mayor. i knew putin was kg b. i was negative about it all. he came in and was equally negative. he didn't want to meet with an american woman who claimed to run a business. i think he was very suspicious of women. he had no gallantry. he was the coldest -- he had the coldest eyes i had ever seen. develop big, blue, cold eyes. all i could think of was, what would happen if he was interrogating me. >> sunday night at 8:00 eastern. coverage of day long symposium on the future of the democratic party leading to the 2018 and 2020 elections. you can watch all of it at c- span.org but we'll show you a couple of panels right now.

this is hosted by an organization called "new democracy". >> good to see you again. good morning, everybody. eye name is will marshal. i'm with new democracy. our director along with lindsey lewis is here. welcome to today's symposium on building new democratic majorities. big ideas for a big tent party. very glad that you have come. we are off to typically late washington start. if hostile powers decided to invade us again, they should come early in the morning. i'm glad that we filled in and we are here. this is the washington debut of new empty. s that new organization formed in the aftermath of the 2016

debacle. and its mission is to provide a platform for the pragmatic wing of the democratic party. people who are problem solvers. people who have shown that they can winne lexes in tough places in america. that is highly competitive places out there in the red and purple zones. we find that, you know, particularly here in washington, the voice of the pragmatic democrat is often muffled. a lot of infrastructures to amplify our progressive friends and folks on the other side. a lot of structurals, a lot of organization, a lot of money. sometimes, the voice of the governing wing or problem solving wing as i like to think about it, gets drowned out by passionate part sons. one of the key functions of new democracy is to provide a platform to home base and

support network not only for elected democratic leers but also democratic candidates. new democracy's mission is to expand the party so we can compete and win everywhere in america. excuse me. i can't find it right now but on our program today is a map. the pole election map. thank you very much, folks. is this map -- which i hope never to see it again in my life, to wake up after another big national election and find the red-splashed map pocked here and there with blue. it does not have to be this way. the party has been really competitive all over the party. we have been a national party and we have to be that again. that's the simples way for us to understand. the mission is to abolish this map so that i never have to look at it again. new democracy spent last year barn storms across the country, mainly out of the red and purpose states.

we stayed out of washington, listened to democratic leaders and candidates. we were in orlando, denver and des moines. we thought that the democratic party had a lot to learn from the democrats out there fighting and winning office and governing in competitive places maybe more than the army of well paid consultants that we have so many up here in washington. when we heard from these folks is really deep hunger for new leaders, new directions, fresh thinking about the party's agenda. people are looking for alternatives coming from the washington establishment. that is an alternative to any jen da to speaks to grief happens and victims -- grievance and victimhood, rather than economic hopes. so many with a crucial mid-term

election ahead of us this fall, new democracy has come to washington with a very simple message and that is that it is time for democrats to think strategically and not idol calally. we are out of -- ideologicalally. we are out of power in washington and out of many states. we can't afford a sectarian debate about who is and who is not a true progressive. what this party needs is to take advantage of this mid-term election, a political strategy that reaches out to rural, independents, rural workers and a significant chunk of disaffected republican voters. we want to build new majorities, building strong candidates and winning more elections because that's the only way to stop the trump republican wrecking crew. that's the only way to stop them from packing the supreme court with more right wing

activists, dominating it for generation, stripping people of more health care coverage, fracturing our society along lines of race, chars and place, alienating america's closest allies. we have seen this vividly just this week. while daliing with dictate fors at vanity summits. obviously, this is not enough. we can't build durable majorities through resistance. we have to give voters something to say yes to. we have we have don't that in our platform documents playings. we have 16 big ideas for change which we think define. strangec socialism. so now i will just close with

this we are in rancorous times in american politics and usually pessimistic over our country those that are hungry and ready for the forward-looking blueprint to build new prosperity in this digital economy not trying to resurrect the old but to have digital economy, not trying to go back and work -- resurrect an older economy. we have resources, industrial people, a huge scientific and technical base and a cultural -- culture of entrepreneurial risk-taking and with pragmatic leadership we can parlay these strengths in a revival of america's can-do spirit and parlay these strengths to american preeminence in this century just as we enjoyed in the last. that is the new democracy mission and that's

why we're here. before turning the program over to the governor from delaware -- i want to talk about -- trying to get into this as much as we can because of time constraints and we ask everybody to practice introductory minimalism. we have bios on the table and a lot of our illustrious guests will not get the latch -- get the lavish intros they deserve in the interest of keeping things brief but i do want to say how profoundly grateful i am to our elected friends and our new democracy leaders and new democratic leaders of congress and mod squad leaders in the senate. they've really stepped up to the plate in the party so firstar great gratitude

for coming out and secondly, thanks to you for coming and we hope you will stay involved in this effort -- we need to build a real network so with that let me turn it over to jack marco and and to practice the minimalism i won't say a lot about them except to say -- him except to say he's one of the founders of the new democracy and without his help we wouldn't be here so thank you for everything. good morning, everybody. thank you. i want to say i am thrilled to see senator coombs walk in the room because my job -- i will introduce him in a few minutes but wilson told me i will have to fill the time he -- until he gets here.

i don't do this very much anymore. when you're outside the country -- you should be glad i don't have to fill a lot of time. he's like a dog with a bone when it comes to promoting the kind of problem solving politics that people in the country are so hungry for and i've had the opportunity to attend the kickoff event in orlando as well is the one in denver and i can tell you that the level of energy out in the country, and the level of talent for mayors, state legislators, congress and others is just incredible. we have so much strength out across the country and it is really something important and valuable for us to build on. i think that is important because i think it is very -- for very understandable reasons, people are unbelievably anxious and desperate about this coming

election and it sort of sounds like hyperbole. we hear every election that this is the most important of our lives -- but this one, i think people really feel like it is. people are so desperate in 2018 to take back the chamber or hopefully two, twin back governors seats and state legislatures all across the country. even as we acknowledge that different campaigns are going to look different across the country and all you have to do is think about connor lamb and cortez dish pretty different candidates and campaigns -- i really do believe the conversation taking place here today is as important as any conversation taking place in our party or in the country across the country, and that is because while it is true that hard-core temp -- democrats are sufficiently engaged to vote out of animosity toward the president and toward his republican

enablers, there just aren't enough of them for us to win these big elections and what we really have to do, the home -- the cold hard fact is that yes, we do have to mobilize our base, but we also have to convince a lot of independents and even some republican -- republicans that we have a more inspiring vision for the country and that our leadership can make that vision real. if we are thoughtful about it that is absolutely what plays to our strengths -- new democracy -- we've long seen these leaders promoting the ideas that will lead to real and sustainable economic growth, and we also will ensure that this growth is shared more broadly. that's a winning platform, good not only for the election cycle, but also for the country. that's what today is all about and what the new democracy is all about. we really do believe that when we help the country, we also help our party. so we

show examples of how massive investment in skill, education and skill development through helping our constituents transform their lives, that helps the country and our people . the same is true when we show how enlightened leadership working with the private sector the academic sector, the not- for-profit sector -- can lead to new start up activity across our state, that also help the party and helps the country. the list goes on. so we are joined today by a number of very talented and effective elected officials and you are going to be hearing from the men we are very grateful to you for your service and all that you are doing, and i have an opportunity now to introduce one of them. chris , senator and i met in 1988. we met in a campaign for senate that was one of the least successful anywhere -- anytime. my friend had to take a leave of absence -- to work on this company -- work on this

campaign and the partner in charge told me he was watching the results that night and told me your race was the first called of the entire country, and i am sure much of that had to do with the help that senator kuhns and i provided. he is beloved in delaware and for good reason. he is brilliant, and there's no question about that -- you know it when you hear it and people across the country have seen it but he's also just incredibly real. this is a guy who -- are you the only chemist in the senate? berkeley law degree and a divinity degree from yale, went to south africa to work for bishop tutu -- came back to work for the coalition in new york -- not in the office, but on the streets.

he has learned not just in the classroom, but has learned so much by doing and by listening.

that led to research and development tax credits -- easier access to credit for small businesses and startups and also led an effort called manufacturing usa institute -- a number of institutes across -- the country and he's always believed the government can't do it itself and it's about the public-private and academic sectors and not -- not-for- profit sectors and you are starting to see these manufacturing institutes pop up across the country including right here in delaware -- it will be a new institute around bio manufacturing. really exciting and i will close with this. this particular institute is writing right now -- rising

right now, broke ground probably eight months ago -- on a former chrysler plant where for 50 years -- the kids we grew up with, their folks worked at chrysler. this was one of the great places for folks in delaware without a college degree to earn a middle-class job and in december 2008 -- chrysler closed that plant and now you are saying -- seeing a new advanced research campus at the diversity of delaware rise including the several hundred thousand square-foot institute focused on bio manufacturing -- it wouldn't have happened without chris kuhns and there are similar stores across the country, so it has been a delight to watch him take washington by storm and you see the respect he has earned in such a short period of time and i know how happy we are that you are here today, chris.

>> thank you, jack, and good morning. where are we going? i don't know about you, but when i watch tv in the morning and when i just turn on my phone and look at the latest news alerts or i am speaking to a room and half of the heads are down because there's a tweet about something striking or shocking our president has just said or done, i am left asking myself, is this our america? and where are we going? we are here today to have a simple but important conversation about that, about our direction and i will just open with what i think is our common, shared view that if we are is a democratic party are going to move from a minority at every level that is dedicated to resistance to a majority that is capable of

governance, then we have got to move from grievance to optimism, and we've got to abandon a pet -- a politics of anxiety characterized by wild eyed proposals and instead deliver ideas and practical solutions that respect and meet the needs of millions of americans who voted for someone they thought was going to shake it up and now her left shaken and wondering who is going to help move us forward? it is exactly for that reason that we are here this morning and it is because of his remarkable record of leadership and success in our state that i am so grateful to jack. jack and carlo were a wonderful -- jack and carlo were a wonderful governor and first lady of delaware and what it was about that campaign that made the two of us decide to do anything in politics -- we actually left that field campaign and both went into the private sector -- failed campaign and both went into the private sector, i.e. into manufacturing and it was a

decade later that we came back to delaware and ran for office and served our state and that manufacturing institute that i get to see literally every morning and every night as i take the amtrak down and back to washington really is an inspiring and enduring challenge and force of optimism for me. we both grew up in and around newark, delaware and there are thousands of high quality, high paying jobs of chrysler were the anger of the entire neighborhood and i went it was torn down -- and when it was torn down a decade ago it was heartbreaking. we lost gm, the steel mill, the oil refinery -- all of that and yet jack as governor refused to engage in politics of division and grievance and got our rueful -- oil refinery reopened and got the foundation for the research institute and the holder campus associated with the university going and made the investment and the hard choices to make it possible for a new fuel self-centered clean energy manufacturing business

to be on that site so it is not just r&d but also actual manufacturing happening on the site and it's not just that site but across our state. he led our state, bills rebuilt and -- public education, was a pragmatic leader getting us out of the recession, reduced unemployment and put us on a great footing in an inclusive way. he championed employment of people with disabilities and ended up the chairman of the nga being one of those practical state and local leaders that i think it's buyers are whole country. thank you for what you've done jack -- that i think inspires our whole country. thank you for what you've done jack and for being part of the since -- important discussion about the future bath of the democratic party going into -- path of the democratic party going into 2018 -- less than four minutes away from everlasting -- intellection with a lasting impact on our party going forward.

