well aware that for far too long these challenges have been dismissed by some as women's issues. those days are over fair pay and fair scheduling p.m. earned sick days, child care are essential to our competitiveness and our growth. this doesn't pose an unfair burden on businesses. i will fight for families first just like i have my entire career. >> beyond strong growth, we need fair growth, and that will be the second key driver of raising

income s incomes inequality is the dreg on our economy. you may have heard governor bush say americans need to work longer hours. he must not have met very many american workers. let him tell that to the nurse who stands on her feet all day or the teacher who is in that classroom or the trucker who drives all night. let him tell that to the fast food workers marching in the streets for better pay. they don't need a lecture. they need a raise.

[ applause ] the truth is the current rules for our economy do reward some work. much more than other work like actually building and selling things. the work that has always been the backbone of our economy. to get all incomes rising again, we need to strike a better balance. if you work hard, you ought to be paid fairly. we do have to raise the minimum wage and implement president obama's new rules on overtime, and then we have to go further. i'll crack down on bosses who exploit employees by misclassifying them as contractors or even steal their wage s

wages to make paychecks stretch we need to take on the major strain strains on family budgets. i'll protect the affordable care act and lower out of pocket health care cost ss so you and to make prescription drugs more affordable. we'll help families look forward to retirement by defending and enhancing social security and making it easier to save for the future. many of these proposals are time tested and more than a little battle scarred. we need new ideas as well. and one that i believe in and will fight for is profit sharing. hardworking americans deserve to benefit from the record corporate earnings they help

produce. i will propose ways to encourage companies to share profits with their employees. that's good for workers, and good for businesses. studies show that profit sharing that gives everyone a stake in a company's success can boost productivity and put money directly into employees pockets it's a win win. later this week in new hampshire. i'll have more to say about how we do this. >> another priority must be reforming our tax code. now, we hear republican candidates talk a lot about tax reform but take a good look at their plans. senator rubio's would cut taxes for households making around $3 million a year by almost $240,000. which is way more than three times the earnings of a typical family. well that's a sure budget

busting giveaway to the super wealthy, that's the kind of bad economics you're likely to hear from any of the candidates on the other side. i have a different take. hardworking families need and deserve tax relief. those at the top have to pay their fair share that's why i support the buffet rule. let's make sure that millionaires don't pay lower rates than their secretaries. i've also called for carrying the carry interest loophole. let's agree that hugely successful companyings that benefit from everything america has to offer should not be able to game the system and avoid paying their fair share. especially while companies who can't afford high priced lawyers

and lobbyists end up paying more. alongside tax reform it's time to stand up to efforts across our country to undermine worker bargaining power, which has been proven again and again to drive up wages. republican governors like scott walker have made their names stomping on worker's rights and practically all the republican candidates hope to do the same as president. i will fight back against these mean spirited misguided attacks. evidence shows that the decline of unions may be responsible for a third of the increase of inequality among men.

so if we want to get serious about raising incomes we have to get serious about supporting union workers. let me just say a word here about trade. the greek crisis as well as the chinese stock market have reminded us that growth here at home and growth an ocean away are linked in a common global economy. trade has been a major driver of the economy over recent decades, it's also contributed to hollowing out our manufacturing base and many hardworking communities. so we do need to set a high bar for trade agreements, we should support them if they create jobs and raise our national security. we should be prepared to walk away with they don't. to create fair growth. we need to create opportunity

for more americans. i love the saying about abraham lincoln who in many ways not only was the president who saved our union. the importance of government playing its role in providing opportunities. you talk about giving americans a fair chance in the race of life. i believe that with all my heart. i also believe it has to start really early at birth. high quality early learning especially in the first five years, can set children on the course for future success and raise lifetime incomes by 25%.

i'm committed to seeing every 4-year-old in america have access to high quality preschool in the next ten years. i want to do more. i want to call for a great outpouring of support from our faith community. our business community. our academic institutions from philanthropy and civic groups to really help parents particularly parents who are facing a lot of obstacles to really help prepare their own children in that 0 to 4 age group. 80% of your brain is physically formed by the age of 3. that's why families like mine read talk and sing endlessly to our granddaughter. i said that her first words are

going to be enough with the reading and the talking and the singing. we do it not only because we love doing it, it's a little embarrassing reading a book to a 2-week-old or a 6-week-old or a 10-week-old. we do it because we understand it's building her capacity for learning. and the research shows by the time she entered kindergarten she will have heard 30 million more words than a child from a less advantaged background. think of what we're losing because way not doing everything we can to reach out to those families. we know again from so much research here in the united states and around the world that that early help. that mentoring, that intervention to help those often stressed out young moms understand more about what they can do and to avoid the difficulties that stand in the way of their being able to get

their child off to the best possible start. we have to invest in our students and teachers at every level. in the coming weeks and months i will lay out specific steps to improve our schools make college truly affordable and help americans refinance their student debt. let's embrace the idea of lifelong learning in an age of technological change we need to provide pathways to get skills and credentials for new occupations and create online platforms to connect workers to jobs. there are exciting efforts underway, and i want to support and scale the ones that show results. as we pursue all these policies, we can't forget our fellow americans hit so hard and left behind by this changing world.

from the intercities to coal country. talent is universal, opportunity is not. there are nearly six million young people aged 16 to 24 in america today who are not in school or at work. the numbers for young people of color are particularly staggering. a quarter of young black men and nearly 15% of all latino youth cannot find a job. we've got to do a better way of coming up to match the growing middle class incomes we want to generate with more pathways into the middle class, i firmly believe the best anti-poverty program is a job, but that's hard to say if there aren't enough jobs for people that are trying to help lift themselves out of poverty. that's why i've called for

reviving the new markets tax credit and empowerment zones to create greater incentives to invest in poor and remote areas. when all americans have the chance to study hard work hard and share in our country's prosperity, that's fair growth. it's what i've always believed in and will fight for as president. the third key driver of income alongside strong growth and fair growth must be long term growth. too much pressures in our economy push us toward short termism. many business leaders see this. they've talked to me about it. one has called it the problem of quarterly capitalism. everything is focused on the next earnings report, or the short term share price. the result is too little

attention on the sources of long term growth. research and development, and talent. >> net business investment have declined as a share of the economy. in recent years some of our biggest companies have spent more than half their earnings to buy back their own stock. and another third or more to pay dividends. that doesn't leave a lot left to raise pay or invest in the workers, who made those profits possible or to make new investments necessary to ensure a company's future success. these trends need to change. and i believe that many business leaders are eager to embrace their responsibilities, not just today's share price, but also to workers, communities and ultimately to our country and indeed our planet.

now, i'm not talking about charity. i'm talking about clear eyed capitalism. many companies have prospered by increasing wages. it's easy to try to cut costs by holding down or increasing pay to inflate quarterly stock prices. i would argue that's bad for business in the long run and it's really bad for our country. workers are assets investing in them pays off. training pays off. to help more companies do that i proposed a new $1500 tax credit for every worker they train and hire. i will soon be proposing a new plan to reform capital gains

taxes that create jobs more than just quick trades. i will also propose reforms to ceo's and shareholders alike. focus on the next decade, rather than the next day making sure stock buy backs aren't being used for an immediate boost in profit sharing. discouraging cut and run shared holders who act like old school corporate raiders, nowhere will the shift from short term to long term be more important than on wall street as a former senator from new york i know firsthand the role that wall street can and slu play in our economy.

