear call appeal on the 20th of september together with his excellency, president francois hollande, this reflects our commitment to work hand in hand for the success of these events that are crucial to our destiny. it is important that states one stage leads to the next and the road ahead will be long. habits will have to be changed, priorities set and new technologies invented and regular assessments will have to be accepted. excellencieses, ladies and gentlemen, the climate is suffered by most vulnerable. the consequences of climate change affects developing nations as much if not more than developed countries, especially the least advanced african and latin american states and small island states.
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alarm bells have been heard even by the deaf. there is broad awareness, yes. developing countries are progressing -- producing their own strategies. they're moving forward, charting their own course amid constraints which can no longer be ignored. first there is a need to make sure that their populations enjoy decent living conditions. is it fair to advocate frugality when one already has everything or where one has little is it a crime to the planet to want more? -- sustainable when it leaves the majority of people living in poverty? is it appropriate that prescriptions for climate protection be dictated by those who bear the greatest responsibility for global warming? the african continent deserves special attention. the whole of africa is waking
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up. africa is discovering itself and gaining confidence. therefore in africa, the continent of the future that the planet's future will be decided n this context promoting transfer of technology and raising funds particularly for developing countries is fundamental. be careful because we need to guard against compelling these countries to choose between economic development and protection of the environment. developing countries commitment to combat the effects of climate change must also take into account their respective development models, and their customs. thus, in the countries of the north consumer habits regarding food, for instance, produce large amounts of non-degradable waste. likewise, in developing countries, the fight against plastic bags, for example, is a
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genuine challenge. people do not think of getting rid of these bags but rather filling them to meet their needs. and this is a question of education. that is why in both cases, binding regulations are needed. the fight against waste should not be synonymous with technophobe yaw with a rejection much progress or a return to the stone age. on the contrary, technological advances should be used effectively so as to reduce the impact of global warming. presidents, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, a genuine inclusive international consensus is imperative. it requires that we support developing countries in their endeavor to fully embrace the climate action agenda. the paris conference gives us the opportunity to consolidate a
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comprehensive operational balance, universal legal instrument that will make it possible to keep global warming below two degrees celsius and move towards a low-carbon economy. i would like to conclude by wishing this conference every success. i also want to thank president francois hollande and france for the commitment and dedication they have shown to make cop 21 a successful meeting that makes history and fosters hope. maintaining this conference and insuring its success is the most elegant tribute we can pay to the french people who have recently been affected by the despicable terrorist attacks. this is best response to obscuring and enemies of
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humanity. thank you. [applause] >> translator: i thank the majesty and i call upon barack obama, president of the united states of america, to approach the rostrum. [applause] >> president hollande, mr. secretary-general, fellow leaders. we have come to paris to show our resolve. we offer our condolences to the people of france for the barbaric attacks on this beautiful city. we stand united in solidarity not only to deliver justice to the terrorist network responsible for those attacks
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but to protect our people and uphold the enduring values that keep us strong and keep us free. and we salute the people of paris for insisting this crucial conference go on. an act of defiance that proves nothing will deter us from building the future we want for our children. what greater rejection of those who would tear down our world than marshaling our best efforts to save it. nearly 200 nations have assembled here this week. a declaration for all of the challenges we face, the growing threat of climate change could define the contours this century more dramatically than any other. and what should give us hope?
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that this is a turning point. that this is the moment we finally determine we would save our planet. is the fact that our nations share a sense of urgency about this challenge, and, a growing realization that it is within our power to do something about it. our understanding of the ways of human beings disrupt the climate, advances by the day. 14 of the 15 warmest years on record have occurred since the year 2000. 2015 is on pace to be the warmest year of all. no nation, large or small, wealthy or poor, is immune to what this means. this summer i saw the effects of
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climate change first-hand in our northernmost state, alaska, where the sea is already swallowing villages and eroding shorelines. where permafrost thaws and the tundra burns. where glaciers are melting at a pace unprecedented in modern times t was a preview of one possible future. a glimpse of our childrens fate if the climate keeps changing faster than our efforts to address it. submerged countries, abandoned cities, fields that no longer grow. political disruptions that trigger new conflict. even more floods of desperate peoples seeking sanctuary of nations not their own. that future is not one of strong economies nor is it one where fragile states can find their footing that future is one that
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we have the power to change. right here. right now. but only if we rise to this moment. as one of america's governors has said, we are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change and the last generation that can do something about it. i've come here personally as the leader of the world's largest economy and the second largest emitter to say that the united states of america not only recognizes our role in creating this problem, we embrace our responsibility to do something about it. over the last seven years we have made ambitious investments in clean energy, and ambitious
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reductions in our carbon emissions. we multiplied wind power threefold, solar power more than 20 fold, helping create parts of america where these clean power sources are finally cheaper than dirtier conventional power. we've invested in energy efficiency and in every way imaginable. we said no to infrastructure that would pull high-carbon fossil fuels from the ground. and we have said yes to the first-ever set of national standards limiting the amount of carbon pollution our power plants can release into the sky. the advances we have made have helped drive our economic output to all-time highs and drive our carbon pollution to its lowest levels in nearly two decades. but the good news is this is not an american trend alone. last year the global

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