you just have to look at the president's tariff trade war or supreme court picks or truly disconcerting behavior at the nato summit and in advance of his upcoming meeting with putin -- to recognize how big the stakes are, not just for us as a party but for all of us as citizens and for our country. we've heard some predictions of a blue wave and the congressman -- and i were looking at a list of very compelling -- candidates but there are far too many just sitting on their hands waiting for it to wash over us and restore us -- or who are engaging in a relentless race to the left to make more and more outrageous proposals, rather than showing that if we get the keys, we are serious and capable of government -- governing again. this moment demands leadership and vision from folks in this room and i think that starts by having an honest conversation about where the democratic party is because the reality is after the 2016 election we spent far too much time shocked and acting and pretending as though our party is not in the weakest place it's been electorally since the 1920s and

if we are not honest with ourselves about how we got there then we will not have a clear eyed vision for how to stop donald trump, regain our majorities and put our country on a better path. while many of us find the president's conduct alarming or disparate -- disconcerting and even reprehensible and know that his policies are doing lasting damage i will remind you more than 40% of voters across the country and a working majority in some of the states we need to learn how to win back whether michigan or wisconsin or ohio -- approve of what he is doing so we have to take a step back and face the facts that historical -- democrats are at a historic low in representations in local governments all across the country and recognize those local leaders, the mayors, the county executives -- forgive me i always have to mention county executives but those folks who really are successfully leading innovative in effect of government and then ask how we can start winning again. i

would argue one of the biggest reasons we are at this current low point has nothing to do with policy, because frankly if you just talk about what has been long established mainstream democratic off policy on healthcare, taxes, energy -- broadly speaking the general public agrees with us, but we are not breaking true because they are not hearing us -- whether we like it or not millions of americans including those we are most trying to win over to trust us again view our party as condescending and detached from the real struggles they face. they see us as dismissive of the lies -- lives of middle america including their faith traditions. i've heard from far too many as they -- that they see the democratic party is literally soulless and judgmental so how do we remake our party in a way that builds on policies we know

will make the country stronger and improve americans' lives while also communicating that we are not just offering a few cook up in washington although very compelling policy papers, but we are actually going to listen to them and hear what they care about and what genuinely concerns them and that we will fight for them and offer real solutions. how we do that involves remaking the image of our party and i think that shows some of the fault line between those who have run and are running again for president on both the left and right of our party that want to take us in addiction -- in a different direction and that's why the conversation beginning here must continue through the fall and is so important because we are in the middle of a very serious debate about what it is that the democratic party is going to stand for, not just this fall, but in 2020 and going forward. so first of all, even if we disagree with them let's give the far left of our party reeled -- real credit for reaching out and truly tapping into the deep motivating passions and motor -- political energy in this country.

passionate moderate is not a sensible phrase and one of the challenges is folks who represent a more centrist and moderate position in our party is to recognize that all the energy and passion isn't on the left, but that's where most of the engagement is currently happening. and if you look at our policy platforms and ideas, the things we fight for, we are also committed to fighting more equal -- for more equality and justice where everyone can succeed but there is a big difference in tone. we are in a country where millions of people are angry or upset and feel like washington has no sense of their lives and they are looking for bold and unconventional leaders ready to tell them something different -- anything that will shake up the status quo and that might have some chance of improving the lives. just look back -- at some of the things president trump successfully ran on -- more jobs, better jobs? how? because he said so.

cheaper, better healthcare for everyone. how? just because he said so. a country somehow without criminals or crime because all we really need is a wall and mexico is going to pay for it. these were wild eyed proposals, a brand of populism that was a mix of reassurance, nativism and grievance, a disjointed wish list from imposing tariffs which somehow he claimed would solve trade imbalances to enacting a muslim ban which somehow he said would make is safer. we -- make us safer. we see most of this is not true and undeliverable and that these ideas are actually harming our competitiveness and standing in the world and ultimately america's families in the long run but trump was willing to be bold and to tap into real fears and concerns and he succeeded in convincing mikel -- millions of americans that he had an answer for them and spoke to where he were. that makes it all the more important that our party roots

its policies and messages in fact, long-held principles that we actually believe in and can fight for and know to be true. the democratic party has to offer up bold ideas that will work and that we can deliver on, and well -- you've done an amazing job of begetting that process of laying out a menu that is substantive and thoughtful and bold. some members of our party i fear are instead taking the easy road and proposing ideas that might sound great in a tweet like free college and free healthcare -- why? just because we say so and if that's not enough, guaranteed jobs from the federal government for everyone -- because we say so. but that doesn't feel like the democratic party. that has stood up and fought for and provided real solutions to working families for decades.

does it appeal to the people that we need to join us or convince anyone especially those deeply skeptical of us that we can be again the responsible governing party? i would argue it does exactly the opposite. like as i said we wanted to move from a party of minority committed to existence to a party that regains the majority and it -- is capable of regaining governance -- we have to act like it. i understand the strategy of racing farther and farther left in a 24/7 talking head social media -- extreme rhetoric -- those stand out and stick and get you more followers and likes and tweets but that doesn't make us responsible, and that doesn't make this rhetoric a good thing for our country or party. i'm going to give you a quick look back at the end of the 2016 election just to make the point. what is our strategy in the last closing six weeks of the democratic campaign? as best as i could discern it was essentially -- look at this

guy day she's crazy. he's unfit. is unstable. look at how crazy his -- but running against trump and adopting his tone and style simply won't win. i have experience with this. back in 2010 i got into the race to run against former governor congressman mike kemp and spent six weeks in a case -- months in a case against a very well- known candidate and in a shocker in mid-september he lost to a fringe candidate named christine o'donnell -- lucky me. a fringe tea party candidate who almost no one saw coming and two weeks later after that primary i was on a nationally televised debate hosted by wolf blitzer and cnn -- on cnn and in the run up to

that debate lots of folks advised me all you have to do to win his point out how nuts she is, but my mother and our former vice president both give us the same advice. my mom was the head of corporate hr for many years and she said respect your voters. an election is a job interview and no one ever got hired by spending their entire job interview saying look how crazy she is -- lookout incompetent and imbalanced he is -- you only get hired by saying why you deserve the job and what you are going to do if hired. trust that your voters know who is competent and at the end of the day you will have to face the fact that simply running against someone or offering impractical, pie-in-the-sky solutions won't work. we need to stand for something that americans can believe in and hold on to and will get them to come out and engage and vote. the next two years is just a race of offering increasingly unrealistic proposals to rally

just those who are already with us -- and it will be difficult for us to make a credible case that we should be allowed to govern again and easier neg -- easier to marginalize us as ungrounded so if we want to win back red states and be competitive in purple states we have to show up, listen to people, make the case -- and that involves better policies, which is why new democracies -- new democracy's work is so important to offer bold proposals to real challenges like individual savings and wealth building, health insurance -- we have to be pro- worker and pool employee -- pro employee and show there's a difference between being radical and bold. we can be bold by saying we can make healthcare affordable without having to say we will make it free. we can be bold by saying we will fix our disastrous immigration policies without saying we will abolish i.c.e.. we can be bold by saying we can

protect our environment without attacking the very energy industries millions of families rely upon for a paycheck and manufacturing lies upon for lower cost inputs and guess what -- we can be bold by saying we are willing to work with responsible republicans to get all of that done. i worked even in this divided senate across the aisle with bipartisan republicans to get bills passed to strengthen our economy and manufacturing and r& d, intellectual property, our competitiveness and although i am not suggesting anyone run-on that -- what we are talking about and a proposal for bringing back net -- manufacturing to those thousands of folks whose lives were jarred by the closure of the chrysler pant -- plant is a key piece of the credible path forward and that's how we will

make real progress and why it is so important that the new democracy has laid out this complaint -- compelling platform. yesterday was a great starting point for laying out policies that really matter from her menacing -- from harnessing energy -- to encouraging a new wave of manufacturing startups around the country even in rural communities and modernizing our immigration laws . one of the key planks is also to stop insulting our closest allies and recommit ourselves to that global liberal rules- based order in organizations like nato that have built our prosperity and security over seven decades. i hope you will take away the message from today that we don't have to be radical to be inspiring. the american people want to be part of a party that welcomes them, and hears them, where no one judges them and they are respected but also inspired by her optimism -- our

optimism and by the belief in the solutions we put forward. this is the time to listen and lead and put real ideas forward that are rooted in principle and facts and that show the american people in a time of anxiety that we are optimistic and that we are up to the task. thank you and thanks for the chance to be with you. i thankh senator. what an inspiring statement of what we are about and with rc >> thank you very much, i can't imagine a crisper and more inspiring statement of what we are about here at hing ordnew ey . that was just terrific and i am glad you read the planks. thank you very much. that really does set the table for our discussions today in a very good way. we are moving right along as we are a little behind. delaware's destiny -- if we do our job -- every state would be like us with a democratic governor, and state legislature.

