our callers will ask more. guest: another part deals with day laborers. we have a big problem where day laborers stand on the street corners and potential employers drive up to hire them. it causes traffic problems, disruptions in communities, demonstrations, littering -- it is a very negative thing. in addition, this streetcorner labor pickup is bad for the state. most of these people work off the books, so they work off the books, you do not get fair labor laws. many of the people that do they labor are illegal immigrants. so we put into the law, if you stand by the roadside to get work, it is illegal if it impede

traffic. we had to include that to make it constitutional. we also have sections that say if you knowingly transport an illegal alien or harbor them, or concealed them, you are also guilty of the state offense. with respect to that law, you also have to be doing another offense. religious people, clergy, social service agencies, were service agencies, were concerned that perhaps somebody driving an illegal alien to work through they did not know could be arrested. of course, it is only nominally when you know when the transport and illegal where you are guilty. but to go the extra month to take care of the concerns, we added that not only must you know that they are illegal, but you must be committing another crime. we are really trying to focus humans smugglers here. also, if you are picking up

people for work. your vehicle can be impounded. we also made a state crime to be in the u.s. illegally. so those are the major parts. again, democracy worked. as we went through the committee process, as different groups raised their concerns, we addressed them and changed law. we think it is a good whillaw. host: there is one challenge coming from the government, the justice department'. in the "washington post" -- could you talk about the fact that you think it will survive that challenge?

guest: it is scary when washington talks not only about the legal issues in our law. when you are talking about litigation, it should be pure law, and when you start to add politics, that is scary. the obama administration is clearly not enthusiastic about this enforcement. the bush administration dropped the ball on illegal immigration enforcement. the obama administration cannot even find the ball. we spend hundreds of millions of dollars on a virtual that's because the people who are sympathetic to the illegals did not like the idea of a real offense that keeps people out. we did not think the virtual fence would work. now two weeks ago they scrapped the whole idea. the obama administration is cutting back on border patrol agents.

it became obvious to arizona at t federal government was not going to protect us. in fact, they are going backwards. that is why we are going to uphold law ourselves. now they want to invalidate our law. the justice department and white house showed really read their own prosecutors manual. in fact, i have a couple pages from the manual. section 19-18 from the criminal manual. this is the manual that u.s. attorney's work from. let me read you a bit of it. this section deals with an arrested illegal aliens by state and local officers. specifically authorize the state and local offices to "enforce criminal laws and make arrests for violations."

there was also a general federal statute which authorizes certain authorities to make arrests for violations of federal statutes. the fifth circuit of appeals has held that this authorizes local officials to issue processes of the arrests to be executed by law enforcement. rule four provides an arrest warrant shall be executed by a martial or some other authorized by law, which includes state and local offices. section 439. also mentions local offices being able to pick up illegal aliens. here is the best one of all. the u.s. versus holiness calderon, a 10th circuit case. it persons appeared to be illegal aliens, the u.s. court of appeals held as follows. a state trooper had general investigative authority to inquire into illegal immigration

status. it goes on to the ninth circuit court. their own prosecuting manual mentioned multiple federal statutes, multiple court rulings, all that say the same thing. local law enforcement can make arrests. we have been doing it for decades. this whole new thing that we cannot is wishful thinking on the part of opponents of the bill that fly in the face of case law and rulings from the attorney general's office. host: we have said from the beginning that this has got a lot of attention. doug on the independent line. california. caller: i am kind of nervous, if you could bear with me. there is a simple way to take care of this. that is punishing the employers.

if they were fined $10,000 for any illegal found on their work place, first time, every time, from this point forward, across the country, there would not be an illegal alien working anywhere. i am not against people coming here, but it has to be legally. they should use e-verify, and that way the employers would not have any excuse about their status. the reason we have the problem that we have is because of lobbyists. you have 10 million different laws, but if you put the employee responsible first, because they are the ones hiring, and you put a mandatory jail term on them, just like you would for anybody -- host: i am going to jump in

because we understand your point. john kavanagh, your response? guest: the government does have some internal border enforcement. i do not think it is strong enough, not done often enough. there was just a case in arizona where instead of making an arrest, they said a letter to the company saying that these employees may be illegal. we addressed this issue in arizona two years ago by passing an employer's sanction law. an employer who knowingly employers and the illegal alien, on the second offense, the company loses their business license. i agree, this is an important tool. anti-illegal immigration activity has to be multifaceted. you have to secure the border, go after the illegal aliens, go after those who employ them,

take away their benefits, and you take other measures to make it as uncomfortable as possible to live in this country. then rather than having immigration sweeps, disturbed people, and rightfully so, these people will leave on their own as the jobs are no longer there. host: from an economic standpoint, you say to make it as uncomfortable as possible, but many believe that they are doing the jobs that americans do not want to do. what is your response to that? guest: we have 9.7% unemployment in arizona. i do not think these people are sitting by idly. i think that is a bogus argument. granted, there could be some backbreaking, cheap jobs that americans do not want to do. i was in the yuma observing the

vegetable packing. but we have a guest worker program. we bring in workers across the border to do this work. they do it the right way. they do not let these people stay here for ever. they do not let them bring their families so we are burdened with education and other social costs. they only come in a few months at a time, and then they go back home. so they reestablished that connection with their families. immigration is this going mexico and other countries that send large numbers of their young, healthy man up here. i read in the "new york times" that there are villages in mexico that are devoid of young men because they are all here working. they do not come back to visit, they are lonely, they abandon their families. there are a lot of victims of

illegal immigration, and many of them are in mexico, but they will not admit it because they want the money. host: next phone call. caller: i want to commend you for what you are doing down there in arizona. what you have to understand is, here again, the politicians are behind this. if you check out every working person in america, the vast majority are opposed to making 30 million -- and it is not 11 million, those are lies. 30 million illegal citizens. just like here in washington yesterday, somebody said that he wants to pass a resolution in a council where our city will not do business with arizona. who the hell is he to speak for washingtonians? this is the kind of thing that we have to be mindful of i am glad that you are taking a stance down there.

mr. obama needs to be working on jobs instead of immigration. that is what he needs to be working on. before this is over with, we might all have to be working in strawberry fields and chicken factories because it is going to be a long time before jobs come back to america. even before the great depression, gas did not come back until the war. these jobs that people say americans do not want, and i do not believe that. i never see anyone jumping up and down in the streets for legalizing. host: he talked about washington, d.c. council actions. i have heard about other areas discussing economic reprisals. it is arizona concerned about that? guest: not at all. first of all, there is a full-

court pressure on public relations-wise to kill this bill. it was started by the governor -- it was started to intimidate the governor. she held her ground and has signed it. now you have people claiming both accounts. the bottom line is, these politicians do not represent american opinion. they may represent it in a few areas, like san francisco. we had the mayor of phoenix oppose this bill and said that the knicks would sue. you went back to the city council and then said that we are not going to do anything. in arizona, rasmussen poll, three-one of supporters support the bill. hispanic supporters -- voters support this bill. maybe a couple of councilmen in

washington will boycott, but the people of america support this bill. after we get rid of a large number of these illegals and our streets become safer, because they cause a lot of crime, more people will come to arizona. host: critics say that you envision a country where we all carry papers to prove our citizenship. what do you think of that? guest: i appreciate your bringing that myth up. as if we were going back to nazi germany. there is no law that requires anyone to carry documents. this mistaken belief, mistakenly put forward, is based on a section of the law that actually does the reverse. if you are being stopped and questioned because of reasonable suspicion, and you have certain government-issued documents, you

