time, we do do that. but the real question is, have we missed the golden moment? we went income 84% of the afghans welcome us. we had all kinda cornered and we let them get away. we promised a marshall plan and we did not deliver on it so we began to lose trust of the people. we've got to get that back. if we don't get that back we are not going to be able to succeed and hopefully they can see the direction we are moving. but they need a result. host: one more question on line -- 1 twitter -- how does the u.s. role in afghanistan further american progress? guest: i think it ferber's american progress because this is basically how al qaeda central has been located, and if you want to protect ourselves and allies from additional attacks by this group, this is the place you got to get under control.

if it is not a haven, it will be difficult for them to operate the way they did. you don't want afghanistan to destabilize the region because one of the things, if they destabilize pakistan, that is a country that has nuclear weapons so the last thing you want is groups like al qaeda to get possession. host: lawrence korb, thank you for the update on afghanistan and your web site is link on our website, c-span.org. that will do it for our program. back tomorrow at 7:00 a.m. eastern. the house of coming in later and we will keep you updated as we get an permission on health-care negotiations on the hill. .

at 2 eastern the federal emergency management director testifies before a house panel on she must response to major disasters. we will have live coverage on c- span3. on the communicators, more from new media leaders attending this year's media digital conference. including bill bradford tonight on c-span2.

how is c-span funded? >> donations? >> government? through the taxes and for funding. >> sort of federal funding. >> how is he's been funded? america's cable companies created c-span as a public service. a private business initiatives. no government mandate, no government money. >> two days of high-level caught talks between the united states and china opens here today in washington. the chinese are bringing 150 diplomats, the secretary of state hillary clinton and timothy geithner lead the u.s. delegation. washington journal looked at secretary clinton's efforts in u.s. foreign policy. this is about one half hour. host: the secretary of state was on meet the press.

she talked about recent comments back and forth on north career. guest: i think they are very isolated. i saw that when i was at the meeting. i was in the same room representative from north korea, who launched an attack on the united states, blaming us for everything that has ever gone wrong with north korea. i listened. i was struck by the body language. they don't have any friends left. we have seen burma saying they are going to enforce the resolution of sanctions. when the north korean representative finish, i very, it said, and north korea knows what it must do and what we expect. i talked with my counterparts from russia and china at length during the time i was in thailand.

we are all on the same page and committed to the same goal. host:matt lee joins us. what caused all of the dustup with north korea? guest: it goes back to the interview the secretary did last week compared the north koreans to whirly children. -- unruly children. they came back with some invectives, a woman who looks like a schoolgirl at times. host: we just passed the six month mark of the administration. the secretary has been traveling a great deal. i am not asking for your opinion of her as secretary of state. how has she been viewed by world

leaders? guest: she just got back from this rather long trip to thailand. this comes after eight months of relative inactivity on her part. she was sidelined by breaking her elbow. district she -- this trip she came back into the spotlight. she will be on a trip to africa next week. today and tomorrow she is coasting this u.s. chun not strategic dialogue with timothy guideline -- timothy geithner. host: hosting the summit with secretary geithner. they have and op ed in the wall street journal about opening a new dialogue with china. at the top of their list will

be assuring the recovery of the most but -- once recovery has taken hold, u.s. and china acted quickly to create and save jobs. also they focus some of this on policy recommendations for china. it involves continuing sector reform, spurring domestic demand and raising personal income. talking about the chinese. is it unusual for a secretary of state and treasury secretary to be so -- inserting themselves so much in another country's policy

recommendations? guest: these are extraordinary times and we need the chinese to open up their domestic market and get them to spend more money in order to help us with our recovery efforts. this is unusual. this is also the first time that this kind of strategic balad has been held at this level. -- this kind of a strategic dialogue has been held. you can send us your comments by twitter or e-mail. she also talked about iran yesterday. i want to play that for you. guest: i think it is clear that we are trying to affect the internal calculus of the iranian

regime. the iranian government which is basing its own -- facing its own challenges for its own people have to know that its pursuit of nuclear weapons is something that our country, along with our allies are strongly against. we believe as a matter of policy it is unacceptable for a run to have nuclear weapons. the g-8 came out with a very strong statement about that. we are united in our continuing commitment to prevent iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. what we want to do is to send a message to whoever is making these decisions that if you are pursuing nuclear weapons for the purpose of intimidating, projecting your power, we will not let that happen. we will do everything we can to prevent you from getting the nuclear weapon.

your pursuit is futile because we will never let it run, -- i ran, -- iran we are prevent it -- we will do everything we can to keep it from happening. > guest: she is out there and active talking about this. she is at the top of the administration's iran policy. there is a lot of white house involved in this as well. there is a lot of activity going on with iran and their attempts to keep them from developing nuclear weapons. you will see defense secretary gates talking about this.

there is a delegation that goes later this week. host: part of that negotiation, does that involve speaking to the israelis, and assuaging some of their concerns about iran? guest: they see it as a threat to their existence. the year -- the iranian president has threatened to wipe israel off the map. the israelis are concerned because of what they see going on with north korea. the u.s. has been unsuccessful in getting them to stop their nuclear activity. so now they ask, how will they deal with iraq? host: there is word this morning that north korea is giving signs that now they want to come back. guest: this is encouraging

especially after the dust up that happened before. host: florida on our independent line. caller: from my observation, this is a typical game that everybody is playing, where they say they have missiles and firearms. they are just pulling our strings to see what we will do. we ought to do what israel did to syria. we should get with israel. they want to do that. we are the strongest nation, then we have punks like kim john l. doing this. there is nothing we can do but talk to china. they are playing with us. we need to start smacking them around. guest: the caller makes an

interesting point. there are consequences to that. any kind of military strike, no matter who does it with the iranians will be incredibly and stabilizing -- in stabilizing. host: 2 out of the three of the axis of evil, are they still primary concerns of the state department's? >> they are at the top of the list. host: how does the town of how secretary of state clinton differ from secretary rice in approaching iran and north korea? guest: the entire administration has adopted a different tone with iran. so far overtures have not been met with any kind of positive signal from iran. the end idea that they -- we are

willing to talk with the iranians is different. host: the tone is different but the answers are the same. guest: at least on the iranian side. it does not appear to have had any impact. host: indiana, on the republican line. caller: i am a bible believer. in the bible, iran, china, russia, they will attack israel. there will be a lot of death. god will not stand for israel to be attacked. it will happen. there is no way out of it. host: further into the policy area, israel and syria talks, george mitchell is in the

region. george mitchell, his second trip to damascus in a little over one month. washington wants to jump-start the arab-israeli peace process. george mitchell and dennis ross -- the administration is using on voice as well as secretaries. --envoieys as well as secretari. guest: getting a comprehensive middle east peace -- it has not happened yet. the obama administration has made it a hallmark.