before we get into the planks and ideas deeply we want to talk about the political challenge -- very much a geographical challenge and when you look at this map it comes through. just in the last 10 years, we've seen our party lose ground in the midwest and as a result lose control of the white house, congress and most state legislatures so it's essential for us to think about how we reverse that slide in this critical -- those critical battleground regions and we have some wonderful hopes to talk about that -- with my friend harrison hickman -- and we will talk about aspects of this challenge so without further ado i just want to say one other thing -- i think

everyone knows she is a rising star in the house and she'll -- she represents one of the 11 districts that trump won that had been held by democrats up to 2016 -- right at ground zero but the party has asked her to really look into the attitudes of democrats and voters in general in the midwest and she orchestrated this wonderful report -- hope from the heartland which you all should read because it really is kind of a focus of elected democrats out there who are struggling to win and be competitive and they are succeeding -- so with that congresswoman brewster, over to you. >> are you good with that if i sit here? just one correction -- the party didn't ask me to put that report together. i put it together and i'll tell you why. let me tell you about who is sitting here -- i represent a district in downstate illinois, and what that means is i am not

from chicago -- in the state of illinois we have 102 counties and only one of them is cook. we have 18 members of our delegation, 11 of whom are democrats -- all of those democratic members of congress are from chicagoland except for me. so if you can picture the state of illinois -- it's pretty big, and it's just the entire northwest corner -- which i represent. the rest of it is all surrounded by republican members of congress. i represent 7000 square -- miles, 14 counties days most of them rural -- and in some cases donald trump for instance in henderson county, illinois which is on the mississippi river across from burlington, iowa -- i think you know a little bit about burlington, secretary -- the entire population of that county is only 6000 people and what we've seen happen is that democrats

were writing off places like that. in fact, in henderson county, donald trump won it by almost 30 points -- but i still won it. i won all 14 counties in the last election cycle and we saw an 18 point swing from what obama won with in 2012 to what trump one by -- wonder by in 2016 and i won my entire congressional district by about -- 16 points. and some of my colleagues turned to me and said how in the heck -- you are one of a dozen democrats elected in the district that donald trump won -- how did you do this? so through all of that my colleagues elected me to be one of the cochairs of policy and communications among the democratic caucus and the only

reason i bring that up in this setting is that, when you look at the leadership table of the democratic caucus and house of representatives, there is one midwesterner. everybody else is coastal. there is one mid missed dinner -- midwesterner. there is one person who comes from a rural district -- almost entirely -- and there is one person who comes from a district that donald trump won and what i so appreciate about the democratic caucus is that we value diversity of every sort except for the kind that i just mentioned -- geographic diversity in this approach to politics that it's okay to work across the aisle. it's okay to make sure we are speaking everyday on these bread-and-butter issues that people back home talk about so when donald trump made that

statement toward the end of the campaign and it was actually directed toward an african- american audience -- do you remember it, when he said what have you got to lose? people in the district like mine, i can tell you that resonated with them because just like chris kuhns was talking about and the governor was talking about, we've had more than our fair share of plants like maytag send every last one of its jobs out of the country, some -- other companies -- bought out by bain capital and sending jobs over to china, companies like robertshaw that make these little water gadgets that go in dishwashers -- sent all of its jobs over to mexico so we've seen more than our fair share of that. the average income in my district for a family of four is $45,000 so what do we do as democrats? first of all -- and i think

actually if you listen to senator kuhns, i think you nailed it. you show up. you use these two things and this proportionately and i think a lot of politicians have a hard time doing that. for me i can tell you it is much more natural to listen more than i talk and it is because for most of my career i was a newspaper reporter and that's what i did for 17 years, i don't know if we have any -- i guess we do have some reporters in the room but you all know -- any good reporter, you ask questions and good follow-up questions and then you listen. the reason i did this report -- hope from the heartland -- and if you google it, it's the first thing that comes up, it's a 52 page report so if you don't want to read the whole thing just read the executive summary and you'll get the essence of it and we also have breakouts of all eight

midwestern states and a bit about what is happened, these 1000 seats we've lost over the last decade throughout the country -- most of those are in the midwest but when you add up the governor seats in the state legislatures and congressional seats, we've lost 1000 seats so i wanted to find out, who was doing it right? we talked to 72 democrats from these eight states more at the local level -- sheriff, state reps, state senators, mayors, and just asked these -- i call them survivors because the are people -- they are people who have been able to navigate these tough swing districts and ask them what do you do to be successful? so the secrets to their success which are really no secrets at all are spelled out in this report. we narrowed it down to four and i will just give you the essence of those. are democratic brand -- will,

you talked about this in our introduction. we have a brand issue with our party and we can all play a part in improving that. it's difficult -- but that is something that we have to work on together to improve the brand of the democratic party. focus relentlessly on jobs and the economy, meaning there are so many issues that divide us in our country and you know what they are -- i don't ever go into a room and start with those issues that divide. if somebody asks you a question about one of these device issues -- i answer them -- divisive issues i get back -- i answer it honestly and then reconnect with them. senator kuhns spoke about it very well, showing up, listening and then using what we learn from people to help

guide our policies and make sure they do reflect what people back home want us to focus on and then really adapting our campaigns and i think the other senator contact about this better than almost anybody i know -- because when he ran for governor he ran the most unique campaign in the state of iowa -- my neighboring state -- but it is adapting our campaigns in some cases to a district like mine -- to a rural area. when you go out doorknocking with your field organization -- if you are in a republican household and you've got your little packet -- they will notice if you walk right past your house -- sometimes these are gettable voters and we can't just act like it's in a rural county -- and you can't just forget these people. so it is adapting these campaigns -- it might be doing

rural radio patient might be doing small newspaper ads and i can tell you as a congressional candidate most people don't do newspaper ads anymore -- and it's even considering things like that -- in closing before i turn it over -- we have a wonderful opportunity this november. it is the best crop of candidates in these tough swing districts that i have ever seen in my political career . we have people who fit their districts like a gloves -- and that is a secret -- like a glove and that is important. they are day showing up and listening obviously matters but the caliber of candidates really does matter -- the secretary and i were talking earlier -- running in eastern iowa right across the

mississippi river -- from my congressional district, comes from a blue-collar family. she's 28 years old and until the race in new york just a couple weeks ago she would've been the youngest woman ever elected to the u.s. house of representatives but she is 28 years old and just a remarkable candidate. i am very, very excited about her and another person i want to call out that i think is running one of the most unique campaigns, a woman named alyssa slackens running in washington. she's a former cia officer -- served three tours in iraq -- never has run for anything in her life and she made this decision because she was so motivated by the direction that our country is going and she decided to run. last winter -- you know michigan winters aren't exactly

mild. she's already got her field operation up and running last winter and she's got her people out knocking on the door -- she calls it snow boots on the ground and uniquely instead of knocking doors -- getting literature and handing it to ever -- whoever answers, her people -- were asking what's on your mind? what do you want from your congresswoman or congressman? what do you want to see happen in washington so down to a precinct level -- illicit campaign knows what they care about and they can adjust what she is talking about -- she realizes potholes in the state of michigan in her congressional district are a big deal so i went up to campaign for her just a few weeks ago -- she has one of those gopros in the window of her car and she's driving and i am in her passenger seat and we

are talking about how bad the roads are in michigan and she starts naming these potholes because they are so brutal. she named one alcatraz because you can get in but you can't get out but she is running this hyper local campaign as a congressional candidate and that is my advice to people running. the old -- tip o'neill saying all politics is real -- we have to remember that entry all these campaigns the same way. we have tremendous candidates and there are 70 swing districts in this country -- democrats have to pick up 23 to win back the majority. we have 72 open house seats -- so that will give you an idea right there, when a seat is open it

gives you a better opportunity and among those folks running we have 15 veterans who in many cases are just some of the most phenomenal people. watch the amy mcgrath video if you haven't already, out of kentucky -- or the one out of west virginia, just amazing. you probably heard about mj hager -- she's gotten a lot of publicity. amazing human beings and veterans -- they were among the 15 and then -- i am very proud to say a record number of women running. so you've got every opportunity to win the house but if we win it back and i think we can, how far will we let the pendulum swing because right now it is in a bad place and if we let it go this way to the point will that you made earlier -- hanging on -- because i don't want to win back the -- house

and then let the pendulum swing back -- we need to get these things done. yesterday in the new york times, the headline is -- the center is sexier than you think . onward to victory. thank you very much. spec thank you. secretary -- taken away. >> ae didn't have breakfast so i am a little irritable. i will get right to the point. jack you are a great governor and congresswoman you are a traffic representative for our party and i hope you have the opportunity to be in leadership for a long time and that you are in the majority.

i've said nice thing is -- -- things about the people that are here so i will get right my point. you can't affect change unless you govern and you can't govern unless you win and you can't win that simple. think about the four democratic presidents we've had in the last 50 years -- lyndon johnson -- raised in a small town. jimmy carter -- raised in a small town. bill clinton, raised in a small town. barack obama raised by a mom from a small town -- they all understood and had in their dna a connection to rural america, so as a party -- we are at our peril if we decide to ignore the 50% of america that lives in world communities, 15% -- roughly equivalent to are african-american or latino communities and we should never

consider nor should -- we would never end nor should we ignore those populations. why would we ignore our rural population? if you want to be president or governor or senator -- if you want to be a state legislator or member of congress, you've got to speak to rural folks. i've got four things i want to share with you this morning. one -- to reinforce the show up message. you can't give lip service -- you physically have to be there . you have to go to a community and spend time there. barack obama spent 89 days there -- when he was going for the presidency. our party has a tendency to talk down to folks. who are these people? they are the people that provide most of the food we consume. every single person in this audience today is allowed to be someone who doesn't have to

produce their own food because you've delegated the responsibility of raising that food to several hundred thousand incredibly decorative -- dedicated, hard-working families , the people that control a good deal of the water we consume and most of the feedstock for the power we all use -- comes from america. when people want to get away from it all, where do they go, hunt fish and hike and bike? it's also a place that disproportionally sends sons and daughters into the military. they raise these kids with a value of service and the importance of service so talk them up -- don't talk down. build them up. understand the emotion that occurs in small town america. in my lifetime people my age -- here's what they've seen -- they've seen that manufacturing plant leave and they've seen

the impact on their central business district as it begins to get boarded up. they see the merger of their school system with the archrival down the road because they can't afford two small schools. they see the closing or the elimination of healthcare services because they can't afford to take care -- and most of all they've seen their sons and daughters and grandkids leave. understand the hollowing out that they felt and speak to it. understand that our party is the party of hope but whenever we talk about hope we are always talking about the people that are at the bottom of the ladder and encouraging them with our help and assistance to rise up that ladder -- understand that many of the people in small towns have been at the top of the ladder --

they've lost something. it's not about giving them hope and opportunity for things they've never had before which is a much easier sell than basically saying we are going to restore you. what was trump statement? we will make america great again? that's basically saying to those folks who come down the ladder, we are going to put you back on top. how do we do that? we have to have a plan -- not a program, but a plan and a plan that essentially says to all of those folks in rural america, we intend to be your partner -- not that we have a solution or the answer or that we will impose a government program in your own town, but we want to work with you to rebuild this economy. we want to support production agriculture and understand the importance of exports. we need to stop the nuance entrie -- not all trade is bad.