are presumed to be here illegally. if you voluntary show the police officer those documents, you are on your way, like an arizona driver's license, tribal identification card, birth certificate. so if you do it, if it is the right document, you have proven legal residence, you can walk away free. host: new york city. beverly, democrat's line. caller: sir, you started off by reading the federal laws against illegal immigration. since you read them, it is quite similar to what you enacted. why do you have to make new laws? why not just follow federal law? also, you just mentioned

documents. if a person is picked up and he voluntarily gives documents, he is off the hook. what happens if he does not have the documents? how does he prove that he is legal? does he go to jail first? i am not saying i am against it, but there are a lot of questions, a lot of things in the federal government that can take care of this, so why enact this law? why not just follow the federal government? guest: you had two questions. the first is why we are enacting our own laws, we are not. we are incorporating federal law into arizona law. we want to do the enforcement on local level. it is funny, all the objection

to these laws, they were already in place. it is already a federal law for anyone not a citizen in the u.s. to carry documents. that is something that already exists. by the way, we did not even about that one completely. if you voluntarily give them, you prove that you are here legally. another point that i would like to clarify, police officers cannot stop anybody can say, are you here legally and question them about their status? . under this law, police must have a reasonable suspicion that this person is here illegally. this will almost only occur if someone is stopped for another offense, like a traffic offense. so if the police pulled over someone who rolls through a stop sign, approaches the

individual, they do not have their driver's license. the officer says, why not? it is suspended. what is your name and date of birth? the officer can check the records. he discovered there is no such issued license. he goes back and says there is no driver's license issued under your name. what do you mean to spend it? well, i have a mexican license. i came from over there. when did you come, how did you get here illegally? did they give you paperwork? do you have document? you have a green card. what color is it? you know green cards are not green. that is how you build reasonable suspicion. when there are independent, observable facts and that creates suspicion. all that does is allow a brief questioning about immigration

status. during the questioning, police will be looking for lies, conflicting answers, or evasive answers. as the person gives those and as he observes, each response is another grain of sand. it all goes on a scale. the stock occurred because there was reasonable suspicion. if it does not go beyond that, they will not be detained for immigration status. but as the law is, as evasive answers continue, that will probably tip the scales over. but if questioning does not yield the additional information to go to probable cause, this person will be released. it is a half century-year-old

tool that police are used to working with, and every police officer in arizona is being updated with this training which will give him good and bad reasons to suspect the legal status in this country. . in addition to serving in the state legislature, he teaches criminal justice at scottsdale at university of -- at arizona

state university. let's go to win the conn. this is still on our independent line. line. caller: i want to preface this to say that when the gramm's the to say that when the gramm's the energy bill to caller: there is a national guardsmen who has been here for a long time. i have a friend whose family has been here since before there was a united states of america. he speaks spanish. the was walking down the street -- if he is walking down the street with his wife or his kid saw and he just wants to speak

spanish to the officer, on face value it looks like the south african apartheid. guest: under those circumstances there is no grounds to do any kind of even questioning about the person's immigration status. this law requires reasonable subsume division based on how observable facts -- reasonable suspicion based on observable facts. speaking spanish, being spanish, that is not browns for someone to report -- for some to suspect -- that is not browns for someone to suspect that you are here illegally. host: what would be grounds? guest: there is one situation that i can think of, you are

near a federal detention center and you see someone running away from it in an orange jumpsuit. other than that, nobody is going to be pulled over or question it simply because they speak spanish, they look spanish. that is racial profiling and we specifically put in a bill that you cannot use race and ethnicity alone. and you can only use it to the extent prohibited by federal law -- allowed by federal law. if an officer stops and question someone because they are spanish, the officer is in violation of civil rights and this new law. that is the case of about officer, not a bad law.

nobody is coming out and saying because a few rogue cops racially profiled in traffic stops -- a few cops racially profiled in traffic stops, nobody should make traffic stops a draw. you get rid of the few bad cops, not a good law. host: on the federal law versus state law, let me have you respond to a headline in the "washington post." the arizona law does not merely mirror federal law has its defenders insists, it broadens and usurps it. and usurps it. we do guest:

guest: we a do not broadened federal law. we did not create our own immigration law. the we did not even change immigration law. in a couple of areas we made it more difficult -- in the case of transporting and concealing. in federal law, merely transporting and concealing makes you guilty. we added that there should be another crime because we did not want its passers to be concerned. now they say that we are doing the wrong thing. it makes no sense. we are not requiring documentation to be carried. federal law does. why is the "washington post" not complaining about federal what? we have more safety is to prevent people from being inadvertently arrested. i have the prosecutors manual.

it clearly states multiple court decisions that law-enforcement locally has and can enforce these laws. host: republican line from arizona. thank caller: you. you have been very -- caller: thank you. you have been very direct, sir. i appreciate your knowledge and you have answered most of my questions. this is a sovereign country and we exist without chaos with laws. my husband was stopped coming on because his right front headlight had garnered and the first thing an american citizen or anyone is s is for your -- is asked is for your driver's license and registration. if he did not produce those he would be in trouble because it

is the law. people are worried are hurting people's feelings. illegal immigration is hurting our feelings and causing us a lot of problems. a police officer has the right to say, what is your name and what are you doing. if you are here, you should have your documents just like we have to provide our driver's license and proving shirt -- proof of insurance. if they are here illegally, first of all, they do not have a driver's license and insurance information, that is suspect. every illegal, from canada, mexico, the middle east, wherever -- we cannot afford it economically and this is a political situation.

they want a blanket amnesty again so they can get 14 million votes to stay in office to usurp our laws. if we citizens have to observe them, everybody else house to and it is not -- past two and it is not a civil-rights issue. and -- if we have to observe them, everybody else has to and it is not is a rights issue. guest: thank you for the compliment. prior to my years in june -- in new jersey, i spent years in new york. that is where my directness comes from. i will stop going westward because the next area would be california and they pretty much messed up their stayed with immigration. but the caller does raise an excellent point about the cost of illegal immigration. in arizona, the cost of -- the costs are backbreaking.

millions of dollars. the when you talk about the cost of educating their, children, medical care and other government services, it runs into probably $2 billion a year. add to that the more expansive benefits that the legal children of illegals because they were born here and you are pushing pro with $3 million or $4 million a year. -- probably $3 billion or $4 billion a year. the 5 cents you save on a hamburger is not all wilthe who. those that work on the books under false i.d., their salaries are usually so low that they pay virtually no income taxes. they draw more benefits and

dollars than they contribute. this should be replaced with a guest worker program to the extent that we need additional labor. and those immigrants that we allow in -- and we will need a lot of immigrants coming into the future as us baby boomers retire -- i would rather draw the law-abiding foreigners who are in their countries on waiting lists doing it the right way to be screened coming into this country. i do not want launderers who pushed ahead of these good people. -- ahman jumperlawn jumpers whod of these people. host: there is a piece with the headline "y arizona?" he writes the immigration statute is legal.

it gives police officers on another tool when they come into contact with illegal aliens when they're in their normal enforcement duties. phoenix is the hub of human smuggling and the kidnapping capital of america with more than two under 40 incidents in 2008. -- 240 incidents in 2008. next telephone call for john kavanaugh, who is with us for about five more minutes is from new york city, paul arm the democrats line. -- bahaulah on the democrats line. caller: my name is paulick. if i agree with this bill of 100%. wish we had this in new york city. across the street were there during construction, there are

mexican guys. there are no black americans over there. we need jobs and they are giving them to them. it is really hurting us. guest: not only are illegal immigrants taking the jobs that americans can have, they are also suppressing the wages that americans could do in the same industry. when you pay people off the books, that suppresses the wages of everyone else in construction, food service, what ever it is. i am hearing rumors and hearing talk that other states want to adopt arizonas law. that is why the obama administration is getting very uneasy. this is kind of the equivalent of an immigration tea party movement. it is long overdue. host: next call from washington, curtis on the independent line. caller: thank god for legislators such as yourself.