helping main street prosper. as we all know in the years before the crash, financial firms piled risk upon risk. and regulators in washington either couldn't or wouldn't keep up. i was alarmed by this gathering storm and called for addressing the risks of derivatives cracking down on sub prime mortgages and improving financial oversite. we've imposed tough new rules that deal with some of the challenges on wall street. those rules have been under assault by republican in congress and those running for president i will fight back against these attacks. we can encourage responsible loans to people and local

businesses they know and trust. we also have to go beyond dodd frank. to many of our major financial institutions, are still too complex and too risky and the problems are not limited to the big banks that get all the headlines. serious risks are emerging from institutions in the so-called shadow banking system including hedge funds high frequency traders, so many new kinds of entities which receive little oversight at all. stories of misconduct by individuals and institutions are shocking. hsbc allowing drug cartels to launder money five majors banks pleading guilty to felony charges for conspiring to

manipulate interest rates. there can be no justification or tolerance for this kind of criminal behavior. while institutions have paid large fines and in some cases admitted guilt, too often it has seemed that the human beings responsible get off with limited consequences or none at all, even when they've already pocketed the gains. this is wrong. and on my watch it will change. over the course of this campaign i will offer plans to reign in excessive risks on wall street and ensure that stock markets work for every day investors, not just high frequency traders in those with the best or

fastest connections. i will appoint and empower regulators who understand that too big to fail is still too big a problem. we'll ensure that no firm is too complex to manage or oversee. and we will prosecute individuals as well as firms when they commit fraud or other criminal wrongdoing. and when the government recovers money from corporations or individuals for harming the public. it should go into a separate trust fund to benefit the public. it could modernize infrastructure or even be returned directly to taxpayers. now, reform is never easy. but we've done it before in our country and we have to get it

right this time. and yes we need leadership from the financial industry and across the private sector to join with us. two years ago the head of the chicago mercantile exchange terry duffy published an op ed that really caught my attention. he wrote, and i quote, i'm concerned that those of us in financial services have forgotten who we serve. and that the public knows it. divorced from the concerns of main street. i think we should listen to terry duffy. long term growth is only possible if the public sector steps up as well. it's time to end the era of budget brinkmanship and stop careening from one

self-inflicted crisis to another. it's time to stop having debates over the small stuff and focus how we're going to tackle the big stuff together. how do we respond to technological change in a way that creates more good jobs than it displaces or destroys. can we sustain a boom in advanced manufacturing? what are the best ways to nurture start-ups outside the successful corridors like silicon valley. questions like these demand thoughtful and mature debate from our policy makers in government, from our leaders in the private sector. our economists our academics others that can come to the table and on behalf of america, perform their patriotic duty to make sure our economy keeps working and our middle class keep s keeps growing.

government has to be smarter simpler, more focuses itself on long term investments than short term politics. and be a better partner to cities states and the private sector. washington has to be a better stewart of america's tax dollars and american's trust and please let's get back to making decisions that rely on evidence more than i'ddeology. that's what i'll do as president. i will seek out and welcome any good idea that is actually based on reality. i want to have principled and pragmatic and progressive

policies that really move us forward together. and i will propose ways to ensure that our fiscal outlook is sustainable. including by continuing to restrain health care costs which remain the key drivers of long term deficits. i will make sure washington learns from how well local government businesses and nonprofits are working together in successful cities and towns across america. passing legislation is not the only way to drive progress. as president i will use the power to convene connect and collaborate. to build partnerships that get things done because, above all we have to break out of the poisonous partisan gridlock and focus on the long term needs of our country. i confess maybe it's the

grandmother in me, i believe that part of public service is planting trees under whose shade you'll never sit. and the vision i've laid out here today for strong growth, fair growth and long term growth all working together will get incomes rising again. will help working families get ahead and stay ahead. that is the test of our time. i'm inviting everyone to please join me to do your part that's what great countries do that's what our country always has done. we rise to challenges. it's not about left, right or center, it's about the future versus the past. i'm running for president to build an america for tomorrow, not yesterday an america built

on growth and fairness. an america where if you do your part you will reap the rewards. where we don't leave anyone behind behind. [ cheers and applause ] >> thank you, all, thank you. i just want to leave you with one more thought i want every

child, every child in our country, not just the granddaughter of a former president or a former secretary of state but every child to have the chance to live up to his or her god given potential please join me in that mission let's do it together. thank you all so much. ♪ ♪ you could be amazing you could turn a phrase into a weapon or a drug ♪ ♪ you can be the outcast, be the backlash of somebody's lack of love ♪ ♪ or you can start speaking up ♪

♪ nothing's gonna hurt you the way that words do when they settle in your skin ♪ ♪ get to the inside no sunlight sometimes a shadow wins ♪ ♪ i wonder what would happen if you say what you want to say and let the words fall out ♪ ♪ honestly i want to see you be brave ♪ ♪ what you want to say and let the words fall out ♪ hillary clinton is likely to talk more about her economic agenda tomorrow, when she heads to washington for meetings with house and senate democrats. politico writes that the capitol hill meetings are the most engagement from the clinton campaign since she announced her candidacy for president earlier this year in addition the former secretary of state is set do speak with the congressional black caucus and there's more

coming up at 6:15 eastern we'll take you to waukesha wisconsin where scott walker is announcing his presidency for president, he becomes the 15th major candidate to enter the 2016 race. you can watch that announcement live here on c-span3. >> when congress is in session, c-span3 brings you more access to hearings and key public affairs events. every weekend it's american history tv, traveling to historic sites, discussions with authors and historians. eyewitness accounts of events that define the nation c-span 3 and american history tv.

president obama hosted a cabinet on aging. it's the 80th anniversary of social security. the president spoke about those programs and other priorities for older americans. >> good afternoon. it is both an honor and a pleasure to be with you here today to tell my story and share it with you i was raised to be a hardworking military brat. you met quite a few of those back there. my parents didn't go to college, they were able to send my three sisters and myself to get a good

college education. my dad passed away 14 years ago, but my mom is 81, she's watching from home hay mom, i'm in the white house. my parents raised me as many parents in america do, with a strong moral fabric for saving. but somewhere along the line i went way, way, way off track. and ended up in a fiscal nightmare with bill collectors and foreclosures looming on the horizon. i didn't think i could see anyway to get out of my financial problems. about 16 years ago in atlanta georgia. i stumbled into a meeting it was a financial education meeting. and as many many of us who go to

hotel meetings, you think you're in the wrong room, so i went in, i didn't see anybody that looked like me and everybody looked extremely prosz perrous, i'm thinking, wrong meeting. they made me feel really warm and welcomed me. i was in the right meeting. the individual who had come to teach that meeting was cindy. she had flown into atlanta and she was there to be able to provide help to my organization so that i could reach out to women like myself who were struggling who never thought we could have a secure retirement. this white house conference on aging is an opportunity for everyone to come to the table and feel like they have a voice. we have an opportunity for shifting the economic landscape

