into plical organizations and media organizations. but the international community has not been able to listen to the voice of those who want to create a pluralistic, national political organizations and parties. the only way you can create a nation that believes in systems is to create the core of the system which is political organizations that are beyond regions, beyond linguistic divide, and alliant -- beyond religious divides. afghanistan has consisted of so many regions and so many sections and tribes. the only uniting ingredient for the future of that country in order to really make it that nation tat sustains itself politically is to create and allow political parties to grow and balance the imbalance that exists now.

we need to change the system to a parliamentary system. let's assume today that we changed that system to a parliamentary system in afghanistan. who would be winning the most of the seats in that parliament? the islamic groups, the extremist groups, the political mafia and the drug mafia and the cartels that are in power in the country. what would happen again? the majority of the people would not have a voice in that parliament, and the politil turmoil in years to come. >> it has been said that political forecasting has made astrology look respectable, but i would be curious to what you see the political forecasting in elections occurring in september. where you see things going? >> if we leave things the way they are today, i think we will

have a worse parliament and had. -- then we have had. we will have more extremist elements in the parliament. we will have the influence of some of the banks that are fronts for money in that region. we will have more people aligned with dg lords and fringes, not the mainstream society. it will be a parliament that is controlled by probably one or two people, and that does not bode well for that picture of a stable afghanistan or and afghanistan that can be a good ally to the west. some of the countries in that region are waiting to fill these voids and vacuums. this would be the opportune time for them to fill up those seats, and they are doing it. they are spending money. they have had along time to

establish intelligence networks and they are alive and well and very tive. >> president karzai has made a point that he is at least open to the notion of reiterating the were modern elements of the taliban into the new system. can that wor or can that strategy be viable while at the same time we are experiencing the systems building that you have been describing, and at the same time also pursuing the more extreme elements on the battlefield as other options? >> it would be very 92 say that we repeat it would be very naive to say we can eliminate those two can identify with the taliban. in many ways is a troubled country. most pashtun areas that are

insecure or have lacking securit are not taliban. because of the geography where they go to their sanctuaries, to pakistan and iran, their training camps, naturally that area has become t most sensitive area. we have taliban who belong to the northern parts of the country, but nobody talks about that. the international communty has to realize one thing. it is the act but dan -- is the afghan government's job to create room for all political persuasions. one mistake was made, which was probably by default, that the northern lowlands avail itself to the u.s. forces, and when the u.s. came to afghanistan, they saw everything through the northern alliance lens.

that created the recipe for disaster is we are experiencing now. we sell everything for their lens, through their interpretation and their support system that existed. that triggered a political imbalance in the country, and that was one factor for many afghans defecting or at least going to the sidelines and becominindifferent about the process. otherwise, to be -- and recognize that in time and given them a sense of ownership in the process and the new government, i don't thinke would see what we have seen today. i think we have to create room very carefully and very cleverly and maneuver a process where those who are identifying with the taliban and who are not taliban can come back with greater legitimacy in the government' where the ranks of the taliban will shrink back to where they were in 2001.

>> what would be the litmus test foreconciliation, and how would that be overseen over time? what could you see some of the principles being? >> this would be processed. first of all, there has to be a process of confidence-building between those who want to talk with the afghan government and those of us who were credible afghan politicians who can become involved in the process. we have to take the lead and create a confidence-building process. that process will require certain bold moves by both sides, i taliban and by the afghan government and also by our international allies. it is hard to list all of those things, but there is an array of things that one can do from our side.

you have to realize that they cannot continue fighting for ever, nor will they talk to a week afghan goverent. we have to talk to them from a position of strength and from the moral high ground. we have to rgain that moral high ground first. >> let's turn to one of the other big questions i think people are grappling with, and that is looking at regional solutions. you have some the countries in the neighborhood. i would be curious whether or not it can even be done without regional approaches. i am thinking specifically of india, and obviously that iran question. i would be curious what your thoughts are on that. >> it is probably one of the most essential elements of bringing stability to afghanistan and stability to the region. . .