what you're doing is long overdue. i am an african-american male and i cannot believe that the african-american community has not supported in this. i sought out sharp in the of the day and all he spoke about was -- i saw al sharpton the other day and all he spoke about was racial profiling. there is a high murder rate of young black males in chicago where they are considering bringing in the national guard. this illegal immigration is heard in black america more than any other thing. thank god for you. you are doing a wonderful job and i hope the rest of the nation mirrors what you are doing in arizona. guest: i thank you. and that is the voice of america. in arizona, 3-321 for the law. in the rest of -- 3-1 for the

law. and the rest of america, 2-1 for the law. host: next telephone call, buffalo, this is phillip, good morning. caller: can you hear me? host: yes. caller: this country is in dire straits. thank you for much of the work you are doing, but until november rolls around and then 2012, we have got to get different people in office. we cannot have people who are holding power -- not just obama, but everybody that is in theire.

i cannot understand where the democrats are because they are driving our country into socialism just like they are in europe and we will go down the same tubes. they believe that and that is exactly what they are doing. immigration, they want this course. and i believe this immigration deal throughout the country now is going to be the trigger for mr. obama to declare martial law. guest: i will tell you one thing, all of this talk from the obama administration about dealing with immigration now and certain incentives, they are not. right now, they're on the losing end of this issue. republicans have the chance of making significant gains in the u.s. senate and the u.s. house. if they try to push through this amnesty bill, we will make gains and takeover boathouses as a prelude to 2012. -- take over both houses anas it

relates to 2012. the only thing i do hope they do is secure the border. because all of the enforcement in the world is not going to help as long as the border states are as porous as they are. and that is not to speak of the danger like the drug runners and drugs and maybe even terrorists. host: one-third of arizona as citizens are hispanic and the arizona central, which is the phoenix news home page, says -- you are quoted as saying you are worried about u.s. citizens and legal immigrants leaving. would you talk about that? guest: yes, because of the lie is being spread about this law. there was a phoenix city

councilman who was quoted in this same newspaper, which is very sympathetic to illegal immigration. they're not illegal aliens or illegal immigrants, the undocumented -- they call them undocumented migrants. in this the same paper they said -- this city councilman said that we should require all hispanics to carry documentation of legality when they are in phoenix. and phoenix police should check everybody they stop's and citizenship papers to we are not accused of profiling. that is ridiculous and that is what is driving the fear and peter the stupidity of what is driving this law or the purpose of this law.

there are safety checks and measures to stop racial profiling. we took all -- to care of all of those problems. -- we took care of all of those problems. it is misinformation that is scaring everyone. host: next call for john kavanaugh. caller: first, thank you for your service. it sounds like you have a had a very long and involved career in terms of law enforcement. i wanted to say thank you for that. i do not think a lot of self sounds like it is going to much further beyond anything that is already on the books, like you said. what did give me pause -- and i wonder if you could give us a bit of insight into the making of a lot -- was when you were talking about the details of

halcro with the law works. one of the issues you mentioned -- of how although lathe law wo. at one of the issues you mentioned was that you said in order to make its constitutional and you had to throw in a piece about impeding traffic. that made me wonder about the constitutionality of the law. it seems like you are pushing back on a different problem at a different route and in order to you that you're walking a very thin line to solve a systematic problem. you are walking a thin line between upholding a constitutional principle and trying to do as much as you can without going beyond what the principles are. host: is a different route economics? caller: i am sure the route is many things. -- the root is many things.

i'm sure it comes down to things like the economy and human nature and society. guest: you have to know the tremendous problem -- live in arizona to know the tremendous problems that day laborers have caused. it has caused massive eruptions -- interruptions in communities. but as i said also, it also facilitates worker abuse because they do not have all the protections and -- if facilitates worker abuse because they got have all the protections. it pops up everywhere. the labor solicitation is in many areas. but standing on a corner looking for work is a constitutionally protected right. in order to stop that behavior, we can only enforce it if they are doing something else wrong and it is impeding traffic. and we copy that from a phoenix

law. phoenix had a problem with a corn -- acorn doing what they do enand what they eventually wound up doing is saying, ok, only when it disrupts the traffic. again, prevent trafford problems and prevent the disorder -- traffic problems and prevent the disorder on the street that occurs. everyone knows that the overwhelming majority of people who run these >> tomorrow morning, we will speak with carlos gutierrez about the errors on immigration law. we will also look at the international job market with

john challenger. edward luce will talk about financial regulation. >> there are nearly 6000 references to abraham lincoln in our video library. if you're one of the millions who enjoys in our 16th president, you will find lots of interesting programs on line. for a temporary perspective on line -- and book, we have abraham lincoln, by great american restaurants. >> they wanted to have a security that give exposure to the housing market and that is what they got. >> the senate hearing with goldman sachs executives went nearly 11 hours. see the key moments. see every moment.

it is washington your way at the c-span video library, every program since 1987, free, on- line. >> florida gov. charlie crist announced that he will not be seeking the republican not -- the republican nomination for the florida senate race. he will run as an independent instead. this sets up a three-way senate race. here's his announcement in st. petersburg, florida. [chanting] >> charlie! >> watson haynes is and in is -- is an unbelievable human being could give him a round of applause. [applause] i am going to keep it brief. bankers want to thank my family and my god. thank god, first. -- i am going to thank my family

and my guide. thank god, first appearing and thank you to my mother -- thank god, first. and they did to my mother. my amazing three sisters are incredible and they are truly charlie's angels, along with carol. [laughter] my decision to run for the united states senate as a candidate without party affiliation in many ways says more about our nation that our state -- about our nation and our state than it does about me. i can confirm what most floridians already know. unfortunately, our political system is broken. i was never one who sought to hold elective office to demagogue or point fingers. for me, public service has always been about putting the

needs of our state and our people first. every single day, as your servant, i have tried to do exactly that. [cheers and applause] frankly, for me, it has always been that simple. i have not supported an idea because it is in it -- it is a republican idea or a democrat idea, but what i believe are good ideas for the people -- for the people. [cheers and applause] and i have always found that that is what the people believed to -- believe, too. they are tired of the name- calling and the politics of destruction. my friends, i know they want progress and not gridlock. they're tired of things not getting done for them, for you. [applause] they want someone who's more concerned about standing up for

them than standing up for special interests or parties. they look at washington and they do not like what they see. they do not like what they see from politicians. they do not like what they see from bureaucrats. they do not like what they see from the gridlock. they have a hope. and they have a concern. and they have a desire to have people that will represent them, represent you, and fight for you every single day. that is why i am running for the united states senate. that is why i run for this office for you. frankly, the easy thing for me would have been to run for reelection as governor. but for me, it is never been about doing what is easy. it has been about doing with is right for the people first. [cheers and applause] [[chanting] >> charlie! >> my friend, thank you.

i love you. i have made some tough decisions as your governor. they have not all that popular. but i have done them because i think they are what is right for the people and what is right for our state. whether it is offshore drilling, whether is stopping it -- [laughter] whether it is fighting for our teachers and their children and education -- [applause] whatever the issue might be, extending our hours so that people could vote in 2008. some people did not like that. but i lit -- but i believe in democracy and people have the right to choose always. [applause] i could have chosen to stay in the primary. frankly, for me, it is your decision. it is not one clause decision or another or even a club within

the club. it is a decision that is too important. it is a decision for all the people of florida to be able to make. that is why we go straight to november. we give you the chance to make that decision. it is your decision to make. i know this is uncharted territory. i am aware that. i am aware that after this speech and, i do not have either party helping me. but i need you. i need you, the people, more than ever. i guarantee you -- i am counting on you and i believe in you. and you can believe in me and i will bring it -- and i will be with you forever. forever. [applause] i think we need a new tone in washington. i love my country. i love the fact that we are the lead of the free end of the home of the brave. we have principles that are

supposed to be stood for. at the end of the day, even if we do not agree, we can agree to disagree without being disagreeable. our country is better than what we see up there. i know it in my heart. i feel it in my soul. i prayed to my god about this, more than i usually talk to my father. not you, dad. the other one. [laughter] and i can tell you from the bottom of my heart. i know i am doing the right thing. it is the right thing for america. is the right thing for florida. is the right thing for people. god bless you for being here today. i will never forget you. we have to work hard. we have to win. god bless you and god bless florida. thank you so much. [cheers and applause] [chanting] >> charlie!