for millions of women in this country as well as men. millions of women like myself who struggled financially to make sound decisions while dealing with some very difficult economic challenge ss as you can tell, this is both personal and i'm passionate about it we are hopeful as we pull together today, this can be a generational dialogue that reaches out to women in their 20s, 30s, 70s, 80s and beyond. this is our opportunity to be able to be heard and to have a part of this process. which is so critical and when i think about my 81-year-old mother in massachusetts she too is also a part of this conversation as well as my nieces and my daughter. my 15-year-old daughter was

saying to me, mom, are you going to see nicki minaj as well as the president? i told her darling, i'm going to have an opportunity to express what many young people need to know today, that this is a part of their dialogue as well, and the resources and innovation that we're going to hear today at this white house conference on aging is going to set the tone for a dialogue that will provide opportunities for my daughter as well as the next generation. and now i have the distinct honor and pleasure of introducing the president of the united states states, barack obama.

[ applause ] >> hello everybody. thank you so much. thank you thank you. thank you. thank you. everybody, please have a seat. welcome to the white house conference on aging everybody. please give vicky a big round of applause for the outstanding work she's doing to help women and families prepare for retirement. i want to thank the members of congress who are here. those in my administration who have been working on this issue, i want to especially point out one of my favorite former members of congress. a legend who's here today john dingell. thank you. john was elected to congress when he was just 29. an over achiever. ten years later he resided over

the house chamber for a vote to pass medicare in the law. last week john turned 89. we want to wish john a happy birthday, he's been a retiree for six months he's keeping busy, check out his twitter feed if you don't believe me. he has some strong opinions. it's wonderful to be here with all of you. we understand the whole terrain, not just the challenges but also the opportunities. not unlike the questions we're asking today, the questions we have to start thinking about for tomorrow. and because this conference takes place just once a decades, we have to make it count. one of the best measures of a country is how it treats its older citizens. by that measure, the united

states has a lot to be proud of. medicare, medicaid social security, some of our greatest triumphs of a nation. when social security was signed into law far too many seniors were living in poverty. when medicare was created, only a little more than half of all seniors had some form of insurance. before medicaid came along, families often had no help paying for nursing home costs. today the number of seniors in poverty has fallen dramatically. every american over 65 has access to affordable health care. the uninsured rate for all americans has fallen by about one third. i just thought i mentioned that. [ applause ] >> together we declare that -- >> that was pretty good.

together we declare that every citizen of this country deserves a basic measure of security and dignity. that choice saved millions upon millions of people from poverty allowed them to live longer and better lives. we have to be proud of that. these american endeavors didn't just make our country better it reaffirmed our greatness as a country. it's hard to find a single american who's life hasn't been enriched by these coven ends in some fashion. my grandmother was a fiercely independent woman. she helped raise me, she didn't have a college degree she worked her way up working on assembly lines. went on got a job as a secretary and kept on working her way up until she was vice president of a local bank. and after my grandfather died, she chose to live independently.

and medicare and social security allowed her to make that choice. she had the confidence that having worked hard played by the rules she was rewarded with a safe foundation for retirement and she could not fall through those cracks. that was a promise this country made to her and all it's citizens. as a grateful grandson who happens to be president, that's a promise i'm going to make sure we're going to keep for future generations. we have to make sure it's there. we're going to have to work for it. we have to do more to ensure that every older american has the resources and the support that they need to thrive. that challenge protecting our seniors, dealing with the rising costs of a generation, ensuring

we have enough home care workers looking out for our family members. maximizing the contributions that older americans can make to our country. these challenges are just becoming more urgent. here's why. when we won world war ii, everyone came home and had babies. i mean not literally everyone, but a lot of people had babies. and now each and every day almost 10,000 of those babies turned 65 years old. more than 250,000 americans turn 65 every month. they're living longer and they're living healthy. we're seeing people breakage lettic records in their 60s. diana, you do not want to race

her in anything. arguably the toughest justice on the supreme court is the oldest. ruth bader ginsburg. also known as the notorious rbg. she's tough. in just about every field americans who once might have been dismissed is out of touch or past their primes are making vital contributions in every field. all of this as a consequence are able to raise our own ambitions about what we hope to achieve in our golden years. since i'm living in dog years, it's something i'm paying a lot of attention to. look at this here.

although i do have hair. carly was laughing a little bit too much. since these golden years are coming pretty fast, i want to make sure that we briefly focus on what we've done to strengthen almost medicare. and take a longer look at what we have to do to strengthen retirement even more. we're told that medicare and social security are in crisis that's something we try to use to cut spending. here's the truth, medicare and social security are not in crisis nor have they made us cut our deficit. for medicare, that means we've got to keep slowing the growth

of health care costs. and keep building on the progress we've made in the past few years since i signed the affordable care act also known as obama care since we signed it into law we extended the med kash trust fund by 134 years, we're moving medicare toward payment models that require quality of care, instead of quantity of care as the measure of what you get paid. creating a different set of incentives, that's something that will keep older americans healthy, and medicare healthy as well. what's more, this law has saved over 9 million people on medicine care currently. more than $15 billion on their prescriptions. now, that doesn't get a lot of

notice. but i want everybody to understand, built into the affordable care act. 9 million seniors have gotten significant discounts on their prescription drugs. they don't always know it's because of obama care, but that's why they've been paying cheaper drug prices. it's also given 40 million people on medicare free preventative health services, and we've expanded the options for home and community based services offered by medicaid. which means that more older americans are able to make the same choice that my grandmother did and live independent lyly. those are some areas we've made progress, and sylvia burwell who is here i'm sure at some point during this conference will be talking about additional steps we need to be taking to further improve delivery system and

understand the goal here is not to cut back on services. the goal is to make sure that you are getting more of the services you need less of the services you don't. so you got more money left over to do even more stuff that you need to keep you healthy and active and thriving we have too much waste in the system that's not benefiting patients, but often times has to do with the really inefficient system or in some cases works really well for providers, but it doesn't work well for the consumer. now, even as we're dealing with the health care side, we know that too many older americans leave the workforce without having saved enough for a dignified retirement. it's not as if they haven't tried. there are a lot of folks out here who work really hard. at the end of the day just still don't have enough of a nest egg,

in today's economy, preparing for retirement has gotten tougher. most workers don't have a traditional pension, what we used to understand as a defined benefit pension where you were guaranteed a certain amount every year once you retired. a social security chic on its own often times is not enough. even though as a consequence of some of the steps we took we pulled ourselves out of a terrible financial crisis, the stock market has now doubled since i took office, which means it's mennished the 401(k)'s for millions of families. so that's been important for millions of families across the cun. a lot of people don't have any kind of retirement account at all. so we're going to have to work hard to deal with these issues. we have to keep social security

strong. and i think there are ways creative ways people are talking about to protect solvency, and strengthen retirement security firm most vulnerable neighbors that's step number one step number two for americans who are doing the hard work of saving for retirement let's make sure they get a fair deal. i announced new steps we're taking to protect americans by cracking down on retirement advice. the goal here is to put an end to wall street brokers who benefit from back door payments or hidden fees at the skens of their clients. if they're advising you on how to save your money, they should be looking out for you not for somebody who's selling a product that may not be best for you. and for the many brokers out there who are doing the right thing, this rule levels the playing field for them and their customers. the notion here is, we want to make sure responsibility is rewarded and not exploited.