if you are a farmer you depend upon trade so our party speaks on trade as if it were all bad but farmers look at that is, they don't get my life. let's figure out a more nuanced way of talking about trade recognizing some of the benefits of trade and guarantee with all the tariffs going on now -- we've got a pretty interested and receptive audience if we develop that nuanced conversation. talk about local and regional food systems so you hold out the opportunity for the small producer to be able to develop their on market not based on a commodity or global pricing system that discourages -- smallness -- give folks a chance to be entrepreneurial. talk about conservation, not just in terms of better soil and cleaner water, all of which is great but about that recreational opportunity that comes with great soil and water and the opportunity to attract

construction companies that do the comp -- the congress -- the conservation and the ability of companies and individuals to invest in conservation to get an environmental result that either satisfies their regulatory responsibility or fulfills a social responsibility they believe they should have and bring manufacturing back in terms of plant-based bio-based manufacturing. it is today a $390 billion industry employing 4 million people -- most of them ought to be employed in small manufacturing facilities in communities. developing programs and policies that encouraging -- that encourage that type of economy. understand that democrats like to talk about innovation and new ideas and that's great -- but, what about the impact of those new ideas on people who are now going to lose their jobs?

we ought to have a strategy for a transition economy that ensures that when we have driverless cars that the cabdrivers and ups drivers and truck drivers are transitioned in a way that doesn't leave them frustrated and angry. and finally, we need to understand that part of the frustration and anxiety occurring today is that the pace of change has so rapid, it has accelerated beyond our institutional capacity to manage change. our governments are too slow. it takes too long to do things and we are now in a competition with our friends in china who are actually going to suggest that they have an alternative way of governing that is more practical, quicker and more effective. it is an absolute competition, and if we don't work -- reform our government systems and understand the need for quicker decision-making and more

streamlined processes, we could lose that competition. so i hope our party understands the importance of speaking to and about rural communities and i am convinced that if we do, we can have electoral success. we can live -- win state legislative license which wins us the chance to get representative in a more inclusive way and have a cadre of individuals primed to be the next governor of the state like jack or the next congresswoman like sherry or the next senator late chris -- like chris and then we would have a terrific opportunity to take back the white house with someone who can speak not just to a group of siloed populations -- but to all of america. i leave you with this: as bad as the situation appears to be today, make no mistake about it:

you can't beat something with nothing and donald trump is something. you can't beat something with nothing and our party better understand the necessity of having a universe adult -- universal message. that's my message to all of you today. >> thanks very much, tom. what you just heard was a pithy version of a tour de force speech he gave at the heartland retreat -- with although one -- all the iowa democrats last october and with that kind of guidance we can reach these voters, so thank you very much. i now want to bring in harrison hickman and as i mentioned -- harrison is one of the deans of political strategy and pulling -- polling in washington and is also somebody who specializes in electing drug -- democrats --

in his terrain. we worked together on the jim hunt campaign way back in 1984 trying to get jesse helms out of the senate and now -- i guess he would be somewhere in the middle, a moderate in today's republican party. >> thank you. i want to endorse almost everything i've heard this morning. i grew up in a small town like the secretary mentioned and in fact it was so small we had drivers education and sex education in the same car. what i wanted to talk about was a little about the before you get all these great candidates who lot -- who i've worked for for almost 40 years, you have to get through the stereotypes people have of their party, or

of their type whether it's a woman or a banker or a teacher or african-american or most importantly a democrat that you have to get through that stereotype before people can analyze who you are and what your qualities are. that one of the big challenges we have today is that there is a huge gap between the reality of democratic voters and the impression people have of democrats and i wanted to talk about that just a little bit. the confusion is between activists and voters on the one hand and among the activists and leaders there is confusion between the people who are the most representative and the ones who are the loudest and the ones who in this case are the most outrageous are anti- trump. there's an assumption that that's what democrats are and there are a lot of reasons

for this besides just fox news. i will say we do it a lot to ourselves but we've done some recent polling that i wanted to share with you and just randomly picked two states, iowa and new hampshire -- and looked at people who are going to participate in the nominating process in the caucuses in iowa and the primary and ask them questions about the democratic party, asking them questions about the democrats and we asked them, would you like in the democratic party -- like the democratic party to be more liberal and pursue the traditional approaches of the democratic party or would you rather the democratic party focus on new ideas and innovation. among iowa caucus voters, participants and new hampshire primary voters, about 30% think the party should be

more liberal or take the traditional democratic approaches and a majority in both states -- large majority over 60% in both states think the democratic party should focus on new ideas and innovation regardless of ideology -- that's sort of number one. there's a huge misunderstanding that democrats want the party to be more liberal. that's simply not true -- order go backwards. -- or to go backwards. secondly if -- in terms of what you want in the next presidential candidate, you want somebody who will be a fighter for progressive ideas or someone who works in a bipartisan matter -- manner. it's almost 2 to 1 on democratic participants in these states -- want somebody who will work in a bipartisan matter -- manner to get things done as opposed to simply advance progressive causes and then also same type

of thing -- would you prefer a candidate for president who energizes liberal voters or somebody who appeals to middle- of-the-road voters, and again -- it's about 35 to almost 60% that 60% prefer somebody who appeals to middle-of-the-road voters. so in a number of very fundamental ways i think without it of the democratic party and a lot of that is to blame ourselves. -- i think people have a missed impression of the democratic party and a lot of that is to blame on ourselves. i want to mention trade. we gave people three choices, not two, which a lot do. we asked them do you think trade has been harmful, like nafta and so forth, have been

harmful to the country, have been beneficial to the country, and have been beneficial but not enough voters think trade hn beneficial, but we have not done enough to help people who have been has been done for people who've been hurt and more than half the voters in both states think that rate has been beneficial, but we haven't done enough. to help people who have been hurt. h avot bipolarityrt of the h times it of a lot of these arguments we have, both within our party and with the republicans, hurt us because what sho mas many times it's that but that ai makes a difference. ff living, a pollster. i have explained to them there is no t people sometimes ask me what i s do for a living. i tell them i am a pollster. that doesn't mean refinishing chairs and sofas. i have explained there is no regulation in this business. it's one that any fool can get into and a lot have. i have -- i hope i have proved in these few minutes i'm not one of those. thank you. >> [ applause ]

they illuminates a perception gap that is enormous in washington between when it comes to defining the base of the >> thank you very much. those are fascinating data points. they eliminated a kind of perception gap that is enormous here in washington between -- you know when it comes to defining the base of the democratic party. in washington, you get the sense that it's progressive activist groups, ving hard to the and some of our interest groups in the party. left, what you described is a rank-and-file who voted in these key early primaries that have different views. i want to b the supposition is that they are driving hard to the left but what you have described is a rank and file who have voted in these key early primaries that have different views. i want to now bring in paul blitz. issues. it paul is the author of this really important report for new democracy: how democrats make democracy and climate change winning campaign issues. which argues we fumbled the politics for quite a long time, . b but there's an opportunity to stop doing that and make eingit work if we can get this right.

in in the spirit of the governor and governor bill over to you. >> thank you, will. thank you, everybody for being here. co. the spirit of governor markel, governor phil zach and senator coons, , howid america elect a i want to wrap an honest conversation with you and ask you a simple question. how did america elect a president who denies climate change science and thinks cole is the future? how did that happen? s i think it eriohappened becauses democratic party does not have a serious brand around the incredibly advanced knowhy energy boom that has been the brightest spot in the american economy, in the last 10 years. i don't know why our nominee, zach -- secretary hillary clinton contrast that incredibly positive economic and environmental story that helped us reduce didn't embrace shell gas in the midwestern swing states and contrast that incredibly

positive economic and environmental story that has helped us reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 12% under former president barack obama, with donald trump's energy is an economic issue, whether it's those that produce shale oil and coal dust memories. for most americans, energy is an economic issue, whether it's those who produce shell oil and gas in rural districts all around the country, or those who benefit from the lower prices that under president obal production in the these commodities have given us. under former president barack obama, ar oil production in the united states grew 74%, the largest growth in our history. that was incredibly important for our economy. it lowered the price of oil globally by half. it also reduced our imports of oil ea from 60% to 30%. what a bright r tspot. what an haincredible success. i didn't hear that during the

campaign. let's look at shale gas. benefit w it was 34% growth under president obama. an incredible benefit to rite p ratepayers, businesses, lowering the cost of electricity throughout the united states. didn't really seem to come up during the campaign. i think we have to embrace this incredible revolution. shale and gas are part of it but it has to do a lot with what democrats have been in the lead on, which includes renewable energy but also energy efficiency, energy storage, carbon capture, a whole range of technologies that are transforming america into i believe the world's superpower on energy. policies through our national laboratories which we have champion for decades has led to these advances. in fact, it was democratic policies largely to research and development at our natural laboratories -- national

laboratories, which we have sentence -- supported for decades and yet we don't seem to embrace -- i've worked on climate change for 25 years. i deeply care about climate change. i think it's one of the most important issues facing our country world but until we start talking about energy in economic terms first, and security terms second, we don't get a hearing on climate change third. climate change is going to cost us a bundle. let me tell you, climate change is going to cost us a bundle. it already is. the storms and other related natural disasters that were exacerbated by climate change in 2017 alone, cost federal taxpayers $130 billion. the total costs are over $300 billion. and almost 400 lives lost. that does not include puerto rico. a harvard study estimates that

at almost 5000 people. issues, but so is the provision of affordable energy to people who are living paycheck to pa these are really life and death issues. so is the provision of affordable energy to people who are living paycheck to paycheck. we are the party that has solutions on energy and climate change. we can have energy abundance and climate protection together. we know how to do this. under barack obama, we had $4 million -- 4 million new energy- related jobs in the u.s., while we reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 12%. we know how to do this. we have the technology. in fact,, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90%, by mid century, i believe we have the technology now to do that. than that would include keeping our nuclear fleet, which is more

than 60% zero emissions electricity today. e it would involve capturing the carbon and using it to create brand-new products. it will involve storing electricity. where new technologies are allowing to do this. it would involve growing our incredible solar and wind resources. by the way, the cost of those have gone down 70% in the last decade. we have the technologies to deal with the problem and be a global leader, but we have to talk about it in the way that most americans understand it. if we want to expand this math, we have got to become the party of economics for average people, and energy i think is one of the points of the spear in this process. thank you. >> [ applause ] >> thanks very much, paul. that's a tremendously important

message in the great primary battle of 2016 we almost had a democratic platform that banned fracking reflecting this kind of demand and that might coming from certain parts of the environmental world that we keep this amazing shale resource in the ground. a demand that might make sense if we thought this was in some way helping her climate challenge, as points out it's quite the opposite. it has helped create in aggravating our climate challenge but as paul points out it's quite the opposite. it has helped create an energy mix that the gets our carbon emissions down. and out there, in the contested territory of middle america, this is a jobs issue. these are really great middle- class production jobs. that's what everyone is talking about that everybody wants. we have a few things left. i want to throw things open to the wider panel and our audience. folks who may have a question or a comment that they would

like to add. this, one thing i want to get you know, one thing that just -- i want to get back to harrison hickman. your pulling of the voters matters is -- matters in the early days. it's so fascinating. voters. what's the top issue? what's top of mind for the boaters? the damage. >> the big thing democrats want to do is stop the damage trump is causing. it's sort of the job one of stopping front. interested in is how to have the second thing that they are interested in is meaningful community. people think they're not nearly as selfish r how to build a meaningful community. i mean, people think very much o in terms nalof -- people are no nearly as selfish as either national party acts like they are. inappropriate terms they think

about the broader community and they want to people tend to think in socio- tropic terms. they want to build a better education system, a better healthcare system. they want to build a better economy. democrats, it's the sense that we are falling beh if there is one thing that ind unifies democrats, it's the sense that we are falling behind in terms of the ability to provide for our families and our communities. tough questior lk >> thank you. you have a really tough question for folks. k a lot about economics this morning and about people falling down the but you know, we talk a lot about economics. and about people falling down the economic ladder, and about how democrats need to speak to those who have suffered downward mobility, not just to aspirational voters but that's a really important challenge.