coming -- >> coming up next is the funeral for dorothy height. senate leaders discuss their plans for an immigration bill and then we have an interview with an arizona legislature -- legislator about their new emigration law. tomorrow, on species -- on c- span, we will bring what policy should be on dealing with iran and their new nuclear program. that will be live here on c-span starting at 10:30 a.m. eastern. >> sunday, backepat buchanan wil

take your calls, e-mails, and tweets. >> c-span, our public affairs content is available on television, radio, an online. you can also connect with us on twitter, face of -- facebook, and youtube. >> civil rights leader dorothy height died last week at the age of 98. her work as former chair and president of the national council of negro women was honored at her funeral held today at the national washington cathedral. president obama was among the speakers during this event. >> i am the resurrection and i am the light. civil war.

--sayeth the lord. as for me, i know that my redeemer lives and he shuts down upon the earth -- and he shall stand upon the earth. after my wakening, he will raise me up. in my body, i shall see god. i, myself, shall see and my eyes

shall behold him who is my friend and not a stranger for none of us have like in himself and then becomes his own master when he dies. for if we have likelikedlight, e have lights in the lord -- we have light in the load. whether we live or die, we are the lord's possession. happy from now on are those who died in the lord, so it says, says the spirit.

for the rest with their -- for the rest from their labors. ♪ ♪ ♪

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>> on behalf of the washington national cathedral, i welcome you to the service of thanksgiving for the wonderful life of dorothy height. today, under the sweeping arches, we will celebrate their life of depth, courage, and moral grandeur. we will take time to remember our sister dorothy, to honor her life of service to the cause of equality and justice, and to give her back to god in gratitude and hope. this cathedral is a church for our nation and a house of prayer for all people. it is meant to be a home for everyone who comes, a spiritual home for all seekers, for all people of faith. so we welcome you warmly today and hope you will return to be

with us again and again. let high's continuing giving -- let's give thank you -- less continue giving thank you for dorothy height. >> let us pray. god's whose mercy's cannot be numbered, except our prayers' on behalf of your servant dorothy and grant her an interest into a land of light and joy in the fellowship of your saints through jesus christ our love who lives and trains with you and the holy spirit, one god now and forever, amen. hot lettuce pray. -- let us pray. >> most were so full guard -- most merciful god, bill

graciously with dorothy's family and friends in their grief. surround them with your love that they may not be overwhelmed by their loss, but have confidence in your goodness and strength to meet the days to come, through jesus christ, our lord, amen. .

>> your indicators show go before you, the glory of the lord shall be your rear guard. the new show called, and the lord will answer -- then you shall call and the lord will answer. you shall cry for help and he will say, here i am. if you remove the yolk from among you, the point of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then you are like shell rise in the darkness and your blue shall be like -- your

gloom shall be like the noonday. the lord will satisfy your needs in parched places and make your bones strong, and you shall be like a water garden, like a spring of water whose waters never fail. your ancient ruins show be rebuilt. you shall raise up the foundations of many generations. you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of st. to live in. the word of the lord.

>> good morning. honored clergy, the president and mrs. obama, vice-president and mrs. biden, distinguished guests. my name is bernard randolph, senior. i am dr. height's nephew. i am from st. louis, missouri. i am a retired physician there. on this occasion, i am speaking on behalf of some 50 members of dr. height's family who are here today commemorating her life and to give thanks for the support and prayers that have gone up in her behalf since her passing a week or so ago. in reflecting on her life, one

of the things that comes to mind first is my first meeting with my aunt dorothy. that was some 80 years ago when i was about eight years old and she was about 18, just graduating from high school. she came to new york to live with our family. my mother was her older sister, and before she arrived, we knew in advance that we were going to have a house guest who was brilliant and wonderful. she already was somewhat of a celebrity, and she had won a national oratorical contest. we were advised by my mother and father that we should be on our best behavior, and if possible, try to emulate her accomplishments.

i think we did the best we could. this signifies one of the talents that dr. height had throughout her life, the fact that she was a good mentor, someone who had the capacity to inspire other people to do the best they could. she did that with me as a child, and she was by my side when i entered university medical school many years later. i would like also at this time to thank the staff at howard university medical school for the excellent state up of that care that was rendered to her while she was there, and also for the prayers and support that would to heard during that time of her life. and to those of you who are

here in cameron murray asiacommr life, and improving it the life of african-american women, we would ask at this time that those pressures continue and that the legacy of dr. height goes on to continue the progress that was made during her wonderful, long life. thank you very much. [applause]

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>> good morning. mr. president, mrs. obama, mr. biden, secretary herman, friends and family of dr. height. dorothy irene height spent her life redefining woman. even as a teenager, she played basketball for her high school long before girls or women's competitive sports were acceptable. from the beginning of her youth and throughout her life, dr. height was and condoning about the indignities of fools instead of the more tolerable female behavior to endure quietly.

of course we know about dr. height's disturbing -- deserving numerous awards. i was fortunate to watch her receive the presidential medal of freedom in 1994 and the congressional gold medal in 2004, give ever so many speeches, open the fabulous and historic national council of negro women's building on pennsylvania avenue in 1995, but she placed equal importance on enabling people to be respected legally worldwide. indeed, dr. height gave her time and support to those in need, no matter how she was feeling. now that is a more familiar definition of woman. however, many times rightful this was not applied to her, but her clear determination and

strong, positive self perception did not allow those who acted out egregious, as sexist behavior to push her to the background like they had successfully done and had been permitted to do to too many female civil rights activists in the 1950's and 1960's. [applause] some public people are not confident. they might be lacking in that deep knowing and feeling of self value which of course for anyone can be ultimately self- destructive and hurtful to others. dr. height, however, it suited self value, and she was definitely firm and assertive, without losing woman.

she searched for in her words, the common ground to solve problems. and yes, she dressed in beautiful colors with her trademark hats, no matter where she was. she had an interesting way of releasing a person from our personal space. for example, she once told someone, "you will not be moving into the picture with meat." and yes -- into the future with me. i have an indelible memory of laughter as she watched my friend don't me repeatedly in a swimming pool. she found that to be hilarious. my husband's comments about her from the stage, how those words made her laugh. i loved her. my husband and i loved her.

we sent flowers to her quite often. i was told they made her smile, which is what we wanted to accomplish, to surround her with nature's beauty while she was immersed in fighting against our nation's evil ism's, racism, sexism, classism, and ageism. speaking of ageism, when she became an elder, dr. height again refused to be pushed into the background, just as she had done in the 1950's and 1960's. in her counter action to sexism, dr. height showed us that our lives or always worthy and that along life must be demolished and honored, and that our brains can turn off at any age. at age 92, she said to me that she has never stopped learning.

i shall always hold on to that and all that she has taught me. thank you. [applause] ♪ ♪

♪ the lord is my shepherd i shallnot want he maketh me to lie down in green pastures he leadeth me besdiide the

still waters he restoreth my soul and he leadenth me to the path of righteousness for his sake yea though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death i will fear no evil for thou art with me thy rod and thy staff

they comfort me ♪ thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies ♪ my cup runneth over surely goodness and mercy

shall follow me all the days of my life and i shall dwell in the house of the lord for ever and ever ♪ ♪

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♪ [applause] >> then i saw a new heaven and a new earth. for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. and i saw the holy city, the new jerusalem, coming down out of heaven froms÷ god, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. and i heard a loud voice from

the throne singing, see the home of god is among mortals. he will deal with them as their god. they will be his people's, and god will be with them. he will live every tear from their eyes. death will be no more. morning and crying in pain will be no more. for the first things have passed away. and then the one who was seated on the throne said, see, i am making all things new. also he said, write this, because these words are trustworthy and true. then he said to me, it is done. i am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and end.

to the thirsty, i will give water as a gift from the spring of life. those who are overcome will inherit g -- will inherit these things and i will be their god, and they will be my children. the word of the lord.