host: the secretary of reflected your comments on meet the press. >> part of what we have done is to organize ourselves so that we can concentrate on many issues at the same time. i know that people have raised questions about why i pushed so hard to have envoys presented. i think it would be malpractice not to have the most experienced diplomats handling these things on a daily basis. i am responsible for executing the policy we have agreed on. it is very fortunate to have people like secretary holbrooke and others. i could not possibly have given the attention that we need in the kit -- in-depth way that is

required in all these places. the feeling on the part of much of the world is at the prior in administration for understandable reasons, focused so much on some of the specific issues like iraq, that grabbed it and required a lot of attention that much of the rest of the world felt like they were second tier. host: vice-president biden is taking an active foreign policy role with its -- his recent trip to russia and georgia. yesterday, secretary clinton did have something to say about the vice president. clinton moves to calm remarks over biden. guest: there are some people out there that see the situation now as a bit of a complicated one. you have the president himself doing a lot of overseas travel, speaking out on major foreign policy issues, as he should.

then you have the vice president who is also traveling. then you have this relatives. of call from secretary clinton when she was sick. they're at least seems to be a bit of a disconnect at times. sometimes they are saying things that are not exactly the same. she will be going to ever cut next week for a long trip. i will be there. host: have you had a chance to interview her one on one? guest: not yet. host: good morning, florida. caller: i am a long-time listener of your show. i wanted to make a comment about secretary clinton and her trip.

i think for the first time in a long time, there is a secretary of state being able to talk about a lot of different things that are happening around the world. the involvement that we have in all of these things in the past eight years, almost all of the conversations from the secretary of state or politicians have been about justification for iraq policy. i think most of her discussions really covers just about everything that is going on. it has been refreshing. one of the things this administration is the openness and the fact that leaders are talking to us, not in a sound bites, but having a discussion.

guest: thinkprogress.orthat is d observation. there is a perception of it. host: you mentioned that you were traveling with her to africa. guest: 1 of the secretaries pet project is a few -- food security mission. there is a lot going on in africa right now. she will be next door to somalia, in kenya. we will see a lot of activity with an islamic insurgency, and as well as a piracy problem. host: connecticut on day

democrats line. go ahead. caller: you mentioned the " that everybody seems to use about iran, saying they are going to wipe israel off the map. that has been going through over and over. the text of that speech, translated from farsi to english. common knowledge is that is not what he said. what he said was that the zionist regime would fall just like the communist result -- regime. he never said that. another point.

when netanyahu was over here and president obama talked-about the sediments, that the settlements had to stop, the land grabs had to stop. borders had to be initiated. i sat back and laughed. when ned tonight you got back, he immediately decided that he would make more settlements. israel continues to slap the american taxpayer and the president in the face. i remember bush's standing in the rose garden with ariel saying the settlement had to stop. the minute sharon got off the plane he said he would make 25 new settlements. guest: i don't think anyone out

there thinks that president ahmadinejad is a fan of israel, no matter what he said or did not say. iran's current leadership is no friend of israel at all. the second point is settlement is a huge issue and problem. it is subject to the big major dispute right now between them. u.s. is trying to get israel to freeze their settlement activity. host: in yesterday's washington peace had an opinion piece about the secretary's language. he writes, the problem is the state an obvious truth and of this language. it cut five decades of theory and is a strategic shorthand for the commitment that an attack

on our allies is an attack on us including an attack with nuclear weapons if necessary. in a further statement on meet the press, did she cut some of that down? guest: she left it open. those comments that she made in thailand last week have roiled things up quite a bit. there should be nothing wrong with this. it makes an assumption that israel is not willing to make and that is that iran has nuclear weapons and can be deterred the way irrational and a cold war situation. it is not clear that iran's leadership will act the same weight soviet union did.

host: the defense policy as well, secretary gates has come out supporting hillary clinton is comments. guest: i am not sure it has been put to them yet. they want to keep it ambiguous. probably the less said about it right now the better for them. peter brookecaller: why is israo have a nuclear weapon while their neighbors are not allowed to have a nuclear weapon? israel from the time it was created has spent a terrorist nation. they started out with the same kind of crimes that the serbs are committing in the balkans. host: has secretary of state clinton talked about this? guest: the americans don't acknowledge or talk about this publicly.

again, it is something that the politicians find better left unsaid. host: of your writing says, the you came -- ukraine did the not have biden speech anyway, with president obama's approach to the relationship. guest: i'm not sure that refers to. i don't know with how much it had to do with biden's speech. he has quite a bit of foreign policy experience. i am not sure exactly what the writer is referring to. host: indianapolis, indiana on our republican line. go ahead. caller: my concern is i don't

think america is making a big stand against countries like no. 3 and iran. i think that america ought making the point is this is a out is going to be, you get along with each other. i don't understand that. i have a boy that joined the army rangers, you cannot let these countries push us around. what can the american people do about it to help out israel and all of the other allies? >> it is a dilemma. it is not at all clear what will work with the iranians. the offer of engagement to iran has not gotten off to a running

start. the north koreans have tested more decisively. that is a good question. it is not at all clear how one should proceed. host: your your organization reporting on the meeting with the chinese officials. two days of high-level talks starting today. the president will have a news conference later today which we will cover on our network. he is starting but u.s. trade and soaring u.s. deficits. what do you expect from the chinese? guest: the chinese are the leading buyer of u.s. treasurys. we want to make sure that their investment in the u.s. is safe. you have the u.s. at the same time trying to get out of the

economic morass that we are in. we also need the chinese to open up its markets. host: is this a one-day conference? guest: it is two day. host: north carolina on our democrat line. caller: people in these other countries that we have been talking to, they will give us tentative, we will try, and stuff like that until they get their money.

every time we go and talk to another country, money that is not even hours, might that we borrowed. we will turn around and give it to them. guest: this is ministration will have more foreign aid than the previous administration. host: one more comment on this -- from the secretary and the differences from the administration. >> the president is the president. the president is responsible for setting policy. we have a great relations. -- relationship. i see him easily several times a week, one on one. i am ready to offer my advice. it is an open exchange. the entire team does.