the heartland of democrats is driven by cultural concerns and to what extent it's driven by economic concerns is a huge question. really hear what were proposing and a lot of these areas. they get turned >> i think the question is people don't really hear what we are proposing a lot of these areas because they get turned off by the national image of democrats. it's awfully hard for democratic candidates to be heard. expenditure campaign that helped doug jones in alabama. i can tell we worked on the independent expenditure campaign that helped doug jones and her alabama and i can tell you, i have no doubt that democrats will defeat every sexual predator that we run against. it was hard, i wor

the last two democratic governors, it is awfully hard to get heard as a democrat. for people to even take your ideas but i have worked for the last two democratic governors in alabama. it's awfully hard to get hurt is a democrat, for people to even take your ideas seriously. y we have created such a negative stereotype, and so o know many times, it's bob squire, who many of you probably remember, a media consultant one time told me the best thing you can have in politics is a fool for an opponent. we've got the biggest one ever this time. trump is going to define the national political scene, and how democrats can offer an alternative is what's going to matter most. people have 1000 reasons to be against donald trump. the question will be do they think the democrat can provide

a positive alternative? >> this is just in response to paul's comments on energy, i think it was fascinating. since on an economist >> just in response, i was listening to pull's comments on energy. i thought that was pretty fascinating. since i am an the economist, we do right about that a lot. aboe other congress folks was th it's interesting what paul had talked about and some of inking other congress folks here. was you know thinking about the party of economics, for the average person including energy. what we have looked at in terms of the economics, the economic aspects of energy, is that one used to be in the 1970s and 80s, that for an increase in one dollar for a gallon of gas, he hit two economy -- consumer spending would be pretty severe, shaving 25 basis points off of growth if it lasted for a year.

we have to look at it differently and i think it ties to win we think about the geography of the maps in the u.s. when we look at it today, yes, increasing in dollar per gallon of gas will hurt at the gas pump, but we also have to recognize that the u.s. now is the largest energy producer in the world. so, that m i think we have surpassed saudia arabia. we're really big. and so that means, it also creates jobs. those jobs are in of middle america, and that is also something that i don't think gets recognized when we talk about the energy side. i thought that was interesting, paul. comments, these standards >> thank you. i just wanted to make two quick comments. tbooks of efficiency standards have improved the pocketbooks of americans without them

realizing it. they've been pushed by democrats. the miles per gallon now compared to the 70s has tripled and it's due to rise again. the trump administration is proposing rolling back those standards even though the auto companies don't want them to. what that amounts to is a tax on the american people. issues in economic terms. rolling back fue we need to begin to talk about these issues in economic terms. rolling back fuel economy standards is going to make gasoline cost more. rolling back other efficiency standards is going to make electricity cost more. for the 58% of americans who live paycheck to paycheck, that's a big deal. so instead of talking about efficiency in terms of climate first, we need to talk about it in terms of the pocketbook kitchen table economics. >> this could really be a great

conversation. unfortunately, my job is to be the mussolini and make the trains run on time. we want to hear from mayor landrieu next. we are not doing big introductions because we have a lot of folks but we are so pleased and proud to have mayor landrieu join us and mayor james just came in so it's a good time for me to advertise one of the planks in our planks for a new democratic platform calls for democrats to local. think not about how to centralize more power in washington, but how to move more power and decisions, and resources to mayors. the mayors are -- the mayors are the stars of our federal system these days. they are the ones who are turning in a record of innovation, rebuilding our economy, reviewing our social fabric from the ground up. we went down and went to new orleans to talk about the remarkable change for the

accelerated pace of recovery from katrina and the big school story which we are going to talk about, but both of these mayors are the forefront of that revolution. but i also want to say by way of a short introduction, mayor landrieu just left office after two fabulous terms in new orleans and towards the end gave a marvelous speech that has kind of gone viral about the confederate monument controversy down there. that's garnered attention in his recent speech. it's an eloquent statement from a white 7 to hit home. mr. >> len:, thank you for joining us. please, come to the podium. >> i think all of you for having me. >> first of all, thank all of you for having me. my name is mitch. i'm from louisiana. we know a lot about slumps so i

feel very comfortable to be amongst all of you. my sister is in the back. i think she is going to talk about education in the future, so i will leave that to her. thank you all for ceding me next to another good-looking baldheaded man. we are working hard to take our rightful place in america. we're going to get there. i don't know why you asked me to come talk to. i'm unemployed i don't know why you asked me to come talk to you. i am unemployed. for eight years, i've been trying to find ways not to cut the grass or walk the dog. i'm out of excuses so i was thrilled to come out and talk to you for a minute about some of the issues that are facing the country. i don't pretend to speak for the national democratic her -- democratic party. i am only standing here to give you maybe a sense and perspective on how for the last eight years, and six years

before that as lieutenant governor, we were able to get some things done in the state and in the city. sometimes, with the help of washington, d.c., and most times without the help of washington, d.c. to the issue that will spoke about, earlier about how to really find best examples, and david this is your phrase, laboratories of democracy and change in cities as well. by i want to begin by being simply understood by people. you can't govern if you can't win elections. t because you don't have the power to do it. you can't win elections if one extreme is responding to the other. and if you did won the election and you were able to govern, or you had the power to, you wouldn't be able to get anything done. that's why the people of america are really ticked off because nothing seems to be

working or seems to be moving. i am not an expert in congress. i don't think many people are, but i would venture to say the public doesn't understand how congress does not work. i would bet you that if on monday, house speaker paul ryan put an immigration bill on the floor of the house, and suspended the hassett rule, and let 435 duly elected members have an all out debate, with everybody offering amendments by the end of the week, the will of the american people would be done and we would have comprehensive immigration reform. i actually think if he did the next week infrastructure, i think we would come up with an infrastructure package too. right now, because of institutional rules, the american people don't even get what they are entitled to. which is a full, open debate amongst their legislators. cities don't work that way. states don't work that way. mayor james can tell you we don't have the luxury of

actually talking about things for too long. there a specific reason for it. it's because the incentive is to talk less and do more. the reason that incentive is real is because we lived in the communities where we work, and the decisions that we make as mayors in partnership with our city council and state legislators hits the ground right away. and if we didn't get our jobs done, the lights would go on, the water would run, the police wouldn't show up, and you would get thrown out of office in a heartbeat. down. that is why so the incentives that exist in washington, d.c. right now seem to be upside down. that is why untry. washington, d.c. is really frustrating the rest of the country. that's message part one. message part two is we live in different worlds. if the reflection on cnn, fox and msnbc are accurate about the way washington thinks about itself and how decided --

divided everybody seems to be into red, blue, and rural, we live in different worlds because in the cities we govern, that is not our experience. it's not our experience that people are running to the edges and not talking to each other, going into restaurants and this group sitting over here and this one over there. re seeking and finding common ground because they depend on each other. there are people looking and finding common ground because they depend on each other. so without being simplistic, you o they know be they can't get anything done without the other. without being too simplistic, you know this to be true. you will find what you seek. if you seek common ground, if you want a solution to the problem, if the incentive is to make something work as opposed to win, or be the leader or do whatever folks do, that is what will happen. i happen to believe the president is taking the country

in the wrong direction. he's not the cause of this, mostly although he is certainly exacerbating it, but he is certainly a symptom of this notion that somehow if we stay divided, we are going to be better, for this is a zero-sum game, or if you win, in order to do that, i have to lose. that's not our experience in new orleans. our experience is if we go together, if everybody is at the table, we win. the reason is simple. none of us have everything we need to get everything done. you actually have to reach out to other people. as a mayor n as i lisa mayor, when i listen the washington, d.c. theory of life that in order to win as a democrat you have to be anti- business, or you have to be completely anti--- anti-energy, or you have to be in a certain way about infrastructure. and then i listen to the other side sets a few want to win you have to be all for it. in new orleans, that doesn't

make any sense because the thing that helped us rebuild the city of new orleans despite the wonderful gratitude and blessings of the people of this country and federal investments was making sure everybody was at the table talking about ways they can take responsibility but that -- but at the same time recognize opportunity. that's number one. the second is there is no ideological bent to what we are going to do, although we want to be informed by good principals, good values and common sense. the order of the day was find an answer to the problem. mary is going to talk about this later, and i will leave her to talk about the details of it, but generally speaking into the state of louisiana, we had a school system that wasn't working. it had to be fixed. in the city of new orleans, we had to have a new way of educating our children. the debate at the time wasn't about well, should we be

prounion, antiunion, do this or that, the answer was what is the best model for kids to learn? what is the answer that surrounds that, given our circumstances? into the city of new orleans, we are dealing with the criminal justice system. it wasn't whether you were soft or hard on crime, the issue was how do you keep the community safe, can you be tough and smart at the same time? isn't it wise to make sure that people who are in jail for minor offenses that have maybe been over incarcerated costing you $30,000 a year, wouldn't it be better if you found a pathway back into the city, and put them in job training? how do you get that done? how do you break down the barriers? if mayors were left to deal with immigration reform, -- you can contradict this if you want but if you give us the job of coming up with a package of immigration reform that 60%, 65% of the country would support based on polling data,

i think we could put republican mayors and democratic mayors in a room and within a fairly short period of time come up with a solution that if tested at pulse, 65% of the people in this country would support because we understand give and take. we understand trying to figure out you have to be tough and smart at the same time, and you have to be innovative. and the city of new orleans, and this is true of los angeles, chicago, new york, oklahoma city, mesa, arizona run by democratic and republican mayors, non- ideologically based leaders who are being creative and innovative, trying to find new ways to solve old problems. if you view the world through that prism and you think about the things that matter, safety and security, education, driving on streets, having sewage and water systems, all those things matter but we are also dealing with innovation, technology. we are also dealing with automation and how we have to

completely redesign our cities to be able to receive what's coming our way in terms of vehicles that are not going to have drivers in them. successfo those are all the things we're thinking about going forward and essentially, the only way we can be successful is to reach out to people who think differently from us, and ask them to be involved. secondly, because we don't have enough resources to make sure that everybody is putting into the pot. as a political matter, i happen to agree with the gentleman that spoke a minute before. you can't be somebody with nobody. you can't beat a divisive message with no message at all. i am just here to testify to what i've seen as the secret sauce for success across america in the cities, and that's strong leaders. not only in the government but the private sector and the not- for-profit sector giving everybody room.