[applause] x,y>> please be seated. let me begin by saying a word to dr. dorothy height's sister, ms. aldridge. to some she was a mentor.

to all she was a friend. but to use u.s. family, and my family offers you the sympathy of her loss. we are rathered year-to-date to celebrate -- we are gathered here today to celebrate the life of dr. dorothy height. it is fitting that we do so here it in our national cathedral of st. peter and st. paul. here in a place of great honor, here in the house of god, surrounded by the love of family and friends, the love in this sanctuary is a testament to a life lived righteously, alive that lifted other lives, a life

that changed this country for the better over the course of nearly one century here on earth. michelle and i did not know dr. height as well or as long as many of you. we were reminded during a previous moment in the service when you have a nephew who is 88, you have lived a full life. [applause] but we did come to know her in the early days of my campaign, and we came to love her as so many loved her. we came to love her stories, and we loved her smile, and we love to those hats that she wore like a crown, regal.

in the white house, she was a regular. she came by not once, not twice, 21 times. [laughter] [applause] she took part in our discussions around health care reform in her final months. last february, i was scheduled to see her and other civil rights leaders to discuss the pressing problems of unemployment. reverend sharpton and others -- we discover that washington was about to be blinded by the worst blizzard on record, 2 feet of snow. i suggested to one of my age, we

should call dr. height and say we are happy to reschedule the meeting. certainly if the others come, she should not feel obliged. true to form, dr. height insisted on coming, despite the blizzard. never mind that she was in a wheelchair. she was not about to let a bunch of men have this meeting. [applause] it was only when the car literally could not get to her driveway that she reluctantly decided to stay home, but she still sent a message about what needed to be done. i tell the story partly because it brings a smile to my face, but also a captors a quiet -- it captures the quiet, dogged, dignified persistence that all of us who loved dr. height came

to know so well, an attribute that we understand she learned early on. born in the capital of the old confederacy, brought north by her parents as part of that great migration, dr. height was raised in another age, in a different america, beyond the experience of many. it is hard to imagine, i think, life in the first decades of that last century when the elderly woman that we knew was only a girl. jim crow ruled this out. the klan was on the rise, a powerful political force. lynching was all too often the penalty for the offense of blacks began -- of black skin.

slaves had been freed in living memory, but too often their children were denied justice, equality, opportunity, and the chance to pursue their dreams. the progress that followed, progress that so many of you helped to achieve, progress that ultimately made it possible for michelle and need to be here as president and first lady, that progress came slowly. [applause] that progress came from the collective efforts of multiple generations of americans, preachers and lawyers and thinkers and doers, men and

women like dr. height who took it upon themselves, often at great risk, to change this country for the better. men and women, americans whose names we know, they are leaders whose legacies we teach. they are giants to fill our history books. dr. dorothy height deserves a place in this pantheon. she, too, deserves a place in our history books. [applause] she, too, deserves a place of honor in america's memory. look at her body of work. desegregating the ywca, laying

the groundwork for integration on wednesdays and mississippi, strategizing with civil rights leaders, holding grown, the only woman in the room. queen esther to this moses generation. even as she led the national council of negro women with vision and energy, vision and class. but remember her not solely for all she did during the civil rights movement. we remember for all she did over a lifetime, behind-the-scenes, to broaden the movement's reach, to shine a light on stable families and tight-knit

communities, to make us see the drive for civil rights and women's rights, not as a separate struggle, but as part of a larger movement to secure the rights of all humanity, regardless of gender, regardless of race, regardless of ethnicity. it is an unambiguous record of righteous work, worthy of remembrance, worthy of recognition. and yet one of the ironies is that year after year, decade after decade, dr. height went about her work quietly, without fanfare, without self-promotion. she never cared about who got the credit. she did not need to see her picture in the papers. she understood that the movement gathers strength from the bottom up.

those unheralded men and women who do not always make it into the history books, but who steadily insisted on their dignity, on their manhood and womanhood. [applause] she was not interested in credit. what she cared about was the cause, the cause of justice, the cause of equality, the cause of opportunity, freedom cause. that willingness to subsume herself, that humility and that grace is why we honor dr. dorothy height. as it is written in the gospel of matthew, for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

i don't think the author of the gospel would mine the rephrasing, whoever holds herself will be exalted -- humbles herself will be exalted. one of my favorite moments with dr. height was just a few moments ago -- a few months ago. we decided to put up the emancipation proclamation in the oval office. we invited some elders to share reflections of the movement, and she came, and it was an intergenerational event. we had young children there as well as elders, and the elders asked to share stories. she talked about attending a dinner in the 1940's at the home of dr. benjamin mays, then president of morehouse college. seated at the table was a 15- year-old student, a gifted

child, as she describes him, filled with a sense of purpose, who was trying to decide whether to enter medicine or law or the ministry. many years later, after that gifted child had become a gifted preacher, i am sure he had been towed to be on his best behavior. after he led a bus boycott in montgomery and inspired a nation with his dreams, he delivered a sermon on what they called the drum major instinct. a sermon that said we all have to desire to be first. we all want to be at the front of the line. the great test of a life, dr. martin luther king jr. said, is to harness that instinct, to redirect it toward advancing the greater good, towards changing a

community and the country for the better, toward doing the lord's worke#ñ. i sometimes think dr. king must have had dorothy height in mind when he gave that speech. for dorothy height met that test. dorothy height embodied that instinct. dorothy height was a drum major for justice, a drum major for equality, a drum major for freedom, a drum major for service, and the lesson she would want us to leave with today, the lesson she lived out each and every day, is that we can all be first in service. we can all be drum majors for a righteous cause. so let us live out that lesson.

let us honor her life by changing this country for the better, as long as we are blessed to live. may god bless dr. dorothy height and the union that she made more perfect. [applause]

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>> the holy gospel of our lord jesus christ, according to matthew. when jesus saw the cross, he went up the mountain, and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. then he began to speak and taught them, saying blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. blessed are those -- or the meat, for they will inherit the earth. blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. blessed are the merciful, for they will perceive mercy. blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see god. blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of god. blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and butter of kind of evil against you falsely on my account. rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven. in the same way they persecuted the profits who were before

you, you are the salt of the earth. if the assault has lost its taste, how can it saltiness be restored? it is no longer good for anything, but it is thrown out and trampled underfoot. you are the light of the world, a city built on a hill cannot be hidden. no one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushelbasket. it gives light to all in the house. in the same way, that your light shine before others so they may see your good works and glorify your father which is in heaven. the gospel of the lord.