>> the whole team of rivals idea. do you have a close relationship? >> i am the chief adviser on foreign policy. but the president makes the decision. i have a picture of former secretary of state store in my office. he was a new york senator who went on to serve president lincoln, part of what created this concept of a team of rivals. he became one of link this -- lincoln's strongest advisers because he understood as i do that the election is over but the president has to lead our country both international lee and domestically. at the end of the day, it is the president who has to set an articulate policy. i am privileged to be in a position where i am the chief advisor, chief diplomat, chief executors of the policies that the president wants.

a team that works together will do a better job for america. host: there is a photo a few weeks ago in the new york times of her watching a news conference from the sidelines of president obama's office. has she grown into this role of secretary of state? guest: i think she has. she seems to be enjoying herself. she was sidelined for that month with the elbow injury, which i think cost a lot of speculation about her -- what her role actually was host: 1 marco -- one more call. caller: i have two main points. i think somebody needs to correct some of the anti it semitic stuff that is being

called and. people making assertions of -- they like to refer to the settlement, the occupation and settlement. if that is the case, we will call most of the southern u.s. and california settlements and occupations. the nation was attacked right after they were created. they were taking some of that land. when they were convinced to give back a portion of that, what happened? the move in the area and set up shop. it seems to me that is being glossed over.

the other issue is in discussions with barack obama's foreign-policy, it seems to me that there is a shift in perception and not reality. there is not a whole lot of difference in what is happening now foreign-policy wise and what happened in the previous eight years. yet the perception has shifted because of the ideas of the administration now and what the way the media is presenting it to the public. this is a massive shift and that we are much more international and are touching on other subjects. the media is simply presenting it that way. guest: to a certain extent, the caller is right. we have wars in iraq and

afghanistan. we have the efforts in the middle east and north korea. one area where there is a significant changes with iran, and the whole doff -- offer of engagement. there are some fundamentally different things between the two administrations. >> obesity related conditions knockout 49% of all medical spending, up from 6.5% since 1998. the cdc will release a report on the economic cost of obesity today. we have live coverage at 10:55 a.m. here on c-span. c-span2 will be live with a discussion of u.s. relations with the al-jazeera television network.

the director of al-jazeera participates in the forum. at 2 eastern, the fema director testifies before a house panel on a famous response to disasters preparedness and the federal government's role. live coverage on the c-span3. on the communicators, more from new media leaders attending the shares digital media conference including bill bradford of fox digital media tonight on c- span2. join the conversation on civil- rights and race relations with npr juan williams live august 2nd that at noon eastern on booktv on the c-span2. >> sarah palin officially stepped down yesterday as alaska as governor. earlier this month she announced her intention to resign citing ethics complaints and personal attacks against her family. her comments as today are

courtesy of anchorage tv. >> thank you so much for that very warm welcome. what a beautiful day it is. it is my honor to speak to all of you this last time as your governor. it is always great to be in fairbanks. the rugged, hearty people who live appear and some of the most patriotic people live here. q. are known for your steadfast support of our military up here. i think you for that and thank you for the military for protecting the greatest nation on earth. together, we stand. i say it is the best road trip

in america. soaring through nature's finest show, a soaring under the midnight sun and in the wintertime the superlative rose competing with the view of frigid beauty. then in the summertime, 150 degrees hotter than just some months ago with fireweed blooming and merciless rivers that are rushing and reminding us that here mother nature wins. it is that big, a wild life that is north to the future. what the rest of america gets to see along with us is. this last frontier there is hope

and opportunity and pride. it is our men and women in uniform securing it. we are facing tough challenges in america. some are suggesting that perhaps our best days were yesterday's. other people have asked, how can that pessimism beach when proof of our greatness and our pride today is that we produce the great proud volunteers to sacrifice everything for country? this week alone. sean carr know and i, --sean parnell, we heard the sounding

of taps for three very brave alaskan soldiers who just gave their all for all of us. together we stand for gratitude for the troops including our freedom of speech which par for the course, i am going to exerc another right is protected, you have such important jobs reporting the press and informing the electorate and have the power to influence, you represent what it could and should be an honest profession that could and should be a cornerstone of our democracy. democracy depends on you that is

why our troops are willing to die for you. how about in honor of the american soldiers, you quit making things up? don't underestimate the wisdom of the people. our new governor has a very nice family, also. so leave his kids alone. today is a beautiful day. as we swear and sean pa

rnell, non is happier than myself. we share the vision for government that they wrote in the document. our founders wrote, all political power is inherent in the people. all government erigena's with the people. it is founded upon there will only and instituted for the good of the people as a whole. they -- there assessing words guided us in a serving you and putting you first. we have done our best to fulfill promises that i made in 2005, when i first asked for the honor of serving you.

remember the then our state so desired and dessert ethics reform. we promised it, and now it is the law. ironically, it needs additional reforms. i hope the lawmakers will continue that reform. we promised you that you would see a fair return on your alaskas of resources. this is an equitable formula to usher in a new era of competition and transparency and protection for alaskans. this incentivizes new exploration, and it is the exploration that is our future. it insures the people will never be taken advantage of again. few are the resource owners according to our constitution.

wheat sent to the energy rebate. it is your money and i always believed you know better how to spend it then government knows how to spend it. i promised that we would protect this beautiful environment while ethically developing resources. we built the petroleum oversight office. i promise we would govern with fiscal restraint so as not to immorally burden future generations, and we did. we slowed the rate of government growth. with lawmakers, we saved billions of dollars for the future. i promised that we would lead a charge to fully fund education

and provide needs for special education. outside special interest groups still don't get it on this one. alaskans need to stick together on the best. encouraging new leadership. do what is right for alaska out when the pressure mounts. you will see anti mmx circuses from hollywood. you will see very talented celebrity star less. they use alaska as a fund raising pool for their ani second amendment causes.

by the way, hollywood needs to know we eat, therefore we hunt. i promised energy is solutions, and we have a plan calling for 50% of our electricity generated by renewable resources. those who hold the leases to develop our conventional resources do so now on alaskas term. finally after decades of just talk, finally we are seeing oil and gas drilling at. thompson. i promised we would get a natural gas pipeline under way

and we did. i remembered the discussions as a kid, hoping and dreaming of commercializing our clean abundant natural gas. the legislature adopting the law 58-1? it is for the alaska as a future and america's energy independence and it will make us a more peaceful, prosperous and secure nation. what i promised we accomplish.

week, meaning the staff, amazing commissioners, a great staff members assisting them. and conscientious alaskans outside of the bureaucracy, many of volunteers but nothing could have happened to without chris perry. chris is my right hand man. nothing could have happened without her. so much success and much further down the road. we can resist enslavement that

crushes hope and opportunity. be wary of accepting government largess. it does not come free and often accepting it takes away everything that is free. melting into washington's powerful, caretaking arms stops incentive to work hard out of us. that contributes to an unstable economy and national debt, but it does make us less free. i resisted the stimulus package, and we have championed earmarked reform slashing earmarked request by 85% to break the cycle of dependency on a stifling, unsustainable federal

agenda. we don't have to feel that we must beg for an allowance from washington to accept too big to allow us to be solved determined. alaska must be allowed to develop to drill and build and climb to fill state -- statehood's promise. we are responsible for ourselves and our families and our future. 50 years later, let's not start believing that government is the answer. it cannot make you happy or healthy or wealthy or wise. what can? it is the wisdom of the people our families and small businesses and individuals and

with god's grace helping those who help themselves. this allows that very generous voluntary hands up that we are known for providing those who need it. years ago, remember the bumper sticker that said a lasko, we don't deserve a darn how they do -- alaska, we don't give a darn how they do it outside. we would roll up our sleeves and we worked diligently sow and reap, to carve wealth out of the wilderness and make our living on the water with strong hands and innovative technology. it is what the first people and our parents did. it works because they worked. we must be persistent and press for the people's right to

responsibly develop god-given resources for the maximum benefit of the people. we have come so far in just 50 years. we are no longer a frontier outpost. as a contributor and a secure of america, we can attain our destiny in the promise of our motto, north to the future. the pressing issues of our time, and energy and prosperity, alaska will lead. you can be both pro development and pro development. we will protected.