a big tent. everybody has a place at the table. nobody gets excommunicated because they are not here on the ideology. everybody is not -- everybody is invited in and lock the doors because we're not leaving until we figure out what the answer is. no more going on vacation and getting paid if the lights are not coming on. i am seeing my wonderful friend david, who has worked with me when i was lieutenant governor, and as mayor thinking about new ways to innovate in government. even for those that believe in government, and i do, i believe it has a massive and important active role to play, all things considered, mayors would prefer the federal government to be involved in their lives appropriately. if the federal government is not going to show up, we need them to get out of the way, but we would much prefer a robust relationship between the federal, state, and local governments with horizontal and vertical integration to solve problems that need to be solved. that's true whether you are

talking about agriculture, housing, or whatever. but if they're not going to show up, we want them to move to the side so we can get stuff done. be that as it may, even those of us who are the hardest core democrats, government has to work well. the nuts and bolts and mechanics, it has to be efficient, effective. you have to cut out waste, fraud, abuse. you have to reduce regulations that don't make any sense and that are obsolete, and make sure you keep the ones that actually protect the health and safety of the country. no mayor would ever say i am against reducing regulation. ree health and safety of the country. should never say i'm against reducing regulation without thinking really hard about what that really means. when i became mayor i without thinking really hard about what that means. when i became citymayor of tha of new orleans, i inherited a city that was on the verge of bankruptcy. i could have taken the city into bankruptcy. i was advised not to because it's really easy to get in and really hard to get out. that resonated with me because i knew i had a hard job and i

knew i would make the right decisions. i cut 22% hard dollars, bone and muscle, and marrow out of our government. 22%. think about that number on the federal level. i'm not sure there has ever been a cut that has approximated a real cut, much less not a cut in growth. you i also believed in balance budgets and long-term people said well you are a a democrat so you believe in government, yes but i also believe in budgets, long-term physical security and i also had a big fight with some unions about our firefighter's pension fund that was going to bankrupt the city of new orleans after we got out of this. people would say you are crazy. you are a democrat. why are you fighting with the firefighters union? i represent everyone in the city and i have to have the city's best interests at heart and if the city is not financially sound, the next council or mayor won't have a choice between good and better options, only bad and worse options. that's a terrible place to be in. i think democrats have lost their reputation of being

people that really think about the public's pop -- public's pocketbooks. that's critically important because people want to feel safe, feel like they have an opportunity for prosperity and they want to make sure they are not going to get hurt, and at the same time they are way open to the issues that the democrat party push social issues. they know a country that discriminates on race, creed, color, sexual orientation and country of origin is not who we are as a country. they know that. and not all of the people that support donald trump fall into the category of being racist. the people in the middle, the want to know, notwithstanding the fact that they don't like that, and we understand pocketbook issues and we see them, they don't think we see them. some candidates actually do not go to see them.

mayor landrieu won four trends in the u.s. senate. a democrat in a now very red state. one of the reasons she ran those times was because she went to every parish in the state, even the ones that we knew were going to show up 71 weyandt 30 the other. i ran two statewide elections as governor because i went to every parish. the calculation is not to don't go there because you're going to lose the parish. the calculation is if you go, you might get 35%. if you don't, you get 20. that 15% differential across the entire state is the difference between 50% +1 and losing 49% plus a little bit. i think we forget from time to time that there are people that live all over the place. all are different. all have an opinion. all have a view. they all want to be seen and they all want to be heard.

one of the lessons of the last election, and many years before, which i'm not sure we completely and totally understand, so we should be humble about it is people notwithstanding the fact that we are in a better place than we have been a long time and we have a secure military, even though we have contagions across the world, even though the stock market is high and unemployment is low, people still feel alienated from each other and there are grievances that exist. in the african-american community, the white community, and everywhere in between. our challenge is to make people feel welcome. but you have to see them first and acknowledge them second. and then you have to recognize that irrespective of their educational attainment, they are all really smart. there are a lot of good folks that never went to high school that have great common sense that bowl out judge those of us who went to ivy league schools. that sense of entitlement permeates down to the ground. without trying to give a

dissertation about how to get elected, i can just tell you i think president clinton was correct that addition is better than subtraction and multiplication is better than division. if you don't show up, they are going to tell you now. the second thing we have to do is we have to be able to win by not being extreme. i would resist the urge for the democratic party to tilt heavily to the left. i think this is a center country. i think sometimes it's center- right, centerleft, and i think sometimes we lose our mind which is a moment i think we are having now, and i think we have to recognize that we are in a very dangerous and dark place. and recognize that while president donald trump may be contributing to this, is a symptom as much as he is a cause. we have to ask how we got into a place where we made the decision that we made. people made that decision because they were hurting and they really never had another way out. whether they make the same

choice again i think is up in the air. i can only tell you that his view of america is dystopian, dark, and it's not correct. is not the one i experience every day as the mayor of the city of new orleans and lieutenant governor. the people of louisiana are wonderful. they show up at fourth of july ceremonies and go to church together. when we have festivals, sometimes there's 500,000 people, black, white, lgbt and everyone is enjoying themselves. when the fireworks go off, everyone is hugging and kissing. you know if americans are brought around common ground, if given a better vision and an opportunity to be noble, the better angels among us will ascend. that's exactly what's going to happen but you have to invite them in and you have to recognize they are there and then you have to educatnal oppor,

remind them on the ground where they know each other, great things are getting done that will improve the educational opportunities for the kids, give them greater economic prosperity, fix the run-of-the- mill problems that plague their lives everyday and make them feel safe and secure. at the end of the day, if they feel like they have an investment opportunity and you ask them to assume responsibility, they generally show up. he history of the country. i do agree that you will and so i do agree that you will find an answer to a lot of the nation's puff problems in the cities and the towns run by really strong leaders who know how to bring people together and find common ground. that is the prescription for our future. thank you all for having me and good luck to you. we will move along >> thanks very much. that was terrific. we are moving right along. we are going to start drilling down on the economic question. how can this party really command the bread and butter issues and start to speak to

people in the midwest and the red and purple places. then congressman tim ryan. tim represents the faith ct i can't think of anybody betterf than tim ryan. tim represents the eighth district of ohio, youngstown, northeastern ohio, sort of the ground center and the story of industrial job loss. working-class voters shifting from democratic to this president. unfortunately,. get our party i think he's really thinking hard about trying to really be the party of jobs progress and aspirations, and hope again and not just a party of class resentment and telling people there's nothing they can do because the economy is rigged against them. congressman ryan, thank you for joining us. >> [ applause ] i have the mayor left but i wanted to thank him for his comments on leadership.

>> i know the mayor left but i want to thank him for his comments and for his leadership in particular on the issue of race. and gave one of the best speeches in the last few years on that issue. we can't really solve any of these problems unless we fully understand we were, where we are and where we want to go. i represent a district in northeast ohio that includes the city of youngstown. i grew up just outside the city of youngstown. we have a day that we remember in our community, september 19, 1977. in youngstown, we refer to that day as black monday. that was the day u.s. sheet and tube immediately closed down their operations. 5000 jobs immediately went away. over the course of the next few

years, it was 40,000 manufacturing jobs, $400 million in economic investment that went away. and it hollowed out our community. we remember the stories, when i talked to my mother-in-law we remember these stories and when i talk to my mother-in-law about this story and this particular day, i remember bringing it up to her and she said i will never forget that day. i will never forget bobby, her husband and my father-in-law coming home dirty, dusty, lunchpail in hand. they had just borrowed $4000 from my father-in-law's parents to get a new house. they had two little girls. he kept saying to himself and to his wife, i have no idea what we're going to do. the issue we are talking about

today, is that what happened on that day was 40 years ago. over and over again in communities all across the united states. and that has happened over, and over again in communities across the united states and we have yet to solve this problem. that's why this conference is so important and this conversation about what we're going to do to solve these major economic problems that we have in the country. the context today that really i think we have to talk about as democrats, is what is the global landscape like? stated as was stated in the latest national defense strategy, we have two. competitors, russia and china now. russia has a weaker hand but

they played pretty well. they are messing with us all the time and we hear about it a personal day and then we have china, who is a more direct economic competitor. is an eff, milita what we are seeing from china is a coordinated effort. military, economic, political. on how to overtake the economy and the military, and the politics of the united states. and it's whole of government. they are building bases in the south china sea. they said they wouldn't militarize them and they are. they are building bases in africa. they have one in djibouti. they are ready to build another one. they are looking in long-term raw material contracts in africa, getting poor countries on the hook, and controlling those countries so that they

can supply their industrial machine back at home. us strate belt, one road will there will make it they have a strategy called oneh built one road, where e they're going to make a very aggressive pitch throughout asia. they have a made in china 20/25 program, in which they are continuing to build out the manufacturing base in china. they have a five-year plan, a 15 year plan, a 30 year plan, a 50 year plan, and a 100 year plan. the united states is operating in a 24 hour news cycle. twenty-four hour plan. da a 24-hour plan day today, tactical, tactical, tactical. no big strategies. meanwhile,, from what happened to u.s. sheet and tube, and a lot of other homeowners 50

years ago, our systems have continued to erode, collapse. the systems are broken. they are not serving the people anymore. quickly, we can go through them. an economic system that has gross inequality, a criminal justice system that is racist. s we have a healthcare system that spends 2 1/2 times the money as every other industrialized country. we get the worst results. we have an agricultural system that puts algae blooms in the great lakes, dead zones at the mouth of the mississippi river, and we have warnings that come from state epa's that say you can only eat one or two fish a month out of the streams and rivers. and i'm not the s if i'm not the sharpest knife in e the river but if you are telling me not to eat more than one or two fish in the river,

i'm not sure why i want any fish out of that river. he we have a food system that is broken. we have half the country now either with diabetes or prediabetes. the systems are all broken. obviously, the immigration system is broken. so we have an obligation here today to put an agenda together that will rebuild the united states. and i think we've got to get out of this who's left, who's right, and whose center rex the global economy and technology has blown away any preconceived labels that we think we have. and i think that's part of the reason we can't solve some of these problems. because we are trying to put them in little boxes that don't exist anymore. we need all hands on deck.