>> please be seated. i don't know how many times in the course of the last 98 years of dorothy height's live she might have listened to the passage we just heard read by the bishop. but i imagine she heard it quite a few times. the words called the beatitudes are so familiar that it is easy to miss how strange they must have sounded when jesus first uttered them 2000 years ago, and how strange they still are. blessed are the poor in spirit. blessed are those who mourn. blessed are the meek. these words are saying that the weakest, the most broken, the most vulnerable people are on to

something that everybody else is going to mess, and that somehow they are at the center of god's heart and got to work. then all of a sudden as jesus is reciting these blessings, he shifts from talking about people, blessed are the meek, to addressing his followers directly. blessed are you, he says, when people revile you and persecute you and under all kinds of evil against you on my account. that is the way they treated debt prophets long ago. his disciples are a very ordinary bunch. fisherman, people off the streets, a couple of irs agents on the job. they are not movers and shakers and power brokers and the famous. but jesus is saying to them that you are the ones who are going to change the world.

you or the ethics of the earth, he says. you are the light of the world be gq are the salt of the earth. i am calling on you to be edgy, provocative salt in the system, to confront the world and guide it. that is your job, to build the new world i hope to see. today we are giving thanks for the life of the woman who, over 98 years, became an unstoppable force of salt and light for our country. for days now, and again this morning, we have been celebrating this woman known as the a grand dame of the civil rights movement, an unsung heroine. one of a small handful of the civil rights most important leaders. her 80 years of involvement

spanned the lynchings of the 1930's, school desegregation in the 1950's, and the civil rights movement of the 1960's and beyond, and every phase of bed demonstrated her tireless dedication to equality and justice. as we heard today, her commitment to social justice led to hurt determined efforts to overcome gender bias in our society as well. within the civil rights movement, even. a pastor friend of mine from chicago send me a note this week filled with admiration for dorothy height. indeed he recalled her memories of being eased to the periphery among the male civil-rights leaders. whenever a photo was to be taken of the president of the united states or some other dignitaries. the civil rights leadership, my friend said, was a man's world.

nevertheless, this brave, persistent woman won her place in the highest councils of the movement, and today, the president himself has come to honor her. [applause] dorothy height was by any estimation one of the heroes of the last century of american life. today we give thanks for her saltiness, for her bright and unrelenting live, and for her steely and indomitable spirit. now this remarkable woman's earthly pilgrimage has ended, and we are now called to thank god for the gift she has been to our country, to her friends and family, to her colleagues and to countless organizations to which

she gave so much. undergirding her life and work must certainly have been the kind of faith that is being expressed in the service for family planned for today. isaiah the prophet we heard a few minutes ago issues got a call to loosen the bonds of injustice, to let the oppressed go free, to share your bread with a hungry, to satisfy the needs of the afflicted. you shall be called the repair of the breach, the profit says, the restorer of streets to live in. it is clear those words were marching orders for this brave, indomitable woman. the passages from the christian scriptures today speak of the conviction that death is not the final word in a humans opera. i am the resurrection and the life, said the lord. i am the alpha and the omega, we

heard in one of the lessons. christian faith is grounded in the conviction that there is a power at work in the cosmos and in every human life that evil and death cannot finally defeat. . .

he proclaimed his dream, and when dorothy height challenged one organization after another to open their doors for everyone. we glimpsed eternal life here and now, when hearts are soothed and bodies healed, when decent schools and health care and safe streets become the norm, children and families have a chance, when guns and violence no longer desecrate the streets. in those moments, about eternity is breaking into time, giving clemson -- giving glimpses of the heels society, even the

eternity that awaits all of us. an eternal life beyond death must be something in these moments of healing and wholeness flowing one into the other, time and again, until time does not matter any more as things are gathered fully into the life of god's love. that is the vision that seems to have shaped dorothy height's amazing life. a sense that there is what a poet called one equal music and 1 = of at the heart of reality. it is an immense claim that death is not the end, that love and healing will have the final word, and it is faith in that ultimate vision that inspires the profits and. speakers and organizers -- and truth seekers and organizers and

dorothy height herself. now dorothy is fully into god's life. because we know so little of what that must be like, we have to leave it to the poet's to give us a vision of that mysterious future ahead for all of us. i want to close with the final words of james weldon johnson's poem, a funeral sermon. and death to occur up like a baby, but beyond the evening stars, out beyond the morning star, into the glittering light of the glory, on to the great white throne above. and jesus took his own hand and wipe away her tears, and heat smoothes the furrows of her face and the angels signed a lot alt song and angels proctor in their

arms and said, take your rest. take your rest. take your rest. she is not dead. she is resting in the bosom of jesus. take your rest, sister dorothy. take your rest. you have been light for nearly a century and you have left this world a more just, more equal, more hopeful place. take your rasterest, sister dor. and made light perpetual shine upon you. -- and made light perpetual shine upon you. amen.

[applause] >> let us pray together a prayer jesus taught his disciples. our father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. the kingdom come, i will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. and does not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for the line is the kingdom, and power, and the glory, forever and ever, amen.

>> mr. president, mrs. obama, vice president, speaker pelosi, if you knew dorothy height, you knew she loved her flowers, she loved her hats, she loved her daily sweet potatoes, and she

loved a good party. and she was usually the last to leave. she loved it cheering on the washington redskins and the new york yankees. and she loved cheering on each of us, even sometimes when we did not know we needed it. in her soon-to-be published book, "living with purpose," a book that she had just finished two months ago, she wanted to have it out for her 90th birthday -- 98th birthday. that was going to be her gift to us. in the opening pages of that book, she wrote, that a reporter asked her in january what she considered her greatest accomplishment to be. and she responded by saying, "my

greatest accomplishment is that i started on a journey, and i am still on it. we will see, she said, where i end up." well, we know that she ended that journey very much the way she began her journey, and she taught us lessons in her transition, the same lessons she had been teaching us all of her life -- to keep fighting, and to never take yourself out of the game. because she did not take herself out of it. you know, at the very end, she had no less than three curtain

calls and her final months of hospitalization at howard university. and each week, each week, we gave her up. but each week, she rallied. and we kept smiling through our tears at heard determined spirit. -- at her determined spirit. it really took us a moment to realize that she was really preparing us, she was preparing us as she was preparing to take her final bout. and to exit this earthly stage. and so, as she slept peacefully, peacefully into the night, as

she made her transition into god's hands, i was blessed to be able to read to her her favorite psalm. psalm 139. and now the poet, author, and dorothy's dear friend, my angelou -- maya angelou, is going to read it for all of us. thank you. [applause]

>> lord, you have searched mete out and know me. you know my sitting down and my

rising up. you discern my thoughts from afar. you chase my attorneys -- you chase my journeys. i am acquainted with all my ways. indeed, there is not a word on my lips but you, o lord. you press upon me, the thought -- behind and before, and lay your hands upon me. such knowledge is it too wonderful for me. is it so high that i cannot attain it? where can i go, then, from your spirit? where can i flee from your presence? if i climb up to heaven, you are there. if i may the grave my bed, you

aren't there also. if i take the wings of the morning and well into the uppermost part of the sea, even there, your hand will lead me, and your right hand hold me fast. if i say, "surely the darkness will cover me and the night around me turned to night," darkness is not dark to you, and night is as bright as the day. darkness and light to you are both alike, for you yourself created might in most parts. you need me to gather in my mother's womb. i will thank you because i am marvelously made. your works are wonderful, and i know it well. my body was not hidden from you.

while i was being made it in secret and when i was woven in the depths of the earth, your eyes, they held me, and finished in the womb. all of them were written in your book. they were fashioned, day-by-day, when as yet there were none of them. how deep i find your thoughts, oh god. how great is the some of them. if i were to count them, they would be more in number than the sand. to count them all, my life span would need to be like yours. search me out, oh god, and know my heart. and leave me and the way that is

everlasting. -- and it leads me in the way that is everlasting. [applause] >> into your hands, o merciful savior, we commend your servant dorothy. it receiver into the arms of

your mercy, -- received her into the arms of your mercy, into the glorious company of the saints, amen. >> on this day, made the peace of god which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of god at this time, and jesus christ our lord, the blessing of god almighty the father, the sun, and the holy spirit be with you and remain with you forever, amen. ♪

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>> let us go forth in the name of christ, wholey leah, malia. -- halleluljah, hallelujah. >> thanks be to god, hallelujah, hallelujah. ♪

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>> tomorrow night, another memorial service held for dorothy height at shiloh baptist church in washington. that is at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2.

up next, the president and administration officials discussed the federal response to the oil spill in the gulf of mexico. senate leaders discussed their plans for an immigration bill, followed by at interview with an arizona legislature -- legislator about their new immigration law. and arizona governor charlie crist will run for the u.s. senate as an independent. >> sunday on "book tv's" in depth, pat buchanan on conservative ideology and today's political climate. he will take your call, email, and tweets, three hours, live on c-span2. >> the people who are coming to us in the housing market wanted to have a security that give them exposure to the housing market, and that is what they got.