america must look north to the future, for energy independence and for our strategic location on the globe. alaska is the gatekeeper of the continent. we are here today for a changing of the guard. people who know me and know how much i love this state, some are choosing not to hear why i made the decision to chart a new course to advance the state. it should be so obvious to you. it is because i love alas got this much that i feel it is my duty to avoid the unproductive,

a typical, politics as usual, lame duck session for 1/year in office. how does that benefit you? with this decision i will be able to fight even harder for you, for what is right and for what is true. i have never felt that you need a title to do that. as we move forward together, let's about to keep championing alaska to responsible development and smaller government, and freedom. when i took the oath to serve you, i promised to guard the interests of this great state like a grisly guards her cubs. a mother naturally guards her

own. todd and i and the children, we will forever be so grateful for the honor for -- to be able to serve you. we all thank you. i am very blessed to have taws support. i have been blessed to be raised in this frontier. thank you for our home, mom and dad. here, it is impossible to lose your way wherever the road may lead you. we have that steady start to guide us home. let's all enjoyed the ride. god bless america.

former gov. palance first order of business is a private citizen is to speak august 8th at the ronald reagan presidential library in california. she wants to campaign for political candidates from coast to coast and will continue to speak her mind, she said, on the social networking site, twitter. >> we told you we would bring you the obesity report from the cdc. technical issues prevent us from doing so this morning. the associated press is reporting new stores today. it reports that the president is opening u.s. talks with a high level delegation of chinese

government officials, saying that the ties between the two countries are as important as any bilateral relationship in the world. today is the start of two days of high-level talks between u.s. and china here in washington, both sides emphasizing the importance of the meeting. also president obama will continue his request -- his quest for health care this week. the president will stump for the plan this week on stops in north carolina and virginia while lawmakers try to make progress before their august recess. now a portion of this morning's washington journal. host:grover norquist is with us

today. yesterday, sarah palin stepped down officially as governor of alaska. what are your thoughts on her political future? guest: she gets to design her political future. she could not really run as governor of alaska. she can now come down to the lower 48, as nixon did in 1966, she did -- he did so well to help the republicans in 66. successful presidential race raising money for republican candidates. host: she is going to make a living. is there any indication she

would pare this with a broadcast or coming to your career? guest: my guess is that she would make money speaking. maybe as a commentator, she could, but she could not do so as a news person or -- host: she is a draw for republican candidates? guest: she is a draw for republican candidates, and she gets to define herself through those speeches and not have katie couric explain who she is and what she does. host: to the nature of this morning's conversation, a lot will have to do with this piece of legislation, h.r.-3200. what are your thoughts on the health care legislation that is making its way in the senate and the house? guest: barack obama, when he ran for president, said a number of things. he promised never to raise anyone's taxes if you earned less than $250,000 a year.

he promised if he was going to spend more money on something, he would reduce spending on other things. there are a series of these commitments that have kind of melted away. it only took him 16 days in office before he raised taxes on people who use tobacco. and the only person who makes -- the only person who smokes cigarettes in this country who makes more than $250,000 a year is barack obama. now you are talking $3 trillion in taxes and spending for health care, the point of whichm

>> when you get sick, when you world, they will come to you and say you are too old to get a hip replacement, you are too old for certain medicines. it costs too much to keep you alive. if that is what happens in canada and europe. they do rationing there. second, by having you wait so long by getting healthcare, it saves the government money. because you did not make it. it is the rationing part of this that is so frightening. and what obama and harry reid and nancy pelosi should have done with spend some time

looking what is happening in britain and canada. host: your organization focuses on tax policy. would you say you disagree with a lot of the tax approach of the administration, obviously? would you say that the issue of health care is something that needs to be dealt with in the timetable the president set up? guest: know, the challenges of health care and the runaway costs -- no, the challenges of health care and a runaway costs needed to be dealt with in the last eight years. the democratic party supported by obama said, n no 2 toward reform. host: if you had gotten tort reform, though, how would that have gotten -- what this tort

reform due to cut the gap? guest: toward reform would reduce the cost of health care for everyone. secondly, we need to be careful and not use the democrats talking points about 45 million americans not getting health care. that is nonsense. what that means is 45 million americans do not have health insurance. some are younger and not think they need health insurance because they are not going to get sick. there are others who go to the emergency room and get health care. if you walk into an emergency room, you will get health care. host: what is the number that -- of people they need health insurance that do not happen -- that do not have it? guest: it is not mean they do not get health care, it just means they do not have insurance. what we did pass last year with health savings accounts, that makes it less expensive.

the other thing we need to do it is that the government causes many of these problems in terms of runaway health-care costs. if you live in new jersey, which has a very corrupt government, and they pass laws that say if you buy health insurance in new jersey you have to ensure for a whole list of things that you may not wish to ensure for. it may not be important to you. you may not be able to physically get that disease. and you say i want to insure for that. mandates in the united states, put in by legislatures, not doctors, raise the cost of health insurance about 10% to 15%. we could start by dropping everyone's health insurance by 10% to 15% by dropping the regulations across state lines.

why not move in that direction when the obvious improvements had been on the table for a decade? host: this year from the viewers. good morning to tim on our independent line. caller: good morning. before we get to mr. norquist, as far as the psa about c-span's funding, i wish you guys would make it clear that it is not -- c-span is not the result of the benevolence of the cable industry. according to an obituary i read in "the new york times" a few years back, i forget what senator or congressman, who was pivotal in some kind of legislation that the industry wanted passed. part of that was stipulated that you do have a public service or a public access network which is c-span, and we fund it. i wish you would make that clear. i am sure brian lamb knows right off the top of his head.