thisi is both dangerous for pakistan and an enticement for pakistan to recognize and make

up and take advantage of the regional economic growth. i think we have to create an opportunity where there is a level playing field. pakistan has to prove that it is a country, it is a nation, illegitimate legitimately. we have the right to be there. we do not have to apologize to pakistan or india or iran to choose our allies. the afghan government should not be apologetic to the rest of the world for being allies of the u.s. they are good allies and it is necessary and gd for both countries. has pakistan asked us who they should be allies with? has p[unintelligible] why should we apologize to the rest of the world for being allies with the west? we have experienced alliances

with the soviet union, we have been neighbors with pakistan and iran and we had that experience. the united states is not going to back afghanistan and take it away. -- bag afghanistan and taken away. -- take it away. it is logical for our government to make a decision and explain it to the people of the world, we do not need to apologize for being somebo make. they should speak courageously in front of the world that this is our right. and then that right after recognition of that right, a level playing field, pakistan, iran should recognize we exist

and we will build a relationship based on cooperation and mutual respect. use the other one. we have alternatives. >> [inaudible] >my question goes along the line [inaudible] the work we have reported, the gao has reported [inaudible] in spite of the donor nations. give the variety of things the strategy is seeking to achieve,

how to prioritize what needs to be done and how to you address the shortfall going forward? there is an economic global crisis that impacts the donor nations contributions. what should be done going forward? >> when the afghan national strategy was being prepared and it came to me, to the parliament and when i looked at it, there were so many priorities. we'll have to many priorities, there is no priority, in -- when you have too many priorities, there is no priority. it was a nicc wish list, a dream list and some were achievable. some are not actical. when you draft a plan of that sort, you have to base it on reality and capabilities you have and the achievements and capacities you have built. otherwise, we all want to build 15 highways in five years and we have -- what factories and our

agriculture production. is it practical? it was not a practical wis. we have to revisit the needs. -- it was not a practical list. and the realistic capabilities andrecalculate those things and create a new calculation based on new calculations. i will give you an example. 85% of people's livelihood depends on agriculture in that country. yet in that seven years from 2002 to 2009, only $247 million was allocated to agriculture, which was an obvious disastrous

performance. we should have paid more attention to agriculture from the beginning. that would have given us the impetus and also the necessary decision making to pay attention to irrigation, to roads, to other things and go to exports. that would have prepared an economic -- propelled and economic growth but we did not pay attention. we raise the subject during the introduction and we are revisiting the whole thing and paying attention to agriculture. the $18 billion shortfall is inaccurate. it is a number that they are projecting. nothing is realistic in that number. i think if you look at the

a.n.d.s, you might have to come up with more realistic numbers. none -- we have not paid attention to the potentials. in terms of agriculture, energy, in terms of mining, tourism is a long shot because of security. that is also potential. >> please identify yourself. >> i have two questions for you. >> make sure they are easy. >> sure. everyone i speak with [inaudible] everyone feels they are better managers than the government. it is a failed government and it

has to be rebuilt. how would your bill that? on the ethnic divide, you have the national security structure. when you have two pashtun policeman [indible] something is wrong. where is the money going to come from when we leave? it is not sustainable. >> true. this kes us back to their original point it was making. -- i was making. the best security and nation n have is through the suspicion of its citizens. you cannot secure through military and police alone. the united states is a major example. community involvement and participation, empowering people, giving them the

ingredients with which they can feelgood about the process. they are part of that process and in the process, they feel a sense of ownership. we have not done that in afghanistan. the afghan government feels that the afghan people should be privileged they are governing or rolling them. even in the private sector, if you go to restaurants, the waiter comes to you, you should be happy he comes and talks to you. in the u.s., it is the opposite. he or she comes to you and they want to serve you. culture, we need to create this culture in that country in terms of civic rsponsibility. 30 years of war has ruined the nation in many ways. no one has the courage to talk about that. no one has the courage to take the leadership and reinvigorate