so there's a consumer protection element to this whole thing. we have to make it easier for people to save for retirement. i'm pleased to announce an important step we're taking to do just that. american workers do not have access to a retirement plan at work. one third. that's why every budget request i've submitted since taking office has included a common sense proposal to automatically enrole workers without access to a workplace retirement plan in an ira which would provide an additional 30 million americans with access to a retirement plan at work. now, unfortunately, congress has repeatedly failed to act on this idea. the good news is, states are stepping up. just like they're stepping up in other areas where congress is not doing its work like raising the minimum wage or making paid sick leave for working families.

so far, a handful of states have passed laws to create new ways for people without a workplace plan to save for retirement. and more than 20 states are thinking about doing the same. we want to do everything we can to encourage more states to take this step. i called on the department of labor to propose a set of rules by the end of the year to provide a clear path forward for states to create retirement savings programs, if every state did this tens of millions more americans could save for retirement at work. i want to emphasize this point, it is perverse that in this country, it is just easier to save if you already have money. i'm talking about not just the fact that you have money to

save, i'm talking about the mechanics of -- the mechanisms of being able to save and then take advantage of the tax benefits of savings. so just make sure that everybody, even if your employer doesn't provide those mechanisms, you still have a way of accessing it. every dollar you put in, that's going to be a dollar that also then benefits from the same kinds of you know, tax advantages that somebody with $1 million is able to take advantage of all the time. and that's just fair. that's only fair. and that's all we're trying to do here, is make sure if you're working hard out there, even if you're not making lots of money and don't have fancy financial advisers and all that, that you can still put away a little nest egg that you're protected when you get older. this is just one of a number of steps we're going to be taking to improve the lives of older

americans. as many of you know, over the past year we've held regional forums with aarp across the country. heard from lots of people, including folks in this room, how we can make things better, especially for families and caregivers. we're going to be moving ahead with several of the ideas that you've given us. for example, we're going to make it easier for folks who are home-bound to get nutritional systems. we'll update quality safety requirements for nursing homes. the first major overhaul in nearly 25 years. we're going to train more prosecutors in how to combat elder abuse. we're going to work with congress to reauthorize the older americans act, because we know it provides support to families and communities.

we're going to help federal workers and their supervisors better understand how our policies on workplace flexibility can support employees who are also caregivers to aging parents. that's important. and i'm going to keep fighting to make family leave and workplace flexibility available to every american, no matter where they work. it's the right thing to do. every study shows that the kind of workplace flexibility we're talking about isn't just good for the employees ultimately it ends up being good for the employers. because you get more loyal, more productive employees with less turnover. and it's the right thing to do. and with the technologies that we have today, there's no reason why we can't make this happen. so this year we mark the 80th anniversary of social security. we mark the 50th anniversary of medicare.

we've grown so accustomed to these programs being a part of american life, these bedrock foundation stones of our society, sometimes it's easy to forget how revolutionary they were at the time. they were hard to get done. when fdr tried to pass social security critics called it socialism. when president kennedy and president johnson worked to create medicare, they raised alarms about the government takeover of health care. now we've got signs saying, get your government hands off of my medicare. the point is change has always been hard. detractors always -- you know, are trying to maximize people's fear of the unknown. but ultimately, hope triumphs

over fear. we choose to do big things here in america. like i said, a couple weeks back, three generations ago we chose to end where seniors were left to languish in poverty. two generations ago we ended an age where americans in golden years didn't have the guarantee of health care. this generation, we chose to go even further. now health care is more affordable and available than ever before. and this anniversary of those incredible achievements we need to recommit ourselves to finishing the work that earlier generations began. make sure this is a country that remains one that no matter who you are, or where you started off, you're treated with dignity. your hard work is rewarded. your contributions are valued. you have a shot to achieve your dreams, whatever your age. that's the american world we're working for, and i'm proud to be working alongside you. congratulations, and have a

wonderful conference. thank you. [ applause ]

[ applause ]

good morning. can you hear me? can you hear me in the back okay? good morning. i'm tom. it's an honor to be here. i see a bunch of serial activists in the audience, so i know i'm in the right place. thank you again to our members of congress who are here. thank you to our other leaders who are here. this has been a great morning. and you heard from the boss

there. and he's all in. and this is a joint venture. we have a great panel here. so i want to keep moving. you know when i heard the president say there was a lot of focus on what i call the two ps, promoting access in the retirement space, and the president has been taking action on that, he's directed us to take more action to facilitate that. is diana grady here, by the way? oh, you're in the way back. wow. you got the uker seat there. diana is a small business owner who encouraged her employees to participate to help strengthen their retirement security. so she has a lot of i.r.a. participants. thank you for being a great spokesperson for this. we do this one business at a time. i appreciate your help. and i'm glad that it's working. so we're going to talk more about financial security today.

and we've got a fantastic panel of folks who are going to be talking and giving their views. we also have a number of questions. and i actually got a few questions on twitter as well. so we're going to go with them time permitting. let me introduce our panel very quickly. then i'm going to get right to the first question, which i'm going to ask all of you. our panelists gene chesski is the financial editor of the nbc "today" show and savvy money.com. she has a long career in journalism, and has published several books on financial management and money. she is right here to my right. to my left -- we'll hold the applause, just in the spirit of moving forward on this real quickly. robin deamante to my far left. robin is the chief investment officer of the united

technologies in hartford. equally as importantly a very important job, she was appointed in 2013 by the president to the pension benefit guarantee corporation advisory committee. and as labor secretary, i have the privilege of chairing the pbgc board. i spend a lot of time with robin. and it has been a labor of love. and she has educated me a lot. she chairs the pension management advisory committee, which advises the new york stock exchange and the federal reserve of new york markets group on the impact of policies and market conditions on institutional investors. as we continue to talk about the importance of state and local government, and as someone who spent a lot of time in state and local government, we're very pleased to have vicky elease here with the dekalb county board of health near atlanta. she was a 2011 white house community leader on policy issues for seniors. and has an emmy if i'm not

mistaken, for her television production work. having watched you already i understand why you have an emmy. so we're really pleased to have you. and last but certainly not least, is a good friend of mine, andy who is the head of global health and retirement solutions at merrill lynch at bank of america. andy has had a stellar career as all of the panelists have of the his career in finance spans more than 20 years and includes time at the white house working on economic and domestic policy. and in his spare time, which i don't think he has much of, he actually serves on the board of readwork.org that helps students in needy schools develop reading skills. i would ask you to give a round of applause to our panelists. [ applause ] i'm going to jump right into the questioning, because we have a short period of time. i'm going to ask a question for all of you to answer. then i'm going to ask an individual question of each of you. time permitting we have a few

twitter questions and perhaps some audience questions. the question for the group is this. many people in our country as the president described used to take retirement for granted. you worked 30 years, you would get a pen, a pension and a party. in the de find benefit world of yesteryear. now it seems like fewer assume that they will be able to retire comfortably. what do you see as the most significant barrier to a secure retirement? and i know that you can get into -- this could be a one-hour answer for each of you but if you could focus on what perhaps you see as the most significant barrier. we'll start with you and work our way around. >> thank you, mr. secretary. from our perspective, the first thing we need to wrap our heads around is the fact that retirement itself has been transformed as a concept in our society. i think we heard that from the president. this is now a time of unprecedented opportunities, and possibilities. but also a lot of risks that families have never before had to deal with, and had to manage.