host: thanks for clarifying that. do you have a question for grover norquist? caller: not so much a question, but i would like to congratulate him and his fellow republicans for winning the class war. ronald reagan gave the wealthiest americans and corporations the biggest tax cut in the history of the united states. on the premise that, well, if they have all these tax cuts, they will create jobs. well, we had one of the biggest deficits under reagan, one of the biggest recessions in 1983. so much for triple-down economic theory. host: we will get a response. guest: tim, a couple of things. first of all, when we reduced marginal tax rates, the reagan

tax cuts, it was parallel to the kennedy tax cuts. kennedy had tax cuts of 22% across the board at all tax rate. ronald reagan's was 25% across the board on all rates. so if you want to make a partisan point, ragan's tax reduction looked very -- was parallel to the one that john f. kennedy performed. second, there was tremendous job creation. you talk about the recession of 1983. that may be the democratic party's talking points, but it does not really work. we created 4 million jobs in 1983. 1983, when the reagan tax cuts took effect, that is when the recovery took effect. that is when the job boom that continued for more than a decade began. so we had strong economic growth. yes, the government spent too much during that period of time, and we had deficits.

again, the commerce spends the map -- the congress spends the money. if you want to get control of spending, you have to get control of congress. at our website, atr.org, we have a chart shows how much is spent by congress, not the presidency. the economy did not do very well, spent a fair amount of money. it was in the last six years with the republican congress and the democratic president when you had the job creation and the stock market went up. when the democrats took the covers back in 2001, you sell a slump in the stock market and jobs -- use of a slump in the stock market and in jobs. then the stock market, jobs, a went back up again in 1986, 1987. watch the congress when you are focused on spending rather than

the presidency. host: i want you to look at the state level for just a moment. should the rich pay more? this is about state income taxes in connecticut. republicans say that the wealthy are already shelling out more than their fair share. they would pay more than half of all income taxes in that state. how big of an issue -- states are pressed financially. how big an issue is the concern of tax rates in states? guest: there is a lot of movement of people in states. the highest -- the states with the highest income taxes have been losing people, the states with the lowest income taxes have been gaining people. people leave and move out of states with high income taxes

and move to states -- texas, florida, nevada, new hampshire -- where they do not have an income tax. host: doesn't that moved to other states pressure those states to raise taxes? guest: they pay sales taxes, property taxes, create jobs and opportunities in texas and florida. if you have a pro-growth economic policy, step one is low taxes, step two is to chase the trial lawyers away from the table. step three is do not let the labor unions take $500 away from every worker for the privilege of working. if you can do that, you have strong economic growth. the problem we have in michigan and massachusetts and new york and california is the trial lawyers, the labor unions, and the tax collectors have been chasing people out of those states. host: here is a call from north

carolina. good morning, welcome. caller: good morning. thanks for let me come off the air -- come on the air. i am in the heart of north carolina, right in tobacco country. i hear so much about tobacco. what is wrong with a man, after he has eaten a meal, kicking back and smoking a cigarette? i have smoked all my life. the federal government did not say anything about it then. put it this way, if it had not been for tobacco, there would not have been a duke university, a duke hospital, there would not be a drum, north carolina, or a winston-salem. i realize some people just want to take away the freedom from all americans. they tell us what to eat, how to

eat, when to eat it, and pretty soon they will have control over our lives completely. guest: well, i am not going to disagree with you. there has always been a strain in american political history of prohibitionists, nanny-staters, people who want to run other people's lives. we went through prohibition on alcohol in much of the 1920's. that was very destructive. it's certainly created organized crime in this country. we are still paying for the mistakes of prohibition. there are some people who cannot run their own lives properly, who cannot take care of themselves, who will not take care of themselves, and they spend all their time pushing other people around, and they use the government for that purpose. i think it is not a healthy thing for people to smoke cigarettes, but it is their own business. the government should not be telling you what to do or what not to do. the same thing if you want to

drink bourbon or if you want to work on saturday. the government treats people who want to work on saturday with high taxes. we will end up with fewer of each. host: next caller, good morning. caller: i want to touch on something that you pretty much mentioned earlier, and that is i would say the state and local tax burdens. in this area, philadelphia, that is something that is not being addressed. i just recently retired. i was considering starting my own business, and i started crunching the numbers and after the dreaded federal self employment tax, the city gross receipts tax, the city net profits tax, state income tax, before i even started dressing

my expenses, i am looking at 50% going before i start paying the bills for my practice. then there is liability insurance. the way i look at i should start doing volunteer work. we want to be the country of entrepreneurs, but there are so many obstacles in the way, it is ridiculous. i just want to get a response to that. thank you. guest: we are getting into the question of how pelosi and reid are planning on paying for health care reform. i am not quite sure if you are reforming health care, that costs less, why we are raising taxes to do that. you should be cutting taxes. when the government reforms things, it always gets more expensive, not less expensive. when they talk about the kind of tax increases that they have been floating, putting into legislation, you are looking at massive increases in small businesses.

this is at a time when bill clinton "raise taxes on the richest 2%." 7% of those taxes were paid by small businesses. a lot of small businesses pay taxes as if they were individuals. so a lot of marginal tax rates on wealthy people are also marginal tax rates on small businesses. ask the grocery store, ask to the barbershop. ask your local businessmen and women what they face and will happen if obama raise taxes -- obama raises taxes on small business to pay for health care reform which costs more, evidently. if you are going to do that, many people will lose jobs?

lot of jobs have been lost in last six months since we started on obama's economic policy. host: a comment by email -- a guy in maryland -- i find it disturbing that grover in furs that if it is only 20 million uninsured, then it is not a really big problem. the problem is that the emergency room is the least efficient place to receive health care. guest: well, here is the point. talk to somebody from canada. in the united states, you can walk into an emergency room and wait there is a lot less than the six-month wait that we hear about for real, necessary care in canada, where they tell you to come back in six months. nobody gets told to come back in six months at an emergency room in the united states. my argument was that those people who tried to panic people into passing a 1000-page piece

of legislation without reading it, they should come up with honest numbers and numbers that means something. we have been trying to expand insurance coverage for small businesses for the last eight years. there was legislation put forward so that small businesses could pull together and buy insurance less expensively. the democratic party for eight years stopped that. i am very aware that we need to reduce the cost of health care insurance and make it more available to more people. for the last eight years, the republicans in congress tried to do that, and the democrats filibustered and fought it. so let's get straight who has created this crisis, who is owned by the trial lawyers, owned by the labor unions, and unwilling to fix things, other than creating -- other than by creating a big government program, which i would argue does not work very well. host: the sunday "new york times

magazine" had an article, "the new joblessness." what are your thoughts about what the president has done so far, where the unemployment rate is now and where you anticipate it to go by the end of the year? guest: it started off not good and has gotten worse since the so-called stimulus package. but this should not surprise anybody. the stimulus spending package that obama signed, actually written by the democrats in congress -- again, obama had nothing to do with that seamless package other than agree to the number. it was written by the house and the senate, a series of earmarks from one end to the other, and obama signed it. you can blame obama for signing it, but it was written by the democrats. all the so-called blue dogs that care signed it. -- wrote it. the argument was that read in