the sense of responsibility the nation should have. people of a nation should have. not only in daily life but also in terms of security. in order to create a good army, where do you regret that army from? from the people. if people do not have a culture, how do you turn regional individuals -- to think about the religious devices into a3 you have to instill a national culture and i can only happen if you have a leadership -- that can only happen if you have a leadership that inspires people towards that end and we have not had that yet. everything in afghanistan from then until now has been created based on allegations. we have to give this group that many seats. you cannot create a government that way. everything should be based on professionalism, performance,

dedication, and credibility. that we have been lacking in that, in my opinion. the same goes with the national army and national police. 500,000, the total number of national army and natnal police is projected. afghanistan not only now but with our resources, it will be difficult to sustain that sort of military and security force. civic revival and responsibility, the sense of duty and the government should initiate those things. people cannot do those things. afghans are the poorest people on earth. yet, we are running the risk of turningth country, the culture that is coming to have its grips onhat country is a culture of entitlement, a culture of handouts, a culture of drugs and war. we have to change that.

>> i agree with you that one of the main points is parliamentary or reelection. one of the key points. you wil need more nato forces or military forces in ablorder o secure the elections? >> definitely. the short answer is yes, definitely. also, if nato does not participate in carrying its own burden in this alliance, nato is

running the risk of putting all the burden on the united states and the uted states will suffer from fatigue, if nothing else. public opinion in this country, the fatigue factor on the military and also the meeting of alliance will become a rhetorical thing. what is an alliance? nationally, nato members from britain all the way to the new members from eastern europe have some participation in the afghan operation. this participation in many ways, the u.s. is carrying 99% of the burden almost. we have soldiers from some countries, two soldiers. i am not sing they should brg troops either. the distribution of responsibility in nato is not

there and it does not send a good signal. even to those who want to exploit in the region, they see it as a disarray. at least, a lack of coordination between nato members. parliamentary elections or not, the participation of nato in afghanistan has to be balanced. and parliamentary election can be a good test. those european countries to talk about democracy, those european countries to talk about non- military solutions for the problem of afghanistan, that is the time for them to secure our good election so we can go to the non-military solutions in the future. >> i'm glad you brought that up. that is a significant set of issues. if you read -- the temp check is

not always good vis-a-vis the local opinions in europe. it is more of the countries that e enthusiastic. how're you getting that message across? howre other afghan leaders getting that acrossto some of the leaders, not only in nato but the european union at large? i would like to build on one of the other questions. the question i have, can afghanistan transformed to where you would like to see it be with karzai at the helm? >> i think -- i would be very straightforward with this answer. we have to create an opportunity for afghanistan, for the people that personalities do not

matter. democratic systems should not depend on one or two or three individuals. they should come and have their chance and play their role and if they succeed within the confines of the role of law and what ever the constitution's this country -- those countries have, they can do their thing and move on. we cannot allow afghanistan to become a new dynasty of brothers and sisters an cousins and warlords and druglords. the u.s. and europe countries have this opportunity in the islamic world and impoverished countries. afghanistan is the manageable project. a large majority of that population can say ok, this new world experiences working.

the rule of law, people's participation in governance, civic responsibility, systems work, not individuals. karzai or no, karzai, we should create a system where others can comment produce -- the last question i asked in india is is there an alternative for mr. karzai? it is insulting question to ask the nation of 30 million people. who was mr. karzai nine years ago? anything, these eight or nine years have produced opportunities that others have grown into credible political positions that can create systems that can sustain and last beyond personalities. >> on the need to question. with other countries have made a commitment. >> there are two or three things

that were going on three years ago. people should not misinterpret that. the media is talking about u.s. withdrawal in 2011. it is -- we have to be careful how we phrase that. it is not a u.s. withdrawal. it is the beginning of probably a long process and yet australia, canada, and holland have had a schedule of withdrawal long before that. in 2005 or 2006, they announced the schedule. one of them was leaving the end of this year and one is living next year and two of them are leaving next year -- one is leaving next year and two of them arliving next year. there is no relation between that and what mr. obama announced a few months ago. >> any other questions here?