and so from our perspective the barrier we need to overcome is to really expand the way we're thinking about later life. in these onus years. it's not all just about money. this is about how to think about work, and how work's going to factor into later life. it's certainly about health and cognitive decline and other health-related issues. and it's how families are dealing with this new dynamic that we're experiencing. and in a minute we're going to talk a bit about how we can address it. we think gerontology and training needs to be brought into the mainstream of american life. and we'll talk a little bit about that i'm sure as the panel continues. >> from my perspective, the biggest barrier is that we're human. and when we ask human beings to plan for retirement, we're asking people to do things that are really the antithesis of

human nature. we're asking them to save which humans are not particularly good at. we're asking them to do it consistently. and life always has a way of surprising you, and getting in the way. we're asking people to invest consistently, which means sticking with the markets, when the markets aren't a lot of fun. and then we're asking them once they've accumulated, not to pull the money out and spend it all at once. and so it's a really, really difficult challenge that i work with the aarp all the time on trying to educate people how to do all of these things. which nobody's really training us to do. so we're climbing a mountain that previous generations just didn't have to climb. >> thank you. >> when i had an opportunity to attend my first financial literacy workshop 16 years ago,

i met the council that definitely had the tools we needed through mothers voices choices, which has reached out to women in terms of helping them to plan a secure retirement. and one of the challenges and barriers that definitely makes the dialogue very interesting is the issue of longevity. i've just recently heard that they have changed the category of old old from 90 years old -- from 85 years old to 90 years old. and so when you begin to talk to young people especially women who are representing the millennials about saving, and not outliving your assets, that just seems so far away. i jokingly say that if orange is the new black, then 90 is the new old old. so you never meet any retirees, though, that say that they have saved enough or too much.

and so one of the definite critical education pieces that we try to get across to women is, your finances, you can always find a way to save. i love the fact that we have the my ra in place, no matter what you do you need to begin the behavior. and once you start that behavior, you want to look at ways that if you are having critical issues dealing with finances, like i did initially, trying to overcome some issues related to debt, trying to reduce that, and using the tools, that it's baby steps that will eventually get you to where you need to go. baby steps are not bad steps. hopefully they'll get you to feel comfortable with saving comfortable with the concepts of reducing credit card debt. comfortable with the next step that you need to take as a woman, especially because that's who we reach out to through mothers voices as women. comfortable taking those steps that you need to make in order to secure your economic future.

and so i'll talk a lot more about some other barriers that we also address, especially as it comes to financial literacy education, not being a one size fits all model. >> there's a lot of barriers, especially for our young employees. they need to have taken all the financial responsibility now for saving for their retirement. so as the president said they're not going to have the pension fund that their parents and grandparents enjoyed. they need to think of their 401(k) not just as a savings plan, but as a retirement plan. they really need to do three things. they need to save early and save more. they need to resist the temptation of taking that money out when they change jobs. and they need to and this is an easy to have an investment portfolio for their age and circumstance. if they do all of that effectively, what they may have at retirement probably more money than they've ever had in

their life and they may feel secure. here is where i think one of the most critical barriers are, how do you turn that money into a stream of lifetime income so that you don't outlive it. many employees allow their participants to stay in their savings plan after retirement. but unfortunately employees don't know that. they think they need to leave the plan. and they need to move their assets. and also, in some circumstances, there's aggressive marketing urging them to do so. once they leave their 401(k) plan it's an irreversible decision. and unfortunately they can't get back in. so once they're out, they may find themselves vulnerable to conflicted investment advice and recommendations that are not in their best interests. so hopefully there will be laws in place in the future to protect them. >> i think someone at the department of labor is doing something about that. phyllis, is that right? i think so. yeah. let me continue with you then, robin. there are two dimensions to your

question -- to the question i have for you. for the people who are -- they do have a 401(k) so what can you do to make sure that when they either retire, or they leave a job, because this is no longer our father's and mother's generation where you work 30 years at the same place, more and more it's people bopping around in the generation, so how do you educate them? and then, the second part of the question really gets back to what the president said, which is by the third of the workers don't have access to a workplace retirement plan, and so life is more challenging. because obviously social security alone in all likelihood is not going to be enough. and i know that you've thought about this. and your boss and your company which is very forward leaning has been thinking a lot about this. if you could address that sort

of two-part question. for those of you who have that 401(k), you know, how can we make sure that folks are educated about their choices. and then for those who don't, don't have anything right now, you know what options are there out there, and what else should we be doing? >> right. well, for companies, they really need to change the way that they get in touch with savings plans. because they don't have the pension plan. they have to make it simple. well structured, and really think about that default option. we talked about in the past how auto everything works, right? auto escalation auto enrollment. what we do is when an employee starts, they're automatically enrolled at a 6% contribution. the opt-out rate is 1.3%. once we put them in, they stay. we escalate that 1% a year up to a maximum of 10%. the company puts in an additional contribution from 3% to 5.5%.

even if they're not contributing their own money into the plan. it's very important. also, the default a robust default option we developed the lifetime income strategy. it was developed for younger employees who don't have a pension plan. basically what it does is it's very similar to a target date portfolio. it's a diversified portfolio becomes less risky as the person approaches retirement. but it generates a lifetime income stream for them. and as their balance grows so does this guaranteed income stream, so they don't outlive their money. it's very important for the industry to put these types of products in place that give people lifetime income security, but also flexibility that they want. for example in our plan it's unlike a traditional annuity in that you always have control over your balance. so there's no penalties if you decide that you want to take it out, like a traditional annuity.