pelosi were going to take $780 billion -- the argument was that harry reid and nancy pelosi were going to take $780 billion and give it to people who were politically connected. imagine if they had gone to two sides of the lake, taken two buckets of water to the other side of the lake, had a press conference, said we are going to stimulate this 80 million times, take water out of one side of the lake, dump it into the other side of the lake. you would believe that the economy would do better with dollars. host: didn't president bush agreed that some kind of economic stimulus was necessary? guest: i would not take economic advice from president bush. that is the guy, along with president obama, the stimulus

package for the banks, to bail out the banks. his support for the bailout of the banks, no. the problem with obama is that he has taken every dumb idea that bush had and added to it. he is not the anti-bush. he is bush-plus. to all the people who lost your money in the first place -- if you're a teenage kid and totaled the car, when your first reaction be, -- with your first reaction becoming give that kid another car? host: mike, an independent. good morning. caller: i just like to clarify a couple of things that the republicans are saying, and grover along with them. number 1, they are saying we should open up where we should

do away with state regulations. all they want to do is to deregulate. number two, he talked about health care. i happen to be a wealthy man when they did the trial run. i was doing consulting and had a heart attack at age 42. laying on the operating table, one doctor said you cannot perform that because the government will not pay for that. the other doctor said, i do not care, i do not want this man to die so young. now they want to reprogram the health insurance companies and this program to this is what the republicans want to do.

let's exercise for 45 minutes, the regulate, and by god -- you have a very nice day. guest: mike, i think you misunderstand. the bill would allow u2 buy insurance -- would allow you to buy insurance across states. it will allow you to do it, so if you are in a state that the legislature is so corrupt, they put things into the law saying if you buy insurance and our state, you have to spend x and x to our friends for things that may not happen to you, to go away from that corruption and go to a state that has less corruption. it is allowing you to escape corrupt regulation, corrupt laws in your own state.

host: here is louise in fredericksburg, virginia, on a republican line. caller: hi. i hear all of this about insurance and -- hello? host: you are on the air, ma'am. caller: i pay my doctor $55. i pay in cash money, and i do not have insurance. i do not want the government to give me insurance. i would like to have a catastrophic insurance, and i would also like to have something over $3,000 that i cannot afford. what i would like to say is we have tons of taxes in the state. when you are paying $300 a month for your property taxes and another $50 a month for sales taxes, and then you have your income taxes and your federal taxes -- and i was a small business owner once, and that was the total sucker's game because you are paying al.

you are not taking home money, you are literally -- you are paying out. you are not taking home monday, you're literally paying at the poverty level. your money goes out for all the bills that you must pay and all the taxes that you must pay, and especially if you are the sole provider. guest: you raise the number of very important points. look, we need to get the government out of health care, not more into it. there are tax laws that make it difficult to simply buy the kind of insurance that you want, which is catastrophic insurance. the kind of insurance that you buy for your car or house or many other cases. it is our tax laws that got us into this mess, and the wage and price controls in the 1940's during world war ii, got your health insurance and your job attached to each other, so when you lose your job you lose your health insurance. it does not happen to your home insurance, your car insurance. again, when the government got

involved, they created many of these problems, and the answer is not more government, more taxes, more bureaucrats, more trial lawyers, it is to move out of that. there are two ways to go. i would argue we need to lower taxes, less spending, more freedom between doctors and individuals, and let people save for their own health care needs and be able to do that tax-free. the other is to turn the hospital into the department of motor vehicles. you know when you go into a government building how you are going to be treated. when you go to the post office, how long it takes to get something done, or the department of motor vehicles. we ought not to turn the doctor's office >> the coming up in about 45

minutes, c-span2 will have a discussion with the al-jazeera television network. the general alike -- the director wilbur dissipate. and a house panel on fema's response to major disaster response preparedness. that is live coverage on c- span3. >> on "the communicator's" digital media conference. that's tonight on c-span2. during the conversation on civil rights and race relations. that is sunday, august 2 on c- span2. >> a couple of news headlines from the associated press -- the associated press reports

president barack obama will continue his quest for health care overhaul this week. as lawmakers go on wrestling with the details. the president will stump for the plan this week in stops in n.c. and virginia while lawmakers try to make progress before the august recess. aides say he will continue talking to lawmakers on how best to move health plan through congress even if there are no floor votes before the august recess. the associated press reports the senior republican on the judiciary committee is building against supreme court nominee, sonia sotomayor. alabama senator jeff sessions says he does not think sonia sotomayor will be able to resist the pull of the judicial activism once she joins the high court. the committee is scheduled to vote on the nomination tomorrow. high-level talks between china and the united states have begun in washington and both sides are emphasizing the importance of

the meetings. the chinese have brought 150 diplomats and u.s. is led by secretary of state and hillary clinton and the treasury secretary, tim geiger. in his opening remarks, -- treasury secretary, tim geithner. president obama says the relationship will help to shape the history of the countries. china says they are beginning to emerge from their current financial crisis. this is the start of high-level talks in washington. we will bring you president barack obama's remarks from earlier this morning. >> good morning. i am so pleased to see you all

here. so many members of the cabinet. we are excited to begin this strategic and economic dialogue between the united states and china. it is a privilege to open this inaugural meeting. i am especially pleased that secretary tim geithner and i have been able to welcome the state councilor and vice premier from china. [applause] we are looking forward to resuming the very fruitful discussion we have already had, both tim geithner and myself, and particularly president obama and president who is and how. this is a combination and beginning. -- president hu jintao. 30 years ago, the ad states and china established formal

diplomatic relations. what followed was a blossoming of chinese economic growth and diplomatic engagement that has allowed our nation to reach this place of opportunity today. but this dialogue also marks the beginning of an unprecedented effort to lay the foundation for a positive, cooperative, and comprehensive u.s.-chinese relationship in the 21st century. so many members of president obama's capt. here, that reflects our belief that a strong relationship will yield rewards not only for our two nations, but indeed for the world beyond. we believe in the decades ahead, great countries will be defined less by their power to dominate or divide than by their capacity to solve problems. it is this reality that no country can solve today's challenges alone that demands a

new global architecture for progress. although past relations between the u.s. and china have been influenced by the idea of a balance of power among great nations, the fresh thinking of the 21st century moves us from a multi-polar world to a multi- partner world. in this dialogue we initiate today, that will enable us to shape a common agenda. we know that our nations face a common global threats from the economic crisis to nonproliferation, climate change, clean energy, pandemic disease, global disease, north korea, pakistan, iran, and beyond. silly must find common ground and work together in common purpose even as we may disagree on certain issues. as we will hear later from the president, the obama administration is committed to broader engagement using robust diplomacy and development,

working with and beyond governments to solve regional and global problems. when i was in china in february, it was my first time back in almost a decade. i was struck as many visitors are by the transformation that had taken place. driving on the third ring road in beijing, i felt like i was watching a movie in fast forward. from a few high-rise buildings of last trip to a gleaming olympic complex and corporate skyscrapers today. for millions of flying pigeon bicycle navigating the streets of two cars of every model traversing modern thoroughfares. for those traveling to shanghai, and already cosmopolitan world city, soon to at the shanghai expo called all of these are test mos -- testimony to china's dynamism. we welcome china's role in running peace and stability in the asian pacific. in the last 30 years, the u.s.