please. >> [inaudible] i am curious about after the copper mine scandal of sorts, what is being put in place to ensure that the bidding rights will be transparent? >> this is a very important test for afghanistan and for the international community and those countries who, in the name of investment, and exploite the opportunity and lewd and pollute. if you go to africa, this has happened. transparent process requires good laws. and good operators athe helm. the ministryf mines in afghanistan, about four or five years ago, would have started a process of procurement for this

copper mine. that process has been questioned. there are many questions about that process. the mineral rights -- other than copper, there are other minerals in that mine. there are subcontracts. in order to produce energy, there are contracts for coal and that is in question, in my opinion. the amount of coal that is being extracted to produce energy for them in -- that mine is twice as much as is needed for the production of energy. the rest of that energy sold in the market. that in itself is something that has to be questioned and revisited. our donor nations would -- were participating in bankrolling security and development ao

have the burden to come with us and join us in creating a process with which we have a transparent procurement system in place. we're not only companies bid but also we have had an experience three or four months ago. the company from the region had been on oil -- bid on oil explorations. they locked the project and won the bid and did not perform for six months. it was discovered they had no ability to perform. it is possible that some countries with lots of cash reserves can come and block mines without exploring it. -- lock mines without exploring it. we have to prevent that. >> how many years are we looking at to be able to benefit? >> it depends on the type of mines.

i have looked into this a little more in-depth. for yourself bonds and computers andatteries and everything. you should buy lithium stocks. depending on the type ofines, some lines are easily extracted -- mines are easily extracted and process. some take time because of the infrastructure it requires. one of the requirements would be roads to some of those regions that the mining can occur. the other one would be energy and we have been sitting on our hands in terms of production of energy for eight years. we have -- i was talking to some people. we have electricity, water, we have wind, the son, coal, oil, gas, -- t sun, coal, oil,

gas, and uranium. i do not think that should be acceptable. we should have produced electricity by now. we have -- because of pakistan and iran we do not want to touch it. this is something we should talk about. electricity that is needed in the country. people are reporting that quality oil from ubekistan that are poisonous. people have lost their lives because of thehemicals used. it will depend on the type of minds. anywhere from three years to five years is the window. >> you touched on this a minute ago. general petraeus was asked a number of tough questions on

afghanistan, particularly in hearings this week. specifically, what if and when the u.s. leaves? let's look in brass tacks. if the u.s. were to leave, what does that mean for the future of afghanistan? >> if we hear an announcement tomorrow that the u.s.'s leading -- is leaving in 2011, the type of announcement can create a rapid erosion of confidence. psychological effects usually set the tone for further advance. we have seen these things in other parts of the world. premature announcements, politickingwith war, wars have to fought or we should not choose to go to war.

in my opinion. pakistan's war is not over. if it is over, why are we there? if we have not finished the work, should we finish it or not? this is an obvious thing. if the war is not finished and if the u.s. leaves tomorrow, in three hours, the afghan government will collapse. very obvious. secondly, can the world afford another boy in afghanistan, especially now that things have chaed? the world is not the sme as the world of 2001 or 2000. this world is much different. the extremists are more bold. there boulder. look at the suicide attempt, the suicide bombers. -- they are bolder. compare the economic

competition. can the world and the u.s. afford to leave afghanistan? the american people, while there are economic problems, i totally understand it. the taxpayers' generosity is not just to help the country like afghanistan. your lifestyle is at stake if the world becomes more and save. europeans and americans will not enjoy their life style. look at how you travel today. compared to 15 years ago. how much time do you spend at the airports? how many pairs of shoes are tested so it will not -- even now, you have to take them off. you can use your imagination and extend this and project it. if the world becomes further

destabilize. do you think this kind of lifestyle will be sustainable? i doot think so. >> do we have anymore questions? up front first. >> icould you comment on two items. education and health. what international groups are involved in helping? what is the status of education of girls? >> as the father of four daughters, i like that question. >> education, i am sure that you have some sort of time with india. you know when india made the decision in 1947 to spend time and efforts and invest in education, 30 years later, they started reaping the benefits. it is education that is

propelling the indian economic expansion today. there is no doubt that education will play a very important role in the life of the people in afghanistan and the region. not enough attention has been pa to education. men or women. education should be gender blind. if you do not have been educated mother, she will never be able to raise an educated son or daughter. edution for women is more important than men. we have to start somewhere. in a country left at that -- like afghanistan, we have to pay attention to man's education so they can except education for women as well. the health-care industry -- the mortality rate for women, pregnant women, women giving birth is the highest in the world. every three hours, there is a mother dying in childbirth.