>> the senate hearing with goldman sachs executives went nearly 11 hours. see the key moments, every moment. washington your way at the c- span video library. it every program since 1987, free online. >> today, at a white house event honoring teachers, president obama took a moment to comment about the oil spill in the gulf of mexico. here is what he had to say. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states, accompanied by secretary arne duncan and the 2010 national teacher of the year, sarah brown. [applause]

>> good afternoon, everybody. everybody please have a seat. welcome to the white house, welcome to the rose garden. this is an extraordinary occasion, a beautiful day appropriately so. i hate to intrude on it, but before we begin, i would like to speak briefly to the american people about their recent bp oil spill in the gulf of mexico. i have been receiving frequent briefings for members of my cabinet and white house staff on the additional preached this morning. while bp is ultimately responsible for funding the costs of the response and cleanup operations, my administration will continue to use every single available resource at our disposal, including potentially the department of defense to address the incident. earlier today, secretary

napolitano announced this is of national significance and the department of interior has announced it will be sending teams to the gulf to inspect all platforms and oil rigs. i have ordered the secretary of the interior and less security as well as the epa to visit the site on friday to ensure that bp and the entire u.s. government is doing everything possible to respond to this incident and determined its causes. earlier this week, the secretaries laid out the next taps for a thorough investigation into what precipitated this event. it i'm sure there are maybe a few signs teachers here who love been following this issue closely with their classis. if you guys have any suggestions, please let us know. >> as the oil slick from gulf of

mexico still approaches the coast line, the louisiana gov. bob regional has declared a state of emergency. homeland security officials janet napolitano and other officials talked about the federal response at today's white house briefing. this lasts about one hour. >> good afternoon. this is not my intent to put more people on the stage than in the audience, but we may well succeed by the time this is over. it i have a few remarks on what the president has been working on, but we have several people at the briefing to give you an update on where we are. homeland security secretary will give us an update on the overall situation. the rear admiral will give us some details on the response on

the ground and in the water to the oil spill. deputy secretary of the interior david hare is and will give us an update on the joint investigation and on the pressure on investigation to clean up the spill. as secretary salazar is at the bp command center, currently in houston. let me start with a few words of the president's involvement. and he has been actively following the oil spill, receiving multiple updates on the incident. the president started his daily intelligence briefing in the oval office this morning with an update, and last night on board air force one, on the way back to washington, the president was

briefed on the new information regarding the additional breach. the president urged that an abundance of caution and new information that we must position resources to continue to aggressively confront this incident. following that, the rear admiral announce while bp is altogether responsible, the administration will continue to be aggressive in our response and use all available resources possibly including those of the department of defense to see if there are technologies that might be used as surpass the capabilities of the commercial and private sector. in accordance with the 1990 oil pollution act passed after exxon valdez, bp as a responsible party is required to fund the cost of the response and cleanup operations, and they're doing so. the president has also asked that homeland security secretary napolitano, interior secretary salazar and epa administrator jackson go to the gulf coast to

ensure that bp and the entire government is doing everything possible to respond to this incident. in addition, the president has directed responding agencies to devote every resource to not only respond to this incident but determine its costs. earlier this week, secretary napolitano and secretary sellers are laid out the steps for that investigation. -- and secretary salazar laid out the steps for that investigation. we have a couple of slides that we will put up. this is the satellite picture as of 6:00 a.m. this morning. we see where the bp deep water horizon was and the area at that we are monitoring. with that, let me turn this over to secretary napolitano. >> thank you. i would like to update you with the latest information about the bp oil spill, the steps bp is

taking to minimize the environmental and other risks of this incident. last night, bp alerted us to additional oil leaking from their deep under water well. they are working with our support to estimate the size of this breach. as has been mentioned, the president has urged that an abundance of caution and mindful of new and evolving information that we must position resources to continue to confront this bill. that said, we have been anticipating and planning, and today i will be designating that this is a spill of national significance what that means is we can now draw down assets from across the country, other coastal areas, by way of example, that we will have a centralized communications

because this bill is now crossing different regions, in addition to the command center that we have operational and louisiana, opening a second term and center and mobile, alabama for the bp spill. as was mentioned as well, as part of our oversight of the response, i will be going to the gulf coast tomorrow, along with secretary salazar and epa administrator jackson to inspect ongoing operations. we remain focused on continued oversight and we will be taking a very close look at efforts under way, particularly to minimize the in our middle risks in the area affected by leaking oil. we will be meeting with other federal state and local officials in the area, helping in the response effort, and we will be meeting again with bp officials to discuss cleanout

planning and operations. as the president has made clear, bp is the responsible party and is required to fund the cost of the response and cleanup operations. our visit to louisiana and the affected area tomorrow will also help inform our investigation into the causes of this explosion, which left 11 workers missing, three critically injured, in addition to the ongoing oil spill. meanwhile, according to a group of several partners, including the departments of homeland security, defense, interior, and the epa continues to work and oversee bp deployment of a combination of tactics above water, but low water, dozens of miles off shore, as well as closer to coastal areas. as you know, yesterday, bp began a control burn designed to

remove large quantities of oil from the open water, in an effort to protect shoreline and marine and other wildlife. the oil was consumed in about 28 minutes. bp continues to use chemical dispersants, which, along with national dispersion of oil, will address a large portion of the slick. nearly 100,000 gallons have been used to date of dispersant. among other active response activities, on water skimming, subsurface will head operations, continued efforts to see if they can get that shut off valve closed, and significant booming efforts to protect vital shoreline. right now, at least 174,000 feet of boom have been deployed, and others will be deployed at six

staging areas, and they are ready to be deployed right now. in addition, approximately 1100 total personnel are currently working this bill, and 685,000 gallons of wherley water have been collected so far -- of oily water have been collected so far using multiple aircraft and vessels. we will continue to push it bp to engage in the strongest response possible. we will continue to oversee their efforts, add to those efforts where we deem necessary, and to ensure again that under the law, that the taxpayers of the united states are ultimately reimbursed for those efforts. that is not the key focus, i must say, right now. our key focus is making sure that people know what is going

on, they understand what relief efforts are under way, what the extent of the response is, what we know, what we don't know about this incident, and how we intend to move forward. with that, let me introduce to rear admiral, o'hare. >> mahnke, secretary. i was asked to give you an update on the activities today, but i think the secretary has covered that well. the me put into perspective some of the interactions that have occurred. the coast guard is the federal on scene coordinator. we have the leadership role in the coastal zone for this bill in particular. we have been very aggressive and corrective in our response, but we have not been alone. we have worked with federal partners. but there are 16 federal agencies to form the national response team. we have also worked very closely with state and local authorities, and with non- governmental organizations as