we need a strong, robust, efficient, nimble government that is willing to make the bold investments that need to be made, and we need private w an efficient, compassionate, smart, private sectorork wit th work with these public-private partnerships, that as the mayor said and as we see in youngstown and akron, ohio, every deal we make where we are locating or growing a business, it's the port authority. it's using new market tax credits. it's some local government investment, state government investment, sometimes federal government investment. it's workforce training. it's a community college, the local college. the local university. coming together to make this happen. we can do it but we have got to create the next reiteration eme we can do it, but we've ricango create the next iteration of the american economy. i tell you. one quick story, we did tour

that we called the comeback cities tour. we got 13 venture capitalists on a bus from silicon valley. io youngstown we took them to 5 towns. we took them to youngstown, and akron, ohio. detroit, michigan, flint, michigan, and south bend, indiana. the whole idea is that 80% of venture capital goes to 3 states. you all know what they are. california, massachusetts, and new york. nine persons g 9% goes to women. 1% goes to african americans. we wanted to try to close this divide. nobody on the bus was saying who's a democrat, whose a republican and whose a libertarian? they've got some libertarians and still -- in silicon valley,

i learned. it was about connecting capital to communities who need private investment. they need broadband, roads, bridges, schools that are affordable. but they also need private investment in youngstown, ohio. private companies who are going to hire our people. we have to come together and figure out what this strategy is. so, this panel and this conference is critically important. i just want to tell one last story. as yo periodically as senator landrieu -- landrieu knows, we do random congressional visits in our district. a few weeks ago, i was in youngstown. i had a local councilman take me around and i drove through the neighborhood to see what's going on. wo he took me to a man's howoman's

in the will of youngstown. her her name was mrs. duke. mrs. duke didn't know we were coming but she comes around the back of the house with a spray bottle in her hand. she was spraying for ants in her home. we are in the worst neighborhood in youngstown, and there are dilapidated homes, crime, an opiate problem. mrs. duke is spraying for ants. her house is meticulous. the grass is cut. her son comes from around the corner and he has paint on his arm. he was around back painting the door. so, we go into her house and reset there. it was the middle of summer. it was hot. but the house was impeccable on the inside. old marble fireplace mantel. td

and she was talking about how she was trying and we talked, and she was talking about how she was trying to get the neighborhood fixed up. wasn't having the kind of success that she wanted, so she thought about moving, so she had her son go out and look for her to sell her house. you know how much she could get for her house? $4000. so the smart people say pick up and go moved to the jobs. are they going to move to silicon valley with $4000 in their pockets? she is trapped. there are people in our country that are trapped. i will tell you, we can have the philosophical discussions, and all the rest that we have here in washington, but if we don't figure out a way to help the mrs. duke of the world, and

her son, to have opportunity, jobs, investment, economic security, healthcare, this country is not going anywhere. that's our responsibility. that's our job to figure that out. but the preconceived notions of the past behind us. let's elevate the conversation. let's find some common ground so we can get to some higher ground. there is a mountain right there and we all need to climate. we need to find out what we agree on, recognize that it's going to be capitalism in -- and a strong, progressive government that's going to make this happen. we can do it, but we've got to be together or we are not getting up the mountain. i've been using this lately

because i think it makes me feel good. someone said to mohammed ali, i saw you and i saw that fight for you got knocked down. mohammed ali said i've never been knocked down. getting never once. he said i'm either up or getting up. america, is gettin. thank you very much. america is getting up. thank you so much. thank you >> [ applause now ] >> thank you so much congressman ryan. we want to drill down on the challenge you set before us. how are we going to drive new job creation, new investment? to the places that are distressed, left behind by today's prosperity? to the people who are trapped? i want to turn it to governor markel to steer a conversation from people with great insights on that question. >> thank you, and thank you congressman. my experience is that the mrs.

duke of the world -- they just want a little bit of help. they just want a little bit of help. some of the most inspiring visits i ever made as governor was to our community college, not just the young people but the folks who were almost all employed, but they all felt like they were underemployed. they were raising a family. they had full-time jobs but they knew they could do better. to see those folks ranging in age from 25 to 60, going back and studying and taking algebra two seemed to be the big separator. them give a they knew they could do better but they needed someone to help give them a little bit of a hand. the government working with the academ ec we've got to figure out a tor c that's not just the government. working with the academic sector, the note, -- non-profit sector and certainly the academic sector.

we have a great panel, and what we are going to do is we're going to go around right on the order. i think we will start with representative boyle. if you could keep your comments relatively brief because we're trying to create a conversation here. but the general topic, a positive democratic vision for jobs and prosperity. >> it is great to be here >> thank you. it's great to be here and i really appreciate the vision, that will has shown not only in this group but past efforts. it's great to be here with my colleague tim. and also the philadelphia i'm a congressman from the city of philadelphia, and also some of the philadelphia suburbs in montgomery county. i think that philadelphia is pretty emblematic of what is happening nationwide. that is that it's the best of times, it's the worst of times.

speaking nationally, we have unemployment rates remarkably low. almost at a record low. what some economists believe is full employment. we have a stock market although about neutral for 2018, in the ninth year of remarkable bull run. the same thing with our economy coming out of the deepest recession since the 1930s, clearly the eighth or ninth year of pretty strong economic expansion. by all those traditional measures, people should be quite happy. and yet at the same time, for other pockets of my city, and my state, and other pockets of this country, so the question is especially r the fact of the matter is things were better 30 years ago and 50 years ago. so i think the question especially for democrats, and for centerleft parties worldwide, what do we do in this new economy that is

creating this gap, so that those of us who have a higher education and certain skills, while i am a member of congress so i don't have to many skills but for those of us with some skills, there are more opportunities today than ever before and for higher pay. and yet, for those like my parents, high school education, didn't go to college, there are fewer job opportunities for less pay in parts of philadelphia and youngstown, ohio, and parts of this country. that to me has been the key challenge for us as a country and especially for the democratic party because -- and i know i was supposed to keep it brief so i will end with this. if we is democrats don't come up with positive solutions, there will be other voices as we saw in 2016, that come up with other explanations. of people to blame for solving

these complicated questions. blame the immigrants. blame the other. so i believe that we cannot concede this ground, that we must lead the way in solving this problem and making sure those who live in areas that have been left behind are able to fully participate in our new economy. thank you. follow-up, what is the >> a quick follow up. what is the single best or most encouraging idea you hear being discussed in congress? >> there are several. first one, and i feel like this is the low hanging fruit, that i'm still surprised the trump administration hasn't pursued, and that is a real infrastructure plan. i don't mean something that says it's $1.5 trillion and really it's $1.6 billion with a completely unreasonable leverage assumption.

if you were to take democrats and more mainstream suburban republicans, and even things president donald trump has said and come together on a real infrastructure plan, at we need it according to both be the american and eninternationa council of engineers we are rated somewhere between a c- and a d when it comes to the state of our infrastructure. roads, bridges, rails, and also in terms of our gas lines. our waterlines. both relayed in the 19th century, in my city. so it's needed and it would put an incredibly high number of people back to work. so i think that's the low hanging fruit that could immediately help people. in terms of longer term, and this is in part why i formed the blue-collar caucus, i have been talking to folks at amazon and some other silicon valley companies about the ways in which the jobs they are

creating today actually do create blue-collar work, and how we can bring that to those pockets that have been left behind. that's longer term but i think is a really interesting policy area. >> thank you. doctor truveno. >> so to work on infrastructure >> i should get this on. we do look on infrastructure and i believe maybe it's changed but i think we are a d+. at least we are passing. a few things in terms of where i wanted to start off since i covered the u.s. i want to keep it short. you also pointed out a few things in terms of where i wanted to start out. the good news is the economy is doing a little bit better. we are seeing job gains up to 200,000 on average now. people are spending a bit more. but i wanted to take a step back and take a look.

it's still a slow growth recovery. when we talk about 3% growth rate which is in part helped by that fiscal stimulus tied to the bipartisan budget agreement and in particular the tax package, talking about the year after the recession would end and over recovery of the period that you see from 4% so it is still rather low. and while we do expect it's still rather low. and the way we have it, we're not really sure if we expect a boost from the fiscal spending how much in terms of the length of the legs it has. we will worried if we will see the productivity generation of growth we would hope to see where would it be inflation instead. what we are worried about and one of the things we see is we're looking at growth slowing down back to its potential growth rate of under 2% in a

few years. jobs the labor participation rate is at or near a 40 year low. that is in part tied to retirees about three quarters of that is retirees in the workforce but even those that are still just starting at this but they are not coming back that is a long process. but there are other factors as well that you mentioned unemployment rates frequently 8% but that hides the fact that there are so many people leaving not just retirees but people who have given up looking. and we actually see that even at 3.8% unemployment rate we think that hides the flak in the market labor participation is out of 40 year low but we expect to see the unemployment rate could drop even further.

because we see so many people leaving the workforce and there is one other worry that we have for this group as we talk about this basically people of age that are no longer working. look at men between the ages of 25 and 54, they have dropped out a few of them are coming back. as the economy get stronger but compared to check the numbers to stay closer to 95% in the workforce that has dropped significantly since then. and what are the reasons why? trade, globalization, automatio automation, technological change and also we see this that they were

entering the workforce at a rapid pace from the 70s through the '90s and see them moving as well and what are the concerns there with the time off penalties? because that is the lion share of family care and another thing i want to point to is what is happening with business job coordination and business starts? in those firms that bring employment and job creation and what we see so far from the government data is we have seen no business formation recover those numbers do not show that's what we have seen it fell and was cut in half from the high-end 2005 and 2004 and 2004 to the low of 2009.

though the figures are annualized to about 70000. by 2017 and to be slightly recovered i would love to have that conversation if banks are tightening lending so young for numbers cannot get the loan or are they squeezed by student loans? is there question of the bigger firms getting bigger and bigger? is that a chokehold on the economic activity going forward? these are the questions i would have going forward and i will stop there. >> i will keep it brief. talk about the economy and the question first of all my background is not political.