that should not be acceptable in the 21st century. it is almost criminal to allow that to happen for a mother. >> what can the international community do to sobor you? >> one of the things that can help oversight in afghanistan is, the donor countries should hold themselves and the afghan government responsible. the oversight should began with self-policing of the donor countries and holding the afghan government responsible. we have a court in the country waiting to bring people to justice and one telephone call

from this fellow or that fellow can derail the process. the parliament should play a very important role in the oversight process. before coming to the united states, i was working on a draft to change the rules and procedures, to create an oversight committee in parament. we do not have that. india has it, the indian parliament. i cannot remember the name. it is accounts and oversight committee. their job is to oversee all accounts and all performances by government or non-government organizations. the parliament should play a role. the international organizations and there are some international ngos that need to be made examples.

the government should realize it is not just them but the international community is serious about fixing its own problems also. >> a question over here. >> here in the u.s., overlooking at to afghanistan through a national lands in terms of the lack of leadership from the national government? should we look at success stories that a occurring on a local and provincial level and trying to emphasize we're leadership is being provided by afghans at those levels, and how can we do that? >> we sometimes talk about negative thing so ch that we forget there're achievements. the country has achievements. not everyone is correct in that country. not everyone is a crook. just the fact that people are looking for justice and government and rule of law, it speaks volumes that people want

to fix these proble. these problems are in the larger perspective, they are an anomaly for our nation. i think we have judges, we have district governors, we have a few governors, maybe a few ministers, a few parliamentarians, a few private sector and entrepreneurs and businessmen who are honest peoole. in a country where the rule of law is not -- does not have the right grip, those who do not obey the law can pollute everything quicker than those who obey the law. the punishment and reward system should be created in such a way that while we bring people to justice, we should reward those who are obeying the law and promoting harmony and the role of law and the country. >> one last question. this is one that perhaps may be

difficult to answer. i would be crious whether or not you see the commitment in your neighbor, in pakistan, to address and not only vis-a-vis the fata region. what sorts of relationships pakistan and afghanistan have looked to try to build in a bilateral way to address from u.s. interest perspectives, al qaeda. >> the u.s. is a good ally. the united states government should be able to talk to the pakistani government and talk them out of this perception of paranoia. they live in paranoi they ink everyone is out to get them. >> [inaudible] >> afghanistan is not out to get

pakistan. it is not the other way around. in practice. definitely, the indian-pakistan relation is something that has to be discussed. pakistan's perfmance should not be based on its relation with india. india's relationship with pakistan, they should create a separate track. they could start cooperating in the fata region. that cooperation could become a foundation for regional cooperation. before we do that, pakistan has to pass through some litmus tests. the u.s. is spending billions of dollars in pakistan. pakistan has received = if not more money in the past 10 years from -- equal or not more money

in the past 10 years. pakistan should become more sincere about its performance. pakistan should become one pakistan. not the pakistan of the military and non-military. one pakistan under the rule of law, under a civilian rule of law and democratic values. the same thing in afghanistan. we could achieve much more that way in a transparent fashion. >> before we say thank you, this was a tour de force. your pension is contagious. you've covered so much territory. -- your passion is contagious. let me leave you with the token of our appreciation. a coin with a quote, "see truth and pursue it steadily." i hope you puseek truth and

pursue it steadily. [applause] >> i don't want to change the mood. i want to thank everyone and thank the people of the united states for their generosity and sacrifices. the job is not done. it does not mean that we have not achieved a lot. i think we will achieve more if we persevere and continue and not give up. thank you very much. [applause]

>> secretary of tate and defense urged the to approve that treaty. you can see their testimony this morning here on c-span. this weekend ob c-span 2's book tv, growing up between arabs and israelis charles bowden chronicles one of the most violent and corrupt places earth. and vietnam veteran on the novel that took him 30 years to public. find the entire weekend schedule at booktv according to.