we move forward with the response. there are roles volunteers can take and ngo's are critical in helping us channel that drive and energy. finally, the responsible party, british petroleum. bp has taken a number of steps, as has been mentioned, the controlled burns, the skimming, the booming activities to secure at the sub fourth surfaced. -- the sub floor surface. we are working closely with them, but as responsible parties, the role of the coast guard and the unified command partners to ensure that they move forward with activities that are safe, appropriate, and that will do the job to secure and remove this oil. our focus today is looking carefully at the preventive booming that is occurring, using

the best science available, working and conjunction with the scientific support experts as well as the epa to ensure that the responsible party is taking advantage of all the planning that has been done to protect fragile areas. because at this point, at the trajectory of the leading edge of the oil is reaching landfall in the mississippi delta region sometime later tomorrow. we are working carefully at sea to make sure we continue the skimming operations. the controlled burn yesterday was very successful. the sea and wind conditions today do not allow us to have a controlled burn today. as soon as there is inappropriate window, we will continue to controlled burn activity, because it was very effective yesterday. with that, i will take a break and answer questions. >> thank you, i'm david hayes,

deputy secretary of the department of the interior. i'm here today for secretary ken salazar who was at the bp command center in houston, reviewing operations. he's getting an update on the company's progress closing the week from their well and to ensure that they clean up this bill as quickly as possible. as has been mentioned, bp as the responsible party is still at work dealing with this issue, and in particular is still trying to activate the blowout preventer stack to shut the well. they have yet to be successful. we are moving with them on relief efforts. we have approved the drilling of a second relief well that could begin drilling within a matter of days, and we are reviewing application for a second relief well should that be needed. as the president has directed, we're using every resource available to work on this

response effort. we're also taking immediate steps to get to the bottom of how this happened, to ensure that industry is following safety and drilling regulations that are in place. yesterday of course, as the joint investigation was announced, by secretary napolitano and secretary salazar, that is under way. that joint investigation will have every tool that it needs, including subpoena power, to get to the bottom of what went wrong. it also, secretary salazar cars ordered immediate inspections of all of our deep water oil rigs and platforms and the gulf of mexico. inspectors will verify companies are following the law and all regulations as they conduct their operations. of that inspection operation is underway as we speak. finally come secretary salazar is convening a meeting of industry leaders and experts later today to talk about additional immediate steps to

reduce the potential of a catastrophic blowout like the one that occurred on the deep water horizon. we also want to ensure that they are providing every resource and idea available to help. obviously, although this type of incident is rare, it is extraordinarily serious and we expect industry to be fully complying with the law and taking aggressive measures to ensure this type of incident does not happen again. i believe the administrator? >> i am the administrator of epa. of the past day, epa has mobilized to respond to this crisis working closely with apartment, security and the white house to monitor the situation and the dress the enormous impact. a first-come eps providing full support for the net is states coastguard -- first, the epa is providing full support for the united states coast guard on the national response team to provide support. we have moved our resources to

the command center in louisiana and will be moving additional resources there today and tomorrow, as well as to alabama and mississippi. we have set up an air monitoring program which has begun already. we will soon be getting information on the results of the first samples on our website and will continue to beef up that program as we have now learned we're dealing with additional breeches, which probably means additional controlled burns in the future. epa has air monitoring aircraft that are gathering information on the impact of the controlled burn on air quality, both in the area of the burned and further away. we are collecting air data from six portable monitoring stations in the area, we will analyze the data, and make it public in the coming days, certainly as soon as possible, and along with the air monitoring plan that will be revised as would all along and

as the situation changes. as has been discussed already, we expect the oil to hit the shoreline in the near term, and in that event the coast guard will remain in the lead in the coastal zone. as that happens, we expect epa's role will expand. we are preparing for that scenario by increasing our support to the coast guard and other federal and state partners and wrapping up the monitoring of air quality, surface water impact, and that will include sampling the water. finally, as the oil hits the shoreline, we will provide support to assess the impact on the coastal shoreline and play a key role in implementing the clean out -- the cleanup. i know that is our job to insure people that will be working with the states to evaluate the vital resources and monitor air, water, and land.

>> the regular on-site briefing that has been taking place in the gulf will take place in addition to this. >> can someone explain under what circumstances they will comment? does bp have to request that, and if dod becomes involved, what technology will they provide that bp cannot? >> it is not really a bp request. we have done is establish the department of defense to see, in light of the depth of the water, the complexity of this bill, if they have either any expertise or actual assets, in addition to the other things that are being employed, that would be usable either, a, to flood the lake, stop the leak, speed up the repair of the leak, or insist --

assist that a minimal amount of oil reaches the shoreline. that is being done at the operational level today, working with the coast guard, the department of the interior, epa, noaa, the other federal agencies that have been involved since the day of this spill. and if and when they have something to add, we will certainly make that known. >> you don't know whether they have assets that would be useful at this point? >> not right now. >> that was something the president authorized last night at an internal briefing. >> the frame of reference that most people have on this is the exxon valdez, 11 million gallons. i have seen estimates this could be well over 4 million gallons. could this turn into a catastrophe approaching that level?

>> i think by designating the spill of national significance, we are already illustrating that this is one that avery available asset will be usable should it be necessary. valdez was a notable quantity of oil because it was a ship. over the course of time, we have seen the amount of oil that has come out. noaa has provided estimates based on the length of time. those estimates will get better and better over time. we are deploying as if this will be a major incident. what i use that kind of language or threat this kind of numbers, i think that itself tells you. >> officials have complained it has been at nine days and they're frustrated with the pace of the federal response. >> bp is the responding party.

we are overseeing them, working closely with all of the state and local partners. again, the key thing is the inability of bp, forever -- through whatever methodology they are using, to get this closed. >> the general response -- >> let us understand, as for the example earlier with the exxon valdez, the law was passed that to not allow an oil company to do what had been done and hand the bill to you and me. it is now the responsibility of the oil company, in this case bp, british petroleum. but understand over the course of the past several days, the situation has changed several times. the well was initially recapped. then it was not capped, we found

as of yesterday additional breaches. our response has been commensurate with that each time. >> the federal response to respond to the worst-case scenario? >> assure you we are being very aggressive and we are prepared for the worst case. that is why we have mobilized in the numbers that we have and work out a plan that is as large and broad sweeping as the one that is in place, looking at the four states that will be likely impacted. we have a very important station to make between this case and exxon valdez. the oil pollution act of 1990, precipitated by the tragedy in that act -- in alaska, has put the response plan in levels of certification and qualification for those who respond to or else bills, -- two oil spills, and we have professionals on call. the companies that deal and

cargoes that could be public does have to have plans in place, commitments with recovery operators. that is what has happened. we have those professionals at the scene, hired through the plan that bp was required to maintain. they are at much higher levels of preparedness. we have great advances in technology. the controlled burn, for instance, came much earlier in this bill than ever and tabled in the exxon case, and so we are putting tools to target much earlier to assure this is not an exxon valdez type of case. about what are the people who live in the affected region -- >> what are the people who live in the affected region, what do they need to know? >> first of all, that the parish presidents and others have been working with us and we have been working with them very closely. we understand the concern, the

concern about fisheries areas, the concern about commercial activities, the sensitive environmental areas. they need to know there has already been a significant amount of booming to protect those areas from the oil sheen that may not have evaporated yet. they need to know those efforts are ongoing and continuing. they also need to know that we will be open and transparent with them. they need to know that there is already a bp system set up for them to file claims for their own individual damages. we will oversee that as well. and they need to know that we will be staying on top of this as long as the incident is ongoing. >> a quick follow-up, apparently bp was estimating 1,000 barrels per