i am a researcher strategist so that is my perspective not to confuse me with a policy expert but there is an overlap between politically the right path as democrats or legislative path for the country. first of all what is the problem we are trying to solve? there is a lot of anxiety and good things taking place in consumer confidence is very high. but there is still a lot of anxiety because you have technological change and competition that keeps people on egg shells but also there are real problems if you scratch the surface almost no american will tell you who have an administration that is basically putting the healthcare system under assault and that creates a great deal of anxiety. that really has been one of the most impressive

accomplishments of the trump administration the obama administration could not sell the public and could not get geordie support but the trump administration send a clear message they intend to take it away then support finally flips now more in favor than opposed. that goes to how people make decisions in a political context that people will weigh what they might lose more than what they might gain. the initial healthcare is pure politics but the consequences of threatening people's healthcare healthcare is front and center. pensions are one talk about planning for their own funeral that they have to deal with this issue but nobody wants to talk about it that is how pensions work it is pushed to the surface so are we prepared to have that conversation because very few people are ready to.

so what's our goal? that we would alleviate anxiety and to keep people in the state of anxiety we don't ever win the debate over who can create a scarier picture of the future. how do we alleviate anxiety? talking about black monday because corporations have left the community jobs have left. one thing that should be easy but is hard for us to do is to recognize that picture is a negative picture it is the opposite positive picture where companies move. also doing research in places like ohio that success looks like having big employers in our community. why is that? if that is what people wanted you would say have a guaranteed income we are one

of the only countries if you ask people tell me about yourself they will say what they do because that is central to our identity as americans. we work hard with the system if you work hard you will see the benefits that has been under assault if you look at the polling confidence has come down even within the democratic party it is 61% they still believe if you work hard you can get ahead it is a central component of the economy when you try to solve the problem do it in a way that rewards hard work because that is so essential to who we are that leads to companies coming in and places an emphasis on good jobs with people skills that them do what they are good at and then have people sitting on the sidelines who used to be able to do good things with their skills and now feel the skills have gone away i'm on the sidelines but i don't have an opportunity.

so finally we all know that we struggle with the idea what is the republican message everybody would tell me a variation lower taxes and lower regulation get out of the way. so the last part which is just get out of the way you are tapping into something which is what makes our economy successful if you get out of the way we have a system that emphasizes freedom freedom of money and thought and ideas for the next great thing. if we don't spoil that system the next great thing will happen here. last night i did research that was before a lot of companies like under armour even became online there are better examples of people literally starting something in their garage. that is a key ingredient to success. but the other is with low taxes and low regulation they say get out of the way, democrats have a better

argument we refuse to articulate and i don't understand why the better argument which is the real key to the economy is our people and our skilled workers and quality of the workforce. if we emphasize making sure people have training and if you make sure if you want to go to college you can do that to. those are two different things with two different segments of the economy for a long time we only talked about one and not the other but to say quality of the workforce is our key strength is a much more powerful idea than to say the key strength is low taxes and low regulation. ultimately politics is a choice if you offer that choice we have a better hand but for whatever reason we don't usually articulate that we throw training in a speech like an afterthought like lincoln said the poor idea in

a smaller ideas i'd -- emanate so it the poor idea is there are people are the key strength to this economy if we have that debate it also gives democrats a strong platform. >> thank you. senator comes representative ryan they all mentioned manufacturing and that is not a surprise in fact the collapse of manufacturing is still wound and most of the country people complain about their share of income but it turns out most of that is because of the manufacturing jobs and wages. the number of factories that have closed since 2035% are

not there anymore. it is a visible symbol of neglect and pain that people see everyday. so we believe manufacturing is a key component of prosperity. and as will said earlier we are talking about resurrecting ring --dash the economy but a systematic plan with local advanced manufacturing startups to create 1 million jobs around the country include outside the largest cities to build a democratic majority with these ideas and counterintuitively, what we believe is digitization is not

a way to destroy jobs but create jobs including jobs for people without a college education. this is not doing the old stuff but creating and making custom clothing or custom furniture but does not have to be shipped 10,000 miles. there there is no reason why we should be doing this except we haven't actually invested in the next wave of advanced manufacturing. so we talk about a program of investment with a different to create online manufacturing platform to provide services small startups and manufacturing startups across the country to address your question, rnd, not just in tech and bioscience but to create new material to help

bolster manufacturing. lowering the entry fee for new entrepreneurs. how do you start a company? what asset do you have to the newest technology? we are in the unfortunate position trump has started a trade war that no one really wants and it will hurt everyone but it creates an opportunity with the creation of a whole new wave of manufacturing startups that can drive us into the 21st century to create jobs around the country. thanks. >> and we have someone who is actually out employing people. >> i am very proud to be here. i think i am the only entrepreneur on the panel giving a talk today.

and in our own modest way we are an extension or an example of the entrepreneurship talking about a few moments ago my garage was a storm room new haven i focused on education and technology businesses and within 16 years he had 350,000 students go from college to graduate school and helped another 20000 in the last three years and also in kansas city missouri we have 1000 preschoolers we have helped thousands of kids in kansas city missouri get that headstart to help them through their path. but as pat -- #of our accomplishments with a couple thousand people it is only a

small part of the solution we need to come up with. we are helping those that are already on the good side of that economic spectrum to improve their lives. so more than half make six figures per here and that is intestate that does not address the problems we have in rural missouri where my mom is from or those in the distressed part of the areas where i grew up kansas city missouri school district. so i am proud but that will not get us there with the solutions but i hope what we talk about today of what is scalable to those left behind to echo what we have heard so now tripled the number of working age men's of all races

who are not working. in 2011i had a chance to spend a few minutes with former president clinton and he said something at the time was extraordinary but we are here grappling with it still the only demographic group in this country that doesn't believe that future will be better than the present he said as white males without a college degree and at that moment that kid from hope arkansas we were surrounded by hollywood elite and said and he the he said i don't think they appreciate that the way you and i do. i am not sure sec. clinton appreciated that as much as she should have as well to be

frank but we still have not totally address that. infrastructure is a pathway there but i don't know if we can transition a truck driver into coding jobs as much as i would like that but i still think there are opportunities. i don't want to eat up any more of my time but if we dig into this i do have more ideas to help create scalable job creation for those who don't at higher level of education. >> list of those real quick. >> great. geographic job creation programs for the government can be helpful have been proven to work i encourage you to look at what howard university has done targeting poor geographic areas and continue to pour money into healthcare. some of the problems we have with people out of work with a high suicide rate and in the south leads to a health crisis

that is an opportunity to create jobs for mental health professionals and with infrastructure we mentioned that but we did not mention it helps a broad swath. there will be tens or hundreds of thousands of construction workers with middle-class jobs like innovators like henry ford those that spend their time in california to change the landscape. and finally training programs that really do work to help people get that education that allows them to get jobs one of the largest employers in the kansas city area there is currently a disconnection between community college what they are teaching to help their graduates immediately get jobs.

they would love to hire locally they have to go these broad expensive searches on a superhigh growth trajectory that seems like an easy fix. >> thank you. we have six minutes i want to open this up. i've promised i'm committed to turn this over to representative at 1140. please. feedback i am from georgetown i want to pick up exactly his focus on jobs and skills and i want to focus exactly with a few comments. two thirds of the americans don't get the four-year college degree. we need a skill creation system for them but at the same time focusing on the employer's and the jobs and the quality of the jobs we cannot pretend all employers are creating good jobs and

some of them are minimizing the labor cost and some can compete so the job of the democratic party to offer a set of policies to improve the quality of workers and skills and from what they are creating. i know time short but a few ideas how to do that it isn't job creating the community college are those institutions that create that ladder into the four-year birthday need to be more responsive to the job market right now they are short on incentives. they are not rewarded for that so i have proposed a race to the top for community colleges to provide more resources to strengthen the incentives of these institutions to create more partnerships like

healthcare and advanced manufacturing and parts of the service sector so on the employer side with low road employment it is for a higher jobs fun to work with employers and reward them for investing in career labs to create apprenticeships i imagine will hear about that later and engage in profit sharing. some of this is financial incentives and tax credits sun's technical assistance a lot of that is the bully pulpit i think the democratic party mayors and governors and representatives in congress need to embrace employment and there is a lot of ways to do that but you need to talk seriously about lifelong

learning. and to have a system of lifelong learning prepared for that. certainly people in the underserved regions to subsidize jobs to lower the barriers they have whether criminal or addictions even those that lacked the family leave it doesn't help people with paid family leave so there is a long agenda of labor markets. >> can i just add really quick we need to talk about all of this in the context of competition to strengthen our economy. we get and the itemized list for free college but whatever

we come up with, this all fees into the worker and the skilled workforce and will enhance startups because people will start up they don't have healthcare or student debt. so we need to talk about this in the context of growing the economy and competing with china and come together with a checklist. >> to close out the question. i cannot tell you how many times i have heard the version of the story that chad told about the employer wants to hire locally but somehow the high schools and community colleges are not producing what they want. why are they talking to those institutions and working with them? what is wrong there? >> in places with good governors they are.

it is a very serious question. and literally. i could give you a bunch of examples delaware is not known as aircraft space but we have about 1000 jobs repairing airplane parts so literally we sat down with the employers in the community college and local schools to say what will it take the state put up a little money the community colleges we still need to do more but that conversation has to take place with all parties. one more item on the table as an issue that goes to what was talked about regarding the anxiety of the worker we did not talk about what is a threat or opportunity of artificial intelligence as it penetrates more deeply into

the economy? it is a huge issue and finally , you will hear a lot about the move away from hiring based on college degrees but based on skill. i think employers are seeing the need for that and a lot of american families say it doesn't make any sense to pay $60000 per year for a college education that does not lead to anything. so i really do believe in that movement now moving away from the degree and what is based on skill so now thank you to our panelist. [applause] >> i am hopeful employers will turn to skill rather than

college degree. but i have not seen that yet and that is the number one concern we have that those certificates or other skills are not being awarded in the business sector so i really do hope. >> to make a comment and so talk about turnout with workforce participation among the demographic groups which are part of the electorate as the congressman is aware of overall turnout, and that

overall turnout and with the subgroup of that with the republican electorate. then to provide a narrative with african-americans so in this survey 50% of african-americans in columbus didn't think there was a difference between the democratic president or the republican president. they voted but we are not

communicating to our constituencies to a plan that will make a difference in their life that lead to diminished turnout as one example and we have to put a realistic agenda together and then go communicate we have to go to west virginia and kentucky. if we want to really represent everybody to provide opportunity to everybody then show up in youngstown ohio and care and drive everything else. >> i think there is a realignment coming after the debacle we are in right now but we better be prepared and ready to be cared about those who were left behind that bill clinton talked about the white

men and the black families who are caught up in the criminal justice system that have a much more negative experience there is only 330 million people in united states they can lose hundreds of millions of potential