has helped foster security in the recent -- in the region, and that has been a critical factor in china's growth and important strategic interest of our own. in the future, we will remain actively engaged in promoting the security of asia. one misunderstanding or disagreements arise, we will work through them peacefully and through interactive dialogue. this strategic and interactive dialogue different from ones in the past in scope, substance, and approach. it is comprehensive by design, meant to enlist the full range of talents within our government and to include cross cutting challenges that are neither bureaucratically need nor easily counted -- easily, behalf -- easily compartmentalized. we are laying the foundation for a good relationship, improving communication, increasing understanding, and creating a work plan. the agenda will focus on several areas -- first, as secretary tim

geithner and vice premier from china will demonstrate, the economic recovery that is critical to both of us. this is a priority. we have taken aggressive action and so has the chinese government. second, climate change and clean energy. as the world's two biggest in matters, we have to demonstrate to the developed and developing world that clean energy and economic growth go hand-in-hand. we already have promising partnerships. when i was in beijing, toward a geothermal plant is a true u.s.- chinese collaboration. general electric provided the equipment to produce heat and power with half the emissions and far less water usage and the coal plants typically rely on. chinese businesses built this team turbines that power the plant. this plan saves costs and provides clean energy to the united states energy -- yet states embassy. i just completed a conference

in thailand where the north korean's recent provocations were of great concern. china and the united states both appreciate the dangers of escalating tensions and perspective arms race in asia. we will close work against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. already we have cooperated very closely together and we're grateful to the chinese government and their leadership in establishing the six-party talks and close cooperation with us in response to the north korean missile launches. we will also discuss our common concerns about the new clear weapons capability of around and explore ways to prevent violent extremism in pakistan and afghanistan. fourth, we will talk about development. like diplomacy, it is an equally important color of democracy. many of the world's threat emanate from poverty, social

erosion, and that contributes to them. by addressing hundred, a literacy, disease, economic marginal station from the bottom up, insisting on accountability and adherence to the rule of law, we can widen opportunity and prosperity for more people in more places. none of these problems, even with our cluster corp., will be easy to solve. results will not happen overnight. we will not always see eye to eye. that is in the case in certain instances of human rights for the united states continues to be guided by the ideal of religious and other freedoms that must be respected. still, solutions to many of the global challenges today are within reach if we work together where our interests intersect and where we cannot, we will be honest with each other. a well-known chinese saying speaks of a sacred mountain in

northern china near the home of confucius. it says "when people are of one mind and heart, they can move a mountain." we cannot expect to be united on every issue at every turn, but we can be of one mind and heart of the need to find common ground as we build a common and better future. the obama administration has embraced this dialogue with china early and energetically because he wants to see it bring fruit. this is an issue of great importance to me as secretary of state. i look forward to the discussions today and tomorrow and the follow-up work we will do together. it is now my great honor to introduce the vice premier. [applause]

>> secretary of state henry clinton, secretary of treasury, tim geithner, deer and delegates. the strategic and economic dialogs was jointly and issued by the heads of states of china and united states. it's an important move to develop relationships in a new era. i am delighted to co-chair of the first-round of the dialogue as a special representative of the president of china and work with the secretary clinton and tim geithner. the president of china attaches great importance to this round of dialogues. it is my great dialogue -- is my great honor to read the congratulatory message from him.

on the occasion of the opening of the first round of china's strategic and economic dialogue, i wish to extend on behalf of the chinese government warm congratulations and best wishes. to set up the mechanism is an important agreement that president obama and i have reached. it is also a strategic move aimed at strengthening a mutually beneficial cooperation between our two countries in various areas and providing a sound, city, comprehensive development of china-u.s. relations in a new era. since the launch of these mechanisms, in february, the chinese and of the u.s. team's headed by c representatives of the president has made careful press -- careful preparations to

ensure a smooth round of the first dialogue as scheduled. i highly appreciate your efforts. as to countries with significant influence in the world, china and the united states shoulder important responsibilities on a host of major issues concerning peace and development of mankind and enjoy extensive, and interest and broad base for cooperation. in the face of complex and changing economic and political situations, our two countries should endeavor to expand, ground, reduce differences, enhance mutual trust, and strengthen cooperation to the strategic and economic dialogue. this serves the common interests of the two sides and will help the offense the positive cooperative and comprehensive relationships between our

countries. it is also of great importance for peace, stability, development, and prosperity of the whole world. i hope the two sides approach consultations and an equal manner and engaged in in-depth discussions on the strategic long-term and overarching issues in our relations. i hope the two sides will be adopting a pragmatic and enterprising approach, seek progress, and explore new methods and avenues of mutually beneficial cooperation. i am confident with a concerted effort of both teams, the mechanism will keep improving and am wrong -- and growing, and inject new dynamism and made a contribution to our

[unintelligible] a i wish the first round of chinese strategic economic dialogue is a crowning success. made relations between our two countries and the sentiments between our two people go even stronger. the president of the people's republic of china, 27 july, 2009, in beijing. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, in his congratulatory message, the president raised high expectations and requirements for the first-round of the strategic and economic dialogue. in a while, president obama will join us and make an important speech.

[unintelligible] it is an important agreement reached by are two presidents. its core element is to strengthen cooperation and it should be oriented toward the 21st century. the current dialogue are a major reflection of this agreement. we are keenly aware of the great responsibility of our shoulders as required by our presidents, we should make full use of the dialogue platforms, build consensus, strengthen trust, and expand convergence of interest and work to achieve more regionally beneficial results. the world economy is at a critical moment of moving out of crisis and toward recovery. the chinese government adopted a serious -- a series of policy

measures to respond to the crisis and these measures have paid off. in the first half of the year, china's gdp grew by 7.1% with it visible signs of economic stabilization and rebound. since the policy measures adopted by the u.s. government, they financial markets in the u.s. are also stabilizing and it's real economy is showing signs of growing. during the economic dialogue, under building confidence in restoring economic growth, strengthening chinese economic corp., china and the united states will have intensive dialogue on making further efforts to tackle the financial crisis, building the financial system, deepening trade, and promoting sustainable economic development.

there is a positive signals by joining hands to overcome difficulties. it will promote the economic recovery and growth in our two countries and the whole world. mankind's pursuit for peace and development, prosperity and cultural progress never ceases. mankind has always been progressing and its difficulties. i am confident this process will finally be over. china is in the process of accelerating industrialization and urbanization. there are great potential in our market. we will continue to carry out this scientific outlook on development, deepen reform and opening up, and combined current efforts to tackle the financial crisis and maintain economic growth with advanced economic

restructuring and transformation of the economic growth patterns and to endeavor to achieve development of the national economy. a more open and more dynamic chinese economy will bring opportunities to all countries and the world, including the united states. with a furthering of china's reform and opening up, china and the united states will have even closer cooperation and trade relations and the relationship will keep moving forward at a new starting point. i wish this round of china strategic and economic dialogue a complete success. thank you. [applause] i now give the floor to secretary of treasury, tim geithner.