--.org. and now president obama visiting columbus, ohio, to mark what the administration is calling this 10,000th road project funded by the economic stimulus plan. this is 15 minutes. >> good afternoon, everybody. well, it is great to be back in ohio. he said i've been in ohio so much he might charge me for it. it is wonderful to be back in ohio and it is wonderful to be back in the beautiful city of columbus. i just want to say thank you

right off the top to mayor coleman for his outstanding leadership of this city. [applause] you've got one of the best mayors in the country. you also got one of the best governors in the country in ted strickland. and i want to acknowledge you already have one of the best senators in sheriff brown and you are going to have another one in lee fisher. so we appreciate the great work that they're doing. i'm going to mention some of the congressional delegations here because they've got a lot to do with what's going on at this site. my last visit here was a little over a year ago. when i came to take part in a gracious ceremony for 114 -- gracious ceremony for the 11th

class of the columbus police recruit. these are difficult times for ohio and difficult times for the country. and when i was here last, america was losing 700,000 jobs per month. our economy was shrinking. plants and business right here in ohio were closing. and we knew if we failed to act, then things were only beginning to get much worse. and that's why with the support of sheriff brown, but also members of the house of representatives i mary jo kilroy, and charlie wilson who are all here. wave, guys. [applause] that's why these folks work so hard to pass the recovery act. which cut taxes for middle class families. that way, boosting demand, cutting taxes for small businesses so that they could

make payroll and keep their doors open, extending unemployment insurance and cobra to help folks make it through some really tough times to, rebuild our infrastructure and making investments that would spurrier additional investments from the private sector and strengthen our country in the long run. and in ohio, nearly 2,400 small businesses have gotten loans to keep their workers on payroll. 4.5 million families have gotten tax cuts to help pay their bills and put food on the table. some 450 transportation projects are under way or have been completed and more than 100,000 ohioans are at work today as a result of these steps anded today, i return to columbus to mark a milestone on the road recovery. the 10,000th project launch

under the recovery act. that's worth a big round of applause. [applause] and i want to thank secretary ray la hood who has been instrument until so many of the projects that has taken place. he has done an outstanding job as have our other agencies in administering these perhaps. now these projects haven't just improved communities. they've put thousand of construction crews just like this one to work. they've spurred countless small businesses to hire. because these are some big guys. they've got to eat. which means you've got to get some food brought in. the local restaurants here benefit from the crews here at work. it means that instead of worrying about where their next pay chicks going to come from, americans across the country are helping to build our future and their own futures. now as my friend joe bind who

has done a great job overseeing the recovery act would say, this is a big deal. and i think it's fitting that we reach this milestone here in the this community because what you're doing here is a perfect example of coordination and renewal that the recovery act is driving all across the country. a lot of people came together to make this day possible. business and government. grassroots organizations. ordinary citizen who is are committed to the city's futures. and what you're starting here is more than just a project to repair a road. it's a partnership to transform a community. mayor coleman was describing for me how all these pieces fit together on the way over here. so the city is using recovery dollars to rebuild the infrastructure. and because of that in part, the

hospital is expanding its operations to take even better care of more people, more children here in columbus and throughout ohio which means they're hiring more people. so together, you're creating more than 2,400 new jobs and sending a powerful message that this neighborhood will soon be a place where more families can thrive, more businesses can prosper, chick development that's being sparked today is going to continue into the future and my understanding is because the hospital is now growing, that means they're putting money back into the neighborhood for housing and other facilities so that the entire community starts rebuilding. ultimately, that's the purpose of the recovery act. not just to jumpstart the economy and get us hole we're in right now, but to make the investments that will pay dividends to our communities for generations to come.