>> trending up on social media right now are applications to united technologies. let me turn, jean, to you. because we're obviously doing a lot of work with the treasury department, with the labor department and others on some regulatory proposals. and at the same time, we're working very hard on education. because we all have a shared interest in the importance of education. and when i have someone from the media here i can't help but ask the question, what do you think the media can do to help the public learn about financial markets, and what we need to do to save for retirement, and how we can make all these correct choices? again, in the leave it to beaver universe, we didn't have to make these choices. and our modern family world, it's a different environment. what can you do? >> i think the best thing the media can do is to not get overly focused on the minutia of

the market. in fact the things that people need to do over and over and over again to achieve financial security are relatively simple. all right? we have to have basic emergency cushions. i'm not talking about the three to six-month kind i'm talking about a couple thousand dollars that can prevent you from sinking into credit card debt, or prevent you from pulling money out of your 401(k). we've got to get into retirement accounts, whether they're 401(k)s, mrias, and we have to stay in them for years and years and years and years. and we have to be invested which means we've got to be defaulted into a target date fund. or to some other low-cost, relatively simple investment that people can understand. when we get caught up in the details of puts and calls and options and day trading, and

things that we really don't need in order to achieve financial security, the media might be trying to garner additional ratings. but i don't think we're doing people a great service. >> thank you. andy, let me turn to you. at the outset i want to say thank you to merrill lynch, because they have been incredibly helpful partners in our efforts moving forward. you, in my judgment, have been a real industry leader. and i want to thank brian moynahan and also the ceo of merrill as well with whom i've met personally for your work on these issues. you've really been very, very helpful. and you mentioned about longevity. and so did vicky. if my memory serves me, b of a has done a fair amount of work of longevity center. can you tell us what you've learned from the work that you're doing regarding the

evolving needs of a population that's living longer, and what that means for financial security, and what proactive steps, for instance, that we could be taking in light of what we're learning? >> thank you. the secretary is referring to work we've done with the university of southern california, and the davis school of gerontology. we had the very good fortune some years ago of hiring a graduate of the davis school to join our team at merrill lynch. we were blown away, frankly by the focus that first the financial media placed on the fact that there's a jern tolgs working on wall street and how our clients embraced this perspective around later life. over the last year or so we've decided to double down on our work with usc, and we've extended our work with the davis school to now offer gerontologiological with merrill

lynch. we have over 1,000 advisers who complete or work through the vertification. and today, with the -- under the awe spis es of the white house conference we have an even more exciting step forward to extend the work so that we're going to be training 35,000 companies that have 5 million employees, who are clients of ours at merrill lynch, we're going to trade their -- >> watch all of this online at c-span.org. we'll leave this now and take you live to walkisconsin. scott walker's wife. the 15th major republican candidate to enter the race. live coverage here on c-span3. we'll follow this with your phone calls and comments. ♪

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♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> thank you. thank you. >> we want scott! we want scott! we want scott! >> thank you. >> we want scott! >> thank you. i love america. [ cheers and applause ] you know, as kids, my brother david, and i used to love to go over and visit one of our neighbors. mr. cotton was a bit of a legend in our small town. you see, he had served our country in world war i and world war ii. [ cheers and applause ]

and then like so many other veterans, he came back and served his community. over the years, we used to love to see him down at the concession stand at legion baseball. he was the leader of my boy scout troop. i can remember over the years before memorial day, he would organize me and all the other scouts as we would go through and put up flags on the graves of the fallen. [ cheers and applause ] it was impossible to be around mr. cotton and not share his love for god and country. i think back 30 years ago, his american legion post helped me with the badger boy states. it's there i learned about state and local government. along the way, it was interesting, i got the chance to be selected to represent wisconsin in a program out in washington, d.c., called boys nation. and there i met another veteran, a vietnam veteran from georgia.

by the name of bob turner. now, bob and all the other veterans that ran that program not only taught us about the federal government, the national elections, they shared their love for our country. and they inspired within me the importance of public service when it comes to defending our liberties. veterans like that remind me that what makes america great is the fact that america is a can-do kind of country. unfortunately we have a government in washington that just can't quite seem to get the job done. you know, washington or as i call it 68 square miles surrounded by reality, the good news is, it's not too late. we can turn things around! [ cheers and applause ] >> to do that, we need new, fresh leadership.

leadership with big, bold ideas from outside of washington. the kind of leadership that knows how to get things done, like we've done here in wisconsin. [ cheers and applause ] since i've been governor, we took on the unions, and we won! [ cheers and applause ] we lowered taxes by $2 billion. in fact, we lowered taxes on individuals, on employers, and property owners, property taxes today are lower than they were four years ago. how many other governors can say that? [ cheers and applause ] since i've been governor we've passed regulatory reform. we defunded planned parenthood

and passed pro-life legislation. [ cheers and applause ] we enacted castle doctrine and concealed carry, so we can protect ourselves, our families, and our property. [ cheers and applause ] and we now require a photo i.d. to vote in this state. [ cheers and applause ] if our reforms can work in a blue state like wisconsin they can work anywhere in america. [ cheers and applause ] as i travel this country though, i've got to tell you, i hear from people who say they're frustrated with politicians, telling people what they're against, and who they're against. americans want to vote for something, and for someone.

so tonight let me tell you what i'm for. [ cheers and applause ] i'm for reform, growth, safety. i'm for transferring power from washington into the hands of hard-working taxpayers, in states all across the country. that's real reform. [ cheers and applause ] i'm for building a better economy that allows everyone to live their piece of the american dream. that's pro-growth. [ cheers and applause ] and i'm for protecting our children and our grandchildren from radical islamic terrorism, and all of the threats in the world. that's true safety. [ cheers and applause ]

my record shows that i know how to fight and win. now, more than ever america needs a president who will fight and win for america! [ cheers and applause ] so, first, let me tell you why i'm for real reform in washington. you see, our big bold reforms here in wisconsin took the power out of the hands of the big government special interests, and put them firmly into the hands of the hard-working taxpayers. today, today in this state people who are actually elected by local property taxpayers literally run our schools. that means we got rid of things like seniority and tenure. that means we can hire and fire based on merit and pay based on performance, and put the best and the brightest in our classrooms. [ cheers and applause ]

now, think about that, four years later four years later graduation rates are up. third grade reading scores are higher. and wisconsin's scores are the second best in the country. our reforms worked. [ cheers and applause ] that just goes to show that government closest to the people is generally the best, which is precisely why we need to take power and money out of washington and send it back to our states to areas like medicaid and transportation and work force development and education. [ cheers and applause ] sadly, though, washington seems to think that success is

measured by how many people are dependent on the government. we measure success by just the opposite. by how many people are no longer dependent on the government. [ cheers and applause ] we understand that true freedom of prosperity do not come from the mighty hand of the government, it comes from people who are in control of their own lives, to the dignity borne of work. work, that's what we stand for. [ cheers and applause ] now, as a kid, my first job was washing dishes at the countryside restaurant. then i moved up to the big-time, i started flipping hamburgers in high school at mcdonald's to save up for college. my dad who you heard before was

a smalltown preacher and my mom was a part-time secretary and bookkeeper. my grandparents were farmers who didn't have indoor plumbing until my mom went off to junior high school. my dad's dad was a machinist for 42 years. down in rockford illinois. my brother and i realized we didn't inherit fame or fortune from our family. what we got was a belief that if you work hard and you play by the rules you can do and be anything. [ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ] >> that's right. you see that's the american dream. and that is worth fighting for. when we help people, adults are

able to work, transition from government dependence to true independence, we help more people live that piece of the american dream. we have a program right here in wisconsin that requires people to be signed up for one of our employability training programs one of our job training programs before they can get a welfare check. the budget i just signed we make the same requirement to make sure that people can pass a drug test before they get a welfare check. [ cheers and applause ] that's right. now, you can only imagine what the defenders of the status quo thought when i established this reform. they said i was making it harder to get government assistance. my reply no i'm making it easier to get a job. isn't that what it's all about? [ cheers and applause ]