>> thank you. it is a great pleasure to join secretary clinton and our colleagues to welcome you and your delegation to washington. in london, as she said, president obama and your president called on us to build on a comprehensive, bilateral relationship. this strategic and economic dialogue is a testament to the importance of the relationship and are committed -- and our commitment to strengthening it. i had the privilege of studying twice in china almost 30 years ago. if you look at what china has achieved since then, the leadership of that country has brought about one of the most remarkable transformations in economic development and growth we have seen in modern economic history. no one cavan look at what china has achieved in that time and not be convinced by the fact that when china commits to reform, it's able to deliver remarkable change.

this strategic and economic dialogue breaks new ground by bringing together senior officials across the full range of economic, diplomatic, strategic policies and interests between our two countries. the breadth of this dialogue recognizes that many of the central global issues of our time, from economic reform and growth to addressing climate change, require sustained political commitment and unprecedented cooperation between the united states and china. our joint response to the global financial crisis marked a turning point in our cooperation. this crisis will be remembered not just for its severity and global reach, but also for the speed and strength of the international response and the actions taken by the united states and china have made a very substantial contribution to our collective success of our in blunting the force of this recession and beginning to

restore confidence. those of our countries have made it clear our commitments to maintain strong policy and support of economic demand until recovery is firmly in place. at this moment of crisis, we acted together. to use a chinese phrase -- the meeting is taking place at a critical moment when as leading nations in the global world, we have the responsibly to act not just for the benefit of our own citizens but for the benefit of the global economy. the crisis has highlighted the need going forward for a different global path. we need to design a new framework to lay the foundation for a more sustainable, more balanced global growth in the future and a smooth transition to a more greed global -- a

more green: what connie. -- a more green in global economy. already savings are and the deficit is falling and we are able to bring the deficit down to a more sustainable level once recovery is established. the president is committed to making investment green energy and health care that will make our economy more healthy in the future in these policies will help to ensure more sustainable growth in the united states and more sustainable paternal position. china has laid out ambitious plans to shift toward domestic growth and spur the growth of household consumption. measures to raise household incomes and strengthen the safety net will be instrumental in this effort as will the continuation of china's remarkable reforms in the financial sector. china's success in shifting the

structure of the economy toward domestic growth, including a greater role spending by consumers will be a huge country and to our global challenge in bringing about a more rapid and more balanced and sustainable global recovery. these efforts are closely linked to our shared environmental goals. a shift toward domestic growth, toward a more service oriented economy, away from the type of heavy entered the growth of the past -- heavy energy growth of the past. china and the united states have been among the biggest beneficiaries of the global trading system and we share a special responsibility to ensure global trade and investment remain open and will-bes. we have committed along with other nations of the g-20 to force for protectionist measures and create new opportunities for expanded trade between our countries.

we meet at a moment of opportunity and reshaping the global economic architecture. this is no less true in the area of climate and diplomacy than economic recourse. the global economy has changed fundamentally, but the institutions created at bretton woods have brought about remarkable approve months in the economy, dramatic increase in flows of investment, and has sought to bring hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. china was not central to the talks, but today, we were working with china to ensure their full engagement and representation in design of the key multilateral agreements and groupings such as the g-20, the financial stability nor, and the international financial institutions. these are huge and hugely important tasks. they will not be accomplished in a single meeting, we can begin the task today and tomorrow and

build on it over the course of the months and years ahead. now like to introduce the state councilor. [applause] cuthe secretary clinton, tim geithner, a vice premier, ladies and gentlemen. just now, the three special representatives made broad and important speeches. they have said what should be said and what am i going to say? following the principles of [unintelligible]

i wish to make a few remarks. first to the chinese president and president obama have made the decision to establish a strategic and economic dialogue at the g-20 in london. the dialogue opened today. i think this is a big event. it is worth celebrating in china and u.s. relations. probably at this moment, the attention of the whole world is on this call. the chinese president, as you heard, sent a congratulatory message full of expectations and good wishes. later on, president obama will honor the ceremony and make an important speech. this shows that the dialogue is

important and has specially. the vice premier and i come from an oriental country which is both far and near to. it is an old civilization. we come from one of the four ancient civilizations that produce confucius, chairman mao, and many other great men. we come from a country that produced four great inventions of the world and a country whose 1.3 billion people is focusing on development and committed to developing a harmonious x -- her money as a society and seeking harmonious

situations with the rest of the world. why are we here? i think we came here in the spirit of mutual respect, treating each other as equals, and progress to have a candid dialogue with the united states. the want to discuss strategic and forward-looking issues essential to the success -- to sustain peace and involvement. we came here to discuss american colleagues the way to build comprehensive chinese-american relations in the 21st century and we came to seek better understanding, mutual trust,, understanding and cooperation so we can bring understanding to

our two peoples and the planet we live on together. can china and the added states build a solid assets of -- solid edifice in the 21st century? i have spent 68 years of my life and have done some research. and thinking with my mind of the changes that have taken place in this world. i wish to look at future chinese-american relations with optimism. first all, nine years into the 21st century, we are in a completely different world compared with the 20th-century. today, china, the nine states, and other countries are all living in a smaller global

village and we all face more and bigger global challenges that we cannot handle single-handedly. we are actually in the same big boats that has been hit by serious winds and huge waves. with our interests interconnected, we can follow the trends of the development and tried to cross the store may water together as passengers of this boat, to seek a harmonious coexistence and cooperation. second, thanks to our joint efforts, huge progress has been made in our efforts. although we have differences in many areas, the nine states will never become china and china will never become the united states. the living fact is china and the united states and interactions

have never been so frequent and our interests have never been so interwoven so closely and and mutually beneficial cooperation. the driving force, boosting the relationship has never been so strong. our to bright countries, the to break people's, have tens of thousands of reasons to seize the historic opportunities and improved our strategic mutual trust, actively expand cooperation, appropriately handled differences on sensitive issues and build an even more beautiful future for china and u.s. relations. there is a saying in china -- will be done is half done. i think you have a similar saying in this country. in the past few years, have worked with