since i was here last year, we begun to see progress all across the country. businesses are beginning to hire again. our economy, which was shrinking by 6% when i was sworn in is now growing at a good clip and we've added jobs for six out of the past seven months in this country. we were losing 700,000 jobs a month. for the last six out of the seven months, we've increased jobs here in the united states of america in part because the policies that these members of congress were willing to step up and implement. now, i'm knowing under no illusion we're not where with we want to be. a i know a lot of families have yet to feel the effects of recovery in their own lives. there's there are too many people who can't find work. many more can't make ends meet. and for these folks, the only jobs we create that matter are the ones that provide for their

families. so while the recovery may start with project like this, it can't end here. the truth is if we want to keep on adding jobs, if we want to keep on raising income tax, if we want to keep going -- incomes, if we want to keep insure that americans can compete with any nation in the world with, we're going having get serious about our long-term vision for this country and we're going to have to get serious about our infrastructure and i want to say a few words about infrastructure generally. along with investments and health care and education, clean energy, and a 21st century financial system that protects consumers and our economy, rebuilding our structures is one of the keys to our future prosperity. if we're going to rebuild america's economy, then we've got to rebuild america period. from the ports and the airwaves to ship our goods to the roads and the transit system that move

or workers and connect cities and businesses. now, some of this work involves fixing infrastructure that's already in place. patching up roads, repairing bridges, replacing old suer lines and the recover has made it important. we've got a huge backlog of work that puts hundreds of thousand of people to work all across the country, just repairing roads that we already have and fixing sewer lines that are badly in need of repair. but here's the thing, columns. repairing our existing infrastructure is not enough. we can't build an economy that sustains our kids and our grand kids just by relying on the infrastructure that we inherited from our parents and our grandparents. we can't let other countries get the jump on us when it comes to broadband access. there's no reason why europe or

china should have the fastest trains instead of the united states. there's no reason that germany or in other countries in europe should have the newest factories that manufacture clean energy products instead of us right here in the united states. that's why the recovery act has been making unprecedented investments in clean energy, spurring america's businesses to build some of the world's largest wind and solar projects right here in the united states of america. i said this once at a state of the union address. america does not settle for second place. and we're going to make the investments to make sure we are first in the future. not just in the past. that's got to be our prior to. that's why we're bringing high speed internet to tens of thousand of homes and businesses and hospitals and schools. it's why ray la hood's helping to lead a surge in new investment in high speed rail. that's why we're investing in

the electronic medical records. you know, a year ago, american businesses had just 2% of the market in the production of electric car batteries that power the vehicles of the future. all these hybrid cars that have electric batteries, those batteries were made someplace else. we only had 2% of them. we made investments in the recovery act and by 2015, u.s. government will have 40% of the global market. we have created an advanced battery manufacturing facility -- facilities right here in the united states that are going to allow us to maintain that cutting edge. from the very first railroads to the interstate highway systems, our interstate has been built to compete. and ohio is a testament to that. two centuries ago, our nation's first federally funded highway, the national road was extended across ohio, bringing a generation of settlers west to

this new frontier and paving the way for the automobile that would transform our landscape. and for our economy to thrive in this new century, we've got to act with that same sense of purpose and that same spirit of innovation. that's why the recovery is just the beginning of the investments. we're going to have make for years on our infrastructure. it's just the beginning of the work of increase our mobility and our productivity, reducing congestion, reducing pollution, creating good jobs that can't be shipped overseas because we know what we can achieve when we act boldly and invest wisely. we're seeing it right here in this community. we see it in this hospital in the depths of its commitment to this city. we see it in the city leaders who saw a lead and decided to act. and we see it in the folks right here who are ready to get to work building this road and providing for their families. and i'm confident that we'll soon see it in new families and

businesses that are calling this area home. >> coming up next "live" on c-span, your call and comments on "washington journal" and a senate hearing with secretary of state hillary clinton and robert get as on the start missile treatity. -- treaty. .