now, you know strong families are important in this whole role as well. you see, we know that children are raised in a household with both parents involved they're more likely to finish school, to get a good job and to live a life free of government dependence. we need a federal government that will actually stand up and support strong families by getting rid of the marriage penalty and getting rid of welfare policies that make it hard for fathers to play an active role in the lives of their children. we need to encourage families. [ cheers and applause ] i know thinking about my own family, i know for me both my parents were so important for david and me as we grew up as kids, now for my wife and i, we try to be good role models for matt and alex. they've turned out pretty well, huh? they're pretty impressive to watch there. [ cheers and applause ]

we're so proud of them. and i think about that i think about matt, and i think about alex, and all the others in their generation. for them, i want them to grow up in a more free and prosperous country. that's really about the american dream there. [ cheers and applause ] now, to ensure that prosperity, we need to be for a pro-growth economic plan that enables our individuals and our families to earn, to save, and to achieve their piece of the american dream. there's a real contrast out there. instead of the top-down government knows the best approach that you hear from so many in washington, we need to build the economy from the ground up, in a way that's new and fresh, dynamic, that says as long as you don't violate the health and safety of your neighbor, go out and start your own career, build your own business, live your own life. [ cheers and applause ]

you see, that's freedom. the kind of freedom that's a cornerstone of the american dream. so we've got to plan to help more people live that dream, a plan that will help more people create more jobs and higher wages. you know what it starts with? we need to repeal obamacare once and for all! [ cheers and applause ] we need to repeal the so-called affordable care act, and put patients and families back in charge of their health care decisions, not the federal government. [ cheers and applause ] many of you here know when i first became governor, i literally allowed the state to join the federal lawsuit against

obamacare on the first day. we need a president who will once and for all repeal obamacare entirely! [ cheers and applause ] then we need to rein in the out-of-control federal regulations that are like a blanket on the nation's economy. sure enforce common sense, but let's get rid of the bureaucratic red tape. as governor i called for a moratorium on regulations, we can do the same in washington, and then we can repeal all the other bad obama regulations to get this economy going again. [ cheers and applause ] next, we need to put in place an all-the-above energy policy that says we're going to use the

abundance of what god has given us here in america, and on this continent. [ cheers and applause ] you know, that's right. we are an energy-rich country. and we can literally start refueling our economic recovery. we need a president who on day one will approve the keystone pipeline. [ cheers and applause ] that's right. approve that pipeline and put in place a plan to level the playing field for all the forms of energy. and then we need to help people get the education and the skills that they need to succeed. because we know if we do that, we can help people find careers that pay far more than a minimum wage. here in wisconsin, we reformed public education. we provided more quality choices. quality choices for families. because, see, i trust families

and i trust parents to make the right decision for their children. i believe -- [ cheers and applause ] i believe that every child, every child regardless of zip code or background or what their parents do for a living, i believe every child deserves access to a great education, be it christian public, charter or a choice or a private or a virtual or a home school education, every child deserves access to a great education. [ cheers and applause ] that's why i want to work -- you know what, along with that i want to make sure we have high standards. but those standards should be set at the local level. no common core. no nationwide scoreboard. [ cheers and applause ]

that's why i'll work so hard to take power and money out of washington and send it back to our states and our schools where it's more effective, more efficient, and more accountable to the american people. [ cheers and applause ] now, think about this. take a dollar out of your purse or wallet. where would you rather spend that? in washington, or your child's school? i'd rather spend it at your child's school. and if you give me the chance we'll send those dollars back to help your child at your school. [ cheers and applause ] and then we need to lower the burden on our taxpayers so you can keep more of your hard-earned dollars. [ cheers and applause ]

we need to do that for individuals as well as job creators, because we need to make our job creators competitive again in the world so they can bring more jobs back from overseas to put more of our fellow americans back to work right here in america. [ cheers and applause ] and you know what? we can do it. we can do it, because we did it in wisconsin, and we can do it in washington. [ cheers and applause ] now, some people wonder why i spent so much time focused on lowering the tax burden here, and why i want to do it in washington. well, some of you know that we like to shop at kohl's, right? so over the years i've learned if i'm going to go buy a new shirt, i go to the rack that says it was $29.99, now it's $19.99. then we go up to the cash register and get out the insert

from the sunday newspaper or maybe we get the flier we got back at home, right? where you get 15% or 20%, or if you're really lucky, 30% off, right? you know what i'm talking about. and then as the clerk is ringing it up, my wife scoops into her purse and pulls out some of that kohl's cash, and the next thing you know they're paying me to buy the shirt, right? [ cheers and applause ] we're not really, but it seems like it right? so how does a great company like kohl's make money? they make it off of volume, right? they make it off of volume. they can charge that higher price, and a few of you can afford it but they lower the price, broaden the base and make more money off the value. that's what i think about your money, the taxpayers' money. the government can charge you a higher rate and some of us could afford it, but if you lower the rate, broaden the base we expand the volume of people who

can participate in the economy. [ cheers and applause ] years ago, we used to call that a similar plan, was successful under president ronald reagan. today i call it the kohl's curve. i believe you can spend your money far better than the federal government and when we do, the economy will get a whole lot better. [ cheers and applause ] to prosper, however, we need to live in a safe and stable world. that's why i'm for true safety. commander in chief has a sacred duty to protect the american people. in my lifetime the best president when it comes to national security and foreign policy was a governor from california.

[ cheers and applause ] under his leadership, we rebuilt the military. we stood up for our allies. we stood up to our enemies. and without apology, we stood for american values. [ cheers and applause ] that led to one of the most peaceful times in modern american history. sadly, today under the clinton -- or under the obama/clinton doctrine, america is leading from behind. and that has us headed toward a disaster. think about this. we've got a president a president who drew a line in the sand, and allowed it to be crossed. a president who called isis the jv squad. yemen a success story. and iran a place we can do

business with. iran. think about that. when my brother david and i were kids i can still remember, we used to tie ribbons around the tree in front of our house during the 444 days that iran held 52 americans hostage. one of those hostages was kevin herman, who grew up down the way in oak creek. kevin was the youngest of the hostages. a marine who just had been assigned to serve at the u.s. embassy in tehran. kevin herman is here today with us. [ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ]

kevin knows that iran is not a place to do business with. you see, iran hasn't changed much since the day he and the other hostages were released under president reagan's first day in office. looking ahead we need to terminate the bad deal with iran on the very first day in office. [ cheers and applause ] we need to terminate that deal on the very first day in office. put in place crippling economic sanctions in iran and convince our allies to do exactly the same thing. [ cheers and applause ] earlier this year president

obama declared he proclaimed that the greatest threat to future generations is global warming, climate change. well, mr. president, i respectfully disagree. the greatest threat to future generations is radical islamic terrorism, and we need to do something about it! [ cheers and applause ] we can start by lifting the political restrictions on our military personnel already in iraq. and empower them to help our kurd and sunni allies to reclaim the territory taken by isis. on behalf of your children and mine, i would rather take the

fight to them rather than wait for them to bring the fight to us. [ cheers and applause ] we need to acknowledge that israel is an ally, and start treating israel like an ally. [ cheers and applause ] there should be no daylight between our two countries. that's why earlier this year when i went to israel, i not only met with the prime minister, i met with the opposition leader to let them know that if i were president, there would be no daylight between the united states and israel going forward. [ cheers and applause ] we need to stop the aggression

of russia into sovereign nations. you see putin believes in the old lenin principle that you probe with bayonets, if you find mush, you push. under obama and clinton, putin has found a whole lot of mush over the last few years. [ cheers and applause ] the united states needs a foreign policy that will put steel in front of our enemies. [ cheers and applause ] we need to stop china's cyber attacks, slow their advances into international waters and speak out about their abysmal human rights record. [ cheers and applause ] and we need to have the capacity to protect our national security interests here and abroad, and

those of our allies. that begins by rebuilding the defense budget by going back to the levels proposed by secretary of defense gates. [ cheers and applause ] we need to honor our men and women in uniform by giving them the resources that they need to make us safe. and going forward by giving them the quality and timely health care that they deserve when they return home. [ cheers and applause ] but most of all, the best way we can honor them is by fighting to win. you see, this is important. our goal should be peace.

but there will be times when america must fight. and if we must americans fight to win. [ cheers and applause ] going forward, the world must know that there is no greater friend, and no worse enemy than the united states of america. [ cheers and applause ] >> usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! >> america is a great country. it's a great country. and you know what? we just have to start leading again. it's not too late.

we can do it, because we've done it before. think about it. veterans like clair kondin and bob turner remind me that what makes america great, what makes us exceptional what makes us the greatest country in all of the world all throughout our history, in times of crisis, be it economic or fiscal, be it military or spiritual there have been men and women of courage who have been willing to stand up and think more about future generations than they thought about their own political futures. ladies and gentlemen, this is one of those times in american history. [ cheers and applause ] and so after a great deal of

thought, and a whole lot of prayer, we are so honored to have you join with us here today as we officially announce that we are running to serve as your president of the united states of america! [ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ] >> tonnette and i want our sons, matt and alex and all the other sons and daughters like them to grow up in a country that is as

great, as great as the country we inherited. americans deserve a president who will fight and win for them. [ cheers and applause ] someone who will stand up for the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. [ cheers and applause ] someone who will stand up for our religious freedoms, and all of our other constitutional rights. [ cheers and applause ] someone who will stand up for america. you see, it doesn't matter whether you come from a big city, or a suburb or small

town. i will fight and win for you. [ cheers and applause ]unborn i will fight and win for you. [ applause ] young or old or anywhere in between, i will fight and win for you. [ applause ] over the years i have met some amazing people. many of whom have come here from other places around the world. i got footell you, to a person the people i met like that they say the reason they came here was not to become dependent on the government. the reason they came here is because america is one of the few places left in the world

where it doesn't matter what class you were born into or what your parents did for a living. in america, you can do and be anything you want. that's the american spirit. [ applause ] you see, in america the opportunity should be equal for all of us. but the outcome, well that's up to each and every one of us here across this great country. that's why we just took a day off, to celebrate the fourth of july and not the 15th of america because we celebrate our freedom from our government not our dependence on it. [ applause ] that's why i love america. that's why we we love america.

and that's why working together we can fight and win for america. thank you for coming out. god bless you all for being mere. god bless our military and my god continue to bless the united states of america. [ applause ] ♪ ♪ sun going down on a la freeway ♪ ♪ newly weds in the back of a limousine ♪

♪ a welder's son and a banker's daughter ♪ ♪ all they want is everything ♪ ♪ she came out here to be an actress ♪ ♪ he was a singer in a band ♪ ♪ they just might go back to oklahoma ♪ ♪ and talk about the stars they could have been ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ dreaming in red, white and blue ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ where we dream as big as we want to ♪ ♪ we all get a chance, everybody

gets to dance ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ where we dream in red, white j blue ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ where we dream as big as we want to ♪ ♪ we all get a chance ♪ ♪ everybody gets to dance ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ only in america ♪

♪ where we dream in red, white, and blue ♪ ♪ we dream as big as we want to ♪ ♪ only in america ♪ ♪ ♪ driving down the street today i saw a sign for lemonade ♪ ♪ they were the cutest kids i'd ever seen in this front yard ♪ ♪ as they handed me my glass ♪ ♪ smiling thinking to myself ♪ ♪ man, what a picture perfect

postcard this would make of america ♪ ♪ it's a high school prom, it's a spring song ♪ ♪ it's a ride in a chevrolet ♪ ♪ its a man on a moon fire flies in june and kids selling lemonade ♪ ♪ farms open arms, one nation under god ♪ ♪ it's america ♪ ♪ later on when i got home ♪ ♪ i left the tv on ♪ ♪ i saw a little town that some big twister tore apart ♪ ♪ people came from miles around just to help the neighbors out ♪ ♪ i was thinking to myself i'm so glad that i live in america ♪

♪ it's a high school prom, it's staying strong it's a ride in a chevrolet ♪ ♪ it's a man on the moon and fire flies in june and kids selling lemonade ♪ ♪ it's cities and farms it's open arms ♪ ♪ one nation under god ♪ ♪ it's america ♪ ♪ we don't always get it all right ♪ ♪ there's no place else i'd rather build my life ♪ ♪ because it's a rock and roll band it's a farm cutting hay ♪ ♪ it's a big summer wind over a fallen hero's grave ♪ ♪ it's the high school prom it's a spring song ♪

♪ it's the welcome home parade ♪ ♪ it's a man on the moon and fire flies in june and kids selling lemonade ♪ ♪ it's cities and farms and open arms ♪ ♪ one nation under god ♪ ♪ it's america ♪ ♪ it's america ♪ ♪ >> wisconsin governor scott walker entering the 2016 republican race on six month ahead of the iowa caucuses here in wisconsin. just west of milwaukee announcing he's entering the race and heading off on to the

roaded for roaded for the next week or so. we'd love to hear what you think about scott walker's entry into the race. you can also reach us on twitter, @cspan. if you want to post on facebook, facebook dot com/c span. we're covering the governor later in iowa. his road trip winds up. we'll tell you about that in a bit. let's here first from new providence, new jersey democrats' line, connor. hello there. you're on the air, go ahead. >> caller: you destroyed the livelihoods of millions -- thousands of public sector workers. that would do the same for the rest of the country. it's despicable.

i think bernie sanders could beat him. >> in mesa, arizona, republican line, jan, good evening, what do you think? >> caller: it's for jan? >> yes it is. >> caller: okay. i think he's a really nice man. his family looks lovely but i'm going with donald trump. nobody thinks he can do it. i think he can do it. if you lived here in mesa, arizona, and i've watched my town go down and down and down. we have 50,000 people in our town. the neighbor that i thought i'd live in for the rest of my life we were ran out by illegals they've taken our schools over. it's so bad. we've begged for help. i begged the mayor the same thing with mccain, i'll never vote for mccain again in my life. he's coming up. and slake will be the next one to go mpt you have no idea what we go th